After finishing his sentence, Hao Wenming turned to Huang Ran and said, "We need weapons to defend ourselves."
Among us, only Sun Fatty still had some of his gear on him. Since he had the black cat as protection, the three from Huang Ran's group didn't dare approach him to confiscate his weapons. Unfortunately, when he was entangled by the Wyrmvine Threads near the hot spring, Sun Fatty had lost his handgun—no one knew where it had fallen. Right now, he only had Wu Rendi's short blade and a crossbow, but compared to the three assault rifles Huang Ran's people were holding, a blade and a bow posed little threat.
Seeing Huang Ran remain silent, Director Hao added, "You don't even have to give us guns—just something like batons will do."
Still, Huang Ran said nothing. He kept wearing his usual signature smile, but now there was a flicker of suspicion behind it.
After a moment's hesitation, Huang Ran motioned for Zhang Zhiyan to hand over a bag. Inside was the gear confiscated from us earlier. Our guns were already in their hands; the bag contained only some talismans, batons, and similar equipment. My short blade was also in there, though its scabbard was a mismatched replacement, rather awkward-looking. When Meng Qiqi had taken it off me, she hadn't bothered to inspect it—just tossed it into the bag.
Huang Ran dumped the contents of the bag onto the ground. My heart tensed—I silently prayed he wouldn't notice anything unusual about the blade. It hadn't been easy getting my hands on it, and I couldn't let it end up in his possession.
But of course, the thing you fear most always happens. Huang Ran's eyes were immediately drawn to the blade. He picked it up, but instead of unsheathing it, he simply ran his fingers slowly over the scabbard.
He looked each of us over before asking, "Whose knife is this?"
I took a deep breath and stepped forward. "Mine."
Huang Ran looked a bit surprised. He gave me a long, penetrating stare and asked, "Who gave it to you?"
"It's an heirloom." I wasn't lying—just that it had only been passed down halfway.
"Heirloom…" Huang Ran repeated the word softly. A trace of astonishment appeared on his face, and his eyes began boring into me, scanning my flesh as if trying to see through to my bones. But after a moment, he returned to normal.
After another moment of hesitation, Huang Ran finally reversed the grip and handed the blade back to me. "Take good care of your family heirloom," he said. "Getting it passed down to your generation must not have been easy. Don't lose it—you wouldn't want to face your... ancestors empty-handed."
He clearly recognized what the blade was and had misunderstood my connection to Wu Rendi. From the tone of his words, he was practically asking whether my mother's side of the family had the surname Wu.
I didn't correct him—just quietly rejoiced as I accepted the blade and tucked it into the back of my waistband.
Huang Ran rummaged through the bag a bit more and pulled out the batons. But after a moment's thought, he still didn't return them to Hao Wenming or Po Jun. Instead, he asked Zhang Zhiyan and Meng Qiqi for their daggers and handed those over to Director Hao and Po Jun.
Daggers weren't ideal, but they were still better than bare hands. Hao Wenming and Po Jun accepted them without a word.
Once we were all geared up, Huang Ran smiled and said, "Shall we continue?"
That little interlude behind us, we resumed our march forward. Given the earlier incident near the hot spring, we now proceeded with much greater caution. Zhang Zhiyan and Meng Qiqi, both armed with rifles, led the way. I walked in the middle with Hao Wenming and the others, Huang Ran brought up the rear, and Sun Fatty—with his "weapon of mass destruction" in his arms—stayed in the very center.
This time, Huang Ran wasn't lying: there really were no branching paths. But the road twisted and turned constantly—every thirty to fifty meters brought another bend.
And the temperature gradually began to drop. Before long, we were all glad we hadn't discarded our thick coats earlier. One by one, we put back on the layers we'd shed before.
Once I'd gotten used to the temperature, I walked up beside Hao Wenming and handed him a cigarette. After lighting it for him, I lit one for myself and asked, "Hao, what exactly were those Wyrmvine Threads that dragged away Ruan Liang? Bullets and blades didn't work on them at all, and they could even reconnect after being severed."
