With those words, the three rowed with all their might, desperate to exit the Worm Cave before the Corpse Worms emerged.

But fate was against them. The Corpse Worms watched the trio speed past, chirping excitedly like a flock of agitated sparrows. Finally, after a tense silence, the worms leaped down from above.

“Jump into the river now!” Fatty shouted. A loud splash followed—Fatty had clearly plunged into the water. He sputtered, coughing up water, but still yelled, “Lu Zong, Ma Xiong, jump in! Those worms are after the boat; they haven’t spotted us yet. Hurry up and jump!”

Lu Zong and Ma Xiong saw the logic in Fatty’s warning and, with a solid thump, they jumped, sending up a spray of water. The instant they hit the water, they clearly saw the dense mass of Corpse Worms wriggling out of the hole and onto the boat, where they began to bite and gnaw furiously.

Fatty snapped back to alertness. “Go! Go! While those worms haven’t noticed us, let’s move!”

So the three scrambled, pretending to be gods as they swam toward the cave entrance. The incessant, grating creak-creak sound sent goosebumps crawling up their skin; enduring that bite on human flesh was unthinkable.

Yet, just a few meters from the exit, the grating sound suddenly stopped. Perplexed, the three halted their swimming and turned back to look.

“Oh my god!” Fatty shrieked. They saw that the wooden boat, large enough to hold three men, had been instantly devoured by the Corpse Worms, leaving only a few scraps of wooden shell. A few larger worms stood atop the debris, their heads tilted toward the three men, bobbing repeatedly as if praying for something.

Fatty stared, momentarily stunned. “What, are they asking us for something? Take a look, you two.”

Lu Zong and Ma Xiong quickly turned and indeed saw several larger worms kneeling on the boards, bowing toward them, as if supplicating them for a favor. Fatty was dumbfounded and quickly asked, “What is this? What are they begging us to do?”

Lu Zong was also momentarily frozen, unsure what they meant.

Ma Xiong said, “It seems these worms found something on these corpses, which is why they are bowing to us. Otherwise, they wouldn’t refrain from attacking. It shouldn’t be malicious; it won’t hurt to look.”

Lu Zong and Fatty nodded in agreement. “Yeah, that’s what we feel too. Go see what they want us to ask of them.”

Ma Xiong glanced back at the other two, sighed with feeling, “Kindness is often mistaken for weakness.” Then he moved forward cautiously, fearing a sudden attack from the worms.

He looked at the gathered worms; their previous ferocity toward the boat was gone. Ma Xiong guessed they might have a particular hatred for wood. He quickly patted himself down, checking for any wooden items, lest he be attacked unexpectedly.

He proceeded with extreme caution, worried about any slip-up. He couldn’t recall when, but he knew he hadn't been this meticulous since entering the tomb. Otherwise, he likely would have died inside the burial chamber long ago.

Trembling with fear, Ma Xiong approached the swarm of worms. The worms that had been facing him suddenly rotated their heads ninety degrees to the right. Ma Xiong saw that the direction they indicated pointed exactly to a wooden coffin lid resting on a stone slab.

Ma Xiong pointed at the lid, questioning if they wanted him to open the coffin. He used his hand to gesture, making the motion of lifting a lid.

Unexpectedly, the worms seemed to understand Ma Xiong’s gesture. They nodded, nearly making Lu Zong choke on his breath. “These are considered rather low-level creatures, yet they can somehow grasp human language—truly remarkable. To think that in this sealed tomb, such lowly creatures possess such high intelligence; if we encounter a Zongzi [mummy/reanimated corpse], we’ll truly be in trouble.”

He rallied himself. If Ma Xiong dared to do favors for Corpse Worms, what right did he have to feel fear? He quietly watched Ma Xiong move to push open the coffin lid.

As Ma Xiong approached, the worms seemed agitated, nodding in unison, then dropping to their knees in a posture of profound reverence. They remained still, and it was unclear what they intended to do next.

Fatty remarked, “If I’m not mistaken, the leader of the Corpse Worms or their totem must be in this coffin. They clearly hold it in high regard.”

Lu Zong watched them, the silence so profound he could hear his own breathing. He was so afraid that his breath might anger them that he dared not gasp, watching them fearfully, unsure of their intentions.

Ma Xiong placed his hand on the coffin; the paint was chipped, revealing the charcoal-black wood underneath. Ma Xiong took a breath, mustered his courage, gripped the edges of the lid firmly with both hands, and with a sudden heave, lifted the heavy lid off and tossed it aside. He then quickly retreated to Fatty’s side.

Ma Xiong didn’t stop to catch his breath, urgently gesturing for Lu Zong and Fatty to leave. Fatty understood Ma Xiong meant the coffin posed a danger and quickly pulled him along toward the exit. Ma Xiong followed close behind.

Lu Zong, still clueless about what had transpired, asked, “What is it, Fatty? What did Ma Xiong see in the coffin?”

