Chapter 326: The Divine Tomb of the Underground Palace (13)
“Back then, those people who came looking for the treasure didn’t even hesitate to slaughter an entire village. They must’ve turned the whole place upside down trying to find it.”
The King of Hell said: “But judging from the outcome, they returned empty-handed. The treasure wasn’t in the village. Which means, the burial ground wasn’t in plain sight.”
“But here’s what’s strange—the villagers guarded the tomb so closely, barely ever leaving the area and even cutting themselves off from the outside world. That should mean the burial ground was somewhere nearby. So why couldn’t those people find it back then? The villagers didn’t seem like the kind who could use talismans or formation spells to conceal a burial site.”
The King of Hell turned to the general, asking curiously, “Did you also sense that the burial ground is right beneath our feet?”
The general nodded lightly. “The burial ground is beneath the village, underground.”
Yan Shixun raised a hand to rub his chin, also sensing something odd. “Even in those old rumors, the details were always vague. And the King of Hell even came back to search several times, but never found anything… No matter how unclear the exact location is, secrets don’t stay hidden forever. Someone should have discovered it by now.”
“Unless, after collecting the bones, the villagers never left behind any gravestone or surface markers. Nothing at all to indicate it.”
In a sudden flash of realization, Yan Shixun seemed to understand something. He looked up and stared straight at the general. “You said the burial ground is beneath the village… Is it possible that the bones weren’t buried in soil, but were directly placed underground?”
The King of Hell was shocked. “Are you saying the terrain here changed at some point?”
How could the bones have been placed directly underground? The villagers who gathered the remains were just ordinary people—not cultivators, not ghosts or immortals. They didn’t have the power to move mountains or redirect rivers. How could they have done that?
But the general nodded, agreeing with Yan Shixun’s speculation. “I can sense it—the burial ground lies in a hollow space.”
Hollow?
That word struck Yan Shixun’s mind like lightning, freezing him in place.
The King of Hell didn’t understand and was still deep in thought when Yan Shixun suddenly grabbed his arm.
“The geological structure of Jiangbei… Have you heard the legend of an army in Jiangbei marching a thousand miles in a single day to launch a surprise attack on Jiangnan? That army was supposed to be far away, yet suddenly appeared before the enemy, like heavenly soldiers descending from the sky. The enemy was so terrified they broke ranks before a fight even started.”
The King of Hell stared in surprise at Yan Shixun, wondering why he believed such a story, when he saw Yan Shixun suddenly smile.
“I once met a reclusive Taoist who told me that story was true. But it wasn’t divine soldiers or anything like that. It was… karst caves.”
The King of Hell paused for a moment, then seemed to realize something. His eyes slowly widened.
Yan Shixun continued with a smile. “The real story is, that army found a local guide from Jiangbei who led them through underground karst caves. They essentially marched in a straight line beneath mountains, rivers, and lakes. That’s how they reached the south so quickly and achieved the legendary feat of military swiftness.”
“That Taoist was worried I wouldn’t understand, so he took me into the mountains and walked me through one of the caves himself.”
Remembering that experience, Yan Shixun still looked amazed. “Some caves are so narrow only a dog could fit through, while others are dozens of meters high. They have dangerous rapids, hidden rivers, and branching tunnels everywhere. One wrong step and you could get completely lost or even die inside. If you miss your footing, you could fall into a subterranean river with no hope of rescue.”
Years ago, in the pitch-black caves underground, Yan Shixun had been struck speechless by the terrain before him. For the first time, he felt the awe-inspiring power of nature and realized how fragile and insignificant the human body could be in the face of it.
That moment of awe had stayed etched in Yan Shixun’s memory ever since.
The King of Hell blinked but didn’t immediately respond. Instead, he slowly turned to look at Ye Li.
“So, Yan Shixun, do you know who the protagonist of that original story really was?”
There was a complicated look in the King of Hell’s eyes.
Ye Li raised his brows and smiled at Yan Shixun, pride glinting faintly in his eyes, as if waiting for praise.
Yan Shixun: “…?”
“Don’t tell me… it was Ye Li?”
The King of Hell nodded. “As much as I hate to admit it, Ye Li really was an exceptional general in his lifetime. That’s why the new dynasty was in such a rush to kill him. If he hadn’t died back then, the fate of nations could’ve turned out very differently.”
Yan Shixun: ………
He suddenly didn’t know what to say.
Although he did know that Ye Li had once led armies galloping across the battlefield, because the first identity he’d come to know Ye Li by was Lord of Fengdu, he had always subconsciously ignored Ye Li’s past as a mortal. He had simply regarded Ye Li as a ghost deity.
What he hadn’t expected was that Ye Li turned out to be the central figure in so many battlefield legends…
It felt like the boundary between reality and illusion had suddenly shattered—strangely surreal.
However, before Yan Shixun could even form the words he wanted to say to Ye Li, the general took a step forward and spoke calmly: “Though many legends exist, they are not worth mentioning.”
“To me, the greatest legend… should be the one shared with you, Shixun.”
The general smiled, his gaze fixed on Yan Shixun. His eyes shimmered with light. “If the history books could record it, then the story between you and me… that would truly be without regret.”
The King of Hell’s first reaction was to look at Ye Li: He got there first!
Yan Shixun’s attention also shifted from Ye Li to the general. He quickly realized that Ye Li and the general were two souls in one body, and the glory achieved in the mortal world should rightfully belong to the general.
Because of that, his gaze toward the general softened, and a smile curled on his lips. “I never thought I’d be able to stand face-to-face with someone from the history books. This feeling… is so incredible.”
“The book is a good one.”
