"It was said that this branch of the sect was once highly favored by high-ranking officials, so the owner of this tomb must have a noble identity," Chu Yuanzhen analyzed.

His meaning was clear: the owner of the tomb was a fervent worshipper of dual cultivation techniques.

"It's not a waste to come here and see the long-lost dual cultivation technique," Taoist Master Jin Lian sighed.

"Taoist, you have no interest in women, so this dual cultivation technique is useless to you," Xu Qi'an laughed.

Taoist Master Jin Lian's face darkened.

"The clothes worn by the people in the murals are a bit strange, and the age is so ancient that I can't even determine which dynasty it's from."

Compared to the dual cultivation technique, Chu Yuanzhen was more interested in another mural.

Xu Qi'an had already memorized the dual cultivation technique on the mural and urged, "Let's go, leave this place and find Number Five."

It was such a good thing, he wanted to keep it to himself.

So the group continued to search forward, and Qian You listened to their conversation the whole way, knowing that the things on the mural were the legendary dual cultivation technique.

A good thing, it could satisfy both desires and cultivate at the same time.

For a man, it was an irresistible temptation. Especially for Qian You, a martial artist who lacked resources, a master's guidance, and secret techniques.

He quietly took a few steps back, waiting for Xu Qi'an and the others to walk away before turning back to look at the mural.

Time was limited, and he had only memorized a few pictures just now, which was not enough to form an effective dual cultivation technique, so it was basically useless.

"I'll go after them as soon as I memorize it, it'll be quick, it'll be quick..."

Qian You held a torch and walked quickly. In the empty environment, only the sound of his footsteps echoed.

Gradually, Qian You realized that something was wrong. He had been walking for so long and still hadn't returned to the location of the mural.

"We didn't walk this far, why haven't we returned to the location of the mural?"

He shone the torch around, the tomb was empty and terrifyingly quiet. Not only were there no murals, but there were no coffins or zombies either.

The murals were gone, the stone coffins and the zombies were gone too... He stood still for a moment, and cold sweat poured out.

Qian You's teeth chattered, his voice trembling, "Hero? Hero, I'm here, don't leave me..."

The voice echoed in the empty environment, refracted, distorted, and when it reached his ears again, it sounded like someone else was calling.

Qian You's back went cold, his hair stood on end, he closed his mouth and dared not speak again.

He turned back, trying to catch up with Xu Qi'an and the others. However, he went from walking to running, panting, and never caught up with Xu Qi'an.

Seeing no one, in the silent tomb, only the sound of his footsteps echoed, making him feel like he was in an icy hell, experiencing the cold from hell.

Suddenly, while running, Qian You stumbled and fell to the ground with a muffled groan. He anxiously held the torch and shone it ahead.

It was a corpse, to be precise, half a corpse.

It was only the upper body, the lower body had been cut off by something, the wound was bloody and messy. The internal organs had also been removed.

Qian You exclaimed in shock and crawled back in fear.

There was a demon, a man-eating demon... It was nearby, and I could encounter it at any moment... Huge fear exploded in his heart, and Qian You's face turned paler and paler.

"Leave, leave this place quickly."

Qian You's hand holding the torch trembled slightly, he took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

He was an old member of the Houtu Gang, he had been in tombs and experienced various crises, but none were as strange as the one in front of him. Fortunately, he still had some courage and was not completely terrified.

"The light of the torch may attract the demon, but if I don't have the torch to light the way, I may run into it without knowing. And, living underground all year round, the eyes must have degenerated and are not very sensitive to light."

"What I need to do is not to extinguish the light, but to remove the smell from my body."

As a mature tomb robber, he had these things. He took out a porcelain jar from his bag, which contained a pungent powder. If you sniffed it carefully, it was somewhat similar to the smell of a corpse.

Qian You sprinkled the powder on himself, held the torch, and walked forward cautiously.

He had completely lost his sense of direction, wherever he walked was considered a place.

Suddenly, there was a pleasant surprise from behind, "Qian You?"

...............

After walking with the torch for a while, Taoist Master Jin Lian suddenly frowned, "Did we lose someone?"

