With a sudden gasp, Old Master Sun cried out, "Ah!" When I turned back, everyone's gaze was fixed on the rear of the rock cavern, beneath a tangle of black creeping vines, where a powerfully built male corpse sat leaning against the wall.

The dead man’s head was bowed, obscuring his face and features, but Professor Sun had clearly recognized him from his attire, crying out in shock, "Lao Feng... is that really you? How... how did you die here?"

Professor Sun, visibly agitated, moved three shaky steps forward, approaching the withered vines. He knelt down to look at the dead man's face, then slammed a fist onto the ground: "Lao Feng, oh, Lao Feng... my old friend, you certainly knew how to hide away quietly, to actually... actually die secretly in this desolate, godforsaken place. Do you have any idea how I've managed all these years? Your former comrades-in-arms suspected I caused your death! Do you think I had the capacity for that? Not only did I take a blow from your pickaxe back then, but I also carried the blame for you for ten years..."

As Professor Sun spoke, tears were already streaming down his face. He was stubbornly and oddly tempered, having made few friends in his entire life. Besides Professor Chen Jiuren, this Commander Feng, whom he had known for only a short time, was his true comrade-in-arms forged through hardship. He had harbored a flicker of hope that after Commander Feng fled the farm, he might have hidden near the "Celestial Village Ancient Tomb." Although years had passed without any news, and the man was likely long dead, suddenly encountering his remains in the hanging coffin tomb was a profound shock. Snot and tears flowed freely, and in moments, he was weeping uncontrollably.

I had imagined Commander Feng to be a heroic figure of legend, perhaps still alive within the "Celestial Ancient Tomb." But seeing him firsthand revealed how cold the world truly is. Though I had never known the man, perhaps it was "sympathy for one of one's own kind"—seeing a soldier dead struck a deep chord of sadness in me. The others also looked grim; even Fatty remained silent for a long time. In the cave, only Old Master Sun’s incessant murmuring and weeping could be heard.

I tried to console Professor Sun: "The deceased is gone, beyond recall. The immediate priority now is to see how he died and if he left any last words or belongings."

Professor Sun, tears streaming, seemed to let loose all the suppressed grievances and injustices he had held in his heart over the years, letting them pour out with his tears. After a long, long while, he finally managed to stop grieving. With our help, we carefully laid Commander Feng’s body on the ground. The corpse had not decayed; the stubble of his beard was still faintly visible, and his final expression appeared peaceful and composed.

The group debated whether to cremate the body and take it back for burial or inter it on the spot. Overwhelmed by emotion, Professor Sun couldn't make the decision. I told everyone: "Commander Feng is officially a missing person. Many people have been looking for him these past years. Regarding the cause of his death... we must report to the relevant authorities. The best approach is to keep everything as it is, explain the situation when we return, and let the proper personnel handle the recovery."

Professor Sun and the others immediately agreed. They prepared to search the body for some belongings to take back as proof. Finally, they found several pieces of cigarette box paper in the breast pocket of Commander Feng's worn, earthy-yellow military uniform. The paper was brittle and yellowed, densely covered in script, seemingly written with a pencil, some parts smudged and unclear, though thankfully still legible.

I thought that Commander Feng hadn't gone into the "Celestial Village Ancient Tomb" but had hidden in the hanging coffin chamber. That stone sarcophagus carved with mountains and rivers seemed to be what he had dug out. But how could he have died mysteriously? These few crumpled pieces of cigarette box paper were most likely the last words he left before death. I immediately wanted to examine them closely, but then I considered that Old Master Sun, Commander Feng's comrade from those difficult years, should be the one to read them. So, I handed the papers to him: "See if Commander Feng left anything behind."

Everyone immediately gathered around the rock sarcophagus. Professor Sun, using the light from the "Wolf's Eye flashlight," slowly read the content of the cigarette box paper word for word. Even the Ba Shan Ape-Gibbon squatted motionless on the lid of the sarcophagus, listening intently.

Though Commander Feng had written a considerable amount on the cigarette box with his pencil tip, his language was concise, with occasional unclear expressions or blurred writing. We could only glean a general understanding of the situation.

In his testament, Commander Feng briefly mentioned some details of his background. This "Sarcophagus Gorge" was the tomb area accompanying the burial site of the Shifting Mountain Witch King. During the Song and Yuan dynasties, Feng's ancestors began engaging in tomb raiding, excavating many bamboo slips, tortoise shells, and ancient texts from the hanging coffins beneath Swallow's Cave in the Sarcophagus Gorge. Because the individuals interred in these hanging coffins were extraordinary scholars who had managed floods, understood celestial divination and Yin-Yang, and were skilled in esoteric arts. The ancient texts they were buried with mostly recorded mysterious and bizarre ancient techniques. The Feng family rose to prominence based on this.

Since the Sarcophagus Gorge contained a "Coffin Mountain"—which was the mausoleum of the Shifting Mountain Witch King—the Feng family, using the secret geomancy techniques acquired from grave robbing, called themselves the "Coffin Mountain Security Guards." During the Hongwu era, their descendants even served the imperial court, changing their title to "Mountain Viewing Security Guards," receiving an imperial grant of eighteen Mountain Viewing waist tags, and leaving behind famous deeds like "Viewing Mountains, Robbing Bones; Security Guard, Surveying Residences."

