Chapter 54: Breakup

Damn the heavens and curse the fate!

No wonder the female corpse-hag went berserk and relentlessly attacked Fatty Dong. The root of the trouble was that damn human-dragon intertwining jade pendant he had been carrying!

After the fellow took the artifact, though he wrapped it in a layer of plastic film, the thin wrap most likely tore open before midnight. The intense, pungent corpse stench emanating from the jade had completely provoked the corpse-hag.

Such a well-laid plan had been thoroughly disrupted before it could even begin, all because Fatty Dong acted like a rat licking a cat—just asking for death. We had all nearly perished back in the niche chamber.

I let out a long, heavy breath.

Dragon-spotting, antique appraisal, underworld arts... I wouldn't dare claim I am the best, but at least my eyes aren't blind.

Yet when it came to choosing teammates, I was truly, hopelessly blind!

"Fatty, we will always be brothers through life and death, but once we get out of this tomb, you are retiring from this trade."

"The money to build twenty Taoist temples—I will find a way to get it for you. That's final!"

Having said that, I grabbed Xiaoyao's hand and strode forward quickly.

Fatty Dong was dumbfounded. He froze for a second, shuddered violently, hurled the fatal jade pendant away without a second thought, and scrambled after us on the run.

"Xiao Meng, are you fucking dumping me?!"

"We are through!"

"Daoist master has already corrected his mistake."

"The damage is irreparable!"

"Even teeth and tongue get into fights when they're close, it's all about adjustment."

"There is zero adjustment to be made here!"

"Bah! Those are just scumbag quotes! Trying to ditch Daoist master? Absolutely impossible!"

Hearing this exchange, Xiaoyao couldn't take it anymore. She clutched her stomach and burst into bright, silvery laughter.

"You guys... are you dating?" Xiaoyao asked, pointing at us.

"What are you laughing at? You're the third wheel in our relationship!"

I was so exasperated by the fat block that I raised my leg and gave him a vicious kick.

"Shut your trap!"

Fatty Dong rubbed his leg, wincing and baring his teeth in pain.

I warned him: "If you don't want to die, follow me right now. But if you disobey orders again, I'll skin your pig hide!"

Fatty Dong: "..."

I snapped angrily, "Speak!"

Fatty Dong's fat face wore an expression of utter speechlessness: "Damn it! Weren't you just telling me to shut up?"

The few of us hurried forward along the passageway.

Jiang Sheng'er and the others had witnessed the terrifying scene in the niche chamber earlier and had fled in a hurry.

I needed to reach the main burial chamber as soon as possible to stop them from taking the Golden Silkworm Molting.

Just as we rounded a bend, several shotguns were aimed right at us.

Jiang Sheng'er and the other two stood with cold expressions, waiting at the corner.

I wasn't intimidated anymore.

By now, the female corpse-hag had been hit with corpse-repelling powder and had vanished along with Old Ou. The opposing party had completely lost their tomb navigator. If they wanted to make it out alive, they had to rely entirely on me; they wouldn't dare do anything to us.

I reached out two fingers, clamped them around the barrel of a shotgun, and pushed it away from my forehead.

"Second Master, I think you ought to be a bit more polite."

Before the words had even faded, I abruptly raised my hand.

*Crack!*

I landed a fierce, heavy slap across the face of the scarred-faced bodyguard who had been holding the shotgun against me.

He let out a miserable yelp as blood immediately spurted from his nose.

Praying Mantis Luo reacted with extreme speed. He reached out, grabbed my collar, hoisted me into the air, and raised his hand to strike back.

Fatty Dong and Xiaoyao immediately lunged forward, ready to attack Mantis Luo in unison.

Jiang Sheng'er shouted in a cold, stern voice.

"A-Zhi!"

Mantis Luo's eyes were filled with murderous intent. He glanced at us with utter disdain and released my collar.

Jiang Sheng'er remained as calm and composed as ever, slowly rolling the iron walnuts in his palms.

"Xiao Meng, I think you owe us an explanation."

I lowered my head and straightened my collar.

"About what?"

Jiang Sheng'er asked, "For instance, how were you able to lift the paralysis powder? What on earth is going on with Old Ou, and where has he run off to?"

There was nothing left to hide. I let out a light laugh.

"Qingguo is a legendary genius in the medical world. Surely you didn't think her skills couldn't neutralize the Old Skin Sect's paralysis powder that you and your sworn brother co-developed?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Sheng'er's aged face changed color, twisting into a painful expression of profound disappointment.

I continued to explain.

"As for Old Ou, you saw the situation clearly just now. He has long been symbiotically fused with the Ghost Tomb's corpse-hag; he is no longer human. Yet you were foolish enough to let him lead a team into the tomb! If we hadn't intervened in time, you would already be a pile of bones in this Western Zhou tomb. How do you still have the nerve to point shotguns at us?"

