Chapter 51 Start to Solve the Mystery

The three of us stood there frozen in shock. We had only been gone about five minutes. No one would have been able to move all of our equipment in such a short amount of time and there was only one door leading from the ear chamber to the corridor. Where could everything have gone?

We all looked at each other in dismay. Sure enough, it had been one thing after another in this place. Fatty was also frightened by this turn of events and asked, “Is there another zombie here?”

I waved my hand dismissively. Now wasn’t the time to discuss zombies; we could still deal with them no problem. But without diving equipment, how could we get through the dozens of meters of underwater tomb passage that were separating us from the surface? This was a serious problem, and one that would leave us trapped in this underwater tomb if we couldn’t solve it.

“You were the last one to take off your equipment just now,” I said to Fatty. “Did you move our stuff anywhere else when you did?”

“Of course not!” Fatty said. “Those eight cylinders were really heavy. Why would I move them around as if I had nothing better to do?”

I thought so, too. We were all present at that time so we would’ve definitely noticed if someone had moved those things to another spot. Plus, they were really heavy so it was unrealistic for someone to move them all at once.

We stood there stupidly for a while before Fatty couldn’t stand it anymore and suggested that we look around, saying that even if a ghost had moved our stuff, it would still leave some clues. Agreeing with this, I immediately ran over to move the porcelain jars aside to see if our equipment was hidden behind them. But this was all just self-deception—in such a tiny place, we would have definitely noticed at a glance if something was there. But I was so desperate that I was willing to try anything.

We searched very carefully for about five or six minutes but the more I searched, the more I felt that something was wrong. I didn’t know what the problem was exactly, I just felt that everything here was indescribably strange. In the end, Fatty was the one who figured it out. “Damn it!” He suddenly shouted. “This isn’t the same room we were in just now!”

I turned my head to look and saw that his flashlight was shining in one of the corners of the room. Based on what I remembered, nothing had been there before. But now there was a stone pillar partially embedded in the wall that was covered in carvings of many exotic birds and strange animals. The structure of this tomb chamber was completely different from the one we were in before. We immediately looked at the other three corners and saw that, sure enough, all four corners had undergone the same changes. I felt my forehead break out in a cold sweat. Not only did this situation not make any sense, but it was also unbelievable.

I looked at Poker-Face, who nodded and said, “He’s right. This seems to be another room. The infant coffin in the corner over there is missing and the burial objects are very different. Besides, look at the ceiling—”

When I looked up, I was shocked. The fifty-star map on the ceiling had turned into two giant snakes intertwined with each other. They were coiled around the whole ceiling and carved in such vivid detail that it almost looked as if they were about to jump out and bite me. I was so frightened when I saw them that I hurriedly lowered my head.

“What’s going on here? Did we enter the wrong door?” I asked.

“How’s that possible?” Fatty argued. “This corridor is basically Mount Huashan road.⁽¹⁾ This place isn’t that huge. We went from here to the corridor where we were shot full of arrows and then ran back here again. It’s definitely right! How could we make such a mistake?”

At this time, I realized that it was possible that we were facing the same thing that Uncle Three had encountered twenty years ago. But our current situation was a little different from what he had described so I didn’t know what to do. At that time, Uncle Three didn’t take off his diving equipment so he was able to successfully escape using the pool of water in the middle of the room. But when I came in, I didn’t take any precautions even though I knew something like this might happen. When I thought of this, I couldn’t help but blame myself for my stupidity.

Fatty was a little confused and asked me, “Aren’t you southern grave robbers familiar with how to deal with traps in ancient tombs? Surely you’ve come across such a thing before.”

I sighed. Of course I hadn’t seen something like this before. “We’re not strangers so I’ll tell you guys the truth,” I said to them. “This is only the second time in my life that I’ve been in a tomb. I don’t know how to deal with traps or mechanisms, let alone distinguish between these jars and pots. You guys shouldn’t count on me.”

Fatty didn’t believe me and said, “Young comrade, don’t scare me like that. I really hope you can find a way.”

I didn’t know how to answer him so I just gave him a wry smile before saying, “The situation right now is so bizarre that even if I was really skilled, I don’t think I’d be able to do anything. Just look. What kind of mechanism can change all the furnishings in a room in just a few minutes, even the walls and ceiling? It’s impossible. There must be some other explanation.”

The indifferent Poker-Face nodded in agreement as Fatty scratched his head and asked, “So it’s not a mechanism? Then is it magic?”

When I heard him mention this, I suddenly remembered something and said, “I don’t know but it’s also a possibility. I once heard a story that a grave robber entered an ancient tomb and found that it was as magnificent and luxurious as a royal palace, and there was actually a man drinking inside. When the man saw the grave robber coming, he not only invited him to drink but also gave him a belt. After several drinks with the man, the grave robber passed out drunk in the ancient tomb. When he woke up and looked around, he found himself lying near a broken coffin. The gifted belt turned out to be a snake. Isn’t it a bit like our current situation?”

“Sounds like a load of crap,” Fatty said. “At least he got to fucking drink wine. We’ve only got water. How can our situation compare?”

After listening to him complain, I wondered if I should tell them about what Uncle Three had gone through. But I was a little hesitant because everything was so confusing and it may involve Poker-Face. I still didn’t know where he stood or what his motives were, so that might create even more problems if I ended up saying something wrong. After thinking about it, I decided to give them half the story.

Fatty was still sighing heavily so I told them to sit down and then began telling them some of the things that had happened to Uncle Three. Fatty kept interrupting so much that I really couldn’t tell the story properly and had to make it shorter and shorter. When I finished, Fatty suddenly started cursing, “Shitty brat! You knew so much but didn’t bother to say anything. It’s deplorable! How could you wait until we’re in this half-dead state to tell us?!”

Poker-Face had been listening intently the whole time, but at this moment, he suddenly grabbed me and asked, “What did your Uncle Three say right before he left? Say it again!”

When I saw how serious his expression was, I stammered, “He…he said ‘elevator’.”

Poker-Face suddenly smiled and said, “Oh, so that’s what it is—”

<Chapter 50><Table of Contents><Chapter 52>

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TN Notes:

(1) Mount Huashan (aka Mt Hua in Shaanxi) is the western mountain of the Five Sacred Mountains. It’s one of the most dangerous roads in the world. The road to the mountain top starts with a lot of huge stairs, nicknamed “The Heavenly Stairs”. It’s the other side (the southern side) that’s dangerous. The path is made of thin planks that are fixed in the mountain and to keep your balance you must hang onto chains that are nailed in stone. There’s nothing else to keep you safe. You also have to climb a chain and put your feet in holes that have been dug out of the rock to keep your balance. The pics here were stressing me out just looking at them. There’s a famous teahouse at the top.

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NPSS is on a Xiao Hua/Black Glasses writing spree lately so I will do my best to keep both this and that updated. But there will probably be days where I only have time to do 1 or the other. On the bright side, you’ve got the licensed version for this and K’s (way better) translation for that so at least you’re covered on both fronts. (＾◡＾) Toodles~~