Chapter 1

A strong beam of light cut through the tomb passage, and the man holding a powerful flashlight shone it around, exploring the stone walls and the arched ceiling, as well as the dark expanse ahead.

When the strong light illuminated the stone wall up close, the man's appearance was revealed in the darkness.

A middle-aged man, slender and neat, with tidy hair, a fair complexion, and a vibrant spirit. His eyes were sharp, and his demeanor calm and composed.

He was impeccably groomed, dressed neatly in a black Tang suit, and held a straight cane.

Such a neatly dressed appearance in such a tomb environment was rare to those who didn't know him, but those who did found it quite normal. He was an 'underground archaeologist,' known in the past as 'Thief Master,' and later, as his reputation and status grew, he was respectfully called 'Dao Ye.'

Now, Dao Ye generally remained in seclusion, practicing like a true Taoist, rarely venturing out personally. He only did so when he encountered something particularly interesting, like the rare tomb structure before him.

The cane tapped the ground with each step, and when it hit the ground with a metallic "ding," Dao Ye stopped. He didn't rush to look down but instead swept his flashlight beam around, revealing a vast, pitch-black underground space. The light beam allowed him to roughly discern that he had reached the tomb's inner chamber, which was unusually large.

After a brief observation of the surroundings, the flashlight beam finally illuminated the ground. The cane tapped the ground a few more times, and he used his toes to scrape away a layer of dust, revealing a metal surface with a slight bronze luster.

He raised the cane and tucked it under his arm, freeing one hand. He then slowly lifted his palm, and a small whirlwind of dust appeared. Suddenly, he flipped his palm forward, and a burst of inner strength pushed the dust away, clearing a path. He slapped the ground a few more times, sending dust flying.

He stood still, cane in hand, as the dust settled. The strong flashlight revealed that the ground for several meters ahead was made of metal, not just a small area. There seemed to be carved patterns on the metal surface, but they were obscured by the dust.

Once the dust settled, Dao Ye continued forward, cane in hand, occasionally shining the flashlight at the arched ceiling. The inner chamber had several dark entrances, similar to the passage he had entered, but it was unclear where they led or what secrets they held.

"This kind of structure is truly rare, interesting..." Dao Ye murmured with a smile. As he spoke, his foot made a "crack" sound, seemingly sinking into the ground. Immediately, a buzzing sound came from below, indicating some mechanism had been triggered.

A loud thud echoed from the direction of the entrance, indicating that the passage had been blocked by something.

Dao Ye's expression changed slightly. With his experience, he knew the entrance had been sealed.

Soon, muffled creaking sounds came from the other dark entrances, suggesting heavy doors had opened.

Dao Ye took a few steps back, quickly scanning the surroundings with his flashlight, realizing he had triggered a mechanism. Whatever it was, it was clearly not friendly.

He remained highly alert, but after a moment, everything was quiet. Suddenly, a loud explosion came from the entrance, shaking the ground and echoing through the inner chamber.

He quickly noticed a different sound in the reverberating echoes and shone his flashlight at a dark entrance. Something was running, and a pair of green eyes appeared from the depths of the entrance. A ragged figure emerged, not quite human, with a mummy-like appearance, white hair, sharp teeth, and green eyes. Its claws were black and sharp, and it charged out of the entrance, roaring and lunging at him. Similar figures appeared from the other entrances.

Zombies! The thought flashed through Dao Ye's mind. He didn't hesitate, twisting the handle of his cane to release a cold blade. He nimbly stepped back, dodging the zombie's attack, and with a swift sword strike, a spray of green blood erupted from the zombie's neck.

The zombie's head flew off, and its body crashed to the ground, twitching and struggling to get up.

Dao Ye didn't stop. His sword flashed, and one by one, the charging zombies fell to the ground. The flashlight beam flickered around him.

More zombies emerged from the entrances, their numbers increasing.

