Corpse Retriever.

Chapter 65

Li Zhuiyuan was about to open his mouth to remind them, but before the words came to his throat and he could shout out, a detective suddenly flew into the air.

Everyone was shocked and looked up. Many flashlights were also shining upwards. In the panic, they only saw a sturdy body standing high and swinging constantly.

This scene caused the situation to collapse directly.

The raised body fell rapidly, and the pair of lantern-like eyes drew two red streaks in the night sky, and then rushed straight towards the cave.

Everything happened too fast and too urgently. Some of the explorers outside were so frightened that they stood there in a daze. Some fell down and tried to get up with their hands but their knees were weak. There were also many screaming and shouting purely out of instinct.

If they encountered other sudden unexpected situations, this group of explorers who work outside all year round and have a certain degree of organization would not be so panicked, but the problem is that when faced with something like this suddenly appearing in the darkness of the night, being scared silly is the normal reaction.

In comparison, Li Zhuiyuan and his four companions, who had experienced many strange events, were more resilient. While the others were still at a loss, Runsheng had already reached out and grabbed Li Zhuiyuan's arm, ready to carry the boy on his back. Xue Liangliang and Tan Wenbin supported each other and stood up.

From a purely rational point of view, they should have more opportunities than others to dodge and move, but the "two big lanterns" ignored the other people on the river beach and rushed straight towards them.

This is its hole, and now it's going home.

The four people in the cave suddenly had no way out, and if they continued to stand there they would either be swallowed by the thing or crushed to death in the cave.

Runsheng carried Li Zhuiyuan on his back and ran into the cave. Tan Wenbin and Xue Liangliang followed closely behind him. The four of them arrived in front of the underground cave and jumped down together without hesitation.

The moment of jumping down, Runsheng pulled Li Zhuiyuan in front of him, protected him with his arms, and used his body as a cushion.

Perhaps because that thing often goes in and out of here, the rocks on the tunnel wall have been polished very flat, even smooth. After the four people jumped down, they slid down rapidly at an angle like riding a slide.

Behind them, there was a continuous sound of harsh friction, like truck tires skidding on a smooth road, and the tunnel began to shake violently.

Because Li Zhuiyuan was protected by Runsheng, he was able to look behind him. The pair of huge red lanterns were following closely behind him. He could vaguely see two legs shaking under the red lanterns. It was the explorer who was bitten at the beginning.

At this time, Li Zhuiyuan heard a sound from below, like a huge wind.

This means that the tunnel is almost at the end and there should be nothing below. The four people are likely to fall to their deaths!
But at this moment there was no other feasible measures at all. Not to mention that it was impossible to do it, even if it was possible, trying to stabilize the body and slow down at this moment would result in being swallowed by the thing behind.

Second, if I have to choose an ending for myself, it seems that it would be better to fall to death than to be eaten by that thing.

Soon, a feeling of weightlessness appeared, and the four people slid out of the tunnel, and then fell rapidly.

Even when falling, Li Zhuiyuan still looked up, which was the place where the four of him slid out. The pair of red lanterns stopped at the exit of the tunnel and did not follow down.

Just like that, the red lantern became smaller and smaller and more and more blurred in his vision.

"Plop! Plop! Plop!"

Continuous sound of falling water.

Li Zhuiyuan felt the stinging pain when the water hit his back, but at the same time he breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that everyone's lives were temporarily saved because there were two people in the team who were very good at swimming.

Without moving around, he just cooperated. Runsheng quickly grabbed himself and swam to one side. The undercurrent was deep, but not wide. Soon, the two of them reached the shore.

"Xiaoyuan, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Brother Runsheng, how about you?"

"I have thick skin."

Li Zhuiyuan took out his flashlight, knocked it, and turned it on again.

Each member of the detection team is equipped with one of these waterproof flashlights, which are hung on their bodies and will never be lost unless under special circumstances. The only problem is that this thing is a bit bulky and often has poor contact, but the method of repairing it is also very simple, just find a stone and knock it.

"Clap! Clap! Clap!"

Li Zhuiyuan kept turning the flashlight on and off.

After a while, the same response came from the other side.

The underground river is very noisy and reverberates so loudly that long-distance calls cannot be heard.

The boy pressed the light twice with a long interval, meaning that there were only two of them here. The other side soon did the same thing. It seemed that Xue Liangliang and Tan Wenbin came ashore from that side.

