"Mayor Huang, it's bad!" the secretary burst into the mayor's office, his face filled with panic.
"What is it?" Mayor Huang already had a hunch. "Did the capture of the Sha Zhong go wrong?"
"Yes, it went wrong," the secretary panted.
"What happened?"
The secretary continued, "We had successfully captured a Sha Zhong, but then another one suddenly appeared and killed the entire team. Our members had no chance to fight back."
"That strong?" Mayor Huang was surprised, but he had foreseen this. He wasn't overly shocked. "Do we have any information on this monster?"
The secretary pulled out a few photos from a file bag and handed them to Mayor Huang.
"These are photos from the on-site camera, and there's also a video that has been sent to your email. You can take a look."
Mayor Huang took the photos and saw the culprit behind the team's annihilation—a massive Sha Zhong that resembled a spider but with more legs, all shaped like human arms. Its upper body had two grotesque heads, each with a single eye.
"Have the photos been given to Professor Liu for analysis?" Mayor Huang asked.
The secretary nodded gravely. "They've been sent to Professor Liu. He said this Sha Zhong might be a Half-Sha."
"Half-Sha..." Mayor Huang tapped his fingers on the desk. This was not something conventional firepower could handle.
...
The underground tomb on the eighteenth floor.
Fang Ming and the others were at a loss facing the millions of Sha Zhong. Forcibly pushing through was impossible. The sheer numbers would exhaust the three of them, not to mention the possibility of encountering a Fierce Sha among them.
With Nannan absent, a single Fierce Sha would be enough to wipe them all out.
"What do we do?" Zheng Zhuliu frowned, their situation precarious, unable to advance or retreat. Were they to wait for death?
Fang Ming remained silent, rummaging through his backpack for his diary.
"We have entered the second level of the Blood King's tomb, which is inexplicably guarded by millions of Sha Zhong. I thought we would have to find a way to break through. Suddenly, I realized that if these Sha Zhong have existed here for so long, there must be a supply of resentment. Millions of Sha Zhong consume an enormous amount of resentment daily. These terracotta soldiers have fallen into dormancy to conserve energy, but they still need a constant supply of resentment. I began searching for the source of their resentment replenishment and finally found a clue in a northern region."
"I have a way," Fang Ming closed the diary and said to Zheng Zhuliu and Qing Mian.
"Oh? What way?" Zheng Zhuliu's face lit up, and he quickly asked.
Fang Ming briefly explained the dormant state of these terracotta soldiers. Zheng Zhuliu listened, somewhat confused. As a human, he didn't fully understand the survival methods of Sha Zhong. Qing Mian, however, understood Fang Ming's words.
"You mean if we destroy the source of resentment replenishment, we can prevent these Sha Zhong from awakening?" Qing Mian asked thoughtfully.
Fang Ming nodded. "Exactly. Based on my calculations, the clue is in the northern area of the terracotta soldier formation. There must be something unusual there."
"Alright, I understand," Qing Mian nodded, comprehending Fang Ming's meaning. "I'll enter the terracotta soldier group through the mirror to find that clue now."
"Wait for my news."
With that, Qing Mian left a phantom image at his spot and entered the mirror to search for the "clue" Fang Ming mentioned.
After Qing Mian left, Zheng Zhuliu suddenly had an idea and asked Fang Ming, "Can we sneak through the terracotta soldier group using Qing Mian's mirror?"
Fang Ming's heart skipped a beat. This method seemed feasible. The three of them hadn't thought of it. They could "sneak" through using the mirror.
"I'll ask him when Qing Mian returns," Fang Ming replied. "But you'd better prepare to be disappointed. I suspect there might be some side effects if we enter Qing Mian's mirror, otherwise, Qing Mian wouldn't have failed to mention this method."
Time ticked by. Qing Mian remained silent. Silence was the best kind of news, indicating that Qing Mian hadn't alerted the Sha Zhong.
Half an hour later, Qing Mian reappeared, a sheen of cold sweat on his forehead.
"What's wrong?" Fang Ming asked, noticing his appearance.
Qing Mian waved his hand, indicating it was nothing.
"There are indeed Fierce Sha in the Sha Zhong group, and in considerable numbers, at least over a hundred estimated. I was exploring the situation inside, and a Fierce Sha with a peculiar ability almost detected me."
Qing Mian explained, wiping the sweat from his brow. "I found the clue Fang Ming mentioned. There's a massive rune in the northern area, and the resentment there is extremely dense. It's likely what has been keeping the entire Sha Zhong group active."
"Another rune?" Fang Ming frowned. He formed a claw with his finger and squatted down, drawing a rune he recalled on the ground. He didn't understand its meaning, only how to draw it.
"Is it a rune of this shape?" Fang Ming asked, pointing to the rune on the ground after drawing it.
Qing Mian glanced at it and nodded in confirmation. "It's a rune of this shape. How can you draw it too?"
"Because my father left it."
"Your father?" Zheng Zhuliu was confused. "How could your father have left a rune in this tomb? That rune should have been drawn when the tomb was built, right? Your father's father wasn't even born then, how could he have come here to draw runes?"
