Volcanic Age

Most regions in Chongqing consisted of low hills formed from sandstone or limestone, except the northern area, which was a forest, and the middle area, where the Yangtze River was located.

To the east was Yanchang. It was a place filled with sandstone and limestone.

Zhou Xuchuan and the group arrived in Yanchang.

"What could possibly be in a place like this?" Wang Yi asked.

Farming or ranching was impossible near Yanchang. There were rocks everywhere, and it wasn't like there were any mineral deposits like iron. The only thing here were low hills. Since even plants didn't grow here, it was no different from a land of death.

It had been three days since they last took a rest in a nearby village, and the group was exhausted.

Zhou Xuchuan led them to a remote area in Yanchang, devoid of human presence.

"Our treasure vault." Zhou Xuchuan put on a thick smile. Zhou Xuchuan announced with a broad smile, his eyes reflecting the layers of rocks.

"Huh?" Zhuge Shengji raised his head to look at the rocks, his eyes filled with confusion.

"Oh, my brother. Did you find something?" Zhou Xuchuan's face lit up as he asked.

"No, I can't put it into words, but… yeah. Let's see. I think this part is strange."

Zhuge Shengji uncharacteristically acted enthusiastically and rubbed a spot on the rock. His eyes were filled with curiosity.

"Do whatever you want."

Zhou Xuchuan replied, settling comfortably on a nearby rock, showing no intention of moving anytime soon.

Phew, he's not the master of mechanisms without reason. If I didn't bring Shengji here, we might not have even found the entrance.

Although he wandered a bit, he managed to successfully find his way to the treasury while comparing his surroundings to memories from his previous life. But now that he was actually here, there was something different from his expectations: the existence of the entrance.

When he came here in his previous life, the entrance had already been discovered and was open, but presently, there was nothing to be seen. Honestly, he was taken aback and found himself speechless.

Clack.

"Oh, it's this."

While probing around the rock, there was a sudden noise.

Rumble!

After that, the ground trembled violently, causing Zhou Xuchuan to fear the sky might collapse on him.

"Wh-what's happening?" The cultivators panicked.

Even Wang Yi, who looked like he would be called an elder in a few years, was visibly flustered.

"Oho, I see. That's how it was set up. This is amazing."

The surrounding area continued to rumble, with vibrations seemingly originating deep underground.

Zhuge Shengji had long lost his balance and fallen on his butt, but he didn't look scared. On the contrary, he appeared curious and looked around while mumbling to himself.

He usually got scared easily, but whenever there were mechanisms involved, he displayed this peculiar personality.

Finally!

He had been waiting for this moment for so long!

Ever since Zhou Xuchuan had regressed, he had made several preparations, devised plans, and changed the details ceaselessly. And after going through many hardships and setbacks, he finally found the treasury.

He could finally understand how an adventurer felt when discovering a whole new place that might go down in history.

"I'm sorry," Zhou Xuchuan whispered an apology. Originally, the honor of this discovery was supposed to belong to someone else.

"Mm." Wang Yi groaned.

Around five minutes later, something appeared in front of them—a set of stairs leading underground.

"What in the world is…" Wang Yi mumbled.

"We're at our destination," Zhou Xuchuan said, pulling Zhuge Shengji up from the ground.

"A-a tomb where such mechanisms are placed… just who lies asleep in this place?"

"Treasure." Zhou Xuchuan replied, his eyes curving into a smile.

*

Crackle—

Torches lit up the darkness. As they descended the stairs, they saw a vast clearing big enough to accommodate hundreds of people. Etched onto the ground of the clearing was a symbol consisting of three eyes.

"No way, this is…" Wang Yi thought of something after looking at the symbol drawn on the ground. He wasn't the only one; the other cultivators had similar thoughts.

"It's the symbol of the Three-Eyed Godly Thief!" Zhuge Shengji shouted, voicing their thoughts.

The Three-Eyed Godly Thief was a legendary figure everyone knew, even children as young as five or six.

"No way, that can't be right."

An assumption crossed their minds, but they all dismissed it as ridiculous.

"Hey, captain." The voice, though deep, belonged to a woman, not a man. She was the only female among the ten cultivators.

Despite being a woman, she was larger than most men, and her well-trained muscles gave her a good figure. She had a vertical scar on her mouth, and her eyes looked sharp.

Her face couldn't be called pretty, and she wasn't someone who could be a romantic interest, given she was middle-aged.

Zhou Xuchuan turned to her, scanning the clearing. "What is it, Chu Lian?"

"Tell us the truth. Whose tomb is this?" Chu Lian's face was stiff.

"From what I know, this is no tomb, but a treasury."

In his previous life, the remains of the Three-Eyed Godly Thief were never discovered.

"Like I said, who does it belong to?" Chu Lian asked once again in frustration.

"The Three-Eyed Godly Thief," Zhou Xuchuan replied without hesitation.

"Lies!" Zhuge Shengji exclaimed. "Th-this is the legendary thief's treasury? That kind of thing is only a rumor!"

Nobody knew what happened to the Three-Eyed Godly Thief after his death. This led to a lot of speculation about the treasures he left behind. The treasures stolen by a thief who could be called an icon of an era wouldn't just disappear. Everyone believed that the treasures were hidden somewhere.