Jiang Sheng'er: "......"

*Crack!*

Without warning, I turned around and landed another fierce, heavy backhand slap across the scarred bodyguard's face.

Though the scarred bodyguard's martial arts were slightly inferior to Mantis Luo's, he was still a top-tier expert in the underworld. Having been humiliated like this repeatedly, his mentality had completely cracked.

"You motherfucker..."

He raised his hand, intending to beat me to death.

"A-Long!" Jiang Sheng'er shouted loudly to stop him, then looked at me with a cold face. "I believe you. Go on."

A-Long looked as though he wanted to bite through his own cheeks in rage, but with Jiang Sheng'er's order, he had no choice but to hold back.

I actually would have loved to slap Mantis Luo as well, but the fellow was standing too far out of reach.

As for Jiang Sheng'er, I couldn't hit him just yet. If I did, his fury would likely prompt him to order one of my arms or legs broken.

I rubbed my slightly aching hand.

"Where Old Ou went, I don't know. But he is definitely still in the tomb and could return at any moment."

"However, I hope you can recognize the reality of the situation. Only we can handle the mechanisms, hidden weapons, and various bizarre perils in this tomb. This is your only hope of getting out alive!"

In truth, at best we could only handle the traps and mechanisms. If Old Ou reappeared, our only option would be to chant the sacred Taoist incantations and pray to the heavens for mercy.

After all, the corpse-repelling powder was completely gone.

Still, if you don't bluff, how can you keep the upper hand?

Jiang Sheng'er let out a dry, chuckling laugh.

"Impressive! Xiao Meng, what do you suppose I should do next?"

I replied, "Though you wouldn't dare take our lives, you have two ferocious dogs by your side and can cripple us at any moment. Given that, I imagine Second Master will adopt a unique yet relatively polite approach to cooperate with us."

This was a delicate, temporary state of balance.

Without us, they couldn't get out.

If they couldn't get out, they certainly wouldn't let us live to see tomorrow's sun.

Both sides had no choice but to cooperate.

Jiang Sheng'er nodded and gestured to Mantis Luo.

Mantis Luo reached into his pack and pulled out three strange ropes.

Each rope was nearly three meters long, with cuffs resembling handcuffs attached to both ends.

Mandarin Duck Ropes!

The mechanisms at either end were locked onto the wrists of two people, with a single rope connecting them in the middle.

If they wanted to untie them, both parties had to agree, bring their arms together, and carefully align the locks to release them.

The slightest mistake would cause the mechanism to lock permanently, making it impossible to undo. To separate, the only option would be to sever the rope.

However, the ropes were specially crafted and could only be cut using a bull-horn blade forged from a precise alloy of refined copper.

Mandarin Duck Ropes were originally invented by ancient officials to escort high-security prisoners and prevent escapes. But later, because the craftsmanship was too complicated and it was cheaper to simply deploy more guards, the practice was gradually abandoned.

Though the government stopped using them, private escort agencies picked them up, primarily for transporting priceless treasures or VIPs.

Heaven knows where Mantis Luo had managed to dig these things up.

Mantis Luo stepped forward and locked the Mandarin Duck Ropes in place, pairing us up one by one:

A-Long with Fatty Dong, Jiang Sheng'er with Xiaoyao, and Mantis Luo with me.

The pairings were quite clever. They assigned Mantis Luo—their pinnacle martial artist—to keep watch over me. With his skills, I couldn't even touch a hair on his head.

Clearly, they had the bull-horn blades capable of cutting the ropes hidden on their persons. If we wanted to break free, we would either have to sever our own arms or disable our partners, whereas all they needed to do to cast us aside was give a gentle swipe with the blade.

Even in cooperation, the initiative remained firmly in the old man's hands.

Jiang Sheng'er was ruthless!

This incident taught me a profound lesson: in the face of absolute martial prowess, all clever techniques are nothing more than empty illusions.

Dragon-spotting and tomb-probing required mastery in both the literary and martial arts.

Still, it didn't matter.

Every hurdle must be crossed one by one.

The group moved forward along the winding passageway, and in just ten minutes, we reached the main burial chamber.

Before I could even make out the environment of the main chamber, my flashlight beam swept across the ground, illuminating an object that cast a faint, gloomy sheen. My mind exploded with a roar, and my entire body felt as though it had plunged into an icy cellar.

Sister-in-law's iron fan!

The surrounding ground was splattered with blood.

Liao Xiaoqian used to say: while the fan remains, she lives; if the fan is lost, her life is forfeit.

Something terrible had happened to her!