At the mention of Ruan Liang, Hao Wenming took a long drag on his cigarette and fell silent for a moment before finally speaking.
"Wyrmvine Threads are the byproduct of animals or plants undergoing complete demonic transformation. They're the physical manifestation of a creature's body integrating with spiritual energy—a kind of conduit, like an umbilical cord during childbirth.
"Because they're formed through this process of demonization, they possess innate arcanobeast properties. There have been past records of people being attacked by them. And since Wyrmvine Threads are not part of the soul, most talismans or spiritual tools used against vengeful spirits have no effect on them whatsoever.
"Some old legends say that the threads used to weave the Binding Rope of the Immortals were made from specially refined Wyrmvine Threads. But they've been extinct for ages. I never expected to see them again here—and not just one or two, but six or seven at once."
Speaking of which, Hao Wenming paused for a moment, glanced at Po Jun beside him, then let out a soft sigh before continuing, "I'm not saying this lightly, but our Bureau of Paranormal Investigation also once had a Wyrmvine Thread. An old director used it to connect to a magical device. If it weren't for what happened in 1975…" Hao Wenming stopped mid-sentence, realizing he had almost let something slip, and quickly swallowed the rest of his words.
The incident in 1975 seemed to have become a taboo within the Bureau. But there was no need for Hao Wenming to continue—strictly speaking, I knew the matter even better than him. It turned out that the thin thread tied to the great sword wielded by Pu Dage back then was actually a Wyrmvine Thread. Thinking carefully, Po Jun's real surname was also Pu—could it be that he and Pu Dage were somehow related?
Since Hao Wenming didn't want to continue on this topic, I switched subjects: "Then what about the hot spring just now? Hao Tou, I think I've heard you and Huang Ran mention 'Yingquan' before. What exactly is that large patch of fluorescent water?"
Hao Wenming had just finished his last cigarette and casually flicked away the butt before answering, "I'm telling you, if Ouyang Pianzuo, that sour guy, saw that fluorescent water, he'd probably get snot bubbles coming out of his nose. To put it simply, Yingquan means Arcanobeast Spring. The reason the hot spring water turned into blue fluorescent water is probably because there's a fully arcanobeast-transformed corpse lying at the bottom of the spring. If we dug it out, we should be able to reach the Bureau's underground fourth level. Right, Huang Ran…" Hao Wenming suddenly turned and looked at Huang Ran.
Huang Ran chuckled lightly and said, "Theoretically, yes. I've stored all the information about Yingquan back in Taipei, so I don't remember the details clearly. I definitely need to review it carefully when we get back. But Director Hao, you're impressive. Even though all the Bureau's records about Yingquan are gone, you saw it many years ago and still remember."
After hearing this, Director Hao said nothing, silently glancing at Huang Ran before turning his head back and continuing forward.
Sun Fatty, seeming to have just understood something, patted my shoulder and said, "Lazi, so those hot spring waters just now were monster corpse fluids? No wonder there was that rotting corpse smell. Luckily, when the spring exploded, none of the water splashed into my mouth." As he babbled, he suddenly winked at me and subtly slid his hand downward. Though the movement was small, I could still feel him quickly slipping something very small into my clothes pocket.
I pretended nothing had happened and played along with Sun Fatty for a bit. Using the corner of my eye, I glanced at Huang Ran, who was still focused on Hao Wenming and hadn't noticed Sun Fatty's small gesture. Taking advantage of his distraction, I reached into my pocket—but it was empty, which surprised me greatly. Sun Fatty clearly put something in there and gave me a hint; it was impossible for it to be nothing.
I carefully felt around in the pocket again and finally found a small bundle resembling a thread. I had touched it earlier but mistook it for a loose thread and ignored it. I examined it carefully—it was definitely the Wyrmvine Thread that had just been pulled from Ruan Liang. It made sense: both Sun Fatty and Ruan Liang's threads had been bitten off by Black Cat. Most likely, Sun Fatty had secretly intercepted it during the earlier chaos.
