Salle de classe 407

Chapitre 19

As dawn broke, Yin Li led Qin Wen back to the tent. The members of the archaeological team went back to restore the various artifacts they had unearthed. However, the shadow of being trapped in the desert still loomed over everyone's hearts like a dark cloud.

The bodies of Shan Hu and Guo Tong were placed in the ruins of the temple. Because it was difficult to preserve bodies in the desert, they could only be buried under the sand. Yin Li stood by and watched the burial. She felt sad and ridiculous. Two people with such different backgrounds and experiences, who were even enemies in life, were buried together in death, their hands touching, like brothers.

The atmosphere within the archaeological team grew increasingly oppressive; the fear of death had made everyone somewhat neurotic. According to the murals in the main burial chamber, there should have been another victim, beheaded. No one wanted to be that decapitated person, so at night they huddled in their tents, afraid to venture out.

There were still only the two of them in Yin Li's tent. She gave Qin Wen medicine, and Qin Wen kept sweating. The sweat was mixed with a black substance, which stained the blanket under her black.

Yin Li wiped her sweat and fed her water. The water they brought was almost gone. She was worried when she heard the curtain rustle and Situ Xiang came in.

“It’s you.” Yin Li glanced at him, a strange emotion welling up inside her. “What are you doing here?”

Situ Xiang said nothing, put down a large water bottle and walked out of the tent. Yin Li picked up the water bottle, which was full and heavy in her hand.

Her heart was filled with warmth. She turned and chased after him out of the tent, saying, "Situ, I want to talk to you."

"What do you want to talk to me about?" The two walked out of the camp and onto a small sand dune. The moonlight was just right, making their faces look pale and dull.

"Who do you think... is the murderer?" Yin Li asked, looking at him.

Situ Xiang fell silent. He sensed something unsettling in her eyes, something that made him vaguely uneasy. "What are you trying to say?"

"I believe you've also noticed that the only people capable of killing the mountain tiger are you, Jack, and Lao Si," Yin Li said slowly. "Of course, Xiao Wen also has the ability, but given her poisoning condition, the possibility that she is the murderer is extremely slim."

"What exactly are you trying to say?" Situ Xiang frowned. He didn't like her tone of voice, that self-righteous tone, as if she could see through everything.

Yin Li looked into his eyes, those icy green eyes even more dazzling and captivating in the moonlight: "Situ, I've always been concerned about something. That day you said something very strange, something that I couldn't understand at all, and it even made me have almost crazy speculations."

Situ Xiang was taken aback, a hint of anger and killing intent flashing in his eyes. Yin Li laughed, her smile as bright and clear as moonlight.

39. Sleepwalking

When Yin Li returned to the tent, the moon had already set. He lifted the curtain, intending to get some water for Qin Wen, but suddenly froze, and his expression changed drastically.

She's gone! Qin Wen has disappeared again!

The blanket, stained black by Qin Wen's sweat, was now empty, with the water bottle standing perfectly still beside it, showing no signs of having been touched.

What... what's going on? Yin Li was extremely surprised. Xiao Wen's poison hadn't been completely cleared yet, so there was no way she could wake up... Could it be... could it be that someone kidnapped her?

Who could it be? Who kidnapped her?

Yin Li's face gradually turned from white to green, as if there was only one possibility.

It's the murderer! It's that murderer! He's afraid that Xiaowen will wake up after the remaining poison is eliminated, he's afraid that Xiaowen will expose him!

He's going to kill them to silence them!

"No!" Yin Li screamed, turned and rushed out the door, frantically searching for Qin Wen. The whole world was in chaos. In her eyes, everything around her was messy, noisy, with pale tents and dim yellow sand. Everything else became less important. She felt her world spinning. She couldn't hear her own voice, but she could feel her throat trembling violently.

Xiaowen!

Suddenly, a pair of strong arms reached out from behind and pulled her into a tight embrace. She leaned against his chest, which was broad and warm. Her restless heart immediately calmed down, and the world seemed to return to normal in an instant. She saw that the members of the archaeological team were gathered around her, looking at her with strange eyes, as if they were looking at a mental patient.

