Ancient tomb excavation traces

The more I thought about it, the more uneasy I felt. Looking at the steps we had just stepped onto, they resembled the road to the underworld described in ancient books. With this in mind, I shared my thoughts with Chen Yu and the others. To my surprise, Chen Yu laughed and teased me, "So, in that case, this suspension bridge becomes the Bridge of Helplessness, Liu Zi? No wonder your paintings and wood carvings are so valuable; it's because you have such a vivid imagination!"

Upon hearing this, Bao Cai sat down beside him and chimed in, "That's right, young master. You're making it sound so magical. If what you're saying is true, then after we cross the bridge, we'll reach the Terrace of Longing for Home, and then we'll probably have to drink a bowl of Meng Po soup before going to the Three Lives Stone to see our past and present lives."

Looking at their mocking faces, I shook my head and said sadly, "What I said just now was just my assumption. If you don't think so, there's nothing I can do... Besides, before we came here, I saw some strange illusions. These illusions seemed to be a kind of premonition, including the one just now when you were about to have an accident. I had a feeling." I looked at Chen Yi, probably because I was anxious seeing their expressions, so I spoke without thinking.

However, as soon as I said that, Chen Yi stared at me with his mouth agape and Bao Cai looked at me in surprise. Looking at their expressions, I knew I had said too much.

"An illusion? Haha..." After a moment of silence, Bao Cai laughed so hard he almost fell over. He wiped away the tears of laughter from the corners of his eyes and said, "Young Master, are you saying you have precognitive abilities? Like those American superheroes?"

At this moment, Chen Yi was grinning from ear to ear. He leaned closer to me, forcibly suppressing his smile, and said seriously, "Liu Zi, tell me, what happened when you and that loser Liu Baocai were alone? Is there anything you forgot to tell me?"

Bao Cai was about to interject when Chen Yi said he was unlucky, but Chen Yi covered his mouth with one hand, stared straight at me, and pretended to be worried, saying, "Liu Zi, what's wrong with your brain? Were you scared... ah, something's wrong?" He suppressed a laugh and made a snickering sound.

Such friendships are a bitter pill to swallow. I sighed deeply, speechless, and could only beg for forgiveness, saying that I was probably just being overly sensitive.

After the debate about my plan ended, the Miao shaman gave us some basic first aid. We planned to cross the bridge first and then decide what to do next. However, looking at the bridge in front of me, I thought of the sad scene of Chen Yi's departure, as if it really would bring us bad luck. With that thought, I hesitated and said, "Can we cross this bridge? It looks like it's been in disrepair for a long time."

Chen Yi stood up and laughed, "Liuzi, you're overthinking it. You see, although this bridge is old, you have to trust the skilled craftsmen of ancient times. What they did was definitely much better than some of our modern shoddy construction projects." As he spoke, he glanced back and added, "However, I'm not confident about this bridge. We'd better split up."

Upon hearing this, Bao Cai sarcastically remarked, "We should split up, otherwise you fatso will trample the bridge down, and nobody will benefit!"

Chen Yi hated it most when people called him fat. Hearing this, he looked annoyed and said, "Hey, Liu Baocai, you've been talking too much lately. You want a beating, don't you!" As he spoke, he pretended to make a move.

To smooth things over, I quickly stopped him, saying, "This bridge looks to be about thirty meters long and it's not easy to cross. Besides, the water below is stagnant. If we're unlucky and fall in, we don't know if there are any dangerous things inside. If we save our breath now, we'll have the energy to struggle if something happens."

When Bao Cai heard that I was helping him, he immediately hid behind me and said, "Young master is right. Old man, you should save your energy. If the poison takes effect again, we'll be the ones to suffer!"

Looking at his smug expression, I could imagine the old man's inner rage. He glared at Bao Cai, made a fist gesture, and said, "Liu Bao Cai, you wretched monkey, don't look down when you cross the bridge later. I remember you're afraid of heights." With that, he walked to the edge of the bridge.

