Especially thinking of Hai Bei, trapped in the cave with no sign of rescue, my heart could find no peace.

Boss Wu didn't look at me, focusing instead on eating canned soybeans outside the tent.

I sighed, tossing away the now dim glow stick in my hand, then set my backpack on the ground and pulled out a handheld mining lamp.

I had been reluctant to use this lamp before because the battery life was already low.

But since we seemed to have found a temporary stable spot, I wasn't about to fumble around in the dark anymore.

Twisting the lamp's spiral switch, I kept the illumination set to its lowest setting.

Boss Wu, while eating his can, noticed the light behind him and turned to look, saying, "No need for a lamp; I won't be eating it up my nose."

I managed a wry smile, placed the handheld lamp on the ground, then walked over to Boss Wu and sat down right there, grabbing a nearby can of soybeans and starting to eat.

Boss Wu lowered his spoon, paused for a beat, then glanced sideways at me, not speaking, but instead letting out a sigh toward the chaos of the darkness ahead.

Not knowing why he sighed, I frowned and asked, "What is it?"

Boss Wu said casually, "Nothing, just suddenly lost my appetite."

I froze for a moment and replied, "Did I bother you? I can go eat inside the tent."

Just as I started to stand, Boss Wu placed a hand firmly on my shoulder.

Then he smiled and said, "No, it's just that you look troubled, like something is weighing on your mind but you refuse to say it, and that makes me uncomfortable."

Before I could reply, he continued, "Actually, I'm not one to pry into other people's business, especially after everything I've been through; sometimes I don't feel like talking for an entire day. But for some reason, seeing you reminds me of my younger self."

I managed a bitter laugh and said, "Is that so?"

Boss Wu put down his can of soybeans, sighed again, and said, "Although I was tasked by that fellow surnamed Xie to bring you here, our objectives for this operation are different, and I never intended to meddle in your affairs. However, since we are now two grasshoppers tied to the same rope, I feel obligated to hear what’s bothering you."

I glanced at Boss Wu and noticed he wasn't looking at me but was staring fixedly into the darkness ahead, as if the darkness held gold that utterly captivated his gaze.

After a period of silence, I summarized the internal conflict churning within me.

It wasn't simply the frustration of being trapped here; it was the crushing weight of watching my friends die one by one that truly dampened my spirit.

The deaths of Da Xiong, Liang Qian, and Long Jia—all in service of helping me uncover the secrets of the Yaya people—and now I was stuck here, unable to advance the mission, which generated an intense sense of guilt.

More than that, no matter how many times I told myself not to grieve their losses, I couldn't find release. Whenever I rested, the image of Da Xiong lying stiffly on the ground, Liang Qian being torn apart by countless crabs, and Long Jia reduced to fragments by electricity, weighed so heavily on my heart that I could barely breathe.

What truly tormented me now was whether they were truly dead, or what had actually happened, especially since they all reappeared alive at Durban Village later on.

I was terrified they were actually gone forever, yet I was equally unwilling for them to be alive in some form I didn't understand—that was the crux of my struggle.

Having pinpointed the core issue, I sighed and said, "Boss Wu, I can tell you what's on my mind, but can you tell me how you got here? I recall we were investigating the subterranean pit in Lop Nur, right? But did you notice that this place is an island?"

Boss Wu nodded and said, "Indeed, I noticed that too. This is definitely an island. If I’m not mistaken, when you saw the massive underground tree, you used the suspension bridge and entered its interior, correct?"

I nodded, "That’s right, we went inside the giant tree."

Boss Wu stated gravely, "That settles it. My people and your two friends—that woman surnamed Liang and the fat man surnamed Wang—we didn't enter the tree. Instead, we followed the stone steps along the cliff beside the tree, descending deeper underground. We endured many dangers and lost many men, finally reaching the vicinity of the tree roots where we saw the Bronze Door."

I hadn't expected a door at the base of the giant tree, so I asked, "The Bronze Door? What kind of Bronze Door was it?"

Boss Wu's voice grew even deeper as he said, "You don't need to worry about that. All I can say is that it was a Bronze Door of the kind only seen deep underground or within the belly of a great mountain. I have already encountered two such doors before, so I can tell you there is more than one. This is just one of them."

I sensed Boss Wu was reticent about the specifics of the Bronze Door, so I didn't press, shifting the topic to ask, "So, did you enter the Bronze Door?"

Boss Wu shook his head and replied, "No, getting through that door isn't so easy."

"Then how did you get here?" I pressed further.

Boss Wu gave a helpless smile and said, "Since the door wouldn't open, we naturally climbed back up. But after enduring untold hardships, when we returned to the surface, we found the desert was gone, replaced by this island."

Boss Wu paused, then added, "Of course, when I say 'we,' that doesn't include your two friends. They stayed near the giant tree, saying they would wait for you to emerge. That's when I separated from them."

I felt Boss Wu was lying, or at least omitting a great deal. A lot must have happened when they were at the Bronze Door. I couldn't believe Boss Wu, after all the effort to find the door, would simply turn back to the surface because it wouldn't open. He must have tried every means to open it, but was forced to retreat due to some unavoidable circumstance.

Moreover, if my guess was right, the only way back to the surface was the lift we used. But when we encountered that lift, it was completely entangled by aggressive vegetation, clearly untouched.

There was only one possibility: Boss Wu and his group emerged after us.

Yet Boss Wu claimed he separated from Liang Qian and the others before surfacing, while we had seen Liang Qian entirely alone when we left. This suggested we were the last ones out.

There were many inconsistencies here, but I couldn't bring them all up to confront Boss Wu, because challenging him now would serve no purpose.