Chapter 204
Chapter 204
The only reason Feng Meiyu had noticed it was thanks to her family’s long tradition of expertise.
Aside from certain modern-day tomb robbers whose methods were crude and who knew nothing beyond explosives, their old-school counterparts had generally been much more meticulous.
Many of them were architectural geniuses who had simply gone into the wrong line of work.
“I learned a little from that neighbor of mine too.”
Feng Meiyu traced a shape across the concrete wall with her finger.
A wide fissure had split the wall when the detonator exploded.
“Look over there,” Feng Meiyu said.
Qin Ying followed her finger and saw that the radiating cracks abruptly veered in a strange direction at one spot on the wall, ending in an unnaturally sharp right angle.
“Generally speaking, there’s probably a hidden passage behind a crack like this.”
After saying that, she seemed to lose confidence. Tugging on her braid with one hand, she added quietly, “Of course, there might not be one.”
At this point, Qin Ying and the others had few options. One way or another, they had to try.
Qin Ying looked at Zhang Lang.
The Immortal Grass Zhang Lang had swallowed was already taking effect. This miraculous medicine for treating injuries was proving terrifyingly potent.
Zhang Lang had not told anyone, but he could feel the flesh beneath his electrical burn scabs itching as it grew back.
At Qin Ying’s silent signal, he obediently stepped forward.
Planting one foot in front of the other, he slammed his deformed right hand into the crack.
A muffled thud rang out, and the fissure widened dramatically.
Concrete dust trickled to the floor.
Zhang Lang thrust his claw-shaped hand deep into the crack and wrenched hard, tearing away a large chunk of concrete.
Like the first domino toppling, the entire face of the wall began flaking away in overlapping scales.
Behind it was a sticky layer of clay.
Delight flashed through Feng Meiyu’s eyes. “It’s green sealing clay laced with mercury!”
“Green sealing clay usually only appears in tombs. Could there be a burial chamber inside?”
No one could answer her question. Qin Ying turned to Zhang Lang. “Can you locate the entrance to the hidden passage?”
Zhang Lang was fairly serious when he was working. He pressed his ear to the wall of green sealing clay and listened intently.
The entire room fell silent.
The only sound was the soft scrape of Zhang Yuqin, the Living Corpse, shuffling across the stone.
Zhang Lang listened against the wall for a long time before hesitantly pressing his palm to one spot.
“I think… it’s here.”
The layer of green sealing clay was too thick for him to be certain.
“Forget about being sure. Just start digging,” Qin Ying said.
They had no other way out. They could only make as many attempts as possible while they were still in decent condition.
If they delayed for another few days and ran out of food and water, they would die trapped in here.
Zhang Lang grunted in acknowledgment. He raised his right hand, then plunged it straight into the wall of green sealing clay.
Yin Minmin, Zhao Jixian, and Feng Meiyu helped carry away the debris.
Qin Ying headed in another direction, making her way toward the stone platform at the center of the blast.
Supposedly, half an animal skeleton had originally rested atop this Western-style altar.
When the detonators planted beneath it exploded, both the bones and the altar had been blown apart.
All that remained at the center was a black scorch mark reeking of gunpowder.
Qin Ying tilted her head and asked Thunderbird softly, “Can you find those bones?”
Thunderbird chirped twice and cocked its head.
When it gave no further response, Qin Ying was not too disappointed.
There was no telling how many years old those bones were or what condition they had been in. Even Wangcai might not have been able to find them.
Undeterred, she crouched down with her flashlight, hoping to photograph some details of the altar.
Amid the sounds of Zhang Lang digging and the dangerous Yellow Springs Eye Stone littering the floor, she found a relatively intact fragment of the altar.
Just as Yin Minmin had said, it bore an ancient, distinctly Western pattern.
“Mozarabic Dentil Pattern?” Qin Ying murmured.
It was a highly distinctive design commonly found in monasteries: a classic form of religious ornamentation.
Qin Ying had seen this motif countless times at the Ruins of the Ancient City of Xinelopolis.