As he spoke, he looked back and his pupils shrank.

There was nothing behind them, the leader of the Houtu Gang was missing.

Xu Qi'an, Chu Yuanzhen, and Heng Yuan also noticed the abnormality, their faces changed slightly, as if facing a great enemy.

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"When did he disappear? I didn't notice at all," Xu Qi'an closed his eyes, gazed inward, and said with a frown:

"My divine sense was not affected. If he was taken away by something, I wouldn't have been unaware. Because if that thing had hostility towards him, it would definitely have the same hostility towards us.

"And once it showed hostility, my divine sense would quickly detect it and feedback to me."

Chu Yuanzhen's face was solemn as he analyzed, "Not only that, the sound of footsteps is missing one person, and we didn't even notice? This is unusual in itself."

Heng Yuan remained silent with a furrowed brow.

Taoist Master Jin Lian's heart stirred, he took out a piece of the earth book, examined it for a moment, and said in a deep voice, "The earth book fragment can't be used anymore."

Xu Qi'an, Chu Yuanzhen, and Heng Yuan all reached for something in their chests, but the latter two successfully pulled out the earth book fragments, while Xu Qi'an realized in time, stopped, and scratched his chest without any trace of embarrassment.

"It really can't be used," Chu Yuanzhen tried to transmit the book, failed, and his face darkened.

The reason why Number Five lost contact in Xiangcheng was now clear.The underground tomb is shielded by fragments of the earth book.

"I, I think I know where this is, well, more accurately, I know our situation," Zhong Li raised her small hand.

When the four people looked over, she lowered her head and said softly:

"Generally speaking, the structure of a tomb is divided into three layers: inner, middle, and outer. The innermost layer is the main tomb, where the owner of the tomb is buried. The middle layer contains side chambers and corridors, where important accompanying figures of the tomb owner are buried, and the outer layer serves as the defense of the tomb. We are currently in the outermost and most dangerous layer.

"This place is filled with mechanisms, traps, and formations... If I'm not mistaken, when we entered the tomb chamber with murals, we stepped into a formation."

The four men looked at her simultaneously, and Xu Qi'an stared and said, "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"I forgot," Zhong Li lowered her head, feeling wronged. "I don't know why I forgot."

Upon hearing this, the four men fell silent, unable to blame her any further.

"What kind of formation is this? Can you tell?" Taoist Master Jin Lian asked.

"It should be a kind of illusion formation. The layout of the outer palace of the tomb corresponds to this formation. We are currently in a huge maze and must find the correct path to leave, otherwise we will be trapped here," Zhong Li said.

"Quickly lead us out," Chu Yuanzhen hurriedly said.

"I, I will lead you into a dead end," Zhong Li's head drooped even more.

Everyone: "......"

Unlucky prophet... Xu Qi'an sighed in his heart.

Chu Yuanzhen frowned and looked at Xu Qi'an, suddenly finding inspiration from him. "If we can't break the formation by conventional means, then violent force is the best choice, just like the two slashes Xu Qi'an made during the fight."

Taoist Master Jin Lian vetoed this proposal and said solemnly, "Before we understand the identity of the tomb owner, it's best not to do so. The outer layer is all built with oak stones, so luxurious that even in the present Great Feng, Emperor Yuan Jing wouldn't be able to produce so many oak stones.

"The ancient dual cultivation technique is the secret method of that branch, and it wouldn't be easily revealed. But it exists in the tomb.

"The intricate nature of the illusion formation we are in indicates that it was set up at least two thousand years ago, a time when there were no sorcerers. All of the above indicates that the owner of this tomb is not simple. Recklessly breaking the formation may lead to unpredictable consequences. If you were a third-rank master, then forget what I said."

Chu Yuanzhen nodded silently.

Heng Yuan furrowed his brow. "What should we do now?"

He was a martial monk and didn't understand these things. Chu Yuanzhen practiced swordsmanship, and although he was knowledgeable due to his scholarly background, he was equally unfamiliar with formations.

Xu Qi'an, a mere martial man, was even less reliable.

"The Taoist school does not specialize in geomancy, but has some knowledge of formations. I can try to lead you through," Taoist Master Jin Lian said.

