Chapter Twenty-Three: Excessive Power Breeds Fear

“What’s wrong?” My second uncle saw my flustered appearance and came over to ask.

“My friend is missing,” I replied.

His brows furrowed, and though I could tell he was cursing inwardly, he still called over two of his workers and told them to search around the area and atop the city walls. By the time those two returned, drenched in sweat, everyone else had already finished their sweep as well.

One look at their faces was enough to know they hadn’t found Old Tan. At this point, everyone gathered around, and both the simpleton and Qin Feng were ready with the explosives.

Inwardly, I cursed Tan Wei, wondering where the hell he’d gone off to at such a critical moment. Why did I impulsively bring him along? This had nothing to do with him, and if something happened to him, how could I ever face his grandmother?

After Second Uncle explained the situation, the simpleton asked if we should keep searching. We all knew, though, that even though this place was vast, it was almost entirely flat, and with so much light, there was nowhere for a grown man to hide. If he couldn’t be found, then there was truly nothing more we could do. A chilling thought crossed my mind—had that shadowy thing snatched Tan Wei away again?

“I’ll handle the explosives myself. The rest of you keep searching the city walls,” Qin Feng said, his tone steady and calm.

Second Uncle nodded, and the workers rushed back toward the ramparts. My mind was in chaos. Unconsciously, I glanced at Peanut. He was still sitting on the ground, seemingly unconcerned by all that was happening around us, just gently stroking the three “keys” in his hand, tracing the carved reliefs.

Once the group dispersed, the area grew much quieter. Qin Feng was about to set the explosives down when suddenly his expression darkened, and he froze in place.

“Is something wrong?” Second Uncle asked.

“I hear someone talking,” Qin Feng replied, looking up.

“Probably the others on the walls,” Second Uncle said, glancing into the distance.

“No, the voice is coming from below.” Qin Feng’s certainty was unyielding.

Second Uncle listened carefully, even going so far as to press his ear to the ground. I strained my ears as well, but after a long while, I heard nothing from the stone slabs beneath our feet.

“Are you sure?” Second Uncle stood up to look at Qin Feng, who must not have heard anything either.

“Yes, someone is shouting, but I can’t make out what they’re saying,” Qin Feng said.

This left us all at a loss. Qin Feng turned to Second Uncle, “Should we blast it open now?”

“There isn’t enough explosive to break through the slabs, but use too much and it’ll put everyone in danger.” At some point, Peanut had come over to stand beside us.

“Oh?” Qin Feng looked over at him.

Peanut gazed at the stone slabs, speaking in a low voice, “If the builders went to such lengths to hide the tomb passage, they wouldn’t have made it easy to open. Without enough force, even if we blasted it apart, we wouldn’t find anything.”

“Young man, do you have a better idea?” Second Uncle asked, his eyes on Peanut.

Peanut smiled at Qin Feng. “Let’s listen to what the person below is saying first.”

“You hear someone talking down there too?” I asked anxiously.

Peanut nodded. “But I can’t hear clearly either. How about… we try prying up a slab?”

“Hmph, isn’t that still going to take explosives?” Qin Feng scoffed.

“You’re not wrong, but if we set off an explosion, what happens to the man underneath?” Peanut’s words sent a jolt through me. “Exactly. If someone’s down there