A thought occurred to her, and she asked Zhao Jixian, “Was the chief engineer who built this railway from Italy?”
Zhao Jixian was helping move the blue clay. The sudden question made his mind go blank for a moment.
He and Feng Meiyu were truly legendary champions at handling pressure. They had Zhang Lang on their left and the wandering Living Corpse Zhang Yuqin behind them.
The Yellow Weasel Immortal and Willow Immortal were also lying in the corridor outside. Zhao Jixian and Feng Meiyu had been terrified at first, but by now, they had gone numb.
Zhao Jixian had been repeating the names of his son and daughter under his breath. Hearing Qin Ying’s question, he hesitated.
Back then, all they had known was that the engineers were foreigners. How would they have known whether they were from Italy or not?
After thinking for a long time, he finally said, “Y-Yeah. I think so.”
“Our dining car had this tomato-and-meatball noodle dish. Supposedly, the engineer loved it, so the cook learned how to make it, and it became a permanent menu item.”
“I hear those people from Italy just love noodles with gravy.”
Having confirmed one more detail, Qin Ying resumed her search.
She shifted a piece of rubble with her right hand, which was encased in Di Shang, and was pleasantly surprised to discover a fragment of bone on the ground.
It looked like a rib.
Delighted, she picked it up with her right hand. The next moment, the corner of her mouth twitched.
There were obvious signs that the bone had been artificially aged with acid, and a rusted iron tack was concealed on its underside.
It was a man-made fake.
Its sole purpose in being placed on the stone platform was to serve as bait, luring someone into stepping on a detonator.
Qin Ying silently cursed the scheming bastard who had set this up.
She casually tossed the fake sheep bone aside. Before the curse had even faded from her mind, a sound came from the corridor.
It sounded like someone grunting through a severe bout of constipation.
Qin Ying hurried to her feet. “Keep going. I’ll take a look.”
She strode out, only to suck in a sharp breath at what she saw.
Three people lay on the floor. There was no telling how hamster-headed Zong Li or Brother Willow Immortal was doing just by looking at them, but Wu Qian, or Fatty Wu, had his face twisted into a grimace.
His eyes were stretched wide as he stared fixedly at the ceiling, as if a vengeful ghost had crawled up there to claim his life.
Qin Ying knew he had come into contact with the Yellow Springs Eye Stone and was now under the influence of the Tunnel Wraith.
In theory, a slap should keep him from being frightened to death.
Qin Ying didn’t hesitate. She lunged forward, swung her arm back, and let loose.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
With her right hand encased in Di Shang, she slapped all three of them in turn.
Wu Qian jerked as if electrocuted, then closed his eyes and sank into unconsciousness.
After a moment’s thought, Qin Ying decided that still wasn’t safe, so she called Yin Minmin over.
She told Yin Minmin to keep watch over them and slap them if anything seemed wrong, lest the Tunnel Wraith frighten them to death while they were unconscious.
Just then, Feng Meiyu’s excited voice rang out from inside. “There really is a hidden passage!”
Zhang Lang had dug a hole half a meter deep into the wall of blue-clay plaster.
It was pitch-black beyond the opening. A damp, chilly wind rushed out, carrying a powerful smell of mold.
Zhang Lang’s spirits rose, and he widened the opening.
A narrow stone staircase, just wide enough for one person, appeared before them.
The steps were steep and cramped, spiraling downward.
Qin Ying spotted an ancient torch mounted on the right side of the staircase.
It was covered in dust, but when Zhang Lang took it down and gave it a squeeze, there was still grease left inside.
Zhang Lang borrowed a flame from the wick of the kerosene lamp, and the torch ignited with a whoosh.
He was just about to volunteer to go down when the Living Corpse Zhang Yuqin, who had been wandering around at a steady pace, abruptly changed direction and walked straight toward them.
Zhao Jixian and Feng Meiyu hurriedly moved aside.
With her neck lolling and her skin already blue, Zhang Yuqin lurched from side to side as she descended the stone staircase.