False evidence

Chapter 334 Fishing for Spiritual Bones at the Dragon Ascension Pavilion (5)

The sharp blade of the shovel plunged into the riverbed and severed the arm at the root.

Knowing I couldn't stay underwater any longer, I loosened the folding shovel and swam to the surface.

But after only two strokes, my ankle suddenly felt like it was tangled in seaweed.

I quickly bent down again and looked closely. What had entangled me was not some seaweed, but a strip of cloth about the width of a palm that was sticking out from the bottom of the water.

I drew my dagger, intending to cut the strip of cloth. Unexpectedly, two more swordfish suddenly emerged from the riverbed.

I dodged one of them, but another struck my chest at the tremor point between my ribs.

The impact felt like being hit by a bullet; his entire upper body went numb instantly, and the dagger slipped from his hand.

I felt like my lungs were about to burst, and I thought to myself, "That's it, this time I can only meet again with Century Egg on the Bridge of Helplessness."

The rope wrapped around my wrist suddenly tightened, pulling my body upwards.

It seems that Liu the Blind and the others on the shore, seeing that I had been down for too long, started pulling the rope up without even bothering to send a signal.

I stopped caring about the strips of cloth wrapped around my feet and just hoped that the pull of the crowd would tear them off.

In fact, at that moment, I would have been willing to have my ankles torn off. The feeling of holding your breath to the limit is just too unbearable.

The other end of the cloth strip was wrapped with something, which was incredibly tough and sturdy.

The rope above was being pulled with all its might, but the rope below still wouldn't come loose, like a tug-of-war, pulling my body straight.

Suddenly, one end of the rope increased its force, and the strip of cloth was finally pulled out from the bottom of the river.

The moment the river water was stirred up, a huge, white object was pulled out of the silt and floated right in front of me.

I finally understood what the strip of cloth was for; right in front of me was yet another female corpse.

The two hands I just cut off belonged to this woman's corpse.

Unlike the medicine terracotta warrior I carried on my back before, this female corpse's face did not show obvious swelling. Although it was also pale, her eyes were closed, and her face looked peaceful, as if she were asleep.

The female corpse was completely naked, with her chest facing upwards, while her lower body was wrapped in strips of cloth like a rice dumpling.

This is clearly another medicine terracotta warrior.

After the medicine figurine was pulled out, a huge suction force suddenly came from below.

It felt like a giant vacuum bottle had its stopper suddenly pulled out, as if it was sucking everything around it in.

I was pulled by the suction force and sank nearly two meters in an instant.

The saying "drinking cold water will cause you to choke, burning incense will cause your Buddha to fall out" perfectly describes my experience.

Just now, in order to conserve my breath, I tied the rope that Liu Hong gave me around my wrists, but the rope suddenly came loose!
The forces pulling me from above and below became unbalanced, and before I could even react, I was quickly pulled downwards.

Just then, I was hit on the back of the head by something, and the burning pain finally drained my last bit of willpower.

River water poured into my mouth and nose without restraint, and I quickly lost consciousness...

After an unknown amount of time, a voice called out, "Sanqi! Sanqi!"

The sound was so hollow that it was impossible to tell how far away it was.

My first thought was—I'm GAME OVER, it's the underworld's messenger coming to collect my soul!

They're calling my name, but I can't answer! Even if I have to die, even if I have to become a wandering ghost, let me at least say goodbye to my grandfather and my friends. And where is that woman who took my 'first time'?!
A voice said, "He won't die, but whether he'll become an idiot is another question."

I suddenly realized, "Why does that sound so familiar?"
"Blind man!" I suddenly opened my eyes and sat up straight.

Before my eyes stood two people, one squatting and the other standing; they were none other than Blind Liu and Liu Hong!

"You two died too?" I asked in astonishment.

"Hey kid, I risked my life to come down here and save you, and the moment you open your eyes you're cursing me to die?" Blind Liu raised a foot, as if to kick me.

"Not dead... that means he's still alive..."

It's not that I'm still confused, it's just that Liu the Blind looks really strange right now.

Both he and Liu Hong were completely naked, and neither was wearing sunglasses. Under the flashlight, the back of his eyes appeared fluorescent green. His two small, beady pupils had turned crimson.

Anyone who sees such eyes would think they've seen a ghost.

I stood up, looked around, and realized that I was in a room.

"Where is this?"

“We’re on the ship now, in the cabin!” Liu Hong replied.

My ears started ringing the moment he opened his mouth.

Blind Liu frowned and said to Liu Hong:

"You're deaf, we're not. We've told you so many times to keep your voice down!"

I asked in confusion, "A boat? Where did you get a boat?"

Before Liu Hong could speak, Blind Liu interjected, "Wouldn't it be easier to understand if we said it was a tomb? You've got some incredible luck, you actually stumbled upon the real tomb of Consort Li. But this isn't a traditional burial chamber, it's a boat that's sunk to the bottom of the river!"

The flashlight I had clipped to my waist was nowhere to be found, so I asked Liu Hong for another one. I shone it around and saw the steps on one side, and finally realized what was going on.

According to the blind man's previous statement, as a key part of the Luodan Yingxi Denglong Pavilion layout, Consort Li should have been placed in a stone or iron coffin and sunk to the bottom of the water.

It was only at this moment that I learned that Consort Li was buried in a sunken ship.

This 'ship grave' should be buried in the mud and sand at the bottom of the water. For some reason, the cabin did not take on water.

Recalling the events before I lost consciousness, that immense suction force must have been caused by a sudden opening of a sealed space within the ship. And after I lost consciousness, I was inadvertently sucked into the ship!

“When Liu Hong mentioned manpower and ‘arrowfish,’ I knew something was wrong. There was more than one medicine figurine, so what’s below wasn’t just a coffin, but likely a tomb of considerable size.”

As he spoke, Blind Liu walked to the side and tapped the dark wall with his backhand, making two soft "clanging" sounds.

"The entire ship was made of riveted iron plates. Back then, that must have taken a lot of manpower and resources. That's why they say the emperor's dragon throne smells so good."

Blind Liu sighed again, then said, "Don't delay, hurry up and go down to find what we're looking for!"

Following Liu the Blind Man's lead, I gradually came to understand my current situation.

This was indeed an iron ship. Although it could not be compared with modern steel giants, it was still quite large in ancient times.

Blind Liu said that when he followed Liu Hong down, what he saw was quite strange.

The two men saw that half of my body was stuck in the silt at the bottom of the river, with only my lower body sticking out. It looked as if I was upside down, planted at the bottom of the river.

Planted alongside me was a medicinal terracotta warrior wrapped in a white cloth...

(End of this chapter)