In the darkness. The first words Zheng Rong uttered upon waking were: "Li Ying, I know it's you."

Li Ying, in a magnetic, seductive voice, whispered into Zheng Rong’s ear, “What are you looking for, baby?” Zheng Rong took a deep breath. Li Ying reached into Zheng Rong’s coat pocket, his fingers brushing against his.

He retrieved the cold lighter from between Zheng Rong’s fingers, and with a click, it flared to life. The dim flame flickered between them, revealing Li Ying’s bloodied head. When he fell, he had shielded Zheng Rong’s head with his arms, resulting in his own collision with a sharp stone edge. Zheng Rong reached into his coat again, but Li Ying stood up, placing the lighter on a protruding stone carving on the wall. As he turned, Zheng Rong raised a hand, pressing a gun against Li Ying’s forehead, pinning him to the wall. “One question at a time,” Zheng Rong said coldly. “Since when have you been following us?”

Li Ying tilted his handsome face, his eyes narrowing dangerously as he scrutinized Zheng Rong, an evil smile creeping onto his lips. The hand holding the gun trembled slightly. Li Ying looked just as he had in the past—thick, dark eyebrows, eyes with the predator’s gaze of a leopard, sharp, ruthless lips, and a lean profile. For a moment, Zheng Rong felt a sudden urge to place his hand on Li Ying’s face. “You’re not cut out for this line of work, baby,” Li Ying commented with a hint of amusement. “Careful not to misfire.”

Zheng Rong spoke slowly and quietly, “You think I won’t pull the trigger.” He applied pressure gradually, his finger pulling back the trigger by a third, the faint sound cutting through the silence. Li Ying stopped smiling. “Start talking. Don’t waste my time,” Zheng Rong said. Li Ying raised his finger, signaling silence, and whispered mysteriously, “Don’t wake the dead.” Zheng Rong’s peripheral vision caught sight of a stone coffin less than five steps away.

“I’ve been following you ever since I spotted you on Mount Saint Catherine,” Li Ying said, staring into Zheng Rong’s eyes, his hand tracing the line of Zheng Rong’s neck with fascination. “Baby, what are you doing here? Doesn’t Lance know you’re supposed to stay in the underground city? Is there something special about the Sphinx?” Zheng Rong released the trigger, resetting it. “Did the Mayans send you to investigate the ruins of the Ten Commandments?” Li Ying’s left hand wore a thin, red silk glove, and his palm was so warm that the heat seeped through the silk’s smooth surface, making Zheng Rong’s breath quicken. “Do you miss me?” Li Ying placed his other hand on Zheng Rong’s shoulder, this time wearing a black silk glove. Zheng Rong asked, “Why did you plant explosives under the pillar?” Ignoring the gun against his forehead, Li Ying placed both hands on Zheng Rong’s shoulders, leaning close. “I have a lot to tell you, Zheng Rong. But right now, I can’t say a word. Trust me.” Zheng Rong’s breath hitched as he met Li Ying’s eyes. In a low voice, he said, “I will kill you.” “No, you won’t,” Li Ying said in his deep, magnetic voice. “I love you as I did before, and just like before... I’ve never lied to you.” Zheng Rong took a deep breath, seeing in Li Ying’s eyes the familiar lover from the past. Li Ying whispered, “Otherwise, I could have killed that Korean woman you were communicating with in the car.”

Before the last word even left his lips, Li Ying turned and pressed a kiss to Zheng Rong’s lips. Zheng Rong completely lost; he lowered his gun.

Li Ying wrapped his arm around Zheng Rong’s waist, pulling him in tightly. With his long, powerful legs between Zheng Rong’s, he buried his head in Zheng Rong’s shoulder. “There’s so much I want to say…” Li Ying whispered slowly in his deep voice by his ear, “but I can’t let out a single word. I miss you so much I’m going insane…” Li Ying’s hand reached into the waistband of Zheng Rong’s trousers, pulling out the shirt tucked under his belt. He kissed the corner of Zheng Rong’s mouth repeatedly, his hand moving along his exposed back. The warmth of his palm, almost scorching, along with the touch of silk against his skin, made Zheng Rong shiver. He could clearly feel the lines of his palm, and the tangled lifeline in his hand. “They implanted a very small bomb at the back of my head,” Li Ying whispered, pressing his nose against Zheng Rong’s, staring into his eyes. “If I talk about certain key things... triggering a certain thought process... the bomb will make a very small sound.” “It won’t blow my brains out, but it’s enough to…” Li Ying said in a deep, slow voice, “turn my brain into mush.” Zheng Rong closed his eyes. “You almost killed me,” Zheng Rong said. Li Ying replied, “The timed explosives under the pillar were just a joke. There’s no nitroglycerin in them.” Having said this, Li Ying sealed Zheng Rong’s lips with his own, forcefully.

