Chapter 50: Breaking the Deadlock

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“Kid, you’re no match for me. Don’t waste your strength. Don’t worry, I don’t really want to fight you either, but still, think it over,” the old ghost said after finishing his sentence.

I narrowed my eyes, the corners of my mouth curling up in a cold sneer as I asked, “How can you be so sure I’m no match for you? And shouldn’t you be more concerned about whether you’ll make it out of here alive?”

To be honest, I was indeed a bit hesitant inside, but not because I would hand over the pill to him. Rather, it was because the old ghost’s words echoed those of the man in the black sunglasses. Both were convinced I’d be in serious trouble once I got out, and according to what Li Ling said, they were likely all hired hands. People like the old ghost, the big oaf, and the guy with the black sunglasses were by no means ordinary. And yet, such people were willing to take orders and risk their lives—whoever was behind them must be a true heavyweight. Right now, even someone like the old ghost was not someone I could afford to provoke, let alone the powerful figure pulling the strings. When they spoke of trouble, it seemed it would truly be something formidable.

Still, just because I couldn’t afford to provoke them didn’t mean I was afraid. On the contrary, someone like me, especially in this situation, was even less afraid of death or trouble.

While the old ghost thought I was wavering, I suddenly launched an attack. The black-gold dagger in my hand shot straight for his throat. Just as the blade was about to reach him, there was a metallic clang—a force knocked the blade aside. It was a long black needle. Instantly, I saw four more black needles magically appear between the old ghost’s fingers, and he hunched his body, rushing toward me at incredible speed. As we brushed past each other, I narrowly avoided having my arm pierced by one of his needles.

These black needles—of that I was certain—must have been coated with some deadly poison. But he didn’t have it easy either; I nearly nicked his throat.

“Heh heh, it’s been a long time since I’ve had a good fight. Didn’t expect you, kid, to be so young yet so skilled,” he laughed.

At that moment, Li Ling suddenly shouted, “Everyone, stop!”

Next came Liang Qiu, pointing two guns at the big oaf and the old ghost. The big oaf pulled out his own pistol, and the two sides were instantly locked in a tense standoff. The old ghost was just about to get up when suddenly a shadow darted out, swiftly approaching Li Ling. When it stopped, I saw clearly—it was the man with the black sunglasses. How had he gotten here?

“All right, all right, everyone calm down,” he said, his tone as lazy as ever. He turned to the old ghost: “Uncle Ghost, let’s get out of here, shall we?”

The old ghost was momentarily stunned, frowning as he asked how the man with the sunglasses had gotten here. The latter just chuckled, “You’re really too funny, sir. Lucky I showed up—imagine if someone got hurt! Uncle Ghost, you’re a man of such standing, aren’t you?”

Though his words sounded like concern, I couldn’t help but feel there was little real respect in his tone—if anything, it seemed tinged with mockery.

“Hey, kid Yun, you all better clear out, too. Let’s talk once we’re outside, all right? There’s something following us from behind,” he added.

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He sounded calm, but when I glanced back, my scalp instantly crawled with dread. Countless pale blue specks of light were pouring out of the ancient building—those were the deadly parasitic insects, lethal at a touch.

The old ghost didn’t have time to stand off with me any longer; he cursed and called for his men to retreat. I grabbed Li Ling and Liang Qiu and ran as well, keeping an eye on the man in the black sunglasses ahead. Oddly, his pace slowed until he was running level with me.

As we ran, he suddenly murmured, “I was the one who smashed the jar of parasitic insects. Don’t thank me—it just pays back a favor I owed you.”

“You already paid that favor back,” I replied. When I fainted earlier, he’d left me alone, which was favor repaid in my book.

“Then let’s just say I have my own reasons. But don’t mistake me for a good guy.” With that, he suddenly shouted, “Run! The insects are coming!”

I almost cursed aloud. How could he still joke at a time like this? But this wasn’t the moment to worry about that. I pulled Li Ling along, urging Liang Qiu to run faster. Luckily, those insects weren’t all that quick, so we managed to keep some distance between us.

As we ran, I noticed the old ghost and his group had taken another route, but we couldn’t switch paths—there were too many people waiting for us ahead. Soon, we saw the brightly lit main group. There was no time for explanations; Li Ling shouted for everyone to run. Even the normally composed Dr. Li was visibly anxious, and everyone realized something was seriously wrong. They didn’t even bother gathering their things—just ran for their lives.

