After several twists and turns, the two finally reached the entrance of the secret realm.
Beneath their feet was accumulated snow from years past; the entrance should be somewhere below.
Then, a problem arose.
Zhang Qiling suddenly realized, with a belated sense of clarity, that he hadn't brought any tomb-raiding tools.
As for Wu Tianzhen…
He glanced at Wu Tianzhen, who was panting heavily, looking as if the weight of his clothes alone was about to exhaust him, and decisively abandoned any hope of relying on him.
Therefore, if they wanted to break through this snow now, there seemed to be only one method.
Calmly, he designated the spot where the Black Gold Ancient Blade had fallen as a nearby snowdrift, then reached out to draw it out with a hint of surprise.
The action was fluid and swift, so fast that Wu Tianzhen didn't even have time to react.
[…Did something black just whoosh past?]
[Is it reasonable for there to be a saber here? Why do I feel like Xiao Ge knew there was a saber here and came specifically to get it?]
[But he seemed surprised too?]
[Are you referring to his perfunctory expression of 'Ah, there's a saber here, I'm truly surprised,' which he couldn't even maintain for a second?]
[? How did you see surprise? Didn't he just raise an eyebrow?]
…
"Xiao Ge, this saber…" Wu Tianzhen, unable to fathom it, couldn't help but ask.
"Found it."
Wu Tianzhen: …
Zhang Qiling: … (his expression was genuinely blank)
"Oh, oh, you found it, hahaha!" After a shared glance, Wu Tianzhen instantly gave up on using his brain.
"Great, with this saber, we can dig out the entrance! Xiao Ge, you're amazing!"
Zhang Qiling didn't reply. He bent down and tentatively inserted the saber into the snow to gauge its depth.
It didn't go all the way in; it looked like a big undertaking.
He was contemplating where to strike when Wu Tianzhen, who was watching, suddenly felt a surge of misplaced ambition.
Wu Tianzhen suddenly thought that this Xiao Ge, so thin like a twig (?) and so pitiful (?) couldn't possibly do such tiring work!
As he pondered this, he felt increasingly uneasy. He immediately rushed forward, snatched the saber hilt, and patted his chest, saying, "Xiao Ge, you go rest over there. I'll handle this small matter!"
Zhang Qiling: …
Someone was eager to do the work?
Fine, it was even better if he didn't have to lift a finger.
So, he let go cleanly and walked to the side, gazing at the distant sky and letting his mind wander.
[Go, Tianzhen! The entrance is right there!]
[Hurry, hurry, I can't wait!]
Wu Tianzhen smiled at his optical computer and confidently began his first strike!
Began his first strike…
First strike…
?!!!!
No!
His face turned red with exertion, veins bulging in his arms.
Why couldn't he pull this saber out??
[? What are you doing? Are you performing a silent play here?]
"No!" Wu Tianzhen cried despairingly, whispering to his optical computer, afraid that Zhang Qiling, not far away, might hear. He lowered his voice even further, "This saber is incredibly heavy, I estimate it weighs several hundred pounds. I can't pull it out at all!"
[… ]
[Move along, this streamer is useless.]
"It's true!" Wu Tianzhen lamented, "It's really heavy, I swear!"
[But Xiao Ge pulled it out with one hand just now!]
"Can I compare myself to Xiao Ge?" Wu Tianzhen was on the verge of tears, "Can't you find a normal reference point when you compare things?!"
Zhang Qiling, whose hearing was excellent, stood in the distance: …
He silently walked back and lifted the saber with one hand.
"I'll do it."
Xiao Ge's eyes were still as dark and calm, clear as if nothing could linger in his heart.
However, Wu Tianzhen swore he saw a flicker of disdain in those eyes just now.
Wu Tianzhen: Is it too late to cry now?
What else could I do! I'm so useless, I'm desperate too!
The bullet comments ignored his despair and were already roaring with laughter in the optical computer.
Wu Tianzhen, dejected, walked to where Zhang Qiling had been standing and saw a snowball at his feet. He kicked it away casually.
However, he heard an angry, Beijing-accented curse from below.
"Damn it, which bastard is throwing things at my Fatty Grandpa's head!?"
"Have you no social decency at all!!"
"Holy crap!" A person suddenly emerged from the nameless snow mountain, startling Wu Tianzhen, who jumped back a step.
He then saw Zhang Qiling, light as a swallow, leap directly past him.
This was a cliff!!!
Wu Tianzhen's soul was half-scattered by the fright. He almost lunged to grab Zhang Qiling, but it was too late.
