A pleasant fragrance wafted through the air. Could this magical flower be poisonous? Typically, poisonous plants and animals are brightly colored. The Corpse Flower had red leaves and green flowers, so vivid they seemed to glisten. It might indeed be toxic. Thinking of this, I quickly urged everyone to put on their gas masks.
Fatty said, “This flower doesn’t look poisonous to me. Poisonous things are usually small, but this one is huge, like a big barrel. I think it’s a man-eating flower.”
Shirley Yang replied, “It can’t be a man-eating flower. There aren’t even any ants around here. If this flower relied on eating animals, it would have withered long ago. The coffin made from the Kunlun divine tree must provide it with enough nutrients.”
Fatty scoffed, “Who cares what it is? I’ll just shoot it a few times and smash it. Then we can go check out what the first beauty of the Western Regions looks like.”
Professor Chen warned, “Absolutely not! We should avoid it rather than destroy this precious Corpse Flower.”
I turned the spotlight to illuminate the area around the coffin, hoping to help the professor and others see better. Under the light, I noticed many inscriptions carved along the edge of the stone beam, densely packed with Ghost Cave script—there were hundreds of them. This was a significant discovery. The entire ancient city, including the temple and underground palace, had very few inscriptions, mostly relying on murals for records. Only the jade eyes in the temple had some Ghost Cave script, but I hadn’t had the chance to examine them closely before they were shattered. I was surprised to find so many inscriptions on this stone beam.
Writing is the most basic symbol for humans to convey information. Ancient murals provide a direct impression, while the information contained in writing is much more precise. If we could decipher these Ghost Cave inscriptions, it would save us a lot of time in understanding the Jingjue civilization.
Professor Chen hurriedly instructed the students to record the inscriptions, section by section. Fortunately, the characters were large enough that they could be illuminated with the spotlight for easy recording. Shirley Yang was also taking photos with her camera.
Fatty and I had nothing to do. Since Professor Chen wouldn’t let us smoke here, we sat on the ground and waited for them to finish.
It seemed this archaeological work was coming to an end. The findings were significant; just the well-preserved murals in the heavenly brick passage would shock the archaeological world for two years. Not to mention the bottomless pit, the coffin made from the Kunlun divine tree, and the ancient Corpse Flower—each of these would keep scholars busy for a long time. Without any protective measures, it was impossible for us to open the coffin and see the first beauty of the Western Regions. A few days ago, when we saw the coffin of Prince Gumo in the holy well, Professor Chen had clearly forbidden us from opening it. Such actions would need to be reported and approved by the leaders first, so I wouldn’t have the chance to see it.
It was a pity that Hao Aiguo died in the valley. If he had seen this, I wondered how excited he would have been. I couldn’t help but feel regret and a bit of guilt. If only I had acted a little faster back then… But then again, there are so many “if onlys” in this world. Memories flooded back, and the more I thought about it, the harder it became to stay calm.
Fatty noticed I was lost in thought and patted my shoulder. “Old Hu, what are those two guys doing over there?”
I snapped back to reality and looked over. I saw Chu Jian and Sa Dipeng walking onto the stone beam. Didn’t the professor say not to disturb the queen’s coffin? I quickly asked what was going on.
Professor Chen explained, “It’s fine. They’re not going to look at the coffin. There’s a lot of dust in the middle of the stone beam that obscures the inscriptions. They’re just going to sweep it away and come back. They’re wearing gas masks, so they’ll be fine.”
I wanted to call the two students back and go in their place, but Professor Chen said, “No need. The Ghost Cave inscriptions on that stone beam are very important. You’re not professionals in this area, and it would be troublesome if something got damaged. Chu Jian and the others will carefully clean the dust and debris with a brush. They’re quick and should be done in a minute or two.”
I still felt uneasy, restless. My instincts had always been accurate, and I was sure something would go wrong. Why hadn’t the previous group of British explorers taken this precious divine coffin? What happened to the others, except for one deranged survivor? The cave in the mountain seemed quiet and safe, but what could happen near the queen’s coffin? I couldn’t wait any longer; I had to call Chu Jian and Sa Dipeng back immediately.
Just as I was about to shout for them, it was too late. I saw the two students walking on the stone beam, with Sa Dipeng suddenly bending down to pick up a rock. He rushed forward and smashed it down on Chu Jian’s head. Chu Jian didn’t make a sound; his body swayed and fell into the bottomless pit below the stone beam.
