Chapter 280: Long Life and the Birth of a Son (Part 4)

The main burial chamber was a vast, empty expanse. Cui Fengji walked forward, sweeping his flashlight across the murals on the four walls. The colors remained strikingly vivid, making him wonder what kind of pigments could possibly resist fading for so many years.

“If these were ever excavated, they’d be considered rare treasures, wouldn’t they?”

Cui Fengji muttered to himself as he moved closer to inspect a mural, but Qu Zhang suddenly reached out and yanked him back. Cui Fengji looked at him in confusion, but Qu Zhang simply gestured for him to shine his light at his feet.

As soon as the beam hit the floor, Cui Fengji scrambled back several steps. Barely half a pace from where he had been standing, the blue brick flooring ended abruptly. In its place was a pitch-black pit that looked like a bottomless abyss. Thick, spiral-shaped copper plates were embedded into the stone walls of the shaft, protruding section by section like a winding staircase.

Steeling his nerves, Cui Fengji leaned over to shine his light down. The pit was at least dozens of meters deep, and the flashlight beam couldn’t even reach the bottom. He quickly retreated again.

“Hey, why didn’t you let me use that rope of yours when we were going down the well earlier?” he asked. “I only had two ropes on me, and I forgot to retrieve them. We don’t have anything to use now.”

“That rope can only support sixty-seven to seventy kilograms. One kilogram more and it snaps. You can’t use it,” Qu Zhang explained simply.

Cui Fengji looked down at the belly fat he had recently cultivated. Back when he was a team leader, he had been quite the dashing figure, but that was then. Now, he was winded after walking a few paces. Seventy kilograms? He was at least eighty plus by now.

He watched as Qu Zhang walked to the edge of the deep pit alone and crouched down. Qu Zhang reached out to test the nearest copper plate, then spoke without turning his head. “The coffin is at the bottom. Since there’s no rope, we’ll have to climb down using these.”

Hearing this, Cui Fengji felt like he was about to faint. It wasn’t that the descent was impossible, but they didn’t have a safety line. Relying entirely on his own balance to get down was a bit too much credit to his physical abilities.

Before he could finish processing the thought, he heard the crisp clatter of copper. He looked up and nearly had a heart attack. Qu Zhang was already five or six plates deep, hugging the wall as he descended. Cui Fengji swallowed hard. He thought to himself that it would be too cowardly to come all this way and not go down to see.

Gritting his teeth, he shuffled at a snail’s pace to the first copper plate. Forcing himself to focus on his balance, he reached out with one leg until he found the plate and slowly stepped onto it. Qu Zhang stood on the sixth plate, looking back to ensure Cui Fengji didn’t accidentally tumble off.

Facing the wall, Cui Fengji inched toward Qu Zhang. Every time he stepped onto a new plate, it let out a terrifying creak, yet the plates had remained silent when Qu Zhang stepped on them. Cui Fengji vowed to himself that if he made it out alive, he was definitely going on a diet.

Sweat poured off him as he shuffled along. By the time he reached the sixth plate, he was drenched. Seeing that he was stable, Qu Zhang grabbed one of his arms and draped it over his own shoulder. The physical support finally gave Cui Fengji a sliver of security.

Qu Zhang continued the descent, and Cui Fengji did his best to keep pace. He knew Qu Zhang was slowing down for him; if the man were alone, he would be much faster without a burden in tow. This made Cui Fengji wonder again: why had Qu Zhang brought an amateur like him into a place like this?

The man was clearly capable of getting out unscathed on his own.

He recalled the first time he met Qu Zhang. There had been an empty camp stool next to him. Thinking back, that stool might not have had an owner at all. They had chatted for so long, yet no one had ever come by to ask Cui Fengji to move. Who had that stool been intended for?

In the middle of his musing, Cui Fengji’s foot suddenly slipped. He let out a sharp cry as one leg plunged into the gap between two copper plates. Qu Zhang spun around instantly, his reflexes lightning-fast as he caught Cui Fengji by the arm.

As Cui Fengji kicked his legs, struggling to climb back up, Qu Zhang glared at him. “Don’t move! These plates have been embedded here for ages. Any sudden, heavy movement could dislodge them from the stone!”

