Clang! With a loud thud, Yang Xiao's eyes rolled back as the bronze nail slipped from his hand and clattered to the ground. He fell backwards with a crash. In an instant, over a hundred desiccated corpses swarmed over him, seemingly ready to tear him apart.
Yang Xiao was like a man struck by a pressure point—completely immobilized. He didn't so much as flinch, not even his gaze moved. In the blink of an eye, the mass of corpses piled on top of him like a grotesque human pyramid, burying him completely beneath them.
Just seconds earlier, I'd thought Yang Xiao had the situation under control. Back in the Water Curtain Cave, I had witnessed how Wu Rendi dealt with dried corpses—those things were utterly powerless in front of him. All they could do was beg or run. Yang Xiao wasn't on Wu Rendi's level, but against a hundred or so corpses that were no more than a couple decades old, he shouldn't have had a problem.
And yet, in a heartbeat, everything changed.
Xiong Wanyi, Ximen Lian, and Mi Rongheng had already drawn their batons and charged in. Sun Fatty and I pulled our pistols—Bang! Bang! Bang! A volley of gunfire took down several of the corpses at the top of the pile.
But the corpses reacted swiftly. As soon as the shots rang out, they scattered in every direction with inhuman speed. By the time Xiong Wanyi and the others reached the spot, only Yang Xiao and a few downed corpses remained on the ground.
Sun Fatty swung his pistol around, scanning the surroundings. "Lazi, where's that Tao bastard?"
Only then did I notice that Tao Xiangkong, who had been standing not far away, had completely vanished.
"Where the hell did he go?" I turned in a full circle, pistol raised, but didn't see any sign of him. Sun Fatty backed up against me, both of us covering each other—an instinctive defensive formation. He said behind me, "That prick was here just a second ago. Blinked and he was gone." Not only had Tao Xiangkong disappeared, but so had Zhao Minmin, the girl who'd just vomited a faceful of black blood onto Yang Xiao.
But we didn't have time to worry about them now—Xiong Wanyi and Ximen Lian had already carried Yang Xiao back.
One look at Yang Xiao, and I felt a chill in my spine. His face was smeared with blood as black as ink. Unlike corpse oil, this black blood couldn't be wiped off—it had already seeped into his flesh, like some monstrous birthmark. His complexion was pale as paper, ghostly white. Yang Xiao's eyes were shut, completely unconscious. When I pried open one of his eyelids, a gush of fresh blood surged from his eye socket.
I nearly jumped in shock.
Next, blood began oozing from his mouth, nose, and ears. It was the classic case of bleeding from all seven orifices.
The amount of blood pouring out was staggering—as if something inside him had burst open. In mere moments, a thick pool of blood had formed beneath him.
"Cover his mouth, Lazi! Cover his mouth!" Ximen Lian shouted from beside me.
"Do that now and he'll choke to death," Sun Fatty barked, already crouching to roll Yang Xiao on his side to let the blood drain more easily.
"Don't touch him! That's the Ancestor Shaman's blood," said Wu Rendi as he stepped in and stopped Sun Fatty. Strangely, during the chaos earlier, there had been no sign of him. But now that Tao Xiangkong and the corpses had vanished, Wu Rendi and Shao Yiyi suddenly appeared again.
Wu Rendi gave instructions: "Keep watch on the perimeter. Shen La, you help me... Yiyi, stay close by." Even though everyone had noticed Wu Director's powers had declined recently, none of us dared to ignore his orders.
Sun Fatty and the others moved out a few steps to give us space. Wu Rendi lifted Yang Xiao's head, then bit his own index finger and smeared his blood onto Yang Xiao's face.
I watched, stunned. The moment Wu Rendi's blood touched the black stains on Yang Xiao's face, the inky blood began to thin out—like grease meeting detergent. Wu Rendi wiped casually a few times, and the once-unremovable black blood was now smudged and streaked across Yang Xiao's skin.
His face looked like a clown's now, smeared with grotesque patterns. But ever since the black blood had been wiped off, the bleeding from his orifices had stopped. Seeing that Yang Xiao was finally out of immediate danger, I turned to Wu Rendi and asked, "You said the blood on Yang Xiao's face was the Ancestor Shaman's blood? The same Ancestor Shaman from the Water Curtain Cave in Yunnan?"
Wu Rendi didn't answer. Instead, he took out a small porcelain bottle containing corpse oil, unscrewed the lid, and proceeded to do something that nearly made me retch.