Fatty replied, “Whatever it was, it wasn’t good. Didn’t you see Ma Xiong’s face? He looked terrified—that expression alone could scare a person to death. Let’s just get out first, never mind what’s inside.”

At that moment, Ma Xiong, lagging behind, let out a sharp cry of pain. Lu Zong could no longer contain his curiosity and swiftly turned back. He saw that the previously silent swarm of worms had suddenly gone frantic again, leaping into the water and rushing toward them. Trailing behind the worms, a vague human shape was beginning to materialize.

“What is that thing?” Lu Zong shouted, but no one answered him. Fatty ignored Ma Xiong, pulling Lu Zong harder toward the exit, shouting repeatedly, “Ma Xiong, hurry up! Before that Worm King fully evolves, we need to escape this small opening and seal the entrance outside, or none of us will survive!”

Ma Xiong’s voice was firm. “You two go! Don’t worry about me. I can handle this myself. Just look after your own lives.” Having said that, he spun around and yanked off the worm biting him; the creature’s mouth still held a blood-soaked scrap of Ma Xiong’s clothing.

Pulled along by Fatty, Lu Zong was forced to move quickly toward the exit, occasionally glancing back at Ma Xiong. Though Ma Xiong was being attacked frequently by the worms, his own movement speed wasn't slow. Only a few could keep up, and even if one or two managed to bite him, Ma Xiong’s brute strength allowed him to shake them off easily.

When they were barely two or three meters from the exit, Fatty yanked Ma Xiong in a final surge, plunging out into the vast space beyond. Ma Xiong, delayed by the fighting behind him, lagged far behind.

Seeing this, Lu Zong panicked, letting go of Fatty’s hand and attempting to rush back in to save Ma Xiong. But Fatty, possessing immense strength, grabbed Lu Zong and roared, “Can you be more rational? Even if you reached Ma Xiong, can that narrow tunnel accommodate both of you fighting side-by-side? Besides, don't you trust Ma Xiong’s strength? He can handle one or two bites, no problem.”

Lu Zong cried out in distress, “But I can’t just watch Ma Xiong suffer like that!”

Fatty answered without hesitation, “Then close your eyes.”

Lu Zong, feeling useless, complied and shut his eyes.

Fatty slapped Lu Zong’s shoulder with a thwack. “I’ve got it! I have a plan to save Ma Xiong. Lu Zong, hurry and find some dry firewood; we’re going to make an explosive!”

“Dry firewood?” How could there be dry firewood in this cold, damp place?

Fatty impatiently replied, “Go look! If you don’t go, he certainly won’t come looking for you. Scrape up some wood shavings from above, and I’ll scrape some nitrate salts from the stone. Even though the air here is damp, it should still generate some explosive power, right?”

Lu Zong looked at Fatty’s serious expression and began searching for shavings, taking the opportunity to observe the cavern.

He was astonished to discover that this was not merely a hole. The cavern walls were lined with countless white bones, and some corpses were not fully decomposed, stuck in a state between decay and mummification—truly disgusting to behold. Even more repulsive, Lu Zong actually stepped forward, poked one with his hand, sniffed it, and then pursed his lips, saying, “Hmm, foul meat. Must have been a nobleman when he was alive.”

He looked around and nearly died of shock. The entire chamber spanned the area of a football field, and the walls were covered entirely with white bones. Examining them closely, he noted many were mummies. Furthermore, every mummy had a dark spot on its wrist. He leaned in for a closer look and found they were pinned there with wooden spikes, nailed in while alive.

Seeing this torture, Lu Zong’s heart burned with fury. What agony must a person endure under such punishment?

Fatty cursed from behind, “Lu Zong, if you want Ma Xiong to die, feel free to admire the scenery all you want.”

Lu Zong finally remembered their immediate purpose. He hastily pulled a wooden spike from a corpse, ignoring the filth, and scraped some wood shavings onto his dagger. He pulled several more until his pocket was full, then rushed back.

When he returned, he was horrified. Ma Xiong was already completely surrounded by Corpse Worms inside the cave. Lu Zong anxiously shouted, “Ma Xiong, are you still alive?”

Ma Xiong screamed back from inside, “Damn it, why so slow? Can’t you hurry up? I’m about to turn into charcoal!”

Fatty snatched the shavings from Lu Zong’s cold hand and mixed them with the nitrate salts he had scraped from the stone. This action was swift and precise. Then Fatty yelled toward the entrance, “Ma Xiong, dive underwater and swim toward me!”

The words were barely out before Fatty began tossing handfuls of the explosive mixture into the cave, regardless of whether Ma Xiong was ready, and then lit a fuse. With a whoosh, the fire spread rapidly, following the explosive, causing a roar in the cavern. Just as everyone worried about Ma Xiong, his head surfaced near Lu Zong’s feet.

Seeing Ma Xiong safely returned, Fatty immediately moved the stones they had prepared earlier and used them to seal the cave entrance.