To conserve battery, Young Master Liu dimmed the flashlight to its lowest setting. This sharply reduced the illuminated area, though it was still just enough to confirm they were in a tomb chamber.

The chamber was circular, with a pair of tall stone pillars placed symmetrically opposite each other. Between these two pillars was a tomb gate, leading to an unknown destination.

The chamber was filled with formations of figurines.

These terracotta figures, male and female, were life-sized. Their attire was elaborate and neat, suggesting they were the tomb owner's household servants, based on their clothing.

In the center of the figurine ranks sat a carriage with a gilded frame, pulled by four terracotta horses.

The entire formation faced the opposite tomb gate, with their backs to the intruders.

In the corners of the chamber, piles of porcelain, bronzeware, and jade artifacts were neatly stacked.

Young Master Liu surveyed the surroundings.

Suddenly, the beam of the flashlight swept over one spot, and his heart gave a distinct lurch. He quickly exclaimed, "Master, look!"

Among the orderly line of terracotta figures, one stood facing the opposite direction from the others, wearing a bizarre, unsettling smile aimed directly at Young Master Liu and his companions. The smile looked utterly unnatural, as if someone were forcibly pulling the corners of its mouth upward from behind.

The moment Young Master Liu saw that figurine, goosebumps erupted all over him, and he stammered, "Wh-what is going on here? Why is one of them so conspicuously different?"

Zhang Enpu remained silent for a long moment, tightening his grip on the Tianshi Sword strapped to his waist, signaling Tian Guoqiang and the others to remain still. He then stepped forward toward that specific figurine.

Watching his almost unnervingly light footsteps, Young Master Liu nervously and fearfully followed close behind.

Along the way, the group curiously turned to glance at the faces of the other figurines nearby. They discovered that every single one shared the same bizarre, cheerful grin as the first one they noticed.

This sight made Young Master Liu involuntarily swallow hard and stick even closer to Zhang Enpu.

Zhang Enpu reached the figurine and studied it intently.

A long time passed, and nothing happened.

Young Master Liu secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Perhaps it was simply carelessness on the part of the ancient architects who had placed this one figurine facing the wrong way.

He swung the flashlight beam over to the carriage nearby.

Could there be someone inside?

Young Master Liu couldn't help but laugh at his own thought. The owner of the carriage was the tomb's occupant, surely resting in a coffin in the rear chambers—how could they be here?

Zhang Enpu stared at the figurine in deep contemplation for a while, then suddenly turned toward the carriage and walked toward it without a word.

The others quickly followed.

Zhang Enpu stood before the carriage, lost in thought.

Seeing his concentration, Young Master Liu hesitated to disturb him, yet his curiosity was overwhelming. He moved alone to the carriage window and directed the flashlight beam inside.

The interior was empty.

Young Master Liu smiled at his own wild imagination. But perhaps there were treasures inside this vehicle?

Thinking this, he took a step closer to get a better look at the carriage interior, sweeping the flashlight beam down past the window frame.

The ferocious face of a desiccated corpse suddenly appeared before his eyes.

"Ah!" Young Master Liu shrieked, stumbling backward rapidly, bumping into a terracotta figurine.

The figurine toppled to the ground, shattering into pieces. The sound echoed in the chamber for a long time.

"What happened?" From behind him, Zhang Enpu yanked Young Master Liu far away, holding the Tianshi Sword defensively in front of him.

"Th-that... there was a dried corpse in the carriage!" Young Master Liu stammered, still shaken.

Tian Guoqiang turned on his own flashlight and swept the beam into the carriage; it was empty, nothing inside.

"How can that be!" Young Master Liu exclaimed. "There was clearly a dried corpse in there just now..." Before he could finish, a chill ran down his spine. "This tomb chamber is too bizarre... we should leave first..."

Just then, he felt an icy gaze fixed upon his back, making his skin crawl.

Young Master Liu whipped around, carefully sweeping the light into every corner of the room, yet finding no sign of anything amiss.

But the sense of unease never faded; instead, it grew stronger.

Suddenly, a thought flashed through Young Master Liu's mind—it wasn't right! When they were at the previous tomb gate, one figurine faced them, but now, looking back from near this other gate, not a single figurine had its back to them!

"Master, I realized something is wrong with those figurines," Young Master Liu said, trembling slightly as he edged closer to Zhang Enpu.

