The Complete Collection of Yellow River Ghost Coffins

Chapter 27

Is there really something inside this tent? But there's a coffin under the tent. Could it be that the dead can really come back to life?

Just as I was locked in a stalemate with what was inside the tent, I clearly saw a black shadow rising from the tent under the light of the girl's flashlight.

Startled by the sudden appearance of the shadow, I screamed and, without thinking, swung my sword with all my might. At the same time, the young master's bamboo arrow rang out with a "bang" and shot fiercely towards the shadow.

The moment the young master released his bamboo arrow, the black shadow vanished. The bronze sword in my hand suddenly felt lighter; having been pulled back with all my might, the sudden release of its grip caused me to lose my balance and stumble back several steps before regaining my footing. I was filled with shock, anger, and panic. What exactly was that shadow?

Although it was just a fleeting moment, I could still see clearly that the shadow was definitely not a human shadow; it seemed to be some kind of animal.

"Old Xu, what is that?" the young master asked in a low voice as he came closer.

I rolled my eyes at him. To be honest, I was terrified. How was I supposed to know what that was? Startled by his commotion, I swung my sword, tearing a large gash in the already decaying tent. The girl shone her flashlight on it, and we could vaguely see that the tent was just a decoy, covering the tent. There seemed to be nothing inside, but beneath the tent was a bronze coffin.

The girl looked terrified and whispered, "Brother Xu, didn't that shadow just now look like a fox?"

"What?" I exclaimed in surprise, suddenly remembering that we had been framed by a fox in the tomb of King Liu Qu of Guangchuan, which led to our current predicament. Now, we don't even know what kind of tomb we're in. Could it be that the fox has been following us all this way?

Of course, we can't completely rule out the possibility of the fox. After all, Liu Qu has been dead for over a thousand years, and the tomb we're facing now, judging from its appearance, seems to date back to the Western Zhou Dynasty, many years BC. The tomb's occupant must be dead beyond any doubt. So, besides us three uninvited intruders, the only living creature in this tomb is that fox.

"Damn it..." I licked my dry lips and cursed angrily. But it was precisely because of this that my anger rose, and I walked towards the tent again, not caring about damaging the artifacts, and swung the ancient bronze sword in my hand.

The ancient bronze sword, capable of easily severing even the black iron chains over the pool, naturally fell easily when used to cut this tent, which had already decayed to ashes. With several swift strokes, I cleared the tent from the coffin, finally revealing the true face of the bronze coffin inside.

To my surprise, I had assumed the cunning beast was hiding inside the tent, but now that I had removed all the tent covering the coffin, there was only a bronze coffin, about two meters long and one meter wide, inside. Nothing else.

The bronze coffin was naturally sealed; if the shadow inside the tent was indeed the Lone Fox, it would have nowhere to hide. But where has it gone now? Could it be that the fox, having absorbed the life force of the dead underground for a thousand years, has truly become a spirit?

Just then, the young master and the maid also came over. The maid said, "This tomb should be related to Liu Qu's tomb in some way, right?" As she spoke, she boldly shone her flashlight on the four bronze figures kneeling on the ground, holding up the coffin with their hands.

That girl is really a weirdo. She's terrified, yet her curiosity is so strong. I've never understood why she had to study archaeology. Now, seeing her like this, I understand. When she sees ancient tombs, it's like a weasel seeing a fat hen, or a lecher seeing a naked beauty—she's absolutely obsessed.

The girl glanced at the four bronze figures carrying the coffin, then held up her flashlight to look at the bronze coffin hidden by the curtain. After a long while, she asked, "Brother Xu, what era do you think this coffin is from?"

"Western Zhou Dynasty!"

Without a second thought, the young master and I both affirmed in unison that the coffin was also made of bronze, bearing the same thunder patterns and bird-script designs as the bird-shaped vessel and bronze figures we had just seen, clearly indicating that it was from the same period. However, I couldn't understand why, generally speaking, coffins are placed steadily on the ground, with four bronze figures kneeling and supporting it with their hands.

The young master said that people in ancient times were a bit psychologically abnormal and liked to abuse slaves. Therefore, even after death, they would not let go of those lowly slaves, making them kneel and carry their coffins.