The whole thing happened so suddenly that no one could react in time. Before we could process what had just occurred, Sa Dipeng turned around, ripped off his gas mask, and grinned at us with an evil, twisted smile. Then he quickly walked toward the end of the stone beam where the coffin was, raised the rock, and struck his own temple. Blood gushed from his head like a flood, and he staggered before collapsing onto the queen’s coffin, unconscious or worse.
Everyone was stunned by this bloody and bizarre scene. What had happened to Sa Dipeng? The usually quiet and reserved student had suddenly turned into a murderer, killing his best friend and then attempting to take his own life beside the coffin.
I shouted, “Fxxk! That little guy must be possessed by an evil spirit! Fatty, grab the black donkey hoof! He might still be alive; we can save him!”
Professor Chen, seeing one student dead and the other injured, with one having fallen into the abyss and the other bleeding on the stone beam, couldn’t accept it. He fainted from the shock. Ye Yixin quickly supported him, equally terrified and unable to do anything but cry.
I thought saving lives was the priority. Even if there were ghosts on the stone beam, I had to face them head-on. I instructed Fatty and Shirley Yang to help the professor while I grabbed my weapon and put on my gas mask. I figured that no matter how powerful the evil spirit was, it would still fear the black donkey hoof and sticky rice. If the Corpse Flower was poisonous, I wouldn’t worry with the gas mask on.
Without further thought, I stepped onto the stone beam. It was three meters wide, suspended over the bottomless pit. Looking down sent chills down my spine.
Halfway across, I heard footsteps behind me. I turned to see Fatty and Shirley Yang following me. I asked, “Why aren’t you taking care of the professor? Why are you following me?”
Fatty replied, “I don’t trust you to go alone. We don’t know what kind of evil might be on this stone beam. Plus, it’ll be hard for you to carry Sa Dipeng by yourself. Let’s lift him together and get back quickly to avoid any more accidents.”
I realized time was of the essence. If I talked any longer, Sa Dipeng might bleed out. I waved for them to follow, and the three of us hurried toward the coffin at the end of the stone beam.
As I got closer, I realized just how extraordinarily beautiful the Corpse Flower was. Its vibrant colors were breathtaking. I recalled Professor Chen mentioning that this magical flower contained the soul of an evil spirit. At this point, I didn’t care about its rarity anymore. I cursed, “Damn it! This flower might be the source of the trouble!” I swung my entrenching tool at the Corpse Flower, hacking away until the massive bloom was in shreds, releasing a lot of black liquid before I finally stopped.
Shirley Yang, seeing that I had already destroyed the flower, sighed helplessly, “Well, it’s done now. We need to focus on saving him.”
I replied, “Exactly! Let’s stop the bleeding for Sa Dipeng.” I rummaged through my bag for a first aid bandage, planning to wrap him up quickly before we carried him back for treatment.
Fatty checked Sa Dipeng’s carotid artery and sighed, “Don’t bother; it’s over. There’s no pulse. We’re too late.”
Frustrated, I slammed my hand on the coffin, exclaiming, “Damn it! How are we going to explain this to their parents? They’ll be heartbroken!”
To my shock, as soon as my hand hit the coffin, Sa Dipeng’s body suddenly sat up as if jolted by electricity. His eyes were wide and bloodshot as he pointed at the queen’s coffin, saying, “She… she’s alive…”
Shirley, Fatty, and I were all startled. Just moments ago, we had checked Sa Dipeng and found no pulse. How could he suddenly sit up?
Instinctively, I reached for a black donkey hoof in my pocket, ready to strike him, but before I could act, Sa Dipeng’s legs kicked out, and he fell back to the ground, appearing truly lifeless this time.
I looked up and noticed that the lid of the Kunlun divine tree coffin had opened slightly at some point. My heart raced, and Fatty and Shirley were equally at a loss, all of us sweating nervously.
There was no escaping this disaster. With the queen’s coffin now ajar, it was clear that something was coming for us. Fatty raised his gun, aiming at the queen’s coffin, while I gripped my entrenching tool and the black donkey hoof tightly, bracing myself for whatever might emerge.
In that moment, my mind raced with questions: Was the queen a ghost or a zombie? If she was a ghost, how would we deal with her? If she was a zombie, what was our plan? The stone beam was narrow, making it difficult to maneuver or retreat. I ran through all these scenarios in my head, preparing for the worst.
The coffin lay still, with only a small gap where the lid had been moved aside. We couldn’t just wait indefinitely. We had two choices: first, we could ignore any signs from the queen’s coffin and retreat back across the stone bridge to regroup. The second option was to advance and open the coffin, no matter what kind of creature might be inside, using our tools and weapons to confront it.
