Upon entering the main tomb hall, Kent did not find much of interest. He passed through a tomb door and entered the tomb chamber. As soon as he stepped inside, he saw that the space was vast, filled with dozens of weasels—an entire colony. The room appeared to be a large lair, with injured ones, pregnant ones, young, old, and weak weasels everywhere.
Naturally, Kent's sudden appearance did not go unnoticed. A few weasels near the tomb door immediately spotted him and charged at him, growling with vicious eyes, clearly intent on making him their next meal.
Kent quickly retreated, creating some distance, and was about to fire his shotgun when a sudden thought struck him. This was an underground tomb—loud noises could trigger a collapse. He immediately put the shotgun away and took out a bow and arrow, firing as he continued to back away.
Although the tomb was deep underground and pitch black, both sides had excellent vision, so the lack of light did not hinder them much.
Kent's arrows were mostly aimed to drive the weasels back, and only one missed. He wasn't concerned, as his goal was to force them to retreat. With so many weasels around, whether he killed one or not wouldn't have much effect on the situation.
"I don't want to smell that stench," Kent muttered under his breath as he continued to retreat, reaching the tomb entrance. He looked at the shattered stone slabs outside, furrowing his brow.
After a moment of hesitation, he decided to take a risk. He pulled out several grenades and threw them into the room, planning to position himself in the corridor and fend off the weasels one by one. The grenades would take care of them from a distance.
The grenades released thick, choking smoke that quickly filled the main tomb hall and spread into the inner tomb chamber. The weasels started to scream and howl in panic.
Kent waited for a while, his senses heightened. Soon, a group of weasels charged out of the smoke, blindly rushing towards him. Kent was shocked; he hadn't expected so many to come. He realized he couldn't stop them all and didn't want to be overwhelmed by the foul smell, so he had no choice but to retreat, dropping more grenades along the way. He used a few to force the weasels back but had to engage directly when needed, calling on the strength of his companion, Xiao Wei, to knock the weasels away with brute force.
After dropping about five grenades, the sounds from the smoke gradually weakened, and the thumping of weasels falling to the ground echoed repeatedly.
Kent's heart skipped a beat, and after waiting a while, he entered the smoke-filled room. He found a trail of weasel corpses scattered along the path, nearly blocking the corridor.
Without wasting time, Kent wielded his battle sword, quickly dealing with the remaining weasels—no mercy.
Returning to the tomb chamber, Kent did not hesitate to finish off the remaining weak, young, old, or pregnant weasels, leaving no survivors. With that, the weasel colony was most likely wiped out. It was possible that this was the last nest of weasels on the mountain, given the limited space of the small mountain.
"I wonder who is buried here," Kent mused.
After dealing with the weasels, Kent didn't rush to leave. He observed the ancient tomb carefully—its scale was impressive, filled with a wealth of burial items, including ceramics, weapons, armor, gold, and jewels.
It wasn't long before Kent found the tomb of the tomb's owner. However, to his surprise, the room was filled with human bones and stone coffins. In the center was a massive copper coffin, glowing with a strange green light.
Kent's heart skipped a beat. The tomb's owner must have been someone extraordinary to have such an elaborate burial—several people had been buried with him. The stone coffins likely held those who were buried more recently.
He stepped carefully over the decaying human bones, approaching the nearest stone coffin. He pushed aside the lid, and what he found inside was completely unexpected.
He had assumed the scattered human bones belonged to slaves or artisans who worked for the deceased, while the stone coffins would hold the remains of close family members, concubines, or personal attendants.
But instead, one of the stone coffins contained the remains of a weasel—its body already decayed beyond recognition. Strangely, a string of pearls hung around its neck.
Kent was in disbelief. He moved to open another coffin, only to find another weasel's remains, again with gold and jewels as burial offerings.
Looking around, Kent counted thirty-three stone coffins. Could it be that each one contained the remains of a weasel?
He was both stunned and repulsed, unable to understand. The tomb's owner either had a disturbing obsession with weasels or possibly even worshipped them like deities.
A chill ran down Kent's spine. The bizarre burial ritual made him feel uneasy. The atmosphere was oppressive and cold, and he couldn't help but imagine that there might be something sinister about this place.
"Don't be afraid. This is just an unusual burial ritual," he reassured himself, steeling his nerves. He focused his energy, channeling Xiao Wei's strength. Soon, his body warmed, and his vitality surged, helping him feel more at ease.
Kent then approached the massive copper coffin. He took a deep breath and his eyes glowed with a golden light as he stood to the side, signaling Xiao Wei to use his immense strength to pry open the coffin's nails.
With a screech, the coffin lid slowly moved, and as a crack appeared, strange rays of light burst from within, illuminating the surroundings.
Kent's eyes widened in shock as he felt a strange, almost otherworldly aura emanating from the coffin. As the lid continued to open, the light grew brighter, and the tomb chamber became filled with a radiant glow.
"Could this be... a gateway to immortality?" Kent muttered, swallowing nervously and taking a few steps back, bracing himself.
As the coffin lid opened halfway, there was still no movement inside. Kent felt something was off—perhaps he had been overly suspicious. He approached the coffin for a closer look and his face lit up with joy.
Was this… a cloud formation from a secret realm?
Indeed, inside the copper coffin, there was a mass of colorful clouds that filled the entire coffin space.
"This is incredible! I've never heard of a secret realm appearing in this way," Kent marveled, barely believing his eyes. It felt like a dream. He took a deep breath, and as he peered through the glowing mist, he didn't sense any foul odor. With his fiery eyes and golden pupils, he saw that the copper coffin contained no corpses or treasures—only clouds.
"Wait... there's something else." Kent's sharp eyes caught a glint of something inside—the glimmer of a golden hairpin.
At that moment, Kent realized what had happened. The creatures inside the secret realm must have taken the treasures from the coffin, leaving only the remnants behind. The coffin's sealed nature had prevented them from fully escaping.
"I can't believe my luck. I've discovered a new secret realm entrance!" Kent exclaimed, excitement bubbling inside him. But soon, his expression grew serious.
There was hesitation in his heart. Should he enter?
On one hand, his strength was still lacking, and he was alone.
On the other hand, the location of this secret realm entrance was too strange, and something about it made him uneasy.