This tradition continued until the late Ming dynasty, when the leader of the Feng family's Mountain Viewing Security Guards seemed to sense an imminent great shift in the world. He led his entire clan back to their ancestral home, excavating saltpeter veins to make a living. Due to their immense wealth, they became a local magnate clan.

The leader of the Mountain Viewing Security Guards at that time, Feng Shigu, was obsessed with tomb raiding and the Taoist pursuit of immortality. He violated the ancient precepts left by his ancestors and led men to excavate the "Coffin Mountain." After taking out the Zhou Tian Dragon Bone Divination Map from the tomb, he claimed to have deciphered its profound secrets, discarded his own family name, and declared that he was about to transform into an immortal being who would never die. He poured his life's work into constructing a Celestial Village, intending to enlighten the mortals of this world. In an instant, followers flocked to him, many who believed in immortals accompanying him into the ancient tomb to live in seclusion. From that time on, no one ever saw a living person emerge from the "Celestial Village Ancient Tomb."

Some members of the Feng family in those years believed Feng Shigu had gone mad. Their ancestors had left warnings that the tomb of the Shifting Mountain Witch King must never be opened because a monster was buried within that ancient tomb. Feng Shigu disregarded this taboo; after robbing that tomb, the man completely changed. He was likely possessed by the Yin spirit of the Witch King during the excavation. For decades, he piled up artifacts, coffins, alchemy cauldrons, gold, and jade plundered from various places into the ancient tomb, all while spreading deceptive doctrines, intending to drag many living people in for human sacrifice.

However, those who opposed Feng Shigu held little status within the Feng household, and Feng Shigu did not force them. He only claimed that the outside world would soon be awash in blood. Those who hid in the "Celestial Village Ancient Tomb" would die first and then achieve immortality, attaining the Great Dao and eternal life, "coexisting with the sun and moon, enduring alongside heaven and earth." This, he said, was the method of passing the body after dying as a lower immortal. Those unwilling to go were mostly deluded and beyond saving. However, he added that if their descendants faced calamity, they could seek out the immortals in the ancient tomb according to the Mountain Viewing Guidance Manual, and out of kinship, he would still save them.

Later, when the rebels entered Sichuan, they indeed slaughtered countless people. But the main army never reached Eastern Sichuan. There were many bandits and irregular soldiers during the late Ming and early Qing periods, who inevitably affected the Qingxi region. They even attempted to raid the treasures of the Celestial Village Ancient Tomb, but without success. Amidst the chaos of war, the Feng family members did not die out completely; they relocated to Hubei, living in seclusion following the dynastic change. Occasionally, when hard-pressed, they resorted to grave robbing to survive. The skills of the Mountain Viewing Guidance Manual and grave raiding were not lost. But by the time the lineage reached Commander Feng, the family line was sparse; he was the last descendant of the old Feng family, and he hadn't even learned all of his ancestors' skills. With no proper trade, he drifted among the forest outlaws, enjoying a carefree life. By chance, the War of Resistance Against Japan broke out. With the nation in peril, he led several brothers to enlist in the army.

He lived half his life as a soldier, participating in hundreds of battles, large and small. He had been a commander since before the Liberation War, and still held a regimental rank after the Korean War ended. His military achievements were substantial, and he received many honors. The regiment he led was an ace unit within the column, holding honorary titles such as the "Immovable as Mount Tai Hero Regiment, Struck by a Thousand Cannons" during the Liaoshen Campaign, and the "Deep Behind Enemy Lines, Surprise Attack like Zhao Zilong Regiment" during the Korean War.

Yet, even though Commander Feng fought recklessly and repeatedly achieved remarkable feats, the man had too many flaws. Drinking and sleeping with women were daily occurrences. He was also highly fond of leisure activities: hunting, riding, dancing, performing opera, dog fighting, keeping monkeys—there was nothing he didn't enjoy, and he was an expert in whatever he pursued. Coupled with his strong outlaw temperament, he was fiercely loyal to everyone, earning many severe demerits, and nearly facing court-martial several times. However, during wartime, as long as one fought with spirit, other matters could be overlooked. But in peacetime, the military couldn't tolerate him, so he was transferred to work locally.

Once Commander Feng left the army for civilian life, his shortcomings became even more pronounced. His biggest weakness was his superstition. He had charged fearlessly through gunfire and hails of bullets, considering a beheading as easy as a breeze ruffling his hat, yet the mention of cremation made him tremble uncontrollably. Moreover, he firmly believed in the ancestral "Mountain Viewing Guidance Manual." Consequently, during later political movements, he became a primary target, only saved by former high-ranking officers from his time in the army. He was sent far away to a farm for labor. Though the work was hard, the remote mountain location meant that whatever movement was happening couldn't reach his orchard gully.

But Commander Feng had grown too accustomed to his casual lifestyle, only used to giving orders and unable to tolerate the slightest imperfection in others. He felt he absolutely could not endure the hard labor of quarrying. Initially, he considered suicide, but felt dying that way was too ignominious. He firmly decided to run—to run back to his ancestral tomb to find the Celestial Being.

Commander Feng mentioned in his testament that he lived his life with a clear conscience, the only person he felt he had wronged was Sun Yaozu—Old Sun—who was working alongside him at the farm at the time.