I quickly assessed the situation. The first option seemed safe but was impractical. There was definitely some evil force lurking on the stone bridge, as evidenced by the strange deaths of Sa Dipeng and Chu Jian. This mysterious power was waiting for the right moment to strike at us, the intruders disturbing the queen’s rest.
If we turned back now and were ambushed on the narrow bridge, we would have nowhere to escape. The only choice was to push forward, hoping that the bridge over the abyss wouldn’t become our final path.
I glanced at Fatty and Shirley Yang. We shared a silent understanding and nodded at each other, aware of our precarious situation. Although nothing had happened yet, we were already in a do-or-die scenario. We had to open the coffin to identify our enemy and figure out how to deal with it.
Fatty handed his assault rifle to Shirley Yang, signaling her to be ready to shoot at any moment. Then he spat into his palm, indicating for me to help him push the coffin lid open.
The coffin was bound with iron chains as thick as a human arm, preventing us from sliding the lid sideways. We could only push it from the front, where the gap was.
Suppressing my anxiety, I counted with Fatty: one, two, three. We pushed hard against the coffin lid. The coffin, made from the trunk of the Kunlun divine tree, showed little sign of human alteration and retained much of its original form. The bark looked almost new, and if it hadn’t been for the small gap, it would have been hard to tell where the lid was.
The lid wasn’t too heavy. With a good push, we managed to open it a significant amount. Wearing our gas masks, we couldn’t smell anything unusual from inside. What we saw was a female corpse dressed in a jade robe, lying flat in the coffin. Aside from her, the coffin was empty, with no burial items.
This must be the queen of Jingjue. She wore a black mask, hiding her face, and her body was not exposed, so we couldn’t see how well-preserved her remains were.
Was this the legendary, monstrous queen known for her cruelty? I cursed inwardly, thinking, “Damn it, even in death, she’s still trying to be mysterious.”
Fatty asked, “Old Hu, do you think Chu Jian and the others died because of this queen? Damn it, let’s take off her mask and see if she’s the most beautiful woman in the Western Regions or just a monster.”
I replied, “Sure, I want to see too. You take off her mask, and I’ll be ready to shove this black donkey hoof into her mouth. If she’s a monster, let’s see how she likes a taste of our anti-evil charm.” I gripped the black donkey hoof, preparing to push it into the corpse’s mouth.
Fatty rolled up his sleeves and reached out, swiftly pulling off the queen’s mask.
Her face was revealed: long black hair, delicate features, and tightly closed eyes. Her complexion was frighteningly pale, but aside from that, she looked just like a living person.
I had imagined countless times what this queen might look like—fat or thin, blonde or with deep-set eyes—but no matter how many times I imagined, I never expected her to look like this because…
Both Fatty and I gasped in surprise. We couldn’t believe it—this queen looked just like Shirley Yang, as if they were cast from the same mold.
I was at a loss, my mind a chaotic mess. Turning to see Shirley Yang, who had been covering us from behind, I was shocked to find her completely gone.
Could it be that the corpse in the coffin wasn’t the queen but Shirley Yang herself? A chill ran down my spine, and waves of despair flooded my mind—sadness, fear, tension, helplessness, and confusion all crashed into me at once, leaving me momentarily blank. Our enemy was too elusive; we felt like meat on a chopping board, completely at the mercy of forces we couldn’t even comprehend.
Just as I was spiraling into panic, I suddenly felt a cold wind rush by me, as if a sinister presence was approaching quickly. I thought, “Good, let it come,” and swung my shovel back, feeling it connect with something. When I looked closely, I realized I had just cleaved off half of Fatty’s head. Blood sprayed everywhere, and he collapsed to the ground, lifeless.
I stood frozen in shock. What had I done? How could I be so reckless? Had I truly been frightened to the point of madness by that monstrous queen? I had just killed my best friend. In that moment, my heart felt like it had turned to ash. Now, out of our original nine-member archaeological team, five were dead in less than a day, including Fatty, my comrade of decades.
What was the point of me being alive now? Perhaps I should have died back in Kunlun Mountain or on the Yunnan front, to avoid this tragic mistake of killing my closest companion. Even if I died now, how could I face Fatty in the afterlife?
Despair washed over me, and my head throbbed as if it might split open. I felt as if I were plunging into an icy abyss, and the only escape seemed to be death. I drew my dagger, aimed it at my heart, and with gritted teeth, I plunged it down.
Just as the blade touched my skin, I suddenly heard two gunshots. A bullet struck the blade of my dagger, knocking it from my hand and sending it clattering to the ground.
The surroundings turned foggy, and I couldn’t see anything clearly. Who had fired the shots? My mind was in a haze, and the more I thought about it, the more wrong it felt. I vaguely heard someone shouting, “Old Hu, come back! Run back!”
