750 Linked Halls (1/2)
Han Fen was shivering so violently that her upper teeth seemed to be punching her lower ones, and her fear had even reached the oil lamp on her head as it was shaking violently. With one hand clamping onto her mouth and the other holding onto the lamp, Han Fen was so scared that she was temporarily rendered incapable of talking.
The other four people were also startled, but they didn't believe in the existence of ghosts. Having forgotten the fact that he didn't have any internal energy, Old Man Mu leaped forward and yelled, ”I'll kill you!”
Normally, he should have been able to reach the front of the bamboo pole. But after he leaped just one step forward, the bamboo pole seemed to become scared and disappeared into the passage, which left the four more positive that it was a person and not a ghost, because the bamboo pole snapped into two figures as it entered the door.
However, Deng Yuanlei recalled a more horrible issue and in a low voice, he said, ”They're kung fu experts, and we can't defeat them.”
Lu Mian snorted. Instead of replying to Deng Yuanlei, he asked, ”Han Fen, did the Master Commander leave any guards here?”
”I… I… don't know.” Han Fen moved her palm away and squeezed out those four words. Then she looked at the Dragon King in horror. ”Are they really humans?”
Gu Shenwei nodded and assured, ”Even if they're ghosts, there's no need to be afraid. You see, they like playing, and are not scary at all.”
”You're right.” Han Fen stopped trembling immediately. She walked a few steps forward as if she had never been scared, and in a sudden, loud voice, yelled, ”All you ghosts, big and small, show yourselves. I'm not afraid.”
Her voice reverberated through the room, yet no humans or ghosts showed up.
”Eek, it turns out they're cowards, ha-ha.” Han Fen was satisfied with the results. She laughed out loud and then turned to ask the Dragon King for help, ”Now what? There's no way out. And the Master Commander will be angry with me if I fail to get to the Western Regions in time.”
”We'll take the other path. Maybe there're other exits.” Gu Shenwei's suggestion received immediate approval, and Han Fen led the way confident once more with the lamp on her head.
The two from the Qingcheng Sect exchanged a glance, but didn't move. Deng Yuanlei said, ”It seems that the two people there mean no harm. Maybe they were just trying to show us the right way out.”
Old Man Mu shook his head and rejected Deng Yuanlei's proposal. ”First of all, we've already tried that path, and there's a lake there – we have no idea what's waiting us on the other side and we'd have to swim across if we wanted to find out. Secondly, from now on, the Khan's mausoleum belongs to the Dragon King, who has to inspect those treasure Lotus left behind along with me. As for you two, you'll be the Dragon King's prisoners, no matter what path you take, ha-ha.”
Old Man Mu had guessed part of the Dragon King's plan. This luxurious mausoleum was indeed an exceptional resource which could be of great help to his fight for hegemony. For certain reasons, Lotus hadn't taken all the valuables in it, and Gu Shenwei would love to ascertain what was left behind. Another reason was that he had a habit of never taking a path guided by unknown people.
Han Fen's head craned out of the passage and beckoned to the Dragon King excitedly. ”Come on. The next hall's even more interesting.”
Gu Shenwei and Old Man Mu walked forwards. Deng Yuanlei and Lu Mian exchanged another glance and also followed along. Treasure always held great appeal, and yet the two had a different opinion on the treasure's ownership.
What had excited Han Fen was a jewelry hall, where all of its surfaced had been covered with brass. Numerous gems were mounted on the walls. The light of the little oil lamp refracted when it shone through those gems, which lit up those gems with beams as colorful as fantasy shining stars in the sky. Han Fen was running around the hall like a child.
Even Gu Shenwei, who had never cared about wealth or jewelry, was shocked. Raising his head and looking around, Old Man Mu stroked the gems on the walls, and asked a question completely in line his intrinsic practical mindset. ”The Khan's such a wastrel. All those things he did – seeking immortality, building mausoleums. What was it for?”
”This is not a mausoleum. It's the Khan's underground divine palace.” Gu Shenwei had thought that the Khan was a wise man during his limited interaction with him, and he had never thought that Khan would be so obsessed with immortality. No wonder the Court Attendants Army and common herdsmen were similarly obsessed.
The two from the Qingcheng Sect were even more surprised. Deng Yuanlei produced his dagger and tried to dig a ruby out of the wall closest to him, but his current mediocre strength and his lack of knowledge of the right method caused the dagger to snap while the ruby hadn't loosened even a bit.
”Hey, don't touch anything. All the jewels here belong to Dragon King,” Old Man Mu said.
”They belong to the Master Commander,” Han Fen corrected.
”Give them to the emperor as a tribute, and I will receive a reward even more handsome than if I brought back the Khan's head,” Lu Mian said to himself excitedly, as if he hadn't heard the words of the other two.
”We should keep some to ourselves, as… assets of the Qingcheng Sect.” Deng Yuanlei's greedy eyes were even brighter than the gems.
The three parties glared at one another.
Gu Shenwei didn't take part in the debate. As we walked through the hall, he became more and more confused. He thought to himself, 'What was the Khan's purpose of building these luxurious halls? Why aren't there any defense mechanisms? The two figures back there were clearly not disciples of the Waning Moon Hall. They refused to show themselves, but why did they let the Waning Moon Hall take all the gold previously?'