Tomb raiding: A mere 20 is nothing!

"ah--"

A piercing shout shattered the night, and everyone rushed over, only to find Shen Mingchao sitting blankly on the bed, his eyes lifeless and his expression wooden, like a lifeless, exquisite puppet.

"Is the girl lost in thought and hasn't snapped out of it yet?" the fat man asked with concern.

That's true.

Shen Mingchao was indeed not in a daze.

Li Han's memories filled her mind, and what was even more deadly was that she had a deep empathy for Li Han.

The moment Li Han disappeared into the beam of light, she also felt an overwhelming pain.

It's only a fleeting moment.

For a long time after waking up, Shen Mingchao was processing these chaotic memories and feelings.

Many questions involuntarily popped into my mind.

Isn't this the first time I've ever been transported into the world of The Lost Tomb?

Or is Li Han her past life?

Or perhaps she was simply the inheritor of Li Han's memories?

Regardless of the connection, Shen Mingchao knew that he and Li Han were indeed intricately linked; in other words, she might be Li Han in some sense.

This thought has lingered ever since it first appeared.

As the pain gradually subsided and her vision cleared, Shen Mingchao saw many people gathered around the bed. She looked at them one by one, and finally her gaze settled on those amber eyes.

His pupils were misty, and the corners of his eyes were tinged with a faint red.

Noticing her gaze, the young man hesitated for a moment before looking away, but returned to her eyes shortly afterward.

Shen Mingchao could see Li Cu's hesitation and unease.

He wanted to care about his sister whom he hadn't seen for many years, but he was also afraid that he wouldn't remember him. As a complete stranger, Li Chu didn't even have the right to go up and say a word.

She had watched Li Cu for four years from Li Han's perspective, and it was impossible for her not to have feelings for him; her heart was filled with a bittersweet mix of emotions.

That was Li Han's belated grievance and heartache.

Let her say what Li Han didn't say.

Shen Mingchao forced a smile, suppressing his emotions, and called out to Li Chu:

"elder brother."

Her words caused an instant silence. All eyes darted back and forth between them, filled with astonishment and uncertainty. Even Li Chu himself was visibly shaken.

I haven't abandoned you.

Li Chu, your sister did not abandon you. She only wanted to destroy the Wang family by herself to repay your kindness in raising her. She just hoped that you would not have to suffer those hardships.

"you......"

Li Chu's legs went weak after he uttered just one word.

He was now absolutely certain that the person in front of him was Li Han, but he still had some questions to ask.

"Where did you go when you left home? You haven't contacted us all these years, and you even changed your name. Did something happen that caused you to lose your memory? I heard you've been looking for your family. Are you looking for us, or your descendants?"

"And do you even know what it's like to pick someone up—"

At this point, a loud shout rang out!

"Li Chu!" It was Wu Xie.

His face was solemn, so dark it seemed to drip ink. Li Chu was truly insane now; when he got angry, he didn't care about anything, and no amount of reasoning with him would listen.

While at the hospital, he roared and cursed them, calling them all perverts who conspired to deceive his sister, all for their own filthy desires, and insisting on taking his sister away no matter what.

The young man stood in the doorway holding a knife: "I didn't."

Li Cu's eyes were bloodshot, and he seemed to really want to go up and compete with the strongest fighter. But his two brothers were still clear-headed and went up to each grab one of Li Cu's arms.

Su Wan stammered, "Ya... Ya Li, calm down first."

Yang Hao didn't say anything, but his grip was quite strong.

When Li Cu faced Zhang Qiyu, it was like throwing an egg against a rock—utterly futile.

With that punch from the young man, Li Cu would have been embedded three-tenths into the wall, and they didn't want to pry Li Cu down from the wall.

After a long standoff, Li Chu lost his temper, shoved the two away, and yelled, "Don't touch me! You two aren't any better!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Xie turned around and angrily retorted, "And you? Li Chu? How are you any better?"

In this situation, Li Chu is also not immune.

"We'd also like to know why things are like this!"

"But that's exactly what happened! And it was completely beyond human control!"

"Do you think we haven't considered telling her? Tell me, how are we supposed to tell her? Can she accept it? How can she accept it? Telling her that she can even have contact with these people around her..."

Wu Xie's voice trailed off there; the rest was too embarrassing to say. He took a breath before continuing:

"I don't deny that we initially valued her extraordinary abilities, but we also overestimated our self-control. Now, I just hope she's doing well."

Wu Xie's words came raining down on Li Chu, but Li Chu rolled his eyes inwardly. This guy is still the same; he talks too much when he's trying to fool people.

However, Wu Xie was right about one thing.

If word gets out, what will Shen Mingchao do? Pretend nothing happened and try to get along with them again? How could that be possible? He'll probably cut ties with them immediately and run far away.

After going through everything in his mind, Li Chu closed his eyes and stubbornly said, "She has the right to know."

"Of course she has the right to know, and we don't intend to hide it from her forever. We just want her to focus on preparing for the exam. We've seen all her hard work, and at least before the college entrance exam, she doesn't want to worry about it. Once she gets to university..."

Wu Xie lowered his eyes, his knuckles clenched tightly, and a sharp pain came from his palms. He said, word by word, "I will not interfere with her freedom, nor will I allow anyone else to interfere. She can go wherever she wants, even if she no longer contacts us."

This was something he had planned long ago.

Shen Mingchao was ultimately from a different world than them, and they were not on the same path. It was already a blessing that they had met, and there was no need to bind them with unnecessary emotions.

Young birds must leave the nest when they grow up. Wu Xie hopes to be a safety net for Shen Mingchao's life, not a shackle.

Just consider...

Let's just pretend that he stole these moments from us.

Towards the end of the conversation, Li Cu remained unmoved, insisting that he would take her away when Shen Mingchao woke up, and that his mother also missed Xiao Han, and that their family wanted to be reunited.

Wu Xie had a terrible headache and blurted out, "You're a real stubborn bastard!"

Li Chu silently looked at the sleeping Shen Mingchao. His face was more refined and mature than when he was a child, but in his eyes, his sister was still his sister, the sister he had finally regained after losing her.

He sat quietly by the hospital bed, his tone calm and even, yet it was like a sharp blade piercing straight to the heart.

He said, "Wu Xie, you've already made me lose one, aren't you allowing me to take another with me?"

How can anyone refute that?

Upon hearing this, Wu Xie swayed slightly.

He waved his hand impatiently: "Then when she wakes up tomorrow, you can talk to her. If she wants to go, no one can stop her."

Little did they expect their words to come true.