Tomber amoureux du diable

Chapitre 10

I dare not keep this little cylinder on my person. If it accidentally falls into the water and causes an accident, I'll become a human bomb. After thinking it over, although I really like this thing, I don't have time to remove the fuse right now. No matter how reluctant I am, I can only leave it behind.

I carefully wedged the small bomb into a sturdy rock, then went back and continued walking with the two of them.

With victory in sight, the light in the crevice grew brighter and brighter. We all breathed a sigh of relief, as if as long as we climbed up and saw the sun, we would surely be saved. But we forgot that Zheng Jian's team might still be on the rocky mountain, as might the two young officers who were chasing the fugitive. Most importantly, the guy with gills behind his ear might also be spying on us in the dark.

After a short rest, we had only walked a few meters when I grabbed Lao Gu's arm. Walking blindly with our heads down, only looking at the road and not the direction, could easily lead to problems.

Date: 2008-03-25 11:44:00

There was a reason I grabbed Lao Gu. When moving forward in the dim light, you have to be careful and attentive. There was a person sitting against the stone wall ahead. He was a bit blurry, and I couldn't see his face or clothes clearly. I could only see that he was sitting against the wall with his legs stretched out far out, twisted and deformed. One of his arms was raised, as if he was trying his best to resist something, while the other arm was hanging down to the side.

Another dead body?

Old Gu's legs went weak, and if I hadn't grabbed him, he would have almost fallen to the ground.

"Look at your pathetic self!" I mocked him. It wasn't the first time I'd seen something like this; I'd become numb to it all by now.

I stopped and stared at the person with a frown. After a while, I understood and nudged Lao Gu: "What an idiot. It's just a pile of ash, but this ash is quite strange."

There was indeed just a pile of ashes there, arranged into a lifelike human figure. I think it might be a coincidence, but at first glance, it really did look like a person.

"Let's leave it at that and go..." Old Gu couldn't stand the atmosphere any longer. Even though it was just a pile of ashes, it looked just like a dead person.

Zhang Liheng and I, however, thought differently. This dark and damp place shouldn't have a pile of ashes. If there were anything suspicious, we might be caught off guard, which would be bad.

As you get closer and take a closer look, it really is a pile of ashes. However, the ashes that resemble a human figure are not dry ashes, but rather sticky and attached to the wall. There also seem to be some bits of flesh and bone fragments on them. It would be more accurate to describe it as a clump of shadow on the wall.

A sense of foreboding rose in my heart. Could there have been someone here before? Had they been attacked, their skin and clothes dried out, leaving only these remnants stuck to the wall?

I carefully told them not to get too close, and then I circled the shadow, examining it closely. After a short while, I discovered the problem: the humanoid shadow was posing incorrectly!

This man sat against the wall, his legs twisted and deformed. One hand was struggling with something above his head, but the other hand was hanging down abnormally. Moreover, the five fingers on his palm were clenched into a fist, with only the index finger sticking out and pointing diagonally at a place in front of him, as if he was pointing at something!

Chapter 27 of "The Empty House in the Abyss (The Salvage Worker's Adventure)"

Chapter 27 of "The Empty House in the Abyss (The Salvage Worker's Adventure)"

Author: Ghost Grinning

Date: 2008-03-25 23:16:00

Following the direction of the finger, I moved my feet gently, and my gaze finally fell on a spot. It was a recessed crevice in the stone wall, with several stones irregularly stuck on its surface. Everything else in this direction was fine, but this one seemed a bit off; it looked like it had been placed there by someone.

I pulled out my diving knife and gently pried open the three stones, revealing a corner of a book underneath. There must be something hidden there!

I quickly retrieved the object—a black leather notebook. My heart leaped with joy; this was the first time I'd ever seen a real clue! What if it contained the answers to all these questions? That would be incredible news! At the very least, it would help me understand what those two stamps on the back of my hand meant!

I excitedly opened the notebook, flipped through it a few times, and found it to be in relatively good condition, clearly indicating that it had only been hidden there recently. However, after a quick reading, my expression immediately turned serious, and I closed the notebook and stopped looking.

