Upon hearing Li Yanchu’s question, Granny Chang smiled faintly. “The Marquis probably pulled a petty trick to fake death.” Her expression remained calm and composed, and when she spoke of the Southern Guardian Marquis from the Great Xia Dynasty, it was with an air of deep familiarity. Li Yanchu couldn’t help but notice this. Could Granny Chang really be so well-versed in the hidden corners of history? Or... did she perhaps have some personal connection to the Southern Guardian Marquis? “This Southern Guardian Marquis truly was a fascinating man,” Li Yanchu said sincerely. “Since this is his tomb, I fear there are even more dangerous places ahead.” Granny Chang swept her gaze slowly across the cultivators gathered in the burial chamber, and their expressions varied. Some were worried, some eager, some tense, others excited. She gave a subtle smile and said no more. The group didn’t encounter any malevolent spirits in this chamber. The coffins remained tightly sealed, showing no signs of having been disturbed. This room resembled the mural chamber they had seen earlier in layout, but this time, there was no yin-yang master stirring up trouble in the shadows, so they passed through safely. In fact, these outer chambers of the tomb were never meant to be heavily trapped. The real dangers lay further inward. As long as no one acted recklessly, these outer rooms weren’t too deadly. They were designed to honor and display the Marquis’s legacy, his campaigns, and his military feats, leaving a place for future generations to admire. The intentions of this Marquis of Zhen’nan were as elusive as a hanging antelope's horn[1], but they also left a sliver of hope for those who entered the tomb. This group had come here to exorcise evil, and had chosen to delve deep into the tomb, so they would not retreat easily. The tomb’s feng shui had already been disturbed, and it was only a matter of time before chaos erupted. And if the forces within were allowed to escape, true devastation would follow. Of the original twenty-six, only eighteen now remained. Aside from the monks and Daoists from various temples and sects, the group included Granny Chang, Old Ghost Wu, Mr. Ma, Yan Chixiao, Li Yanchu, Bai Hongtu, and Wang Yunting. The passageway ahead was long and narrow, and a faint phosphorescent glow lined the walls on either side. But instead of offering light, the glow only made the passage feel even more eerie and oppressive, like flickering ghostfire. The end of the corridor remained shrouded in darkness, sinking into an unknowable depth. Li Yanchu’s five senses were exceptionally sharp. As his gaze swept across the surroundings, he suddenly felt a sense of being watched by something sneaky or sinister. It sent a chill down his spine. But the moment he turned to look, that eerie sensation of being watched... vanished. “Strange. Hongtu, did you feel like someone was watching us?” Li Yanchu asked. Bai Hongtu blinked in surprise and replied, “Nope.” As a proper disciple of a Daoist sect, he too was highly sensitive to dark entities and malevolent forces. But he hadn’t sensed anything like that just now. In response, Li Yanchu’s heart tensed. He was certain that he had truly felt a malicious gaze just moments ago. After that, he activated Qi Sight. A ring of clear light gathered in his pupils, and the surrounding environment began to shift before his eyes. In an instant, various flows of qi and energy revealed themselves. But then, a sudden burst of murderous qi stabbed straight into his vision like a dagger. Instantly, his eyes were filled with tears; the pain was excruciating. It was only thanks to his iron will and self-control that he managed to keep from crying out loud. But naturally, the more one feared something, the more likely it was to come straight for them. “Eh?” Bai Hongtu suddenly leaned in, intrigued, as if he’d found something new and interesting. He peered into Li Yanchu’s face and chuckled, saying loudly, “Why are you crying? Did something sad just cross your mind?” However, Li Yanchu just fell silent. What a deeply understanding and considerate friend he is! Bai Hongtu’s voice was unusually clear and crisp, and in the deathly quiet of the tomb corridor, it rang out even more noticeably. At least seven or eight people turned their heads to look, each of them casting curious glances their way. Discover more novels at