It suddenly struck us that the objects in this bronze chest might be artifacts used by the ancient indigenous people of Zhelong Mountain to worship the Mountain God.

I said to Fatty and Shirley Yang, "In the desolate frontier lands of the past, the local tribes often had customs of fertility worship. This was linked to the harsh living conditions in those remote areas back then. Humanity was incredibly small against the power of nature, and populations were scarce. Any major or minor natural disaster could wipe out an entire tribe. The only way forward was to have many children; more children meant a larger population, which in turn increased productivity. Therefore, I believe this Jade Fetus might have been used in antiquity to pray for women to bear more children—a kind of totem symbolizing prosperity in offspring."

Fatty laughed, "It was better in the old days. Not like now, where people are everywhere, forcing us to implement family planning. We should be opposing having more children now; we should be planting more trees. So, something that doesn't align with the trend of social development is meaningless to leave here. I'll take it; I can trade it for some tobacco and liquor money later."

I nodded, "While what you say has some merit—we should certainly support family planning—it's best not to move these things carelessly right now. We haven't figured out the true nature of this Jade Fetus yet. Our mission here is to raid King Xian's tomb for that Muchen Pearl, which is vital to our lives and fortunes. That is the top priority. You need to distinguish between what is important and what is urgent."

Before I finished speaking, Fatty had already disregarded my words, reaching out to grab the jar, intending to smash it open to retrieve the Jade Fetus. Shirley Yang stopped him, saying to Fatty, "These ancient artifacts of the Yi people were hidden inside the giant worm by King Xian's priests, which suggests they are extraordinary. We shouldn't act rashly before we understand their purpose; let's look at the other two items first."

Seeing the glint in Fatty's eyes, knowing he hadn't heard a word we said, I had to physically pull him back. Fatty complained incessantly, saying we had endured wind and dew on the journey to Yunnan, living with our lives constantly on the line, having narrowly escaped death countless times, and now that we had finally found something real, how could we not take it?

I told Fatty, "King Xian's ancient tomb must be piled high with treasures. Why obsess over this Jade Fetus in the jar? Moreover, this Jade Fetus subtly exudes a strange, sinister aura; it's no ordinary object. Bringing it back might cause trouble. We need to look at the bigger picture, not just fixate on this small thing right in front of us. Haven't you heard what the Chairman taught us: 'Excessive grumbling risks gut-wrenching pain; one should always take a broader view of the world'?"

Fatty mumbled, "I also heard him say, 'Don't say the Kunming Pool is shallow; watching fish there is better than the Fuchun River.' But the waters in Yunnan are anything but shallow..."

Complaints aside, we still needed to examine the other two mysterious objects in the large bronze cabinet. Otherwise, any oversight could leave future trouble, only causing greater complications when we later enter King Xian's tomb.

The three of us looked at the other two compartments of the square bronze chest. The adjacent side held a large leather pouch, made from cloud leopard hide, intricately embroidered with gold and silver lines depicting symbols and secret incantations. It was bulging, seemingly holding quite a bit, yet it didn't feel heavy when lifted—certainly not as heavy as expected.

Seeing those peculiar arcane markings indicated that regardless of whether the Jade Fetus was left by the ancient Yi people, at least the contents of this leopard skin pouch were related to King Xian. The talismans used for suppressing souls were particularly unique, resembling clusters of tadpoles arranged methodically, making them unforgettable.

This situation inevitably caused a spike in tension. These techniques (Yishu) were insidious and cruel, primarily designed to materialize the resentment of the deceased. They could become an invisible poison capable of killing, and they could transfer that malevolent, hateful energy onto other objects, making them impossible to guard against. But since we knew they were connected to King Xian, we had to steel ourselves and open the pouch to investigate thoroughly.

We inspected our weapons and anti-toxin gear and exchanged a few words. The mouth of the leopard skin pouch was tightly bound with animal sinew, making it difficult to untie. We resorted to using the paratrooper knife to cut it. We worked together, and in a few quick strokes, we severed the sinew.

Peeling back the leopard skin pouch revealed a pile of disarticulated human bones. We were mentally prepared; the soul-piercing talismans (Chuo Hun Fu) were certain to contain skeletal remains, so we weren't flustered. We immediately stepped back to observe.

After a moment of nothing unusual happening, we returned to examine the contents. I carefully poured the skeletal remains from the large leather pouch onto the ground. It immediately became clear there were three skulls. These three skeletons had no clothing—perhaps it had rotted away, or perhaps they were never clothed at all. The shape of the bones was also peculiar: large skulls, long arm bones, and short, stubby leg bones. Judging by their size, they were five-... large, yet the bone density suggested they belonged to elderly individuals. Most evident were the teeth; not only were they fully grown, but they were also severely worn down, ruling out children.

Based on past experience, those sealed within the soul-piercing talismans were usually adults, such as slaves; we had never encountered children. But these bones, with their size and age ratio, were truly perplexing.

Fatty and I bravely rummaged through the scattered bones, hoping to find other distinguishing features. As we searched, we unearthed some ornaments—things like animal teeth strung on gold rings, and fragmented bi discs. Most striking was a small stone statue of a black toad.

