As the words left his lips, his smile froze, for he saw, perhaps three or four meters away, a pit in the earth. It didn't look particularly deep, but upon closer inspection, he noticed that after extending just a meter or two, the hole curved away, limiting his sight to only a couple of meters into its depth.

Seeing the hole itself wasn't what frightened him; rather, it was the distinct shadow he clearly perceived reflected on the cave wall. After careful scrutiny, he realized there was a faint light emanating from within the hole. His nerves jolted slightly, and he quietly pointed toward the opening, signaling Ma Xiong to investigate.

Ma Xiong instantly understood Lu Zong’s intent and detoured ten-odd meters around Lu Zong, positioning himself diagonally opposite the opening, keeping a distance of about ten meters from the edge. Now, the two men were situated on opposite sides of the pit, each able to see about half of what was inside.

At that moment, they saw the shadow growing larger, resembling the silhouette of a person. However, they soon noticed something alarming: the shadow possessed four arms. This truly startled them both, making them momentarily forget the Corpse Worms clinging to their shoulders.

Lu Zong jumped to his feet in fright, and the Corpse Worms on his body began flapping their wings, taking flight. Because both men were utterly focused on the dark silhouette, they paid no mind to the departure of the worms. It wasn't until Ma Xiong felt a sharp pain in his shoulder that he realized the Corpse Worms had swarmed toward him and were now attacking.

Since he had no connection to the female corpse and wasn't an Yin-Yang person, he became the target of the Corpse Worms’ aggression. Fortunately, he noticed them early; only two or three worms had managed to reach him, and aside from one that bit his shoulder, he managed to swat the rest away.

He grabbed the worm that had bitten him with both hands and, to Lu Zong’s near nausea, promptly stuffed it into his mouth and began chewing it down viciously. Ma Xiong grimaced but managed to swallow it with effort, then quickly dodged the attacks of the remaining worms.

He glanced at the bewildered Lu Zong and explained, "There’s nothing else to do. If a Corpse Worm stings you, this is the only way to stop the venom from spreading inside. Damn it, here comes another wave."

He swiftly retreated backward.

Ma Xiong tried to run back to his original position, but too many Corpse Worms awaited him there. He considered retreating along the path they had come, but countless more worms were flying in from that direction, and he had no idea how many more lurked behind. They all buzzed in the air, a maddening hum. The cave walls were now covered in a pale, white film—they were molting and would soon transform into super-powerful, scarab-like Corpse Beetles.

He let out a short laugh, then looked behind him. Behind them was a sheer mountain face; going that way meant certain death. Their only viable exit was that pit, the very cave that held the shadowy figure.

Their available space shrank rapidly as the transforming Corpse Worms began to attack. However, they seemed momentarily deterred by the burning stick in Ma Xiong's hand, hesitant to advance recklessly, yet constantly closing the distance.

Ma Xiong now understood that the burning stick he held could not save his life indefinitely; once the worms acclimated to the light, they would become far more ferocious.

Their best chance now was to find a narrow space and block the entrance with fire. The worms would surely be deterred by the sheer power of the flames.

That dark hole was now their sole option. He looked at the hesitant Lu Zong, nodded, and encouraged him, "Finding shelter inside is better than being eaten alive out here. Once inside, maybe we can even take on that Six-Limbed Monster. Let’s go, damn it, who’s afraid of whom!"

With that, he led the way into the cavern.

Seeing Ma Xiong vanish inside, Lu Zong frowned, then glanced at the dense swarm of Corpse Worms outside before ducking in after him. He couldn't help but wonder if the increasing number of worms, driven by hunger, might decide to count him among their lunch options.

The worms immediately swarmed the cave entrance. Fortunately, Ma Xiong had wedged his burning stick at the threshold, preventing the creatures from rushing in rashly. Ma Xiong instructed Lu Zong to find anything flammable nearby, which they piled up at the entrance and set alight.

The worms, unable to resist any longer, flung themselves toward the blaze. The crackling sounds from outside were ceaseless, providing a strange sense of relief to the two men. They retreated to the deeper recesses of the cave and sat on the ground to rest.

Ancestor [Lu Zong] suddenly recalled the shadow he had seen earlier and quickly turned to look behind them. If the shadow had originated from this very pit, the creature should be located in this side-tunnel. They should be able to see it now, but instead, he could see clear through to the back—it was utterly dark, nothing there.

He tapped Ma Xiong’s shoulder and relayed his confusion. Ma Xiong finally remembered the Six-Limbed Monster from moments ago and muttered, equally perplexed, "What in the world? We clearly saw the shadow of that Six-Limbed Monster, but why can’t we see the creature itself?"

Saying this, he turned to look at the cave wall they had been watching moments before.

But now, that section of the wall had returned to its dull, lightless state; there was nothing visible.

Lu Zong lowered his head, silent, wondering if what he had seen was a ghost, and if he truly was an Yin-Yang person.

But why had Ma Xiong seen it too? Was Ma Xiong also an Yin-Yang person? Impossible. If he were, why would the Corpse Worms have attacked him?

All his uncertainties settled in his mind. He voiced his speculation: "Ma Xiong, do you think we just saw a ghost? Were those spirits from the cave, and not just shadows?"

Ma Xiong looked up at Lu Zong, thinking how difficult it must be to convince a man of science that ghosts existed—yet this tomb had managed it, truly remarkable. However, despite being a tomb robber, he didn't hold strong beliefs in ghosts or deities. If spirits existed, wouldn't he have been plagued by them long ago for stealing their treasures? Heh.

He tried to comfort Lu Zong, saying, "It’s fine, maybe it was just a shared hallucination from being overly frightened."

But as the words left his mouth, he gasped in shock again, pointing at the same wall. He saw it: the black shadow had reappeared, its body seemingly as tall as a small house, still possessing six limbs, and it was slowly advancing toward them.

Lu Zong stammered, his voice trembling, "Ma Xiong, we... we... saw... a... ghost."

Ma Xiong’s body began to tremble too. He craned his neck to look up at the gigantic form looming above, muttering with a shaky voice, "A ghost?"