Chapter 51: Water Town Raids the Imperial Mausoleum—Who Gives a Damn!

“Don’t be afraid.” Gu Changhuai went over and helped stabilize his injuries. He then pointed at Rong Ye, a smile still lingering on his lips. “Do you recognize who he is?”

The Two Instruments Pavilion disciple was still shaken, merely shaking his head woodenly.

Gu Changhuai whispered, “He’s Qing Lian Immortal Lord! He’ll protect us.” As he spoke, he flashed Rong Ye a big smile. “Right?”

Rong Ye’s gaze didn’t shift, and he merely let out a low “Mm.”

The words “Qing Lian Immortal Lord” worked better than two pills. Hope ignited in the Two Instruments Pavilion disciple’s eyes, sweeping away the despair. He stared straight at Rong Ye.

By now, the monsters’ cries had drawn very close—clearly, a group of them was approaching.

Rong Ye focused his mind and tossed out a glowing pearl that floated in the air. The Qiankun Sword dimmed and returned to his palm, gripped firmly in his hand. Endless baleful energy rushed out from the darkness of the tomb passage, only to be repelled by the sword beam he unleashed with a backhand swing.

The sword intent stirred a biting gust of wind. Gu Changhuai, feeling a bit cold, tucked his sleeves into his arms. With a smile on his face, he chatted casually with the Two Instruments Pavilion disciple as if no one else was around. “You’re from Immortal Abode, right?”

“Yes.” Surprised by Gu Changhuai’s casualness, the disciple fell silent for a moment. Seeing Rong Ye dispatch the monsters with nearly a single stroke effortlessly, the tension in his heart gradually eased. He spoke up. “I’m Gong Yingnan from Two Instruments Pavilion. I was ordered to the human realm to take up residence at Immortal Abode and received orders from the Human Realm Crown Prince to protect him personally.”

Gu Changhuai said, “I heard about it outside. By the timeline, you’ve been trapped here for over half a year.”

Gong Yingnan gave a bitter smile. “Thanks to the life-protecting jade token bestowed by the Saintess, or I fear I’d have died half a year ago.”

He opened his hand, revealing a jade token cracked into five pieces. “Half a year ago, the Crown Prince insisted on coming here and brought two locals as guides. After poking around, we found a buried robbery tunnel behind the mountain. We followed it in and discovered this was a massive underground palace.”

“The outer tomb chamber?” Gu Changhuai asked.

Gong Yingnan shook his head. “No.” He recalled, “The place we entered was piled high with burial goods. The Crown Prince wanted to haul them out immediately but then thought that if even one chamber had such lavish treasures, the main tomb chamber must be even more opulent.”

Gu Changhuai said, “So you went to the main tomb chamber? The herbalist and his son—they went with you too?”

Gong Yingnan nodded. “No, they didn’t.” His face suddenly paled as if recalling something unpleasant. “When we were heading to the main tomb chamber, he refused to go no matter what. The Crown Prince got angry and kicked him, then left them—father and son—behind and took us in alone.”

Due to the constant cries for help, Gong Yingnan’s voice was slightly hoarse. He paused, unable to continue.

Seeing his distress, Gu Changhuai flicked another pill into his mouth to heal him. Feeling better, Gong Yingnan continued, “As soon as we reached the main tomb chamber, we saw that its door had been chiseled open. Evil sha kept pouring out, trying to devour our flesh and blood.”

“Another cultivator with us accidentally blasted the door wider. In an instant, countless monsters rushed out along with the evil sha, intent on swallowing us whole.”

At this point, he trembled. “The Crown Prince and one fellow cultivator were tainted by the evil sha. Fortunately, I and the other fellows worked together to flee back the way we came. When we reached the tomb chamber where we’d fallen in at the entrance, we found the stone door sealed shut.”

There were only a few of them in the underground palace—who could have sealed the stone door? Besides, a mere stone door couldn’t stop a group of cultivators.

“I shattered the stone door, only to see the herbalist and his son had blocked the robbery tunnel.” Gong Yingnan coughed violently. “The herbalist—he was faking madness.”

Gu Changhuai hadn’t expected such a turn. He asked, “What happened next?”

Gong Yingnan said, “With the robbery tunnel blocked and the imperial mausoleum seemingly protected by a barrier, we couldn’t brute-force our way out. We searched everywhere for an exit.”

He continued, “But we couldn’t protect everyone. The attendant who came with us was devoured by evil sha into a pile of white bones, which were then swallowed whole by the pursuing monsters. Later, sensing a shift in the air flow, we made a desperate push and found that narrow robbery tunnel in the outer tomb chamber. But then…”

Anger crept into his expression. “The monsters closed in too fast, the Crown Prince had fallen into a coma, and the other two fellows feared they couldn’t escape. They teamed up to lock me out in the outer tomb chamber. With the monsters unable to leave the imperial mausoleum and me as a sacrifice inside, it would buy them time to get away safely.”

