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墨書 Inktalez
Next, it was time for Fat Ma to reap the rewards with a face full of smiles.
Arriving at the last room of the Cabin, Fat Ma casually pushed the door, but there was no response. Fat Ma's expression twisted slightly as he pushed harder, yet it still wouldn't budge.
Fat Ma began to exert more effort, but the door remained shut.
At that moment, I, who had been feeling a bit jaded, suddenly felt a surge of energy. The Mud Man and Brother Jiang felt it too.
With the antique in Fat Ma's hands making it difficult to apply force, he directed me instead.
I placed my hands against the door, and a firm sensation transmitted through my palms; this door was tightly secured.
I pushed with all my might, gradually reaching my maximum strength, but the door still didn't move an inch. I stepped back, palms open, signaling that I was out of ideas.
The door on the outside had no lock, which meant the only possibility was that it was locked from the inside.
Could it be… that someone was inside? Of course, by "someone," I meant not a living person but perhaps someone who had locked themselves in hundreds or even thousands of years ago and never came out again.
Moreover, this door was quite sturdy; I wondered how long it had been submerged yet remained so solid.
The Mud Man circled around me and tried as well, but the result was the same.
Fat Ma, unwilling to accept defeat, handed me his precious item and stepped back. He then charged at the door with all his strength. I could feel the surrounding water rippling violently from his impact.
Fat Ma slammed into the door with great force, but it still didn't budge. Disheartened, he stepped back.
Gathering his strength, he charged at the door again. While he couldn't break it down, a crack appeared.
Seeing a glimmer of hope, Fat Ma wasted no time and launched another fierce assault on the door.
I thought to myself, any door that encounters Fat Ma is bound to have a bad day.
Suddenly, I noticed something strange: bubbles were continuously emerging from the small crack. Realizing this, I signaled Fat Ma to stop his assault.
I leaned closer to inspect the crack, which was lined with tiny bubbles.
An incredible hypothesis struck me—perhaps the inside of the door was dry.
I slipped down to the deck to check for any gaps between the door and the deck. Sure enough, it was sealed tight below.
This was unscientific! Just by looking at the ship's exterior, it was clear that it had been submerged in water for quite some time.
The deck had already cracked from being soaked, so logically, the inside should have been flooded as well. But that didn’t seem to be the case now.
Seeing me in a frenzy, Fat Ma pulled me down. I gestured to them to convey my intentions.
They looked just as surprised.
I looked at the door that had been cracked by Fat Ma, and the Bubble that had been stuck to the crack was now gone.
It must have been saturated, I deduced.
I couldn't help but wonder if there was another door behind this one; that reasoning seemed to best explain the current situation.
At that moment, Brother Jiang also appeared intrigued.
He used a knife to scrape at the gap in the door. I watched closely, and suddenly, a metallic sound echoed. Brother Jiang withdrew his knife.
What was going on? Fat Ma and the clay figure had also come closer.
Fat Ma gestured wildly; heaven knows what he was trying to convey. However, Brother Jiang seemed to have understood.
He gestured to us, indicating that there might be a sheet of metal sealing it shut from the inside.
In our line of work, there's an unspoken truth: the harder a tomb is to open, the more likely it is to contain valuable items. Conversely, those that are easily accessible usually don't hold much promise.
This door conveyed the same message. Although Fat Ma had already unearthed some treasures earlier,
if this door were opened, it was possible that what Fat Ma had found would pale in comparison.
I pondered quietly; if we wanted to prevent any leaks, it suggested that the entire room might be sealed with metal. Thus, my earlier assumption about there being a "person" inside seemed increasingly unlikely.
The four of us exchanged glances, and no one had a solution. We had all tried earlier, and we couldn't even deal with the door outside, let alone the one sealed shut with iron inside.
Moreover, our oxygen tanks would probably last only about ten hours. So we couldn't afford to delay for too long.
I still didn't understand what Brother Jiang's purpose was in bringing us to this Underwater Tomb.
Previously, we were invited by the master to go underground to search for something, but he never told us what it was in the end.
Although he had shown great interest in that piece of armor before, it seemed now that it might not have been his ultimate goal. Unfortunately, he was already dead. Thinking about this, Fat Ma's promised reward seemed to have gone down the drain as well.
At that moment, I remembered to ask Brother Jiang what his purpose was in bringing us to this Underwater Tomb.
After a moment of hesitation, Brother Jiang gestured at me. The answer he gave left me stunned; he was actually looking for someone.
The idea of coming to a tomb to find someone was truly baffling, and I couldn't comprehend it. The expressions on the faces of the Mud Man and Fat Ma mirrored my confusion.
"Who are you looking for?" the Mud Man gestured in inquiry.
Brother Jiang did not respond immediately.
I gestured again, asking, "Why did you choose us?"
Brother Jiang pointed at me, and I quickly understood, though I felt uncertain. Eventually, I confirmed that it was the old man who had sent him to bring us along to help find someone.
I was internally astonished. How could he be so sure of us on our first meeting? Although I was puzzled, I didn’t voice my questions; gesturing back and forth was simply too exhausting.
The Mud Man had a serious expression, while Fat Ma wore a hint of a smile as he leaned in closer to Brother Jiang to start negotiating prices.
Fat Ma's gestures regarding money were so professional that they could rival a sign language teacher, leaving me momentarily speechless.
Brother Jiang’s expression had noticeably returned to normal, but he still agreed to Fat Ma's terms, prompting Fat Ma to stop gesturing.
He came over and placed his hand on my shoulder. I understood his intention; he was showing off his skills to me.
I couldn’t be bothered to respond. My mood felt heavy, as if I were being 'surrounded.'
Suddenly, I recalled something the old man had said about not wanting me to sink too deep into the mire. Yet now, I felt the opposite; it seemed I was falling into some kind of trap.
I collected my thoughts and glanced at Brother Jiang, who had now regained his composure.
Could the person Mr. Xian had been waiting for earlier be him? Everything felt strange at this moment—whether it was the warning from a woman not to enter the Underwater Tomb or how Brother Jiang had snatched the Oracle Bone and fled, only for me to later encounter the Long-Haired Monster at the cliff's edge. It seemed there was a thread connecting all these events.
And here I was, experiencing all of this, step by step, leading me to this point.
I looked again at Fat Ma and the Mud Man. It brought me some comfort; from the beginning until now, they were the only two who felt genuine.
Fat Ma, unwilling to accept defeat, slammed the door a few more times, but it was of little use. It seemed to have been reinforced with a layer of iron; otherwise, it wouldn't be so sturdy.
Opening this door was impossible for the time being.
We decided to check the warehouse, which was usually located beneath the deck.
Before long, Fat Ma found the entrance to the warehouse below. He pulled hard on the hatch above, but due to the immense water pressure, it took both of us working together to finally force it open.
Inside was pitch black; we could see nothing at all.
There was an iron ladder at the entrance, and we descended into the warehouse.
However, as soon as we got down, we encountered a situation. In the dark water, we suddenly spotted a glimmer of light. Before we could react, the light vanished without a trace.
I took a moment to catch my breath and calm myself. That abrupt flash of light had disappeared without warning.
From their expressions, I could tell they were just as curious about what it was. We all stood still for a moment, not moving.
After waiting for a while, that glimmer of light still did not reappear.
The floor area of the warehouse was relatively large, and the water here seemed static, like stagnant water.
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