Side Story 2: The North Slope of the Ghost City - Chapter 1: Setting Out into the Hinterland

I had always thought of Grandpa as an exceedingly mysterious eccentric, a man with an intensely solitary nature. He rarely spoke to anyone and usually remained in a secluded private room in an ancient, carved wooden building, one equipped with hidden compartments, poring over a thick diary.

He would often read it for an entire day, sometimes becoming so absorbed that he did not even stop to eat.

At the time, perhaps I secretly leafed through it out of curiosity, but I understood nothing of its true significance. I knew little about the esoteric arts of divination and strategy, or the ancient bamboo manuscripts and maps.

All I knew was that they represented a unique kind of knowledge, and even then I had learned only the barest surface of it.

Later, my younger uncle secretly taught me. At first, Grandpa vehemently opposed it. Only after Grandpa passed away did I finally gain my freedom. My father, Little Ninth, inherited the family enterprise, and from that moment onward, my family became the Ninth Great House. Together with the other eight great clans, we were known as the Nine Houses.

Because Grandpa was known as Ninth Master, and our clan ranked ninth among the houses, the Nine Houses became a name known to everyone. My father, being the eldest son, was called Little Ninth. As for my younger uncle, he continued in the tomb-raiding trade. By day, he watched over the shop and slept; by night, he explored tombs and hauled out their treasures.

When fortune favored him, he could enjoy a carefree spell. With his unique skills, he had even gained a modest reputation within the Nine Houses. Even my father, Little Ninth, was willing to defer to him.

From childhood, my father insisted that I study history, while my younger uncle wanted me to inherit Grandpa’s legacy. At first, I did not understand why they held such different views. As the years passed, I gradually came to understand, and eventually grew used to it.

Although I found a stable job after graduating from university, the work was unbearably dull. I could never understand why I had studied history in the first place, yet I buried deep within my heart my longing for and curiosity about the family’s secret trade.

It was only when my younger uncle handed an antique shop over to me that I realized all my experience had merely laid an unsteady foundation for what came afterward.

Though I had studied abroad as an exchange student from Beiyang University, I knew I was still far from possessing any real experience. In fact, I had seen only the tip of the iceberg. As for everything concerning the family, I was as ignorant as a fool.

Perhaps only the older generation knew the true story. My younger uncle never spoke of it, and I knew nothing either.

All I could do was leaf through those utterly unfamiliar ancient texts.

Gradually, the lamp beside the desk went out, and sleep suddenly overcame me...

The next day, a man and a woman arrived at the antique shop. The man was Kaizi. The woman was the commander of a mercenary force and the leader of a mysterious organization. She claimed to be a salvager from the Changsha American Institute of Oceanic Affairs, but in truth, she was no different from us—a tomb raider.

They merely cloaked their activities in the guise of treasure hunting. In reality, that was not what they were doing at all.

The woman in charge said nothing, and Kaizi dispensed with the usual pleasantries. He went straight to the shop assistant.

“Excuse me, is your employer named Feng Chenye? I have something to discuss with him. Would you be so kind as to let me see him?”

The young assistant was startled, and Old Zhang and I were equally taken aback.

Very few people knew my name. How had he learned it?

The assistant cautiously asked, “Who are you? How come I’ve never seen you before? Why are you looking for our employer?”

Kaizi replied calmly, “We have met once before. I’ve come today to discuss something important with him, so I would appreciate it if you could—”

He then took out an object I had once given him. Only then did the assistant relax.

After a few words of polite conversation, the assistant came behind the screen and winked at me, signaling that they were allies. There was no longer any need for Old Zhang and me to hide. We walked into the center of the main hall and took a closer look.

The visitor was indeed Kaizi.

There was also a beautiful woman with a delicate figure, fair skin, and a strikingly cold beauty. Old Zhang greeted her teasingly.

“Kaizi, this lady is quite a beauty. Is she your girlfriend?”