Old Gu and his brother looked at my behavior with surprise, then finally snatched it away, opened it, and immediately laughed: "It's in Russian..."

I could only stare blankly as they translated the gist of it for me.

In 1985, when Lao Ge had just taken up the post of captain of the Soviet Union, many people at home and abroad called him a traitor. The situation in the country was gradually becoming chaotic and the situation was very bad. Moreover, the independence movements of various republics were making a big fuss. Sino-Soviet relations were in a delicate period of gradual warming.

This notebook was written by a Chinese man whose identity cannot be revealed at the moment. He is certainly not a big shot, but before Gorbachev came to power, he was sent to the Soviet Far East to carry out some special missions, which seemed to be related to the return of territory. He stayed in the Far East for more than three years. Whether the mission was successful or not, the notebook does not mention how well it was completed. It says that he discovered a clue: thirty years ago, when Soviet experts assisted in the construction of the Xin'anjiang Reservoir Dam, they conducted a series of secret and amazing experiments.

After making numerous inquiries, this person managed to find an old expert who had participated in the construction back then. After some persuasion and coercion, he learned some of the inside story of the experiment. It turned out that the Soviet experts who strongly suggested building a dam here had ulterior motives. Their purpose was to seal off many laboratories forever. The purpose of the sealing was to prevent the consequences of the somewhat out-of-control experiments. As for what the consequences of the experiments were, no one knew the details, because each researcher only knew their own small part of the work and had no opportunity to understand the overall experiment.

Unable to contain his curiosity, this man returned to China and secretly came to the reservoir to investigate. However, after spending more than half a month at the bottom of the reservoir using his own data, he only found out that the Soviets had many laboratories, one of which, the largest, was submerged at the very bottom of the mountain, making it extremely difficult to enter with private resources.

After much deliberation, realizing the gravity of the matter, he finally reported it to his superiors, who immediately took it seriously and decided to launch a special investigation into the cause and effect of the incident. Meanwhile, the man's body underwent a strange change. Whether he had contracted pathogens in the reservoir or been poisoned in the Soviet laboratory, he had developed gill-like organs growing behind his ears!

This was troublesome. He was immediately placed under strict guard, subjected to countless physical tests and various painful research experiments every day. Finally, one day, he could no longer endure the torture and escaped from his cage. In order to cure his strange disease, he once again dived into the reservoir, hoping to reach the largest laboratory in the deepest part and figure out why he had this mutated symptom.

But he didn't expect that his superiors would be furious about his escape and would send very skilled internal security personnel to hunt him down. These personnel were his friends from when he was on a mission with them in the Soviet Union. After several near-death experiences, he was exhausted and could no longer run.

The laboratory at the bottom of that abyss was empty and hidden underwater. I almost reached it, but due to some twist of fate, I could never go any further. Now, in this dimly lit cave, the area behind my ear is completely ulcerated. I don't think I'll last much longer. I can only leave some clues for those who come after me. I will definitely expose the scourge left behind by that old Soviet Russian. Besides, there is a huge inland alpine lake in Qinghai. Maybe there are similar experiments down there.

At the end of the notes, he stated that he had absolutely no intention of betraying the country and hoped that whoever read the notes would do their best to clear his name. If they were truly powerless to do so, he would understand.

Regarding the empty house at the bottom of the abyss, he vaguely said that the water pressure there was very strange. As soon as you got close to the center, you felt a suction force trying to pull you in. All the physical concepts of buoyancy and so on did not apply there. In addition to being a good swimmer, you also had to have good luck. Although he barely made it there by using his gills, he lost because of his bad luck.

Leaning against this stone wall, I felt my pounding heartbeat finally stopping, and the few blue dots on the back of my hand were burning with pain...

Date: 2008-03-26 16:46:00

That's all the content in the notebook. After listening to their translation and seeing their deeply sympathetic looks, I immediately felt a chill. It turned out that these two marks on the back of my hand would not only cause me some unexpected illnesses, but could also cost me my life. I sighed deeply and felt utterly bored and didn't want to do anything.