He poured the corpse oil directly into Yang Xiao's mouth.
Xiong Wanyi clamped a hand over his nose and shouted, "What the hell is that stench? That's corpse stink! And it's strong! This one's a big one! Everyone be careful—this time we're up against a real boss!"
Everyone could smell it. It was rank beyond belief. Xiong Wanyi had a sharp nose—he immediately recognized the reek as that of corpse rot. What he didn't realize was just where the smell was coming from.
On this side, after Yang Xiao was forced to swallow half a bottle of corpse oil, he had already opened his eyes. His gaze was a bit dazed as he glanced at Wu Rendi, clicking his mouth, then noticed the small porcelain bottle in Wu Rendi's hand and asked, "What exactly did you pour into my mouth just now?"
Wu Rendi showed no expression, calmly screwing the cap back onto the small porcelain bottle. He said, "You really want to know?"
Yang Xiao was starting to understand a bit. He steadied himself and got up from the ground. As soon as he stood, he couldn't hold it anymore—he vomited everything out of his stomach, including the half bottle of corpse oil he just swallowed.
Sun Fatty watched in confusion beside him, thinking that Yang Xiao vomiting was a normal detox reaction. He walked over holding his nose and said, "Director Wu, I'm not trying to be nosy, but what exactly did you feed Yang Xiao? Such severe injuries, and just one dose worked immediately—a miracle cure! Do you have more? Could you give me a few bottles just in case? Would it work if I held some in my mouth beforehand?"
I couldn't hold it any longer after hearing this. I bent down and puked right next to Yang Xiao.
After spitting out the bitter gall water, Sun Fatty looked at me in surprise. "Lazi, are you okay? You drank that stuff too? The taste isn't good, huh?"
"Shut up!"
Xiong Wanyi kicked Sun Fatty from behind. "Sun Fatty, don't ask stupid questions." It seemed like he had already guessed what was inside the little porcelain bottle.
Yang Xiao finally finished vomiting. He sat on the ground, catching his breath for a while, then gasped as he turned back to Wu Rendi and said, "How did you know… that oil could neutralize the Ancestor Shaman's blood poison?"
"Could it neutralize poison? I don't know," Wu Rendi tossed the small porcelain bottle to him. "That's the only thing I had on me to pour into your mouth. Had to try it, right?"
Yang Xiao didn't get angry after hearing that. Instead, he gave Wu Rendi a bitter smile and pocketed the small bottle of corpse oil.
Mi Rongheng said, "The mummies all slipped through the back door of the dark chamber. During the chaos just now, over a hundred female students disappeared too. What now? Move forward or wait for backup from the bureau?" His words were ambiguous, as if addressing Wu Rendi, but his eyes glanced intentionally at Yang Xiao.
Yang Xiao and Wu Rendi hesitated for a moment; neither gave an immediate answer. Xiong Wanyi muttered nearby, "There are still over a hundred female students inside…"
"Keep moving forward," Yang Xiao finally said. "Tao Xiangkong's trump card has already been revealed. I'm not worried about what's left. There are still dozens of mummies; you all have pistols and batons, so it should be manageable."
"Are you alright?" Mi Rongheng frowned, glancing at Yang Xiao. Yang Xiao was still staggering as he spoke, his face pale. After bleeding so much from all seven orifices, he had truly suffered.
"No problem," Yang Xiao gritted his teeth and said. Then he pulled out a small rectangular wooden box and took out a gray incense stick, handing it to Mi Rongheng. "Light this for me."
After Mi Rongheng lit the incense, Yang Xiao didn't take it back immediately. Instead, he bit his own index finger, squeezing out a drop of fresh blood (it had taken a while to get even one drop after so much bleeding just now) and dropped it onto the tip of the incense. There was a faint sizzle as the flame was extinguished by the blood drop, but to everyone's surprise, a thin wisp of smoke rose from the incense tip.
That blue-green smoke seemed almost conscious as it floated gently into the dark chamber. I felt this scene was familiar, like when Xiao Heshang once used a similar method in the underground cave by the Qing River. Yang Xiao's looked even more formal.
After about the time it takes for a pouch of incense to burn, no abnormalities appeared inside the dark chamber. Yang Xiao said, "Let's go in. It should be safe now. Shen La, you and Sun Dasheng go first."
