hair

The words of the Second Master left me in stunned silence for quite a while. I hadn't expected things to take such a turn, completely surpassing the boundaries of my imagination. If I had heard these words from anyone else, I would have been highly skeptical, but coming from the Second Master, even if I disliked the old man, I believed in what he said.

I inquired, "So, you and the person mentioned by Baldy..."

"Yes, it's correct, your father. He led a group of people, but they came from a different entrance. In his letter, he mentioned that once you see what he left down there, everything would become clear. Moreover," he looked at me, "the entire game was set in motion when your father passed away. You became an insignificant pawn at that moment. However, I discovered that someone was unwilling to let go. You were under surveillance until before your college years."

"I don't know which faction those people belong to. They probably thought there might be some clues left by your father on you. Until these past few years, those watchful eyes finally disappeared. Although I couldn't catch them, judging by the traces, it's possible they were from the Cao family. So, it's best for you to lead an ordinary life, steer clear of this path, and distance yourself from the Cao family. Your father has sacrificed everything for you."

After consuming some food, I administered another dose of antibiotics to the Second Master, and he gradually recovered. I held the miner's lamp, examining the stone chamber. I found it strange; if this chamber was indeed a trapdoor mechanism, it should have been reinforced with steel needles or something similar. A fall from such a height would mean certain death. Why was it an empty chamber?

However, being trapped here at the moment made no difference from facing immediate death. There was no way we, just the two of us, could climb out. Moreover, with the lack of water and provisions, we wouldn't last more than a few days. Perhaps Old He and the others already assumed that the Second Master and I had valiantly sacrificed ourselves and wouldn't come back for us.

Sitting back on the ground, a profound sense of helplessness enveloped me. These days had been too much for me to handle. One couldn't fathom the feeling of solitary existence in an ancient tomb, buried underground for hundreds or thousands of years. Deep beneath the surface, deprived of daylight, I confess that many times I contemplated ending my own existence.

My mind resembled a mushy mess now, in utter chaos. Half asleep, half awake, I saw the Second Master wake up, standing in front of a wall, feeling around with his hands.

At this moment, the Second Master made a puzzled sound. I rubbed my eyes and went over. He asked me to hold the lamp, trying to illuminate the entire wall as much as possible. I inquired about his discovery, and he mentioned that upon waking up, he felt a lateral airflow, indicating possible cracks in the walls around us.

Indeed, in the corners where the two walls met, we discovered some cracks. The distance from the ground was probably only sixty to seventy centimeters. Squatting down to inspect, it seemed like this area was intentionally patched up hastily, like someone had glued it together in a hurry.

I placed the lamp aside and, lacking a shovel, the Second Master unscrewed a section of his gun barrel for me. After a few stabs, a gap was opened. I looked at the material lifted by the gun barrel, dark and seemingly cottony. I took a strand, pinched it between my fingers, unable to discern its composition. The Second Master, looking at my face, said in a low voice, "It's hair."

I exclaimed, tossing the hair away reflexively. Feeling disgusted, I asked, "Why would there be hair here?"

The Second Master came forward to take a look, saying, "It should be a person, dead for a long time. The body is desiccated, but it's strange. Why would the body dehydrate to this extent? Considering the environment, it shouldn't meet the conditions for mummification. Moreover..."

He pointed at the pitch-black cracks and said, "This seems to be a reverse burglary hole."

I was astonished, "Could this person be from the group more than twenty years ago?"

The Second Master furrowed his brows, "That's not the key point. The crucial thing is what's inside, making him create a reverse burglary hole."

I speculated, "Are you saying you escaped from inside?"

The Second Master nodded. "This situation might not be uncommon. Let's be cautious about the vegetation; during our camp days, we encountered horrifying blood-sucking vines. I guess this person might have been drained by those vines."

Initially not paying much attention, after he mentioned it, I couldn't help but shiver. I recalled what Zhao Gu said about how those people met their demise. Just thinking about the green flesh buds growing all over their bodies made my stomach churn.

This burglary hole was likely made from above, and it happened to connect to the mechanism room where we were. Because I could clearly feel the trend of the burglary hole rising, I remembered that the Second Master didn't bring a flashlight. I wanted to tell him to wait a moment, but before I could say a word, he made a "shh" sound and stopped moving.

My heart skipped a beat. Could it be that he encountered those blood-sucking vines? My goodness, in this narrow space, both the Second Master and I would likely turn into dried sausages if those vines were here.

As I contemplated whether to use a cold flare, the Second Master took a step back, and I followed suit. He lowered his voice and said to me, "We should be close to the place now. The burglary hole probably leads to the third hall. And... there's a sound from above."

I blurted out, "Is it Old He and the others?"

In the darkness, the Second Master hesitated for a moment, then cautiously said, "Probably not. It sounds like someone is walking above, and the footsteps are light. It doesn't seem like an adult."

Surprised, I exclaimed, "A child? How could there be a child in the tomb?"

He listened for a while, then asked me to hand him the flashlight. He said the sound was gone and wanted to check it out. I shook my head, thinking it was too dangerous.

Now, a sense of fear crept over me. If it wasn't that thing leaving, but silently crouching outside the burglary hole, wouldn't the Second Master face it head-on as soon as he stepped out?

The Second Master assured me that everything was fine. He was sure that the footsteps had moved away before he lost track of them. He signaled me to be alert, and he would notify me when he went out.

I handed him the flashlight, urging him to be extremely careful. He nodded and crawled out. I wasn't sure if it was due to the Second Master's excellent skills or my poor hearing, but I couldn't hear any sound once he left. After a good seven or eight minutes, there was still no signal from the Second Master.

I started to feel anxious. After four or five more minutes, I began to sense that something was amiss. My intuition told me that something must have happened outside.

If

 it was safe out there, the Second Master wouldn't have gone so long without signaling me. If it was dangerous, I should have heard some commotion. Under these circumstances, there was only one possible outcome: the Second Master was subdued as soon as he went out. Currently, he must be in a situation where he couldn't make a sound.

With this thought in mind, I couldn't care about anything else. Taking a deep breath, I raised the gun and climbed out of the burglary hole.

I was afraid that something might be lurking right next to the hole, so when I came up, I left a mental note. I left the lamp in place and rolled a few times away from the hole.

Lying on the ground, aiming the gun at the lamp, I was ready to shoot anything that attacked me. However, to my surprise, there was nothing coming towards me within the reach of the lamp's light.

Looking to the side, my scalp tingled involuntarily. I saw the Second Master sitting on the opposite side, facing away from me, motionless.