Buddhist Pagoda Ghost Tomb

Chapter 12

A plume of smoke billowed from the broken glass, instantly filling the rooftop with smoke. Miller and his two companions, being mercenaries, immediately realized that this was very likely a biological weapon and quickly retreated inside the door with Min Eun-joon.

In just a few seconds, these changes occurred. Before Caesar could react, he was enveloped in white smoke. He shuddered, as if he had fallen into complete darkness, a darkness purer than the night, like death itself.

At that moment, he thought he had been poisoned and was dead.

However, he was still conscious, a feeling that drove him almost insane.

Situ Xiang was also trapped in this eternal darkness, unable to extricate himself. Suddenly, a beam of light shone in from the dark sky, as if it were a path to heaven. A hand descended along the light, and he was overjoyed. He quickly grabbed the slender hand and opened his eyes abruptly.

He saw Yin Li's face, streaked with tears, which, under the setting sun, created a beautiful yet melancholic scene, like pear blossoms in the rain.

"Are you alright?" Yin Li asked.

His gaze swept across the rooftop, where he saw Caesar still standing motionless, his eyes wide open, as if he had been paralyzed. Then, she saw another person, someone who couldn't possibly be standing before her.

Qin Wen.

"Hi, Situ Xiang, long time no see." To his astonishment, Qin Wen greeted him with a smile, full of energy, not at all like someone who had died.

“You…” Situ Xiang frowned, his expression strange, as if he was holding his breath and couldn’t exhale. “He just used a blank?”

"Yes." Qin Wen's smile was harmless, as if everything before her had nothing to do with him. Situ Xiang felt a headache coming on, rubbing his forehead and turning to look at Yin Li standing beside him. "You knew all along?"

Yin Li's eyebrows twitched, and she stuck out her tongue, saying, "I discovered it when I was holding her. What was on her chest wasn't blood at all, but tomato sauce."

"Hehe." Qin Wen took out a torn plastic bag from her clothes. "I made this at the market outside Wuer Village. I've always carried it with me. I originally wanted to fake my death to escape, but it ended up saving my life."

His head throbbed even more, and Situ Xiang suddenly realized that women being too smart was definitely not a good thing.

"That smoke from earlier..."

“Petrifying Mist.” Yin Li wiped the tears from her cheeks and said, “Who told him to bully Xiao Wen! I was just giving him a ‘small’ lesson.”

"So you're punishing me too?" Situ Xiang rolled his eyes, a gesture he rarely made, his eyelids almost twitching.

Yin Li took his hand, put on a pitiful look, and said, "Situ, you're not angry with me, are you?"

Situ Xiang rolled her eyes again. She had never realized that a woman's coquettishness could be so effective.

Yin Li thought he was still angry, so she grabbed his hand and shook it from side to side: "Situ, don't be angry anymore—"

"That's enough, that's enough." A surge of heat rose from his lower abdomen, and Situ Xiang awkwardly withdrew his hand. "Let's just turn that fossil back into a fossil."

Having made a fool of herself, Yin Li had no choice but to place the porcelain bottle under Caesar's nose. Just then, the earth suddenly shook, her hand trembled, and the porcelain bottle fell to the ground, shattering into a pile of trash.

Before I could even be surprised, the tremors intensified, as if the whole world was shaking.

"Xiao Li, watch out!" Situ Xiang rushed over and tackled the two of them to the ground. A huge rock flew over their heads and stuck to the rooftop. Then came a second and a third rock. Countless rocks leaped up from the sand and stuck to the resurrected city of death.

"Oh no!" Situ Xiang's expression changed drastically. "We need to get out of this city quickly, or it's going to die a second time."

Min Eun-joon sat in the back of the military off-road vehicle, watching as the rocks enveloped Saka City once again. It was as if watching a movie rewind; a magnificent city had finally transformed back into the Devil City of Yardang landforms.

The paradise built by the descendants of the Shang Dynasty has once again become a barren land, with rocks burying the past civilization and the love and hatred on the yellow sand.

"Looks like they died inside." Marcie took out his cigarette case, lit a cigarette, and took a deep drag. The girl named Yin Li was very beautiful, exactly his type. What a pity.

“They will come back alive,” Min Eun-joon said with absolute certainty. Miller glanced at him and said, “Mr. Min, are you so sure?”

“Those two girls are not ordinary people.” Min Eun-joon stared coldly at the Devil City in the distance, a mysterious smile playing on his lips, as if it contained some profound meaning. “That Qin Wen can even lift the legendary divine tree Ruomu and see many things that we cannot see. Perhaps she can be of help on the journey to the Sacred Buddha Kingdom Cemetery.”

Miller held his AK47, took a sip of his drink, and seemed lost in thought.

A cloud of dust rose from beneath Saka, obscuring the sky and making the setting sun appear even darker. As the sun sank below the horizon, the dust gradually settled, and the famous Devil City once again stood atop the Gurbantunggut Desert, with no trace of Saka remaining.