Upon hearing this, Bao Cai, who had just been full of energy, immediately wilted.

This bridge looks very unreliable. Although the planks are made of good wood, they're bound to rot in this damp air. Old Chou chose to go first, probably to test the waters for us. Right now, I can only pray that the suspension bridge is sturdy, because we have nowhere else to go.

As Chen Yu took his first step, he swallowed hard. With something suspended in mid-air, his heart pounded and he felt insecure.

As he took his second step, I held my breath, and that image suddenly flashed into my mind again: the misty air, the old man calling my name. At that moment, I watched his figure nervously, the bridge creaking and groaning, sending a chill down my spine.

"Old man... Old man... How's this bridge?" Bao Cai asked worriedly.

As Chen Cai walked carefully, he warned Bao Cai, "It's like walking on thin ice. You'll understand soon enough." As he spoke, he gradually increased his speed. When he reached the middle section, he turned back and said, "It's alright. This plank is quite thick. Just don't look down and walk carefully."

When he said that, I breathed a sigh of relief, but then my face suddenly darkened because... because I saw a shadowy figure through the gap in the wooden planks, right at Chen Yi's feet.

"Old man!" I shouted, goosebumps rising all over my body.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Chen Yu looked bewildered when I called her.

"Come back!" At that moment, I didn't know what to say, I just stared anxiously at the shadow in the crack. Old Tiao saw me staring at his feet, looked down, and looked at me with confusion.

"Damn it!" At that moment, he jumped up because, suddenly, a silvery-white dagger was aimed at his foot from below him.

Encountering this situation on a suspension bridge was undoubtedly adding insult to injury. Chen Tiao staggered and fell to the ground, causing the bridge to shake violently. Before I could even see what was below, Chen Tiao had already fallen flat on his face.

"Liu Zi! What's that down there!" Chen Yi shouted. I quickly ran to the side, and there I saw a human face. The face was facing me, a little pale and a little strange. He was clinging to the bottom of the suspension bridge, his hair was on his shoulders, messy and disordered, and his eyes revealed a deathly aura.

"It's a weirdo! Run!" I shouted urgently.

Chen Yi naturally wanted to run, but the bridge was swaying violently. He got up and fell down repeatedly. Meanwhile, the bridge's supports were shaking violently, and the thick ropes on them were slowly coming loose.

"Run! Old Chen, run!" Bao Cai shouted. The situation was chaotic. Chen Chen got up and ran desperately towards the other side of the river. Unfortunately, running in this kind of place was very difficult. Suddenly, his foot kicked through an old wooden plank. At that moment, the dark figure climbed up to the bottom of Old Chen's body. Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed Chen Chen's foot, pulling him down forcefully.

My heart pounded with fear. I wanted to rush over and help, but the bridge was already unstable. Chen Yu struggled desperately to climb up, but the shadowy figure was incredibly strong. When Chen Yu was halfway down, the man raised his knife and aimed it at Chen Yu's back. I screamed as I watched Chen Yu's fingers dig tightly into the wooden planks, digging and digging... His fingers grew weaker and weaker until finally, he let out a bloodcurdling scream and fell right before our eyes.

I stared blankly at the scene, then realized what had happened.

"No!" I cried out in disbelief, crawling to the edge of the rock and reaching out my hand. I will never forget Chen Yi's eyes.

"Old Chen!" Bao Cai was also stunned. It all happened so fast. He heard a splash as Chen Chen fell into the water, and at that moment, specks of crimson appeared in the dim yellow water.

"No, it can't be..." Tears streamed down my face as I murmured. I never imagined that the illusion... the illusion... had become real! Just as I was collapsing, a faint sound came from behind me. Heartbroken, I turned around, and the sight before me stunned me. In the small grotto of this cave, there was a pale, dead face. It poked its head out of the hole, and before I could react, the face quickly emerged and grabbed the Miao witch.

Before the witch could even comprehend what was happening, the man grinned, revealing a dark, gaping mouth that, at first glance, appeared to have no tongue!