“Old Zhang...” I knew his old habits had returned. Whenever he met strangers, he could not resist making jokes, so I hurriedly stopped him.

Kaizi said helplessly, “Brother Zhang, nothing has even begun between us, so don’t make wild guesses. She’s my superior—and the person in charge of my unit.”

The cold beauty said, “Have you two finished? Which one of you is Feng Chenye?”

I cautiously replied, “Miss, I’m Feng Chenye. May I ask why you’re looking for me? And... what should I call you?”

She took several foreign photographs and a confidentiality agreement from her pocket. Then she said coldly, “Mr. Feng, my name is Han Xin. I’m a salvager from the Changsha American Institute of Oceanic Affairs. These are the reasons I’ve come looking for you.”

She quickly walked to the center of the hall, placed the items on the carved table, and pointed to the photographs.

“Mr. Feng, I believe you will agree to cooperate with us. You recognize the man in these photographs, don’t you? He has disappeared, and we cannot find him. We have no choice but to ask you to come out of retirement.”

One glance at the photograph was enough to tell me that the missing man was my younger uncle. He had vanished, and I had no idea where he was. But since my uncle had already signed the agreement, I could only agree.

“Very well,” I said. “Then I’ll make the trip. But I have one condition: you must guarantee our safety.”

She paused before replying, “That won’t be a problem. Mr. Feng, let’s set out. The equipment is ready. Please.”

It was obvious that they had planned everything in advance. Still, there were certain essentials one could never leave behind. The most important was a black donkey’s hoof. Whether we ended up needing it or not, it had to be brought along. It was as indispensable as washing one’s hands before a meal.

Once everything had been arranged, we went outside. The shop assistant stayed behind to guard the place.

Old Zhang, Kaizi, the cold-faced beauty, and I climbed into a military vehicle. Kaizi drove, taking us all the way to an abandoned parking lot.

Soon, several jeeps arrived from different directions. Men dressed uniformly in black stood beside the vehicles. Judging by their appearance, they seemed to belong to the same group as the woman commander.

The black-clad squad stood in perfect formation beside the line of jeeps. Then a junior officer ran to the space between Han Xin and Kaizi.

He raised his hand and saluted them.

“Reporting to the commander! The squad is assembled and awaiting orders!”

Han Xin nodded in acknowledgment.

“Is the mission clear?”

The entire squad shouted in unison, “Clear!”

After that, we set off. The journey was exhausting, and the weather grew increasingly severe. It was hardly surprising that everyone became irritable. Some secretly dozed off, some whispered among themselves, some murmured under their breath, and others cursed quietly.

Kaizi drove while stealing occasional glances at his watch, silently counting to himself. Old Zhang sat beside him without saying anything or making his usual jokes.

He merely sat in the passenger seat, studying the compass and the photographs. Old Zhang had abandoned his usual frivolous manner and appeared unusually composed.

To my right sat the cold-faced beauty. Her head was lowered, and she said nothing as she rested with her eyes closed.

An alluring beauty seemed to radiate from her face, captivating enough to make anyone stare. The sunlight streaming through the window accentuated the graceful curves of her figure. I could only turn my face away and silently gaze outside.

At that moment, the coldly beautiful woman slightly opened her enchanting eyes, as if she were investigating something.

Then she said, “Mr. Feng, staring at other people is rather impolite.”

I jumped in fright, and cold sweat immediately broke out across my body.

“I... I wasn’t!”

She turned her face aside and gave a soft snort.

I had no idea how Old Zhang had heard our conversation, but he kept signaling to me with secret gestures. I shook my head to indicate that everything was fine.

Suddenly, because of the inertia, Old Zhang and Kaizi were thrown forward. The cold beauty had been sitting at an angle facing me, and she was flung directly against my side, her head coming to rest on my shoulder.

When I raised my head, the first thing I saw was her coldly beautiful face.

Once everyone had steadied themselves, she brushed the dust from her clothes.

