Mud-Man Zhang said that the snake back then was about the same size as this one, with nothing particularly special about its appearance, only that it was a bit faster than this one, and the bullets felt like nothing more than a tickle against its skin. He himself was puzzled as to how he had managed to subdue it so easily.

Hearing this, Young Master Liu found it strange—the same species of snake, yet such a difference in aggression. After a pause, he moved closer to Uncle Diao and asked why this snake’s attack seemed so weak.

“Weak?” Uncle Diao seemed a little annoyed by Young Master Liu’s comment. “Weak as hell! Do you have any idea what everyone upstream on this dark river was doing playing with this snake?”

“Playing what? Hide-and-seek?” Young Master Liu found Uncle Diao’s earlier remark amusing, so he decided to add a bit of salt and vinegar to ease the tension. It worked; everyone present couldn’t help but chuckle at Young Master Liu’s jest.

Uncle Diao shook his head and chuckled good-naturedly at Young Master Liu. “Hide-and-seek! You damn well go try playing with it! This snake is called the ‘Nine-Eater of Shadow’ (Jiu Shi Yin), and it’s far more ferocious in the water than on land. Did you hear that ‘Boom’ just now? That was the trap a few of us set to kill the damn thing. The method is too complicated to explain here. We didn't expect it to survive that one blow, but it was severely wounded. Otherwise, those broken guns of yours wouldn't have made it even flinch.” Uncle Diao then leaned in close to Young Master Liu and murmured, “Then Mud-Man Zhang—he’s clearly no ordinary human. No human could kill this snake.”

Young Master Liu took a slow drag from his cigarette and replied, “Indeed, he isn’t human.” And with that, he said no more.

“Nephew, where exactly are we?” Uncle Diao asked Young Master Liu.

Hearing this, Young Master Liu inwardly sighed. What kind of observational skills did the man possess? After staying here this long, even if he hadn't seen the sarcophagus, he should have at least noticed the elevated wooden walkway (Zhandao). He felt a surge of frustration, but remembering Uncle Diao’s chronic absentmindedness, he decided to be patient. Young Master Liu told him, “Where are we? This is the Golden Queen’s private chamber.”

Upon hearing this, Uncle Diao practically bounced up from the ground. After taking two quick puffs of smoke, he raised his voice, “What?”

“The Golden Queen’s burial chamber. The sarcophagus is over there.” Young Master Liu pointed toward the Zhandao.

Uncle Diao quickly switched on his flashlight, casting its beam over the opulent tomb walls. Observing his agitated expression, which was quickly followed by a cold sweat breaking out and his body beginning to tremble uncontrollably, Young Master Liu realized something was off. Though he hadn’t paid close attention to his movements, upon closer inspection, Uncle Diao was behaving unusually. A jolt went through his mind just as Uncle Diao fell straight onto the ground.

Young Master Liu immediately sensed the gravity of the situation. He rushed forward to support Uncle Diao, placing his head across his knees and pressing hard on the Renzhong acupoint. His own mind was a whirlwind; the man had been lively just a moment ago, how could he faint so suddenly? What in the blazes was going on?

The others, seeing Uncle Diao collapse without any prior warning, crowded around. Fan DeBiao asked, “What’s wrong with Uncle Diao? Did he get too excited?”

Young Master Liu ignored Fan DeBiao, keeping his fingers firmly pressed on Uncle Diao’s Renzhong. In truth, Young Master Liu had no idea if this technique actually worked; he was just mimicking what people usually do when someone faints. Wang Feifei began urging everyone not to crowd in too tightly, and Young Master Liu also told them to step back quickly.

Young Master Liu grew desperate, truly unsure how to proceed. Anxiety brought both cold sweat and tears to his eyes. The tense atmosphere persisted for a few minutes before Uncle Diao slowly began to regain consciousness. Seeing that pressing the Renzhong had indeed worked, Young Master Liu let out a huge sigh of relief and immediately asked Uncle Diao if he suffered from coronary heart disease.

Uncle Diao abruptly sat bolt upright on the ground, as if nothing had happened, muttering repeatedly, “I remember it now, I remember it all.”

“Remember what?” Young Master Liu asked, as Mud-Man Zhang and Wang Feifei both stiffened slightly and immediately moved closer.

Uncle Diao wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said, “I recall what happened here twelve years ago. Yes—the outer cave, the stone bridge, the three Mysterious Gates (Xuan Men), the Nine-Eater of Shadow (Jiu Shi Yin), the Golden Queen’s sarcophagus.”

Hearing this, Young Master Liu’s spirits immediately soared. He quickly asked Uncle Diao, “What was the situation then? Did you see a book called the Taiping Jing?”

Uncle Diao glanced at Young Master Liu, perhaps finding the question odd. “No, I only have a vague recollection right now. There were three people then: myself, and a couple.”

“My parents!” Wang Feifei exclaimed, ecstatic.

“Perhaps. I’m not entirely certain. Come on, let’s go to the sarcophagus.” Saying this, Uncle Diao walked directly toward the sarcophagus.

Having such good direction suggested he had recovered quite a bit of memory. But why had his memory returned so inexplicably? Damn this place; it truly transcended the natural world.

Young Master Liu didn't overthink it; he followed Uncle Diao, rounding a stone pillar and heading straight up the elevated wooden walkway (Zhandao) toward the sarcophagus. The walkway was quite long, and walking on it felt like strolling down Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.

“Young Master, come look at this quickly,” Fan DeBiao suddenly called out from behind Young Master Liu.

Young Master Liu wasn't keen on paying attention to him at that moment, but knowing his objective here, he figured it might be an important discovery, so he turned and walked over to Fan DeBiao.

He saw Fan DeBiao crouched down, constantly fumbling on the ground of the walkway, doing something unknown. Young Master Liu quickened his pace. “Fan DeBiao, what have you found?”

Seeing Young Master Liu approach, Fan DeBiao waved for him to crouch down. Young Master Liu squatted down to look and realized it was a piece of gold, glittering under the beam of the flashlight. Suddenly, Fan DeBiao blew hard onto the walkway, and instantly, a thick haze billowed up, revealing a long walkway made entirely of gold in their field of vision. It made Young Master Liu gasp—where did the Golden Kingdom get so much treasure? If the walkway was gold, perhaps the pillars beside them were jade!

Young Master Liu was less interested in the treasure right then; what mattered more was what Uncle Diao had discovered back then. He told Fan DeBiao to study it slowly and then hurried toward the sarcophagus.