Volume Three: Tomb of the Fox Immortal - Chapter Thirty-Eight: The Underground River

After listening to Xu Tian, I frowned and said, "If we truly cannot find an entrance, we have no choice but to find a spot along this riverbed and start excavating a盗洞 (robber's shaft)."

Xu Tian let out a soft sigh and replied, "It seems this place really isn't that easy to enter."

I nodded, but before I could say anything else, we heard Li Kun shouting my name from behind us. Xu Tian and I turned to look, only to see Li Kun waving his flashlight and running toward us, calling out something that was too distant to make out.

As he drew closer, we finally heard him shouting, "Old Liu! I found a way in! Come over here quickly!"

Hearing that Li Kun had found an entrance, our spirits lifted, and we hurried toward him. Once we caught up, Li Kun explained, "Old Liu, I found a deep pit behind a rock face. It looks like a well dug by humans, but it’s long since dried up."

Upon hearing this, my expression brightened instantly. "Old Li, are you saying you found a deep well?"

As we followed him, Li Kun nodded and said, "It’s right by that rock wall up ahead. You’ll see when we get there; I can't quite describe it."

Hearing this, we picked up our pace and followed him to the base of Green Dragon Mountain. Upon arriving, we found ourselves surrounded by sheer cliff walls. I was momentarily taken aback, but Li Kun looked at the stone wall in front of him, grabbed a protruding rock, and vaulted himself up.

We were at the foot of Green Dragon Mountain, where the base resembled the body of a green dragon. Looking to the left, the wall stood about two meters high and stretched for over a hundred meters. Seeing Li Kun jump up, the three of us followed suit, grabbing the protrusions and leaping up after him.

Once on top, Li Kun looked around to get his bearings and then began walking along the edge of the mountain toward the right. After walking about ten meters, he pointed ahead and said, "It's right here."

Xu Tian and I hurried over. There was a recessed area in the middle of the rock face that would have been impossible to notice without careful inspection. As we approached, we saw a depression about two meters across. In the center, just as Li Kun had described, was a square-shaped pit about a meter wide, with a wide ledge running around its perimeter.

It wasn't exactly a well, as a well would have been circular; this pit was distinctly square.

Seeing this, I said to Da Gou and Li Kun, "Old Li, Da Gou, you two wait up here for a moment. Old Xu and I will go down to take a look."

Li Kun nodded. Xu Tian and I set our backpacks on the ground, gripped the edge of the rock, and began to climb down into the pit.

Standing on the ledge inside the pit, we shone our flashlights downward. We were immediately encouraged by what we saw. Xu Tian said, "Old Liu, it looks like we’ve found the spot closest to the tomb chamber. If we start digging the shaft from here, I reckon it won’t take much effort."

I nodded and, without delay, called up to Li Kun and Da Gou, "Da Gou, Old Li, throw the climbing rope down to us. A fifteen-meter coil should be enough; even if the tomb is deep, fifteen meters is likely the limit."

The two nodded and got to work. Li Kun tied the rope to a large boulder nearby, and Da Gou tossed the other end down to us. Once I caught it, I let the rope drop. We shone our lights downward and saw a small pile of it already coiling on the ground below.

Just as I was about to descend, Li Kun jumped down and gestured to the pit. "Old Liu, what do you think? This place will work, right?"

I nodded and said, "Old Li, you really are the lucky star of our team. Tell me, how did you find this?"

Li Kun laughed. "I searched around for ages and didn't see any pits. The mountain here isn't very high, so I thought, 'higher ground, better view,' right? But when I got up here, I still couldn't see a damn thing. Then, while walking around, I stumbled upon this. Once I found it, I came down to check it out and ran to get you."

He turned to Xu Tian and added, "This godforsaken place doesn't even have cell service. I checked my phone earlier and there was zero signal. Old Xu, next time we head into the mountains, you should bring some walkie-talkies. Otherwise, I have to run all the way back just to contact you. If we had radios, I could’ve just called out, and you would’ve seen my flashlight signal."

Xu Tian nodded. "Agreed. Next time we’re on a mission, I’ll be sure to bring radios."

With that, Li Kun grabbed the rope to test it, flipped his body over, and prepared to head down first. When he saw me about to protest, he said, "Old Liu, leave the scouting to me from now on. You’re too reckless, and I don't trust you."

I gave a bitter smile. Xu Tian looked at me, his eyes full of concern. Noticing this, Li Kun said, "Old Xu, I’ll tell you about this guy later. Last time, he nearly died playing hero."

Without bothering with a harness or carabiner, Li Kun simply slid down using the strength of his arms.

After he descended, Xu Tian turned to me and said, "Regardless of whether what Old Li said is true, since I came here with you two, you’re my brothers now. Old Liu, you must value your life—we don't want you dying in your twenties."

I smiled bitterly and nodded, though I thought to myself: if my life could be traded for yours, it would be worth it.

Xu Tian seemed to read my mind and said softly, "Don't forget, Gao Feng is still waiting for you." With that, he lowered his head to shine his flashlight on Li Kun inside the pit.

My heart stirred. Before, I had no attachments other than the old man, but my relationship with Gao Feng was delicate—more than friends, though not quite lovers. I shook my head and looked down at Li Kun.

Li Kun was gripping the rope, his back against the earth, bracing his feet against the soil as he slowly descended. After about seven or eight meters, he heard the sound of water coming from below. He paused, spread his legs, and looked down. It didn't look like a small, confined pit; it appeared as though there was a massive space beneath.

Seeing this, Li Kun took the flashlight from his mouth and shone it up at us. "Old Liu, there seems to be a huge space down here! It’s not just a well!"

I felt a jolt. Li Kun continued, "I can hear water—there must be an underground river down here."

Xu Tian and I exchanged a look. I said, "Old Li, be careful once you reach the bottom. Don't wander off; wait for us to come down."

"I know," Li Kun replied, continuing his descent.

After another four or five meters, he cleared the shaft. Seeing he was only about two meters from the ground, he didn't hesitate, let go of the rope, and jumped down.

Once on the floor, he shouted up, "Old Liu, come on down! But lower the gear first."

I nodded, hauled the rope back up, and began lowering our supplies one by one. Once that was done, I turned to Da Gou. "Da Gou, are you scared?"

Da Gou shook his head. "As long as you're here, I'm not afraid."

I patted his shoulder. "Good man. Go down first; Li Kun will catch you."

Da Gou nodded, strapped on his harness and carabiner, and slowly climbed down. Xu Tian followed, and I was the last to descend.

Upon reaching the bottom, I could indeed hear the sound of flowing water. *There really is an underground river,* I thought.

Once we were all down, we stood at the edge of the pit. I looked around; the space resembled a massive cavern, surrounded by thick rock walls. It was indeed vast, easily twenty meters across, with several natural stone pillars rising from the floor.

Li Kun pointed to my right. "Old Liu, look there."

I followed his gaze. To the right was a wide underground river, about seven or eight meters across, flowing from left to right. There was no path on the left side, only the river itself. However, on our right bank, there was a path three or four meters wide. Behind us lay a solid rock wall. It felt as though someone had deliberately carved this stone chamber here. It seemed that, apart from the path on the right, there was no other way to proceed.