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墨書 Inktalez
Among us Errand Runners, only A Chen had experience in tomb raiding and had truly encountered a Blood Corpse. He spoke with a mix of excitement and fear, "A Blood Corpse is a corpse that rises from the dead, dripping with blood. It's incredibly powerful! Ordinary people can't defeat it. If you get bitten, you'll be poisoned immediately and turn into a vengeful spirit or a monster just like the Blood Corpse."
Upon hearing this, everyone turned pale with fear, even Third Granduncle Master furrowed his brows, looking restless. Only Cold Bench seemed unaffected, as if the conversation had nothing to do with him.
At that moment, Liuzi nudged my arm and whispered, "Hey, Qian, aren't you the heir of the Poison King? Aren't you afraid of Corpse Poison?"
My mind immediately flashed back to when I opened the triple coffins in the Qinling Shaft and finally saw the Crystal Silkworm. I instinctively swallowed hard and replied, "I don't know; I've never tried it."
Liuzi was persistent. "How about you lend me some of your blood? Just in case it comes in handy later; I might not have time to ask you then."
I glanced at Cold Bench and quietly told Liuzi, "Did you see that guy? My blood won't do anything; his is powerful. Just a tiny bit could kill Ditouqing."
"What?! That's amazing?! Then I'll borrow some from him!" Liuzi exclaimed as he started to step over.
Meanwhile, everyone was discussing how to proceed. Liuzi pretended to join the conversation and leaned towards Cold Bench, mumbling something. Cold Bench stared at the Black Lake as if he were in a trance, showing no reaction at all. Liuzi assumed he hadn't heard and repeated himself with a forced smile. However, Cold Bench didn't even blink, which left Liuzi frustrated. He turned back to me and shrugged his shoulders, mouthing, "Is he deaf or what?"
I was already laughing so hard I could barely stand up. Liuzi came over and punched me lightly in the stomach. "You did that on purpose, didn't you? Trying to make fun of me with a deaf guy?!"
I laughed until I almost gasped for air and waved my hand, managing to squeeze out three words: "No... I didn't..."
Liuzi was getting impatient; he shot me an annoyed look like I was crazy and stopped paying attention to me as he rejoined the group discussion.
The outcome of the discussion was that they would first send a three-person team as an advance party to scout for an entrance below the water and check what conditions awaited us there. After all, we hadn't anticipated going underwater this time; no one had prepared any tools for underwater operations. Thus, this task would have to be entrusted to those who were good swimmers.
My junior brother and I grew up in the Luo River area and were quite skilled in swimming; naturally, we felt obligated to volunteer. A Chen was also a practitioner of the Turtle Breathing Technique, so he could join as well. However, our trio had a critical weakness: none of us understood ancient tombs. Even if we stumbled upon an entrance with some design features, we might not recognize it and simply pass by. Therefore, we needed someone knowledgeable to accompany us.
Only Old Qiao remained here, but his swimming skills were too poor, and his body couldn't withstand the back-and-forth struggle. Without finding the entrance to the tomb, he would be the first to sacrifice himself, which was not worth it. The discussion fell into a deadlock.
Just as everyone was at a loss, a voice suddenly said, "I'll go down."
Everyone turned to look, and it was Cold Bench —this person had been silent throughout the journey, almost making people forget his presence.
"What the hell, isn't he deaf?" Liuzi muttered beside me.
I laughed and replied, "When did I say he was deaf? He just doesn't want to talk to you."
"Bullshit!" Liuzi cursed. "It's me who doesn't want to talk to him! But who is this guy anyway? Acting all high and mighty, and he hasn't made a peep the whole way. How is he going down? What does he think he's going to do? He can't possibly be a freeloader, right?"
"Freeloader" was our Errand Runner's code word, roughly describing someone who pretends to be impressive but is actually weak inside.
I was about to speak when Third Granduncle Master also showed a look of doubt. I couldn't tell if he was genuinely unconvinced like Liuzi or just testing the waters: "A true master doesn't reveal himself. Master, what are you planning to do?"
However, Cold Bench acted as if he hadn't heard anything. He turned around, grabbed the rope that had been set up at the edge of the basin, and jumped down backward. His movements were light and quick; in no time at all, he reached the edge of Black Lake.
Liuzi was furious: "Damn it, he doesn't even give my master face?!"
Third Granduncle Master's expression darkened further; his face turned pale with anger. His dignity was already hanging by a thread, and Liuzi's outburst only made it worse.
Old Qiao quickly stepped in to smooth things over: "Oh, I forgot to introduce him! Zhao Master is a friend of a friend from my circle. He's well-versed in Qimen Dunjia, Liang Yi Si Xiang, Five Elements and Eight Trigrams, and Geography Text—he's truly exceptional! It's great that he can go into the water! This young man has a lot of energy and ambition; please don't take offense!"
Third Granduncle Master's expression finally eased a bit. As someone of high status, he couldn't lose his composure or generosity. He politely said, "Heroes emerge from youth; with more experience, he'll be fine."
After packing up our gear, my junior brother, A Chen, and I were ready to go down when Third Granduncle Master suddenly stopped us: "No way. According to the rules, only one of you can go down."
According to the rules of Third Granduncle Master, we Errand Runners all understand that the reason three people were chosen as the advance team was to maintain a balance of power—one from the Tu Fuzi, one from the New School, and one from the Old School. No one is allowed to dominate the others.
My junior instinctively retorted, “But Master is—”
“One person equals two!” I interrupted urgently. “I’ll go down; you stay up.”
My junior paused, quickly realizing his mistake and almost blurted out something foolish. He immediately changed his tone, saying, “Hmph, fine! I’ll stay!” He pretended to be angry as he climbed back up.
As A Chen and I descended, we felt the stone wall beneath our feet was slick. When I touched it, I discovered it was covered in a layer of yellowish oil—was it grease?
Cold Bench had already explored below and, seeing us arrive, said, “This place is full of crude oil.”
A Chen and I exchanged glances and crouched by Black Lake. I dipped my hand into the water; it was thick and black-brown. Bringing my fingers to my nose, a pungent smell immediately assaulted me. It was strange that there was no odor until I moved my fingers away, at which point the scent vanished.
I shared my earlier discovery about the stone wall with Cold Bench but then realized he must have climbed down from it too; how could he not know? It made me look like an inexperienced novice who, upon discovering something new, rushed to announce it to the world, unaware that everyone else was already aware.
Fortunately, at that moment, A Chen, who also seemed inexperienced, remarked, “The oil on the stone wall is lighter in color than what’s here. It must have been sprayed up from below and then flowed down the wall. Could it be that down here… is a Self-Flowing Well type of large Oil Field?”
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