"You're finally quiet." A voice came from beside her ear. Yin Li turned around, saw Situ Xiang, and tears welled up in her eyes. She grabbed his shirt and cried out, "Xiao Wen... Xiao Wen is gone... she..."

Situ Xiang raised his head, gazing into the distance, his eyes calm and profound.

Yin Li was startled and followed his gaze. On the ruins, a blurry figure was pacing back and forth. A ray of dawn burst forth from the other side of the sand dune, making the figure slightly clearer. Looking at the figure, Yin Li felt a surge of joy in her chest. She broke free from Situ Xiang's hand and ran wildly towards the ruins.

Xiao Wen! It's Xiao Wen!

On that ruin, Qin Wen walked aimlessly, like a soulless corpse, moving slowly with a blank stare fixedly ahead. No one knew what kind of scenery was reflected in her eyes.

"Xiaowen! Xiaowen!" Yin Li rushed over and hugged her tightly, anxiously saying, "Why did you run here? I was so worried about you, you know? Xiaowen?"

She paused, then waved her hand in front of her eyes. Her gaze remained vacant, her eyes unmoving.

"Is she awake?" Bai Yunning asked.

“No… the poison hasn’t completely dissipated, she can’t possibly wake up.” Yin Li shook her head. “It should just be a side effect of the remaining poison, like… sleepwalking.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Qin Wen collapsed softly. Yin Li quickly caught her. Jack stared blankly at Qin Wen, who had closed her eyes. The beautiful face of Stanlia struck his heart like a hammer. This girl named Qin Wen was completely different from Stanlia in appearance, but he still felt that they were so similar, so amazingly similar. This feeling was suffocating him.

He had never thought of Stellia so frequently in a long time, even though she was a goddess in his heart.

Because Qin Wen's body was oozing black, poisonous sweat, Chen Qiang refused to carry her any longer, even though Yin Li repeatedly explained that the poison was no longer effective. In the end, Situ Xiang had to carry her back to the camp.

Qin Wen was sleeping soundly. Zhang Yuanyuan was annoyed at being woken up repeatedly and muttered something under her breath. Yin Li didn't bother to pay attention to her and only felt that his situation in the archaeological team was becoming more and more difficult.

Professor Li tried to contact rescue efforts using the radio, but the old machine was of little use. His hair, which was originally just gray, seemed to have turned completely white overnight.

It was already broad daylight, but Yin Li still couldn't sleep. She suddenly had a strong urge to see Princess Zhaoling's body. Ever since she found the body, all her hallucinations and memories had stopped. Could it be that everything she had encountered before was just a trick by Princess Zhaoling to lure them into the tomb?

Princess Zhaoling's body was inside the large tent. When Yin Li lifted the curtain to enter, Professor Li was studying the female corpse's face. She saw that the princess was still the same as when she was first taken out of the coffin, as if she were still alive. Even her skin was radiant and fair, better than her own. Yin Li was somewhat indignant. Why was her skin not as good as a corpse? When she got back, she would definitely do ten face masks and five spa treatments!

"Professor Li..."

Professor Li looked up, his face pale and haggard: "Oh, it's Xiao Yin. What's wrong?"

"No...nothing, I just wanted to see Princess Zhaoling's body." Yin Li smiled awkwardly, seeing the red robe wrapped around the corpse, the gold-embroidered phoenix still so glaring.

“Look,” Professor Li said, continuing to study the corpse’s hair. “Actually, there’s nothing much to see; it’s just a corpse from two thousand years ago.”

"It's amazing that it could be preserved so well after two thousand years, and that it remained unchanged even after being taken out of the coffin." Yin Li glanced at Princess Zhaoling's face, which was as beautiful as a fairy from the moon palace.

“This is also what I can’t understand.” Professor Li’s eyes lit up again when he talked about the female corpse. “The fact that the body could be preserved so well under normal air conditions is amazing. I was worried about the preservation of the body, but now there are no problems at all.”

"Then...Professor, what do you think caused this?"

"This..." Professor Li hesitated slightly and said, "I'm not really sure either. In ancient times, people usually liked to put jade or pearls with special effects into the mouth or anus of the corpse to ensure that the corpse would not decompose, but I have checked and there is nothing in this corpse."

