The appearance of the burly man suddenly turned the tide of battle.
After he easily killed the Tomb-Guarding Snake Demon and obtained the so-called Serpent Gallbladder, the eyes of other extraordinary individuals also revealed a hint of hope and longing.
Suddenly, a man and a woman appeared in the crowd, dressed in overalls and hiking jackets, carrying a lot of equipment.
The man was ruggedly built, about thirty years old, with a square face and thick eyebrows and large eyes that made him look quite upright.
The woman was younger, and even her overalls could not hide her proud figure.
Around both of their necks hung a pangolin claw, inscribed with the characters "Mo Jin" – the legendary Mo Jin Talisman, exclusively belonging to the Mo Jin Wei Qi, possessing special abilities to ward off evil.
These two were likely the Mo Jin Wei Qi mentioned by the Voodoo master, and the burly man who strangled the Tomb-Guarding Snake Demon barehanded might be a Ban Shan Dao Ren.
Standing in front of them was a middle-aged man in a suit and tie. His style of dress was quite similar to Zheng Zhaodi's, suggesting he was likely from Hong Kong as well.
As the middle-aged man appeared, others made way for him. Seeing the Serpent Gallbladder in the burly man's hand, an uncontrollable smile spread across his face.
"Yang Li, you truly live up to your reputation! Let me see the Serpent Gallbladder quickly!"
The Ban Shan Dao Ren, addressed as Yang Li, weighed the Serpent Gallbladder in his hand but did not hand it over, gripping it tightly.
Seeing this, the middle-aged man's gaze turned cold. "What are you doing?"
Yang Li smiled. "Boss Zhou, you are a businessman. You should know the principle of leaving room for maneuver. I will keep this Serpent Gallbladder for you. I will only take it out when it is needed. Otherwise, I have no guarantee."
Upon hearing this, Boss Zhou stared at Yang Li with a grim expression, remaining silent for a long time.
The Mo Jin Wei Qi behind him exchanged a glance, seemingly with no intention of intervening on anyone's behalf.
Everyone stood in a standoff.
Suddenly, Boss Zhou smiled and said lightly, "Yang Li, you are a Ban Shan Dao Ren. Both you and your ancestors have exhausted your good karma, destined not to have a good end in this life. However, you have a mute daughter secretly raised in Bingzhou. Even if you don't consider yourself, you must consider your daughter, right?"
Yang Li, who had been very defiant, suddenly changed his expression, as if his soft spot had been hit by Boss Zhou.
He wanted to get angry, but due to the safety of his daughter, Yang Li tried hard to control himself and finally yielded, throwing the Serpent Gallbladder to Boss Zhou.
"That's more like it. Follow me and do as you're told, and I won't mistreat you. Don't get any funny ideas," Boss Zhou said with a cold smile as he accepted it. "Before inviting you all here, I investigated your backgrounds. I wouldn't have invited you all without absolute certainty."
As he spoke, the onlookers, who were extraordinary individuals, also showed signs of worry.
From Boss Zhou's words, they could guess that it wasn't just Yang Li; their friends and family had also been monitored by Boss Zhou.
Despite their own abilities, most of their relatives were ordinary people. A single bullet could send them to the King of Hell.
Boss Zhou threw the Serpent Gallbladder to the female Mo Jin Wei Qi beside him and said, "Miss Ma Jinxuan, take a look. Is this the real Serpent Gallbladder?"
Boss Zhou was extremely suspicious. Even though he saw Yang Li throw the Serpent Gallbladder over with his own eyes, he still had to verify its authenticity.
After all, the extraordinary individuals around him had been through a lot in the martial world, and they were too cunning. Without caution, something would surely go wrong.
The female Mo Jin Wei Qi, "Ma Jinxuan," took the Serpent Gallbladder and examined it carefully, even holding it up to the sky and squinting with one eye to observe it.
The sky was gloomy. The light shone on the Serpent Gallbladder, and a small object seemed to be moving within it.