Zhang Liheng comforted me, saying, "Don't be discouraged. Maybe the blue dots that this person mentioned are different from yours. Even if they are the same, you haven't grown gills, so it's just a coincidence."

I don't believe it's a coincidence at all; there's no way it could be such a coincidence!

The man who died was very unlucky; he was all alone and had no help. In the end, his body was completely destroyed. It seems that this poison is really very potent. But from what he said, if we can find the laboratory at the bottom of the abyss, there is a way to cure it. I don't know if he was just guessing or if he had any basis for his statement.

On second thought, if there's no solution here, do I really have to make a trip to Qinghai Lake? I have no idea what to do with those high-altitude lakes.

At the time, I never imagined that I would encounter so many bizarre and wonderful things in the future. I was just hoping to get rid of this inexplicable poison as soon as possible. I never thought that this matter would involve so many people and things, and become a shadow that I can never get rid of and can never shake off in my life.

Old Gu chimed in, "Huang Ning, let's not even talk about whether this fugitive is deliberately trying to scare you. Look at your complexion, all rosy and healthy, how could you possibly be poisoned? Don't believe me, let's hurry up and get out of here, climb to the top of the mountain and get some sun. It'll wash away all the bad luck. Don't worry, I know a lot of folk remedies that are very effective against illnesses in the reservoir. Let's try them out, I guarantee they'll work."

I forced a smile and said, "Alright, alright, it's nothing. What's the big deal if I get a little poisoned? I said I'm a radish, and you two just kept pouring manure on me! Isn't that annoying!"

Having uttered those bold words, I braced myself and looked again at the dark figure against the wall, wondering if it was a trace left by someone who had died, and if so, how they died.

Chapter 28 of "The Empty House in the Abyss (The Salvage Worker's Adventure)"

Chapter 28 of "The Empty House in the Abyss (The Salvage Worker's Adventure)"

Author: Ghost Grinning

Date: 2008-03-26 21:59:00

None of the three of us dared to approach the dark mass. The stains on it were now almost certainly bits of flesh and bone fragments. Old Gu said with lingering fear, "Could it be spontaneous combustion? Did its own cells catch fire?"

I curled my lip: "Don't talk nonsense. According to you, you can just put a fat guy here, stick a rope in him, light him, and he'll become a candle? Spontaneous human combustion? That's all a hoax. I think this guy was killed. Lao Gu, didn't you say someone was still chasing him? This guy also said that his friends from when he was on a mission with him in the Soviet Union were chasing him. We just picked up an unexploded depth charge. Based on these clues, I think he was probably caught up with, forced to reveal some information, and then killed!"

Zhang Liheng and Lao Gu both nodded in agreement, but I always felt that their gazes were somewhat wandering, as if they wanted to observe every feature of my face. This unexpected discovery made me feel very frustrated, as if I had become someone else's research subject.

I angrily led the way forward, too lazy to greet them again. Anyway, the sunlight was shining down from above not far ahead, so I figured I wouldn't run into any trouble no matter which way I went.

I walked to the crack and looked up. Ah! The warm sunshine made me feel comfortable all over. After the other two caught up, we climbed up one after the other, one pulling the other up.

Standing on the rocky hill, bathed in sunlight, I let out a long sigh of relief. It felt so good, but I was starving. Judging by the time, it was probably three or four in the afternoon. I hadn't eaten or drunk anything since last night. I plopped down on the ground, feeling like a lump of mud, too tired to move.

Old Gu and Zhang Liheng were in similar situations to me, their bodies covered in mud and scratches, looking exhausted. Old Gu was in a slightly better position; he quickly sat up in the sunlight, scratching his toes, frowning as he carefully examined his injured toes, occasionally gasping for breath. Zhang Liheng was not far from me, her head down, seemingly lost in thought.

Staring blankly at the reservoir under the sunlight, I felt a surge of frustration. Was I really that unlucky? I had served in the army for so many years without any problems, so how come I got into this mess only three years after retiring? When my old buddy Ding Gen comes, I'm going to drag him along to find out what's going on at the bottom of this reservoir. I don't want to become a monster with gills!