"Then... could it be that the corpse swallowed the pearls or something?" Yin Li suddenly wondered.

"That's possible." Professor Li nodded thoughtfully.

"Professor, what should we do with that coffin? Should we try to move it out?" Yin Li asked. "The temperature difference in the desert is too great; I'm still worried the body will decompose. Better safe than sorry, perhaps..."

“That thing is too big and too heavy, it’s really troublesome to move it,” Professor Li sighed. “Besides, there is blood everywhere in the main burial chamber, and the jade coffin is also stained with blood. The ancients believed that jade was a sacred object, and the jade stained with blood was contaminated and had a strong evil aura. It is probably no longer suitable to use it to hold a corpse.”

Yin Li sighed. If that were really the case, it would be such a pity.

The curtain rustled, and Bai Yun Ning walked in. She glanced at Yin Li, her expression becoming complicated. Professor Li said, "Yun Ning, come, come and take a look at my hair..."

"Yes." Bai Yun Ning replied and walked to the corpse, but kept glancing at Yin Li out of the corner of her eye. She spoke very carefully, as if she was afraid that her things would be stolen.

Yin Li was both amused and exasperated by her, and had no choice but to take her leave. The sun outside was even brighter, and she was not used to the light, so she had to shield her eyes with the back of her hand. Suddenly, she saw a figure flash behind the tent and then disappear.

Is it Chen Qiang?

Yin Li frowned. What was he doing? Was he spying on someone? Who was he spying on?

Full of questions, she went around to the back of the tent, but it was empty; there wasn't a soul in sight. She looked down and saw a series of footprints being buried by the sand on the ground.

Looking at the set of footprints, Yin Li recalled that night in the ancient city of Niya, when they obtained a jade pendant and a wooden board.

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck down from the sky and landed on her head.

Oh, right, the plank, that plank!

Having gone through so much, she had almost forgotten about the wooden plank. But since the plank was indeed given to them by the Western Regions prophet and contained records of the Western Night Tomb, then... perhaps the key to finding the real culprit was hidden on the plank!

She suddenly became excited and ran towards her tent.

She didn't see that behind her, there was a pair of vicious eyes, filled with the murderous intent of a wild beast.

"When the tomb door opens, the sleeping phoenix will awaken once more, bringing fear and disaster to the world. If the most desperate moment comes, the Clam Cloud will be with you."

Yin Li stared blankly at the wooden plank in front of her, a throbbing headache spreading through her head. What did that sentence mean? If bringing fear and disaster to the world meant that what they were experiencing was already a terrible catastrophe, then that sentence wasn't hard to understand. But what did it mean that the sleeping phoenix would awaken again? Could it be that all these disasters were caused by this phoenix? Then… what exactly did this phoenix refer to? Princess Zhaoling's corpse? Or someone else? Or…

She jolted, suddenly remembering something. She pulled her phone out of her backpack and recalled taking two photos in the main burial chamber. Perhaps... those photos contained something...

Opening the personal documents on her phone, the photos were a bit blurry. The first one was the furnishings of the entire tomb, and the second one was a close-up of Princess Zhaoling's body. Her gaze fell on the princess, and her pupils dilated instantly.

Why didn't she think of that? The phoenix was clearly in such a conspicuous place.

If she wasn't mistaken, the phoenix pointed to in the wooden board should be the phoenix pattern on Princess Zhaoling's red plain gauze dress!

But... those are just fake phoenixes embroidered on clothes, how could they bring disaster to the world? Or... is the phoenix on the wooden board not the phoenix itself, but Princess Zhaoling dressed in a phoenix?

The more she thought about it, the more confused she became! Frustrated, she scratched her head of hair, wishing she could just bang her head against a sand dune. Even if she found the murderer, what good would it do? She still wouldn't be able to get out of the desert!

The images of the three palace maids who were buried alive with her flashed through her mind, and fear quickly overwhelmed her. Were they destined to become Princess Zhaoling's sacrificial offerings, just like those palace maids?