Ma Jinxuan opened her eyes, her other eye regaining its vision, and happened to see the wooden bird Sanyuan circling in the sky.
She stared for a while, making Yan Shouyi feel uneasy, unsure if she had discovered something or not.
Fortunately, Ma Jinxuan did not continue to stare, nor did she show any abnormalities. She handed the Serpent Gallbladder to the male Mo Jin Wei Qi beside her and said, "It's real, brother. Take a look."
This male Mo Jin Wei Qi was actually Ma Jinxuan's brother, named Ma Xingping.
Ma Xingping took the Serpent Gallbladder, glanced at it without even looking, and stuffed it back to Boss Zhou. "My sister has better eyesight than me. If she says it's real, then it's real."
Compared to Yang Li, Boss Zhou seemed to trust the Ma siblings more.
Therefore, he contentedly put away the Serpent Gallbladder.
Yang Li reluctantly averted his gaze, his lips pursed, seemingly still contemplating something.
"Yang Li, and all of you others, listen up. I, Zhou Yu, am a businessman. Businessmen do not speak of emotions, only of profit. As long as you work for me diligently, you will be rewarded. But if anyone gets any funny ideas, be careful I won't recognize you!" Boss Zhou stared at Yang Li and said coldly, "Today's event is a warning. Next time, it won't be this simple."
Yang Li gritted his teeth and finally submitted. "There won't be a next time."
"Very good."
Boss Zhou nodded with satisfaction, then looked with a sinister gaze at those who had escaped from the cave earlier.
They were all villagers from nearby villages who had come with the idea of making money in the mine. Little did they know they were kidnapped by Boss Zhou and forcibly brought here.
Boss Zhou said lightly, "Give them food and water. Once they are full, have had enough to drink, and rested, they will go back into the cave and lure out the last Tomb-Guarding Snake Demon! Once we have collected thirteen Serpent Gallbladders, we can open the tomb door."
Although Boss Zhou didn't have many men, they were all extraordinary individuals, making it easy to suppress these ordinary people.
After such a long ordeal, these villagers had lost any will to resist and could only obey obediently to avoid torment.
The camp began to buzz with activity. Yan Shouyi also ordered Sanyuan to continue monitoring and opened his eyes.
"How was it? What did you see?" Lin Zitong asked.
Yan Shouyi rubbed his temples. "There's quite a lot of information. Let me sort it out."
He organized his thoughts and briefly recounted the information Sanyuan had obtained to the two of them.
After they listened, Lin Zitong was still able to process it, but Long Feicheng was completely confused.
He asked in bewilderment, "Brother Yan, what exactly does Boss Zhou want to do?"
"Don't you understand yet? There's a large tomb beneath our feet, and Boss Zhou wants something inside. So, he controlled a group of extraordinary individuals to help him. They need to kill thirteen Tomb-Guarding Snake Demons and collect their Serpent Gallbladders to open the tomb door. Among these extraordinary individuals are the Ma siblings, the Mo Jin Wei Qi, and a Ban Shan Dao Ren named Yang Li," Yan Shouyi said helplessly.
"A large tomb? Are there any valuable items in that tomb?" Long Feicheng asked excitedly.
Yan Shouyi got up and kicked Long Feicheng. "Are you only thinking about money? Was that the main point I was making?"
Lin Zitong also said, "Boss Zhou is already quite wealthy and influential in Hong Kong, at least no less than the Bai family. Even he has gone to such lengths to investigate this large tomb, which means the items inside must be of immeasurable value."
"Could it be another method of achieving eternal life?" Long Feicheng wondered.
"Who knows? Perhaps it really is."
Yan Shouyi sighed. After all, when wealthy people have no worries about food and drink, their minds are filled with nothing but how to live longer.
From ancient times to the present, human nature has been like this. Everyone wants to live forever, which is understandable.
However, throughout history, anyone who sought immortality invariably paved their path with the lives of others.