It was completely dark, like a huge black cloth covering the place. The old Taoist sat by the pit, his brows furrowed so deeply they could trap a fly, his heart filled with unease. He had a feeling that Yun Qi was in big trouble. What time was it? The two groups of people he had sent down to investigate earlier had vanished without a trace, not a sound.

Company Commander Li was also extremely anxious, pacing back and forth like a cat on a hot tin roof, muttering to himself, "Something's happened, something's definitely happened. What on earth is hiding down there? Why haven't we heard a thing?" The old Taoist priest glanced at the company commander, clicked his tongue, and said, "Company Commander, it's already so dark today. Sending more men down would just be a waste of time. If you ask me, let's wait until tomorrow morning and send a few brothers down to take a look." The company commander sighed deeply and stamped his foot, "Sigh! That's all we can do." But the worry on his face never faded; it was almost twisted into a pretzel.

That night, the old Taoist lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. He finally drifted off, and when he opened his eyes again, it was already dawn. The old Taoist jumped out of bed, hurriedly left the tent, called to Yun Ba, and rushed towards the rubble pit. His steps were so fast, it was as if something was chasing him.

Upon reaching the pit, they saw Company Commander Li and a group of men circling it, pointing and discussing something. Company Commander Li looked up and saw the old Taoist priest, calling out, "Taoist Master, you've arrived. We were thinking of sending another platoon of soldiers down to see if we could find the people who went down yesterday." The old Taoist priest nodded and said, "Alright, I'll have my disciple Yun Ba go down with me. Yun Ba knows some medicine; if there's any poisonous gas down there, he can handle it." Company Commander Li's eyes lit up, and he quickly said, "That's wonderful!"

In no time, more than twenty soldiers were ready, each one looking very spirited. They pulled themselves up by the ropes and slid down to the bottom of the pit with a "whoosh." The scene was quite spectacular.

Yun Ba and the platoon leader led a group of more than twenty people, dressed in combat uniforms, wearing steel helmets, and fully equipped with guns and ammunition, as if they were about to head to a brutal battlefield. The group carefully descended along the pit wall to the bottom, where a mysterious and eerie atmosphere permeated the air.

They marched along the riverbank, each step cautious, their heavy combat boots rustling on the gravel. The group huddled together tightly, showing no intention of separating, for the unknown environment filled them with vigilance.

They walked for an unknown amount of time and distance, probably several miles, when the sight before them made everyone gasp. Three skeletons lay there, their white bones starkly visible in the dim light. Several pistols were scattered around them, and dozens of spent shell casings lay on the ground, seemingly telling the story of a fierce battle. The group froze, exchanging bewildered glances, their eyes filled with shock and confusion, their expressions silently asking, "What happened?"

The platoon leader frowned, a hint of seriousness flashing in his eyes. He cleared his throat and said loudly, "Everyone, search the area and see if you can find any clues." The men scattered and began searching the surroundings carefully. A moment later, someone shouted, "Platoon leader, we've found something over here!" Everyone rushed over and saw Yun Qi's remains lying quietly on a small hillside, next to a Vajra sword. The sword seemed to still emit a faint, cold light, but now it appeared utterly desolate.

Yun Ba's face turned deathly pale instantly. His lips trembled as he rushed over, shouting, "Seventh Brother!" His voice echoed through the empty pit, filled with boundless grief. He threw himself beside Yun Qi's remains, tears streaming down his face. His hands trembled uncontrollably, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. His cries moved everyone present, their hearts clenching as if being violently torn apart.

After a long while, the crowd slowly gathered around, tears welling in their eyes. They gently placed the skeletons into the bag, their movements as tender as if they were handling their most precious treasures. Then they placed the bag by the roadside, each person watching silently, thinking that when they returned after completing this mission, they must bring them up with them so that they could be laid to rest. They were brothers; whether in life or death, they could not be abandoned in this cold and terrifying place.

After resting for a while, the platoon leader spoke up: "Let's cross the river and take a look. The water isn't deep, it only comes up to our thighs." After saying that, everyone rolled up their trousers, took off their shoes, and walked into the underground river.

After crossing the river, they walked several miles along the underground caves. Strangely, the river had disappeared; the water had all seeped into the ground. The platoon leader turned to Yun Ba and asked, "Taoist Master, should we continue forward, or go back the way we came?"

Yun Ba lowered his head and pondered for a while before slowly saying, "If we go back like this, our senior brothers will have died in vain. We have to keep going; maybe we'll make some new discoveries." The platoon leader nodded and told everyone to continue on their way.

They walked for several more miles, carrying their dim torches, but then they found themselves blocked by a huge stone wall. Yun Ba, holding a torch, searched the surroundings, but after looking for a long time, there was nothing within a hundred meters.

The platoon leader frowned and muttered, "What the hell is this? How come there's no way out!" He then took a torch and tapped on the stone wall, trying to see if there was any mechanism.

A soldier approached, muttering, "Platoon leader, what do we do? Are we going to be trapped here?" His face was full of worry. Yun Ba squinted, muttering incantations as if he were casting some kind of spell to probe the mysteries of the stone wall. After a while, he frowned, shook his head, and seemed to have no clue either.

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