Shirley Yang immediately said upon seeing it, "These are ornaments placed on statues for the Mountain God by the Yi people. These are not human bones; they must be the legendary Shanjiao (Mountain Fiends). They are often considered mountain spirits. Ancient texts contain detailed descriptions: short stature, long, ape-like arms, black faces with white fur, capable of understanding human speech, and able to summon wind and rain in the mountains. However, modern people have never seen them and assume they are fictional. Some suggest they are based on the Black-faced Ghost Baboon, which is why the Black-faced Ghost Baboon in Africa is also called Shanjiao today. But the ancient Chinese legends of the Shanjiao differ somewhat from the modern species. Looking at these bones now, they most likely belong to ancient Shanjiao. They must be the true form of the Mountain God."

It seemed these three Shanjiao were all killed by King Xian. They were revered by the Yi people as the deities guarding the great mountain, and the Jade Fetus was likely also a sacred object valued by them. King Xian invaded this area and surely perpetrated great cruelties, desecrating the remains of the Mountain God and interring them, along with the sacred artifacts of the Yi people, inside the stomach of the giant worm. By transforming them into a gastric tumor preventing the Huo Shi Bu Si Chong (Immortal Insect of the Huo Clan) from digesting the floating corpses and eggs, he used this perverse method to destroy the local people's faith and consolidate his rule. Whether this is the absolute truth would likely only be known once we entered King Xian's tomb in the Dragon's Grotto and learned the full account of his life and deeds.

We glanced over at the giant worm lying nearby, clad in dragon-scaled demonic armor, which simply refused to die. So, this great worm was not the original form of the Mountain God; the true Mountain God was inside its belly.

We had finished examining the two items on the sides of this bronze chest—Pandora's Box, so to speak. Only the central, and most mysterious, item remained. We deliberately left it for last because we couldn't fathom what it was, preferring to understand the other two first to gain some context. Unexpectedly, the first two compartments yielded astonishing discoveries, making our guess about the centerpiece even more inscrutable.

The central compartment was much wider than the two sides. Judging by its layout, it was meant to house the most important object. The other two compartments related to the ancient Yi people who originally inhabited this area, and this one likely did too, but what exactly it was remained a mystery. As Fatty and I carefully moved the central object, I mused: It’s probably the corpse of the Yi chieftain, or perhaps another crucial artifact King Xian plundered from the Yi people.

We lifted it gently twice, but couldn't move it. In the center was a small bronze box, similar in style to the outer square chest, cast with an extremely hideous, grotesque face with wings on its back, resembling a celestial Yakṣa patrolling the heavens. Various strange ornaments adorned its surface, giving the immediate impression that what it contained was no ordinary thing. Could it be sealing away the chief of all devils?

Upon closer inspection, we realized a section of the bronze casket was hollow, connecting to the tiger-shaped keyhole on the side of the large bronze cabinet. The interior was latticed, and the color was the same deep black as the dark water beneath the cabinet. We hadn't noticed it earlier. The box had no lock; it could only be opened from inside the bronze chest.

To avoid being injured by any mechanisms, we turned to the back and used the climbing axe to hook open the lid adorned with the demonic face. As the Ghost Box opened, a cold, faint blue light emanated from within. Inside the bronze container was a blue, three-legged toad. Fatty let out a sound of surprise and gently poked the toad with his climbing axe. It rang with a solid dong, as if it were stone. It turned out this Flying Ghost-Head Bronze Casket was the bronze palace built to house this creature.

This strange, blue, three-legged toad, made of some unknown material, was about the size of a human head, plump in form, tilting its head upward in an expression of smug satisfaction. Its structure was rare; regardless of the material, its depiction alone made it a masterpiece—truly a divine object.

Fatty and I swallowed hard watching it. Legend says Chang'e ate the elixir of immortality and flew to the Moon Palace, transforming into a toad. Thus, the toad is regarded as a representative of the Moon Palace, symbolizing being high above, and the phrase "Toad Palace grasping the laurel branch" (Chan Gong Zhe Gui) signifies achieving success. The desire to lift this strange toad from its palace ignited an uncontrollable surge of ecstasy within us. This blue, three-legged monstrous toad must be the most valuable treasure on Zhelong Mountain. Such a divine object—unless destined by great fortune—would be considered a blessing earned from a previous life merely to gaze upon it, let alone pack it into a bag to take home.

Shirley Yang remained far calmer than Fatty and me in the face of such treasure: "Careful, careful. The plants and insects in this cave are getting larger, and there are at least two downed airplanes hidden in the jungle. Their origin might lie here. It guards the sky above the royal tomb..."

As Shirley Yang's words faded, before Fatty and I could fully react, we suddenly felt the atmosphere in the cave shift. A sound of cracking bones began emanating from beneath our feet. We quickly looked down: the three sets of Mountain God remains resting by our feet were undergoing accelerated metamorphosis due to the high oxygen content in the Gourd Cave. All the bones were contracting and turning black.

The oxidation rate was excessively fast, compounded by the fact that the density of these Mountain God bones was several times greater than that of human bone, causing the skeletal structures to emit a sharp and strange fracturing sound.

I stepped back two paces and said to Fatty and Shirley Yang, "All this messy stuff is intensely evil. Artifact or evil implement, let's just blast it all with dynamite to avoid future trouble." With that, I reached into Fatty's backpack for explosives. However, Fatty had stuffed the bag with many gold fragments, and it took a long time to dig out the dynamite.

Fatty turned around to help me set the detonator. The moment he turned, he suddenly leaped up, as if he had seen something terrifying. He quickly pointed toward Shirley Yang's leg with his finger. I followed his gaze and nearly jumped myself: the sound of a baby crying drilled directly into our ears.