Ancient tomb excavation traces

We returned to the entrance of the seepage zone, where the pitiful carbonate rocks, eroded by the acidic water, presented a unique and bizarre appearance. They stretched out their bodies, blocking our way, looking like ancient clay. Fortunately, their bodies contained countless passageways, leading to the orthodox western chamber of the ancient tomb. In aristocratic tombs, the western chamber was typically used to store daily necessities, such as beds, chessboards…

These caves have become a shortcut to the center of the ancient tomb, but Bao Cai warns, "The descendants of the Eight Witches haven't been discovered since we entered the tomb, except for that one time they attacked us. There's nowhere else to live here. I suspect they're the kind of cave dwellers who trick us into taking the wrong path and ending up in someone else's territory, then they'll suddenly attack us head-on, with no way to dodge!"

Bao Cai's explanation is crucial for finding a straight path leading to the west chamber. However, the cave is rugged and riddled with holes, making it difficult to find a safe one.

Fortunately, it was the eighth day of the lunar month. He had traveled extensively with his ancestors, visiting many ancient tombs, and was quite skilled and experienced in choosing passageways. After carefully examining some caves large enough to accommodate us, he spotted an artificial passageway with his sharp eyes. He said this might have been a way out left by the tomb builders for themselves.

This was undoubtedly good news for us. After listening to the sounds in the acupoints for a while and confirming that there was nothing inside, Chuba arranged us into a sequence.

He went in first, having pulled out a short knife just in case. After him was Chen Tan, who was now the most seriously injured; the flesh where the knife had pierced his back was turned inside out, a gruesome sight. At that moment, I truly felt he was incredibly resilient and could endure such pain. If I had been stabbed like that, I'd probably be dead.

Bao Cai's attention was also focused on Chen Tiao's wound. He joked that Chen Tiao was so fat and strong that the Eight Witches' knives were probably stuck into his fat, which is why he survived.

I agreed with his point of view, and just as we were having a good time, Chen Yu, who had gone in first, asked疑惑地问道, "Old Eight, can you smell anything?"

Chen Yi's voice came from within his acupoints, hollow and unsettling. At first, I thought he was trying to scare Bao Cai and me, but his heavy tone suggested otherwise. As for the word "smell," I'm already extremely sensitive to it. Since entering the ancient tomb, there's been all sorts of rotting corpses and dead bodies—not a single pleasant smell. Now, I have an uneasy feeling, as if we'll inexplicably encounter danger if we smell anything.

At this moment, Bao Cai had the same feeling, and he hurriedly asked Chen Yi what the situation was inside.

Before Chen Ting could answer, Chu Ba said, "It was pitch black, I couldn't see clearly, but this smell seems familiar..."

In the darkness, Chen Tan and Chu Ba lay prone, their breathing heavy. At this moment, without light, they were like blind men. Thinking of this, I gritted my teeth, took out my lighter, and prepared to go in and help.

However, the young Taoist priest stopped me. Although he didn't say anything, I knew he was worried about the danger inside, and since I had several wounds, he wanted to go in first to test the water for me. Knowing I couldn't refuse him, I handed him the lighter.

I had taught him how to play with this before. He thought it was some kind of amazing gadget, and a rare innocent expression appeared on his face. However, the lighter looked really out of place with his hair and clothes. I wanted to laugh, but I had to hold it in.

After the young Taoist priest went inside, he handed the Zippo lighter to Chen Tan. The space inside was small, and he came out shortly afterward. After lighting the fire, Chen Tan began searching for the source of the strange smell.

He searched for a long time but couldn't see anything. It was Chu Ba who spotted it and pointed out, "Brother Yu, it's above our heads..."

Bao Cai was extremely tense. If he couldn't figure out the source of the strange smell, he probably wouldn't have gone in no matter what. He asked Chu Ba, "Eighth Master, is there something dangerous inside? If so, shall we take another route?"

Just as he was speaking, Chen Yi emerged from inside, cursing. Because of the knife wound on his back and his slightly overweight build, it was difficult for him to turn around and look at what was above him. He gave the fire to Chu Ba, but Chu Ba didn't know how to use it and quickly put it out.

Given the situation, I gritted my teeth and went in. When I crawled inside and found Chu Ba, I took the lighter he tossed me and lit it. The light was tiny, just a small glimmer, which made the long, dark hole seem even more eerie. I took a deep breath, turned around, tilted my head back, and held the lighter close to the top of the acupoint. What I saw sent chills down my spine.

As Chu Ba said, this cave was man-made, but it didn't seem like a secret passage for the craftsmen to escape through. It wasn't something I could figure out in a short time. So, holding my lighter, I moved forward, my back pressed against the cave wall. Above my line of sight, besides the sharp, skeletal stone walls, there were many things resembling pottery urns. The patterns on these urns were deep, rope-like designs, tightly embedded at the top of the cave, like rows of sticky insect eggs on a long, tubular plant.

Just as I was wondering why there was a pottery urn at this acupoint, Chen Tiao outside interrupted my thoughts. He asked me about the source of the strange smell, and I told him what I had seen.

Upon hearing this, Bao Cai clicked his tongue and said, "There's a pottery urn in this cave? Could it be something the descendants of the Eight Witches used to pickle vegetables?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Yi cursed, "Get the hell out of here! How could a pottery jar in an ancient tomb be used for pickling vegetables! I think it's more suitable for pickling people!"

In this environment, even the bravest person would feel a chill run down their spine upon hearing Chen Yi say these words.

Chu Ba was ahead of me, and fearing it would waste time, he urged, "Little rascal, forget about what it is, as long as it's not dangerous, let's just grab it!"

I responded and was about to move forward when I suddenly saw a clump of dark, shadowy things, like hair, but also somewhat like the pickled vegetables Bao Cai had mentioned. I moved closer, puzzled, and discovered that the smell was indeed coming from it.

At that moment, I suddenly felt a sense of indescribable fear. I wanted to leave, but I couldn't stop my curiosity.

As the saying goes, "If you don't court death, you won't die." I stiffly raised the lighter higher, and gradually, I could see the broken earthenware jar more clearly. The things hanging from it looked a bit like dried seaweed. Looking further inside, my breath caught in my throat… In the firelight, there was a small, tightly closed eye, filled with a deathly, sinister aura. I couldn't see everything, but I had a feeling that my heart was being ripped out, as if a strange child was staring intently at me through a crack in a door. In an instant, it felt as if countless thin strands of hair were wriggling and crawling into my clothes. My whole body was covered in goosebumps, and my hand holding the lighter began to go numb.

The earthenware jar was only broken at one corner, so I couldn't be sure what was inside. But judging from its closed eyes, it resembled a person. This person was strange; its hair was very short—unusually, people in ancient times wouldn't have such short hair, and a normal person couldn't possibly fit inside an earthenware jar. I swallowed hard, my body seemingly nailed to the spot, unable to move. Looking closer, I noticed its head was very small, its face a bluish-gray color with purplish-black veins climbing it like outstretched branches, a truly chilling sight. I couldn't imagine its full appearance, but suddenly, a possibility occurred to me…

This might be a coffin made in an urn!