"What are you doing here?" Yoko's angry voice rang out.
Have Hu Bayi and the others arrived?
Cao Yi tucked the Sanqing Bell into his canvas bag and slowly walked out.
At the entrance of the platform, Hu Bayi and the others had appeared.
It seemed Hu Bayi couldn't resist Wang Kaixuan.
"You're no longer needed; leave immediately," Yoko commanded, holding her axe firmly.
"Yoko," Ying Caihong admonished softly.
Yoko looked at her teacher in confusion. These people had only cared about themselves along the way, and now they suddenly showed up, clearly coming for the other shore flower—why not drive them away?
Ignoring Yoko, Ying Caihong was more concerned about the potential dangers posed by the other shore flower and the thousand-year-old corpse. She was thrilled these people had come to be sacrificial pawns; why would she want to send them away?
"Since you're also interested in the other shore flower, let's cooperate," Ying Caihong said.
Feeling awkward due to Yoko's attitude, Hu Bayi relaxed slightly and asked, "How do you propose we cooperate?"
Letting you be the sacrificial pawns.
Ying Caihong smiled pleasantly, saying, "I provide the keys; you bring people to open this round coffin."
Hu Bayi frowned slightly. Opening a coffin in a major tomb was usually perilous—one misstep could cost them their lives.
After a moment of thought, he glanced back at the resolute Wang Kaixuan and the still-angry Shirley Yang, sighed internally, and replied to Ying Caihong, "Alright."
This was their own doing.
Ying Caihong turned to Yoko and signaled her.
Yoko took three copper keys from a foreigner's backpack and handed them to Hu Bayi.
"This destruction along the way was to obtain these three keys, wasn't it?" Hu Bayi said thoughtfully.
"No, it's two; I obtained the other one long ago. Don't waste time," Ying Caihong explained impatiently.
Hu Bayi nodded and distributed a copper key each to Wang Kaixuan and Shirley Yang.
As usual, the Tomb Raiders would light a candle in the southeast corner before opening the coffin, and Hu Bayi took a white candle from his backpack, placed it in the southeast corner of the coffin, and lit it.
With the flickering candlelight, Hu Bayi's expression became unusually serious.
Wang Kaixuan and Shirley Yang also pulled out their treasure-seeking talismans from their clothing, looking grave.
Hu Bayi moved in front of the two.
The three exchanged a glance and simultaneously reached out, clasping each other's hands.
"Tomb Raiders, unity brings life; division brings death."
Seeing this, a saying popped into Cao Yi's mind: "I'm not afraid of a thug who fights; I'm afraid of a thug with culture."
Throughout history, countless tomb raiding sects have flourished, but the most famous is the Tomb Raiders.
It's simple—they have culture.
High-level!
In twenty-first-century terms, they're at the top of the tomb raiding social hierarchy.
"Let's begin," Hu Bayi said, standing by the indentation of the coffin.
Wang Kaixuan and Shirley Yang positioned themselves, one staying in place while the other moved to the opposite side.
From above, the three formed a triangle.
Opening a coffin has always been fraught with danger!
The three did not act immediately but carefully examined the coffin for potential traps or dart holes.
Knowing a collapse was imminent, Cao Yi took a step back to the edge.
Perhaps it was too obvious!
Regardless of whether it was Ying Caihong, Yoko, the foreigners, or Big Gold Tooth, they all retreated to the edge.
This collective action heightened the pressure on the three, leading to more detailed observations!
Growing bored, Cao Yi began to admire the platform.
It resembled a legendary altar!
Surrounding it were eight imposing stone pillars, each adorned with trigrams. Each pillar had a massive iron chain connecting to the central round coffin.
It looked as if it was suppressing a monster.
The round coffin was decorated with images of dragons, phoenixes, and a human head, resembling a flower poised to bloom, with overlapping petals connected by iron chains, creating a striking visual impact.
"Click! Click! Click!"
Three crisp sounds echoed.
Cao Yi's gaze dropped; Hu Bayi and the others had inserted the three copper keys into the slots.
"Crack!"
The three twisted the keys simultaneously, producing a clear sound—three distinct notes resonated.
Two layers of flower-like shields opened in succession, like a blooming night-blooming cereus, shocking to behold.
The tomb owner, Yelü Abaoji's only daughter, a shaman of the Liao Dynasty known as Princess Ogu, appeared.
She wore a lavish outfit of dark gold and deep red, a golden ram-horned mask covering her face, holding a black stone plate—undoubtedly the other shore flower that Ying Caihong and Wang Kaixuan yearned for.
As everyone was mesmerized by the other shore flower, the candle in the southeastern corner of the coffin turned green.
"Step back!" Cao Yi warned while grabbing the nearest Shirley Yang.
The ground around Yelü Zhigu suddenly cracked open, causing the unprepared Hu Bayi and Wang Kaixuan to fall in.
"Hu Bayi!" Shirley Yang shouted in panic.
Though she wouldn't admit it, she had already come to see Hu Bayi as her partner for life.
Big Gold Tooth, nearby, also cried out, having worked with Hu Bayi and Wang Kaixuan for many years and developed some feelings.
"They're fine."
Cao Yi, with keen eyesight, clearly saw Hu Bayi and Wang Kaixuan hanging in mid-air, each grasping onto something.
"Fine?" Shirley glanced down, skeptical, but as an ordinary person, she couldn't see anything.
"Shirley, I'm fine!"
"I'm okay too!" Wang Kaixuan and Hu Bayi shouted from below.
Shirley Yang's anxious expression eased.
Having settled this side, Cao Yi's gaze shifted to the black stone plate in Yelü Zhigu's hands, the other shore flower that appeared to be a meteorite.
The other shore flower blooms between dusk and dawn, specifically between three and five in the morning. It was still morning, so it was safe.
If he could obtain it, he would complete his task.
Cao Yi leaped effortlessly over the narrow crack, reaching Yelü Zhigu's side.
As he reached for the other shore flower, his other hand gripped the peach wood sword, ready to act or dodge if Yelü Zhigu didn't remain still like in the original plot.
Grabbing the other shore flower, Yelü Zhigu showed no sign of movement.
Feeling relieved but puzzled, Cao Yi wondered why Yelü Zhigu, if she were truly a thousand-year-old corpse, would not react!
"Daoist Priest, give me the other shore flower!" Ying Caihong shouted excitedly from the side.
The other shore flower!
Cao Yi refocused on the flower and thought, "System, submit the task."
The system remained silent.
He called out again.
Still no response!
Could the other shore flower be fake?
"Daoist Priest?" Ying Caihong's face showed signs of confusion.
"Here you go," Cao Yi tossed the other shore flower over.
Ying Caihong joyfully caught it.
Cao Yi then turned his gaze back to Yelü Zhigu, suddenly motivated, and reached to remove the heavy mask.
What was revealed was not a skull aged over a thousand years or a zombie face with green skin and fangs.
Instead, it was a face with minor burns.
"Ding Sitian!" Cao Yi exclaimed.