However, of the four people present, the two women, being bound, could only vaguely glimpse the scene down the corridor. As for the remaining two, one was a determined assassin, and the other was an undead monster himself, so both watched Zheng Zha with relative calm. Only Imhotep’s expression twitched, looking somewhat unnerved.

Zheng Zha glared fiercely at Imhotep. The bald man immediately snapped back to attention, transforming into a whirlwind of sand and dust that swept towards Zhao Yingkong and the other two women. Zheng Zha was several dozen meters away from the four, and rushing over would certainly be too late. The tall, bald man roared, “Don’t force me! I only want to resurrect Anck-Su-Namun! Hand over the Book of the Dead to me, and I’ll release all three of them. I’ll find a sacrifice elsewhere! How about we settle this peacefully!” The three of them knew in their hearts that no matter what, this situation could not be resolved peacefully. Setting aside whether Zheng Zha could hand over the Book of the Dead, their mission was to bury the undead priest Imhotep—that alone was enough reason for them to fight him to the death. Thus, there was no possibility of a peaceful resolution.

Zheng Zha took a deep breath, suppressing the uncontrollable killing intent radiating from him. Then, he produced the heavy, black Book of the Dead from his storage ring and declared loudly, “Imhotep, I’m placing the Book of the Dead here. Release the three of them and have them approach me. I can walk over to claim the book myself. If you’re willing, untie their chains first!” Imhotep’s heart leaped with joy upon seeing the Book of the Dead. He quickly grabbed the two chains and yanked hard, easily snapping the iron links. Then, he slowly reformed from his half-sandy body, and the three women’s necks were finally freed.

As soon as Eve and Zhan Lan sat up, they continuously rubbed their legs and arms. Being bound so tightly had left their hands completely numb. Once off the altar, the two nearly collapsed. Fortunately, Zhao Yingkong supported one girl with one arm, gathering them both as she walked toward Zheng Zha.

Zheng Zha watched Imhotep’s movements coldly, while the bald priest also cautiously observed the movements of Zhao Yingkong and the other two. He placed the dagger on the altar behind him, right next to Anck-Su-Namun’s mummy. Only when Zhao Yingkong and the other two were more than ten meters away did he beckon with both hands. A whirlwind of sand and dust swept towards the Book of the Dead. Before Zheng Zha could react, Imhotep had already seized the book.

Zheng Zha had just gathered the three women. As soon as Zhao Yingkong reached his side, she whispered, “Without the dagger, I can’t hurt him. Do you have a plan?” Zheng Zha gave a bitter smile and replied quietly, “I don’t have a great plan either. My Vampire energy was just completely depleted; otherwise, I could have used Crimson Flame to fight him. As for the storage ring, I don't trust its power. We absolutely must get the Resurrection Scripture. But a long time has passed since those Sphinxes appeared. I worry that O’Connell and the others might already have been—”

Eve shrieked in alarm, “O’Connell and the others have been—been what? Did you fail to protect them?” Imhotep watched them coldly from a distance. He suddenly sneered, “Not only will they die! You will all join them in death! Come forth, Tomb Guards, and utterly destroy these blasphemers!” As his voice faded, the sound of marching like an army echoed from a corridor. A continuous stream of mummy guards poured out of the passage, all carrying iron weapons and shields. Their level of elite training even surpassed the mummy guards they had seen in Cairo.

Zheng Zha reacted the fastest. Without a second thought, he lunged towards Imhotep, but a fierce wind suddenly swept down from above. A Sphinx dropped from the ceiling of the altar hall—it must have been hiding there—and positioned itself exactly between him and Imhotep.

Imhotep stroked the Book of the Dead in his hand and sneered, “How tiring it must be to search for sacrifices yourself. Aren’t there three ready-made sacrifices right here? Three virgins! The blood of virgins is the finest offering to the God of Death. You shall all die here in the City of the Dead! Gather sand into monsters, bearing human faces and the bodies of lions—my servants, awaken!” As Imhotep chanted, several piles of sand began to form at the edges of the altar hall. They grew higher and higher, then began to shift and transform ceaselessly. Under everyone’s gaze, these piles of sand gradually morphed into Sphinxes several meters long. As soon as they formed, they glared at Zhao Yingkong and the other two women and roared loudly at them.