ⓝovelFire.net Li Yanchu’s mouth twitched ever so slightly. “You brat...” A low, raspy voice rang out. It was Old Ghost Wu who spoke. “Did you sense some cursed presence watching you and use Qi Sight to check it out?” His tone was laced with mockery, but not without a hint of insight. Hearing this, Li Yanchu turned to look at him. Despite his eerie, almost villainous appearance, Old Ghost Wu was undeniably well-informed and perceptive. “Senior, you’re absolutely right. Just now, I saw a thick wave of murderous qi, and it injured my eyes,” Li Yanchu admitted it openly and without hesitation. Old Ghost Wu let out a cold snort. “Qi Sight may be a marvelous technique, but now that we’re deep within the inner tomb, if you glimpse the wrong thing, you might not be keeping those eyes of yours.” Li Yanchu gave a slight nod and cupped his fists in respect. “Thank you for the warning, Senior. I was indeed careless just now.” His tone was steady and composed, and he was neither humble nor arrogant. There was grace in the way he spoke. Old Ghost Wu was momentarily taken aback. Then he gave a low chuckle and fell silent. This minor episode didn’t disrupt the group’s progress. Of the sixteen people remaining, only about half had sensed that malicious gaze. Old Ghost Wu was one of them. Meanwhile, Wang Yunting shook his head slightly, thinking this young Daoist was still a bit too reckless. There was clearly something in the passage, perhaps some kind of spiritual artifact or funerary device, exerting a suppressive force. That cold, prying sensation was a formless pressure, gnawing away at one’s mind. It unsettled the spirit, wore down the will and gave lurking evil spirits the opening they needed to slip in and take hold. “You’re still too young... The things in this tomb are not meant to be seen so casually.” But Li Yanchu wasn’t one to suffer a loss silently. He took out a Five-Lightning Talisman he had kept close to his body and poured spiritual energy into it. Instantly, a surge of pure yang lightning qi coursed through him. That oppressive, invasive gaze returned again. It was uncomfortable and suffocating, as though eyes were hidden in the dark watching him from every direction. Someone, or something, was staring at him with undisguised malice. Li Yanchu’s eyes flared, charged with lightning qi, and he sharply scanned the corridor before locking on to the source of the gaze. A bloodied eyeball suddenly burst from the stone wall, hitting the ground with a sickening thud as it spun and twitched grotesquely. Li Yanchu’s gaze followed it coldly. The eyeball actually tried to roll away and hide, but it was no use, as the Five-Lightning Pure Yang was a True Law of Heaven and Earth. No evil spirit or filth could endure its gaze. Bang! The eyeball exploded on the spot, bursting into a mist of blood. Old Ghost Wu's heart gave a jolt, and his once-playful gaze instantly turned to one of shock. Are the younger generation this fierce nowadays?! Li Yanchu’s eyes shone like lightning, sharp and penetrating to those with dark intentions. To all filth and evil in the world, his gaze was unbearable. “What vile thing dares spy on me from the shadows?! Get the hell out here!” His voice cracked like thunder in the listener’s ears, sounding deafening and forceful like a bolt from the heavens! Wherever his gaze swept, loud explosions erupted one after another. One bloody eyeball after another was blasted out of the stone walls. Some detonated mid-wall, bursting into clouds of bloody mist. Just then, that eerie sensation of being watched vanished in an instant. As he watched the scene unfold, Old Ghost Wu’s facial muscles twitched involuntarily. He felt a stinging ache across his skin, as if something had lashed him across the face. When he looked at Li Yanchu again, there was a subtle change in his gaze. Is this what young people are like these days, so brash and impulsive? Even Wang Yunting, the seasoned Mojin Xiaowei, was wide-eyed with astonishment. And beneath that, there was a flicker of indescribable dread. 1. “羚羊挂角” (líng yáng guà jiǎo) is a Chinese idiom. It literally means “the antelope hangs its horns,” referring to an old belief that antelopes would sleep at night by hooking their horns onto tree branches, allowing their feet to stay off the ground to avoid danger. It describes something obscure and difficult to trace, leaving no visible trail. ☜