It Was a Mouth

Yu Xing recalled her experience in the Coffin Village and silently memorized the idea that "candle = medium" in her mind.

Zhou Yongsheng needed to use candles, and even a cursed candle holder, to perform the ritual and begin his resurrection. The hunchbacked man did not have this problem; he was closer to the tomb and therefore had a stronger grasp of the concept of "being alive."

Yu Xing mentally noted. "There is a power within the tomb that can replace the candle as a medium."

He wandered around the ancestral hall for a long time, feeling that he had missed something.

"Although we can now confirm that the power of resurrection comes from the tomb of the demon daoist, the connection between the ancestral hall and the tomb has not yet been found. How did the ancestral hall obtain the power of that thing in the tomb, or where did the black coffin come from? There should be traces left here." Yu Xing began to knock along the wall. Although the wooden walls of this ancestral hall were of normal thickness, there might be some information hidden inside.

His knocking seemed to disturb the hunched figure sleeping in the black coffin, which groaned. Yu Xing, however, ignored him and continued searching for information.

He guessed that the slumber in the black coffin must be deep and fixed, involving the secret of resurrection, and it was impossible to gain such strange and powerful power simply by sleeping.

Therefore, even if a hunchback is woken up, there is a high probability that they will not be able to get out.

As expected, even though Yu Xing made a noise like renovations, the hunchback only pounded on the coffin wall twice inside the coffin. The coffin lid trembled, as if it were being pushed open with great force, but this time the hunchback could not sit up. He seemed to be imprisoned inside the coffin.

Yu Xing was extremely curious about what was happening inside the coffin. He even wanted to pull the hunchbacked man out and lie down in the coffin himself to experience it.

However, it is wrong to be so arrogant just because someone else is lying in a coffin and can't get out. Disturbing the peace is unacceptable. Yu Xing's next movements were much gentler. His well-defined fingers stroked the moldy surface of the wall and lingered in the cracks of the wood.

"Water... damp..." he murmured to himself, the underground river he had been speculating about outside flashing through his mind.

"There's something under the ancestral hall." After a long pause, Yu Xing became certain, his gaze falling to the ground.

"What is it?" a familiar voice asked.

Yu Xing: "..."

Yu Xing: "Ha."

He paused for a moment, looked up, and then gave a cryptic smile.

The roof of the ancestral hall was also made of mortise and tenon joints, perfectly joined together. Yu Xing had not paid attention to the space on the beams before. When the sound came from above, he looked up with interest and saw a small white head peeking out from above, its hands gripping the wooden beams.

"Impressive, Carlos," Yu Xing said to the paper figure that had been hiding on the beam for who knows how long, "You didn't even take these paper figures back?"

The paper figure spoke in Carlos's voice, but this time it refused to approach Yu Xing, only replying from the rafters, "That's right, didn't you say that boys need to protect themselves when they're out and about?"

The paper figure seemed to be firmly controlled by Carlos. The paper figure waved its hand smugly. "Be careful, lest you expose all my spies. Isn't that protecting myself?"

Yu Xing didn't speak, but maintained her smile, looking up at the paper figure.

A few seconds later, the paper figure refused to meet his gaze, took a step back, but accidentally fell off and landed on the ground.

It dusted itself off and stood up, telling the truth, "Okay, actually, you destroyed the evidence too quickly. I hadn't even collected all the paper figures before I lost contact with you. I knew your next route, so I deliberately left a paper figure in the ancestral hall to catch up with you again... San, why did you drown my paper figure? Don't you think it's a good thing to have another person to talk to?"

"Walking alone in the mountains, one is easily affected by loneliness." Carlos's tone was full of laughter, revealing his unique cynicism. Yu Xing could tell that this man had not suffered any losses on this path.

Yu Xing chuckled softly and tentatively asked in a declarative tone, "It seems things are going well on your end."

Carlos seemed quite relaxed. He said, "Yes, I understood your reminder. Because we were prepared, the pits later on didn't cause any damage, and the team is now heading back."

At this point, Yu Xing somewhat surprised.

He merely reminded Carlos to protect himself, and Carlos, under the influence of the feeling of being spied on, realized something was wrong, dared to deny the source of his inner excitement, calmly examined the situation, and made adjustments. Such comprehension and mental fortitude were truly beyond his expectations.

