King of Tomb Raiders

Chapter 267

The passageway seemed to stretch endlessly forward, its size and color remaining unchanged.

"Where are we going? To 'Asian Gear'?" I continued the conversation, suppressing the turbulent emotions surging within me. Suren was with Asian Gear; if we could see the gears ahead, we would definitely see Suren. After being separated for so long, how could I not be excited when this nightmare was about to end?

He laughed: "What are you thinking?"

I calmly replied, "I'm thinking about what price I'll have to pay to cooperate with you on an equal footing."

There's no such thing as a free lunch, and the great god Tu Liehan wouldn't go to so much trouble to help me unless he needed something from me and we made an equal exchange.

His laughter stopped, and he gently pressed the side of the handrail. A beam of white light shot out, illuminating everything within a thirty-step radius ahead. The passageway remained deathly silent, showing no sign of human life.

"Wind, do you remember? I absorbed energy from crocodiles and golden vipers to transform into a monster with a human body and a crocodile head. Now, that energy is exhausted, which is why I've returned to my original form. That experience was like a brush with death; I'll never waste my life again. Therefore, I need the Asian Gear, the Earth's energy core—it's crucial to me. And you, you can definitely help me—"

I stared at his gray robe, nodded cautiously, and agreed.

"I found Suren for you. Whether you can save that girl depends on your own abilities. Feng, I've done my best. She's just ahead—" He raised his hand and pointed forward, slowly turning his wheelchair around and gliding back the way he came.

I froze for a few seconds, then suddenly sprinted forward, pushing my lightness skill to its absolute limit. My hands slammed against the stone wall as I swung, blood gushing out and splattering onto my face. But I didn't care about anything else; only one thought occupied my mind: "Forward, forward! Suren is just ahead!"

You only know how to cherish something after you've lost it. In the days and nights after receiving the news of Su Lun's disappearance, I would blame myself and feel inexplicably regretful almost every ten minutes.

I saw the light, as if I was about to reach the exit of the tunnel, when suddenly, my body crashed into a transparent crystal wall. My left shoulder, which hit the wall first, broke with a "crack," and my entire left arm went numb.

"Surren--" A furious roar accompanied by a mouthful of salty, metallic blood spurted out, instantly turning the two-meter-high, three-meter-wide crystal wall into a large, blood-stained red cloth. The wall was at least five meters thick, crystal clear, and completely unobstructed. Outside the wall was also a passageway, but it was quite shallow, only seven or eight meters long.

I felt a dozen or so hot currents surging and churning in my chest, threatening to rise to my throat every now and then. They were all the hot blood from my internal organs; if they were to spurt out, I would die of rage.

"Suren, I'm here. Don't be afraid, I'm coming to save you--" I pressed my lips tightly together, licked my palate with all my might, sealed my throat, and tried my best to control the rush of hot blood. I held onto the cold passageway on the side and sat cross-legged.

"I can't die... I can't die... I can't die..." It is precisely because of the disappearance of my elder brother Yang Tian and Su Lun that I have the endless motivation to keep searching. I have a responsibility to find them. Therefore, no matter what happens, I must live on strongly and never let my guard down.

The deep chill of the passageway provided me with an excellent environment to heal my wounds. My surging blood gradually calmed down, and I wiped the bloodstains off the wall with a flick of my sleeve. There was no one outside the wall, but from the exit of the passageway, I could see a spinning gear, about half a meter in diameter, rotating at least ninety revolutions per minute.

"Gears? Asian gears?" I sprang to my feet.

Where there are gears, there must be axles, but my position is exactly in front of the gears, and everything behind me is completely blocked, so I can't see anything.

The crystal wall was seamlessly integrated into the passageway, dividing it in two precisely just before the exit, and remained firmly in place. I searched the wall for several minutes, confirming that there were no nearby mechanisms that could move it, and immediately the thought of "explosives" came to mind. However, even the mighty Earth God couldn't break through the crystal wall, so what use would human explosives be?

Hundreds of breakthrough methods flashed through my mind the instant I hit the crystal wall. My thoughts raced too fast in that instant, which caused me to cough up blood.

Without a doubt, this wall is impenetrable. Compared to the expedition to drill into the Turkham Pyramid in the desert, this time the difficulty has increased by more than a hundred times. Having already suffered a setback at the sealed gate, I am keenly aware that in the face of these mysterious mechanisms beyond human control, I must break with conventional thinking in order to succeed.

I carefully wiped the crystal wall, leaving not a single bloodstain, to ensure it was as pure as new, allowing me to observe everything happening outside. It gave me the feeling of looking out through a porthole in a sealed deep-sea submarine—I could see everything, but I couldn't touch anything.

The gear kept turning, but to me, it just seemed to be spinning aimlessly, generating no power at all. Perhaps once we got past this wall, we could witness the mysterious "Asian Gear." Luckily, it was me standing here, not one of those scientists, like Goro Kanami, who were so eager to see the legendary "Asian Gear."

