Chapter 234: Blasting the Stone

The camp was already in a state of total chaos. We sprinted along the shortest path possible, passing various workers from different families running back and forth along the way. Without exception, none of them had the presence of mind to pay us any attention.

I ran all the way to the stone gate. The interior was shrouded in swirling sand and dust kicked up from the ground, making it impossible to see what was happening inside. I had run so fast that I was nearly out of breath. I bent over to catch my wind, grabbing a worker who was rushing past me. “What’s the situation!” I shouted. “Where is Chen Si!”

The worker was covered in grime and dust. At first, he didn’t want to bother with me, but when I looked up, he recognized me instantly. “Young Master?” he exclaimed in surprise. “When did you sneak into the team?”

I hadn’t quite recovered my breath yet, so I rubbed my stomach and told him to cut the damn chatter. I demanded to know why Chen Si hadn’t come out of the gate and what exactly was happening inside.

Seeing my urgency, he immediately explained. He had followed Fourth Brother through the stone gate. After walking three or four hundred meters, they discovered a stone coffin. The coffin, including its outer sarcophagus, was a full three meters long. Surrounding the stone coffin were nine female skins. Fourth Brother felt the place was far too strange and was just about to signal everyone to retreat when someone in the team touched one of the skins. A cloud of red mist instantly erupted. Anyone touched by the mist was burned beyond recognition. His instinct had been to lead Fourth Brother back toward the tomb passage entrance, but a Thousand-Jin Stone dropped down behind the stone gate. In the moment of crisis, Fourth Brother had given him a shove, pushing him out just in time.

He Yu arrived late as I continued to grip the worker’s arm. “So Fourth Brother and most of the men are trapped inside?”

“Yes, yes. We were the vanguard. Behind us were the Tan Family and the Liu Family. They were very close to the entrance. Right now, Boss Yu and Boss Tan should still be at the Thousand-Jin Stone trying to find a way through.” This worker wasn’t very articulate to begin with, and having been so badly spooked, he was describing the scene in one long, frantic breath.

Hearing this, I ran into the stone gate without looking back. He Yu followed close behind. We both covered our noses and mouths with our sleeves, panting as we reached the interior. At a glance, I saw Liu Wan and Tan Qiu surrounded by workers holding torches. Before them stood a massive Thousand-Jin Stone, sealing the entire tomb passage so tightly that not even an ant could crawl through.

He Yu and I made quite a stir when we ran in. The workers in the back all stared at me in shock, likely wondering where on earth I had come from. I pushed through the crowd to the front. Liu Wan’s forehead was covered in sweat. She turned and saw me; her eyes flashed with momentary surprise, but she quickly regained her composure.

“Quick! Over here!” Liu Wan beckoned to me.

I ran over under the watchful eyes of the crowd. She grabbed me. “How did you get here?”

I was gasping for air and couldn’t speak, so I just waved her off and asked, “What’s the situation inside?”

“Most of the men are trapped. This wall dropped suddenly and very fast. Someone was running out and tripped; his legs were snapped clean off by the weight of the wall. Your Fourth Brother is inside. Everyone is looking for a mechanism right now.” Liu Wan spoke with rapid-fire intensity. “We suspect the mechanism isn’t on the inside, because Han Zhuo is in there too. If there were a trigger, he should be able to find it.”

Upon hearing this, I quickly crouched down against the stone surface. I reached out to sweep the gap where the Thousand-Jin Stone met the ground, then ran to the corners to feel around. The crowd automatically made room for me to work. The whole process took less than three minutes. As I searched, sweat began to pour down my forehead, and my heart sank further and further.

“I say, is this Gan Clan kid up to the task?” Tan Qiu, clutching a bleeding wound on his arm, leaned toward Liu Wan.

Liu Wan replied, “Our group has all sorts of specialists, but not a single one who understands Qimen Dunjia. We can only pin our hopes on him and let him try.”

After finishing my inspection, I stood up and walked quickly to Liu Wan. “Have them bring in the explosives.”

“What… what do you mean? Is there no other way?” He Yu stepped out from behind and grabbed my hand.

However, my mind had become exceptionally calm. “The moment the Thousand-Jin Stone dropped, every internal and external mechanism was completely destroyed. This stone can only go down; it can never be raised again. This isn’t a reversible mechanism. It’s a trap.”

Tan Qiu slapped his hands together and snarled through gritted teeth, “Son of a bitch! After all that, it turns out this damn place is a Decoy Tomb!”

Liu Wan immediately waved her hand and shouted to the workers behind her, “Bring in the explosives! Set up the blasting holes!”

In an instant, dozens of workers cleared out. At that moment, He Yu suddenly pulled me aside. “Are you sure? Are you sure you want to use explosives? Look around—this is a tomb passage. How much explosive will you need, and where will you set it? If the charge is too heavy, you won’t just blast the stone; the entire passage will collapse.”

His words were overheard by Tan Qiu, Liu Wan, and Wu Yili, who had been standing silently in the corner. Tan Qiu stroked his beard, scratched his messy hair, and cursed under his breath.

Wu Yili also stepped forward, a rare move for him. He looked to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown. He had dropped his glasses on the ground and looked as if he might burst into tears at any moment. “This is all my fault. My poor judgment led these brothers into a trap. But I must say one more thing—we don’t have any demolition experts here. If the passage collapses, the people inside will be buried under the stone.”

In truth, I had noticed all of this long before they reminded me. Studying mechanisms always involved understanding terrain, topography, and water flow. I knew perfectly well that blasting blindly could bring the passage down. But as I had said from the start, this was a trap. The purpose of placing a Thousand-Jin Stone here was to seal all tomb robbers inside to die. Simultaneously, the interior could be filled with toxic insects, quicksand, poisoned arrows, or most terrifyingly, mercury. The only people who could save those inside were those of us on the outside.

Being thorough was necessary, but it wasn’t the most important thing right now. The priority was for those outside to react swiftly and blast the Thousand-Jin Stone open as fast as possible. That way, even if the passage collapsed, we could save at least half the lives inside. If we stood around hesitating, trying to find a perfect solution, the people inside might suffocate from toxic gas before we ever made a move.

“We’re blowing it even if the tunnel collapses,” I said. “Being caught in a blast is better than suffocating to death in here. If anyone dies, the responsibility is entirely mine.”

I turned to the men bringing up the explosives. “Stack three rows first. If that doesn’t break it open, we’ll add more.”

The workers looked toward Liu Wan, unsure if they should follow my orders.

Liu Wan pointed to the ground and repeated herself firmly. “Didn’t you hear Young Master Gan? Do exactly as he says!”