"Hurry up, it's already dark."
"Big Monkey, give me the flashlight, go help Dog carry the offerings."
The man called Big Monkey turned around and went to the back, while the man called Dog helped carry the rack, on which was placed a roast suckling pig.
"Third Uncle, could there really be a Yaksha demon here?" The man called Big Monkey had a pointed mouth and monkey-like cheeks, and he really did look like a monkey.
"Third Uncle, how about we come back during the day?" The man called Gouzi asked cautiously, glancing back every now and then.
"Do you think we have any way out?" The man called Third Uncle looked to be in his fifties, with a hunched back. "We've been in Xiliang for so long, and the adults have run out of patience. If we don't find the entrance to the royal tomb by tomorrow, neither of us will have a good ending!"
"But..." Gouzi was still uneasy. "There were more than ten of us when we came, but now there are only three of us left. They all died under suspicious circumstances. There might really be a Yaksha here!"
"Fortune favors the bold!" Uncle San looked sternly at his two juniors and apprentices. "We've spent half our lives tomb raiding. If we pull off this one job, we'll be set for life!"
"Don't you want to settle down and build a career in this Women's Kingdom?" Uncle San squinted. "The master said that as long as we accomplish our task, he will give you and me a place in Xiliang, instead of us being tomb raiders hiding here and there."
The big monkey and the dog couldn't help but greedily lick their lips as they recalled what they had seen and heard during their days of hiding.
In their eyes, the Western Liang Women's Kingdom was simply a paradise.
To die beneath a peony is to die a romantic death, even as a ghost.
The three quickened their pace.
In front of the tomb robber's hole at the foot of Tangwang Mausoleum, sacrificial offerings were laid out. In the center was a roast suckling pig, surrounded by pastries dotted with red dots. Next to it stood two paper-mache children, dressed in auspicious robes, with rouge on their faces, grinning.
Uncle San lit the incense and candles, then burned a stack of talismans, holding a soul-suppressing bell and a peach wood sword, chanting incantations as he performed the ritual.
Ring ring ring—
"Evil spirits, begone!"
Zhang Fan felt that with such a commotion, they weren't trying to exorcise the ghost, but rather to summon it.
“They’re tomb raiders who broke in,” Qiu Wanlan said, standing up. “I have to stop them.”
"Wait a minute." Zhang Fan heard some unusual sounds and quickly pulled Qiu Wanlan down. "There's no rush. Let's see what they're up to first."
The Xiliang Star orbit is covered by a large number of satellites forming a "sky net". Any aircraft that enters Xiliang airspace without permission will be shot down by the anti-aircraft missiles on the orbiting satellites.
Zhang Fan did not believe that tomb raiders could smuggle themselves into Xiliang; there must be a larger mastermind behind it, powerful enough to temporarily shut down "Skynet."
"Dog, you wait at the entrance. Big Monkey and I will go down." Uncle San said, then tied the rope around his body and crawled into the tunnel.
They brought a lot of tools such as chisels, hammers, and iron rods with the intention of opening the stone coffin in the lower tomb chamber.
They couldn't find the entrance to the Tang Dynasty tomb, but the stone coffin inside the tomb chamber, judging from its appearance, indicated that the deceased was a prominent figure. Opening the coffin would at least provide some explanation to the higher-ups.
The adults went to great lengths to send this group of tomb raiders to Xiliang, and they knew they wouldn't be able to leave Xiliang alive without success.
Grave robbing is a criminal act, and if adults wanted to kill them openly and honestly, it would be as easy as crushing an ant.
If it weren't for their skills in making a living, those noble adults would never have any dealings with lowly tomb raiders like them. Now, they have an opportunity—a chance to atone for their sins, change their ways, and live the life they've always dreamed of.
Even though seven or eight out of ten of their companions died tragically, they had no way out. They had spent so much money to dig the tunnel, and they had to achieve something no matter what.
"Second Aunt, when was the last time the Marquis's wife returned to the Qiu family to visit her relatives?" Zhang Fan suddenly asked.
“A month ago, when the Qiu family was holding a ancestral worship ceremony.”
"Is the Marquis traveling with you?"