The chamber was unnaturally silent; no one responded.

Puzzled, Young Master Liu turned, sweeping his flashlight over the spot where Zhang Enpu had been standing.

The space before him was empty—Zhang Enpu was gone?

"Master!" Young Master Liu yelled. "Master! Tian Guoqiang, Fatty Bai, where are you?"

Young Master Liu's voice echoed in the chamber, receiving no reply.

Now he was alone in a dark, enclosed space with the mysteriously vanished corpse and the unsettling figurines.

Fear consumed Young Master Liu entirely.

Young Master Liu bolted to the tomb gate, only to find it constructed from a single slab of bluestone, utterly impossible to move. A wave of cold dread washed over him.

Where had they all gone?

A faint, dragging sound echoed from the darkness, abruptly followed by two sharp clashes of metal striking metal.

Young Master Liu rapidly aimed his flashlight toward the source of the noise.

The sounds ceased instantly. There was nothing in the beam of light.

A moment later, a dragging sound emerged from another location.

Young Master Liu shot his light toward every source of the sound, all to no avail. The scraping noises continued, steadily drawing closer.

Suddenly, a hand clamped forcefully over his mouth and nose, knocking his flashlight away as he was yanked toward a corner of the chamber.

Young Master Liu’s eyes widened, struggling violently, but he was pressed down hard by the figure behind him.

"Shh!"

A faint breath tickled his ear, almost inaudible—clearly someone deliberately suppressing their respiration rate.

At that moment, he realized that although the body behind him was cold, it still radiated body heat.

Master! Young Master Liu let out a breath of relief and stopped resisting.

The flashlight that had fallen in the center of the chamber flickered once. A withered, skeletal hand picked it up. The beam shifted, suddenly illuminating the terrifying, desiccated face of a corpse. A chill swept through Young Master Liu, making him nearly forget to breathe.

Only now did he get a clear look at the dried corpse.

That corpse was missing its entire lower half!

The earlier scraping noise had been made by it crawling on the floor, the sound of its body rubbing against the stone.

It turned its head abruptly and looked in Young Master Liu's direction. Two dark, hollow sockets stared blankly over.

Young Master Liu's heart pounded like a drum.

After a long pause, it finally turned its head back and slowly dragged itself toward the carriage.

Feeling the grip on his face loosen slightly, Young Master Liu lowered his voice and asked, "Master, what is happening? Where did you go just now?"

Zhang Enpu behind him did not speak. Suddenly, Young Master Liu felt his master's body start to slip downward. He grabbed him quickly, noticing Zhang Enpu's face was alarmingly pale.

This time, Young Master Liu was truly terrified. He shook Zhang Enpu, panicked, "Master... don't scare me... Hey..."

"It's nothing, just injured," Zhang Enpu murmured, opening his eyes slightly, his voice weak. Seeing the angry red patch on his back, combined with the unsheathed Tianshi Sword and the two fallen dried corpses nearby, Young Master Liu grasped the situation generally.

Hearing the familiar voice, a surge of relief washed over Young Master Liu, and his fear diminished considerably. "What about the others?"

"Hush, we're here. Don't make a sound," Tian Guoqiang's head poked out from behind a terracotta figurine, whispering with a guarded expression.

"Turn off the flashlight," Zhang Enpu said, frowning as he looked at the light behind Young Master Liu.

Young Master Liu turned and saw the flashlight up ahead was still on. After a moment's thought, he walked over and picked it up.

Only then did he realize his hands were shaking uncontrollably.

With trembling fingers, Young Master Liu pressed the switch several times before the flashlight finally died. He quickly returned to Zhang Enpu’s side and slumped back against the cold tomb wall in exhaustion.

Humans instinctively yearn for light in an unknown environment.

But in this place filled with unknown dangers, darkness was the safest refuge; light brought the greatest peril.

What an irony! Young Master Liu managed a wry smile and turned to ask Zhang Enpu, "Master, what do we do now?"

Zhang Enpu rolled his eyes at him.

Tian Guoqiang and Bai Erlaizi, who had been lying in ambush, could not hold back. They exclaimed in unison, "Do what, hell! Let's scram!" With that, they pulled back the bolts on their weapons and fired a shot in the opposite direction. The few dried corpses, drawn by the sound, immediately rushed toward the gunfire.