The water shimmered, reflecting a golden sheen that made my eyes water. I blinked involuntarily, thinking to myself that this was no good. We couldn't spend the night on this rocky mountain. Even if no one came to rescue us, we had to find that boat ourselves and see if it was still there. I remembered it was stuck outside that crevice. If it hadn't sunk, it would be a safety net. With Lao Gu's skills, he could definitely steer it home. This rocky mountain was full of danger, and I didn't want to stay there any longer.

Then he remembered the strange shadow puppet face in the cockpit and the sound of pounding on the door, and a chill ran down his spine. Especially the humanoid four-legged snake spying on Lao Gu, which made him feel a thousand thoughts and his mind was in turmoil.

Date: 2008-03-26 22:03:00

But I was so sleepy that I didn't sleep well for two nights in a row. Waves of drowsiness made me want to just collapse and fall asleep.

After closing my eyes for a while, I was afraid I would fall asleep if I sat down any longer, so I quickly stood up to greet them. When I looked at the sky, my heart sank. Oh no, it's dark again!

But then, with a whoosh, all the water in the reservoir plunged down, flowing into a huge whirlpool in the center, revealing a tall concrete building at the bottom of the water. My heart skipped a beat, and I shouted, "What's going on? Could it be that Heaven has eyes, seeing that I, Huang Ning, have done good deeds all my life and that my life is not meant to end, and has revealed the laboratory at the bottom of the abyss so that I can find the antidote?"

Old Gu was the first to dart down, running faster than a rabbit. Ignoring the fact that the whirlpool hadn't completely stopped, he swam straight towards the door of the cement house and disappeared in a flash. Zhang Liheng followed closely behind me. I said, touched, "I'm fine. Comrade Zhang, you're so kind and beautiful. Do you have a boyfriend now? Would you like me to introduce you to someone?"

No sooner had I finished speaking than I twisted my ankle, kicked a protruding rock, and with a whoosh, headfirst tumbled forward!

The cold, hard ground knocked me off, leaving me dizzy and disoriented. It took me a while to regain my senses. When I opened my eyes, I was completely alone; not a soul was around, not even Zhang Liheng. I lay there alone on the dark, cold cement floor, feeling a chill run through me, and I was so angry I felt like my lungs would explode! After I fell, no one even bothered to take care of me. They just abandoned me so quickly? Leaving me to fend for myself here?! What kind of people are they?!

Suppressing my pounding heart, I slowly sat up and looked around. Something was wrong. Had I been taken somewhere else while I was unconscious? This was clearly the empty concrete house I had just seen!

Not far ahead, there was a large cabinet lying on the ground, with three people standing next to it. When they heard me wake up, they all turned around. I saw that it was Ding Gen, Lao Gu, and Zhang Liheng. My anger subsided. So they hadn't abandoned me after all. I had been suspicious. I slapped my forehead and shouted, "Ding Gen, when did you get here? Have I been unconscious for a long time? Why didn't you come and help me up!"

Ding Gen ran over and glanced at me, but didn't respond to what I was saying: "Old Huang, why are you so weak? You fell down after just one fall? Let me tell you, Zhang Liheng is really amazing. She has solved the riddle of the Abyss Empty House. Come and see!" With that, he grabbed me and ran off.

My foot was in excruciating pain, and I couldn't help but yell, "You bastard, let go right now! You're going to tear my ankle off!"

Ding Gen ignored me and dragged me to the side of the large cabinet in a few quick steps. I leaned against the cabinet and looked down. Inside, there was a corpse lying face down, disproportionately large and fat, with no skin on its body, just bare, revealing bright red muscles and veins. It was quite an eyesore.

At this point, my foot stopped hurting, and I wanted to turn the corpse over to see whose face it was. Just then, Ding Gen reached out and grabbed my wrist tightly, making me unable to move. His expression was even more strange, a half-smile.

