"When did you arrive here, and why did you retreat from the northeast? Why come to this side, such a distant location?"
Zhang Tian looked at the four people and asked calmly.
The northeast was on one side of the map, and the desert was the opposite direction.
How could these two places be connected to this location?
Seeing Zhang Tian's question, the man in the lead became a bit flustered.
They said something he couldn't quite make out.
The leader then looked up and spoke.
"We are actually here for an archaeological dig. We borrowed these clothes, and now we just want to leave."
As he spoke, Zhang Tian scrutinized them again.
Their skin tone was normal, and their bodies seemed fine. Zhang Tian didn't believe they were there for archaeology; they were likely tomb raiders.
"Do you know what year it is?"
One of the men asked Zhang Tian.
"1978."
Zhang Tian replied.
The group on the other side clearly paused.
"Isn't it 1947?"
Suddenly, a middle-aged man exclaimed, and the four of them froze. They looked around, but saw nothing but sand.
"1947?"
Zhang Tian frowned slightly. That was thirty years ago, after the end of the Anti-Japanese War.
Hu Bayi returned from serving in the Kunlun Mountains in the 70s, but Zhang Tian hadn't expected these people to be from the 40s.
How could normal people survive here for so long? There could only be one truth: these people were not human.
Or rather, these people had been dead for a long time, and they just didn't know it.
"I don't feel any deathly aura from them, perhaps because of this mist," Zhang Tian thought to himself. His gaze returned to the four people, and his hands were already preparing to form seals.
"Thirty years? How is that possible!"
"We only just entered here, how could it have been thirty years?"
The leader's face was filled with shock. He couldn't fathom that he had only been here for a few days, yet thirty years had passed.
"You are already dead."
Zhang Tian said again. At the same time, he swung the Lu Shang King's sword behind him, splitting a charging zombie in half.
Zhang Tian hadn't even drawn the sword.
Seeing this, the leader's heart trembled.
He looked at his hand, his pupils dilating.
"This is impossible, I must get out, I haven't even seen my newborn child yet..."
His composure instantly shattered, and his body trembled with agitation.
Zhang Tian shook his head slightly and took out four talismans.
These were "Xianxie Talismans," which could reveal the true forms of hidden ghosts.
Zhang Tian had learned this from the Maoshan Taoist techniques given to him by Taoist Master Yimei.
During his days in Beili, Zhang Tian had gone through the Maoshan Taoist techniques once, and with his abilities, drawing talismans was a simple matter.
"If you don't believe me, stick this on your forehead."
Zhang Tian said, handing out the talismans.
The leader hesitated for a moment, and then the four of them affixed the talismans to their foreheads.
The next moment, as the black smoke dissipated, four desiccated skeletons appeared.
The skeletons were emaciated, looking as if they would collapse with a gust of wind.
A trace of shock appeared on the faces of the four.
In an instant, countless memories surged into their minds like a tide.
The dead only retained their most important memories from life; they had forgotten time, and even the fact that they were dead.
The leader's eyes widened with realization, and he sighed.
"I remember everything. We heard that there were countless treasures in the desert regions of Xia Nation, so we formed a team of thirty and entered the desert together."
"During that time, we encountered countless dangers, and too many people died. Our minds were on the verge of collapse."
"Finally, amidst a pile of bodies, we arrived here, and that was the beginning of the nightmare."
The leader sighed again as he spoke.
"During that time, we met many people like you, but they all eventually turned into mummies. The reason we are still here is that our will to live has not died."
"I hope you can help us with one thing, and I can tell you the way to leave here."
As he said this, Zhang Tian looked at him with surprise.
"Since you know the way out, why don't you leave yourselves?"
The man shook his head.
"We discovered it after we died. In this mist, there is a white camel. That white camel is said to be the reincarnation of a deity."
"I saw it before I died, but unfortunately, I couldn't wait for it."
As he spoke, Zhang Tian looked around. It seemed that to get out, he needed to find that desert spirit wandering in the desert.