She turned her head, looked at the sleeping Qin Wen, sighed softly, picked up a towel and wiped the sweat from her forehead. If something happened to Qin Wen, how would she explain it to her parents?

Just then, Qin Wen suddenly opened her eyes. Yin Li was startled and stared blankly as she mechanically stood up, took neat steps, and walked out of the tent.

"Xiaowen?" Yin Li caught up with her and saw that her eyes were vacant and blank. She was slightly startled. Was she sleepwalking again?

Waking a sleepwalker could cause them to develop many mental complications, so Yin Li had no choice but to follow behind her to ensure her safety.

Walking on the sand, Qin Wen took slow and elegant steps. The moonlight cast a dazzling silver halo on her, giving Yin Li the illusion that the person walking in front of her was not a friend of many years, but a god of the desert.

Yin Li was suddenly struck by a thought. Normally, Qin Wen would walk with exaggerated gestures and movements, but she never expected that she would be so beautiful and elegant without even realizing it.

Women do indeed have two sides; the side they present to the public is often the least genuine.

As if receiving some kind of command, Qin Wen arrived at the ruins of the temple and then circled the entrance to the princess's tomb. Yin Li sat on a stone to the side, silently watching her, feeling that she was performing some kind of mysterious ritual.

I remember my grandfather telling me that in ancient times, shamans performed rituals while sleepwalking. People believed that sleepwalkers were the closest to the gods, and that it was the most important ritual for communicating with the spirits.

Could it be... that Xiaowen is also communicating with the gods at this moment? What kind of scene is she seeing?

Qin Wen circled the entrance for nearly fifteen minutes before finally turning around and walking towards the camp. As soon as she returned to the tent, it was as if her soul had left her body. Her body went limp, and she collapsed onto the blanket, drenched in sweat, with large amounts of black sweat flowing out.

Yin Li wiped away the poisonous sweat for her, checked her watch, and saw that it was already three in the morning. Yin Li couldn't fall asleep no matter what, so she covered Qin Wen with a blanket and walked out of the tent.

The moon had already set in the west, only centimeters away from the horizon. Yin Li paced slowly in the camp. She didn't know where she was going, but she felt empty inside. Many things seemed so close, separated only by a thin sheet of paper, yet she couldn't touch them. This feeling almost drove her crazy.

However, she still stubbornly believes that she is very close to the truth.

Suddenly, she stopped and looked up at the large tent standing in front of her, a longing rising in her heart.

She wanted to take a closer look at the female corpse and the gown embroidered with phoenixes!

This thought inexplicably excited her. She lifted the curtain and went into the tent. The body was lying on the long table, covered with a white sheet. Normally, unearthed bodies must be embalmed immediately, but Princess Zhaoling had not changed and was still as she was in life. However, the camp did not have enough medicine and equipment, so she had to be left there carefully, praying that she would not suddenly vanish.

Yin Li carefully lifted the white cloth, and Princess Zhaoling's entire body immediately appeared before her. The tent was dark, and the golden phoenix on the red dress shone brightly, creating a mesmerizing halo in the dim light.

She felt dizzy and her vision blurred. She seemed to see Princess Zhaoling dancing in a white world again. It was a beautiful dance. A golden phoenix seemed to take flight under her dance, leaping out from the red cloth and circling around her body.

The scene gradually turned golden, and Yin Li felt as if her heart was floating, drifting above the cloudless desert sky, where the dark blue sky was breathtakingly beautiful.

"What are you doing here?" A low shout came from behind. Yin Li felt a sudden heaviness all over her body, as if her soul had been pulled back into her body in an instant. She jolted awake, opened her eyes, and turned around to see Chen Qiang lifting the curtain and walking in. His face was sallow, and he was sweating on his forehead, staring intently at Yin Li.

"I've only come to see Princess Zhaoling's body," Yin Li said calmly. "And what brings you here this time?"

"I couldn't sleep, so I was just wandering around. I heard some noise here, so I came in to check." Chen Qiang seemed relieved. He walked to the female corpse, glanced at it, and immediately looked away. Yin Li said coldly, "You're really bold. Aren't you afraid I'm the murderer?"