Li Zhuiyuan raised the flashlight and waved the beam, indicating that there was no rush to reunite, and that each of them should check the conditions on their respective shores to see which one would be more suitable.

Xue Liangliang also shook the lamppost, meaning that he understood.

This is not light language. The basis of communication is the understanding ability of both parties.

Next, Li Zhuiyuan began to observe his surroundings with the help of a flashlight. In order to save electricity, Runsheng's flashlight was temporarily unused. The same was true on the other side, with only a beam of light.

The coast on my side is not narrow at all, but rather spacious. The distance between the rock wall and the undercurrent is generally more than ten meters.

But the problem was that the rock wall was too smooth, like a big mirror. Runsheng tried to climb it with his bare hands, but had to give up in the end as he couldn't get up at all.

Li Zhuiyuan was not disappointed about this. After all, the thing was at the top. Even if he could climb up like this, he might still encounter it.

At this time, lights started to come from the other side of the river. First there were rapid and high-frequency flashes, and then there were vertical shakings.

"Brother Runsheng, Brother Liangliang has made a discovery. Let's go over there."

"it is good."

But just as Li Zhuiyuan was about to hang the flashlight back on himself, the flashlight's light swept across a figure.

At first, the boy thought he was dazzled because in the pitch-black environment, he trusted his ears more.

When the flashlight was shone back again, the man appeared again. He was standing there, holding the rock wall with his right hand, with his right leg sticking out and half of his face exposed, as if he was peeping.

Runsheng immediately took two steps forward and came to the front of the boy. It was obvious that he had seen it too.

"Xiaoyuan, do you want to go and take a look?"

Runsheng knew that the boy would always choose to be calm when in danger, but this time, the boy's answer was:

"Brother Runsheng, let's move forward."

"it is good."

To be on the safe side, Li Zhuiyuan had only explored the area around him after landing. He had not been to the front, but judging from the man's posture, it was obvious that there was a sunken area on the left side of the man.

Either there's a raised edge there, or there's a new hole inside.

He roughly calculated the time it took the four of them to slide down the tunnel and the time it took them to freely fall after leaving the tunnel, and barely worked out a vertical drop. With this drop, if they blindly followed the direction of the underground river, the most likely thing waiting for them would not be the sunlight after they walked out of the Water Curtain Cave, but further down.

The best way to leave here is to find a path leading up.

The flashlight kept falling on the "peeping" figure, but instead of dodging, the person remained motionless.

Isn't it a human?

When the distance was close enough and the flashlight's delicate light reflected the texture of stone, Li Zhuiyuan felt relieved. It was indeed not a person but a stone sculpture.

However, the shape of this stone sculpture is a bit too weird.

Li Zhuiyuan was not sure whether the stone sculpture was originally painted, but now it was completely invisible. Judging from the shape and posture of the stone sculpture, it should be a woman.

She wasn't spying...she was observing.

The two words are very similar, but they represent completely different voices. The former mainly refers to oneself and Runsheng, while the latter mainly refers to stone carvings.

Li Zhuiyuan shone the flashlight toward the left rear of the stone sculpture and revealed a cave with a staircase inside.

Then, Li Zhuiyuan shone the flashlight on the stone sculpture again, this time at its back.

Now the female features can be clearly seen, and even the design of the skirt can be seen. Thanks to admiring A'li's outfit every day, Li Zhuiyuan can now restore the style of the skirt in his mind based on the existing patterns of the stone sculpture.

She was not carved and placed here by someone; she was carved directly on this angled rock wall, and many parts of her front body were integrated with the rock wall.

Li Zhuiyuan took several steps back in the direction he was heading, and Runsheng followed suit. The two of them were facing the stone sculpture again.

"Xiaoyuan, this is a bit scary..."

What scares Runsheng is never the physical object, but the atmosphere.

And what Li Zhuiyuan wants to find again is this kind of atmosphere.

When he approached step by step before, he had a sense of familiarity. Now, this feeling came back again, and he also knew where it came from.

The main grave location of many ancient tombs, that is, the wall above the coffin of the tomb owner, will have a painting... "Woman Opening the Door".

There are many speculations about this in the academic community. Li Lan agrees with the view that it means that after the death of the tomb owner, the door to another underworld will open and lead him to the tomb.

Of course, the underworld here does not refer to the Yama Hell, but it may have different directions due to different periods, regions and religious beliefs. Some are to lead oneself to immortality, while others are simply to take oneself back to another mansion that is no less than that in the world of the living, where one can indulge in pleasures as in life.

