The Poisonous Insects of Heavy Yin Mountain

After packing her things Yu Xing quietly mingled into the group sitting outside and eavesdropped on their conversation.

After listening for about forty minutes, he became a little sleepy from the rising sun and also got to know the team members roughly.

The team consisted of twelve people, including him. There were two girls. The one he had just spoken to was called Shi Jiu, and she was quite artistic, which didn't suit her personality at all. The other girl, with a slightly chubby face, was called Alice, and she had short hair that reached her ears. I heard she was good at medicine.

The team leader, the one with the square face who gave the mobilization speech, was called Brother Sun by everyone; nobody knew his real name.

The guy with the hoarse voice is Finley, the man with the scarred face and crew cut is Scarface, the short guy Ade, the bearded man talking to the middle-aged local is Luke, the A Long who always uses "de ya" in his speech is Ah Long, and there are three others that Yu Xing didn't pay much attention to. Anyway, when they go into the mountains together, he'll hear others call their names, or he'll find an opportunity to glance at the name tags on their bags.

He chatted with Luke, the most cheerful and talkative of them all, for a while and quickly extracted a lot of background information from him.

This team was indeed assembled from all over the country. I heard that a few years ago, Brother Sun gathered some people and went down into the first tomb. He made a lot of money from it. Anyone who went in with him and came out alive made a fortune.

Having tasted the benefits, these people simply formed a fixed team, following Brother Sun everywhere, and developed some connections with each other.

Of course, the underground is dangerous. Of the original batch, only three or four are still alive. The others joined gradually through introductions. They all respect Brother Sun basically will not disobey his orders.

The information about this tomb came from Shi Jiu's side. She sent her subordinates to investigate for a period of time. Through archaeology and interviews, they confirmed that a remarkable person was indeed buried here. Such a person would always be buried with a large number of burial objects after death, and the tomb itself would be extremely valuable.

Shi Jiu informed Brother Sun of the news, and Brother Sun used his connections to investigate for two months, finally obtaining relatively reliable information: the tomb palace here is related to a black temple.

A few months ago, there was a news story about San, Carlos, and Xiao Xuechen's adventure in a tomb. Zhou Qinghai, who also escaped from there, told the media everything he knew, omitting the fact that he had been kidnapped by Carlos —after all, Carlos had saved his life and hadn't really harmed him.

This matter attracted some attention but was quickly suppressed; however, it can still be found if someone is determined to investigate.

Brother Sun has already found out about the black temple. He believes that San has been to the Coffin Village cemetery before and should be very experienced. He might even have clues that others don't know about. Moreover, he is a painter, so he might be very useful in recording this kind of information.

So Brother Sun found Yu Xing, spent a lot of money to hire him, and included him in the team going into the mountains this time.

Yu Xing connected the dots, feeling that many steps were missing, but he wasn't worried. Perhaps the system's background information would fill in the gaps in five hours.

He could at least follow the group through the mountains and forests. On the surface, Brother Sun still respected him. He wouldn't suffer much in this group, and these people were free sources of information.

An hour passed quickly. The group stood up, checked their belongings one last time, and then resolutely left the camp and headed towards the rolling mountains.

The mountain forest was damp and cold, a typical damp and cold environment. Yu Xing did not have the geographical information to extrapolate the world, so he could only make a general judgment about the surrounding environment of this area in his mind.

He had just found his phone hidden in the backpack's inner compartment and saw the date. It showed that it was late June, a very hot time of year. For it to feel chilly in the middle of summer, this place must be quite special.

The mountain path was not smooth. The only trail worn into place was only about two hundred meters long before it ended, destroyed by wildly growing weeds and tangled tree roots. Gradually, the trees became denser and denser, and all the sounds of human society faded away, leaving only the chirping of insects and the calls of unknown birds.

Yu Xing waved his hand to block a cluster of downward-reaching tree trunks, the thorny leaves leaving shallow marks on his leather gloves. His boots sank into the hard, muddy ground, suggesting that it hadn't rained here for at least a week.

"Boss, this place really lives up to its name, Heavy Yin Mountain, it's so cool." Luke, with his bushy beard, chuckled as he walked. He had only recently joined the team, and his last tomb raiding attempt had been quite successful with few mishaps, so he wasn't as cautious about tomb raiding as the others.

"You don't know anything. We haven't even reached the Heavy Yin Mountain range yet. Remember the mountain range we saw at the camp just now? After crossing this mountain, it will take another day or two to find Heavy Yin Mountain." Brother Sun didn't say anything, but Finley chimed in.

