Realizing that someone had suddenly appeared in front of it, the Soul Husk hesitated for a split second. But only a moment later, it resumed its attack. Raising the arm bound with the longsword, it brought the blade down toward Yang Jun's head. At that moment, Yang Jun stood frozen, seemingly paralyzed with fear, his eyes locked on the Soul Husk. It was as if the moment he had punched Hao Zhengyi earlier had returned in a flash. The sword tied to the creature's arm had come loose—its blade tilted upward, but the hilt still came crashing down with full force.
Just as the hilt was about to strike Yang Jun's head, he suddenly twisted his body and dodged aside. At the same time, his left hand caught hold of the Soul Husk's sword-bound arm, and with his right, he yanked down on the thin cords securing the blade. The strands snapped, and the hilt landed firmly in Yang Jun's grasp.
Both Hao Zhengyi and Crow stared, dumbfounded. Yang Jun now looked nothing like the feeble, despondent man they had seen before. But just as he gripped the sword, the Soul Husk's other arm came crashing down toward him. He had no time to react. The strike landed squarely across his face with a loud smack! The force of the slap twisted his head to the side, but luckily, his horse stance held steady—he didn't fall.
Unable to hold back any longer, Hao Zhengyi shouted at Yang Jun, "What, is that sword just for show? If you don't know how to use it, throw it to me!"
No sooner had he shouted than the Soul Husk's second slap came flying in. Just as it was about to land, Yang Jun suddenly leaned back and pushed off the ground with his toes, launching himself backward with the sword in hand.
After springing back, Yang Jun took several quick steps to retreat further. Oddly enough, the Soul Husk—perhaps disoriented by the sudden absence of the sword from its arm—became sluggish in its movements. Once Yang Jun had stabilized, he turned and said to Hao Zhengyi, "It can't move…"
"It can't move…" Hao Zhengyi echoed, something clicking in his mind. He stared at the Soul Husk again and said, "Is it Dong Qichao?"
Yang Jun didn't have time to answer. The Soul Husk had now locked onto him as its primary target and came charging again. Even though Yang Jun held the sword in hand, he made no move to strike. He kept dodging fluidly, weaving left and right. Though clearly on the defensive, aside from that one slap earlier, he didn't appear flustered at all.
Meanwhile, Hao Zhengyi and Crow seized the opportunity to retrieve their flashlight and the Six-Spoked Dharma Pestle from the floor. Hao had no intention of rushing in to assist Yang Jun. What intrigued him more was the spot where the Soul Husk had first appeared. He directed the flashlight toward that narrow passageway behind the cracked wall. But before he could make out anything, Yang Jun was already leading the Soul Husk in that direction.
Yang Jun was trying to enter the tunnel! Hao Zhengyi instantly caught on to his intent. He gestured quickly to Crow, and the two of them sprinted toward the passage at nearly the same time. Just as they were about to reach it, the Soul Husk suddenly changed course—it abandoned Yang Jun and turned, barreling straight toward Hao Zhengyi and Crow.
The passage was too narrow—only wide enough for one person at a time. With fractured ribs slowing him down, Hao Zhengyi lost the race to Crow, who dove into the passage first. As Hao Zhengyi was about to follow, the Soul Husk arrived.
It leapt forward, pouncing onto Hao Zhengyi just as one foot stepped into the passageway. Crow, seeing the danger, turned back to help—but before he could reach Hao Zhengyi, Yang Jun also appeared at the tunnel entrance. He shouted toward Crow, who was about to come back out, "This is a one-way path—only in, no turning back!"
And with that, Yang Jun delivered a swift kick, sending Crow back into the passage. Then, he tossed the sword in after him and called out, "There's a massive stone gate at the square entrance—drop it down, and you'll be safe!"
As soon as he said that, Yang Jun did something utterly astonishing.
He lunged forward and tore Hao Zhengyi away from the Soul Husk's grasp. The move was so forceful that Hao's overcoat, jacket, and backpack were ripped clean off, and his body was left with several deep gashes. Then, Yang Jun lifted Hao Zhengyi and hurled him out of the burial chamber.