Cui Fengji wanted to cry. He had never done anything this dangerous in his life. He froze instantly. Qu Zhang hauled on his arm, and Cui Fengji felt a surge of strength lift him out of the gap. He seized the chance, hooked his toe onto a plate, and slowly steadied himself.

Qu Zhang let go and shook out his arm. He stood facing the wall, bracing himself with one hand as he took several deep breaths.

Thinking Qu Zhang was exhausted from the effort, Cui Fengji apologized, “I’m sorry. I’ll definitely lose weight when we get back!”

After taking a long moment, Qu Zhang waved a hand at him, adjusted his footing, and continued down. “It’s not your fault. I’m afraid of heights. I felt a bit nauseous just now, so I needed a moment to recover.”

Cui Fengji was stunned. This man was afraid of heights? He had just practically flown down those first few plates, and he was an acrophobe?

He couldn’t wrap his head around it, but he focused all his energy on the descent. They spent over an hour moving in fits and starts before finally reaching the bottom just as Cui Fengji’s strength was about to give out. The moment his feet touched solid ground, he nearly collapsed, feeling more thrilled than if he had won first place at an elementary school sports day.

Beside him, however, Qu Zhang’s focus didn’t waver for a second. Cui Fengji followed the beam of the flashlight.

Four tomb-guarding beasts stood around the perimeter of the pit’s floor. In the very center sat a three-layered, gold-leafed, painted lacquer coffin. The outermost sarcophagus was massive, adorned with a vibrant, multicolored phoenix. The phoenix’s tail and eyes were inlaid with gemstones, suggesting the burial goods inside were likely substantial.

Qu Zhang tucked his claw knife into his multi-purpose belt and drew a larger, heavier Mountain-Cleaving Machete. He gave it a couple of practice swings to adjust to the weight, his eyes fixed on the coffin. “This is a royal tomb complex from the Western Zhou period. This is a consort’s chamber. The other end of the Ruyi should be another consort’s chamber. The center is where the true King’s tomb lies.”

“So, what do we do now?” Cui Fengji swallowed hard.

“Open the coffin.”

“Huh? I thought you said you didn’t touch grave goods?”

Qu Zhang didn’t answer. He walked up to the lacquered coffin and suddenly jammed his Mountain-Cleaving Machete into the seam, sliding it halfway around the perimeter. He glanced at Cui Fengji. Intimidated, Cui Fengji immediately stepped forward, drew the only knife he had brought for clearing brush, and shoved it into the gap to help pry the lid.

The two men heaved upward at the same time, popping the lid open. Instantly, a strange odor wafted out from the second layer of the coffin casing. This second layer was packed with jars and pots, and the dazzling array of gold and jade artifacts left Cui Fengji staring in a daze.

Without a word, Qu Zhang began removing the items. After admiring them for a moment, Cui Fengji pitched in to help without being asked. Once they had cleared out all the burial goods, they set to work prying open the second layer of the casing.

Once this lid was open, the corpse would be inside. Cui Fengji’s throat tightened, and he couldn’t help feeling a surge of nerves.

After more fumbling and straining, they finally managed to pry open one corner of the lid. Qu Zhang took one look and furrowed his brow. Cui Fengji emboldened himself to peek inside, and the sight nearly scared the soul right out of his body.

The female corpse inside had her face wrapped in silk. Her skin was deathly pale, but there were virtually no signs of decay. She looked as fresh as if she had been buried only three days ago. This condition was even more terrifying than an unnatural corpse.

“Th-th-this isn’t normal! Qu Zhang, m-maybe we should just leave.” Cui Fengji didn’t want to pry open the coffin anymore; he was already having second thoughts.

Qu Zhang looked up and glanced back over his shoulder. He suddenly stared at a corner of the tomb chamber and chuckled. “You want to leave, but it seems she isn’t quite ready to let us go.”

Cui Fengji looked toward the spot where Qu Zhang was staring. Once he saw what was in the corner, he collapsed right onto his backside. The water-soaked mummy had stood up at some point and was standing right there. Its head held bolt upright, its two pitch-black, lifeless eye sockets stared dead at him.