They suddenly began to doubt whether everything they had just experienced had really happened in this city, or perhaps it was just a dream given to them by the scorching desert and the city of demons.

The sound of a car starting could be heard from afar. An SUV emerged from the last dust and headed toward the ruins of Mano.

Min Eun-joon sneered and said, "Drive the car over there and stop them."

Miller nodded, started the military off-road vehicle, accelerated, and chased after the two cars, kicking up a cloud of yellow dust.

Yin Li leaned out of the car window, watching the military off-road vehicle getting closer and closer, and said anxiously, "Situ, they're catching up!"

Situ Xiang frowned and slammed on the brakes. Yin Li and Qin Wen, who were sitting in the back, almost flew out of their seats. They shouted anxiously, "What are you doing?"

“This is the desert; there’s no way we can shake them off.” Situ Xiang stared straight ahead, his brow furrowed deeply, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly. Qin Wen was sweating profusely: “But they are, after all, the infamous mercenary group ‘Blood Wolves’!”

“The only way now is to form an alliance with them.” A sharp glint flashed in Situ Xiang’s eyes. “Their goal also seems to be the Sacred Buddhist Kingdom’s cemetery. We can only compromise for now and make other plans later.”

Yin Li shook her head uneasily: "Isn't this too risky? What if they don't want to form an alliance with us..."

“On the contrary, they really want to form an alliance with us.” Min Enjun’s car stopped behind the Hummer H1, and Situ Xiang solemnly instructed the two of them, “Stay in the car, and no matter what, never say I’m a policeman.”

The two girls nodded. Situ Xiang opened the car door, and as if he had thought of something, he turned around and kissed Yin Li on the cheek. Yin Li was stunned and saw his mischievous smile: "Maybe I won't come back. To die under the peony is to die romantically, at least I won't have any regrets."

Qin Wen watched him walk out, her lips twitching slightly, and said, "This sentence doesn't seem appropriate to be used here, does it?"

Yin Li couldn't utter a word, her face flushed red. Qin Wen rolled her eyes and shook her head helplessly—a happy woman indeed. She turned her head and looked at Caesar, who sat beside her like a fossil, her gaze becoming deep. Yin Li had said that being hit by the "Petrifying Mist" would seal off one's five senses, turning them into a living dead. They would automatically recover after three hours, but the chances of surviving until then without a mental breakdown were extremely slim.

Upon hearing this, Situ Xiang's expression changed several times. He demanded that she hand over all the medications, which he would keep for safekeeping. These items on her were practically murder weapons.

Yin Li raised her hand and touched the spot where Situ Xiang had just kissed her. A flutter ran through her heart. She couldn't quite describe her feelings. She just felt hot all over. She had never felt this way in the past twenty years.

However, this feeling doesn't seem bad.

The car door suddenly opened, and Situ Xiang, with a gloomy face, said, "Xiao Li, come with me."

Yin Li, who was lost in thought, finally came to her senses. Seeing his pale face, she asked with concern, "What's wrong? They won't agree?"

Situ Xiang gave her a reassuring smile: "Come with me, everything will be alright."

Yin Li nodded, took his hand, and got out of the car. When she saw that Min Eun-jun, Miller, and the other two were holding guns, her heart immediately started pounding. As soon as she met Min Eun-jun's gaze, she trembled uncontrollably.

She must have had a grudge against this person in her past life, otherwise why would such a strange fear emerge from the depths of her heart!

"Where is the map you mentioned?" Min Enjun asked coldly. Yin Li was taken aback. Map? What map? Situ Xiang smiled and said calmly, "Xiao Li, bring out that map. It's a sheepskin map of the Buddhist cemetery."

Yin Li suddenly realized his scheme and obediently took out the sheepskin that Duna had given her from her small bag, saying, "This is the map of the Buddhist Kingdom Cemetery."

Miller walked over, snatched the map from her hand, glanced at it, and said with a sinister look, "This is a map?"

"Only I can understand this map," Yin Li said quickly.

“That’s right,” Situ Xiang said. “It has a map of the Garuda Tower of the Dead drawn on it. The Tower of the Dead is a labyrinthine tower. Without the map, no one can get close to Garuda and the Triple Treasure Chest.”

Garuda's Tower of the Dead? Triple Treasure Chest?

Yin Li looked at Situ Xiang in surprise. How did he know all this? Why hadn't he told her before?

Suddenly, she felt that the man in front of her was very mysterious. All she knew was that he was a policeman and of mixed race; nothing else.

She smiled bitterly, realizing how little she knew about him.

Min Enjun held a famous Italian-made pistol in his hand. He walked over step by step with a smile on his face, then suddenly raised the gun and pointed it at Situ Xiang's forehead. Killing intent and anger overflowed from his body like a surging river, and the powerful impact made Yin Li gasp for breath.

“Since she’s the only one who can read maps, I only need to keep her. As for you…” the alluring man sneered, “you’re nothing but a burden!”

Yin Li was startled and stepped in front of him, saying slowly and deliberately, "If you kill him, I will commit suicide as well. I mean what I say! If you don't believe me, you can try!"