This Wyrmvine Thread was valuable. To avoid attracting Huang Ran's attention, I pulled my hand out and acted casual. The thread was hidden between my fingers. Just as I was wondering how to make use of it, Meng Qiqi and Zhang Zhiyan, walking at the front, suddenly stopped. Each raised a flashlight shining on the ground about thirty meters ahead, revealing a waxed corpse lying there.
Though the air here was not very humid, it wasn't dry enough to naturally cause the corpse to wax. Having dealt with such waxed and desiccated corpses many times before, and never with pleasant results, I couldn't help but feel a premonition that this corpse might suddenly jump up and attack us.
The corpse's clothes had fused with the body, glistening with a greasy sheen. Still, it was clear he wore an old-style short jacket and had an antique-looking short pistol hanging from his belt.
Meng Qiqi was the first to approach, standing beside the wax corpse. After a rough inspection, she made a gesture to Huang Ran.
Huang Ran walked over just as Hao Wenming arrived first at the corpse's side. Meng Qiqi tried to stop him, but Huang Ran gave a warning glance. Huang Ran stood nearby and watched as Hao Wenming carefully examined the corpse.
Director Hao knelt and inspected every part of the wax corpse's exterior—especially the palms, soles, top of the head, and the seven orifices. He was so meticulous it was almost like he was face-to-face with it. After about fifteen minutes, Hao Wenming finally tore his gaze away and glanced back at Huang Ran. Then he stood up, dusted the dirt off his knees, and without rushing to speak, quietly stepped aside and left the corpse to Huang Ran.
This move by Hao Wenming caught Huang Ran a bit off guard. Pointing at the corpse, Huang Ran asked, "Director Hao, aren't you going to say something?"
Hao Wenming looked at him and said, "Do I really need to? Isn't this in Ruan Liulang's notes? This wax corpse has been lying here for at least a hundred years. Ruan Liulang must have seen it the last time he came in, right?"
Huang Ran smiled slightly and didn't answer immediately. Instead, he crouched down and studied the corpse from head to toe, patted its shoulder, then turned back to Hao Wenming and said, "Come on, Director Hao, meet him. This is Luo Simen, the chief advisor to Yuan Shikai during the late Qing dynasty when Yuan was the Premier."
Hearing Huang Ran say the wax corpse was Luo Simen, Hao Wenming shook his head repeatedly. "Impossible. He can't be Luo Simen. Back then, Luo Siyé was assassinated in Tianjin by Wang Jingwei's agents for inciting Yuan Shikai to restore the monarchy. His body was blown into pieces by explosives and is still buried in Tianjin. There's no way he'd show up here."
Huang Ran didn't refute Hao Wenming and waited for him to finish speaking. Then Huang Ran said slowly, "Director Hao, it's not me saying he's Luo Simen; that's what's written in Ruan Liulang's records." He paused, his smile fading a bit, and changed his tone, "As for Luo Simen's assassination, I actually have another version. Want to hear it?"
After staring silently at Huang Ran for a while, Hao Wenming said, "Whether you tell it or not, I don't care. Whether I believe it or not, that's on me." Sun Fatty chimed in from behind, "Old Huang, if you're going to tell it, tell it fully. Don't leave it half said. Leaving us to guess is no fun."
Huang Ran chuckled and ignored Sun Fatty. He turned to the wax corpse and said, "Luo Simen was originally a sorcerer. When Yuan Shikai became Premier, it was thanks to him that Yuan avoided multiple assassination attempts by revolutionaries. The most absurd one was when an assassin sent to ambush Yuan inexplicably fell asleep on the way. Not only that, he had a nightmare, got nightmarred, and accidentally fired his own pistol, shooting himself in the foot. This exposed their position and got him caught by Yuan's guards on the spot. Director Hao, to borrow your words, would a guy like that really be assassinated?"
