Chapter 1 Bidding Farewell

The old man and his wife saw Liang and me off, and we hurried towards Dead Man's Pit.

When we returned, the Xiaoling Guards' reinforcements had indeed arrived. This time, there were five people, three of whom I had seen before, friends who had ventured into the ancient Shu tomb in the Tuojiang River with me. There were also two new faces.

The Xiaoling Guards nodded to us as Liang and I approached.

Jiang Yongguang asked, "Where have you been? What took you so long?"

I immediately said, "We should have found where those rats made their tunnel."

Liang nodded in agreement. "We probably found it. I'm sure of it."

"Really?" Jiang Yongguang's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he gave us a thumbs up, saying, "Well done! Where did the rats dig the tunnel?"

I pointed towards the village behind us and said, "Do you remember Lao Huang who had dinner with us yesterday? Liang and I ran into him again just now. He mentioned that a neighbor moved in two months ago and immediately started building a new house, always working at night."

Jiang Yongguang immediately clapped his hands. "No need to ask! It must be the rats! Xiao Chen, Xiao Liang, good job! I'll send someone to seal off the suspected location immediately."

With that, he turned and beckoned to a Xiaoling Guard, saying, "Lao Wei, take everyone to set up an operation near the tunnel. See if we can catch all the rats in one fell swoop. Before closing the net, find out their strength and be careful. Don't make any mistakes. If there are too many rats, call for backup. Do what you can!"

Lao Wei, who had a large beard, nodded with a smile. "Don't worry. In broad daylight, how can rats eat a cat? If they dare to challenge us, we'll feed them peanuts on the spot!"

As he spoke, Lao Wei patted his waist.

I looked down and saw that Lao Wei's clothes were bulging, so I knew that the Xiaoling Guards had brought real weapons this time.

With this great treasure, the rats would no longer be able to cause trouble.

After receiving the mission, Lao Wei turned to the other Xiaoling Guards and said, "Let's go, let's catch some rats."

He then said to Liang, "Xiao Liang, please lead the way."

Liang didn't agree immediately, but turned to look at the diving equipment on the ground, then looked at me and asked, "Chen Rongsheng, are you going down to the Dragon Suppression Well?"

I nodded and said, "Of course. The diving equipment has been delivered, so I definitely have to go down and take a look."

When she heard this, she said with a worried expression, "Then... then please be careful."

Before I could answer, Jiang Yongguang quickly came over to comfort her, "Don't worry, I guarantee Comrade Xiao Chen's safety. Don't worry, go catch the rats."

Liang nodded and led Lao Wei and the others towards Lao Huang's house.

I changed into my diving suit and plunged into the Dead Man's Pit with a splash.

With the diving equipment, I felt more confident in the water. Even though I knew that this Dragon Suppression Well was a little strange, I wasn't afraid.

I swam to the location of the Dragon Suppression Well, grabbed the bead, and went down. When I reached the wellhead, I hugged the arm-thick iron chain again.

This time, the iron chain didn't tremble, and there was no abnormal movement in the well. I was stunned. "Could it be that what happened last time wasn't because I accidentally opened the mechanism at the bottom of the well, but just a coincidence?"

Filled with doubts, I grabbed the iron chain and continued to descend into the well.

At first, I didn't find anything unusual, but after going down two or three meters, I suddenly saw that the inner wall of the Dragon Suppression Well wasn't bare, but was carved with some exquisite and vivid bas-reliefs.

Before, because it was too dark in the well, I couldn't see anything. This time, I came down with a diving headlamp, and when the headlamp shone, the scene in the well was completely visible.

If, according to our speculation, this Dragon Suppression Well was built by Liu Bowen, then the bas-reliefs in this well must also be his work.

I followed the Dragon Suppression Well all the way down, looking as I went, and roughly saw that these bas-reliefs depicted a coherent story.

The protagonist in the story was leading a team using hoes, iron shovels, and other tools to carry out construction. I guessed that this might be the scene of the Dragon Vein Severing back then, or it might be depicting the scene of them digging out this pond, the Dead Man's Pit.

Later, a giant dragon suddenly emerged from the location where they were digging. The giant dragon was baring its fangs and claws, and it was very ferocious.

Many of the Dragon Vein Severing workers died under the claws of this giant dragon.

Looking further down, I saw that the protagonist who led the team—most likely the famous Liu Bowen—was wielding a sword in one hand and holding a chain in the other, subduing the evil dragon on the ground.

In the next picture, the evil dragon was locked in chains, and the protagonist was worshiped and praised by everyone, but he also seemed to have been injured in the process of fighting the evil dragon, and could only lie weakly on the bed.

Then, this hero who bravely fought the evil dragon died of serious injuries and turned into a coffin. Everyone buried him, and the burial location was exactly where the evil dragon was locked up.

So this evil dragon, which had done many evil deeds, became the divine beast guarding the hero's tomb.

Seeing this, I felt completely confused.

Whose story is this telling?

Could the protagonist of the story be Liu Bowen?

But history has never recorded that Liu Bowen died on the way to sever the Dragon Vein. From this point of view, the protagonist of the story may be someone else.

Just as I was trying to digest the content depicted in the bas-reliefs of the Dragon Suppression Well, the iron chain in my hand suddenly trembled violently again. Immediately afterward, the water flow in the well began to surge. I could feel underground water rushing up from the depths of the ancient well.

Even though I was wearing diving equipment, the water flow was too strong. I didn't dare to confront it head-on, fearing that it would break my bones.

Moreover, even if the water flow wasn't strong enough to break my bones, the diving equipment on my body couldn't withstand the impact. Once the oxygen tank was washed away, or the oxygen tube was detached, my life would be in danger.

For safety's sake, I quickly followed the buoyancy of the water flow and slowly floated up from the Dragon Suppression Well.

Then, before a vortex could form, I turned and returned to the surface of the water, swimming to the shore.

Jiang Yongguang, Uncle Mei, and the others were waiting for me on the shore. Seeing me come ashore again, they quickly asked, "How is it? What's the situation in the well?"

I shook my head at them and said, "This Dragon Suppression Well is deeper than I thought. I dived at least seven or eight meters and still couldn't see the bottom. Moreover, there are undercurrents in the well. No matter where the bottom of this well leads, it's impossible for people to pass through."

After hearing this, Jiang Yongguang asked, "Understood. So, only dead people can come this way, right?"

"That's right." I nodded and said, "This well is basically a dead end."

"That's reassuring. We can't get in from here, and the rats can't get out from here either," Jiang Yongguang said. "Besides this, is there anything else in the well worth noting?"

I immediately said, "There is, actually. Inside this Dragon Suppression Well, a series of picture stories are carved."