After we’d gone a ways and saw there were no insects in pursuit, I called for a rest, gasping for breath. “Everybody, take a break!”

The group was exhausted, but fortunately, most were young and those few older hands were hardened by years of archaeological expeditions. No one collapsed outright.

I then asked Li Ling, “What now? Looks like the old ghost and his crew know the way out. We can’t find them now, and they’re armed—there are too many of us to risk a confrontation.”

Li Ling nodded in agreement and said, “Don’t worry, I’ve already thought of a plan. It’s not simple here, but it’s not impossible, either. The ancient Lige people were masters of traps and all sorts of bizarre formations, but in the end, most are just illusions and psychological tricks. As long as we find the key point, we can get out.”

By now, our location was completely unfamiliar—definitely not the path we’d used to come in. The compass was useless, but since Li Ling said she had a way, I was reassured. She wasn’t one to speak rashly.

With Anna’s help, she sat down and began drawing a map. In no time, she pointed in a certain direction—toward the edge of the ancient city. “Head this way, and everyone cover your eyes, Gao, you lead.”

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“Me again?” I muttered, but did as she said. So, the group lined up, one after another, all blindfolded. As Li Ling explained, here you can’t trust your own eyes. Otherwise, you might fall prey to psychological suggestions from your surroundings. It was so dark, and instinctively everyone wanted to use their flashlights. But under the beam and its reflections, illusions could fool you, making you lose yourself in the subterranean city.

I took the lead, flashlight in hand, while Li Ling followed behind me, eyes covered, just as in the ancient tower earlier. Though my eyes were open, I followed her directions exactly, with everyone behind me doing the same.

Soon, I realized that many of the paths I’d instinctively avoid were precisely the ones Li Ling guided me onto, correcting my direction whenever I veered off. Even when faced with a sand pit ahead, we climbed over it as instructed.

After walking for a while, I noticed the ancient towns and buildings around us had vanished. All the underground structures were gone. As for when we’d left them behind, I couldn’t recall—it was as if, in a single instant, we’d entered another world.

The path grew narrower, the surroundings seemingly more natural than man-made. I didn’t see that so-called “Bridge of No Return” again. I began to wonder where this road would lead, and how Li Ling could possibly know the way. Honestly, I doubted she’d figured it out by calculation or research, since much of this place we’d never even seen. How could she be sure this direction would lead us out?

Was it a guess, a calculation, or something else? I couldn’t figure it out, but I didn’t ask. Asking would have made it seem like I didn’t trust her, and I didn’t want to break the sense of trust between us.

After some time, I noticed we were heading upward. Li Ling told everyone to remove their blindfolds, saying we’d exited the underground city and just needed to continue in the same direction.

The tunnel wasn’t very steep, but it kept sloping upward. It didn’t feel like something dug by human hands—more like an animal’s burrow. I voiced my concerns to Li Ling, worried we might run into danger, since so many unknown creatures lurked beneath the desert sands.

Li Ling just smiled and reassured me, saying it was probably an ancient escape tunnel. But no matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem that way. Finally, unable to contain my doubts, I asked, “How do you know all this so well? I almost thought you’d been here before.”

Li Ling paused, then smiled serenely. “Many underground tombs follow the same logic. The craftsmen always left themselves an escape route. After all, most tomb owners wanted secrecy and security, afraid outsiders would discover their tombs and attract grave robbers. So, after construction was complete, they’d kill all the craftsmen—a truth rarely spoken aloud. This might be an underground city, but it’s the same principle as a tomb. The ancient king of Lige must have had grand designs for this place, but he wouldn’t have wanted outsiders to know about it. The craftsmen couldn’t escape their fate, so of course there would be an escape tunnel.”

She spoke with conviction, and I listened intently. I understood her reasoning, yet I still harbored doubts. Even if there was an escape tunnel, how could she be sure of its direction? Was it really calculated, or just luck? Would following it really get us out? There were so many unanswered questions, but in the end, I suppressed my urge to probe further and didn’t ask.

Li Ling didn’t volunteer more, either. We simply kept moving upward, and by the end, we were almost crawling our way out.