Only after I was certain that there was no point in staying there did I reluctantly return. By then, the fierce battle in the empty courtyard of the Epang Palace had long become irrelevant. The grudges of the Tang Clan, Tang Xin's past life, the alienated Tang Qing, and so on, were all forgotten. Only Su Lun's bitter smile with a frown flashed before my eyes.

She was originally happy and carefree. Even after the scalpel's sudden death, she didn't succumb to despair but instead devoted herself wholeheartedly to cleaning up the scalpel's belongings and searching for her elder brother, Yang Tian. It was my encounter, infatuation, entanglement, and obsession with Guan Baoling that caused Su Lun to be heartbroken.

I couldn't help but slap myself hard on the forehead, feeling extremely annoyed.

The journey back was still long. I had walked about a hundred steps, my steps were extremely heavy, and the scrapes on the back of my hands were throbbing. Suddenly, I felt a strange sensation on my back, as if a silent warm current was blowing in the wind. The crystal wall was incredibly tight; there couldn't possibly be any wind in the passageway. It must be some kind of illusion.

"Brother Feng, Brother Feng..." Su Lun's voice came to my ears.

In the whole world, only she would call me by those three words. In an instant, the image of her with her long, flowing hair, when we first met at Villa No. 13 flooded my mind.

"Suren?" I turned around abruptly, feeling dizzy, and could only lean against the stone wall to the side.

The light from outside the wall became extremely glaring, but I could vaguely see another person in my line of sight, with disheveled hair and arms waving frantically, frantically pounding on the wall. I steadied myself, and she stopped abruptly, her face pressed against the wall, staring blankly at me.

"Suren--" I shouted, my mind freezing for a moment, as if I were in a nightmare.

Against the backdrop of spinning gears, her waist appeared even more slender, like a willow branch, so delicate it could be grasped in one hand.

I ran forward, unable to utter a word, my mind blank, just desperately rushing towards that ball of light, like a moth struggling to fly into a raging fire.

With a "thud," I slammed uncontrollably against the wall, my forehead burning, and a thick liquid immediately trickled down my nose. Standing opposite me was indeed Suren, her cheeks glistening with wet tears, her dark eyes also submerged in bright, glistening tears.

The crystal wall blocked out all sound, and we looked at each other face to face, smiling through our tears.

She was dressed in a black sheepskin hunting outfit, with a delicate silver chain around her neck and a heavy ruby pendant hanging down her chest. Li Kang had described to me in detail the clothes Suren wore before her disappearance; it was this very outfit, designed by the famous Cairo fashion designer, Katalan, and it was the first Christmas gift I gave her.

Suren was an extremely clean girl who never wore the same clothes for three consecutive days in Cairo. But now, trapped in the bizarre world of the "Asian Gear," who would help her change? Although she couldn't see any signs of snow on the other side, the temperature was plummeting at night in this kind of weather. How would she sleep? And where would she sleep?

As I gazed at her, my heart felt completely empty, without a trace of Guan Baoling. I longed to open my arms, embrace her, warm her, and bring a smile to her lips.

A wall separates us into two worlds, but at least we can see each other.

"Suren--" I screamed with all my might, pounding my fists against the transparent wall, blood splattering and staining the wall with spots of plum blossoms. Even though I knew she couldn't hear me, I kept screaming until my throat was dry and hoarse, and I could no longer make a sound.

She looked at me with tears in her eyes, then helplessly collapsed against the crystal wall, tears streaming down her face.

At this moment, we, who had once risked our lives in the Egyptian desert and were revered in the martial arts world as "invincible warriors" and "invincible heroines" in the eyes of others, were simultaneously plunged into overwhelming grief and sorrow.

My echo still lingers in the passageway. If the great god Tu Liehan could miraculously save Suren from behind the crystal wall, I would agree to any condition, including my own life.

A piercing pain shot through my forehead, the back of my hands, and my shoulders. Suddenly, a thought struck me. I dipped my finger in my own blood and quickly wrote her name on the wall: "Suren, I miss you. Don't worry, I'll definitely get you out."

The words were reflected backwards, but she only glanced at them before nodding vigorously.

The second line I wrote was: "Suren, I'm sorry, I will never leave you again, neither as a person nor in my heart."

Countless times I've dreamt of her escaping danger and returning, holding her hand, repeating those two sentences over and over again. Now, seeing her in person, the first thing I want to do is let her know the truth.

Her tears flowed even more profusely, leaving two shallow streaks on her cheeks. In this environment, washing her face and putting on makeup became unattainable fantasies; it was the first time in my life I had seen her so disheveled.

This was a meeting I had never imagined. Seeing her yet unable to hold her hand, and unable to remove this transparent yet heavy barrier, my vision blurred rapidly.