Fortunately, Yu Xing had always underestimated Carlos's intelligence. He quickly suppressed his admiration for Carlos's actions and asked, "What's behind this road?"

"A circular altar, used for worshipping the moon." Carlos manipulated the paper figure, slowly walking away from Yu Xing, his voice fading into the distance. "Some in the team have deduced that this is interference; the demon daoist Tomb Palace and the moon have no connection whatsoever. This shows we've indeed been misled and have once again gone down the wrong path."

"You didn't encounter any danger?" Yu Xing looked at the paper figure that had fled eight feet away from him, grabbed it back, and lifted it up in front of him by the weightless paper figure's neck. "Or is it that your team has become so strong that it is completely unafraid of traps?"

"The altar is covered with red 'paint' that's poisonous if you touch it; it's actually the blood of dead tree mosquitoes. I don't know how they masked the fragrance. There's also a mechanism on the altar that will cause you to fall down if you touch it, and the bottom is covered with bone vines."

Carlos shrugged, making an innocent gesture. "But after I warned them, none of them died, just suffered some healable injuries. Our team is just that strong. I've gone through four simulations with this expedition. I'm the kind of Investigator type deduction game, so... isn't this an invitation for you to join our team?"

"We guarantee it's a powerful alliance, and we won't hold you back."

Yu Xing said "Oh" and placed the paper figure on her shoulder.

"The dead tree mosquito and bone vine are the same as the big gray bug and vine I encountered?"

"You're missing the point. Those names aren't as important as the rest of what I said. I meant our team is definitely worth joining..." Carlos's paper doll sat firmly on Yu Xing's shoulder, relentlessly nagging, "Are you deliberately changing the subject?"

"Don't even think about it. Don't you know I've joined another faction? Even if I join your team, I'll just be a ticking time bomb." Yu Xing wanted to see what Carlos was thinking. The other party was clearly the ruthless type; it was impossible for him to develop any particular fondness for working with her again after only two collaborations. Why bother for her to join?

His abilities are not particularly advantageous in the tomb, so seeking him out is almost a pointless endeavor.

Carlos curled his lip, and the same expression vividly appeared on his paper doll face. "We are the strategists, we are the most reliable kindred spirits. As for the forces in the strategizing world, can't we just jump over them if we want? You can come and infiltrate our team, I have no objection. As long as my strategizing is completed smoothly, what do I care about how the forces develop afterward?"

"The reverse is also true. You can secretly join my side and become a double agent in your investigation studio. After all, all you need to do is survive the simulations. The factional affiliation in the background story isn't that important to you, is it?"

Looking at Yu Xing's emotionless face, Carlos spoke eloquently, "I invited you to join because I enjoy doing simulation missions with you. You're smart, brave, and have a bit of my favorite 'crazy' side. With you, it's not only safer, but also much more exciting. For example, this time, I have to thank you for your reminder. If you were in my team, we could have avoided this path from the beginning, saving two days."

"Moreover..." Carlos drawled, his voice possessing a captivating charm, likely due to his frequent magic performances; he was highly experienced in controlling attention.

"You seem to have discovered the real entrance to the tomb. You were just saying there was something beneath the ancestral hall." His little paper figure hugged a tuft of Yu Xing's hair. "How could I not take advantage of such a good deal? Joining forces with you, cooperating, and traveling together—the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks."

It must be said that Carlos has a very keen eye for observation, and he is one of the few people that Yu Xing finds easy to talk to.

The last one was Zhao Mou.

But that's not enough. I really hope this simulation will bring even more surprises from the Magician... Yu Xing's eyes crinkled into a smile, "So that's how you calculate the benefits."

Before Carlos could even figure out what that meant, Yu Xing continued, "I agree. I'll temporarily join your team and share intelligence with you. But the price is that I'll get a share of your team's supplies, and you'll have to follow my orders when necessary. Can you do that?"

Carlos thought for a moment, "As long as I'm by your side, I can do it. They're quite willing to accept my various suggestions."

"Alright, I'll wait for you to come back." Yu Xing's eyes flashed. "Now, please have your paper doll accompany me down to take a look."

