Courtyard House: My Time Travel is a Bit Too Strong

"Master Lin, Master Hu, Master Kai, there's an archaeological team right now..." Big Gold Tooth tapped the table with the tip of his chopsticks, and before he could finish speaking, the wine was already poured.

Hu Bayi glanced at Lin Quan and Wang Kaixuan and said, "Okay."

"Wishing you all the best in your campaign." Big Gold Tooth raised his glass and downed it in one gulp.

After the meal, he paid the bill, and everyone dispersed.

The next morning, Lin Quan, Hu Bayi, and Wang Kaixuan went to the recruitment office together.

Hu Bayi gave his name, shared some of his field experience, and recounted two anecdotes from his early years traveling in Northwest China. The examiner, Hao Aiguo, nodded and filled out the roster on the spot.

Wang Kaixuan started by saying, "Back in the day, I took on a snow leopard one-on-one in Hoh Xil," but he hesitated when asked about the snow leopard's hibernation habits. Professor Chen, however, stared at the old jade pendant around his neck, whispered a few words to Yang Xueli, and then turned to say, "Keep it."

"Mr. Lin, what is your specialty?" Yang Xueli handed over the registration form.

"You have quite a few special skills." Lin Quan took the pen and drew a line after his name.

"We won't record anything that's useless for scientific research." She tapped the corner of the paper with her fingertip.

"If he doesn't go, I'll just turn around and leave." Wang Kaixuan said with a smile, stuffing the jade pendant into his collar.

Yang Xueli paused for two seconds, then extended her hand: "Welcome to the team."

Lin Quan squeezed for a moment, then let go.

……

The train swayed westward, and Hu Bayi leaned against the window, recounting old stories.

"Old Hu, it's just a firefly, isn't it? It dies as soon as it gets wet," Lin Guo casually replied.

Hu Bayi was taken aback: "You recognize him?"

"Here you go, the nemesis is right here." Lin Quan patted two silver spray cans under the seat.

"I thought it was some medicine for someone's rhinitis," Wang Kaixuan slapped his thigh.

Yang Xueli pushed open the door and came in: "Mr. Lin, you know about fireflies?"

"I've seen several kinds of living things." Lin Quan peeled open a peanut.

"Mr. Lin, Mr. Hu, Mr. Wang, would it be convenient for you to come to my room? I have something important to discuss." She stood at the door without moving.

The three of them entered her private room, where Professor Chen was already waiting.

"Change course to the Kunlun Glacier..." Hu Bayi frowned and shook his head. Wang Kaixuan leaned closer and offered a few words of advice, and Yang Xueli immediately increased the fee by 30%; Professor Chen immediately perked up, talking about ice layer deposition and the secret files of the Western Xia Dynasty, gesturing and flipping through his notes, and Hu Bayi finally nodded.

Lin Quan remained seated near the door, neither speaking nor drinking water.

After everyone had walked away, Professor Chen turned to Yang Xueli and said, "Of those three, Lin Quan was the one who made the decision."

"I think so too." She nodded.

They set up camp at the glacier crevasse, drove in stakes, laid ropes, and secured anchor points.

Lin Quan picked up a hammer and smashed it hard against an iron stake, then poured half a bowl of water on it.

"Brother Quan, what are you doing?" Wang Kaixuan squatted down to take a look.

"It's brittle when frozen solid by filling it with water; that's how you make it secure."

At minus twenty degrees Celsius, water freezes instantly upon hitting the ground, and iron stakes, encased in ice shells, are embedded in rock crevices. Salt water has been added to the sprayer, and the canister is wrapped in thick cotton cloth to prevent it from freezing and cracking.

"Old Hu, Triumph, one for each of you." Lin Quan handed out two cans.

"What are you using?" Wang Kaixuan asked.

"This." Lin Quan placed his hand on the hilt of the knife at his waist.

"You can get off now." Yang Xueli fastened her headlamp.

"I'll go first." Before Lin Quan finished speaking, he had already pulled the rope and slid into the shadows.

Stopping every few meters, swinging every ten meters or so, in less than half a minute, the figure had already stood at the bottom of the valley.

"This is too fast..." Hu Bayi stared blankly at the rope.

Yang Xueli squinted: "You're actually quite skilled."

Ten minutes later, she, Chen Jiuren, and Hao Aiguo landed one after another.