Zheng Rong raised his gun once more, pressing it to Li Ying’s forehead, pushing him back a meter.

This time, Zheng Rong did not look at him. His eyes showed hesitation as if he were deep in thought. “What did you put in the bomb core?” Zheng Rong ignored Li Ying’s request. “Urine,” Li Ying responded with a provocative grin. “Wanna try it? No need to wait—I can make you drink some right now.” “You’re crazy,” Zheng Rong said coldly. “You need to get help for your illness.” Li Ying squinted his eyes. “Being away from you has only made it worse.”

Zheng Rong sighed in exhaustion, finally holstering his gun. Li Ying smiled but said nothing. “Explain,” Zheng Rong said. “I’ll try to help you.” Li Ying replied, “First, we need to find a way to get this thing...” He pointed to his temple. “...out. I don’t know what will trigger the bomb, so it’s too dangerous to talk.” Zheng Rong knew he meant the biological bomb in his brain. “Lainey’s also here. Though I don’t like her, I trust her surgical skills. Can we use a scalpel and tweezers when we get back to the base?” Li Ying shook his head. “No, it’s buried too deep.” Zheng Rong licked his lips, a habit whenever he thought about things related to Li Ying.

Zheng Rong said, “First, we need to get back to the car... The others won’t be difficult to convince, but Lance is as stubborn as a block of wood.” Li Ying’s deep voice resonated, “As long as one person in the world believes in me, I can be saved.” Zheng Rong responded indifferently, “But what I want is not your salvation, but humanity’s.”

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In the darkness, they fell silent. Finally, Zheng Rong spoke, “This is not a good time. Are you carrying out a disguise mission given to you by the aliens? You don’t need to tell me the details, just answer yes or no—will it trigger the bomb?” Li Ying paused in silence, seemingly thinking, and finally answered, “No.” “Were you gambling with the last question?” Zheng Rong asked. Li Ying remained silent.

Zheng Rong decided not to ask any more questions, but Li Ying said, “All my tasks are complete. Now I’m just a discarded pawn.” Zheng Rong wanted to ask if his last mission had something to do with Moses' pillar, but he feared triggering the damn bomb. After a long moment of contemplation, he asked, “Can the thing in your brain let the Mayans track your location?” Li Ying answered quickly, “No, it can’t send out any signals. It’s not an electronic device.” Zheng Rong let out a sigh of relief; that made things much easier.

From outside the stone chamber came Joseph’s voice: “...Mechanism...” Zheng Rong said, “You’d better find a way to get out. Even if Lance can accept you, the moment the military sees you, you’ll be put on the electric chair. I’ll hypnotize Lance and reveal you when the time is right.” Li Ying chuckled, “Where to?” Zheng Rong said, “Get in.” He bent over and pushed open the stone coffin, letting Li Ying hide inside. “Lie down,” Zheng Rong said. “We’re not afraid of the dark.” It was something they used to say to each other when they slept together in the war orphanage as children.

From inside the coffin, Li Ying said, “I love you.” Zheng Rong stiffly responded, “I don’t love you.” Li Ying replied, “I know you do.” Zheng Rong didn’t say anything further. He glanced around, sitting on the stone coffin, arms folded, beginning to plan how to explain Li Ying’s presence to Lance. Even Zheng Rong couldn’t explain why he believed him. Li Ying seemed the same as three years ago, yet entirely different.

“Did the Mayans modify your body?” Zheng Rong asked warily. “Yes,” Li Ying answered from inside the coffin. “Li Ying, swear to me you’re not lying. Otherwise, I will die in front of you,” Zheng Rong demanded. Li Ying didn’t reply.

“Zheng Rong…” the voice came from inside the coffin, “I’m not lying to you, or I’ll... die in front of you.”

