Everyone was unsure what had happened between Yan Shouyi and Lin Zitong, but when Lin Zitong opened her eyes, her gaze was filled with confidence, suggesting she likely knew how to open the serpent lock.
Lin Zitong held the serpent lock and chanted:
"Thunderous Jade Tiger, flashing purple serpent, by decree!"
Something astonishing occurred. The serpent lock, which had been biting its own tail, seemed to come alive and immediately released its mouth!
Even more incredible, after releasing its mouth, the serpent lock followed Lin Zitong's hand and crawled onto her wrist, coiling around the soul-summoning bell, attaching itself as if it were a natural relief carving on the bell!
Ma Jinxuan's mouth hung open, unable to speak.
She couldn't see through the serpent lock at all, yet Lin Zitong had easily unlocked it. Was this a unique skill of her Lushanshan sect, or a secret she possessed?
Regardless, with the serpent lock unlocked, everyone finally had a lead. The next step was to see what was inside the wooden box.
Lin Zitong didn't rush to open the wooden box. Instead, she examined the small serpent on the soul-summoning bell. The serpent was no longer in a circular shape with its head and tail joined, so calling it a serpent lock was no longer accurate.
Yan Shouyi quietly asked Lin Zitong, "How did you know the unlocking incantation? Did Lian He tell you?"
Lin Zitong nodded. "Lian He said this serpent lock was originally called the Shu Ling Snake, a spiritual creature that every royal of the Yushu Kingdom had to raise from childhood. The serpent lock on this wooden box originally belonged to a princess of the Yushu Kingdom. It's unclear how it ended up here, but it's likely related to Jiang Wusheng."
The Shu Ling Snake had spanned a thousand years and unexpectedly encountered Lin Zitong, the reincarnation of a Yushu Kingdom princess. It was now, in a way, returned to its rightful owner.
However, neither Yan Shouyi nor Lin Zitong knew what other effects the Shu Ling Snake might have. They would likely have to wait until Lian He could speak again to inquire.
All signs indicated that Jiang Wusheng had indeed come to Jianzhou, and was even more likely to be within this Jian King's tomb.
Yan Shouyi also briefly recounted the information he had gathered from the general.
While they were exchanging information, the others, including Ma Jinxuan, could no longer wait.
Urged on by Ma Jinxuan, Yan Shouyi slowly opened the wooden box.
However, when everyone saw what was inside the wooden box, they were all taken aback in unison.
The imagined treasures did not appear. The wooden box didn't even contain gold or silver, but two arms!
These two arms were sealed within the wooden box for who knew how many years, yet their flesh and blood had not decayed. Even the fine hairs on them were still clearly visible.
Before opening the wooden box, they had harbored countless speculations, but they had never imagined it would be something like this.
Long Feicheng, furious, kicked the wooden box. "Is this Jian King a pervert? Such a good box, and instead of treasures, he puts in a pair of arms!"
Ma Jinxuan was also quite disappointed. "If it's just a pair of arms, they probably won't be of much help to us. It's not like these arms are the key to opening the gate, is it?"
As they were discussing, Boss Zhou's expression was peculiar. His small eyes darted around, appearing astonished that Lin Zitong could open the wooden box.
Only Yan Shouyi, upon seeing these arms, found his answer.
In the general's story, Jiang Wusheng's arms had been severed by them and thrown into the worm valley.
These arms before them must belong to Jiang Wusheng!
Jiang Wusheng was in this Jian King's tomb!!
Just as everyone was feeling troubled, a sudden change occurred!
The wooden box, which had been fixed on the sacrificial platform, began to rotate on its own and showed signs of sinking.
Noticing this, Yan Shouyi, without a second thought, picked up the pair of arms belonging to Jiang Wusheng from the wooden box!
The next second, the wooden box completely sank, leaving the sacrificial platform empty.
Long Feicheng said disdainfully, "Brother Yan, why did you pick up this thing? It's too ominous!"
"These arms wouldn't be placed here for no reason," Yan Shouyi said. "We shouldn't do what the Jian King wants us to do, and we shouldn't let him do what he wants to do."
"Wait, your words are a bit confusing... Let me sort this out..." Long Feicheng's mind felt overwhelmed.
Ma Jinxuan, who understood Yan Shouyi's meaning, explained, "The tomb's owner designed the tomb for the sole purpose of killing us outsiders. So, as long as we go against the tomb's owner, we'll have a chance to survive."
Long Feicheng scratched the back of his head. "I think I get it a bit, but these arms still feel ominous..."
What Yan Shouyi was after was certainly not Jiang Wusheng's arms themselves, but rather the rings he spotted on the arms as the wooden box began to sink.
On the index finger of each arm, a ring was worn. One was a tiger-shaped ring, and the other was a serpent-shaped ring.
After removing the rings, the two arms instantly turned to dust.
It seemed that the reason these arms had remained uncorrupted for a thousand years was due to this pair of rings. Once the rings were removed, they completely decayed.
"These are likely the keys to opening the stone gate," Yan Shouyi said, holding the rings.
Ma Xingping went to the stone gate and searched around, indeed finding a tiger-shaped indentation that was exactly the same size and shape as the tiger-shaped ring!
Yan Shouyi put away the serpent-shaped ring, led everyone back to the stone gate, then inserted the tiger-shaped ring into the groove beside the stone gate and turned it clockwise.
As the ring turned, a "click-clack" sound of mechanisms echoed from the surroundings.
The stone gate, which had been unmoving, emitted a deep rumbling sound. Dust began to shake loose from its surface, and the stone gate slowly opened!
"Looks like we weren't mistaken," a hint of a smile appeared on Ma Xingping's face.
However, Boss Zhou did not show any signs of happiness. Instead, he stealthily positioned himself behind everyone else.
After the stone gate opened, no one dared to enter first. They gathered outside the door, cautiously shining their flashlights to examine the situation inside.
In the beams of their flashlights, they could vaguely see that behind the tomb door was a spacious cavern. However, unlike before, there were no burial pits or sacrificial platforms. Instead, there appeared countless human figurines!
These human figurines varied in appearance and were in all sorts of postures. Some stood on the ground, some knelt nearby, and looking up, one could see many figurines suspended in mid-air.
But all of these figurines were lifelike. If their eyes were lit, one might mistake them for living people at first glance.
So, even though they knew there were human figurines behind the tomb door, everyone felt a chill and their backs grew cold upon seeing the true appearance of the figurines and the scene itself.
"Boss Zhou didn't lie to us. He truly knows something about the Jian King's tomb," Ma Xingping now believed Boss Zhou's words even more.
Long Feicheng pouted, intending to mock Boss Zhou a few more times. But when he turned around, he found that Boss Zhou had vanished.
He inwardly cried out, "Boss Zhou is gone!!"