He chuckled in his hoarse voice and added, "From now on, barring any unforeseen circumstances, it will take us two or three days to reach Heavy Yin Mountain. Be prepared, this is not like that small tomb we encountered last time; it's extremely dangerous inside!"

Brother Sun then nodded in agreement. Although Finley had a bad temper and questionable character, he was experienced and more reliable than other greenhorns.

He held a map open in his hand, Finley next to him held a compass. Brother Sun and Finley were walking in front, with Scarface and Ade bringing up the rear. Shi Jiu was walking on the left side in the middle, and Bearded was on the right side. The others spread out to protect Yu Xing and Doctor Alice, who were not capable of Combat Power.

This formation isn't fixed; they could scatter and run away at any time if something happens. But at least for now, everything is normal, so they still need to maintain appearances and make themselves seem more organized.

Yu Xing also had a compass; they were heading northeast, crossing the nameless wild mountains beneath their feet.

The campsite they had just been at was the last dividing line between the city and the mountains. After leaving the campsite, the mountains were completely undeveloped. Without a local to guide them, they could only rely on a compass to walk in the direction of the pre-calculated tomb location. It was a completely uncharted territory.

The shade of the trees overhead effectively blocked the increasingly scorching sunlight. After walking for about two hours, Yu Xing noticed a significant increase in the number of small insects in the air. Indeed, if he didn't tighten his cuffs and collar, he would be covered in bites. He frowned slightly and sprayed some insect repellent on himself.

"Hey, Mr. San, can I spray some too?" Alice asked, leaning over from the side.

She was clearly someone who had been temporarily added to the team, just like Yu Xing. Although Brother Sun chose her because she often worked out and was relatively strong and skilled among the doctors who took on illegal jobs, she ultimately lacked experience and was already getting restless from being harassed by the insects.

Yu Xing casually tossed the spray in her hand to her, only to hear Finley sneer from ahead, "Such a pretentious woman. Do you need to spray some cleaning agent on the corpses after going down into the tomb?"

Finley's voice was so penetrating; although he didn't name names, the target was very obvious.

Yu Xing chuckled lightly, "Is this being pretentious? Don't rush me, once you see me paint, you'll know what real pretentiousness is."

"You actually took it as a compliment when I said you were like a woman? Fine, next time be a whore and give me some pleasure--"

"Finley," Brother Sun interrupted him, giving him a disapproving look, "Don't cause trouble. Save your energy for later tomb exploration."

Brother Sun's tone was already quite stern, but Finley didn't seem to take it seriously at all. Instead, his voice was tinged with laughter as he exaggeratedly said, "Brother Sun, let me tell you, I'm helping him get used to the atmosphere beforehand. Otherwise, if he gets even a minor scratch and starts complaining that he can't walk and wants to go home to his mother, can you handle that? Don't worry, we're all people who live on the edge. Once you join this team, you can't survive without some mental fortitude."

Upon hearing this, Brother Sun didn't say anything more. Finley turned around and gave Yu Xing a provocative look, leaving Yu Xing completely bewildered.

What? You think saying some nonsense will make him feel wronged?

The rest of the team pretended not to hear the argument. On one side was their experienced veteran teammate, and on the other was the painter they had been hired at great expense who had relevant clues. They didn't want to get into trouble with either side.

After spraying the insect repellent, Alice glanced at Finley's retreating figure with disgust. Only Shi Jiu raised an eyebrow and said loudly, "Hey Finley, what do you mean by helping San adapt to the atmosphere? Isn't it just that you can't stand good-looking men? Don't pretend to be virtuous when you're being a whore. You know what you mean."

She had a fiery temper and wasn't intimidated by Finley at all. She immediately retorted, "I don't care what you say about 'little bitch' or 'slut' all the time, but now that Alice and I are in the team, I hope you know your place and don't go looking for trouble."

"Tsk, you're just helping him. If you're so capable, why don't you protect him all the way?" Finley glared at Shi Jiu unhappily, but ultimately didn't argue with her. In fact, arguments and quarrels among their team were practically a daily occurrence, but no one would really get angry if they suffered a loss. They all had a life-or-death bond with each other to some extent, so they weren't so intolerant of even a little verbal sparring.

Shi Jiu sneered, glanced at Yu Xing had a calm expression, and said nothing more.

By this time, they had ventured deep into the mountain, and judging from their altitude, they were probably halfway up. The types of trees around them had changed, and there were some flowers and plants that they couldn't name.