"There are remains here," Lin Quan gestured.

Yang Xueli approached for a closer look, bent down to pick up a rusted pistol, and then took out three magazines from beside the skeleton.

Following the crevice forward, the sound of water could be heard. An underground river flowed along the ice wall.

"If I had known there was running water, I should have filled the jug up there." Wang Kaixuan licked his chapped lips.

"You guys rest, the three of us will wade through the water to see how deep it is." Hu Bayi stood up.

Chen Jiuren and Hao Aiguo were huddled in front of the stone wall, pointing at a row of dark red engravings and exclaiming, "Ghost Cave Script! It really is Ghost Cave Script!"

After crossing the river, the outline of the nine-story demon tower appeared in the eerie light.

"There are fireflies in the tower. Don't let go of the sprayer, and walk slowly." Lin Quan unscrewed the cap and tested the spray pressure.

Blue lights flickered in the gaps of the tower's entrance. The tower's internal structure was faintly discernible.

Team member number two, Chu Jian, slipped and his backpack hit the edge of a rock with a loud clang.

All movement came to an abrupt halt. No one blinked, no one swallowed, and even breathing became barely audible.

A few minutes later, the blue light slowly faded and returned to silence.

Wang Kaixuan bent down to examine the remains and pulled out a hard leather bag from his pocket.

"Stop! Put the bag down!" Yang Xueli raised her gun.

Lin Quan stepped to the side and cut in, using his left hand to parry her wrist holding the gun, and with a flick of his right hand, the gun was now in his own hand.

"Say it nicely, Kaixuan, give her the bag. It's not like it's anything valuable," Lin Quan said.

The shutter clicked suddenly, and the fireflies opened their eyes.

"Retreat quickly!" Hu Bayi roared.

"Brother Quan, my life is in your hands." Wang Kaixuan gripped the spray gun tightly with one hand and pressed the air valve hard with the other.

The water mist sprayed out, enveloping swarms of fireflies, which fell to the ground one after another, slamming onto the rock surface with a soft thud.

Hu Bayi sprayed simultaneously, and the insects froze and fell as soon as they got close.

After clearing away the few that were colliding with them, the group swiftly crossed the underground river. The water surface exploded as the giant salamander leaped up, breaking through the waves.

Lin Quan had been waiting on the shore. He leaped forward, landing firmly on its head and spine. His blade flashed repeatedly... After three strikes, the enormous head rolled off.

"Thank goodness for Mr. Lin." Chen Jiuren panted, his fingers still gripping the hilt of the dagger at his waist.

The sprayer was refilled with clean water, and the group returned along the same route.

"I'll go up first, Lao Hu and Kaixuan will cover the rear," Lin Quan said.

"Okay." Hu Bayi nodded. He and Wang Kaixuan had sprayers, which could hold off any insects that came after them for a while.

Lin Quan grabbed the rope, used the wall for leverage, and moved like a shuttle, reaching the top of the cliff in the blink of an eye.

"Brother Quan's skills are amazing..." Wang Kaixuan exclaimed, looking up in amazement.

Yang Xueli stared at the back of the figure without saying a word, only pulling her backpack strap up a little.

Lin Quan stood on the cliff and pulled Chen Jiuren, Hao Aiguo, and Yang Xueli up one by one.

"Mr. Lin, thank you for your help." Chen Jiuren wiped his sweat.

"If it weren't for Brother Quan's foresight, we would have been dead down there long ago," Wang Kaixuan grinned.

Hu Bayi squatted down beside him, unscrewed the kettle, and took a sip: "Fireflies are afraid of water? I never expected that." He paused, looked at the sand dunes in the distance, and didn't say anything more.

The mountain trembled, snow collapsed, and mud and rocks wrapped with ice crashed down, instantly filling the cracks in the ground.

"Old Hu, Triumph, have one." Lin Quan took out his cigarette case and shook out three cigarettes.

After resting at the foot of the mountain, the group boarded a military truck.

"Mr. Lin, Mr. Hu, the typhoon season is approaching, and we plan to..." Yang Xueli began.

"You guys make the decision." Lin Quan leaned back in his chair, his gaze unfocused. "I'm only thinking about the Kunlun Divine Tree... I need to replicate one, and then see what the Queen of Jingjue looks like. Once we're out of this illusion, I'm going to plant it on Mount Hunyuan."