She bit her fingertip and wrote three words in a flowing, elegant style, then added a neat question mark at the end.

Those three words were "Guan Baoling," and they were the origin of the separation between Su Lun and me, who went our separate ways. If she hadn't brought it up again, perhaps I would have forgotten that girl and never remembered her again.

I paused, wiped the blood from my face, bit my middle finger, and solemnly wrote: "Ten thousand Guan Baolings are no match for one Su Lun. I will never let you down again in this life." Writing these words felt like a huge burden had been lifted from my heart. On the scales of my emotions, only "Su Lun" remained, the sole bargaining chip that no one else could match.

She tilted her head to look at the words, a shy blush suddenly appearing on her face. After pondering for a few seconds, she replied with a big "Okay".

It was only then that I remembered we were both fluent in lip reading, and I immediately "spoke" to her: "What happened over there? Is there any danger?"

The first step is to ensure her safety. The six-armed monster is incredibly powerful, and she is no match for it.

"I've reached the 'Asian Gear,' there's no danger, but all the tunnel exits are blocked, I can't get out," she replied in lip reading.

I nodded. "Go on."

She wiped away her tears with her sleeve, and her lips moved fluently: "I entered here through the magnetic field. Without a doubt, this is the place my master, Guan Nan Wulang, has been searching for his entire life. This is an incredibly vast space, and the 'Asian Gear' is a giant three-dimensional gear set, like an irregular sphere, its lower half deeply embedded in the mountain. I see countless gears operating simultaneously, but I can't find the power driving them, nor any way to output that power. Brother Feng, my master's theory of 'gravity-free magnetic field' is completely correct. Actions like 'going up, going down, moving forward, and moving backward' in a physical sense are not the key to entering the 'Asian Gear,' but rather the 'opportunity' of time's operation in a multidimensional world."

I have read all of Guan Nan Wulang's works. Many international physics experts have criticized his "gravity-free magnetic field" theory as heresy, saying that such a contradictory environment can never be created on Earth.

"Since you were able to enter by following the 'opportunity' of time, isn't there a way back?" I just wanted to reassure her. Anyone with a little physics knowledge knows that the entrance to a multidimensional world is not fixed, but changes every second, following a certain law that only a supercomputer team can calculate.

All entrances and exits are one-way and cannot be controlled manually.

The second part, Asian Gears, Chapter Nine: The Big Seven is coming soon.

"I can't find it, but my master will definitely find a way." She brushed aside her long hair, which was wet with tears, and smiled with unwavering confidence. As Guan Nan Goro's last disciple, her understanding and respect for her teacher surpassed that of the dozens of senior students who had entered the school before her.

I also felt hopeful. Asking Guan Nan Wulang for help was much easier than making a deal with the great god Tu Liehan. Moreover, the information I received before entering the golden egg was that Guan Nan Wulang and his eldest disciple had already set off for the southwestern border, with the purpose of searching for and rescuing Su Lun.

“We can sit down and talk slowly—” she smiled, regaining her composure from the mix of joy and sorrow. This was the calm and collected Suren I knew before.

The bluestone floor was cool, but we had completely forgotten about that. I told her everything that had happened since I came from Hokkaido, and whenever I encountered an unfamiliar name, I had to repeatedly match my lip movements. She listened very carefully, sometimes smiling and nodding, sometimes frowning and thinking.

After I finished my narration, she pointed to her forehead: "I'm thinking, Miss Gu Qingcheng came prepared; her purpose is definitely not as simple as just a top-quality guqin. My walls and ceiling here are inlaid with thousands of seven-stringed guqin, each engraved with a red seal, fingerprint, and the names of the maker and collector. If her goal were all the guqin, that would be understandable, but my master said that those who reach the 'Asian Gear,' no matter what excuse they use to disguise it, cannot escape their inherent greed—"

I couldn't help but open my mouth and silently ask, "And what about him? What is Master Guan Nan Wu Lang's purpose?"

I'm not the only one with this question; prominent figures from the American Federation of Physical Scientists have also questioned him in joint debates. At least those brilliant Americans don't believe that Goro Kanan, a Japanese man, would have anything to do with global peace.

"Maintaining peace, ensuring the healthy development of the Earth's environment, and preventing control of the 'Asian Gear' from falling into the hands of unscrupulous people." These were all high-sounding political platitudes, but coming from Suren, they were at least somewhat bearable.

She suddenly remembered something: "What about Schiller? Is he alright?"

That poor American biologist is still in a coma, and that's the only thing I can tell her.

“When we got close to the magnetic field, he was thrown out by the whirlwind. He was just one step away from coming in with me.” She touched the ruby on her chest and shook her head apologetically.

At this moment, we have no time to lament the misfortunes of others; the most important thing is to carry out effective rescue measures.

