Tomb Raider: I Am Hu Bayi's Cousin

Chapter 85 The Solitary Dark River
"Comrade Hu, Comrade Ming, you two are truly amazing! You've made a great contribution to our archaeological expedition in the Western Regions!" Professor Chen said excitedly, casting grateful glances at Hu Ming and Hu Bayi.

"Brother Hu, Brother Hu Ming, how did you know about this mechanism?" Sa Dipeng asked the two men with admiration. Their methods were truly impressive, but Hu Ming smiled modestly.

"We've only learned a little bit about feng shui."

At this moment, Hu Bayi glanced at Shirley Yang and said, "It was only because Shirley discovered the change in the stone platform that Mingzi and I were able to solve the mechanism."

Seeing that the credit was being given to her, Yang Xueli smiled a little shyly, "You are all very capable, but I'm curious how you knew how many times to spin?"

Hu Ming didn't say anything and took the lead in walking down the stone steps.

"The secret passages related to the Sixteen Dragons at the bottom are all based on the ancient Giant Gate Formation. It is called Giant Gate because this kind of mechanism is mostly used on the entrances of passages."

Hu Bayi glanced at Shirley Yang, then at Professor Chen and the others, "These numbers are all derived from the Luoshu and the arrangement of stars in the sky."

"What is Luo Shu?" Sa Dipeng was very eager to learn. He had never heard of this number before and was very curious. But Hu Bayi glanced at Sa Dipeng and thought he was talking too much nonsense. Why did he have to ask about everything?

Do you think you'd understand if I told you?
"Hurry up and go down to get water, Mingzi has already gone down," Hu Bayi said.

Going down the stone steps, you enter a passageway with exquisitely carved patterns on both sides of the stone walls. After going down for a while, the passageway becomes straight, and its depth is estimated to be about four hundred meters from the ground.

The dark, damp passageway exuded an invisible sense of desolation and loneliness.

Wow!
The sound of flowing water was very pleasant, and everyone who heard it was immediately invigorated, feeling that it was the most beautiful sound they had ever heard in their lives.

"There's water."

"There really is water."

Everyone was overjoyed; water would quench their thirst, otherwise they would have died of thirst.

Hu Ming led the way, Hu Bayi followed beside him, and Fatty, as always, brought up the rear.

Wow wow~
The clear, emerald-green river flowed, rippling across its surface. As people approached the riverbank, they couldn't help but swallow hard, only to find that their saliva was almost completely dried up.

This underground river is more than ten meters wide, but the water is very shallow, less than half a meter deep.

The space above the river is five or six meters high, entirely made of naturally formed stone slabs, looking very sturdy and unlikely to collapse. This is a masterpiece of nature; the entire river is an underground river, creating a unique river space.

"Water, oh water, I'm going to drink my fill!" The fat man lay down on the riverbank, stuck his head directly into the water, and gulped it down. Sadi Peng went around to the fat man's side, scooped up some clear river water with his hands, and drank it. The cool water was so refreshing.

"Xiao Ye, you're dehydrated right now, you can't drink like that." Seeing Ye Yixin lying on the bank asking for river water, Hu Ming pulled her up and said irritably, "You'll die if you drink water like that."

That would really kill you.

Drinking icy river water while dehydrated is bound to cause problems, especially given Ye Yixin's weakened state.

"Drink it with salt, drink a little, and after resting for ten minutes or so, you can drink it as you like."

Hu Ming opened his water bottle, poured in some salt, mixed it, and then handed it to Ye Yixin. She pursed her dry lips and smiled slightly, "Thank you, Brother Hu Ming. Without your care along the way, I would have died in the desert long ago. I will always remember your great kindness."

She looked at Hu Ming with a hint of shyness in her eyes. Then she took the kettle, poured water into her mouth, and felt the warmth of the water melting into her heart.

Everyone drank the icy river water; it was refreshingly cold, but they all drank their fill and sat down to rest. The fat man, however, lay down and began to sing a folk song.

"The river meanders and flows, this is a wonderful place on the frontier, the river water is cool and delicious..."

To be honest, Fatty has a talent for singing. He can hum a few lines and they sound pretty good, especially his husky voice, which sounds quite magnetic. Hu Bayi kicked him.

"Stop whining and come with me to look around," the fat man complained as he got up and followed Hu Bayi to explore.

"So, the Zidu Dark River hasn't dried up; it's been flowing in this way all along," Ye Yixin said with emotion. After drinking some water, her spirits improved considerably, and she ate her dry rations with relish.

Professor Chen looked at Ye Yixin with affection, smiled and nodded, "The Zidu Dark River has been flowing for thousands of years without interruption, but it is buried underground, which is a real pity."

They chatted amongst themselves, eating their dry rations to conserve their energy.

Hu Ming also drank some water, but after finishing, he looked around. If nothing unexpected happened, the next step forward would lead to the most mysterious area of ​​the Jingjue Ancient City.

A little while later, Hu Bayi and Fatty returned from their patrol.

"Old Hu, any new discoveries?" Yang Xueli asked.

Hu Bayi nodded. "Everyone, come with me."

"There's a door here!!" The fat man, with his sharp eyes, spotted a door from afar.

The group then arrived at the place Hu Bayi had pointed out.

Sure enough, there was a hidden door on the other side of the river!
(End of this chapter)