Yang said, "There is a mysterious carving of a ram's head outside the gate; I suspect this might be related to the Wu Guan, and if we wish to visit the Earthly Immortal, we must first find the Wu Yang. Inside, there is a cave that seems quite large. Why don't we go in and take a look first?" With that, he raised the "Diamond Parasol" to shield himself, mounted the "Werewolf Eye Flashlight Stand" onto the umbrella, and took the lead into the narrow passage piled high with ape skulls. Between two rock walls, there was an opening leading into a natural limestone cave, jagged with stalactites hanging down like inverted icicles.

Seeing the ominous demonic energy emanating from this cavern within the "Coffin Gorge," I worried about mishaps befalling her and Yao Mei'er ahead. I quickly signaled and followed closely with Fatty and Sun Jiuye. The interior space of the cavern was unexpectedly vast. The limited beam of the Werewolf Eye Flashlight could not immediately map the surrounding terrain; we could only see a level, open area before us, with stalactites towering perhaps a dozen meters above our heads.

No one dared to be careless, and we moved forward in a tight group, occasionally sweeping our flashlights around, but the light seemed to be swallowed by the darkness—we couldn't make out anything more than a few steps ahead. The cavern appeared utterly empty. Fatty pulled out a cold flare, struck it with a "hiss," and the crimson glow instantly illuminated the immediate vicinity.

We saw a massive slab of blue stone, like a giant stele, lying prone dozens of meters in front of us. Upon the stone sat a tall, robust jade figure, its jade the deep, blood-red color of cinnabar, clad in moth-colored robes with a girdle. Its head was as large as a bushel measure, enthroned centrally on a patch of dazzling white platform. Since the distance obscured the facial features, we then noticed dozens of stone figures of kneeling men and women surrounding it, presumably servants, each holding lamps, candles, or wine vessels.

Having made a discovery, we approached the stone beam to examine it. Climbing onto the stone platform, we looked closely and realized that the jade figure in the center wore a bronze mask resembling a large cauldron, yet it lacked any facial contours—not even a single hole for breathing or sight. Tapping the bronze cover produced a sharp qiang sound; it was clearly an ancient bronze artifact.

Professor Sun mused, "Could this be a form of 'head-casing' burial?" He then shone his flashlight closer, examining the faceless bronze headpiece, thanking the members of Deng Huo for their transcription.

Fatty reached out to touch the jade figure, lamenting that he couldn't haul the whole thing back. He muttered that taking just the head would suffice, and he reached up to tug at the bronze mask covering the jade. Unexpectedly, it wouldn't budge when he pulled.

Professor Sun, sensing his exertion was inappropriate, quickly stopped him, grasping Fatty's arm with one hand while embracing the other side of the bronze mask, preventing Fatty from actually tearing off the iron-clad cover.

But as they both exerted force, they managed to wrench the bronze mask around a full circle until the back faced forward. Professor Sun cried out in dismay and frantically checked to see if the mask was damaged. The moment he looked, a cold sweat broke out, nearly causing him to drop the "Werewolf Eye Flashlight" he was holding.

HINLEY Yang, Yao Mei'er, and I were admiring the nearby stone figures holding lamps behind them when we noticed Sun Jiuye suddenly recoil, almost collapsing to the ground. I reached out to steady him, asking, "What's wrong?" while simultaneously looking up.

What we saw was equally astonishing. On the back of the jade figure's head, where the bronze mask had been positioned, there were facial features: eyes, brows, a nose, and a mouth. The expression was one of deep contemplation, but it wasn't a human face; it was the countenance of a "Wu Yang" (Black Ram). At this moment, the bronze headpiece, having been twisted around by Fatty and Professor Sun, revealed the ram's face. Combined with the inherently stout and massive jade figure, it now resembled a venerable "Wu Yang" demon clad in imperial robes.

Everyone gasped, "Is this jade figure the Headless Great King? Why was it said to be headless if it clearly has a ram's head? This cave doesn't seem like an imperial tomb chamber; why was such a strange jade statue erected here?"

Though Yao Mei'er was bold and quick-witted, she lacked deep knowledge. Seeing the strange ram mask, she couldn't help but feel uneasy and anxiously asked Professor Sun, "In all of Qingxi's history, no one has ever eaten Wu Yang meat. Why put such a terrifying skull on it?"