“Sorry.”

Then she turned her face away. In that fleeting moment, I thought I saw a faint blush rise across her cheeks. Her already elegant and beautiful features seemed even more charming, and she looked exceedingly lovely.

Suddenly, a tornado rose before us. Several of the vehicles leading the convoy were lifted into the air and overturned across the wasteland.

At that moment, a vast bank of dark clouds swept in from the west. Sand and stones flew everywhere.

Kaizi stared fixedly ahead without saying a word.

Han Xin said, “This should be the place.”

Old Zhang cried out delightedly, “Excellent! We’ve struck it rich! This is a Twin Dragon formation—and a living tomb at that. I finally managed to find one!”

No sooner had he spoken than a swarm—no, an immense swarm—of corpse beetles came flying toward us, blotting out the sky. The light suddenly dimmed.

It was far too dark to see anything, so we could only wait silently for the insects to pass. When the vast swarm finally departed, a fragile calm returned. We had no idea where the gale had carried us, and could only look back toward the direction from which we had come.

But there was nothing to see. In the distance lay a barren desert. Apart from a few unusually strange flowers, there was not a trace of life.

Kaizi was gone. Old Zhang had disappeared as well. Only Han Xin and I remained in the vehicle.

Most of the windows had shattered, and broken glass lay scattered throughout the cabin.

A compass engraved with the symbols of yin and yang and the Eight Trigrams rested on the passenger seat. Where Kaizi had been sitting, an M1911 pistol lay loose on the floor.

Han Xin leaned against the seat behind her, breathing heavily. Her captivating eyes blinked from time to time.

Then I smelled gasoline. I gathered the belongings Kaizi and Old Zhang had left scattered inside the vehicle, grabbed Han Xin, and hurried away from the military truck.

With a thunderous boom, flames shot into the sky.

Han Xin was lying on her side in the desert not far from me. Seeing that something was wrong, I went to help her up. But just as I bent down, she seized me and pulled me into her arms, both hands locking around my shoulders.

Her grip tightened and tightened. I gradually began to suffocate. The oxygen in my lungs grew thinner and thinner.

Then I heard a familiar voice.

Old Zhang ran over and shouted, “Fengzi, have you lost your mind?”

He kicked the ghost vine wrapped around me and set it ablaze with a lighter. Kaizi helped Han Xin to her feet, and together they staggered toward me.

Several black-clad men followed behind them. Some had suffered injuries to their arms from unknown causes, while others had injured legs. Supported by their comrades, they limped forward one step at a time.

I was still shaken by the ghost vines. I retreated to where Old Zhang stood and brushed the dust from my clothes.

Then I asked him what those things had been.

Old Zhang could not help laughing.

“Hahaha! Young Master Feng, you’re a descendant of the Nine Houses, and you don’t even know this? Those are ghost vines. They cause hallucinations. People with weak constitutions may suffocate and die, while those with stronger bodies suffer no serious consequences. As long as someone calls out to them, they’ll wake up.

“But those things are extremely sinister. Anyone with a weak will can be led around by the hallucinations. Since everyone’s constitution is different, the hallucinations they experience are different too.

“Some people couldn’t bear it and were frightened out of their minds. Others became convinced they were flowers. They stopped eating and drinking, and eventually starved to death. The rotting corpses we saw earlier belonged to people whose wills were not strong enough. They were destroyed by the hallucinations.”

Indeed, now that I thought about it, the unrotted corpses had revealed the truth at a glance.

Their pupils were dilated, and the eyes of every corpse were wide with fury. It seemed Old Zhang had been right.

“All right,” he continued. “We don’t have time to worry about that. We need to find somewhere to shelter from the sandstorm. It’ll be dark soon, and we have wounded people with us. Traveling at night won’t be convenient.”

Later, beneath the fiery red sunset, we arrived at a desert inn.

The sign above the entrance read: Dragon Spring Inn.

Then a middle-aged man walked out of the inn.