Stepping out of Li Jing's home, I felt as if my soul had fled my body.

After all, I hadn't managed to say it, hadn't dared to say it.

I wasn't some high-achieving student from No.1 Middle School; I was just a Tomb Raider, a criminal. No one my age dared to befriend me.

Li Jing's gaze as I left, I couldn't forget it.

"What's the matter, kid, lost your soul?" Back at the Bungalow at the Foot of the Mountain, A Mole was munching on an apple.

I forced a bitter smile and said, "It's nothing, just the wind, got something in my eye."

A Mole, holding the apple in one hand, gave me a skeptical look and burst into laughter, "You're barely out of the fuzz, and you know what heartbreak is? Forget it already." She was laughing so hard she was bending over backward.

I felt a surge of irritation and glared at her, "Eat your apple, don't talk nonsense if you don't know what's going on!"

I wasn't angry because she called me a kid; it was her suggesting that I forget Li Jing. How could you just forget a perfectly good person like that?

But it was true that back then, in QQ Space, there was a trend of non-mainstream photos—brooding eyes, disheveled hair, a photo with a few Small Special Effects, and a couple of words: forget love.

In the following month, everything was calm. I didn't dare to seek out Li Jing. The calf that Boss Lao San was raising was growing by the day. We fed it the best fodder, and it grew very quickly.

The thickened Hook Needle had already been procured; Boss had it made by an expert in Luoyang, with the size and specifications meeting our expectations perfectly.

Aside from feeding the cattle, Third Brother would take a hammer and chisel in his spare time and work on the Stone Gate. After about two months, he finally managed to chisel out an Ox Nose Groove.

That night, we gathered at the bottom of the pit, everything ready, everyone's face solemn, for tonight was the night of action. Whether we could successfully move the Natural Stone with such a fantastical method, it all hinged on this night.

Eldest Elder Sun patted the Little Yellow Ox, which could no longer be called little. The Three Cows were now only slightly shorter than me, quite large indeed.

Perhaps because they had been well-fed, one of the cows even stretched out its head to nuzzle Third Elder Sun.

"It's all on you, buddy," he said, stroking the cow's head.

A Mole had procured the highest quality Climbing Rope available on the market. After several attempts, Eldest Elder Sun finally managed to secure the Hook Needle through the gap in the door, catching onto the Natural Stone behind it.

The Hook Needle was fixed to the oxen's nose ring, and the Climbing Rope was tied on.

We threaded the rope first around the Three Cows' necks, then each of us picked up the remainder of the rope.

After a hundred days of rearing cattle, they are used in a moment of need.

Eldest Elder Sun slung the rope over his back and bellowed with fury, "Pull!"

The rope instantly tautened!

"Pull!"

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"Pull!"

Three Cows bellowed and pushed backward. Like A Mole and me, we all exerted our utmost strength, our faces turning beet red with the strain.

Instantly, a shower of dust fell from the Stone Gate.

"Hold on! Give it another push!"

"Come on... damn it..."

"Open!"

With that final roar, a tremendous noise emanated from the Big Stone Gate behind us.

The Natural Stone, which had been bracing against the Underground Palace Door, was pulled down by our efforts.

Exhausted, we all collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. Third Elder Sun, who had lived for several months in this pitch-black Large Tomb, was now so excited he could hardly contain himself.

"We did it, we did it!" he kept repeating.

Months of persistence vanished along with the Natural Stone, like smoke dissipating into the air.

Without the Natural Stone, it was simple to push open the Stone Gate.

After catching our breath, we all placed our hands on the Stone Gate and pushed; a crack appeared with our effort.

The sound of the Stone Gate scraping was like Chime Bells from three thousand years ago being struck, deep and resonant.

When the gate was open enough for a person to squeeze through, we stopped.

Looking inside from here, it was pitch black, but I was the first to smell a fragrance, the same kind I had detected the first time I descended into the tomb, only this time it was much stronger, hitting me like a wave.

Boss had said this kind of fragrance was not a good sign.

After letting the air circulate to ensure it was safe, Eldest Elder Sun led the way, and we all crawled in.

It was very dark inside, but Boss had come prepared, and we lit the torches we had brought with us.

We raised the torches high.

"What... Big Brother, what is this?" I was so astounded by the sight before us that I was at a loss for words.

What appeared before us was wood, precisely a multitude of well-crafted pieces of wood, each about a meter long, and in vast quantities, easily numbering in the thousands.

These pieces of wood were systematically interlocked, rising over ten meters high and spanning more than twenty meters wide, one layer enveloping another, like a hedgehog...

Each piece of wood was coated with a black substance that appeared to be some kind of preservative paint.

That fragrance of Phoebe Wood was emanating from the wood itself.

Third Elder Sun stared blankly at the Wood Mountain before him: "Yellow... Yellow Intestine Assemblage..."

Indeed, this Wood Mountain, interlocked and stacked like a hedgehog, was the very Yellow Intestine Assemblage that Yao Yumen had once mentioned in passing.

The grandeur of the Han Dynasty's Yellow Intestine Assemblage pales in comparison to what was before my eyes; it was like comparing a tractor to a Ferrari, the former utterly lacking in presence and class.

None of us had ever seen the Yellow Intestine Assemblage from the Western Zhou period, but if we were to judge by the standards of the later Han Dynasty, it's likely that the very heart of these timbers was where the tomb owner's coffin and outer coffin once rested. In other words, the spot where we now stood was precisely where the main tomb chamber had vanished...

These timbers interlocked with each other, presenting a sight akin to a giant hedgehog. Frowning, I asked, "Third Brother, this Wood Mountain blocks our path. How do we proceed?"

Third Elder Sun, with his wealth of experience, pondered for a moment before responding, "Cloud Peak, don't rush. This structure was undoubtedly crafted by artisans who, upon completing their work, would have needed to exit and thus would have left a route not easily discovered."

With these words, Eldest Elder Sun, torch in hand, began a meticulous search for a passage large enough for a person to slip through, and we joined in to assist.

It was something I hadn't noticed from a distance, but upon closer inspection, I suddenly saw that some of the timbers of the Yellow Intestine Assemblage were covered with many black mushrooms. These were unlike the common varieties we ate at home; their shapes were bizarre, with mushroom caps resembling the wrinkled faces of the elderly, complete with noses and eyes upon closer scrutiny.

A Mole, too, had noticed these fungi growing on the wood and reached out to pluck one for a closer look.

"Don't touch it! Don't disturb that!" Boss called out sharply.

"Don't handle it. If I'm not mistaken, this type of fungus is specifically mentioned in the Burial Scriptures."

"This is called the Yellow Cypress Old Face, a rare burrowing fungal medicinal material."

"Yellow Cypress Old Face? A medicinal material?" I had never heard of such a thing.

A Mole stepped back and said, "Third Brother, didn't you say it's a medicinal material? Why can't it be touched? Even though it looks a bit strange."

"No, it's not that," Third Elder Sun said gravely, "very few have ever laid eyes on this thing. I reckon even Yao Yumen has never seen it. The Burial Scriptures state that this plant grows in lands of Extreme Yin and is said in folk tales to be used by Miao doctors for soul summoning." (To be continued)

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I have also posted the following more chapters [All free]: https://www.readgates.com/article/7b136c