In the short time it took Fatty to dig out the coffin, less than twenty minutes, the plants had grown about three times thicker.
"Holy crap! Look at the entrance!"
Following Wu Tianzhen's gaze, they saw that the entrance, unnoticed by the three of them, had already been covered by plants. If they hadn't roughly remembered the location of the entrance, they might not have been able to distinguish it from the plant-covered wall beside it.
"Let's get out first."
Zhang Qiling frowned, holding his Black Gold Ancient Saber, and walked towards the entrance. With a swift downward slash, the vines were severed. The severed ends slowly oozed green sap. This was how the vines had become so thick, a fact the three of them now witnessed. The severed vines paused in mid-air for a moment, then trembled violently. A series of sharp sounds emanated from the broken ends, piercingly loud, as if the vines were wailing.
The vines throughout the tomb seemed to be infected, letting out a collective scream. Their tips then grew wildly, and in the blink of an eye, another layer had formed, sealing the newly cut opening tightly once more.
"Plants can scream?"
Fatty covered his ears, looking bewildered. "Why does this King Li always like to raise such strange things? Is he researching plants now?"
"They aren't plants." Zhang Qiling held up his Black Gold Ancient Saber, green liquid dripping from the blade like blood. "They are insects."
"Oh, then it's fine. He's still that King Li who runs a zoo!"
"Stop arguing about whether he's a zoo director!" Wu Tianzhen shouted over the insects' screams, barely able to hear Fatty. "These insects seem to be surrounding us!!"
The swarm of insects quickly occupied more than half of the tomb chamber. When they reached the opened coffin, they suddenly stopped. They seemed to identify something, and then, to Wu Tianzhen's shocked gaze, these slender insects burrowed into the various orifices of the stitched corpse!
Their twisted bodies gradually filled the swollen corpse, and the body began to make sounds like water balloons being popped. Corpse fluid overflowed, emitting a foul stench.
"Go!"
Knowing they couldn't wait any longer, Zhang Qiling gave a cold command and unleashed dozens of saber slashes in an instant! As the vines at the entrance were completely cleared, he tossed his saber into the air, grabbed Wu Tianzhen and Fatty with both hands, and as the saber fell back into its sheath, he gathered his strength for a moment and shot out like an arrow.
Just as he rushed out, the vines had already sealed the opening again. However, Zhang Qiling did not let go of the two, nor did he slow down. Wu Tianzhen and Fatty looked back and saw the swarm of insects, as if discovering their prey had escaped, grow wildly in a fit of rage. The thin wall at the entrance was directly broken through by the swarm, and the insects, twisting and screaming, poured into the passage, chasing after them!
"Insects, how dare you be so arrogant!"
Fatty, still thinking about the empty coffin, became enraged and pulled out the explosives he was carrying. He had already used most of the explosives he brought, and the one in his hand was the last bundle. A hint of pain flashed across his face, quickly replaced by a sinister grin.
"Heh! Little buggers, try this!"
He lit the explosives and threw them, but the insects were rushing too fast, already upon them. The bundle of explosives was pushed back by the insects and flew back.
Fatty: ...
Wu Tianzhen: "Holy crap!!! Fatty, are you defecting!!"
The bundle of explosives was flying directly towards Wu Tianzhen. Seeing that the fuse was almost gone, he kicked it away, sending the explosives back into the swarm of insects. This time, the explosives finally detonated where they were supposed to. A large amount of green blood splattered from the swarm, and the piercing screams intensified. Fatty and Wu Tianzhen cried out in pain, blood seeping faintly from their ears.
At this moment, a bulky figure burst out from the hole created by the explosion! Upon closer inspection, it was the corpse, now impaled with insects and turned into a puppet!
"Damn it! Is it bringing in reinforcements?!"
He paused, and Zhang Qiling stopped, bringing the two with him. He drew his saber again, the sharp blade passing through, and blood flowed once more. Zhang Qiling pursed his lips and activated the power of his Qilin tattoo!
The Qilin's might surged, and as it brushed past the blood-stained Black Gold Ancient Saber, a saber's hum joined the Qilin's roar! The blood on the blade instantly ignited into a fiery red flame, a pure crimson with tiny fire Qilins leaping within. Insects were naturally afraid of fire, even more so of the fire ignited by Qilin blood. Seeing this, they hastily retreated.
But it was too late. With a sweep of his long saber, Zhang Qiling plunged into the swarm! Fire enveloped him, and the insects screamed! The entire passage seemed to ignite like the fuse of an explosive, and the flames followed the surging swarm, burning all the way, and in a blink of an eye, they rushed into the tomb! Amidst the crackling explosions of insect bodies, the mother insects residing in the tomb were directly burned to death.
To the stunned amazement of Wu Tianzhen and Fatty, the flames subsided, and the insects and the corpse all turned to ash. Zhang Qiling, standing on the pile of ashes, holding his saber, emerged from the flames. A blood droplet still hung from the tip of his saber, and his fire-damaged upper garment was torn, revealing his bare chest. Upon it, a majestic black Qilin glared outwards.