“No, my sister came back alone.” Qiu Wanlan said, then turned to look at Zhang Fan with a puzzled expression. “Why are you suddenly asking this?”
"It's nothing," Zhang Fan smiled and continued looking down the mountain.
Who could be someone with the ability to shut down the "Skynet" of Xiliang Star and who is familiar with the internal situation of Xiliang Star?
This is interesting. Why would he want to dig up his mother-in-law's ancestral graves?
The Tang Emperor, the Qiu family, and Marquis Charles—the only thing that could bring these three together is…
Star nucleus.
If the Tang Emperor was indeed an ancient Martian being who traveled westward in search of the stolen star core, and the Charlie family, as the thieves, had become aware of the Tang Emperor's identity over such a long period of history?
If this is true, then Marquis Charles's elaborate efforts to marry Qiu Wanyan, the eldest daughter of the Qiu family, become more complex than they appear.
Ultimately, we still need to "meet" with the Tang King. If he is indeed the ancestor of the humans of Blue Star, then he will surely leave behind words for future generations.
rustling sound—
here we go again.
Zhang Fan pricked up his ears and heard that unusual sound again. He quickly pulled Qiu Wanlan down and hid behind the shelter.
"what?"
"Shh, don't make a sound." Zhang Fan put his finger to his lips, gesturing for silence. "You might see a Yaksha demon later."
"Don't scare me." Qiu Wanlan lowered her voice and nervously moved closer to Zhang Fan.
A single candlelight on Meishuangping stood out starkly against the dark wilderness, and a faint tinkling sound came from underground.
The dog sat by the bottomless tunnel, keeping watch, its hands idly tapping its knees in rhythm with the clanging sounds coming from underground.
Those sounds were Uncle Three and Big Monkey using the tools they brought to carve out the stone coffin.
Er Gou is Uncle San's nephew, and Da Ma Hou is Uncle San's grandson. People in their line of work are all related by blood.
Outsiders cannot be trusted. In tomb raiding, some are so greedy that they abandon all righteousness, sealing the rest of the people in the tomb after taking the treasure, while they themselves enjoy the spoils.
The dog's action of patting its knees while sitting at the entrance of the hole stopped abruptly, because the clanging sound from underground had ceased.
Has the sarcophagus been opened?
The dog excitedly peered into the hole, but the tunnel was pitch black, and apart from the edge of the opening illuminated by candlelight, nothing else could be seen.
Ring ring ring—
A moment later, a series of urgent bell rings echoed across the wilderness.
The rope tied to the tree trembled rapidly, causing the soul-suppressing bell on the rope to ring urgently.
The other end of the rope was connected to the ground. The bell was a signal that Uncle San and the others had encountered an emergency underground. Gouzi immediately grabbed the rope with both hands and pulled upwards with all his might.
This is the underground tomb.
"Third Uncle! Third Uncle! Let me in first!"
Big Monkey threw away his tools, only to find that his third uncle had already crawled into the tunnel.
"Uncle, wait for me!"
The big monkey hurriedly followed and also crawled into the tomb.
rustling sound—
"Third Uncle!" Hearing the voice behind him, Big Monkey looked back and was terrified. "Don't leave me behind, Third Uncle!"
The tunnel was narrow, and Uncle San couldn't climb very fast, so Big Monkey immediately grabbed one of Uncle San's legs.
"They're here! Uncle, save me! Ahhh—" the big monkey screamed in agony.
The tunnel was narrow, so Uncle San couldn't see what was behind the big monkey. But along with the big monkey's screams, he heard a cracking sound of bones being cut.
"Ahhh—"
The big monkey's eyes bulged out, and it clung tightly to its third uncle's legs with both hands.
Uncle hardened his heart and gritted his teeth, saying, "Big monkey, your uncle has treated you well all these years. Today is the day for you to fulfill your filial duty. Don't blame your uncle when you go down to the underworld."
As he said this, Uncle San kicked his feet downwards repeatedly.
"Waaaaah..."
The big monkey's head was the first to be hit, its entire face twisted and deformed, kicked by the spiked shoes until it was a bloody mess, with blood, snot, and tears mixed together, and it could no longer scream.