In short, it is not a place where living people can go.

Thinking of the stone stairs in the cave at the back...

This is not the location of the main tomb, nor is it the location of the normal tomb passage. So who is the stone sculpture here for?
Li Zhuiyuan turned sideways and looked at the surging underground river.

When rational thinking doesn't work, you have to change your way of thinking.

The underground river can be compared to the Yellow Springs Yin River. So, aren’t the stairs and the stone statue of the woman opening the door placed here to welcome the ghosts from the Yellow Springs to come in as guests?
If this really is a tomb, then how hospitable must the tomb owner have been when he was alive to welcome ghosts from all directions after his death?

Li Zhuiyuan looked at the other side of the river. After the other side said hello, the light remained on, occasionally swaying slightly to indicate that it was still alive.

The boy began to signal them to come over to his side.

Both sides have made discoveries. Where to gather specifically depends on who has the final say in the team.

Soon, there was a response from the other side and they went into the water.

Runsheng went to the shore and waited. Soon, the two wet people were lifted up by Runsheng.

"Huh...Huh..." Tan Wenbin knelt on the ground and breathed slowly.

Xue Liangliang just spit a few times and walked towards Li Zhuiyuan: "Xiaoyuan, we found a ship there, but it is a stone ship, carved into the rocks on the shore."

"Then take a look at our side."

Xue Liangliang held up a flashlight and first looked at the stone carvings, then at the stone stairs in the cave inside.

Li Zhuiyuan introduced the meaning of "Woman Opening the Door" and his own views to Xue Liangliang. After listening, Xue Liangliang immediately agreed: "Then the boat we found on the other side is the Huangquan ferry, isn't it?"

Li Zhuiyuan nodded: "It seems that it can be solved."

Xue Liangliang asked: "Xiaoyuan, should we go up the stairs, or..."

Li Zhuiyuan: “Wait for rescue.”

At this time, Tan Wenbin shouted: "The water is rising!"

Li Zhuiyuan and Xue Liangliang went to check immediately and found that the river water level had indeed risen.

There was a gap when we got ashore before, but now not only has the gap been leveled, but the water in the river has also begun to flood onto the shore.

Li Zhuiyuan raised his flashlight and shone it toward the wall above again: "No wonder the stone wall above is so smooth. It turns out that the water level will rise and wash up to it."

Xue Liangliang: "This is the magic of nature."

"Brother Liangliang, now doesn't seem to be the time to express your feelings."

"It doesn't matter, because we only have one choice left."

"Let's go." Li Zhuiyuan made a decision, "We have no choice but to go up."

Runsheng walked in the front, Li Zhuiyuan and Xue Liangliang walked side by side, and at the end was Tan Wenbin. There was no special rehearsal, but everyone seemed to know their position naturally.

The stone stairs were very smooth and there were no handrails, so everyone had to bend over and walk up carefully, and from time to time they had to press the stairs with their hands to maintain balance.

Tan Wenbin joked: "It would be nice if there was an elevator like in a hotel." Xue Liangliang responded: "Then do you also want to wait until you get up and there is a room with a bed so you can lie down and rest?"

"Of course, it would be best to make another pot of tea."

After walking for a long time, the flashlight finally reached the top.

The top was dark red, with a door and windows, and the door was still open.

Li Zhuiyuan felt that the stone sculpture at the bottom of the stairs would be more appropriately carved here.

Tan Wenbin: "I was right. There really is a house there."

Runsheng: "Xiaoyuan?"

"Come in, Brother Runsheng."

"Ah."

There is no turning back. In fact, there was not much hope of waiting for rescue at the beginning, because the rescue team had to deal with the big thing above first. Now, given the nature of the underground river that the water level will rise, it is no longer meaningful to put hope on rescue.

Runsheng entered the door, and the next one was Xue Liangliang. Before entering the door, Li Zhuiyuan checked the window next to him and found that it was made of stone like the door, but the color was still bright, just a little dark.

This means that even if the underground river rises again, it will not reach here.

These double doors are fixed and cannot be pushed, so they can only remain open.

After walking in, the furnishings in the house are all stone carvings, with two rows of benches, a bed, and a coffee table with tea sets on it.

The teapot had no lid, and white liquid could be seen when the flashlight was shone into it. Looking up, I discovered that the top was not flat, but had a number of stone ridges extending downward. The tip of the largest and thickest one was facing the open teapot.

Xue Liangliang pointed at the teapot: "Binbin, your tea."