It was a true backstabbing tale.

Gu Changhuai sorted through the known information and comforted him. “So they got their comeuppance. Half a year ago, one of them tainted by evil sha exploded and died as soon as he descended the mountain.” He smiled brightly. “The Crown Prince is still in a coma. The human realm emperor ordered the massacre of Immortal Abode. The accompanying cultivator has been killed—no survivors, from what I hear, though Xinnan Immortal Sect disciples are still investigating the details.”

Gong Yingnan was stunned. “Immortal Abode… massacred?” His eyes and tone were filled with disbelief and shock.

“Aside from confirmation on the accompanying cultivator, the rest is unclear for now,” Gu Changhuai corrected. “Whether Immortal Abode was truly wiped out needs verification. The inside story is unknown, so don’t grieve yet.”

Hearing this, Gong Yingnan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

By this point, Rong Ye had dispatched the oncoming monsters with two sword strokes, leaving them dead or dying. Perhaps sensing the threat, the evil sha trailing behind didn’t dare approach. It surged a few times before quietly retreating.

Gu Changhuai narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. “This evil sha…” It had a certain “wise men know when to retreat” vibe.

Either someone was controlling it, or it had developed its own intelligence—neither was good news. He gestured for Gong Yingnan to sit and regulate his breathing first, then walked to Rong Ye’s side. “The array eye must be in the main tomb chamber.”

Rong Ye’s eyes were cold. “Something’s off.”

“How so?” Gu Changhuai turned to look at him.

Rong Ye said, “The array eye is in the main tomb chamber, but the four pillars are in the outer tomb chamber. Souls trapped in the domain should be able to move freely within it—there shouldn’t be no traces at all.”

Reminded by him, Gu Changhuai realized. “Right!”

Souls trapped in the domain couldn’t leave but could roam freely inside. Yet they hadn’t sensed even a hint of soul energy.

Gu Changhuai thought carefully and murmured, “Since the herbalist was faking madness, he knew about the imperial mausoleum long ago. And there was more than one robbery tunnel on it…”

He said confidently, “The herbalist is a tomb raider. His first robbery tunnel hit the outer tomb chamber we entered, which should have been full of treasures—but he cleared it out bit by bit. Then, based on the tomb’s layout, he located the second outer tomb chamber and dug another tunnel—the one the Crown Prince used. But the herbalist didn’t rush to loot; he heard noises.”

At this point, he fell silent. In the gloomy and cold quiet underground palace, chaotic cries, wails, and the neighing of horses drifted near and far.

“The noises prompted him to probe inward, eventually finding the main tomb chamber,” Gu Changhuai continued. “As an ordinary man, his greed for gold and silver overcame his fear, so he decided to chisel open the main tomb chamber for more treasures.”

That explained why the Water Town boatman said the herbalist went up Water Moon Mountain sometimes with his son, sometimes with his daughter—he needed a helper to chisel the stone door.

Rong Ye said, “Correct, but not entirely.” His cool, indifferent voice echoed in the underground palace. “Everyone in Water Town are descendants of grave keepers. As grave keepers, their ancestors would have left hidden maps of the imperial mausoleum, waiting for descendants to claim this worldly treasure.”

His gaze was indifferent. “The herbalist’s ancestor was that grave keeper. Everyone in Water Town, being descendants of grave keepers, knew his family had the imperial mausoleum map. They held his wife and son hostage to force him to open the way first, then divided the gold and silver he hauled out.”

Gu Changhuai asked curiously, “How did you figure that out, Immortal Lord?”

Rong Ye explained, “The boatman doesn’t practice martial arts, yet his palms are thickly callused like a tiger’s mouth. Ordinary boat-rowing wouldn’t cause that. The old man at the roadside stall has the same hands.”

Water Town was remote, but occasionally travelers passed through.

Gu Changhuai pondered. “The boatman’s words were half-true, half-false. False in hiding the tomb raiding, true in the ghost eating people. The twenty young men who later went up the mountain aimed to empty the burial goods inside the imperial mausoleum but accidentally stirred the evil sha, getting devoured into nineteen sets of white bones—one truly scared mad.”

He said, “Thus, Water Town’s evacuation was half due to fear of the man-eating ghosts causing trouble, half because they’d gotten rich and had no need to risk more—just flee and live carefree.”

This explained the burial goods scattered in the fields outside—they must have been dropped while fleeing midway.

Greed knew no bounds indeed. The corners of his eyes curved as he looked at Rong Ye. “Am I right, Immortal Lord? I didn’t embarrass you, did I?”