The voice was like a flash of lightning in the dark. Though I didn’t fully understand what was happening, I instinctively felt I had fallen into a trap. Had I been ensnared by some dark magic?
In a moment of clarity, I bit my tongue, jolting myself awake. I found myself in the middle of the stone bridge, not standing in front of the queen’s coffin. The coffin at the end of the bridge was intact, and the Corpse Flower was blooming, its petals unfurling to reveal the center, like a radar pointing directly at me.
On the other end of the bridge stood two figures—Fatty and Shirley Yang. They were jumping up and down, desperately calling for me. They were alive!
Fatty shouted, “Old Hu, you crazy bastard! Come back!”
I didn’t have time to think. I turned and ran back, tearing off my gas mask and spitting out the blood in my mouth. Only then did my mind start to clear.
I asked Fatty what had just happened. He replied, “Damn it, you almost scared me to death! You were trying to rush over to save Sa Dipeng, right? You got to the middle of the bridge, then suddenly turned around. I don’t know what happened to you, but you started swinging that shovel like you were sleepwalking. No matter how much we shouted, you couldn’t hear us. Then you pulled out a dagger to kill yourself! I tried to stop you, but I couldn’t reach you in time, so I had to shoot to knock the dagger out of your hand. Have you lost your mind or been possessed by a ghost?”
I turned back to look at the narrow stone bridge, piecing together what had just happened. I realized that everything I had experienced was an illusion created by the Corpse Flower, the Corpse Flower that emitted a scent meant to drive me to suicide!
The Corpse Flower not only interfered with the mind through its fragrance but also had a powerful visual effect. Just a glance at it could induce hallucinations.
No wonder there were no defensive mechanisms near the queen’s coffin; this magical flower was the most formidable guardian. Anyone who tried to approach the queen’s coffin would have their senses taken away, effectively killing themselves with their own memories.
It seemed that the stone bridge suspended over the bottomless pit was within the flower’s control. Once someone stepped onto the bridge, they would be subjected to its illusions.
I could only imagine that previous explorers and tomb raiders who had come here met the same fate as Chu Jian and Sa Dipeng, dying without understanding what had happened to them.
Fortunately, Shirley Yang had been cautious and didn’t let Fatty come over to pull me back; otherwise, I would have been dead on that bridge by now. The more I thought about it, the angrier I became. I cursed the queen’s mother and grabbed my gun, firing several shots at the Corpse Flower on the distant coffin. The bullets hit the flower’s branches and leaves, as if they were striking rotten wood, leaving no mark and eliciting no response. With no other options, I had to give up.
Sa Dipeng lay at the end of the bridge next to the coffin, blood pooling around him. It seemed he was beyond saving, but we couldn’t just leave his body behind. We needed to find a way to retrieve him.
I discussed the situation with Shirley Yang and Fatty, but we had no good ideas. Professor Chen was unconscious but alive, while Ye Yixin was beside him, crying uncontrollably. The situation we faced was a tangled mess, leaving us unsure of how to proceed.
Fatty said, “Old Hu, I have a brilliant plan to deal with that flower.”
I asked, “What can you do against such a powerful flower?”
Fatty replied, “It’s powerful, but not impossible to handle. It merely distorts sight and sound, luring those who approach it to their deaths. You all wore gas masks when you approached, yet still fell under its spell. This shows that it doesn’t just kill with its scent; just looking at it can confuse you, making it hard to distinguish reality. My plan is simple: let’s not look at it. We can cover our eyes and crawl on the ground to pull the flower out by its roots.”
I said, “That sounds good. You cover your eyes and crawl over. We’ll keep watch and cheer you on from behind.”
Shirley Yang interjected, “No, that won’t work. Aside from Professor Chen, who knows a bit about the Corpse Flower, none of us understand it well. How can you be sure it hypnotizes through the senses? This devilish flower is too treacherous. If we misjudge, we could end up dead on that bridge.”
Fatty countered, “If we’re going to leave Sa Dipeng behind, are we just going to run away?”
I replied, “Even if we leave, we can’t let that Corpse Flower win. We have plenty of explosives. I can blow up the bridge and send that flower tumbling into the abyss.”
As the three of us debated, we suddenly noticed Sa Dipeng’s body moving slightly. We stopped arguing and focused intently on the situation at the end of the bridge.
The strong spotlight had been angled low to prevent blinding anyone returning from the bridge. I adjusted the angle slightly, directing the beam toward Sa Dipeng.