Hao Zhengyi smashed through the bronze door and landed just outside the tomb. Though the impact nearly knocked the wind out of him, he quickly scrambled to his feet and rushed back in. He knew Yang Jun was still in there, tangled up with the Soul Husk. He had to seize this chance and enter the passageway himself. Whatever lay ahead was unknown—but judging from Yang Jun's actions, the very core of this Yin Convergence Point was likely hidden inside that tunnel.
But just as Hao Zhengyi re-entered the burial chamber, he froze in place. He saw Yang Jun had already stepped into the passage. The Soul Husk stood restlessly at the entrance, pacing back and forth in agitation, as if bound by an invisible barrier that kept it from going any further. When Hao Zhengyi returned to the tomb, it finally found a new target to vent its frustration. With a sudden turn, it charged straight at him.
Chairman Hao didn't dare confront the Soul Husk again. He turned and ran, but fortunately, the creature didn't give full chase. It seemed hesitant about leaving the tomb. Hao Zhengyi ran all the way to the plaza gate and immediately spotted the massive stone gate mechanism. Without hesitation, he yanked it down. When he returned to the central plaza, he saw the three of us already focusing our energy toward the mural on the wall...
At this point, we all stood there in stunned silence. The path behind us had been sealed, and now we had only two choices: return the way we came and wait for the main Bureau force to clean up the aftermath, or follow the fire-oil map that Hao Zhengyi had burned into our memories with his life on the line—to reach the so-called Rebirth Terrace.
The fire-oil lines on the wall had already burnt out, and the place was once again swallowed in total darkness. Hao Zhengyi's flashlight had been left behind in the tomb. Now, the vast plaza was dimly lit only by a few weakly flickering lamp-holders, glowing like fireflies.
"Ahem ahem..." Sun Fatty coughed and said to Hao Zhengyi, "No offense, Director Hao—but there's no road ahead. Just the few of us following that map route to reach some so-called Rebirth Terrace? Not realistic. Your guy, Crow, is still with Yang Jun. He's got an eye on her—nothing's going to happen. I say we go back up. Sooner or later, Yang Jun and Crow will come out too. We can set up a reception up top."
Hao Zhengyi exhaled deeply, still clutching his wound. He turned his head to look at Sun Fatty. The blisters on his face twitched slightly as he said, "Reception? Or is it that your people are coming to receive you?" After speaking, he leaned against the wall and ignored Sun Fatty, slowly walking toward the exit of the plaza.
Just as he was about to leave the plaza, Hugo strode quickly forward to block his path. "Hao, looks like it's time we had a proper talk."
Hao Zhengyi glanced up at him without saying a word. Hugo met his gaze and continued, "I don't agree with heading back either. Even though the path ahead is sealed, there's still another route we can take. Since we've made it this far, we can't just retreat without figuring things out. Hao, at least on this matter—I'm with you."
This caught Hao Zhengyi off guard. A hint of surprise flickered across his face. Then he looked at Sun Fatty, whose face had turned beet red, as if he had swallowed a mouthful of smoke and couldn't cough it out.
From the opposing stances of Hugo and Sun Fatty, Hao Zhengyi understood something. He gave a faint smile and said to Hugo, "Director Hugo, your prudence is admirable. But it seems your side hasn't reached a consensus yet. Once you've agreed among yourselves, then we can talk about what path lies ahead."
With that, Hao Zhengyi stepped down into the depths below the sea dome. He leaned against the wall in silence, gazing up at the water ceiling overhead.
As soon as Hao Zhengyi stepped away, Sun Fatty couldn't help himself and barked at Hugo, "Seriously, Director Yu, what the hell are you doing? Just so we're clear, you're not the director of our division. You don't get to give orders to me or Lazi. Whatever mess you want to dive into with Hao Zhengyi, go right ahead. Lazi, we're heading back!"
Sun Fatty tugged at me to leave, but I stood firm beside Hugo. He pulled at me twice but couldn't budge me.
I shook his hand off and said, "Da Sheng, not until we find Yang Jun. I'm not going back."
Sun Fatty's face turned unpleasant. He gestured wildly and said, "Lazi, Yang Jun didn't even lose a hair. Didn't you hear what Hao Zhengyi said? He was the one who threw him out. Who knows where Yang Jun is running around now."