“…” Rong Ye gazed at Gu Changhuai, the corners of his lips curving faintly. He murmured lowly, “Clever.”

Nearby, Gong Yingnan had regulated his breathing for a while and felt more spirited. He stood, bowed to Rong Ye, and said, “Immortal Lord, one more thing.”

Rong Ye glanced sideways and nodded slightly for him to continue.

Gong Yingnan recalled. “I’ve been hiding here for nearly half a year and noticed that every night, the evil sha’s malice intensifies, making them fiercer. Though they can’t leave the underground palace on their own, they can attach to people and leave that way, so…”

“That explains it,” Gu Changhuai laughed. “The Crown Prince injured by evil sha and the cultivator who exploded—all tainted by it.”

With that, everything connected.

The herbalist, driven by greed, chiseled open the main tomb chamber door. As a mere mortal, how could he escape the pursuing evil sha—especially at night when yin energy peaked and their power surged? His daughter got tainted, so he only grabbed her bloodied scrap of clothing and fled alone.

Knowing the dangers and with riches in hand, he no longer wanted to be extorted by Water Town folk. He faked madness and, using the Crown Prince’s ‘false kindness,’ brought his son—who knew the truth—and deliberately led them to the robbery tunnel, luring them into the underground palace.

Like the initial herbalist, the Crown Prince’s greed drove him deeper, while the herbalist, terrified, stayed back in the outer tomb chamber with his son.

Once the Crown Prince left, they grabbed some burial goods and fled the underground palace, blocking the tunnel to fake their deaths in Water Moon Mountain for all of Water Town.

Gu Changhuai smiled. “As for Dou Niang, who knows if she truly died or faked it. Poor little daughter—not even a complete corpse left, just a shredded bloodied garment.”

Without witnessing the events, Gu Changhuai didn’t know the herbalist family’s full story. From how he used the Crown Prince to escape, who could say if he was righteous or heartless?

Thinking about it, Gu Changhuai inexplicably chuckled.

How interesting.

So interesting.

Investigating vengeful spirits and the Soul-Locking Array had unraveled all this—truly fascinating! His curiosity about what came next grew. He tugged Rong Ye’s sleeve. “Let’s head to the main tomb chamber.”

He was eager to see what awaited. After two steps, he remembered the gravely injured Gong Yingnan. “Coming with?”

Gong Yingnan hesitated. After half a year of hiding, constantly wounded then healing, then wounded again, he dreaded being alone if monsters or evil sha appeared. He followed. “If I may trouble the two Immortal Lords.”

Immortal Lord.

Two of them.

Gu Changhuai never imagined he’d one day be called Immortal Lord. He instinctively glanced at Rong Ye, who looked down at him. Gu Changhuai coughed awkwardly and averted his gaze, not bothering to explain. He accepted cheerfully. “No trouble at all.”

He, a shadow demon assassin with a notorious record, called an Immortal Lord one day… what a rarity. But it felt pretty good.

Gu Changhuai unwittingly lifted his chin, trying to assume a dignified air, stepping precisely where Rong Ye had. But less than half a quarter-hour later, he reverted to his usual lazy saunter.

No good.

Too tiring. Better to be a demon in comfort—leave immortality to the self-disciplined!

…

Moments later.

The three arrived at the entrance to the main tomb chamber.

Although the path was a bit more winding and lengthy, all the mechanisms along the way had long since been destroyed and rendered inert, making the journey relatively easy.

The closer they drew to the Main Tomb Chamber, the thicker the chilling, murderous aura grew. The Compass materialized in Rong Ye’s palm, vibrating with increasing violence.

Gu Changhuai leaned in for a closer look. “Shaking that hard—is it scared? Or excited?”

The stone door of the Main Tomb Chamber lay in splintered ruins, while thick black Evil Sha darted wildly through the chamber. Their arrival stirred it into frenzied activity, blanketing the entire space in impenetrable darkness. Even a sweep of divine sense revealed nothing of the interior.

Rong Ye raised his hand and brushed over the Compass. Meng Xian and Meng Ji were abruptly released. The two little girls clasped hands, staring blankly toward the Main Tomb Chamber. Their faces drained of color as they trembled from head to toe. “…It, it will eat us!”

What this ‘it’ referred to remained a mystery for the moment. Gu Changhuai’s focus, however, lay elsewhere. He studied Meng Xian and Meng Ji, analyzing gravely, “Looks like they’re scared.”

Meng Xian: “…”

Meng Ji: “…”

No longer glancing at the Main Tomb Chamber, their eyes snapped toward Gu Changhuai in unison.

Who will rein him in! Is now the time to discuss this?!