The group was in good physical condition and moved forward at a steady pace. Scar occasionally left marks on the tree trunks and the ground to make it easier for them to return later.

Brother Sun directed the way using the map in his hand. At first, Yu Xing was very interested in walking and observing the plants around her, but later she got tired of it, so she took out her wired earphones, plugged in her phone, and started listening to music.

He believed that keeping the phone battery was pointless, as the signal became increasingly weaker after entering the mountains and eventually disappeared completely, rendering it unable to communicate with the outside world.

Moreover, Yu Xing already knew the nature of the deduction very well. In the later stages, there would be no need for a cell phone. They would probably be either about to escape or on their way to escape. There wouldn't be much time for him to listen to music in peace. He might as well take this opportunity to relax for a while.

Not long after, Dr. Alice approached him again, a hint of inquiry in her eyes, and hesitantly asked in a low voice, "Hey, I heard that Brother Sun asked you to copy the murals?"

Yu Xing looked at her, then looked away. "Yes."

"You can really copy them? The murals in the tomb vary in difficulty depending on their condition, but they're already quite blurry, and some are severely damaged. I can't even understand them!" Alice exclaimed.

Yu Xing: "Have you seen the murals in other tombs?"

Alice shook her head. "No, I just saw the rubbings and photos at a relative's place."

Luke, who was nearby, overheard her and joined the conversation. "A relative? Your relative... is also in this line of work?"

"Of course, otherwise how would I have gotten here? I was just interested in this so-called temple and tomb. But my relative isn't anything special; he's mostly a thief." Alice laughed, her chubby face looking adorable when she smiled, and Luke chuckled along.

Yu Xing: "..."

He watched as a burly man with a full beard gave a goofy smile to a petite beauty, which was a bit of an eyesore.

Just as they were chatting and whispering among themselves, Ade, who was lagging behind, suddenly let out a loud "howl," attracting the attention of the entire team.

"What's wrong?!" Brother Sun asked immediately.

Ade frowned, pulled the large bug that had somehow crawled onto his neck off, and cursed, "This bug really knows how to find a spot, it almost crawled onto my face, and it bit me."

"It's just one bite, come on, let's see my hand." Scarface grinned, holding out his hand, the back of which was covered in small red dots. "I've been bitten so many times and I haven't made a sound, what are you yelling about?"

"This is different! Look at this bug! Its mouthparts are so long! Damn, it hurts!"

Yu Xing looked over and saw that the gray worm in Ade's hand was more than half the length of a thumb. What was most terrifying was its mouthparts, which were thin and long, about two centimeters long, and as hard as a needle.

The insect had compound wings on its back, which fluttered futilely in Ade's hand, making a buzzing sound. Its two bean-sized compound eyes opened and closed intermittently, which was disgusting.

Unlike Scarface, Brother Sun wasn't indifferent. He cautiously said, "I've never seen this kind of insect before. It must be a special species from the mountains. Alice, could Ade check if the insect is poisonous and how deep the wound is?"

Alice responded, and the group stopped and surrounded Ade, all wanting to see the wound so they wouldn't be at a loss if they were bitten themselves.

Afraged, Ade threw the bug on the ground and stomped on it, yelling, "You dead bug!"

At the same time, Alice pulled open Ade's collar and exclaimed in horror, "Oh no, it really is poisonous!"

Yu Xing approached to observe and saw that the bite wound on Ade was just a small red dot, but a spiderweb-like intricate bluish-black pattern was rapidly spreading under the skin around the red dot, like tree roots entwining in the flesh.

"We need to deal with this immediately." Alice planned to take out the antidote from her bag and inject it first.

She busied herself, Finley sniffed, asking in confusion, "Can you smell anything?"

Smell?

Everyone imitated him by sniffing, and then exclaimed all at once, "It really is!"

"Something's definitely up to no good. Let's find out where the fragrance is coming from!"

"Oh dear, I don't think this smell is good at all. Shall we hurry up and leave after we've applied the medicine to Ade?"

Yu Xing had actually smelled it earlier; it was a faint, strange fragrance that made her feel a little dazed.

He covered his nose, lowered his eyelids, and reminded him, "Ade, move your foot."

While stretching his neck to receive Alice's treatment, Ade moved his shoes away, seemingly unaware of what was happening.

Suddenly, the strange fragrance became even stronger, and everyone's expression changed.

Because the fragrance was coming from the insect carcasses beneath Ade's feet!