Chapter 234: Blasting the Stone

The camp was already in total chaos. We sprinted straight along the shortest path, passing workers from various factions running back and forth. Without exception, none of them had the time or inclination to pay us any attention.

I sprinted all the way to the stone gate. The interior was shrouded in sand and dust kicked up from the ground, making it impossible to see what was happening inside. I had run so fast that I almost caught a stitch in my side. I bent over to catch my breath, grabbing a worker as he rushed past me. “What’s the situation!” I yelled at him. “Where is Chen Si!”

The worker was caked in dust and grime. At first he ignored me, but when I looked up, he recognized me instantly and exclaimed in surprise, “Young Master? When did you slip into the team?”

Still clutching the stitch in my side, I rubbed my stomach and told him to cut the damn bullshit. I demanded to know why Chen Si hadn’t come out of the gate and to explain what the hell was happening inside in one sentence.

Seeing how anxious I was, he immediately explained. He had followed Fourth Brother through the stone gate, and after three or four hundred meters, they found a stone coffin. With its outer sarcophagus, it was a full three meters long, surrounded by nine female skins. Fourth Brother immediately sensed something was wrong and was about to order a retreat when someone in the group touched one of the skins. A layer of red mist erupted instantly, burning anyone who touched it beyond recognition. He had instinctively tried to drag Fourth Brother back toward the entrance, but a Thousand-Jin Stone^[1] slammed down behind the gate. In that critical moment, Fourth Brother shoved him out just in time.

He Yu caught up a moment later. I pulled on the worker’s sleeve and demanded, “So Fourth Brother and most of the men are trapped inside?”

“Yes, yes! We were the vanguard, and the Tan Family and Liu Family were right behind us, close to the entrance. Right now, Boss Yu and Boss Tan should still be at the Thousand-Jin Stone trying to figure something out.” The worker wasn’t articulate to begin with, and having just been scared out of his wits, he blurted out the explanation in one ragged breath.

Hearing this, I ran through the stone gate without looking back, with He Yu right behind me. We both covered our noses and mouths with our sleeves, panting as we reached the interior. At a glance, I spotted Liu Wan and Tan Qiu surrounded by torch-bearing workers. In front of them was a massive Thousand-Jin Stone, sealing the entire passage so tightly that not even an ant could crawl through.

He Yu and I made quite a noise coming in. The workers at the back all stared at me in shock, probably wondering where on earth I had popped out from. I shoved through the crowd to the very front. Liu Wan was already dripping with sweat. When she turned and saw me, her eyes flashed with momentary surprise, but she quickly recovered her composure.

“Quick! Over here!” Liu Wan called out to me.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, I ran over, and she grabbed my arm. “What are you doing here?”

Gasping for air, I couldn’t speak right away. I waved my hand at her and choked out, “What’s the situation inside?”

“Most of the men are trapped inside. This wall came down all of a sudden and very fast. Someone running out tripped, and his legs were snapped right off by the wall. Your Fourth Brother is inside, and all of us are searching for a hidden mechanism right now.” Liu Wan spoke at a frantic pace. “We suspect the mechanism isn’t on the inside because Han Zhuo is in there, too. If there were a trigger inside, he’d be able to find it.”

Hearing that, I immediately crouched tight against the stone surface. I reached out to sweep along the gap where the Thousand-Jin Stone met the ground, then ran over to feel along the corners. The crowd automatically parted to give me space. The whole process took less than three minutes, but as I ran my hands over the stone, sweat poured down my forehead, and my heart sank deeper and deeper.

“Say, is this Gan Clan kid up to the task?” Tan Qiu said, clutching a bleeding wound on his arm as he leaned in beside 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.”

“W-what do you mean? Is there really 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 back. “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 breakdown, having dropped his glasses on the ground, looking 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.

“Even if the tomb passage collapses, we have to blast it,” I said. “Dying in an explosion is better than suffocating inside. If anyone dies from the blast, I take full responsibility.”

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 at the ground and repeated herself. “Didn’t you hear Young Master Gan? Do exactly as he says!”