“Be careful, I’ll go negotiate with the Great God Tu Liehan. With his wisdom and ability, he can definitely—” I realized I had used the word “definitely” too many times, and I sadly stopped myself. In this world, even something as simple as “one plus one equals two” can change. I really shouldn’t have made so many promises to Suren.

"Be careful too, Brother Feng, I'll be waiting for you." She waved with a smile.

I turned around, quietly wiping away the tears from the corners of my eyes, and strode back, feeling the warmth of Su Lun's gaze on my back. At that moment, I truly didn't want to part with her, afraid that if I turned back, I would miss her forever, never to see her again.

Reaching the end of the passageway, I forced myself to calm down and meticulously analyzed the current predicament—"If Alpha cannot open the 'Sealed Gate,' then the path to the cave at the end of the Epang Palace is blocked. The 'Earth Veins' are under the control of the Great God Tu Liehan. If we can help him obtain energy, with Saturn's advanced technology, we might be able to try to break through the Crystal Wall barrier. Weighing the two options, relying on the Great God Tu Liehan is the best course of action."

After crying, laughing, and experiencing mixed feelings of joy and surprise, I am still Yang Feng, whom everyone looks down upon, and the only younger brother of Yang Tian, the "King of Tomb Raiders." Just like the scalpel that made a name for itself in Africa over the past decade, the only person I truly admire is my eldest brother.

The metal door slid open automatically, presumably revealing a hidden surveillance camera in the passageway, providing a clear view of everything.

I went inside, and Mei Yingxue greeted me: "The master invites you in."

She still carried that long sword on her back, like a traveler on a long journey who would never put down his personal baggage.

The Great God Tu Liehan was not in the main hall. Mei Yingxue led the way to a small door on the side and suddenly muttered to herself, "A man does not easily shed tears, only when he is moved."

My face flushed slightly; she must have seen everything that happened when Suren and I looked at each other on the monitor.

“That wall is very difficult to open. The owner has already tried hundreds of methods, including condensation, thermal melting, electromagnetic decomposition, and sharp impact, but none of them have worked. Therefore, we can only try to find a solution outside of geophysical theories. We must not waste any more effort.” Mei Yingxue sighed sadly.

A tall, thin man in a gray robe strode over from the opposite side, raising his right hand high: "Mr. Feng, it's nice to see you again, old friend." He had a tired smile on his face, but he was still in good spirits, and his eyes still shone brightly beneath his gray eyebrows.

That was Elder Sahan, revered by the Egyptian people, but now he is a follower of the god Turkhan, and is detached from worldly affairs.

Mei Yingxue turned and left, leaving only Elder Sahan and me in the dark corridor.

"Mr. Feng, shall I get straight to the point? The battle outside continues, and we must break through the 'earth veins' to enter the world above. Therefore, the master needs your wisdom to help us break the 'Heavenly Spinning Dragon Control Array.' We desperately need energy! Indeed, there's not much time to waste."

He looked younger than he had in the Egyptian desert, and his eyes burned with fierce fighting spirit.

I pondered the situation as I looked down at the empty courtyard with Tang Xin. We only needed to use half of our energy to deal with the poisonous insects. If Alpha applied the power of the crystals to the formation, it would immediately gain an absolute advantage, instantly making up for all the shortcomings of the formation and increasing its destructive power tenfold or a hundredfold.

“It is almost impossible to break through - unless a dozen people are willing to sacrifice themselves to lure the setter out, and then the reserve forces attack together. If necessary, they can even force the opponent to fall into the ‘earth veins’ and attack with the ‘favorable timing, geographical advantage, and popular support’ that our side has occupied in advance in the darkness.”

This is my personal opinion; the chances of the dozen or so people used as bait surviving are extremely slim, and I'm afraid no one would be that foolish.

Elder Sahan said "Oh," and pointed to a room with a light on to the side: "Please come this way, and I will listen to your guidance." His attitude was very humble; he was no longer the tribal elder who held sway over the desert, but more like a workaholic obsessed with scientific verification.

I shook my head: "Elder Sahan, I want to see the great god Tuli Khan."

Attacking Alpha's defense system wasn't my responsibility. If we can all reach a bloodless reconciliation, that would be the best outcome. I always felt that the six-armed monster imprisoned by the sealed gate was the common enemy. Now, I urgently need to find a way to rescue Suren; whether it's radical or slow, I must first devise a plan.

“The master is resting and doesn’t want to see anyone for the time being. Let’s discuss this first, and then submit a suitable plan to him, shall we?” Elder Sahan looked up at me, and a pair of azure lights began to gleam deep in his eyes.

I laughed: "There's nothing to discuss between us. I'm not a scalpel, and I have no interest in Egyptian culture. Elder Sahan, so many things happened in the desert last time; many scores can be settled later. Now, I wish to see the Great God Turkhan. Please inform him of this—"