There was no expression on Hao Wenming's face. He glanced at the wax corpse a few more times, then looked back at Huang Ran and said, "That's your version? Not much different from what I know. Nothing new?"
Huang Ran smiled faintly, glanced at Hao Wenming and Sun Fatty, then said, "Let me finish the whole story. A few more sentences and I'll get to the main point. Later, when Yuan Shikai became President, Luo Simen kept lobbying him to restore the monarchy. That put him on the revolutionaries' assassination list. Wang Jingwei personally led the assassination attempt against him. But Luo Simen discovered it just before they acted. Director Hao, that's where your version ends, right?"
Huang Ran grinned at Hao Wenming, and before Hao could respond, he continued, "Luo Simen knew someone wanted to kill him, and at that time he was also at odds with Yuan Shikai. Back then, Yuan and the revolutionaries were still in their honeymoon period, so they couldn't tolerate a high-profile monarchist advisor. Luo Simen, disillusioned with Yuan, found a scapegoat and used magic to confuse the assassins, faking his own death by explosion. He himself hid deep in the mountains. Director Hao, I found this version when sorting through old Religious Affairs Commission archives. If this is true, it would explain why Luo Simen's corpse is lying here."
While Huang Ran spoke, Hao Wenming kept staring at the wax corpse. After Huang finished, Hao asked, "What does Ruan Liulang's record say exactly? On what basis does he identify this wax corpse as Luo Siyé? I'm not saying, but I haven't found any proof of the corpse's identity."
Huang Ran looked at the corpse and said, "Why do we need to prove he's not Luo Simen? Ruan Liulang said he is, so let's just believe it. No matter how famous Luo Simen was, he's been a wax corpse for almost a hundred years now. There's no need to make up lies about him."
Hao Wenming said nothing after that. But Sun Fatty sensed something and asked, "Old Huang, not to say, what's the meaning of this wax corpse being here? Should we burn some incense or paper money?"
Huang Ran glanced at Sun Fatty, smiled, and shook his head: "It's just a marker. Seeing him means the Tomb of a Transcendent Beast is not far."
After Huang Ran finished, Sun Fatty's eyes widened: "You guys make it sound so ominous, but it's just a signpost? Meaning the Tomb is about one stop away?"
Huang Ran replied, "You can look at it that way. Luo Simen was quite a figure in life, but no matter who he was, once dead, he's just a piece of work. If he can serve as a landmark, that's doing a favor for posterity…" Huang Ran's words had not finished when suddenly a sigh came from the corpse's mouth: "Ahh…"
That sigh startled us all. Even the seasoned trio of Hao Wenming, Huang Ran, and Sun Fatty turned pale. Everyone's eyes focused on the wax corpse. Hao Wenming stared at it for a long moment, then addressed it quietly, "Fourth Lord, is that you?"
Hao Wenming's voice was extremely uncertain. Huang Ran, standing next to the corpse, immediately took five or six steps back, keeping about four or five meters distance. After confirming safety, he looked at the wax corpse called Luo Simen with shock.
Not just them—even Sun Fatty and I could tell the corpse had no soul inside; it was just an empty wax flesh shell. If this wax corpse were possessed by an evil spirit, that would be explainable, and we'd have ways to deal with it. But judging by Hao Wenming and Huang Ran's reactions, it was clear even they could not explain this situation.
After that sigh, nothing else unusual happened. Hao Wenming stood vigil in front of the wax corpse for about five minutes, still receiving no response from Luo Simen. If we hadn't all clearly heard that sigh, I would have thought it was just a hallucination.
Then Hao Wenming moved. He reached into the pocket of his shriveled jacket but realized his equipment was still in Huang Ran's hands. Yet Hao Wenming was tough; he didn't ask Huang Ran to return his gear but just glared back at him. Then he shifted his gaze back to Luo Simen. He bit his index finger, held the fresh blood in his mouth, and spat a mixture of blood and saliva onto the wax corpse's face. Seeing no reaction, Hao Wenming then dripped some fresh blood onto the ground in front of the corpse.