Tan Wenbin asked curiously, "What is this? I seem to have seen a similar photo in a magazine."

Xue Liangliang: "Stalactite."

Tan Wenbin: "It sounds very expensive, can I drink it?"

Xue Liangliang: "Calcium carbonate precipitate."

Tan Wenbin sighed: "Once this scientific name came out, it suddenly lost its high-class feel."

Li Zhuiyuan looked around and said, "There is no way out."

This stone house is not big, about the size of a normal living room, but there is only one door for entering, and the other three sides are all rock walls.

Tan Wenbin was speechless and said, "No, we spent so much effort to build such a long stone staircase, just to put this here?"

"Let's look again to see if there is any hidden passage." After Li Zhuiyuan finished speaking, he walked towards the bed. He reached out and touched it, then climbed up and looked into the gap in the bed with a flashlight, and then found that there was no gap in the bed.

Xue Liangliang was concentrating on studying the tea set, touching and twisting it here and there: "Everything here is fixed stone. See if there is anything that is not fixed. Maybe there is a mechanism."

"Okay!" Runsheng squatted down to check the chairs.

"Okay, let's find the mechanism." Tan Wenbin responded while yawning and walked to the east wall. He rubbed his eyes with his hand. He was not slacking off, but really sleepy. After all, he had been busy all day and was looking for someone in the first half of the night. It should be the second half of the night now.

A few days ago, at this moment, he should have been competing with Runsheng in the tent to see who could snore louder.

Subconsciously leaning his hands against the wall, Tan Wenbin blinked hard, trying to dispel the sleepiness.

After he mustered up a little more energy, he decided to continue helping to look for it. Then he looked at his left hand in surprise and was shocked to find that his left hand had actually sunk into the wall.

"Fuck me!"

Tan Wenbin instinctively wanted to pull his hand out, but the harder he tried, the stronger the suction became.

When the other three heard his scream and turned to look at him, they saw Tan Wenbin stuck to the wall. Runsheng reacted quickly and wanted to pull him, but before his hand touched Tan Wenbin, Tan Wenbin completely sank into the wall and disappeared.

As he entered, the walls began to soften and shake.

"Brother Binbin seems to have found the entrance."

As Li Zhuiyuan spoke, he stretched out his hand, and his fingertips penetrated naturally. After going a little deeper, he felt the suction coming from within.

Not only did the boy not resist, but he took the initiative to move forward. The next moment, he felt himself being pulled into a piece of gelatinous substance. However, this state did not last long. He was soon thrown out and ran forward several steps before he was able to maintain his balance.

Apart from getting soaked all over again, I didn't feel any other discomfort.

Li Zhuiyuan looked forward and saw Tan Wenbin slumped there with his back to him. When he raised the flashlight upwards, his pupils suddenly shrank and a huge snake head was hanging in front of him.

"Ah ah ah ah ah!"

Tan Wenbin screamed.

Li Zhuiyuan stepped forward and patted his arm: "It's fake, it's a stone sculpture."

“Ahhhh…” Tan Wenbin continued to scream while looking at Li Zhuiyuan. Then his voice gradually died down and his hands began to grope on the ground. “Hey, where’s my flashlight?”

Apparently, after he just came in here, he shone the flashlight and came face to face with the stone snake head. He was completely scared.

Li Zhuiyuan raised his flashlight and shone it on the ground to help him search, but found that he could not see anything in front of him.

"Brother Binbin, stop."

Tan Wenbin stopped. He also saw it and reached forward: "Xiaoyuan, there is a cliff ahead. My flashlight fell down."

"It's okay, as long as the people are okay." Li Zhuiyuan walked to the edge and continued to searchlight, but it was too deep and too dark below, and he could not see anything.

At this time, Runsheng and Xue Liangliang also came in, both of them were covered in water.

Tan Wenbin immediately reminded: "There is a stone snake head in front, be careful not to get scared."

But even with the reminder, when they actually shone the flashlight over there, the two of them paused for a moment.

Li Zhuiyuan has now come to the bottom of the snake head to check. At first he thought it was just a single stone sculpture of a snake head, but it turned out to be wrong. Only the snake head extended to the platform where he and others were now, and its body was intact, but it was standing upright.

The snake's body is densely carved with scales, making it easy to handle.

Li Zhuiyuan pointed upwards and said, "Let's climb up."

There is no need to hesitate, because there is no choice at the moment. If you want to leave here, you can only go all the way. The most important thing is that the snake's body is pointing upwards, which is in line with the direction for survival.