"Xiao—" Ge!
His vision went black, and a round object was thrown onto the snow beside him.
The fleshy ball hit the ground and rolled a couple of times, emitting pained cries of "Ouch, ouch."
However, Wu Tianzhen paid no mind to the rolling ball. He immediately rushed in front of Zhang Qiling, who had just climbed back up. In his haste, his tone was even a bit accusatory.
"How could you just jump down from such a height? Do you know how dangerous that is? Is there something down there that you couldn't tell me before rushing like that?!"
Zhang Qiling: …
Wu Tianzhen was speaking so fast that he didn't react immediately. When he did, he was once again puzzled by the thought, "What business is it of yours?"
But looking at Wu Tianzhen's expression, which was like a raging bull, he decided to answer the last question after all.
"Someone."
"Even if there's someone, you can't…" Wu Tianzhen trailed off, suddenly realizing that there was a potential hidden danger behind him whose background was unknown. He quickly turned around, only to see a plump, round man.
The胖子 (pàngzi - fat man) had already climbed up and was now grinning, watching their one-sided argument.
He looked as if he were holding a bag of melon seeds to crack.
"Continue!" Seeing that they had stopped arguing, the fat man became impatient and said solicitously, "It's fine, Fatty Grandpa doesn't mind you arguing!"
Wu Tianzhen: ?
Why are you getting defensive when I call you fat? Don't you have any self-awareness as a captive?
The fat man also had a bag slung over his shoulder. Now that it had fallen to the ground, its contents were scattered everywhere, revealing various illicit tomb-raiding paraphernalia.
Seeing that the two of them had surrounded him and were about to interrogate him severely, he immediately raised his hands and confessed his purpose for being there, revealing everything without reservation.
"…So I knew there must be something big here. That's why I, Wang Pangzi, came! We're all just trying to make a living, we're all brothers, right!"
"Who's your brother?" Wu Tianzhen slapped away the hand Wang Pangzi had casually placed on his shoulder.
"Why are you so honest? Do you have some kind of ulterior motive?"
"If I had an ulterior motive, would I tell you…" Wang Pangzi grinned slyly. Seeing Wu Tianzhen about to call Zhang Qiling, who had already moved to the side, he quickly changed his tune and begged.
"Your friend next to you," he gave a thumbs-up and praised, "is a master!"
"That cliff face, I was scared even with a rope tied on, and he just zipped down!"
"He was so light!"
"So when I saw that, how could I dare to act up? I'm now as timid as a grandson."
"Hey, brother, since we're both after the same thing, how about I tag along?"
Hearing him mention Zhang Qiling's leap, Wu Tianzhen felt a surge of annoyance again. Seeing the sly grin on the fat man's large face, he felt an overwhelming urge to punch him.
However, he heard a voice. Zhang Qiling had returned at some point and had now neatly tied the incredibly heavy saber onto his back using a cloth strap from the fat man's bag.
"Dig."
Concise, he pointed at the shovel lying on the ground in the fat man's bag.
Wang Pangzi was quick to understand, realizing he had latched onto a valuable asset. With a cheerful "Alright!" he scurried over and began digging a hole with his backside sticking out.
Wu Tianzhen watched with his arms crossed for a while. He felt a bit sorry for Wang Pangzi, who was sweating profusely, so he picked up a small shovel and helped out.
Seeing someone approach, the fat man slyly leaned in.
"Hey, brother, what are your names? We're accomplices from now on!"
"Who's your accomplice? Can you speak properly!?" Wu Tianzhen pushed his face away in annoyance.
"My name is Wu Tianzhen. As for him… him, I don't know either. You can call him Xiao Ge."
"Whoa!" The fat man exclaimed with exaggerated awe.
"I thought you two were together, but you don't even know that immortal fellow!"
"How could I not know him? I—"
Before he could finish, the familiar voice that sent shivers down Wu Tianzhen's spine sounded again.
The familiar crack, the familiar void beneath his feet. It turned out that his shovel, fueled by anger, had performed beyond its usual capacity, directly breaking through the remaining snow layer!
The troublesome Wang Pangzi, however, displayed a nimbleness that belied his size and quickly scrambled up.
"Holy crap, Wang Pangzi, you damn—"
Before he could finish, Zhang Qiling had already lifted him up again.
Looking at that face, Wu Tianzhen always felt that speaking profanities would be blasphemous. So, he chewed and swallowed the rest of his vulgarities.
The three of them stood in a circle and looked down. A deep, dark cave had appeared.
The entrance to the secret realm was open.