As soon as she finished speaking, Yu Xing stomped hard on a dirty patch of ground in the corner. Instantly, a square hidden door appeared from the ground, and the dirt on it fell passively into the door with two soft thuds.

"Gulp."

The sound of something falling into the water made Yu Xing's lips curl into a smile. He looked down and, as expected, saw a body of water behind the hidden door.

The water flowed calmly, reaching about half a meter below the door, appearing dark black due to the lack of light.

"Wow, that's impressive! How did you find the hidden compartment? We searched for ages but couldn't find the right mechanism." Carlos's little paper figure on Yu Xing's shoulder gave a perfunctory compliment, then looked down at the hidden compartment.

"Maybe you're blind," Yu Xing said seriously.

The problematic area was in the corner; underneath was actually a mechanical device covered with soil.

The reason Yu Xing was able to quickly find the mechanism after realizing there was a river underground in the ancestral hall was because the land was too flat.

The ground of the ancestral hall was not very flat; it was full of potholes, and most of the ground was covered with the footprints of hunchbacks. Even some of the low wooden walls were covered with dirty footprints, but this piece of land was not. It was well protected, as if the hunchbacks cared about it very much and dared not step on it.

Moreover, Yu Xing had already checked the wooden walls and the furnishings inside the room beforehand, but found no mechanism. Under these circumstances, the mechanism was most likely hidden in the only clean spot on the ground.

Yu Xing's sarcasm silenced Carlos temporarily, until Yu Xing pretended to take off her clothes to peek through the hidden door. Carlos panicked for a moment. "Do you remember I'm a paper doll now? I can't get wet!"

"Remember, be prepared to drown." Yu Xing smiled very gently at him.

Carlos: "..."

Resignedly, he hobbled off Yu Xing's shoulder with his short legs and jumped to the ground. "Get down yourself, I'll wait for you up here, okay?"

"Beg me," Yu Xing even more gently.

To everyone's surprise, Carlos had no sense of shame whatsoever. He decisively made the little paper figure lie down on the spot, performing a full prostration. "Fine, I beg you."

A tree without bark will surely die; a person without shame is invincible. Carlos has always done a great job.

This kid is really interesting.

Yu Xing let Carlos go, but instead of taking off his clothes, he pulled down his backpack and rummaged inside.

Carlos: "Aren't you going into the water?"

"Just kidding." Yu Xing's wicked sense of humor never failed him. He pulled an extremely long telescopic baton from his bag. At the end of the baton was a camera and a light, connected to a palm-sized screen on the handle.

This is the probe that Brother Sun's team prepared.

This thing is specifically used to look into vertical caves or beneath the surface of the sea where light is blocked. It is very useful in tomb raiding. He believed that Carlos's team must also have a probe. He just used Carlos's wariness of "drowning the paper figure and losing sight of San's side" to divert Carlos's attention.

Carlos realized that he had been tricked by Yu Xing in the end, and remained silent for a moment.

He noticed something: Yu Xing seemed to really enjoy disrupting other people's ease and composure. Was this some kind of strange quirk?

As someone who had watched the live stream of Yu Xing's Death Parallel Line, Carlos secretly wondered if this was a side effect of facing Lingren. When it comes to composure and ease, no one is more qualified to speak than Lingren. In all the publicly available records, Lingren never seemed to have shown any signs of panic.

In reality, Carlos wasn't particularly sensitive to the puzzles or clues in the missions, but as Magician, he dealt with audiences who wanted to expose his magic tricks all the time, and he was very good at reading people's personalities and psychology.

He is naturally suited to strategic gameplay.

Therefore, in their brief contact, he discovered aspects of Yu Xing's being indirectly influenced by the Lingren that she herself hadn't even realized.

While Carlos was still pondering, Yu Xing had already extended the probe section by section and lowered it underwater, then turned on the switch on the screen.

After a brief reaction, the underwater scene appeared on the screen. Illuminated by the light on the probe, the underwater scene was seen by Yu Xing and Carlos's paper dolls.

The underwater area was dark, about five or six meters deep.

Yu Xing slowly moved the probe, filming different spaces.

Just then, a shadow seemed to appear in the frame. Carlos exclaimed in surprise, "What's that moving thing?"

Yu Xing looked at it and calmly said, "Oh, it's a mouth."