Professor Sun paused upon hearing this and countered, "Yaguan, are you talking nonsense? Did the local customs back then not involve eating the Wu Yang?" Before Yao Mei'er could reply, he murmured to himself, "What a Great King, having a body but no head. To see the Earthly Immortal, one must first find the Wu Yang. Could that headless Great King... be the Wu Yang King?"

Fatty, having just managed to move the mask and realizing it was empty inside—lacking a human skull—felt rather displeased. Hearing Professor Sun mutter incomprehensibly, he cut in, "In my thirty-plus years, I've never heard of any country having a Wu Yang King. Old Hu, have you ever heard of it?"

I shook my head; I had never heard of the "Wu Yang King." HINLEY Yang added, "I read a news report last year about a joint Sino-Japanese archaeological search for ancient Ba culture relics in the wilderness, located in Wushan. Although they found no conclusive results, the report mentioned repeatedly that the ancient Ba people worshipped the tiger totem, but nothing related to the Wu Guan."

Seeing Professor Sun staring blankly at the "Wu Yang" mask, I thought perhaps he had found a clue and was deep in thought, so I didn't want to disturb him. Noticing that everyone was fatigued after walking the treacherous mountain paths all day, I suggested we rest for a while before deciding our next move.

The jade statue wearing the "Wu Yang" bronze mask sat half-reclined upon the white platform. I never paid much mind to ancient "emperors and generals." Regardless of whether the "Wu Guan King" was a demon or not, I spoke to it, "You old fellow has been sitting here for several thousand years while the working people have knelt for millennia... Aren't you ashamed?" I then sat down next to the jade figure.

Fatty perched nearby on the back of one of the kneeling stone figures and bantered with me. Yao Mei'er sat on her backpack and listened. However, we were discussing rather specialized topics that an outsider wouldn't understand—for instance, whether the jade figure was worth more intact or in fragments, and whether losing its original jade head diminished its artistic aesthetic and collection value.

As we were chatting idly, I suddenly felt something odd beneath my backside. Just as I was about to stand up, I heard Fatty next to me say, "Commander Hu, your expression is rather peculiar. Is the Wu Guan King's seat uncomfortable? Do you think the seat of such a high-ranking leader is easy to sit on? It must be cold and hard. What's the saying? It's lonely at the top. Be careful not to catch a chill and get a stomach ache..."

I patted the jade figure beside me and replied to Fatty, "What 'lonely at the top'? More like 'accompanying a ruler is like accompanying a tiger.' But you're right, it's strange. It's not that it's uncomfortable sitting here; on the contrary... it's too comfortable, almost like a sofa—though it is a bit cold... but definitely not hard."

Fatty and Yao Mei'er found this strange upon hearing it. In the mountain cave, there was nothing but stone, stone, and more stone. Even if it were a jade platform, perhaps it would be warm jade, not making one feel icy, but where would a sofa come from?

I was even more perplexed. I instinctively reached down to touch it. The surface felt like a layer of dusty soil, but underneath, it was smooth and soft, like skin or leather—I couldn't tell what. Looking down, I saw it was made of rectangular white bricks shaped like pillows, edged with long, black tassels. I wondered what this was. I brushed aside one section; it was dry as hemp, like a dead person's hair, and I exclaimed, "Where did all this hair come from?"

Just then, HINLEY Yang suddenly yanked me backward. Seeing her expression change, I knew something was amiss. I immediately rose with the momentum of her pull, my "Spirit Steel Emei Thorns" already in hand. Turning back and following the beam of her flashlight, I saw that on the side of the white stone platform, a woman's face had silently emerged from somewhere. This face was absolutely not carved from jade; it was a ghastly, corpse-like face, with eyes and mouth dripping blood.

Caught completely off guard, an icy chill surged up my spine, and the roots of my hair instantly stood on end. I quickly shielded Sun Jiuye and Yao Mei'er behind me. Fatty, also unprepared, recoiled when he saw the blood-dripping, ashen face in the flashlight beam. Losing his composure, he forgot to reach for the "Repeating Crossbow" on his back, instead frantically fumbling for the "Black Donkey Hooves" with one hand while raising his entrenching tool to strike with the other.

HINLEY Yang quickly urged, "Don't panic, it won't move!" I steadied myself and examined the head on the side of the white platform. It was indeed a genuine corpse, mouth and eyes agape, looking monstrously grim in the darkness. But what was flowing from its face wasn't fresh blood; rather, its mouth had been stuffed full of something. I carefully scraped off a bit with my Emei Thorns—it was all blood-red sand granules. Whatever they were force-fed while alive had filled their entire cavity.