The general picked up the thread of conversation naturally. “It’s just a pity… our story isn’t in it.”
Yan Shixun couldn’t help but laugh. He waved his hand and said, “How could the compiler have imagined that someone who should have died a thousand years ago would reappear in this era? He doesn’t have the power to foresee the future—how could he know we’d meet like this now?”
King of Hell: Ah… as expected of Yan Shixun. He completely misunderstood the man’s meaning.
Still, the King of Hell let out a breath of relief. The tension that had gripped his nerves relaxed slightly.
If Yan Shixun had understood what the general was implying—and responded to it—that would have been a disaster.
—It would be equivalent to provoking mutual hostility between two entities who shared the same body but had different identities.
If Ye Li and the general really came to blows, not even the Great Dao could stop them. One could only watch helplessly as heaven and earth collapsed.
Should it come to that, the King of Hell figured he himself would likely die trying to stop such a war.
Ye Li’s expression also softened. He looked at Yan Shixun with immense satisfaction. He felt as if he had never been this happy before—his lover was truly so dense when it came to matters of the heart.
“Since you once made use of the karst cave, you should know how to enter it, right?”
The mention of the cave made Yan Shixun’s expression turn serious.
Even though it was now almost certain that the legendary “burial ground” was actually a place where villagers had taken advantage of Jiangbei’s unique geological structure to store numerous corpses underground in karst caves back in the day…
It still wasn’t easy for Yan Shixun to enter it.
Just like the first time he had encountered such a cave structure, the hermit Taoist had warned him:
Because the inside of a karst cave was incredibly complex and filled with swift, dark underground rivers, every step taken within was perilous. A single misstep could result in becoming hopelessly trapped and dying there. So one should never enter such caves lightly out of curiosity or amusement. Even if absolutely necessary, one must find a guide familiar with the local terrain to lead the way and ensure they didn’t get lost.
After all, the cave environment was nothing like the surface. It was pitch-black with no landmarks, making it extremely easy to lose one’s sense of direction. Once that happened, death was not far off.
But now, even if Yan Shixun wanted to find a guide, it was no longer possible.
After all, the only known village nearby had just suffered total death tonight. Even if they went to nearby villages to seek help, the villagers there also had deep karmic entanglements with the headless corpses stored in the abandoned yizhuang. The lingering spirits would never allow those people to step foot into the burial ground they had died to protect.
At this point, the only real option seemed to be letting Ye Li, who had past experience with the cave, lead the way.
And if those ghosts hadn’t gone far, perhaps they might sense Ye Li’s presence and guide them toward the burial ground.
However, Yan Shixun didn’t plan to pin all his hopes on Ye Li. After all, to Ye Li, even his own corpse had long since become unfamiliar. It was hard to say whether he’d be able to find the burial ground accurately within such a complex cave network.
They still needed to find the remains before sunrise—before the rescue team arrived—and help those vengeful souls find peace and reincarnation.
Getting lost now would turn everything into a thorny problem.
Yan Shixun turned his gaze back to the headless corpse inside the coffin. A plan was forming in his mind.
He recalled how earlier, outside the yizhuang, after he had dug up those skulls from the soil, the wolves had appeared—but had made way for a path leading directly to the corpse house.
Maybe… they could ask the gravekeeper to guide them to the burial ground.
Yan Shixun had this thought in mind as he straightened his robe solemnly and bowed deeply to the headless corpse.
“A meal repaid with death; a life repaid with loyalty through generations… Such honor and righteousness have long since vanished from the history books. I never imagined I’d be fortunate enough to witness it today.”
He spoke in a soft voice, “The last child of Ye has now returned to this land, seeking the remains of himself and those fallen soldiers. I humbly ask all of you—please show us the way, so that the child of Ye…”
“…may finally return home.”
As his voice faded, muffled thudding sounds came from within the thin coffin that had yet to be opened, as if the corpse lying inside had grown so excited it wanted to emerge and see for itself—the general who had returned to Ye after a thousand years, and the benefactor they had given their lives to protect.
But the noise lasted only a moment before it quieted down once more.
Yan Shixun patiently waited in silence.
A few minutes later, faint footsteps could be heard from outside the yizhuang.
They did not sound human, but rather like the agile, graceful steps of a hunter.
Yan Shixun turned his gaze.
A wild wolf appeared just beyond the doorway.
Its body was sleek and powerful, silver-gray fur smooth and dense, shimmering faintly under the pale moonlight. The beauty of its wild strength was undeniable.
From the looks of it, it was the alpha of its pack.
Its glowing green eyes stared intently at Yan Shixun, as if it had known all along exactly who it had come for.
Yan Shixun let out a soft laugh.
He strode toward it with long, steady steps. Alone before the wild wolf, he showed no fear or discomfort. He even crouched down in front of it, reaching out to pat its thick fur, as if greeting a comrade.
The wolf—alpha of its pack—was the only one among the exorcists with the terrifying “Evil Spirit Bone Transformation” trait that could support the collapsing heavens.
This was a meeting between apex predators, where absolute power brought with it calm and composure.
In each other’s eyes, they saw mutual admiration and recognition of strength.
The wild wolf stared quietly at Yan Shixun, as though confirming his identity.
Then it flicked its head and, without a sound, began to trot forward lightly—as if to signal for Yan Shixun to follow.
A smile finally crept onto Yan Shixun’s face. He raised his eyebrows and turned toward Ye Li. “Let’s go. Time to find your bones.”
“To find a lover’s remains…”
Yan Shixun chuckled and shook his head. “What a strange experience.”
Ye Li: Shixun admitted I’m his lover!
He looked provocatively at the general.
But the watching King of Hell: “…Tsk.”
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