I thought to myself that although the young master was talking nonsense, it might actually be true. So I simply watched the bronze figures carrying the coffin while also examining the enormous bronze coffin. The bronze coffin was also carved with beautiful thunder patterns, as well as some bird-script characters, which unfortunately we couldn't understand. The coffin lid was secured with bronze latches on all four sides, locking the entire coffin tightly. Opening the coffin without resorting to force would probably not be an easy task.

I was still worried about that beastly fox, so I searched everywhere for its trail. Strangely enough, that damned beast had vanished without a trace. I knew it was injured, but after searching for a while, even checking the bronze coffin, I found no trace of blood.

The young master asked me, "Should we open the coffin?" I hesitated for a moment and asked the maid for her opinion. To my surprise, the usually timid maid actually said directly, "Open it. There's something wrong with this bronze coffin."

I was puzzled. If they knew there was something wrong with the bronze coffin, why open it at all? Were they just looking for trouble? Our goal right now was to get out of there as soon as possible. I voiced my thoughts, but to my surprise, the young master and maid both objected. The young master said, "How can we leave empty-handed after entering a treasure mountain?"

The maid was even more amazing, saying she had a premonition that this coffin was definitely related to Liu Qu, the King of Guangchuan.

For a fleeting moment, I felt like banging my head against a wall and dying. I could understand a greedy young master, but a girl, based on a feeling? What kind of feeling is this? Anyone who knows even a little history knows that this bronze coffin is definitely a product of the Western Zhou Dynasty, while Liu Qu was a person from the Western Han Dynasty. There is at least a thousand years between them.

A thousand years—I don't know what that means, but I do know that humanity hasn't invented an elixir of immortality. Therefore, no one can live a thousand years, whether they were the lowest slave in the Western Zhou Dynasty or the noblest emperor; they would all have turned into a pile of decaying bones. How is something from the Western Zhou Dynasty connected to the Western Han Dynasty?

This Jiulongkeng is a geomantically auspicious site, and there must have been more than one person who coveted it, so it's not surprising that the tombs here are connected. But to say that these Western Zhou bronze coffins are related to Liu Qu of the Western Han Dynasty is simply unbelievable to me.

In the brief moment I hesitated, the young master had already put on gas-resistant plastic gloves and was trying hard to pry open the bronze clasps on the bronze coffin. But these clasps were likely disposable; once fastened, they were virtually impossible to open. Therefore, despite his immense effort, the young master couldn't pry one open.

Seeing this, I felt helpless. I raised the ancient bronze sword and slashed directly at one of the bronze clasps. With a "crack," the bronze sword sliced through the clasp as easily as cutting tofu, leaving a deep gash in the bronze coffin. I was speechless with astonishment. I knew this ancient bronze sword was incredibly sharp, but I never imagined it would be so powerful.

The young master stared at me in disbelief for a long time before finally saying, "Old Xu, be careful, this is a treasure, a divine artifact..."

I rolled my eyes at him, then, with an air of smugness, I lowered the bronze sword and said, "Fine, I won't use the divine weapon anymore, you go ahead..."

The young master looked at the bronze coffin, then at me, and after a long while finally said helplessly, "Old Xu, don't be silly, this... I can't open it!"

I couldn't help but laugh. Of course, if we were to rob such a large imperial tomb, we'd need specialized tools. But firstly, we were novices, and secondly, we had prepared tools, only to lose them all in the water. All that was left were ropes, the young master's crossbow and bamboo arrows, a flashlight, and other small items. Trying to open such a large coffin was simply a pipe dream.

By sheer chance, I acquired this ancient bronze sword. I know in my heart it's a divine artifact, but if I take it out of the tomb, can I really protect it? Even if I don't take it out, I can't bear to leave it in the tomb forever. So, I might as well take advantage of this opportunity and use it while I can. Even if I accidentally destroy it, I won't be heartbroken, since it wasn't originally mine anyway.

I raised the ancient bronze sword and swung it several times at the bronze clasps around the coffin, severing them all. This ancient bronze sword was truly a divine weapon; I easily cut through such sturdy bronze clasps, while the bronze sword remained completely unharmed. I looked at the flashlight in the girl's hand; its cold light was still blinding, almost making it impossible to see through.

I was puzzled. Why was there no record of such a magical artifact in history? I sheathed my sword, handed the bronze ancient sword to the maid beside me, and took out plastic gas gloves. I called the young master to join me, and the two of us worked together to forcefully push open a crack in the bronze coffin.

