"Temporarily cannot determine, but it is more likely not." Fe Fang said with a serious tone: "Although this hole is strange, it can be reflected in the water, but after all, it is just a hole. The previous cultivator was not so easily killed here. It is probably the lower class accompanying him." "The cave inside is very dangerous. At most, it has been ten or twelve years, and it has become a green corpse."
I nodded, not making any more wild assumptions.
"Old Gong, what do you think?" I looked at Liang Jieshi.
He twirled his eyeballs for a while before saying, "Let's not worry about anything else for now. We should go inside that cave first. Otherwise, if we wait until tomorrow, I'll have to go back into the pot again. And there might be some secrets on that path. If it weren't for me, who knows how many people would die."
Old Gong's words made sense, and Fe Fang nodded in agreement with a deep realization.
"Something's in the water again!" Xu Jin shouted once more.
We took a closer look and indeed found some peculiar things huddled around the hole in the water.
They looked like something between human and non-human, all white, and if you didn't look too closely, they were more like some kind of cocoon with limbs.
Looking up at the hole in the mountain wall again, the distance remained too far, only seeing the dark hole and the surrounding vines, completely unable to see any foreign objects.
For a moment, we couldn't tell whether those things were in the water or existed around the hole on the mountain wall, being reflected in the water.
Liang Jieshi muttered a few words, just like Old Gong, he couldn't be sure of anything.
He didn't let everyone look around, directing them to climb upwards.
The plank path is narrow, barely enough for one person to walk on.
The mountain wall is covered in vines, and the roots are strong. Many roots have caused the rock wall to deform, and even some vines are wrapped around the plank path, maintaining its integrity and preventing it from being eroded and rotted by the wind.
Old Gong was at the front, followed by the tomb corpses from Guanyin Land, then the Liang family a bit further back, and I was at the very end, acting as the rear guard.
It was a surprise to Old Gong that there were no accidents on the plank path, and we didn't take much time to reach the mouth of the cave.
There is a wooden platform outside the cave, which can accommodate our group and makes it a bit crowded.
The cave was initially spacious, and with the flashlight shining inside, it gradually became narrower, much like a tomb passage leading deeper into the cavern.
Oddly enough, there were no bodies here.
From this angle, looking at the water surface, due to the distance, we can only see a hole in the water, and cannot see the exact situation.
"Did the body run away?" Chang Xin carefully opened his mouth.
The few people from Guanyin Land observed the surroundings around the cave mouth carefully. With Fe Fang's nod of approval, they took a few steps forward, observing the ground more cautiously and even using their fingers to wipe it.
"No, the traces here indicate that there have never been any bodies!" One of them cautiously said.
"That's even more interesting," Liang Jieshi scratched his chin.
Suddenly, he looked up towards the higher area.
I followed his gaze and looked towards the direction he was pointing!
My heart suddenly stiffened, and I saw that the steep mountain wall had some concave grooves on it, resembling the steps for climbing mountains.
About fifty meters up, there is another cave entrance!
I can see it because the cave entrance above is slightly wider, while the lower part contracts inward.
Indeed, there was a person who was securely nailed to the rock wall outside the cave entrance. His one hand was raised slightly, as if beckoning or struggling!
Everyone followed our gaze upwards, and Xu Jin said blankly, "Two caves... So, the one above is the reflection in the water?"
"Big guy, it's not that simple. There are two caves, and only one is reflected in the water. There is a special technique of feng shui called the 'shadow technique'. To find a shadow, you need to observe mountains. This kind of feng shui technique, rumor has it, will let you see what you want to find, but you can never get to the door."
"Due to the wonderful angle of feng shui and mountain form here, this cave, along with the body above, was mirrored on the water surface." Old Gong's voice was ominous.
"Shouldn't there be three places?" Chang Xin suddenly said: "We all saw something in the water earlier."
"Girly voice, if you don't understand, keep your mouth shut. Those things are not in the reflected cave inside, but outside the cave. Have you seen the vines outside the cave being reflected inside?" Liang Jieshi gave Chang Xin a cold look, then spoke in Old Gong's soft voice: "There are no vines, so it's not a reflection on the mountain wall. It means they exist in the water. The cave and the corpse are an attraction. Once people who don't understand enough see them, they will definitely act like Lao Fe did and send someone to investigate. Once they go down into the water, one after another will be silent!"
"Once the people who don't know anything think, 'My God, I've encountered an ambush. Then they are definitely in the right place. Quickly send someone down!' They will slowly kill all the people. Finally, when they pass and find out, 'Wow, just a reflection. It's still 10,000 li away from the real thing."
Old Gong described the scene more vividly, and Liang Jieshi's expression was extremely expressive.
Everyone looked at each other, and I felt a similar chill in my heart.
Old Gong's words seem to have touched the heart of everyone.
Human nature is like that, isn't it? Even I find it hard to escape from the conventions.
"He's Ma Zhi, a corpse carrier," Fe Fang suddenly said, with an indecisive expression.
The others were equally uncomfortable.
Perhaps it was because of Fe Fang's near-trap earlier, or maybe because the identity of the corpse had finally been clarified.
I was about to ask Lao Gong what to do next.
There are two cave entrances. We have to choose one to go in, right?
"The problem is, there's an entrance above and one in front of us. There must be one we can go inside and find your former Xiu Yang abbot. There must be one we can't find." Liang Jieshi licked his lips and continued, "And there's more to it than that. This is a technique to confuse people. With two caves, there will definitely be one that leads to life and one that leads to death. The correct one will allow you to see the real tomb passage, while the wrong one will not only prevent you from seeing the true tomb but will also kill you inside it. Of course, the real tomb will also kill people, so it's uncertain whether the former Xiu Yang abbot entered the real or fake cave."
"It's also possible that the guy up there died while exploring. They came in here, and it's more likely that there's a problem here. They went in the right way from above but still had someone die."
Lao Gong's words were a bit confusing, but after a slight clarification, it became clear.
This concerns life and death. Choosing the wrong option increases the chances of losing one's life, while choosing the right one reduces the danger. We cannot determine which option was chosen by Xiu Yang abbot, nor can we determine if he was right or wrong.
"I say, you guys are pretty stingy, aren't you? His belongings, they really all vanished?" Lao Gong gave Fe Fang another glance.
Fe Fang shook his head slightly, appearing helpless.
Before we climbed the mountain, Lao Gong had already asked Fe Fang this question. The characteristics of YangshenGui are more precise and practical, but unfortunately, Fe Fang couldn't produce anything.
"Let's go ahead and explore. He Yan, Wang Ci, you two, one above the other. Be careful." Fe Fang gave a decisive order.
At this moment, Lao Gong's head emerged from He Yan's shoulder, dropping into the cave. He twisted his head slightly, as if to stretch his muscles, without saying much. However, the corners of his mouth subtly raised in a smile.
Ghosts also have a characteristic of taking pleasure in others' misfortunes. It's not that Old Gong really wants to laugh, but he can sense that someone will die soon.
