Chen Rongsheng

Chapter 199 Outside the Crystal Palace

This was, after all, the first time the Xiaoling Guard had seen the remains of an ancient Shu person. In addition, these remains looked so different, with their vertical eyes and skin lesions, that Old Wei, Xiao Liang, and Hu Wazi couldn't help but gather around, squatting on the ground to carefully observe the body.

I recalled the things that had happened in the ancient Shu tomb in the Duck River, and the more I thought about it, the more frightened I became. I told them, "You should try to stay away from that ancient corpse. Mr. Liao went insane because he carried that old corpse on his back."

After I said that, Old Wei and the others scattered in a swarm, no longer daring to approach the old corpse.

Xiao Liang took the initiative to walk to the section of wooden stake and looked at it carefully. He nodded and said, "Chen Rongsheng, you guessed right. This wooden stake should have been used to hold the old corpse. The inner cavity has been hollowed out, and there's still some coffin liquid left."

I walked over and took a closer look. I saw that there were indeed traces of artificial damage on the outside of the wooden stake.

I analyzed it again and said, "In my opinion, after this deceased person died, they should have been wrapped in a shroud, the trunk of a tree hollowed out, and then he was placed inside. At that time, the tree should still have been in its growing stage. After the body was placed inside, the tree trunk grew for a few years, and the wound on the outside naturally healed, completely sealing the body inside the tree trunk. After a few more years, the tree died of old age, and the descendants of the deceased cut down the tree, cut off the section of the tree trunk containing the body, and transferred it to this tomb."

After listening, Xiao Liang reached out and stroked the wooden stake in front of him, nodding and saying, "Yes, you're right. This tree does have traces of secondary growth. It was probably cut open to hold the deceased, and then it naturally grew and healed."

I said, "The burial method in the ancient Shu tomb in the Duck River was also like this. Shopkeeper Wang once said that the ancient Shu people believed that this method could bring the dead back to life."

As soon as he heard the words "bring the dead back to life," Hu Wazi became energetic.

He pointed to the remains of the grave robbers in the outer tomb chamber and said, "Brother-in-law, do you think those people outside can be considered to have come back to life? Is this the resurrection that the ancient Shu people wanted?"

When I thought of the way those corpses had reanimated, I felt a cold sweat run down my back.

I shook my head and said, "That can only be considered a zombie, right? It doesn't seem like a resurrection."

Hu Wazi asked again, "Is it because these grave robbers dragged the tomb owner's body out of this tree trunk that they were punished and went insane?"

I nodded and said, "That's possible. Anyway, it's better to be respectful to the tomb owner, otherwise there won't be a good end."

Just as we were discussing, I suddenly heard a sound coming from the depths of the tomb chamber. I subconsciously pointed my flashlight in that direction and suddenly saw a figure!

"Someone!"

I shouted quickly.

"Who?! Who's there?" Old Wei also asked.

Then, I heard a burst of footsteps, as if someone was running away from the depths of the tomb chamber, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

I turned to ask the old man, "Old man, is that a dead end?"

The old man shook his head and replied, "It's not a dead end. The tomb chambers here all have two doors, front and back. If you go out that door and through two more tomb chambers, you'll reach the Crystal Palace."

Old Wei immediately guessed, "Could it be Liu Huangshu's people? We've seen several of Liu Huangshu's men along the way."

I counted on my fingers and said, "There are three who are insane, and three who died in the tomb chamber. I estimate there aren't many of Liu Huangshu's men left, right?"

"That's not right, there's also Liu Huangshu himself!" Old Wei said, "We haven't seen that Liu Huangshu with arms that reach past his knees yet!"

When I heard this, it made sense.

I had seen Liu Huangshu once before, and I would definitely recognize him if I saw him again.

Besides, that guy's arms reach past his knees, so with that characteristic, I definitely wouldn't mistake him for someone else!

"Could that person just now have been Liu Huangshu?" I asked.

Hu Wazi slapped his thigh and decisively said, "What are we waiting for? Chase him! Hurry!"

After Hu Wazi shouted, we started running after that person.

Old Wei was more careful. Before chasing, he grabbed the old man who was leading the way and made him follow us.

The old man was old and didn't have our stamina. After running a few steps with us, he immediately begged for mercy, panting, "Run slower! Run slower! I can't keep up, I can't keep up..."

Old Wei ignored him and dragged him along as we sprinted. We passed through the remaining tomb chambers, went through a corridor, and entered the remaining tomb chambers.

After passing through the last tomb chamber and going out the door, I looked up and saw that the Crystal Palace, which I had seen through the crack in the wall, was now close at hand.

About forty or fifty steps away, further ahead was the Crystal Palace. This Crystal Palace stood at the deepest part of the underground palace, looking like a courtyard surrounded by four suites.

The overall terrain of the Crystal Palace was lower than where we were now. To get to the Crystal Palace from where we were, we had to cross a gorge that was twenty meters deep.

I walked to the edge of the gorge, lowered my head and looked down. It was very deep below, and I couldn't see anything in the darkness, but I could vaguely hear the sound of rushing water, as if an underground river was flowing through here.

From our side to the other side of the Crystal Palace, there was an ancient rope bridge in the middle. This rope bridge seemed to be connected by metal chains made of bronze, and the middle was paved with stone slabs. I tried to walk two steps on it, and as soon as I stepped on it, the entire rope bridge shook violently.

We stopped here.

Old Wei turned back to ask the old man who was leading the way, "Is this the only way? Did that person just now go this way?"

The old man was already panting from exhaustion, but he still wiped the sweat from his forehead and answered us. He responded and said, "Yes, this is the only...only way. That person probably...probably went to the Crystal Palace."

Old Wei turned back to look at us and asked, "Should we go over there?"

Hu Wazi clenched his fists and said through gritted teeth, "Nothing ventured, nothing gained! Let's go!"

Just as I was about to express my opinion, Xiao Liang, who was standing next to me, suddenly pointed to the Crystal Palace and said to us, "Wait, look! Is there someone inside the Crystal Palace?"

When I heard this, I quickly squinted my eyes and looked at the Crystal Palace on the opposite side.

Through the translucent walls and houses of the Crystal Palace, I could vaguely see a faint figure appearing inside.

"Is it Liu Huangshu? Has Liu Huangshu already gone in?" Hu Wazi asked loudly.

Xiao Liang shook his head and said, "It doesn't look like it. The more I look at this figure, the more it looks like a girl."