The Taoist school is skilled in formations. Purple Lotus and Yang Yan once set up a large formation outside the city. It's just that they're not as crazy as sorcerers, where the formation patterns appear with a step.

A quarter of an hour later, Taoist Master Jin Lian's face stiffened as he looked ahead into the deep darkness, frowning in silence.

Taoist Master Jin Lian's exploration failed, and he began to doubt life.

You're also a fake, Taoist Master... Xu Qi'an sneered in his heart.

No one present knew that Taoist Master Jin Lian was the remnant soul of the Earth Sect's leader, representing the good side. Therefore, they didn't know that behind his serious expression, there was a heavy truth.

They were in trouble, big trouble.

"Before the sorcerer, who else had such a powerful formation skill?" Taoist Master Jin Lian pondered silently, searching for "suspicious targets" in his mind.

"Is there really no way for the Taoist Master?" Heng Yuan and Chu Yuanzhen looked at each other, seeing the heaviness in each other's eyes.

Too careless. If only we had checked the local records of Xiangcheng first, checked the historical records, and found clues about the tomb, then considered whether to enter or not... With our team's lineup, even a fourth-rank master would flee upon seeing it. I was too complacent and negligent.

Chu Yuanzhen regretted in his heart.

Heng Yuan recited the Buddha's name in a low voice, feeling guilty. Number Five had been missing for several days, trapped in this dark and eerie tomb, waiting for rescue. But as soon as their group came down, they encountered an unsolvable problem.

Taoist Master Jin Lian sighed and looked at Zhong Li. "Do you have any suggestions? You don't need to tell me your choice, just explain the secrets of this formation in detail."

Zhong Li pondered and said, "This type of formation is usually built in dark rooms and underground. Otherwise, the person entering the formation only needs to orient themselves to easily discern the correct path.

In a situation where the direction cannot be discerned, the only way to escape the formation is to rely on the experience and judgment of the person entering. If my experience and judgment are clouded, it will probably lead to even greater trouble."

This time, Taoist Master Jin Lian fell silent as well.

The members of the Tian Di Hui finally understood the despair of Number Five, trapped in the underground palace, unable to leave and unable to contact the outside world. Time continued to pass, and their physical condition gradually deteriorated...

In the heavy atmosphere, Zhong Li raised her hand again and said softly, "Actually, there is a safe way."

Chu Yuanzhen and Xu Qi'an's faces lit up, eager to ask, "What way?"

Heng Yuan looked up at her, his eyes filled with anticipation.

Taoist Master Jin Lian's heart stirred.

Zhong Li poked Xu Qi'an with her finger and said with her head down, "Let him lead the way, and we can probably get out."

Him?!

The surrounding gazes shifted from Zhong Li to Xu Qi'an.

Chu Yuanzhen looked at him with some disbelief, and many thoughts flashed through his mind. Xu Qi'an was just a mere martial man and couldn't possibly understand formations. It would be better to let me do it.But the prophet of the Bureau of Heavenly Masters would not make jokes at will, so, is it Xu Ningyan himself who is special, or does he have something on him that can break the formation?

However, judging from Xu Ningyan's expression, he seemed quite surprised by this......

Thinking of this, Chu Yuanzhen couldn't help but glance at Taoist Master Jin Lian, only to find that he seemed to have a sudden realization.

Taoist Master Jin Lian also knows? Chu Yuanzhen secretly noted this detail.

It seems that Xu Ningyan has some secrets on him...... I'm getting more and more curious about him.

"Does Mr. Xu understand the formation?"

Heng Yuan's inner drama was not as rich as that of the top scholar, and he directly asked the doubt in his heart.

Xu Qi'an's mouth twitched: "I don't."

..............

Qian You suddenly turned around, drew his weapon in a defensive posture, then squinted and stared at the darkness ahead, and said in a low voice, "Who?"

The footsteps approached, and a figure approached the edge of the illuminated area of the torch, the outline went from blurry to clear, revealing a middle-aged man in his forties.

His face was thin, his eye sockets were sunken, his eyes were bloodshot, like someone who had been seriously ill, a sickly man who had been drained of his body.