The maidservant also hurried over with her flashlight, eager to see what was going on. But what we saw left both the young master and me dumbfounded. Although we knew that ancient burial customs required both a coffin and an outer coffin, facing such a sturdy bronze coffin, we both sincerely hoped that it contained an ancient corpse and that there wasn't any other coffin inside.

However, things didn't go as planned. From the opened bronze coffin, we could see that there was another white jade coffin inside, and its color and appearance were the same as the coffin we had just seen in the tomb of King Liu Qu of Guangchuan.

The young master and I struggled quite a bit, flashlight in hand, just about to peer closer to see what was going on, before finally managing to push open the bronze coffin lid completely. The maid, flashlight in hand, was about to peer closer to see what was happening when suddenly, a dark figure leaped out from under the heavy bronze coffin and lunged at the maid. Startled, the maid instinctively raised the ancient bronze sword I had just handed her and swung it at the figure. At the same time, the young master, without even having time to grab his crossbow, flung a bamboo arrow like a martial arts master from a wuxia drama.

I was taken aback. When would this reckless young master learn to be a little more careful? Does he really think he's some kind of martial arts master or hero? His arrows are always on target; what if he accidentally hurts the girl?

With a clang, the bronze sword in the girl's hand fell to the ground. I immediately had a bad feeling; the two attacks I had just been subjected to were both aimed at this bronze sword. Now that the dark figure had attacked the girl, its target was undoubtedly the same bronze sword.

Instinctively, I rolled to the ground and lunged towards the bronze sword. The dark figure, which we hadn't even clearly seen what it was, moved even faster than I could towards the sword. Originally, I still held a sliver of awe for the creatures of this ancient tomb, but now, to survive, I couldn't care less. Seeing the dark figure approach to snatch the bronze sword, I slammed my body heavily onto it, simultaneously raising my fist and punching the figure.

But the shadowy figure was incredibly cunning. With a nimble twist, it dodged my fist and lunged at the bronze sword again. In that instant, I could clearly see that the pointed snout, the red eyes, and the silvery-white fur—wasn't it the white fox we'd seen up there?

With incredible speed, I drew the ancient bronze sword with a clang. A flash of cold light, and I swung it down directly at the fox demon's head.

The white fox demon had naturally suffered at the hands of this ancient bronze sword. Now, seeing that I had already drawn the sword, it knew it had lost its best opportunity to seize it. It couldn't help but take a few steps back, glaring at me menacingly. Its two bright red fox eyes revealed an eerie and ferocious light, indescribably strange.

The young master had already raised his crossbow and bamboo arrows, protecting the maid. The flashlight was still in the maid's hand, but its dim yellow beam was now aimed at the white fox demon. Like a spotlight on a stage, it made the white fox, already eerily unsettling, appear even more ghostly.

Holding the ancient bronze sword, I slowly stood up from the ground, glaring fiercely at the white fox demon, and approached it step by step with my sword raised.

Damn it, a stone tree, a bronze coffin, and a wild fox under the tree. What the hell was the tomb owner thinking? Of all the things that could be put in a tomb, why a live fox? Wasn't he afraid the fox would get hungry and eat his corpse?

The beast was probably afraid of me; seeing me advancing step by step with the ancient bronze sword in hand, it actually took a few steps back. But at that moment, the young master's bamboo arrow, which had been waiting for this moment, shot out at the white fox demon with a "whoosh".

I wasn't seeing things; I clearly saw a dark, shadowy figure appear before the white fox demon. It looked like a blurry human figure, seemingly the same black shadow that had attacked us earlier, blocking its path. And the young master's bamboo arrow pierced right through that black shadow.

The black shadowy figure writhed in the light of the girl's flashlight. Then, right before our eyes, it vanished like a wisp of smoke!

As the dark shadow vanished, the white fox spirit also disappeared without a trace, as if it had never existed at all.

I took a deep breath, feeling a dull ache in my lungs. What the hell was this damned beast? All three of us understood that in this dark, ancient tomb, how could we possibly treat a fox as an ordinary one?

In fact, I'd rather encounter monsters in an ancient tomb than something so ghostly. The fox, from head to toe, exuded an evil aura.

The young master and maid had already walked up to me and asked in a low voice, "Old Xu, what do you think we should do?"

What should we do? Now that the beast has run away, our business is still to open the coffin and make our fortune. Originally, I didn't really want to open this bronze coffin, but ever since that white fox demon appeared, I don't know why, but I have a very strong urge to open it, which I can't even explain myself.

