Chapter 66: A Very Strange Occurrence

Black Sunglasses and I quietly followed behind them, keeping a distance that was neither too close nor too far. It was obvious that Black Sunglasses was accustomed to this sort of thing; his movements were professional and practiced. I, on the other hand, kept accidentally brushing against branches and making faint noises, but luckily the calls of birds and the rustling of animals in the underbrush masked most of it.

We trailed them for nearly an hour before Old Ghost and his group finally stopped. Old Han pulled out a large compass and started muttering something under his breath. We were a bit too far to catch what he was saying.

Then Old Han pointed in a certain direction, and after walking a bit further, Black Sunglasses and I saw the place clearly. Someone had obviously camped here before; there were several tents left standing. I couldn’t help but wonder: what was the relationship between Old Ghost and these people? Were they rivals, or were they part of the same group?

Soon, Old Ghost and his team began setting up camp themselves. At that moment, Black Sunglasses turned to me and said, “Did you notice something odd?”

I asked him what was strange. He told me that for jobs like this, there’s usually someone keeping watch above ground, ready to provide support. But here, there wasn’t a single lookout, which was highly unusual—especially for a group with such a long tradition of grave-robbing. It was a rule they would never forget.

Strange as it was, all we could do was watch. They spent half the day preparing, and by the time darkness fell, the aroma of their cooking wafted over, making my stomach rumble.

“Damn, stewed beef, noodles, sausages—these guys eat well,” Black Sunglasses said languidly.

I nudged him to shut up; I was already hungry, and his commentary was making it worse. After a day and night of nothing but compressed biscuits and cold water—plus nearly six hours without food—I was reaching my limit.

Around eight o’clock, Old Ghost finally waved his hand, signaling that they were about to move out. He and Old Han had been whispering together for ages, clearly making plans.

At that moment, I noticed their equipment was truly top-notch. Almost everyone carried a firearm—submachine guns, shotguns, pistols, even Type 79 assault rifles. They handed out grenades and explosives; it was obvious they were like a small armed unit. I wondered if they were going to war or robbing a tomb.

They left two men to keep watch above ground; the rest began descending one by one. I counted—there were twenty-four of them, including Old Ghost and Old Han; twenty-two went down. I asked Black Sunglasses what we should do next. He told me to wait.

After about half an hour, Black Sunglasses signaled for me to get ready. I nodded, knowing that in situations like this, a knife was more reliable. It was quiet here, and firing a gun would easily alert those below.

We waited for an opportunity. One of the guards went off to relieve himself, the other was half-reclined on a folding chair, dozing. Black Sunglasses moved faster than me, targeting the man who’d gone to relieve himself. Since it was a sneak attack, the man had no time to react—Black Sunglasses twisted his neck swiftly and mercilessly. I didn’t have time to dwell on it, quickly approaching the one on the folding chair.

As I looked for a chance to strike, the man called out, “Hey Big Guy, what are you doing? Taking a piss for so long? Hurry up and come back, let’s play some cards. It’s so damn boring out here in the woods.”

He waited a bit, got no answer, and stood up while continuing to shout. “Big Guy, what the hell are you doing? Damn, you’re slow.”

He seemed to sense something was off, picked up a pistol, chambered a round, and headed toward where Big Guy had gone. I knew if I didn’t act, Black Sunglasses would curse me out. Fortunately, the man walked right past me, but from my hiding spot he couldn’t see me. As he passed, I sprang up, lunging at him. He reacted quickly, spinning around, gun raised.

But I was faster—already pressed against him. My left hand grabbed his gun hand, twisting it hard, while my right hand plunged a short knife into his neck. Blood spurted out instantly. My left hand snapped the tendons in his right wrist, then dislocated his jaw so he couldn’t cry out.

He dropped to the ground quickly. As I wiped the blood from my hands, Black Sunglasses strolled over, muttering, “Your reaction was so slow, dragging it out. And look at you, young man—so reckless. Look at this mess, blood everywhere. That’s a taboo in tomb robbing. Besides, you’re so young, yet so ruthless… Tsk.”

“Dead is dead. What does it matter how ruthless?” I replied, not bothering to argue.

Black Sunglasses grumbled as he walked over to a steaming little gas stove, scooped up a chunk of canned beef, and stuffed it in his mouth. “Tastes good. Want some?”

Honestly, my stomach was long past empty. There was plenty of food in the camp. I grabbed a few cans of beef and tossed in a packet of noodles, tore open some sausages and started eating. After devouring everything, we were so full we could barely move.

After a cigarette and a bit of rest, Black Sunglasses got up and told me it was time to head out. We collected some gear from the camp. I had to admit, Old Ghost’s preparations were thorough. Black Sunglasses and I each took a submachine gun and some ammo, grabbed some exploration equipment and food, and even changed into adventure suits made of special material with multiple functions—very practical. We’d left in a hurry and weren’t well prepared, but now we had everything we needed.

I glanced at the tomb tunnel, curious. I’d only ever seen them in books; this was my first time seeing a real one. Black Sunglasses explained that this was a tunnel dug by professional tomb robbers—far more sophisticated than what ordinary thieves could manage. There were all sorts of techniques, depending on direction and shape. This was a vertical shaft reinforced with materials to make it sturdy.