The four men climbed up the snake's head, moving up step by step like they were climbing a ladder.

Just like when I climbed the stairs before, I shone the flashlight upwards while climbing up.

Suddenly, the flashlight shone on a figure standing at the tail of the snake above.

Is it stone sculpture again?
This was Li Zhuiyuan’s first thought, but soon, the facts overturned his cognitive habits. The figure retreated and he was moving!
The four people who were climbing the snake obviously saw this scene, after all, everyone was looking up while climbing up.

Because of this change, the four of them stopped moving at the same time, not knowing whether they should continue going up.

"Xiaoyuan?"

"Brother Runsheng..."

Li Zhuiyuan had just started to speak when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his brain. He couldn't help but press his forehead against the scales, using the coolness to wake himself up.

At this moment, the snake that he was holding seemed to come back to life and began to twist.

But when Li Zhuiyuan raised his head again, the twisting feeling disappeared.

Hallucination?
"Xiaoyuan?" Runsheng asked again.

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head vigorously, forcing himself to calm down: "Brother Runsheng, go up!"

"it is good!"

Runsheng accelerated his climb and then reached the top.

When Li Zhuiyuan climbed up, he found another platform in front of him. Following Runsheng's flashlight, he saw another huge snake head.

"No, that's not right..."

Li Zhuiyuan gritted his teeth, he felt something was wrong.

At this time, Tan Wenbin and Xue Liangliang also climbed up and began to breathe heavily.

Runsheng asked: "Xiaoyuan, do you want to continue climbing?"

Li Zhuiyuan raised his hand and motioned Runsheng to wait a moment while he thought carefully about what was wrong.

He began to recall all the details since he went up the stairs and the various conversations between the four of them. The feeling that something was wrong became stronger and stronger, and he began to wonder why he had only realized it now?
Unexpectedly, at this moment, my own voice sounded:

"Brother Runsheng, keep climbing up. This is the ladder. As long as we keep climbing up, we will definitely be able to get out!"

Li Zhuiyuan widened his eyes. Who was imitating his voice?
But just when the boy wanted to open his mouth to remind her, he was horrified to find that he could not make a sound.

He pinched his neck with both hands, forcing himself to speak to remind them, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't do it.

He wanted to rush over and grab Runsheng, but his legs felt like they were filled with lead and he couldn't move.

"Brother Binbin, Brother Liangliang, hurry up, grit your teeth and hold on, once you get up there you'll be out, and you won't be tired anymore."

"Well, hold on!"

"I'm fine, Xiaoyuan."

Tan Wenbin and Xue Liangliang continued to move forward, while Runsheng had already taken the lead and climbed onto the snake's head.

You guys quickly noticed that I didn’t move, you guys quickly noticed that I’m not here!

But as Xue Liangliang swung the flashlight in his hand, Li Zhuiyuan was surprised to see that Runsheng, who had already been the snakehead, turned around, bent down, and picked up a little boy.

After the little boy was picked up, he turned his head and looked at him.

There was a sarcastic smile on the corner of his mouth.

What the hell are you?
No, it's here, where on earth is it!
Li Zhuiyuan closed his eyes and began to try to walk in the Yin direction. Generally speaking, when encountering such special situations, walking in the Yin direction can often enable one to see things that are invisible in reality.

However, he failed and his attempt to go undercover was not successful.

This was the first time I failed in my attempt since I learned how to do the Yin move.

Of course, there is another possibility, which is...

I am actually in a dream now!

Li Zhuiyuan looked up and began to follow the same method he used to finish his Yin walk. He imagined himself floating up, up, up in the sea water...

He woke up, opened his eyes, and found himself standing in water. The water level had already reached his neck and was very close to submerging his mouth and nose.

Turning his head to look to his side, he found that the four people were all standing neatly at the bottom of the stone stairs, without even climbing the first step.

Runsheng, Tan Wenbin and Xue Liangliang still had their eyes closed and were unaware of anything.

For some reason, Li Zhuiyuan felt as if someone was looking at him from behind. He immediately turned around in the water and looked behind him.

The stone sculpture of the woman opening the door, which was supposed to have her back to the stone stairs, was now facing the stairs.

At first, she revealed her right hand, right leg and right half of her face, while the other half was completely fused with the stone wall.

Now, she showed her left hand, left leg and left half of her face.

On this side of the face, the corner of the mouth was raised with a sarcastic smile.

(End of this chapter)