Uncle San panicked, but he knew he absolutely couldn’t be nervous at this moment. He unfastened the oxygen tank on his body and kicked it away, then connected it to the one belonging to Jie Lianhuan and continued searching for the entrance.

At this point, things were already quite dire. When Uncle San shone his flashlight around, he discovered that everything was engulfed in deep darkness, and he couldn’t even figure out the direction he had come from.

It seemed he had been too naive, Uncle San cursed under his breath, and a heartbeat more intense than the fear of being trapped in an ancient tomb began to surge within him. That was when he realized he might be doomed.

However, after this extreme fear, Uncle San calmed down instead. He thought to himself that he still had ten minutes, and perhaps hope lay within those ten minutes. If he couldn’t find it, well, it would just be a matter of dying sooner rather than later.

Relying on his instincts, he began searching again. Soon, Jie Lianhuan’s oxygen tank also ran out. He unfastened the air bag and started inhaling the air inside. However, the surroundings remained pitch black, and this feeling was incredibly frustrating, especially when you want to find something but can’t no matter how hard you try. Uncle San began to feel despair. At that moment, misfortune struck again; suddenly, Jie Lianhuan’s flashlight flickered and went out, plunging the surroundings into complete darkness.

Uncle San thought to himself that it seemed heaven wanted him dead, and there was nothing he could do. Just then, he suddenly saw green light spots appearing in the darkness ahead of him.

Oh no, it’s the ancient corpses! Uncle San turned on the probe light at his waist and shone it there. Sure enough, he saw that the group of ancient corpses had drifted back, and they were very close to him, only about five or six meters away.

A glimmer of hope appeared in Uncle San’s heart. He thought to himself that the trajectory of these ancient corpses passed by that entrance, and if he followed these corpses, he could find the entrance.

So he swam over and joined the group of ancient corpses, following them as they moved forward. As he got closer, he noticed that the ancient corpses seemed to be following a current of water. He plunged into this current and began to drift forward automatically, while shining the probe light to observe the situation above.

However, what made him extremely anxious was that the corpses were drifting very slowly. Soon, he had almost emptied the first air bag and still hadn’t found the entrance. Uncle San told me that at that moment, he was on the verge of madness, but there was nothing he could do but keep following. He could only hope for a miracle. Or rather, at that moment, he had no mood left to be afraid and couldn’t think about the oxygen situation; he just hoped to see that entrance immediately.

However, when he finally saw the entrance appear above him, the second air bag was nearly empty. The air in the two water bags could last at most two minutes. If he entered, it would be like committing suicide; if he followed the current downstream, there might still be hope of returning to that tomb chamber.

Uncle San looked at the entrance and then at the darkness below, and he made a decision: he would do whatever it took to take a shot at it. Going down would just mean dying a little later. Two minutes, although it was unlikely, he had to try; he didn’t want to wait to die.

He took a deep breath and began to swim upward, but the moment he swam out of the current, the slow speed of the water caused him to tumble and crash right into an ancient corpse.

The force of the water flow was quite strong, and Uncle San couldn’t control his posture. He hurriedly hugged the ancient corpse, trying to stabilize his body. At that moment, he suddenly had a flash of insight and noticed that gas was actually spewing out of the ancient corpse’s mouth. Huh? He was taken aback, and when he pressed on the corpse, he immediately realized that it wasn’t a real person but rather a figure made of bamboo and similar materials, covered in stone glue and mud oil on the outside. Moreover, it was clearly hollow and contained air inside!

No way, Uncle San thought, and immediately pulled out his dagger, stabbing it in. Immediately, bubbles erupted from the puncture. Uncle San lunged at it like a vampire, inhaling the air inside. After just one breath, he knew there was a way out; although the air inside was extremely foul, it wasn’t toxic and was breathable.

With that in mind, he grabbed two ancient corpses and pushed away from the water flow, moving into the entrance. It sounds unbelievable, and no one would believe it, but Uncle San truly managed to come back to life like this.

When he returned to the boat, it was already bright outside, and the sun was about to rise. Once he got back on the boat and set his equipment down, he noticed the third set of wet gear in the corner. At that moment, he immediately confirmed that the person who wanted him dead was definitely someone from the archaeological team.