Eve quickly whispered, “Hurry up and think of something, Zheng Zha! You have to figure something out!” Zheng Zha was also extremely anxious. Currently, he was the only one with offensive capability. Although Zhao Yingkong had formidable close-combat skills, she lacked a suitable weapon, and facing enemies that possessed spiritual characteristics put her at a severe disadvantage. Most critically, beside her were two ordinary women with almost no combat ability! “Get down!” In a flash of inspiration, Zheng Zha suddenly pulled several high-explosive charges from his waist. Then, without hesitation, he pulled the pins and hurled them towards the Sphinxes, while he himself charged even faster towards the Sphinx positioned between him and Imhotep. Several explosions rocked the area. The name truly lived up to itself—high explosives! It was as if the entire Tomb of the Dead City trembled; dust and sand continuously rained down from the stone pillars, and the Sphinxes in the altar hall were blasted into powder, unlikely to reform anytime soon.

Imhotep was also jolted by the shockwave of the explosion. When he recovered, he was surprised to find Zheng Zha had vanished. The Sphinx between him and Zheng Zha remained intact. As he looked around frantically, a fierce wind suddenly swept down from above. His reaction was incredibly swift; the moment the powerful wind struck, he dissolved into a whirlwind and flashed aside. But when he stopped, he saw his entire being was contorted in rage, his eyes seeming to spit fire.

In that instant of explosion, Zheng Zha had used the Sphinx’s outstretched claw to leap, then vaulted through the air towards the altar behind Imhotep. Imhotep instinctively dodged his attack, allowing Zheng Zha to land precisely on the altar behind him—where Anck-Su-Namun’s mummy lay! As Zheng Zha landed, his right hand gripped the dagger, while his left fist aimed directly at the chest of Anck-Su-Namun’s mummy. He roared, “Stop their attack! Otherwise, I’ll smash her to pieces with one punch! I’m using spiritual attack power!” The mummy guards were already less than a few paces from the three women, and the other Sphinxes were nearly reformed. After all, the high explosives were merely conventional attacks. The death of the three women would have been instantaneous. Had Zheng Zha not forced this sudden change, they would almost certainly have died.

Imhotep roared loudly, and sure enough, the mummy guards and the Sphinxes instantly froze. At that moment, the three women were effectively surrounded by a swarm of monsters.

Zheng Zha took a deep breath and said coldly, “Let them leave the tomb. Let the two of us men fight. Don't involve women in this, damn it. While what I’m doing isn't glorious, it’s certainly better than you ganging up on three women, isn't it?” Imhotep urgently replied, “Fine, I will let them leave the tomb. Immediately release Anck-Su-Namun! I guarantee I will let them out of the tomb.”

Zheng Zha gave a cold laugh. “Trust you? What did you say just before? Aren't ready-made sacrifices good enough? Damn it, now everything is according to my terms! Zhao Yingkong, you three hurry over to me!” Imhotep’s face flickered slightly, and the mummy guards seemed poised to attack, but he ultimately watched coldly as the three women ran through the horde of monsters to Zheng Zha’s side. Only when he saw Zhao Yingkong take back the flaming dagger did the undead priest finally sigh, “Alright? Now you can release Anck-Su-Namun, right?” Zheng Zha said coldly, “I don’t trust you now. Just let us leave the tomb. Once we leave, I promise to release this mummy. As for other matters, we’ll discuss them then, but at least I won't go back on my word like you!” Imhotep lowered his head in silence, able only to watch as Zheng Zha lifted the mummy. He and the three women faced him squarely as they began to walk step by step towards the corridor.

The four had their backs to the corridor, but because Zheng Zha’s fist was held tightly against Anck-Su-Namun’s mummy, they were not afraid of Imhotep playing any tricks. Just as the four were about to enter the corridor, a figure rushed out frantically from the passage, colliding with them and causing them to stagger, even knocking the mummy away from the position of Zheng Zha’s fist.

This person was Jonathan. He rushed out, holding a glowing golden book and shouting, “Ah, everyone look, this is the Book of the Sun!” Upon looking again, Imhotep had already transformed into a whirlwind and lunged in front of Zheng Zha. His hands pressed down fiercely on Zheng Zha’s left fist. Although smoke was constantly rising from his hands, he managed to protect Anck-Su-Namun’s mummy from any attack. Imhotep’s hands were almost burning as he leaped—