Chapter 1 The Inception

At Old Wu's irritable urging, we all squeezed through the wooden door.

Behind the wooden door was a deep, pitch-black tunnel. The tunnel was quite wide, about two meters high and three or four meters wide, like a subway tunnel. It was more than enough for one person to pass through, and even two or three people could walk side by side with ease.

I couldn't help but think, "Having a Project Hope school as a smokescreen is convenient. They can even dig such a grand tunnel. Judging by the scale of this tunnel, I'm afraid they not only used manpower to dig, but also machines."

However, although this tunnel was wide, it wasn't easy to walk through because it was full of accumulated water. It was so dark that you couldn't see how deep the water was.

Hong Jie told us that this was after draining the water several times. The water was now about waist-deep on me, and for shorter people like Hong Jie and Old Wu, the water would reach their chest.

Old Wu took out several waterproof headlamps and handed them to us, and also gave each of us a backpack filled with various tomb raiding tools.

I unzipped the bag and glanced inside. There were ropes, grappling hooks, diving knives, and other equipment.

After we were all geared up, Old Wu pointed at me and Uncle Mei and said, "Since you two are the best swimmers, you'll lead the way. Don't just stand there, please!"

But Uncle Mei and I weren't in a hurry to move. Uncle Mei frowned and bargained, "We're new here and don't even know the way. I think it's more appropriate for you to lead the way."

After all, no one knew what dangers lurked deep in the tunnel. Whoever led the way would be the cannon fodder.

Old Wu sneered, "Heh, to tell you the truth, this is my first time down this tunnel too. I've never walked this road before. Stop talking nonsense and lead the way. Little Hong brought you here to do just that, let's go!"

Uncle Mei and I had no other choice but to bite the bullet and jump into the flooded tunnel first.

Hong Jie seemed a little apologetic and whispered beside me, "Rongsheng, don't be afraid. Shopkeeper Wang and the other brothers have already gone in ahead of us. Even if there's any danger inside, they've already tested the waters for us. It'll be fine."

Seeing Hong Jie's gentle attitude towards me, even speaking to me in a soft voice, Old Wu couldn't help but feel jealous and said sourly, "Little Hong, have you taken a fancy to this kid? You don't usually talk to me so charmingly. How come when you talk to this kid, you're like a young maiden?"

Hong Jie didn't deny it and sneered, "Is it any of your business? I'll talk however I want, what's it to you?"

Old Wu snorted coldly and cursed, "Shameless slut, falling in love with everyone you see!"

Then he said to me, "Kid, let me give you a piece of advice: prostitutes are heartless, and actors are unfaithful. Don't think Little Hong is batting her eyes at you now. When she finds a new love, she'll kick you to the curb!"

I didn't bother to pay attention to him and just waded forward, using the cold light of the headlamp to illuminate the surface of the water in the tunnel, afraid of encountering some unpredictable danger.

Uncle Mei followed beside me, almost shoulder to shoulder. We supported each other as we moved forward.

Although Hong Jie and Old Wu weren't as good swimmers as us, they were both short and had stable lower bodies, so they walked steadily in the water.

The most troublesome one was Professor Xu, who wore glasses. This guy was over 1.8 meters tall and skinny as a bamboo pole. He had trouble keeping his balance even on flat ground, let alone wading through the water in the tunnel.

We had already walked more than ten steps when a timid voice suddenly came from behind, "Wait for me! Wait for me!"

I turned around and saw Professor Xu standing there like a dragonfly that had fallen into a pool, waving his arms and legs in panic. He had only taken two or three steps.

Old Wu cursed angrily, "This useless piece of trash! I said long ago that we should just bury him alive on the spot! Shopkeeper Wang insisted on sparing his life. What's the point of keeping this useless dessert? He's such a drag!"

Hong Jie劝 said, "Old Wu, say a few less words. Shopkeeper Wang has already said to keep him. What are you still complaining about? If Shopkeeper Wang hears this, you won't have a good time!"

Old Wu thought about it and realized that she was right.

No matter how irritable he was, he wouldn't dare to openly go against Shopkeeper Wang.

Hong Jie turned to Professor Xu and said to Old Wu, "Old Wu, hurry back and help him over here. If he delays any longer, the authorities will come to arrest us."

Old Wu glared and said, "I'm not going! You go!"

"I'm a woman, how can I have the strength to support such a big man? Hurry up and go, don't be such a busybody!" Hong Jie urged.

Old Wu had no choice but to turn back to support Professor Xu while cursing under his breath.

As a result, Professor Xu was quite temperamental. Because Old Wu had been constantly criticizing him, he had a lot of resentment towards Old Wu. When he saw Old Wu coming over, he waved his hand and said, "A scholar doesn't accept food that is offered begrudgingly! I don't need your help. You go your way, I can keep up on my own."

Old Wu slapped Professor Xu on the head and cursed, "I'll go to your mother's! Stop talking all that nonsense, get a move on! If you keep dawdling, I'll hold you under the water until you drown, you hear me?"

After saying that, he grabbed Professor Xu by the collar and dragged him forward.

Professor Xu staggered and almost fell into the water. He grabbed Old Wu's arm to steady himself and didn't dare to say another word, lowering his head and following Old Wu in silence.

Uncle Mei and I watched and could only shake our heads helplessly.

A scholar meets a soldier.

Since Professor Xu was willing to associate with tomb raiders, it was his own fault for being bullied.

The five of us walked along the dark tunnel, stumbling along the way. After walking for about ten minutes, I suddenly smelled a bloody smell in the air.

I asked Uncle Mei, "Uncle, do you smell a fishy smell?"

Uncle Mei shook his head and said, "I've been smoking for years and have rhinitis. My nose doesn't work well anymore. I can't smell anything."

I turned back and asked Hong Jie, "Hong Jie, do you smell it? Is there a bloody smell?"

Hong Jie wrinkled her nose and sniffed, then nodded and said, "There really is! What's going on? Did someone get hurt?"

Just as she was speaking, Old Wu, who was walking at the back, suddenly cursed loudly, "Hey Xu, why the hell are you pinching my ass? Are you looking for death?"

Professor Xu innocently clarified, "You're making false accusations! Who pinched your ass? I would never do such a wicked thing!"

We looked over and saw Old Wu standing in the water, shaking his body violently, as if he had been electrocuted. Then he reached into the water and touched his butt, but cried out in pain.

"Ouch! Ouch! There's something in the water... biting my ass!"

After saying that, he took his hand out, and we looked closely and saw that Old Wu's palm was covered in red, all blood!

I wondered, could the bloody smell in the air be coming from Old Wu?

Just as I was thinking about it, Hong Jie, who was standing not far from me, suddenly screamed, "Ouch! There's something... something biting my leg!"