The moment I turned, the snow demon saw me and actually shrieked and jumped, pointing frantically at the eyes of the Stone Buddha before darting about in panic.

I didn't understand why. Seeing that they weren't pelting us with rocks, I was secretly delighted, thinking we could seize the chance to escape from here. But who knew, after that series of squeaks and squeals, and seeing I hadn't moved, the snow demon actually picked up another stone and hurled it at me. I jumped back in alarm and quickly dodged. The snow demon didn't stop, throwing another rock. Carelessly, it lacked force and struck the Stone Buddha’s face, kicking up a spray of blackish spume.

I was the first one hit. That dark matter rushed straight toward me and splattered on my hand—it was itchy. Looking down, it was that monstrous bug again! I yelped and hastily slapped it off. Zhuoma Yangjin, thinking something was wrong with me, repeatedly asked what was happening. Simultaneously, Baishiqi and the others had already raised their rifles and aimed at the snow demons below.

A thought struck me, and I quickly told Baishiqi and the others not to shoot. Then, I carefully instructed Old Li and Tang Minghao to hold me steady as I hung upside down, headfirst, to examine the Stone Buddha's face. Every hair on my body immediately stood on end; a chill shot straight through to my core.

Black tears were streaming down from both eye sockets of the Stone Buddha. That black matter splashed away by the rock—it was the monstrous bug! The same one that appeared on Mount Qiangbak; the same one Baishiqi had on him just now!

My limbs went weak with terror, and I repeatedly screamed for them to pull me back.

“The bug, the bug!” I stammered, unable to form a complete sentence. No one understood better than I what the appearance of the monstrous bug signified: the Faceless—the devil with no face.

Everyone’s complexion immediately turned deathly pale. The snow demons below also stopped their commotion, staring blankly at us, waiting for our reaction. After a long pause, I snapped back to reality. Seeing the situation, it was clear the snow demons deliberately wanted us to see this thing. And earlier, driving us toward that small cave—was that intentional too?

I walked gingerly to the other side of the rock face and found a suitable angle where I could clearly see the monstrous bugs crawling out of the Stone Buddha’s eye sockets in dense swarms, slowly inching downward until they reached the Buddha’s chin, then dropping into the undergrowth and vanishing.

Once this batch of monstrous bugs disappeared, the snow demons became restless again, hurling stones at us once more, driving us back toward the small cave.

No one was foolish; there was no need for me to explain. This time, everyone obediently retreated.

As soon as we left, the snow demons quieted down again. It seemed my guess was correct; they must have wanted to lead us to see something.

Sitting down at the entrance of the small cave, I was still shaken. Fearing I might still have some of those bugs on me, I asked Zhuoma Yangjin to carefully brush me down again.

Baishiqi’s face was also ashen, but he maintained his composure. “Why is it so strange? Bugs crawling out of the Stone Buddha’s eyes… Ah…” He seemed to recall something and asked Zhuoma Yangjin, “Didn’t the Tibetan villagers say initially that some of their cattle and sheep were eaten by the monstrous bugs, leaving only the head and the hide?”

Zhuoma Yangjin nodded. “Maybe it was these bugs.”

Those eaten animals should have been a clue. This scene felt familiar, yet I racked my brain but couldn't recall where exactly I had seen it before.

“I definitely know what’s going on,” I thought privately, “especially that head—it’s incredibly familiar.” But precisely at this moment, the external memory wasn't very helpful, offering me no hint whatsoever.

When I shared this thought with everyone, Tang Minghao blurted out, “Didn’t the doctor Ciren at the bottom of Fuxian Lake only have a head?”

Impossible! That was a head transformed from some fist-sized unknown thing; how could it be connected to this… But didn't Mima Chamar also appear down there? I hesitated again.

While I was worrying whether the case of the cattle and sheep was analogous to Doctor Ciren’s, Baishiqi and the others worried about the appearance of the Faceless. Most amusingly, Shishisan hadn't spoken much since Baishiqi appeared. But then, he asked me with unusual seriousness: “If it really is a Faceless like that Wang Weicheng you mentioned, then he must have that crystal black scorpion inside his body, right?”

Seeing he still seemed utterly oblivious to the gravity of the situation, I couldn't help but laugh and cry, and could only say, “Maybe.” Upon hearing my words, Shishisan was content and walked off to sit aside, no longer interjecting.

I was very frustrated that he seemed to know the answer but wouldn't say. However, he was Baishiqi’s subordinate, and in rank, he was higher than me, so I couldn't press him further. I could only exchange a meaningful glance with Zhuoma Yangjin.

Zhuoma Yangjin understood and asked him if he knew anything.

Baishiqi jumped in, resuming the smile of a petty merchant, and replied, “It’s nothing much. It’s just that the Japanese devils and the Germans exhausted their efforts to obtain this thing in the past, so we’re rather curious. We’ve also wanted to find it for research.”

It seemed Baishiqi had selfish motives; I needed to guard against the three of them. I didn't press further, taking advantage of the break to sort through my chaotic thoughts. The issue of the cattle and sheep being eaten down to just skin and head would have to be set aside for now.