The girl said that the fox demon must still be hiding somewhere, trying to ambush us. I said fiercely that if it came again, I would chop off its head with my sword and pluck its fox skin to make clothes for the girl. In fact, I said this on purpose; I always felt that the beast seemed to understand us, which was really strange.

The beast appeared so suddenly that we didn't have time to see what the coffin inside looked like. It wasn't until now, under the light of the girl's flashlight, that I was able to carefully examine the white jade coffin inside the bronze coffin.

I can't be sure if this is jade. Judging from its material, it seems to be the same material as the white jade platform we just saw on the pool, but it is not as fine as the white jade platform. It feels a bit like a low-quality product.

The girl shone a flashlight around and frowned, saying, "This is definitely not the emperor's tomb."

I was puzzled and asked her what proof she had. You see, this tomb was not only a massive project, but also magnificent in scale and grand in appearance. I had always thought it was the tomb of some emperor from the Western Zhou Dynasty, but now that the girl had said so, I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

Chapter Nine: Cuckoo in the Nest

The girl said that judging from the size of the coffin inside, it should be the tomb owner, and there would definitely be no other coffin inside. The Western Zhou Dynasty valued elaborate burials, and if it was the tomb of the emperor, it would definitely have four layers of coffins.

I said that wasn't quite right either. While imperial tombs did indeed have four layers of coffins, the methods varied across dynasties. Who could guarantee this wasn't shoddy workmanship? The young master entered this field much later and knows less than I do, so naturally he has no right to speak. However, his ignorance is a relief. So, he hastily tightened his clothes, put on plastic respirators, and groped around the coffin, then said, "Instead of wasting your time researching, why don't you just open it up and see for yourselves?"

My daughter and I both chuckled. Thinking about it, it makes sense; it would be so much easier to just open it and take a look.

But then another problem arose. Just now, the coffin was secured with copper clasps; breaking the clasps would have made opening the lid. But now, this white jade coffin was inside a bronze coffin, and judging by its appearance, it was perfectly sealed. Opening it wouldn't be an easy task. I gripped the bronze sword in one hand and reached inside with the other, feeling around. Thankfully, there was a thin gap where the lid met the coffin.

The gap was sealed with some kind of ointment-like substance. Normally, according to the Nanpaizi's method, there would be special tools to open such a stone coffin, but we had nothing now. Helpless, I could only insert the ancient bronze sword into the gap of the stone coffin.

"Hiss..." Suddenly, a hissing sound, like a car tire puncturing, came from inside the white jade coffin. I was startled and quickly saw the bronze sword being pulled back. I turned my face to look at the maid and the young master.

To my surprise, the maid and the young master were also looking at me. I quickly calmed myself and whispered, "There's something strange inside the coffin..."

The young master sneered, "It would be strange if there wasn't something strange inside a coffin like this! No matter how strange it is, we have to open it and see." I nodded in agreement. "Damn it, whatever it is, since we're here, we have to open it and see what's inside."

Suddenly, the girl said, "Wait, Brother Xu, something seems wrong..."

I said, "Is something wrong?" The girl looked at the white jade coffin inside the bronze coffin and remained silent for a long time. After a while, she finally said, "Brother Xu, when you pushed the coffin lid open just now, I felt something was off. I felt like this stone coffin was missing something. Now I understand."

I froze. Something was missing from this stone coffin. After all, this coffin was already the normal size, definitely not meeting the standard for a four-tiered imperial tomb. But, as the girl had just said, who could really distinguish things from ancient times? Historical records might be wrong. And now she said something was missing, but I couldn't find it.

The girl circled the bronze coffin and whispered, "Brother Xu, Brother Li, look, the outside of this bronze coffin is carved with beautiful patterns and bird-script characters, but the white jade coffin inside is completely blank and so smooth that it doesn't make sense."

I said that perhaps the craftsmen cut corners, and there is another possibility: the bronze coffin was the first layer, the outer one, which naturally had to be magnificent, with carvings of bird seal script and thunder patterns, but the white jade coffin inside could not be seen at all unless the outer bronze coffin was opened, so there was no need to carve any patterns on it.

The girl rolled her eyes at me and asked, "Do you want your coffin to be opened after you die?"

Although the girl's question was extremely rude, I wasn't angry. I couldn't help but think to myself, "That's right. No matter who it is, they wouldn't expect their coffin to be opened, would they? So, the patterns and bird-script carvings on the surface of the coffin are definitely not for others to see, but rather to comfort the deceased."

