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墨書 Inktalez
I shouted, "Bring the heart!"
Zhengyang nodded and carefully held it. Soon, a golden mouse-headed figure emerged from the bag, its surface intricately carved with many Kui patterns.
Although Zhengyang was far more skilled in Daoist Arts than I was, he didn't know much about these peculiar historical artifacts. He cautiously held the mouse-headed figure and asked me, "What is this?" I took it from him with both hands and examined it closely. "This is a mouse-headed statue discovered by Stein at Dandan Ulik in Xinjiang. It is the totem of the Gaochang Kingdom!"
Such items had once appeared in large quantities in Yogtkan Ancient City, and experts concluded they were offerings to the main deity in temples. However, they had never been found buried in tombs. This might relate to the life of the tomb owner, but I wasn't sure why they would be buried with such an item. The tomb owner would not have used this as a burial offering since mouse-headed figures appeared long after the time of the tomb. "This might have been placed here by later generations!"
We checked the bundle again; the contents had long since carbonized and turned to ash upon contact, so we couldn't discern what else was inside.
After inspecting around the totem without any discoveries, we moved further back into the darkness, unsure of how deep it went.
"Look! There's also a Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva here!" I focused intently on the statue, which looked identical to the one above. Next to it were numerous lacquer boxes filled with bundles of hemp paper sutras, their text significantly different from today's Tripitaka. These papers had endured for a millennium, and we dared not move them lightly.
Soon, one sutra caught my attention; it was inscribed in an ancient script resembling the Jin Manuscript of Records of the Three Kingdoms and told a story. Without reference materials here, there were some key points I couldn't understand. So, I carefully wrapped it up and placed it in my backpack.
The lacquer boxes contained many plant seeds and some daily necessities, none of which particularly attracted me. Among one box was a colorful brocade that looked exactly like the woven silk "Five Stars Rising from the East Benefits China" unearthed from Niya. It was clearly Shu brocade; this phrase referred to Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Mercury. As time turns and day and night pass, these five stars struggle to converge. However, in October of the first year of Han, they gathered in the eastern well, benefiting China. If they gathered in the west instead, it would be detrimental.
I opened more lacquer boxes; inside were many bamboo slips likely recording Buddhist activities from Khotan, showcasing Buddhism's flourishing presence in the Western Regions back then. I opened another lacquer box and found a line written in ancient script: "Xia Ji, I know you have come!" My scalp tingled as I sat back in shock.
Zhengyang stood beside me watching as I rummaged through things and quietly asked, "What's wrong?"
I shook my head to indicate I didn't know; honestly, I really didn't.
In truth, we hadn't made any significant discoveries in the Hall of Offerings because these items held archaeological value. Since our purpose for this trip wasn't treasure hunting, I returned the artifacts to their original places.
On the offering table in the Hall of Offerings, the eternal lamp had long extinguished; several boxes and bronze vessels lay there with their wine and fruits dried up beyond recognition.
As we moved deeper inside, we reached the end of the Hall of Offerings where there was a Yumen door made from four pieces of Han White Jade fitted together. The door hinges were adorned with a glazed Centipede Dragon; above it was a relief depicting joyful dances and performances. One side of the door featured a carving of a woman peeking out. This type of door is known as a Half-Open Door for Women and became popular after the Tang Dynasty; I hadn’t realized this design existed during the Three Kingdoms period—ancient artifacts indeed have a lineage spanning millennia. The Taoist Sect's entrance was slightly ajar, having been split down the middle by natural stone.
"Clearly someone entered before us!" I wondered if it could be Big Mouth Lee and his group.
According to the traditional structure of tombs, after passing through the Hall of Offerings, one would enter the burial chamber. Suddenly, I realized that there was something important I had yet to do, so I returned to the Hall of Offerings and headed straight for the Relic Tower. The relic was a rare treasure; if I could obtain one, it would suppress my Spirit Yang Body and prevent me from attracting spirits!
"Don't touch that Relic Tower; it's dangerous!"
"I'm here to retrieve the relic for you; you need this."
I looked at Zhengyang with gratitude. The Relic Tower was indeed intricately designed. It was seamless, with not even a hairline gap visible. When illuminated by the Gongye Zhu, it appeared crystal clear. As I reached out to touch the tower, a wave of coldness surged through my fingertips and spread throughout my body. Each layer of the tower had four windows, and under Zhengyang's manipulation, it seemed like he was solving a Rubik's Cube. Soon, one side of the tower aligned twenty-eight windows in a single line. Zhengyang gently pushed the entire tower, and it opened like a box, revealing a Golden Box inside.
I took out the golden box and opened it to find a Silver Box within. From the Silver Box, I retrieved an Ivory Box. Finally, from the Ivory Box, I extracted a Pure Wooden Box. Upon opening it, golden light filled the chamber, almost blinding me. Inside lay a Mani Pearl, which was a relic of Buddha's cranial bone.
There are only sixteen verifiable Buddha True Body relics left in the world today, thirteen of which are in China. The others are located in Nepal, Japan, and Thailand. I had obtained one of them, and my joy was palpable as I wrapped the wooden box in a silk cloth to carry with me. After Zhengyang carefully placed the Relic Tower back in position, we turned to leave the Hall of Offerings.
Lost in thought, I walked for about two hundred meters before finally entering the burial chamber.