Suddenly, a narrow passageway burst open, and a bright light shone inside. Zheng Rong shielded his eyes with his arm and said, “No danger, come in!” Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, but Lance asked suspiciously, “Zheng Rong, answer me—what was the last thing you gave me? Wait! Xiang Yu!” “Where is the injury?” Xiang Yu asked urgently. He was the first to slide down into the tomb, grabbing Zheng Rong’s arm and pulling him aside as he landed. Zheng Rong had smeared quite a bit of Li Ying’s blood on his face and suddenly realized his carelessness. “It’s nothing.” Lance slid down after them, calling up through the passage, “Lainey, come down! Ugos and Joseph, stay up top for support!” “No need!” Zheng Rong called up the passage, “It’s just a minor injury, I can move!”

Lance scanned the tomb chamber before embedding a light in the shoulder-mounted gear pack. “Black underwear,” Zheng Rong grumbled. Lance, being a well-trained soldier, had asked to confirm whether Zheng Rong was being held hostage. In other words, Lance had sensed something was off.

Lance smiled slightly. “Let me see.” He turned Zheng Rong’s head to check the wound on his head. “How long have you been awake?” Zheng Rong thought for a moment and replied, “Less than three minutes.” Lance had Zheng Rong walk a few steps to make sure he wasn’t concussed, then looked up to observe the narrow tomb chamber. “Is there any other exit here?” “No,” Zheng Rong said. He suddenly realized something and corrected himself, “I don’t know! Wait! Lance, I have something to tell you!”

Almost instantly, as Zheng Rong’s words fell, Lance pulled a lever on his shoulder, readying the magnetic cannon, aiming it at the stone coffin in the center of the tomb. “Xiang Yu, protect him!” “You’ll blow up the whole place!” Zheng Rong shouted.

As if on cue, the coffin lid burst open with a loud boom. Lance shouted, his left fist punching out, shattering the lid to pieces. A figure, shrouded in flying dust, lunged at Lance.

“You’re not my match,” Li Ying’s dangerous, low voice sounded. He struck Lance’s jaw with one fist, while the other hand extended two fingers arrogantly, hooking onto the inside of the magnetic cannon’s white-hot muzzle, twisting it counterclockwise. The muzzle's charging mechanism dimmed instantly.

Lance was thrown back by the punch, his shoulder slamming hard into the stone wall. Using the force of the collision, he kicked both feet into the air, wrapping them around Li Ying’s neck, and with a gritted-teeth twist, both of them crashed to the ground. “I’ll kill you!” Lance roared like a mad lion. In a matter of seconds, Li Ying dismantled Lance’s offensive. His black-gloved hand defended while his red-gloved hand attacked. Zheng Rong couldn’t even make out how the fight began before Li Ying had already straightened up, locking Lance’s throat with his fingers, pushing him against the wall.

The tomb chamber fell deathly silent, only the anxious shouts of Ugos could be heard from the passage outside.

Xiang Yu made his move. Li Ying flipped his left hand back, catching Xiang Yu’s punch. Xiang Yu’s strike came silently, his punch almost brushing the back of Li Ying’s head before he could react. The light punch carried no wind, but when Li Ying tried to grab hold of the force, Xiang Yu’s strength was as unyielding as a mountain. Li Ying turned in disbelief, and his wrist let out a faint “crack.” “Xiang Yu! Hold back!” Zheng Rong knew there was no suspense anymore. Xiang Yu transformed his punch into a palm strike, leaning forward and letting out a loud shout.

In the narrow tomb chamber, Xiang Yu’s yell made Zheng Rong’s vision go black, almost causing him to spit blood. Li Ying bore the brunt of it, and in that brief moment of daze, his arm went limp, dislocated. Reflexively, his right hand rose to block, but Xiang Yu’s palm had already struck his shoulder. Before Xiang Yu, Li Ying had no chance to fight back and was sent flying like a broken kite, crashing into the wall with a loud thud before collapsing to the ground, motionless.

Zheng Rong watched the scene in a daze before rushing over, trembling as he cradled Li Ying. The not-yet-healed wound on his forehead broke open again, the stone floor staining with dark purple blood.

Xiang Yu said, “I used soft force. He’s only temporarily unconscious, nothing serious.” Zheng Rong whispered, “Thank you.”

Xiang Yu helped the blood-nosed Lance up and asked, “Is this Li Ying?” “Restrain him!” Zheng Rong shouted. “Don’t let Lance fire!” Lance pulled out his gun, panting heavily, but Xiang Yu placed a single hand on the weapon, making Lance put it away. Zheng Rong whispered, “Yes, it’s him.”

With his fingers, he brushed aside the blood-soaked hair stuck to Li Ying’s forehead and sighed deeply.