Based on this reasoning, the innermost coffin should be more magnificent. However, this bronze coffin is the opposite; the outer coffin is exceptionally magnificent, while the interior is quite ordinary.

The girl said she was certain that the white jade coffin inside was definitely not the original pair with the bronze coffin outside.

I was startled. What kind of talk was this? Did coffins represent human couples, with the concept of a "first spouse"? The young master was even more bewildered, and we both looked at the girl with suspicion and uncertainty.

The girl thought for a moment and explained that the material of this white jade coffin was made to closely resemble the material of the platform on the pool we had just discovered, but they were ultimately different. The material of this white jade coffin was indeed one in a million, extremely good, but it still couldn't compare to the white jade platform on the pool, nor could it compare to the material of the dragon coffin at the bottom of the Yellow River.

However, judging from the patterns and bird-script characters on the bronze coffin, it is clearly from the same period as the bronze human figures on the pond. Could it be that the tomb owner actually put the cart before the horse, using the best materials not for his own coffin, but to build a high platform to bury his sword?

After the girl said that, I felt it made perfect sense. No matter how much the tomb owner cared about his precious sword, he would never value it more than himself. The burial platform for the sword was made of top-quality materials, while his own coffin was of inferior quality—that simply didn't make sense.

The young master and I stared intently at the maid, hoping for further explanation.

The girl thought for a moment and then said that the reason for this situation was that the owner of the tomb had changed.

Upon hearing this, the young master and I stood frozen in disbelief, completely unable to move. The tomb's owner had changed hands? What did that mean?

The entire underground tomb chamber fell into a deathly silence. In this extreme stillness, a faint hissing sound, like air leaking out, emanated from within the white jade coffin once more. The sound was soft; one might not hear it unless listening carefully, but it was unmistakably present.

The young master's face changed, and he looked at me with a look of horror, asking, "Old Xu, what is that sound? It sounds like breathing."

The young master's words startled me. I listened carefully, and the hissing sound really did sound a bit like human breathing...

If coffins are the prerogative of the dead, then breathing seems to be the prerogative of the living. Isn't that what humans fight for—just that one breath? But now, breathing sounds are emanating from within coffins, which should belong to the dead. What does that mean? A living person?

There was a living person inside the coffin! I involuntarily took a big step back, looking at the white jade coffin with fear. But to my surprise, the girl who was usually the most timid was now surprisingly bold. She stepped into the white jade coffin and said, "Brother Xu, don't worry about that. Open the coffin. I want to see if anyone would actually usurp someone else's place, even fighting over a dead person's grave?"

"What did you say?" I asked the girl, puzzled.

The maid shook her head silently, only gesturing for me and the young master to open the coffin. The young master and I, utterly useless, were terrified by the hissing sounds coming from inside the coffin and refused to open it, only wanting to leave as quickly as possible. The maid, exasperated, explained that the stone coffin was originally sealed, but my thrusting of the bronze sword inside had caused a leak; it couldn't possibly be human breathing. She had seen similar situations before, and once opened, she guaranteed there would be nothing but a dead body.

We both knew the girl was making it all up, just trying to comfort us two cowards. If that were true, she would have said it already, wouldn't she? But the question is, why is the girl so determined to open the coffin? Has her dedication to archaeological research kicked in again?

The young master obeyed the maid's every command, and I couldn't disobey either of them, so I could only plunge the bronze sword back into the coffin and scrape away the grease sealing the coffin and the coffin lid along the seam. Then, the young master busied himself finding a small iron rod in his backpack and forcefully inserted it into the coffin lid.

Fearing I might damage the ancient bronze sword, I quickly pulled out an iron rod, inserted it into the coffin lid, and together with the young master, we strained, shouting, "One, two, three..."

However, the white jade coffin lid was much heavier than I had imagined. We exerted tremendous effort and only managed to budge it slightly. My shoulder was injured, and with this exertion, the wound reopened. The pain caused my arm to go weak, and my strength involuntarily diminished. Naturally, the young master couldn't budge the coffin lid by himself, and with a "bang," the lid slammed shut again.

"Damn, it's heavy!" the young master complained, shaking his arm.

I gave a helpless, bitter smile. "My stomach hasn't had anything to eat in ages, how could I possibly pry this open?"