"Cao Ya, you're looking pretty good." Fatty punched Cao Ya lightly, a little surprised. He had assumed Cao Ya's fruitless trip to Shaanxi had left him strapped for cash, forcing him to ask Fatty for help getting onto a tomb-raiding crew. He ought to have looked a little gloomy and dejected.
Instead, Cao Ya's face glowed with health, without a trace of gloom.
"Here, let me introduce you. Poker-Face. You can call him Little Brother, too. He's the best expert your Lord Fatty has ever met." Fatty raised a thumb as he spoke. When it came to tomb raiding, he genuinely admired Poker-Face.
His fighting skills were damn impressive, too. As far as Fatty could tell, he was no weaker than Cao Ya.
In the [The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles] world, before entering the system space, Cao Ya had diligently practiced martial arts and cultivated tirelessly. Though he had achieved little, that was only compared with the other Cao Yas.
In the [The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles] world, even the old Cao Ya had been a first-rate expert.
Otherwise, would he have dared enter tombs alone?
"Cao Ya." Fatty pointed at Cao Ya in turn.
Cao Ya shook hands with Poker-Face. His fingers were long and slender, and extraordinarily strong. He was certainly no ordinary man.
How could Zhang Qiling of the Zhang family be ordinary?
Poker-Face narrowed his eyes and studied Cao Ya. Those indifferent eyes held not the slightest ripple.
Back at their lodgings, Fatty poked his head outside, looked both ways, then briskly shut the door and said in a low voice:
"I need to explain this job properly. The man putting this crew together is a big deal. You've heard of the Changsha Nine Gates, right? Wu Sansheng's men are coordinating with us. We're heading to Changbai Mountain in Northeast China."
"Wu Sansheng has recruited other people besides us. Be careful when we get there, and keep your wits about you."
Fatty gave him a round of warnings.
He had worked with Cao Ya twice and thought well of him. He was someone worth befriending.
Since Cao Ya had come to him for help joining the crew, Fatty felt he ought to look after him and make sure nothing happened to him.
Even though he knew perfectly well that Cao Ya was a better fighter than he was.
If not for that, Fatty might not have agreed to Cao Ya's request this time.
The crew Wu Sansheng was assembling was for a major operation, and another team was also on the move.
Fatty would have worried about bringing an ordinary person along.
Of course, people who had nothing to do with him were another matter.
Cao Ya nodded his understanding, thinking, Fatty, I know this trip to the Cloud Palace better than you do.
But Poker-Face was there, and he could hardly explain where his information had come from, so he skipped the subject.
Fatty figured Cao Ya was an old hand, too, and might have raided no fewer tombs than he had. After explaining a few details about the operation, there really was no need to keep nagging.
The three played Fight the Landlord for several hours, then spent several more days at the inn, bored out of their minds. Finally, Wu Sansheng's men arrived, took them to the station, and brought them aboard a train.
Fatty had already sorted out Cao Ya's background, so Wu Sansheng's men asked few questions.
In any case, Bald Boss was responsible for that.
The three carried little luggage: two changes of clothes and a set of toiletries packed into travel bags, and they were off.
Their tickets were for sleeper berths, one each on the bottom, middle, and top. Fatty was too big to fit anywhere but the bottom. Poker-Face chose the top, leaving Cao Ya with the middle.
Poker-Face put down his luggage, climbed straight into his berth, and closed his eyes to rest.
Fatty bought several cups of instant noodles and prepared three. While they were eating, more people came in.
There were three of them as well: a handsome young man with a face like polished jade and a strongly scholarly air, a cold, tough-looking man, and an oddly dressed old man.
Cao Ya knew they were Wu Xie, Pan Zi, and Chen Pi A Si, respectively.
Fatty, however, seemed less informed. Eating his noodles, he stared at Wu Xie in surprise. "Damn it, why is it you again?"