After a while, when we had rested enough, a voice kept calling in my mind: Enter the cave. Entering the cave will lead to the answer.

No one objected, because just as I finished voicing my intention, the snow demons were already skillfully swinging down from the trees on the cliff face in front of the cave. There was no way back; we had no choice but to enter.

Thankfully, thankfully, after going in only ten or twenty meters, we didn't see anything strange inside the cave. The sunlight from outside could still filter in, allowing us to vaguely see things. The group squeezed in tightly, filing through in single file.

And the snow demons didn't follow us in; I started to feel relieved.

Conversely, Baishiqi was far more nervous than I. He repeatedly urged everyone to be cautious, saying the snow demons had deliberately driven us here with a plan, and it surely wasn't for good intentions; something life-threatening could appear at any moment.

Everyone else, including Tang Minghao, seemed to believe Baishiqi’s words, remaining tense and guarded. Yet, I felt an inexplicable peace, as if this were the place where I had been working hard all along, every grain of sand and stone being an immensely familiar old acquaintance, making an accident impossible.

However, the moment I realized this, cold sweat began to trickle down my forehead. How could this be? I had never been here before; how could I feel such familiarity!

This indicated that the owner of the external memory in my brain had spent time here, and not a short time at that. Most importantly, he seemed to have conducted some extraordinary work here.

I walked at the front of the group, feeling scared but afraid to make a sound, lest I startle everyone with any rash move. I kept my eyes wide and ears open, first checking if there were any suspicious objects before deciding on the next step.

Zhuoma Yangjin followed closely behind me. Sensing my tension and fear, he whispered to ask if something was wrong. I shook my head. But then Tang Minghao suddenly asked me, “Luo Lian, does this place feel familiar to you? I feel like I’ve been here before.”

His words made me understand even more clearly: perhaps both he and the consciousness (the host? the memory?) inside my body had been to this place.

“Maybe we’ve walked into an old home,” I said, trying to sound relaxed, though it was actually an attempt to ease my own tension.

Baishiqi suddenly burst into loud, unreserved laughter. “Haha, that’s good, that’s very good…” he exclaimed repeatedly. “This means we’ve taken the right path. It seems those snow demons aren't simple either; they were afraid we’d take the wrong turn and deliberately drove us here—no wonder every time they appeared, they carried extreme killing intent, yet never delivered a fatal blow in the end. Luo Lian, you’ve performed a great service this time. Tang Minghao, you too. If you have any requests, just tell me.”

I let out a couple of cold laughs, remaining silent. He probably hadn't witnessed the true might of the Shangri-La creatures. Even if we knew something, what did it matter? I only had external memories in my brain; that didn't mean those Shangri-La creatures would coexist peacefully with us, nor did it mean that when I returned, I could bounce back to being the ignorant but normal Luo Lian.

I don't know what Tang Minghao was thinking; he chuckled a couple of times, said a few words of thanks to his superior, and then said no more.

By this time, we had advanced about five hundred meters deep into the cave. There was still a faint, extremely blurry light coming from somewhere.

I felt this place was increasingly familiar. I naturally glanced to the right, and sure enough, there were two small holes in the stone wall. I described them to them like treasured possessions: “These are for placing tallow candles. Everything brought for the experiments has to pass through here. There’s a large room up ahead.”

Before I finished speaking, Wangmu shrieked, “Luo Lian, what did you say? Experiments?”

Only then did I realize the external memory could manipulate me. I gasped inwardly, quickly turning to Baishiqi for help, asking him what to do.

Baishiqi grinned wryly. “If you didn't have this ability, I might not have brought you here… So, relax and lead the way for us. We won't treat you unfairly when we return. Haven't you always wanted a transfer out of that dump in the Gampa Camp? As long as this mission goes smoothly, you can transfer to any military region you want—it’s just a word from me.”

I believed he had the power to do it, but the thought of having a consciousness inside my body that wasn't my own, coupled with the grotesque image of Doctor Ciren, still left me uneasy.

After a brief hesitation, I decided to lead them—and myself—forward to see what lay ahead.

Past the two small niches for the tallow candles was another stretch of dim passage, but from this point on, there were scattered bones along the path. I didn't speak; Tang Minghao took the initiative to explain, “Those are animal bones, don’t be afraid. I was responsible for managing those animals back then.”

When Tang Minghao finished, I picked up the conversation naturally, patiently stating, “Yes, the king specifically sent people to manage the livestock and creatures used in the experiments back then.”

Zhuoma Yangjin was quite surprised. “Then you two should have known each other.”

I shook my head. “No, they didn't have access to the higher-level things.” At this moment, my original self—Luo Lian—seemed to separate from within my body, watching the ‘me’ with a calm expression but sweat still damp on his face, and began to explain a gradually clarifying historical fact to everyone.

Tang Minghao suddenly became volatile, raging, “So in the end, I was just a failed product! Kept around to be tortured!”

Baishiqi seemed terrified of Tang Minghao losing his temper and quickly tried to placate him in a submissive tone.

I understood. Baishiqi needed the combined efforts of both Tang Minghao and myself to reach the final result.