I shook my head and replied, "Da Sheng, everything we know is based on what Hao Zhengyi said. No witnesses, no proof—why should I just take his word for it?"
Sun Fatty wanted to argue, but Hugo interrupted him first. "Sun, we have to reach the Rebirth Terrace. Even if you and Shen go back up, I'm following Hao into the depths."
Sun Fatty gritted his teeth and looked at us furiously, but in the end he stomped his foot and said, "Fine! If I die today, you two better be ready to spend your next lives serving me—plucking grass or hauling loads or whatever! Hmph!"
With that, he turned and shouted toward Hao Zhengyi, "Director Hao, old buddy! Let's go! Today we're all in this together—just for you!"
Hao Zhengyi had expected this. He let out a deep breath and slowly made his way back to us. His skin looked odd—some of the blisters on his face and body had burst, and the fluid was leaking out like sweat. It made him look like he was soaked from head to toe.
The entrance shown in the fire-oil map wasn't here in the plaza. We retraced our steps all the way back to the first turn inside the Yin Convergence Point—that spot where I'd been knocked out by Crow. Sun Fatty and I searched the area thoroughly with our flashlights. It was small enough to see end to end, with no signs of any hidden chambers or secret doors.
Sun Fatty looked at Hao Zhengyi and said, "Director Hao, where the hell is this 'other road'? I'm saying this now: if we can't find anything, we're going back. We've got no other choice."
As he spoke, Hao Zhengyi squinted and tried to recall the map in his mind.
Afraid he might remember it wrong, I walked over and handed him my phone. "Chairman Hao, take another look at the fire-oil photo. Maybe we missed something."
But Hao Zhengyi waved off my phone and began feeling the walls with his hands.
Ka-cha. Something clicked. Hao Zhengyi had pressed something on the wall, and a section two meters tall and half a meter wide sank inward. It was a hidden door, revealing a narrow passage just wide enough for one person to pass through.
We didn't have a flashlight, so we couldn't see far, and the immediate path didn't seem too unusual. If we went in, it would have to be one step at a time.
Hao Zhengyi didn't wait for any of us. He immediately stepped into the passage. Hugo followed right behind. Sun Fatty and I brought up the rear. Hao held one of the old lamp-holders Crow had left behind, using its weak glow to light our way. Aside from the narrowness, it didn't seem any different from the main path outside.
No one spoke as we walked. Even Sun Fatty, who was usually a nonstop chatterbox, kept his mouth shut. The tight space left no room for error—if something happened here, we'd have no time to react. All we could do was move forward as fast as we could and find out what kind of place this Rebirth Terrace really was.
Unlike the main path through the Yin Convergence Point, this hidden route twisted like a spiral mountain road, though the curves were much tighter. It was pitch black in every direction, like we were walking endlessly along a loop.
On the fire-oil map we'd photographed earlier, this section was just a tiny circle—but walking it felt like being trapped in a bottomless maze.
Maybe it was the pace we kept, but after ten minutes or so I started to feel dizzy and nauseous, like a bad case of motion sickness. And I wasn't the only one.
Just as I clenched my teeth to push through, Sun Fatty grabbed me from behind. "Lazi… I can't take it. Let's rest for a bit. I swear, if I keep going, I'm gonna barf."
He was pale as a ghost. If he dyed his hair white and wore a robe, he could've passed for a spirit in Sixth Division.
Honestly, if he hadn't stopped me, I probably would've been the one to yell for a break. I leaned against the wall, taking deep breaths and forcing down the nausea. Fortunately, we hadn't eaten much since morning, so even though Sun Fatty dry-heaved a few times, nothing came out.
I called to the two in front, "Director Hugo, Chairman Hao—can we take a break? If we keep going, we really might collapse."
Just as I finished speaking, Hugo stopped in his tracks. He was gulping air and wobbling, clearly just as miserable. Only Hao Zhengyi pressed forward as if nothing had happened. Watching how composed he was, I started to admire his stamina—this man in his forties had the heart of a twenty-year-old.
But just as I was thinking that, Hao Zhengyi suddenly froze. His whole body went rigid. He stood motionless, staring into the pitch-black void ahead.