Chapter 29 of "The Empty House in the Abyss (The Salvage Worker's Adventure)"

Chapter 29 of "The Empty House in the Abyss (The Salvage Worker's Adventure)"

Author: Ghost Grinning

Date: 2008-03-26 22:17:00

Old Gu said from the side, "Huang Ning! You know perfectly well what you've done, don't you? You stood by and watched someone die, kicked them when they were down, burned them after they were done, and discarded them after they'd served their purpose. You've done all sorts of bad things! Look closely at who's lying in there! It's all because of you that we've all ended up dying here together!"

Ding Gen, like a puppet, mechanically used his other hand to turn the prone corpse over. When I saw it was the old instructor Deng Jianguo, I was horrified! And below Deng Jianguo, there was another person sleeping face up, with half of the skin on his face just like Deng Jianguo's. I recognized this person; it was Deng Jianguo's buddy, Captain Luo!

Old Gu said, "The treasure of this laboratory requires a human sacrifice to spare our lives. Comrade Xiao Huang, I'm sorry, but why don't you do a good deed and help everyone out?"

I patiently listened to him finish speaking when suddenly two figures darted over from the side and grabbed my shoulders. I desperately turned my head to see who they were, but I couldn't see them at all. I only saw Zhang Liheng covering her face and sobbing. I couldn't help but feel annoyed: "Stop crying! Hurry up and talk to Lao Gu. Has he gone crazy?"

My head was buzzing. What was going on today? Ding Gen was my best friend, always on my side. How could he have changed his mind and started plotting against me behind my back? I just couldn't believe it.

Old Gu frowned and thought for a moment, then waved his hand. Two more people in military uniforms came over. When they got closer, I could see that they were two handsome soldiers, and their uniforms were Soviet. It turned out that this guy was actually a KGB agent. He had been lying to me all along. They were all in cahoots!

He was filled with anger but could only watch helplessly as two young soldiers shoved someone toward the large cabinet.

The person being shoved had their mouth wide open, crying and shouting all the way. I recognized that face at a glance; it was the woman from the portrait I had stuffed in my pocket. How come this girl is still alive? I was a little out of my mind.

The poor woman was being kicked and punched, pinned up with her head down, struggling and spitting blood as if she were cursing. I couldn't bear it and shouted, "What are you doing? Come at me!"

Seeing that no one paid any attention to me, I cursed Ding Gen: "Ding Gen, you're something else! Not bad! I was your friend for so long, and you did such a despicable thing. Are you even human?"

Old Gu kicked me aside and laughed, "Save your energy, you're next. Ding Gen is mine now. Hmph, do you think the Soviets are all fools? Would they leave such an important treasure here for you!"

As they were talking, two soldiers rushed forward and forcefully pushed the woman against the cabinet. One of them pulled out a gleaming butcher knife and, without saying a word, stabbed the woman in the chest! Then, with a backhand motion, he slashed the artery in her neck.

Date: 2008-03-26 22:49:00

The desperate woman clung to the edge of the cabinet and struggled for a few moments before finally collapsing face down onto it.

A strange object floated to the surface of the blood: an antique bronze mirror, exquisitely decorated with dragons and phoenixes coiled around it. Surprisingly, the side facing me was completely black, reflecting nothing, with some mist inside that was slowly rotating.

Old Gu turned the dead woman over, chopped off a finger, and sprinkled some blood on the mirror. With a hiss, the mist in the mirror immediately dissipated, and a scene appeared like a movie.

A disheveled woman was being forced to sit against a cabinet, her head swaying from side to side. The man holding her down pulled out a knife and stabbed her to death. Blood splattered everywhere, filling the mirror with crimson before gradually fading back to darkness, where mist slowly began to gather again.

This is the scene when that woman was killed!

Lao Gu and Ding Gen were both laughing like idiots, turning their faces to look at me with ill intent.

I suddenly realized that this mirror was probably a treasure that could reflect the scene of a person's last moments before death. This was really mysterious. Did the two of them want to use me for an audition?

I never knew auditions were conducted like this, and a surge of anger welled up inside me!