A complex expression flashed across Min Eun-joon's brow. He lowered his gun, leaned closer, and whispered in her ear, "Is this man really worth all this?"

Yin Li was startled. He turned to Miller and the other two and said, "I agree to form an alliance with them, and we'll split the profits 30/70 as we just agreed."

What...what does he mean? Yin Li was completely confused. This sentence seemed to come out of nowhere. What was he trying to say?

A pair of strong arms reached out from behind and hugged her. She trembled slightly and heard Situ Xiang say in her ear, "Xiao Li, don't be afraid, I will protect you."

Her heart warmed instantly. "I will protect you"—just five words, but a promise that made her want to cry. For someone like Situ Xiang, he would risk his life to keep his promise.

However, he was hiding many things from her. She had asked him at the gates of the Devil City why he insisted on going to the Sacred Buddhist Cemetery, even though Xiaowen had been rescued and the curse on her could be gradually lifted. He looked hesitant and guilty, and after a long time, he finally said it was to find the truth.

The truth from three years ago.

What earth-shattering thing happened in that eerie cemetery three years ago?

XIV. The Sole Survivor

The moon over the desert is frighteningly large.

Situ Xiang drove the car towards the direction of Venus. Yin Li and Qin Wen were both asleep on the cushions. Caesar was still staring blankly ahead. Looking in the rearview mirror, his dark blue eyes were empty.

Min Eun-joon's military vehicle followed closely behind. For some reason, the Korean man seemed to have been hostile towards him since their first meeting. Had he already discovered his identity?

If that's the case, then it's dangerous. He turned his head and looked at Yin Li in the passenger seat. Her sleeping face was gentle, and the moonlight shone in through the window, softly caressing her skin. His expression softened as well. This was the first time in twenty-six years that he had felt his heart flutter. Back in the police academy, there were female cadets who liked him, but he always felt that something was missing.

He thought he didn't understand love, but it turns out he just hadn't encountered it yet.

At that moment, he suddenly felt an urge to kiss her. Seeing no obstacles ahead, he turned and swiftly pecked her lips lightly before quickly resuming his focus on driving. Yin Li hummed in response, seemingly oblivious, and turned her head back to sleep. Situ Xiang could clearly hear his own heartbeat; his bronze skin flushed slightly. He gazed into the distance, where the horizon was filled with countless stars.

It was a beautiful night.

Qin Wen let out a long sigh in the back seat. This Situ Xiang, he's not young anymore, but he's like an innocent young man who has never been with a woman. And he's so handsome, it's really rare.

Just then, the walkie-talkie suddenly lit up. Situ Xiang frowned, brought it to his lips, and asked, "What is it?"

"Stop the car," Miller said succinctly.

Situ Xiang sensed the anxiety and anger in his tone. While trying to guess what had happened, he slammed on the brakes. Almost simultaneously, the car door burst open, and Miller abruptly pulled the still-sleeping Yin Li out of the car. The girl, startled awake, gasped and struggled to her feet on the sand. Looking at Miller's angry face, her heart skipped a beat: "What happened?"

Situ Xiang and Qin Wen both jumped out of the car and angrily shouted at Miller, who was dragging Yin Li toward the military off-road vehicle, "What are you trying to do?"

The car door was open, and Marshall and Hughes sat inside, their faces pale.

Miller shoved Yin Li into the car, and she stumbled, hitting the edge of the car hard, gasping in pain. Situ Xiang's expression changed, and he went over to help her up, saying fiercely, "Captain Miller, are you trying to break up my alliance with your employer?"

Miller gave him a cold look and said, "I just want her to see Marchie's wound."

A wound? Yin Li was stunned for a moment, climbed into the car, rolled up his trouser leg, and saw that the red line was still there, but the color was darker, and it had long since gone past the knee and was no longer inside the trouser leg.

Yin Li was shocked. How could this be? Wasn't that city already destroyed? Why hasn't this line disappeared yet?

“Where does the red line extend?” she asked.

Marcie gave a wry smile and said, "It's at the groin. Do you want to see it?"

Yin Li blushed: "No need."

"Why is this happening?" Hughes asked from the side. "Didn't you say that when the resentment disappears, the red thread will also disappear?"

"Unfortunately, the resentment hasn't disappeared." Qin Wen's voice came from behind. Yin Li looked at her strangely and said, "Didn't you say that after Caesar fired blanks at you, those corpses all passed away? Since they've already been reborn in the Pure Land of Bliss, how can there still be resentment?"

Qin Wen hesitated for a moment before recounting everything that had happened on the rooftop. Everyone listened with astonishment, and Yin Li's mouth gaped open, almost big enough to fit a chicken.

Did she hear that right? Qin Wen said that Kui Ji was her past life? Just half a month ago, she had experienced a memory of her past life, and now Xiao Wen was encountering her past life again. Could this Silk Road trip really be their destined journey to find their past lives?

Apart from Min Eun-jun and Eun Li, everyone else looked blank. They were not Buddhists and did not believe in past lives or reincarnation.