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墨書 Inktalez
I forced myself to gather my thoughts. Thankfully, the clay figure had set off some Cold Fireworks earlier; otherwise, Fat Ma and I might have ended up killing each other.
The Bronze Coffin was within my reach, but at that moment, all the courage I had felt earlier had vanished. Who knew what strange things it might unleash?
After a few seconds of hesitation, I took a deep breath and stepped forward again. Honestly, I didn't even know where this newfound courage was coming from.
When I was face to face with the Bronze Coffin, an inexplicable shiver ran down my spine.
It felt as if my heart was in neutral, completely exposed before the Bronze Coffin, like standing in front of a gaping maw.
The air around us seemed to freeze. The lingering scent of alcohol mixed with the musty odor of the Tomb, which had been silent for thousands of years, made me feel uneasy.
In the dim light, it was eerily quiet.
I cautiously reached out my hand toward the Bronze Coffin, but before I could make contact, another hand touched it first. It was Fat Ma, grinning widely at me. He said, "Old Sun, I don't believe in this stuff; I believe in something else."
I was taken aback for a moment, then replied, "I don't believe in this either." As I spoke, my hand also made contact with the Bronze Coffin, and we both burst into laughter.
That strange feeling was instantly dispelled.
I began to observe the transformed Bronze Coffin. Although Fat Ma wasn't interested in the inscriptions or patterns, he still looked at them intently.
Suddenly, a voice echoed through the air: "Actually, I don't believe in that either."
At that remark, both Fat Ma and I were surprised at first but then erupted into laughter.
Since we all shared this disbelief, we could consider ourselves like-minded comrades. With that thought in mind, the three of us got to work together.
I could tell what the clay figure had set aside.
The patterns on the Bronze Coffin seemed to have been reorganized, and at this moment, they appeared to have some sort of order.
"Is this old man inside not playing a jigsaw puzzle game with us?" Fat Ma joked.
I replied, "It's not impossible; maybe this is indeed a puzzle game."
The clay figure crouched down and called out to me, "Do you see if these characters have changed?"
I crouched down to take a look and shook my head, saying, "No change; it's still about one person being buried. I continued, "Could it be that he's taken a liking to me?"
Fat Ma said, "That's not impossible! Old Sun, get ready to serve the old man; this is your great fortune."
I cursed, "Fatty, stop talking nonsense. Be careful he doesn't take a fancy to your fat body and swallow you whole."
Fat Ma instinctively swallowed hard and said, "Old Sun, your verbal skills have really improved."
I chuckled a few times and said, "All thanks to you."
After that, Fat Ma shook his head and seriously said, "You really taught your apprentice well; the master is starving."
I couldn't be bothered with him and continued to examine the Bronze Coffin. Seeing that I was ignoring him, Fat Ma said a few more words before falling silent.
The pattern on this Coffin Lid seemed to be starting to fit with the pattern on the Coffin, but it still didn't seem to match completely. Moreover, that sense of familiarity grew stronger.
Could it be that what I was familiar with was the pattern after the Bronze Coffin was fully closed? A voice echoed in my mind.
The coffin lid and the coffin itself formed a seamless gap, as if flawless.
But how did the blood seep in earlier? I couldn't help but run my hands over it, searching for a flaw, my eyes pressed against the surface of the Bronze.
To my disappointment, the previous Blood Wine had vanished without a trace.
Suddenly, I remembered something. I instructed the clay figure to sprinkle some water on top. As the water fell onto the Bronze Coffin, it seemed to be rejected by it, slowly flowing down along its surface.
I reached a conclusion: this Bronze Coffin only absorbed human blood.
The three of us fell silent for a moment. Then, the clay figure spoke softly, "This is feeding the corpse with blood."
Fat Ma seemed to have heard of this before and said, "That's impossible. How could such a method of nourishing corpses appear so early?"
The clay figure didn't respond immediately; after a pause, he said, "What you said isn't without reason."
Listening to their analysis, I remained quiet. Compared to them, I was merely a novice.
As they continued their discussion, each fell into contemplation.
The clay figure turned to me and asked, "What are your thoughts?"
I shook my head to indicate I had none but posed a question instead: "If it is indeed feeding the corpse with blood, what would happen?"
"Well..." Fat Ma hesitated, and it seemed the clay figure was reluctant to elaborate as well.
"Come on! Speak up!" I urged. This was a technique from the Xiangxi Corpse Driving Sect, originating from Hunan. The corpses produced would undoubtedly be malevolent, Fat Ma replied.
In other words, there might be a giant Zongzi here.
The Mud Man nodded noncommittally.
I couldn't help but take a deep breath and exhale, falling silent. The two of them also grew quiet.
Because we all knew this could be our Waterloo.
I lit the cigarette that Fat Ma had given me and took a deep drag. Then I began to fiddle with the Bronze Coffin. First, we couldn't get trapped in here; second, the mystery of the Bronze Coffin was too alluring for me; third, this might be a psychological knot for the Mud Man, and if I helped him untie it this time, he should feel better afterward.
However, when faced with these bizarre patterns, I felt somewhat powerless.
Fat Ma suggested, "Why don't we pour another jar of Blood Wine and see if anything changes?" After he spoke, neither the Mud Man nor I responded; there was definitely some risk involved.
Fat Ma grew anxious and urged, "Come on, at least give me a sign!"
The Mud Man and I exchanged glances and agreed. Fat Ma hurried over and soon brought back a jar of Blood Wine.
It seemed even Fat Ma wasn't entirely certain; holding the Blood Wine, he didn't pour it down recklessly like before. Before pouring, he asked, "Am I really going to do this?"
I nodded at him, and without hesitation, Fat Ma poured the entire jar of Blood Wine over the Bronze Coffin.
Sure enough, the Bronze Coffin reacted. I shouted, "Step back!"
We quickly positioned ourselves a few meters away from the Bronze Coffin, watching as it continued to shake. I couldn't help but think to myself, "Damn, this is truly eerie."
The air seemed to resonate with the sound created by the collision between the Bronze Coffin and its surroundings.
I silently counted in my mind, and when I reached ten, the swaying of the Bronze Coffin stopped, as if everything had returned to silence.
I waited for about another ten seconds before stepping forward.
What caught my eye was that the patterns had changed again. Suddenly, the Bronze emitted a mechanical whirring sound, and the designs on the Coffin began to organize themselves at a visibly rapid pace.
The Mud Man and Fat Ma stood beside me, both stunned. With a sharp click, the patterns completed their formation.
I couldn't help but ask, "What just happened?"
Fat Ma and the Mud Man shook their heads in confusion, unable to comprehend the situation. This was too bizarre!
"What is that smell?" the Mud Man said instinctively.
I took a deep sniff but detected nothing!
"Wait," the Mud Man corrected himself. He then pulled us both back and said, "Cover your noses quickly."
I reacted swiftly and covered my nose with my hand, as did Fat Ma.
The Mud Man's expression was clearly off, and he was overreacting.
He stared wide-eyed at the Bronze Coffin, seemingly waiting for its next move.
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