Fang Ming shook his head, indicating he didn't know the reason either.
"Perhaps it was an ancient person who could draw such runes?" Zheng Zhuliu guessed.
"Perhaps," Fang Ming didn't argue with Zheng Zhuliu, but he knew this was definitely left by his father. As for how his father returned to build this tomb a thousand years ago, there might be a more mysterious reason.
"Qing Mian, Sixth Master just proposed an idea. Can we use your mirror world to sneak through the terracotta soldier group?" Fang Ming raised the issue.
Qing Mian shook his head regretfully. "Once the mirror is activated, the scene inside is fixed. Although theoretically, we could use the mirror to leave here, I can't guarantee where we'll end up when we exit. It's too dangerous, especially in a place like this."
Zheng Zhuliu looked disappointed but understood. What if they exited the mirror and found themselves face-to-face with a Fierce Sha? That would be like offering themselves on a platter.
"Fang Ming, what do we do next?" Qing Mian asked.
Fang Ming pondered for a moment. "We must find a way to destroy that rune. However, there's a dangerous possibility: once the rune is destroyed, these terracotta soldiers might enter a brief berserk state. So, only you can do this, Qing Mian."
Qing Mian did not hesitate. "Alright, no problem. Wait for my good news."
"Be careful. After you leave, I will temporarily seal the entire passageway and will only enter after the terracotta soldier group has calmed down."
"No problem," Qing Mian said and entered the mirror world again.
Seeing Qing Mian leave, Fang Ming immediately released the suppression on his body. In an instant, a colossal figure appeared. Zheng Zhuliu recoiled a few steps, still quite afraid of Fang Ming's current form.
"Not bad," Fang Ming clenched his fist, an explosive power surging within it. He was countless times stronger than before.
Without delay, Fang Ming went to the broken stone gate. After advancing a certain distance into the passageway, he began to destroy it frantically, retreating as he worked until the entire passageway was buried under rubble. Fang Ming then stopped.
"Qing Mian is going to destroy the rune. We should retreat now. I'm worried that once the terracotta soldiers awaken, they'll sense our presence and come looking for us," Fang Ming said to Zheng Zhuliu.
Zheng Zhuliu nodded. "Where should we hide?"
Fang Ming scanned the surroundings and finally settled his gaze on the stone gate.
"Ha!" Fang Ming punched again, the fist imprints flashing.
"Boom, boom, boom..." Dust billowed. A moment later, a large pit appeared beside the stone gate.
"We'll hide in here. Those terracotta soldiers probably won't search here," Fang Ming smirked. This was the "darkness under the lamp" tactic.
Zheng Zhuliu was a bit worried, but there was no other suitable hiding place. If the terracotta soldiers searched, the entire passageway would be exposed. Only this place, with signs of damage, seemed like a better hiding spot.
"Alright, I'll follow your lead." Zheng Zhuliu gritted his teeth and decided to trust Fang Ming. After all, Fang Ming would handle any disaster; he just needed to cheer from the sidelines.
After Zheng Zhuliu hid in the pit, Fang Ming followed, then blasted away the rocks overhead, concealing them.
Time flowed by.
Suddenly, roars erupted. Fang Ming steadied his heartbeat. He knew the terracotta soldier group had revived.
The terracotta soldier formation on the second level descended into chaos. Large numbers of soldiers were forcibly awakened due to the drastic decrease in resentment. Unable to find targets, they could only rage impotently. A few highly intelligent Fierce Sha soldiers went to investigate the rune. The entire rune had been mangled and rendered useless.
"Damn it! An enemy has infiltrated!" a Fierce Sha soldier snarled.
"Search the entire tomb level immediately! We cannot let the enemy escape!"
Under the command of the Fierce Sha, the millions of soldiers immediately mobilized and began a carpet search of the entire second level. Soon, some soldiers discovered the passageway leading to the first level, and a group of soldiers immediately passed through the passageway to the stone gate.
But it had already been destroyed by Fang Ming. A Fierce Sha soldier stepped forward, clenched its hands in the air, and the rocks blocking the passageway instantly turned to dust.
"Holy cow, that's strong?" Fang Ming, secretly sensing the situation, was shocked and dared not even breathe, fearing any sound would expose him.
He had underestimated these Fierce Sha.
The passageway cleared, the Fierce Sha soldier led its subordinates to the first level. The first level only had a circular passageway and murals, with nowhere to hide. A group of soldiers quickly turned the entire first level upside down.
"Report! No trace of the enemy on this level!" a soldier saluted a Fierce Sha soldier and reported.
"Return," the Fierce Sha soldier swept its gaze across the first level, which was completely visible. It sensed no other fluctuations in the surroundings and could only lead its subordinates back to the second level.
After all, the resentment on this level was too sparse. For these life-preserving Sha Zhong and Fierce Sha, staying here would not be sustainable.
As the sound of footsteps gradually faded, Fang Ming's heart finally settled. However, he still dared not move, continuing to hide in the stone pit and wait for Qing Mian's return.