And it wasn't just this one corpse. The entire white platform beneath the bronze-masked jade figure was, in fact, the exposed backs of six human bodies. The female corpses were kneeling in two rows, some bowing their heads, others turning their faces sideways, exhibiting various terrifying expressions. All of them presented their backs upward, forming a platform as soft as leather. The statue wearing the ram's bronze mask was seated upon this couch constructed of corpses.

Professor Sun put on his glasses and stared for a long time, his expression shifting wildly. He told us, "No need for further verification. I can stake my reputation on it—this is a Human Altarpiece (Ren Cheng), the genuine article! It's recorded in historical texts; I never imagined we'd find a physical specimen here! The red sand stuffed inside the female corpses was likely a drug used after the victims were killed to keep the flesh from rotting or stiffening."

Professor Sun explained, "The term 'Human Altarpiece' was coined later by scholars; the true name has been lost to history. This practice genuinely existed in the slave society before the Three Dynasties. Legend says the last ruler of the Xia Dynasty, Jie, was a notorious tyrant who lived extravagantly, equating himself to the sun in the sky. Female slaves had to lie down on the ground to serve as his human altarpiece. There were also human chariots and human mounts for him to ride. These practices were all his own invention. Later, this incredibly cruel system persisted through many dynasties, reportedly even into the Yuan Dynasty. Given the ancient custom of 'serving the dead as you served the living,' the objects enjoyed by the monarch in life were necessarily prepared for his afterlife. This... Corpse Altarpiece (Shi Cheng) should be the funerary replacement for the Human Altarpiece."

Anger flared within me. I asked Professor Sun, "So... this Corpse Altarpiece was a mingqi (spirit object) prepared for the burial of the Wu Yang King? But where are the Wu Yang King's coffin and corpse?"

Professor Sun shook his head. "I told you long ago, but none of you listened. This is not a tomb or an underworld palace, but a sacrificial site similar to a Xiang Dian (Feasting Hall). The tomb of the Wu Yang King no longer contains his coffin or body, because... the Guanshan Taibao (Mountain-Gazing Strongmen) long ago looted the tomb of the Wu Yang King. And in that massive tomb, they created the Earthly Immortal Village as a place to hide their treasures. 'To visit the Earthly Immortal, first find the Wu Yang'—doesn't that match perfectly?"

I felt the matter was becoming increasingly convoluted. Was there truly an ancient "Wu Yang King"? Did the phrase, "What a Great King, having a body but no head," reflect the Wu Yang King? I had no clue moments ago; where did Sun Jiuye suddenly acquire this information?

HINLEY Yang informed me, "When you were sitting on... sitting on the Human Altarpiece, Professor Sun discovered that the large stone beam beneath was covered in ancient markings resembling insects and fish, along with many ancient symbols shaped like the sun, moon, and stars. I couldn't understand a single one, but Professor Sun is an expert in deciphering various ancient scripts. What was carved on the stone beam was the legend preceding Coffin Gorge. Whether the legend is true or false, it confirms that a significant ancient mausoleum is hidden within the gorge."

Professor Sun nodded. "Indeed. The fact that the jade statue of the Wu Yang King was not destroyed might have been intentional on the part of the Guanshan Taibao. The king with a body but no head is the true form of this statue. However, it shouldn't be called the Wu Yang King. Its true title should be the 'Wu Ling Shifting Mountain King' (Wuling Yishan Wang). But don't assume the Wu Ling King was human. According to this ancient legend, the Wu Ling King was actually... an astonishingly large Wu Yang."

Professor Sun explained that this cavern was originally a site for feasting and worshipping the Shifting Mountain Wu Ling King, and the King's tomb was likely hidden in the deepest recesses of Coffin Gorge. Even more incredible was that this King was not human, but a "Wu Yang"—jet black all over, weighing a thousand jin.

I found this hard to grasp and was about to ask more, but Sun Jiuye was already engrossed, copying all the inscriptions detailing the deeds of the "Wu Yang King." I had to suppress my numerous questions and instead led Fatty to survey the surroundings. The mountain cavern extended extremely far in depth, and a fierce wind howled in the distance, sounding like ghosts wailing. I surmised that the tunnel passed straight through the mountain and should lead to a canyon on the other side.

We finally waited until Sun Jiuye had finished making rubbings of all the texts detailing the "Wu Yang King's" history. It was already past midnight, so we found a secure corner, built a small fire, and spent the night in the cave.