"Why us?" Sun Fatty immediately got anxious. "Why do only the two of us go first? If we go, we should all go together. You know, strength in numbers."
Yang Xiao said, "It's just a narrow path inside. If too many people go in, it'll be cramped. If something happens, no one can get out."
Sun Fatty was still reluctant. "Then why me and Lazi? Why not… Xiong Wanyi and the Ximen? Or Mi Rongheng and Xiong Wanyi?"
Yang Xiao's reason made Sun Fatty hesitate. "Because you two have guns."
Sun Fatty frowned deeply and thought for a moment, then handed his pistol to me. "Lazi, are you good with dual guns?"
I glared at him. "What do you mean?"
Sun Fatty said with a worried face, "Lazi, I'm not saying this to scare you, but ever since we came out of the Water Curtain Cave, I've been having nightmares every night. It's left a shadow on me. If I have to go through it again, I might just break down."
If I didn't know Sun Fatty well, I might have fallen for it. But after spending so much time with him, I knew exactly what crap he was pulling. "Don't try that. Up the mountain of knives, down the pot of boiling oil — we're going together!" I said, pushing Sun Fatty toward the dark chamber.
Though very unwilling, Sun Fatty half-pushed, half-followed me toward the dark chamber. At the entrance, it was pitch black inside; he couldn't see the situation and didn't dare to enter rashly.
He couldn't see, but I could see clearly: the inside was empty, no ambush. Before Sun Fatty could stop me, I stepped in and swept the gun muzzle around, checking all directions—no suspicious signs. I then turned back to him and said, "Come in, it's safe inside."
Sun Fatty stuck his head halfway in first, shining his flashlight on every corner, making sure there was no danger. Only then did he cautiously walk in. He kept shining the light around, then lowered his voice and said, "Lazi, your Heavenly Eye is open again?"
I was stunned for a moment, unsure how to respond. Sun Fatty chuckled and said, "Don't worry, I saw it. Honestly, those outside are more concerned about Yang Xiao. And Yang Xiao probably noticed it too."
To be honest, if Wu Rendi hadn't warned me repeatedly, I wouldn't have thought to hide it even from Sun Fatty. Now that he'd found out, I felt a bit embarrassed. "Dasheng, I won't hide it anymore. When Wu Rendi and I took the back way, he reopened my Heavenly Eye for me. He kept telling me not to reveal it."
"No problem, I guessed it anyway," Sun Fatty chuckled carelessly. Then he changed the subject, "But seriously, Lazi, what's up with Wu Rendi? Has he really reverted to his true form, or is he just pretending? I'm not kidding, he's schemed against his enemies more than once or twice."
I gave a bitter smile. "I really don't know. You better ask him yourself. If he's in a good mood, he might tell you."
"Forget it." Sun Fatty shook his head without hesitation. "If he really reverted, I don't dare to mess with him. One more question: what exactly is the relationship between Shao Yiyi and him? You can tell me that, right?"
I hesitated. With Sun Fatty's smarts, he'd figure out Wu Rendi and Shao Yiyi's connection sooner or later. Might as well tell him now. Just as I was about to speak, I heard Wu Rendi shouting loudly outside: "You two, stop wasting time and move forward!"
Sun Fatty and I both snapped to attention. Judging by his tone, even if he reverted to his true form, he wasn't weak.
Sun Fatty took a few steps forward, then made a face back at me, whispering, "He's probably faking it. Not sure who's gonna get unlucky this time."
Sun Fatty and I continued forward, reaching the back of the dark chamber. I sensed heavy danger behind the door but couldn't tell how many mummies were lying in wait.
Sun Fatty seemed to read something on my face. He grabbed my arm and shouted back, "Come in, it's sa—"
Before he could finish, the back door of the dark chamber suddenly burst open with a bang. Thirty or forty mummies rushed in, pushing and shoving, lunging straight at me and Sun Fatty.
Luckily, the door was narrow and clogged for a moment as the mummies tried to squeeze through. In that brief moment, Sun Fatty and I both stepped back half a pace and fired our guns.
"Bang bang bang bang…" A burst of bullets went out, dropping more than a dozen mummies. The bureau's specially made bullets were surprisingly effective against mummies. A direct hit to a vital spot meant instant death.
One mummy struck by Sun Fatty's bullet wasn't hit in a vital area. Its stomach wound rapidly expanded from a small bullet hole to the size of a soup bowl in seconds. The mummy let out a few mournful groans before going still.