His body rolled, as if something was dragging him, pulling him toward the dark pit below the bridge. Just as I was about to get a better look, the spotlight flickered twice and then went out completely. I didn’t know if it was a malfunction or if the battery had died, but the entire cave was plunged into darkness.
At that critical moment, I slapped the spotlight hard, but it still wouldn’t turn on. I quickly urged Fatty to get the spare batteries.
Fatty replied, “We don’t have any spare batteries left. Both sets were with the camel caravan. When we entered the city, you told everyone to travel light, so we left behind anything extra.”
Shirley Yang lit a cold smoke flare, illuminating our surroundings. Even a little light in the darkness brought some comfort, but we still couldn’t see what was dragging Sa Dipeng away. Were there other creatures in this vast cave?
In the darkness, I heard a rustling sound coming from the stone walls of the bottomless pit. It wasn’t loud, but it sounded like some kind of animal crawling, and there were so many of them that it was impossible to estimate their numbers.
I recalled the terrifying snakes and quickly told Fatty to pick up Professor Chen. No matter what emerged from that pit, it was undoubtedly hostile. Our best option was to retreat.
The cold smoke flare had a limited burn time, so we all pulled out our wolf-eye flashlights for illumination. Fatty hoisted Professor Chen onto his back, while Shirley Yang helped the weak-legged Ye Yixin. We found our bearings and began to retreat.
As we moved, the rustling sounds grew louder. Shirley Yang raised her camera and started taking pictures, the flash going off repeatedly. In an instant, the area was illuminated brightly. Under the strobe-like white light, we saw countless black-scaled snakes crawling out from all directions. They varied in size, with the smallest being just a few inches long and the largest nearly a meter. Each had a black fleshy lump on its head, some of which had developed into large, black, eyeball-like growths.
The snakes’ black eyes were extremely sensitive to light, and they recoiled from the flashes. However, there were too many of them—thousands upon thousands—continuously pouring out from the pit, tangling together and blocking our path completely.
While the camera flashes and flashlight beams could temporarily fend off the snakes, it was a short-term solution. Once the camera’s power ran out, we would be at the mercy of the snakes.
The number of black snakes kept increasing. The solid fuel we had brought with us was used up in the temple, and we were out of options, forced to retreat step by step.
The snakes were crawling everywhere, and the situation was becoming increasingly dire. Suddenly, Fatty pointed to a small cave a few meters behind us and shouted, “There’s a small cave over there! Let’s get in and hide for now!”
I turned to look and realized it wasn’t a cave but a crack in the mountainside, formed over many years. It was only about the height of a person, and I had no idea how deep it was. In our urgent situation, we had no choice but to retreat into it for the time being and come up with a new plan.
We quickly dragged the incapacitated Professor Chen and Ye Yixin into the crevice. The opening was narrow at the top and wider at the bottom, leading into a deeper section. The ground was also cracked, but there were only a few centimeters of width, so we didn’t have to worry about falling into a chasm beneath us.
Shirley Yang had excellent composure, remaining calm even in dire circumstances. After assessing the situation in the crevice, she noticed a large horizontal crack a few meters behind us and suggested, “Can we blow up the entrance to block the snakes’ advance?”
At that moment, a few black snakes had already slithered in, preparing to strike. Shirley quickly pressed the shutter on her camera, and the flash startled the snakes, causing them to retreat from the light. Fatty acted swiftly, swinging his shovel to smash the snakes’ heads and then sweeping the dead ones out of the cave.
I recalled how Hao Aiguo had died and thought that being buried alive by an explosion was better than being bitten by poisonous snakes. I hurriedly took out several packs of yellow explosives. There was no time to calculate the amount; I relied on my experience as a former engineer, quickly inserting the detonators and urging Fatty and the others to run deeper into the horizontal crack in the mountainside. I activated the explosives while retreating, shooting at the black snakes that crawled into the cave entrance. After a few steps, I squeezed into a corner with Shirley Yang and the others.
I was about to tell them to open their mouths and cover ears to avoid being deafened by the blast when, before I could finish, a violent explosion erupted. The sound echoed like thunder in the cave, and debris along with the shockwave rushed in. Although we were sheltered in the corner and avoided the direct impact, the force of the explosion still hit us, making my chest feel as if it had been struck by a heavy punch. My ears rang, and my head was filled with a buzzing sound; I couldn’t hear anything.
Fatty was saying something to me, but I couldn’t make it out. I shouted at him, “The—explosives—might—have—been—too—much! Are—you—okay?” I had no idea if my voice carried; we were too close to the blast point, and the acoustics in the crevice were terrible. My eardrums felt like they had been blown out, and I couldn’t even hear my own voice.