Surrounded and caught off guard, Dao Ye's sword alone was not enough. He used his hands and feet, stabbing a zombie's heart with his sword, only to find it ineffective. The zombie still lunged at him. Dao Ye kicked it away, sending it flying and knocking over several others. Without pausing, he spun in the air and kicked another zombie, then quickly kicked a few more, severing their heads with his sword.

In a short time, over twenty powerful zombies lay dead around him, but he couldn't stop. Normal people would have been too afraid to approach, but these zombies were fearless, attacking fiercely and relentlessly.

"Rat-tat-tat..." sudden gunfire erupted from the entrance. A slender man wielded an automatic rifle, firing at the zombies charging at Dao Ye.

After a burst of gunfire, the slender man realized the bullets had little effect and instead drew the zombies' attention. He had some experience with these creatures and quickly adjusted his aim, targeting their heads and knees.

The charging zombies either lost their ability to run and crawled toward him or were killed with headshots.

The rifle's muzzle flashed, illuminating the slender man's cold, expressionless face, showing his calm and composed demeanor.

Seeing the zombies charging fearlessly, he advanced, quickly changing the magazine and pulling the bolt. He continued firing, switching to a single-handed grip on the rifle and drawing a pistol from his belt. He fired two shots at a zombie's head, killing it instantly, and then fired a few more shots backward, killing the zombies behind him.

He handled the automatic rifle and pistol with great skill, and the zombies fell before they could reach him.

When Dao Ye finally beheaded the last zombie in front of him, the slender man's automatic rifle also fired the last shots, killing the final zombie. Dao Ye's foot lifted the cane, and he rolled in the air, landing and sheathing the sword back into the cane, which he then planted on the ground. He straightened his disheveled hair.

The inner chamber was filled with a strange, foul odor.

The slender man circled around Dao Ye, shooting the heads of any zombies that were still moving. Once all the zombies were still, he remained alert, quickly changing the magazine and tucking the pistol back into his belt. He pulled a flare from his back, lit it, and threw it, illuminating the inner chamber. The circular ceiling and the ground covered in zombie corpses were revealed.

The slender man walked to Dao Ye's side and said indifferently, "Dao Ye, we've taken care of the pursuers outside. The entrance is guarded by our men, and the fallen rocks have been cleared. We can leave at any time."

Dao Ye nodded, shining his flashlight on the zombie corpses and poking them with his cane.

The slender man looked around at the bodies, estimating there were at least a hundred. He was somewhat puzzled, "Where did so many zombies come from?"

"Who knows? In the past, if we encountered them, it was usually just one or two. So many... this place is interesting, it wasn't a waste to come!" Dao Ye chuckled, shining his flashlight around and stopping at a nearly ten-meter-tall statue of Guanyin, seated against the wall, looking compassionate.

The inner chamber was empty except for this statue, making it hard to miss.

The flashlight beam stopped at the statue's neck, revealing a pendant hanging from it. The entire statue was carved from a single piece of stone, but the pendant was clearly added later, making it the only movable object in the otherwise monolithic chamber.

Dao Ye cautiously approached, having learned from his mistake. He tapped the ground with his cane, listening for any unusual sounds to avoid triggering another mechanism.

Reaching the statue, he looked up and tapped it with his cane, listening to the sound. He took a deep breath, gathered his strength, and lightly leaped onto the statue's leg, then quickly climbed to its shoulder. He examined the chain around Guanyin's neck, finding it to be a metal chain. He pulled the pendant up, blew off the dust, and shone his flashlight on it, discovering it was a palm-sized ancient bronze mirror.

He had never seen this style of mirror before, but unlike the rusted chain, the mirror was ancient and unblemished.

This was not a place to linger, and he wanted to take the mirror with him. However, the chain was part of the statue. Seeing that it was rusted, he set down his cane, grabbed the chain, and with a burst of strength, snapped it. A golden thread emerged from the chain, seemingly pulling something inside the statue's neck.

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