Poker-Face leaned halfway out of the upper berth, too. His indifferent eyes rested on Wu Xie before he turned back to sleep.
Since Cao Ya was a stranger, and Fatty did not know Chen Pi A Si either, both sides introduced themselves.
Poker-Face would not eat his noodles, so Fatty simply handed that cup to Wu Xie.
Wu Xie accepted without the slightest ceremony and started eating.
After finishing his noodles, Cao Ya walked to the connection between carriages and tossed the cup into a trash bin. Then he returned, climbed into the middle berth, and closed his eyes to rest, listening to Fatty and Wu Xie's desultory conversation below.
Wu Xie was a key figure, the Nine Gates' only successful Medicine Man.
Both "It," lurking in the shadows, and the Wang Family had their eyes on Wu Xie.
They all wanted immortality!
Immortality? I already have it. Cao Ya curled his lip.
Immortality gained through outside forces was far too illusory.
Immortality gained through one's own strength-that was true everlasting life!
And it came with vast divine power!
Inside the Bronze Gate on Changbai Mountain... what exactly is The Ultimate?
And that Meteorite Jade... it fell from beyond the heavens and possesses all kinds of wonders... where in the starry reaches beyond the heavens did that Meteorite Jade fall to Earth from?
Cao Ya's mind was full of questions. He was intensely curious about the Meteorite Jade.
What could influence its surroundings and give humans the beginnings of immortality?
He decided he would visit the Serpent Marsh Ghost City after the Cloud Palace.
He was claiming the Meteorite Jade in the Queen Mother of the West's Kingdom!
The Queen Mother of the West, the Serpent Mother-he would wipe them all out!
Their journey to Northeast China followed a tourist route, from Changsha to Shanhai Pass, then a transfer to Dunhua. They traveled by train the whole way, covering nearly three thousand kilometers over roughly two days.
During that time, the group had nothing to do and could only pass the hours with their phones and a few magazines.
After several hours, even Fight the Landlord grew dull.
Chen Pi A Si left after the train started moving and never came back afterward. No one knew what he was doing.
Cao Ya rested, mentally pondering the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art and other techniques, too lazy to extend his perception and investigate.
Above all, the [The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles] world restricted supernatural power, which always made him feel uncomfortable.
Exerting his physical strength was somewhat better.
Besides, what waves could a mere Chen Pi A Si stir up?
Cao Ya hardly cared about the mysterious "It," the Wang Family, or the Nine Gates.
He cared more about the experience of taking part in the story, and the things found in those special places, such as the Meteorite Jade.
Wu Xie, Fatty, and Pan Zi, however, discussed the matter enthusiastically. When Fatty heard that Chen Pi A Si was over ninety, his face turned green. "Don't tell me that old bastard's coming up the mountain with us, too. If he is, I'll put him down humanely as soon as we reach somewhere deserted. Nobody stop me. He's dead either way once he goes in."
Pan Zi quickly clamped a hand over his mouth and whispered, "Keep your damn voice down. That old bastard's sharp as a fox. If he hears you, he'll kill you before we even get there."
Then Wu Xie joined in, and the three chatted away with such enthusiasm that they completely forgot to watch out for Chen Pi A Si's return.
Suddenly, Poker-Face sat up in his berth and reached out to grip Pan Zi's shoulder with such force that he almost cried out.
Pan Zi bared his teeth in pain. He had little liking for Poker-Face and was just about to speak when the door creaked and Chen Pi A Si walked in.
Wu Xie, Fatty, and Pan Zi exchanged glances, then continued playing cards as though nothing had happened.
Chen Pi A Si looked them over without saying anything and returned to his berth. He seemed to be thinking about something and did not fall asleep.
Cao Ya did not even need to look. He could tell just by listening.
He had not warned them earlier because he did not consider that old bastard Chen Pi A Si an opponent.
In the [The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles] world, there really was no one worth considering an opponent to Cao Ya.
Not even a nuclear bomb qualified.
Before you continue