The government had also launched investigations.

However, there were only rumors and no concrete discoveries. The government, the cultivators, and even professional tomb raiders tried to search for it, but they didn't find a single clue.

Eventually, it faded into the back of everyone's minds.

"We'll know for sure once we go inside," Zhou Xuchuan said, his gaze fixed ahead.

There were eight passages branching out from the center of the clearing, all looking identical. Not just that, they were all engulfed in pitch-black darkness.

"Anyone want to return?" Zhou Xuchuan asked for their opinion as he turned around.

However, no one responded. They each had their reasons for coming here.

"I'm not sure if it's real or not, but it seems once we proceed, there's no turning back. What will you do?" Chu Lian asked Wang Yi uneasily.

"What choice do I have? Even if it costs me my life, I must follow the captain."

"I'll try my best to protect you, but should you die, I guarantee that your families will be taken care of," Zhou Xuchuan immediately followed up at Wang Yi's resolute words.

"Phew." Someone let out a sigh of relief at his words.

It looked like they had no choice.

"Give us orders, Captain."

"I'll be at the front, Sheng will be in the middle and the rest of you will protect him from the front, sides and back. However, do not obstruct his vision. He's the most important person out of all of us."

Sheng was the pseudonym that Zhuge Shengji was going to use temporarily.

"Why?"

"There are so many mechanisms in this treasury that this whole place could be considered a mechanism all in itself. The only one who can recognize and dismantle them is Sheng over there."

"This kid?" Chu Lian eyed Zhuge Shengji skeptically.

"Ahem!" Zhuge Shengji puffed out his chest proudly.

While he typically approached everything with a pessimistic mindset, he tended to showcase confidence when praised for his mechanism abilities.

"You're free to doubt him, but you better protect him if you want us all to survive."

"...Tsk." Chu Lian clicked her tongue.

"Also, I'll be at the front leading the way most of the time, but Sheng's orders are to be prioritized. If he and I happen to be in conflict, follow his commands. He's the most knowledgable out of all of us, at least in here."

"It's disconcerting to think that a ten-year-old child holds our fate in his hands." Wang Yi sighed.

The group double-checked themselves one last time before entering a passage.

"Where should we go?" Zhou Xuchuan asked Zhuge Shengji.

"Hm, there's no difference." Zhuge Shengji admitted, scratching his head.

"Alright, then… let's try this one."

Zhou Xuchuan walked toward the third passage from the left.

"Oh, wait."

Zhuge Shengji blocked his path. When Zhou Xuchuan questioned him about it, Zhuge Shengji simply picked up a rock from the ground and tossed it toward the entrance.

Cl-cl-cl-clang-!

The moment the rock passed the entrance, spears fell from the ceiling around the entrance and struck the ground.

"...Didn't you say there was no difference?" Zhou Xuchuan asked, flabbergasted.

"Yeah. They're all like this." Zhuge Shengji responded, blinking innocently.

"This is insane." Wang Yi gulped, his face pale.

"There's… nothing after that, right?"

"Yeah."

"Haa. Looks like we have to deal with those spears first."

The group pushed the spears blocking the entrance to the side and took them out. There were nearly a hundred in total. Only then were they able to enter the passage.

"How did you know about that trap just now, Young Master Sheng? Could you enlighten me?" Wang Yi asked Zhuge Shengji in a polite manner.

"Uh, there's probably no use asking him." Zhou Xuchuan chuckled.

"Ah, my mistake. Please excuse my rudeness."

Wang Yi thought that Zhuge Shengji's knowledge about mechanisms was a type of cultivation art. He quickly apologized, thinking that his request was equivalent to asking someone to recite the secret mantra of their cultivation art.

"No, that's not what I meant." Zhou Xuchuan shook his head lightly.

"Then…?"

"Sheng, try explaining it to us." Zhou Xuchuan stopped and looked at Zhuge Shengji.

"Why don't you all get such a simple thing?" Zhuge Shengji tilted his head, seemingly unable to understand. "Hm… it's hard to put into words, but can't you just see it? There's obviously a trap installed."

All the cultivators fell silent, including Wang Yi.

"What a cocky brat," Chu Lian muttered.

"I agree," Zhou Xuchuan said.

Zhou Xuchuan had also once asked Zhuge Shengji about the basics of mechanisms, thinking that it might come in handy even if he couldn't learn anything complex. However, Zhuge Shengji always tilted his head and mumbled ridiculous things like this.

In Zhuge Shengji's words, dismantling traps just required 'touching what looks off.'

He was a genius, and the worst kind at that.

"But he's just as reassuring."

*

There were dozens of traps installed in the passage. It hadn't even been an hour, but they had already lost count of the number of traps that had been activated or dismantled. Without Zhuge Shengji, they would have died several times over already.

Even the group, who was half doubtful about Zhou Xuchuan's words at first, realized Zhuge Shengji's importance and seriously protected him.

Another hour passed, and the passage widened, revealing human-like figures. There weren't just one or two, either.

The group, who checked what they were with their torches, expressed their confusion.

"Wooden puppets?"