The Lost Tomb Vol. 3

Chapter 12: Secret Corpse Chamber

The entire corpse chamber was dark, and the beams of light from all of our flashlights swung around chaotically, making it difficult to see. In addition, the corner where Fatty was located was far away from us, so even when the flashlights were pointed in that direction, the surrounding corpses and endless layers of shadows blocked the light. But even if our flashlights were brighter, we still wouldn't have been able to see clearly.

Despite all this, there was no mistaking that bluish-purple tint to Fatty's skin, or that strange, lifeless expression on his face—it was so similar to the corpses around him that it made my hair stand on end.

Pan Zi, initially thinking that Fatty was still messing around, yelled at him again. But when Fatty still didn't respond and remained there motionless like a statue, Pan Zi also realized that something was wrong and said to us, "Did something happen to him?"

I frowned. I didn't know how to explain it, but Fatty's expression and current position were too similar to the corpses here. If he wasn't playing a trick on us, then something must have definitely happened. But everyone else was fine, so why was it him again? Thinking back on his unscrupulous behavior before, maybe he was possessed by one of the ghosts here? Or maybe he was affected by the shaman's curse?

We slowly slid down the steep slope and approached the place where Fatty was squatting. There didn't appear to be anything around him that was different from the rest of this place, just more of those purple fanged corpses. When we were about four or five meters away from him, Pan Zi suddenly raised his hand, silently telling us not to move. Then, he signaled to Monk Hua.

In Chen Pi Ah Si's team, Lang Feng—like Fatty—played the vanguard, Monk Hua was the adviser, and Ye Cheng was similar to a jack-of-all-trades—each had their own special abilities. Although Lang Feng was dead now, Monk Hua's ability to act as a vanguard wasn't weak, so that was why Pan Zi signaled to him.

I suddenly felt the gap between us. When it came to our team, there were a lot of vanguards, but it was a bit of a stretch to call me an adviser considering how lacking I was. I thought about it some more and realized that if the other team didn't have Monk Hua, then with Poker-Face's absence, I would have been the one to go with Pan Zi. But Monk Hua's abilities were obviously far superior to mine.

Monk Hua saw Pan Zi's signal and nodded. Then, the two of them pulled out their hunting knives, held them in a reverse grip, and slowly moved closer to Fatty.

The two quickly reached Fatty's side, but Fatty still didn't turn to look at them. The way he remained motionless reminded me of those street performers who pretended to be living statues.(1)

My palms were covered in a cold sweat, and I couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong, although I couldn't quite put my finger on it. At this time, the two in front suddenly stopped. Pan Zi was so close to Fatty that he could reach out and touch him, but for some reason, they both suddenly waved their hands, telling us not to approach. Then, they began to retreat themselves.

My heart started pounding in my chest as I wondered what they had seen. When Pan Zi reached my side, he said to us, "We're in trouble. There's something wrong with the corpse behind him."

"What's wrong?" I asked, "Is it a zombie?"

Pan Zi didn't bother responding and just motioned for us to follow him.

We passed by several corpses, went down several of the terrace levels, and finally arrived at Fatty's side. Pan Zi pointed at something, and when I looked to see what it was, I noticed several blue-black corpses sitting cross-legged behind Fatty, but one of them was different from others!

The head of this corpse was huge—almost three times the size of an ordinary person's—and its facial features were indistinct, just like a big-headed baby that hadn't yet reached maturity. A strange tongue was sticking out of the corpse's mouth and coiled around Fatty's neck.