Click, click, click!
With a snapping sound from behind, the big monkey's eyes glazed over, and it let go of his grip. Uncle San immediately climbed up the rope quickly, without even glancing at his maternal uncle behind him.
Don't blame me, but it's better for only one person to die than for two people to die.
With one less person, the rope above started pulling faster. With the large monkey's corpse blocking the way behind, the cracking sounds gradually faded into the distance, as if the danger was slowly receding.
Light could already be seen at the cave entrance ahead. Overjoyed, Uncle San shouted, "Quick, pull me up!"
"Third Uncle, what happened? Where's Big Monkey?" Gouzi asked, peering out of the cave entrance.
"Pull me up! Quick!" Uncle San grabbed Gouzi's hand.
rustling sound—
Upon hearing these sounds, Uncle Three froze, then grabbed Gouzi's arm and yelled, "Pull me! Pull me! Pull me now!"
The dog was startled by its uncle's reaction and grabbed its uncle's hand to pull it up. The tunnel was too narrow, and the whole process was like pulling up a radish.
After a series of forceful tugs and pulls, just as Uncle San's waist and above were about to be exposed through the hole, Gouzi suddenly felt a weight in his hand, and then Uncle San's body was pulled back down to below his chest.
"What's wrong, Uncle? Is the big monkey down there?" Gouzi continued to pull upwards, but found that he couldn't pull it up no matter what he did.
Like a tug-of-war, Uncle San's body was sinking little by little into the cave entrance.
Click, click, click!
Uncle San's eyes were wide open like copper bells, and his eyeballs seemed about to pop out.
"Third Uncle, say something!"
The dog positioned itself at the entrance of the hole and pulled upwards with all its might.
"Eeya!"
With all his might, Gouzi suddenly felt a lightness in his hand, and then Uncle San was pulled out. Caught off guard, Gouzi fell backward to the ground.
"Third Uncle, what..." Gouzi got up and was about to speak when he was immediately frightened by the scene before him.
Uncle San lay prostrate on the ground, his hands raised high, still holding the dog's hands, his eyes rolled upwards, unblinking, only the whites of his eyes visible.
The dog finally understood why his third uncle's weight had decreased: he could only lift half of his third uncle; the rest of his body had disappeared.
Fresh blood and protruding intestines connected the upper half of the body to the tunnel.
"Waaaaahh ...
The dog was terrified and howled as it backed away, bracing itself on its hands and feet.
rustling sound—
Yaksha demon.
A notorious demon in hell, wielding a titanium fork, who eats human flesh and drinks human blood. Due to his numerous misdeeds and sins, he was punished by Yama to stand guard at the Gates of Hell for years on end.
The dog saw a pair of forks sticking out of the hole, then two pairs, three pairs, four pairs...
"Waaah..." The dog's face was covered in snot and tears.
"Third Uncle, Big Monkey, we've dug through the gates of hell! Waaah..."
In the dog's eyes, the monster in front of him could only look like a demon from hell.
"Ahhh—"
Click, click, click!
Screams echoed through Meishuangping, then quickly returned to silence. The dark figures on the ground crawled into the tomb and soon disappeared.
On the cliff face, Qiu Wanlan had been covering her mouth with her hand to keep herself from making a sound, but now she dared to let go and take a deep breath.
"That...that's a Yaksha demon?"
“That should be it.” Zhang Fan nodded. “But it’s just a ‘little devil’; the ‘big devil’ hasn’t appeared yet.”
"What do we do now?" Qiu Wanlan asked anxiously.
Should she escape? But in this situation, she really didn't dare leave the cliff face and go down to the flat ground. Should she go back to the Qiu family and tell everyone? Say that she saw a yaksha demon at the Tang Emperor's Mausoleum? She figured no one would believe her anyway.
Qiu Wanlan was at her wits' end and wondered if Zhang Fan had any good ideas on how to leave.
"What should we do?" Zhang Fan crawled back into his sleeping bag and lay down, saying, "Of course, we should take a nap first."
“We can’t go any further into this tomb. Tomorrow I’ll take you to the entrance of the Tang Emperor’s Mausoleum.”
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