The chamber was empty; there were no murals at all—only a coffin placed in the center. The coffin was made of very thin wood; if it weren't for this dry region of the Western Regions, it would have long since disintegrated into dust. Zhengyang and I approached to examine the wooden coffin closely.
The coffin was carved from a single piece of Poplar wood, both ends shaped like boat bows. It had been hollowed out just enough for a person to lie inside, covered by an entire Poplar board secured with wooden nails—similar in design to coffins found in River Cemetery. It appeared that the coffin had been pried open, revealing a gap; judging by the wood shavings visible, it likely hadn't been more than half a month since it was disturbed.
Zhengyang and I exchanged glances that signaled our intent to open the coffin. I took out the Iron Lantern that Lu Jianguo had lent me and lit it at the foot of the wall. Zhengyang and I positioned ourselves on either side of the coffin lid and pushed with all our might until it finally lifted open. Inside lay a foreign friend with golden hair and blue eyes—his body shriveled as if all bodily fluids had been drained away. The foreigner had high cheekbones and deep-set eyes; his face was grotesquely distorted with a gash across his throat from which all blood had drained.
"How did these people get in here?" I wondered aloud. It was certain that there was only one way to enter from above—the Quicksand Tomb—and they couldn't have entered before us. Therefore, there was only one possibility: they must have come from another location.
"There's something beneath him!"
As we moved the foreigner slightly, we uncovered another corpse underneath him—dressed similarly to a Loulan Beauty. Its skin had dried completely due to moisture loss but remained unnaturally smooth; its eyes were sunken deep into its skull while its mouth gaped wide due to skin contraction. As we pulled at the foreigner again, it felt as though something was holding him down. Upon closer inspection, we realized that this corpse had wrapped its arms around the foreigner’s waist as if unwilling to let go.
"Damn! Could this be a corpse trick?" I exclaimed in shock; having encountered such tricks several times before left me with severe psychological scars. "This thing is definitely not human!" Zhengyang's eyes glinted coldly—everyone knew it wasn't human; so what exactly was it?
"A human skin puppet!" My heart nearly stopped at those words. Looking closely at this entity revealed that although it resembled a corpse on the outside, its skeletal structure betrayed its true nature.
The Mausoleum Secrets recorded that "Khotan practices heavy witchcraft involving skinning humans for puppetry as guardians of tombs." In simpler terms, this creature served as a Grave Guardian responsible for protecting tomb entrances. While inland areas typically used stone beasts for guarding purposes, witchcraft thrived in these western regions where people believed humans possessed greater spiritual efficacy—thus they directly used humans as puppets instead. Such entities were incredibly sinister and showed no fear of Mayi Divination; even machine guns would struggle to eliminate them.
The Corpse stood upright with a sudden whoosh, its knees seemingly unbent. With a loud bang, the Foreigner was flung out, crashing against the tomb wall and shattering into pieces. The Corpse remained in the coffin, its hollow eyes wide open, its limbs appearing awkward and uncoordinated as it swayed slightly. It opened its mouth wide as if to laugh, but no sound came out.
It slowly jumped down from the coffin, landing on the floor with a resounding thud…
That thing suddenly flew towards me, and I wore a look of despair. Why did everything have to come at me? There was someone over there; why not challenge him instead for a greater sense of achievement? I stumbled back several steps as the Corpse moved mechanically toward me, its claws spreading wide.
The Corpse's iron claws shot out like wheels, attacking head-on before it leaped back. Facing the Corpse, I dodged as it lunged at me. Its iron claws swiped at me like wheels, and by sheer luck, I managed to evade them. I kept my distance from this creature, leaving myself some room to maneuver as I discerned the secrets behind its iron claws. I saw it lunge forward with its left hand, aiming for my ear. Suddenly, it struck from above and below; although the angle changed, the posture remained the same. It turned out this thing had only three moves, randomly executed.
To put it simply: one move was a fierce grab at the neck, another was an up-and-down strike, and the last was Monkey Steals the Moon—each one more vicious than the last. It seemed this human puppet was merely a half-finished product of design. That made things easier!
"When it uses 'Cloudy Hand,' you can strike directly at its abdomen!" The Corpse indeed aimed for my ear. The term 'Cloudy Seven Seals' metaphorically refers to the jade steps of a sea of clouds, representing both ears and shoulders; thus Zhengyang is called Cloudy Hand. But when the Corpse executed Cloudy Hand, its abdomen was fully exposed. I seized the opportunity and struck hard, causing it to stagger back several steps.
"When it uses 'Up and Down Hands,' strike directly at its spirit!" The Corpse indeed unleashed Up and Down Hands, one claw reaching for my head while another aimed for my abdomen. Seeking victory amidst danger, I planted my toes on the ground and swung my massive fist toward its Spirit Cap with a thunderous crash; it fell back onto the ground.
"Monkey Steals the Moon! Sweep its head and legs!" Monkey Steals the Moon is one of the most commonly used vicious techniques in street fighting, effective against both men and women. Thus, I had no choice but to use an unrestricted fighting technique to sweep its head and legs fiercely. As its claws approached me with a gust of wind, I heard a loud clang as its entire head rolled away.
"Child, the battle isn't over yet..."
Just as I was about to withdraw my attack, a dark shadow leaped toward me like a flying squirrel!
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