"I understand. However, what is your request?"
Zhang Tian nodded and looked at the four.
"I have a letter here for my wife. If there's a chance..."
As he spoke, he took out a piece of paper, but as soon as he pulled it out, it turned to ash.
After being in the desert for so long, even people couldn't withstand it, let alone paper.
"This..."
"Alas, I might not have any requests anymore."
He sighed again, and the four shadows disappeared before Zhang Tian's eyes.
Zhang Tian shook his head slightly. They had managed to hold on until now, likely due to their lingering thoughts of their families.
Looking at the wind and sand, Zhang Tian began to walk forward.
He hoped to find that familiar white camel.
"Why does the white camel frequently appear in the desert to save people? Logically, this trapped formation doesn't want people to pass, yet it goes to save them. Doesn't this violate the principle?"
Zhang Tian mused as he walked.
An Liman had said that the white camel was the mount of the Princess of Loulan, but Zhang Tian couldn't understand why the white camel would help those trapped in the ancient city of Loulan.
While Zhang Tian was contemplating, it seemed as if more mummies were crawling out of the vast white sand. Their combat power was not strong; they were likely meant to swarm ordinary people.
Zhang Tian easily dealt with them and then looked into the distance.
In the distant wind and sand, Zhang Tian actually saw that white figure again.
At this moment, the white figure was like a beautiful silhouette by the River of Forgetfulness, warm and beautiful.
"This is... the white camel!"
Zhang Tian's heart leaped with joy at the sight, and he quickly rushed towards the white camel.
The white camel showed no signs of running away; instead, it waited for Zhang Tian to approach.
"So good."
Upon reaching the white camel, Zhang Tian gently stroked its head.
The white camel let out a cry and then directly allowed Zhang Tian to mount it, slowly moving in one direction.
Its hooves left footprints in the desert, and its body seemed to pass through layers of mist.
At the same time, countless insights into formation arrays appeared in Zhang Tian's mind.
"This is..."
On the back of the white camel, Zhang Tian's face was filled with shock, and he gradually became immersed in it.
After an unknown amount of time,
"I understand!"
Zhang Tian suddenly had an epiphany, his face filled with surprise.
"Thank you, white camel, this formation was built from piles of dead bodies, wasn't it!"
"First, a framework was set up, and then as long as someone died, the formation would grow stronger!"
Zhang Tian said. The white camel gave no response, merely continuing to carry Zhang Tian forward.
At this moment, the scenery before them also began to change.
Within a few minutes, the scene before them transformed into a golden desert.
The white camel beneath his feet also vanished.
Zhang Tian found himself standing on the outer edge of the misty formation again.
He looked at the mist not far away. On the outskirts of the mist, Zhang Qilin seemed to have already emerged.
He was looking at the mist with a strange expression.
Immediately after, a red figure, followed by Fatty, also rushed out.
Princess Wang had gone to great lengths for Fatty, and had encountered some danger inside.
Fatty was thrown out by Princess Wang, and Princess Wang, fearing the sunlight, retreated into the jade pendant.
"Feifei, be gentler next time, my body can't take it."
Fatty clutched his backside and looked behind him.
"Huh? Boss, Second Brother are both here? You guys are so fast, much faster than Fatty."
Fatty exclaimed in surprise.
Zhang Tian ignored Fatty and stood before the formation, constantly probing. He attempted to break it, but Zhang Tian realized that his current abilities were insufficient to do so.
"It seems I must learn Qimen Dunjia to the second level."
Zhang Tian muttered, feeling an urgent desire to grasp the deeper layers of Qimen Dunjia.
A short while later, Hu Bayi and Shirley Yang also emerged from the mist.
Hu Bayi was relatively fine, but Shirley Yang was covered in dirt.
Zhang Tian still held some admiration for Shirley Yang. After all, they had cultivation, while Shirley Yang initially did not.
Her ability to emerge from there was quite impressive.