Gale walked out with a face full of shame, his eyes still filled with deep self-reproach.
"What did you say? What do you mean?"
Seeing Gale fall for it, Samwell's expression softened slightly, and he rebuked him angrily.
"I was just curious about the function of this thing, I didn't expect it to be like this."
Gale's self-reproach only fueled Samwell's anger.
Everyone present turned their gaze to Zhou Lin.
Zhou Lin looked at Samwell with a stern face and a playful expression.
Guo Liang and the metaphysics professor were used to such excuses; it was merely a way to cover up the unsavory actions of their superiors.
"Zhou Lin, the blame has been taken. What else can we say? Why not just let it go? There's no loss anyway."
Guo Liang didn't want things to escalate too much, as they would have to interact in the future. The whole world was watching to see who would be embarrassed.
"Since it's an act, let's watch. It doesn't cost anything anyway."
After Zhou Lin finished speaking, he took out a bag of sunflower seeds from his bag and distributed them to the people behind him.
Then, he began to watch Samwell berate Gale.
In the live broadcast room.
"Holy crap, the boss is amazing! He's attacking people with such reckless abandon. This thing... it's incredible. This attitude of watching the show, I think it's awesome."
"What's amazing is that the boss actually brought sunflower seeds. That's really something."
"Haha, I should carry sunflower seeds with me from now on. Who knows if they'll be useful or not."
"What do you people in Great Xia take our professors for? Actors?"
"If not actors, then what are they? Does it need to be explained further? Why poke holes in it?"
"I just like the boss's demeanor, subtly making this professor look foolish?"
"Oh my god, this is so embarrassing."
...
Inside the tomb.
Samwell, tired from his scolding, finally walked up to Zhou Lin.
"I apologize, Professor Zhou Lin. I failed to manage my subordinates properly. I am truly sorry."
Samwell retreated to advance, appearing deeply ashamed.
Zhou Lin spat out the sunflower seed husk from his mouth and looked at Samwell. He had to admit that this man was much smarter than the one underground, at least in terms of maintaining appearances.
"Professor Guo, let's take our people and leave. There's no more research value here. Also, tell the students to take photos of these antiques. They are all treasures of Great Xia."
"Don't lose them, or it will be hard to explain later."
Zhou Lin's words were veiled but carried a deep meaning.
Samwell paused upon hearing this, his eyes fixed on Zhou Lin with ill intent.
But he said nothing, only watching as the people from Great Xia left first.
"Professor..."
Gale narrowed his eyes, looking very wronged.
"You've been wronged, Gale."
Samwell gently patted his shoulder, saying with helplessness.
"I'm not wronged. It's my honor to be able to help the professor. It's just..."
Gale looked at the vases, feeling a sense of regret.
"This is not a burial tomb, and there's nothing worth lingering for. We'll talk about it when we reach the burial tomb."
"You three need to be careful, don't move anything in this tomb. There are only three of you left now, so be cautious when you do things."
Samwell warned the three of them, still not entirely at ease.
"Professor, we will be careful."
Jimmy quickly assured him that he would obey.
Zhou Lin heard all this and was very curious about their motives and the capabilities of these staff members.
"Professor Guo, do you know what the technical personnel from Eagle Country do?"
Zhou Lin asked Guo Liang with a puzzled expression.
"They are top talents from Eagle Country, said to be the best at marine positioning. Their technology in the ocean is second to none in the world. They don't use many detection instruments."
"With their detection technology and methods, they can find even something as small as a walnut."
Guo Liang recalled that this was how they had explained it to them.
"Oh? They are skilled at making marks? Is that what you mean?"
Zhou Lin didn't understand much else, but he grasped this point. This meant that Eagle Country had designs on Great Xia's possessions.
Hmm...
These technical personnel...
Would they be able to leave alive?
"You could say that. Otherwise, why would we have invited them to help?"
Guo Liang said in a low voice.
Zhou Lin remained silent, looking at the narrow passage. It was very dry, with no hint of moisture.
This point made Zhou Lin think that ancient people were very clever, and their wisdom should not be underestimated.
"Zhou Lin, won't Eagle Country cause trouble?"
The metaphysics professor felt this question was worth pondering. Could there really be a problem?
"No, even if they cause trouble, I'm here. What are you afraid of?"
Zhou Lin couldn't be completely sure at the moment, mainly because there was no concrete evidence. You need to catch the thief with the stolen goods; you can't make a hasty conclusion before seeing it.
The students of Great Xia and the mercenaries walked along the passage. It was very quiet, with only the soft sound of their footsteps.
Halfway through, a smell of blood appeared in the air.
"Did you smell that? What is that smell?"
"I smell blood. I've smelled this smell often before."
"Why is there a smell of blood here? Has something else happened?"
The students whispered amongst themselves.
"We can't go on. It's very dangerous ahead."
Zhou Lin stopped abruptly, abandoning the idea of moving forward.
The metaphysics professor, Guo Liang, Captain Bai, and the others stopped upon hearing this, looking around in a panic. Their searchlights began to illuminate the area, expanding their range.
At the very front, many arrows appeared, along with a person wearing a diving suit.
The blood on the ground had begun to dry, but compared to the surrounding skeletons, it seemed to be one of their people.
"Is this... one of our people from Great Xia?"
Even if the metaphysics professor were blind, he could tell that this person had died not long ago.
But how did they get in? How were they here?
The live broadcast room erupted in chaos upon seeing the dead bodies.
"What's going on? Why are there dead people?"
"I heard a rumor that a few people went missing during this tomb exploration, but I'm not sure if the news is true."
"It should be true."
"You guys are so stupid. This has been known in our Eagle Country for a long time. Otherwise, why would you people in Great Xia ask for our help? Don't you have any idea?"
"Exactly. These foolish people of Great Xia don't even have the right to know."
"We invited you, but did you take action? Didn't Great Xia find it themselves? By the time you guys found it, it would have been too late."