The unattended lower jaw had grown a circle of dark stubble, looking sloppy and disheveled.

"Leader?"

Qian You widened his eyes, showing a look of ecstasy. He moved the torch to find many familiar faces, all of them were brothers of the Houtu Gang.

I didn't expect to meet the leader and the others here, it was effortless.......... Qian You was about to go up to meet them, but suddenly his expression changed, and he pointed his weapon at the crowd, and said in a stern and intimidating tone:

"Don't come over, none of you move, otherwise my knife won't recognize anyone. Hmm, how do you prove yourselves?"

The sickly gang leader showed a relieved smile: "Very good, not careless, it seems that the encounter with the human skin ghost in the underground of Jingzhou two years ago left a deep impression on you."

The members of the gang behind him cursed in anger: "Qian, why did you leave you up there, don't you know, with your little skill, going underground is just asking for death."

"Haha, it's really you guys." Qian You didn't get angry, but smiled happily, and went up to meet them. When he approached the sickly gang leader, he suddenly sprinkled some cinnabar.

"Damn, this broken thing can only deal with low-level resentful spirits, it's useless against zombies." The sickly gang leader patted the cinnabar on his body and cursed.

At this point, Qian You had no more doubts.

He held the torch and looked at each person one by one, seeing the deputy gang leader, the old wild sorcerer, who had a dirty and tattered white robe on him.

Then he saw the girl from the southern border, her round face had become thinner, her chin had become a bit pointed, but she still looked beautiful, with bloodshot eyes, as if she hadn't slept in a long time, looking haggard.

After looking at each one, he counted the number of people and felt quite heavy-hearted.

There were thirty-two people in this tomb expedition, but now there were only twelve left.

"Are you all starving? I brought dry rations and water for you." Qian You untied the luggage on his back and distributed the dry rations to everyone.

Including the girl from the southern border, everyone's eyes suddenly lit up, staring at the pancakes as if they were staring at a naked beauty.

The food for this team had long been exhausted, and they had been starving in the underground for several days.

While distributing the food, Qian You noticed that the brothers of the gang all had injuries, some even had an arm missing, with the sleeve disappearing along with it, the wounds were simply bandaged, faintly showing traces of blood.

"Leader, what's happened to you guys?" Qian You asked.

At the words, the people who were eating voraciously all paused, and the sickly gang leader said in a low voice, "We've run into trouble."

Even the blind man could see that. Qian You thought to himself.

"This is a maze, no matter how we walk, we can't find our way out. After I led the brothers into the tomb, we entered a tomb full of zombies, and sacrificed many brothers to kill those evil creatures, thanks to Lina, otherwise there would have been even more casualties."

The sickly gang leader glanced at the girl who was eating the bread with her head down, and continued, "After entering that tomb, we never got out again, and for several days we've been wandering around, with water and food gradually running out.

"For this, the gang and the experts we invited got into a quarrel.......... and that's not the worst part, one time we woke up and found that the brothers on 'night watch' were gone.

"Since then, several brothers have been inexplicably missing every day. The team has fallen into a great panic, and the experts who left the team had a disagreement with us, after a fierce argument, they went their separate ways.

"Not long after, we found that all those who left the team had died, all in a miserable state, as if they had been eaten by something."

Qian You's heart sank, inexplicably thinking of the hideous corpse that had tripped him.

The sickly gang leader took a sip of water, swallowed the food in his mouth, and said, "It's a monster, a very powerful monster, it's hunting us, eating two people every day, no more, no less."

As he said this, there was a hint of trembling in his voice.

"We've repelled it twice, thanks to Lina, otherwise, you might not have seen us." The sickly gang leader said in a deep voice:

"But Lina's condition is getting worse, without food and water replenishment, we will run out of fuel sooner or later. By the way, how did you come down?"Additionally, as stated at the beginning of the side story, it is an extra bonus for the official version's readers and has no impact on the main storyline. Nightwatcher will not have a side story for the time being. Joining the V-group and selling newspapers, any fan with a value of five thousand can join, so there really is no need to spend money to buy the side story, and even less need to sell it for profit.