However, when he returned to the cabin, he found that everyone was sound asleep. He checked each person one by one, but he couldn’t tell if anyone was acting strangely. If it were any other time, he would have tied them up and interrogated them, but considering Wen Jin’s feelings, he couldn’t do that and had to suppress his frustration, pretending to sleep. It wasn’t until two hours later, when the sky brightened, that he pretended to discover that Jie Lianhuan was missing, and they began searching. He initially wanted to lead them to find that reef cave, but unexpectedly, they found Jie Lianhuan’s drowned body nearby.

Uncle San said to me, “I don’t know how he got out. Given the situation at the time, it’s possible that after he woke up and realized the oxygen tank was gone, he was left alone and, in a panic, forced his way out and drowned. I really didn’t expect him to be so foolish, but now that I think about it, I guess I was the one who caused his death.”

I sighed deeply and said to Uncle San, “You should have gone down immediately to save him; then this wouldn’t have happened. How could you still sleep?”

Uncle San nodded and sighed, “At that time, I felt that going down to save someone was too dangerous. I didn’t know which person on the boat wanted my life, and going back in might lead me into someone else’s trap. Anyway, once they woke up, they would immediately notice that Jie Lianhuan was missing and would definitely go looking for him. I had left the inflatable boat at the reef where I had been, and as long as I could lead them there, I could take advantage of the chaos to enter the cave. It would take at most half an hour; otherwise, if I went out to sea alone with two sets of equipment overnight, it would not only raise suspicion but also complicate things after rescuing Jie Lianhuan.” Uncle San shook his head, “Now you understand why I don’t want to talk about this. This is the thing I regret the most.”

Speaking of this, it reminded me of that blood letter, and now it’s clear why Jie Lianhuan would think that his third uncle harmed him. Damn, he was ambushed from behind, and Jie Lianhuan definitely didn’t know who did it. He couldn’t possibly think that there was a third person who had entered the ancient tomb. The first person he thought of after waking up was his third uncle, and when he saw that his diving equipment was gone, he must have assumed it was his third uncle trying to kill him.

What a historical injustice! I immediately thought of those misunderstandings in Jin Yong’s novels that couldn’t be resolved. I used to think they were exaggerated in literature, but I never expected that they could actually happen in real life.

In the end, it’s impossible to verify where Jie Lianhuan got the snake-browed copper fish, or how the body appeared under the reef. It’s likely that in his despair, he found some way out, but even if he could escape from the underwater ancient tomb, he couldn’t escape that stretch of seawater. Ultimately, Jie Lianhuan could not escape his fate.

It’s better not to tell his third uncle about this misunderstanding, lest he feel uncomfortable after hearing it, I secretly planned.

His third uncle continued, “As for what happened next, I already told you about it in Jinan. Of course, at that time, I didn’t want you to know that Jie Lianhuan’s death was related to me, so I didn’t mention what happened after Wen Jin and the others went into the underwater tomb for the second time. Actually, when I went in, I was indeed pretending to be asleep because I was afraid they would reach that tomb room. I didn’t know what Jie Lianhuan would leave inside, so I wanted to see it before they got there. Moreover, I knew that the person who attacked me would definitely reveal himself, and I wanted to use that to find him and take revenge for Jie Lianhuan.”

At this moment, I remembered what the Mysterious Oil Bottle had told me. Upon reflection, it seemed that the idea to explore the ancient tomb came from the Mysterious Oil Bottle himself. I suddenly understood and asked my third uncle, “Did you figure out who it was? Was it that Zhang Qiling?”

His skills and background are very mysterious, and if it was him, things would be easier to explain.

My third uncle frowned, “After they went out, I followed behind them. This person was indeed quite suspicious, but there were even more suspicious individuals. In any case, by the end, I couldn’t figure it out. I found everyone suspicious. However, I personally think that with that guy’s skills, my little bit of ability would probably have gotten me killed right away. It’s unlikely to be him.”

I realized this too and nodded. The Mysterious Oil Bottle usually looked weak and sleepy, but when he got serious, he could directly twist someone’s neck, which is the quickest way to kill someone. My third uncle would definitely not be his match. So I asked again, “What happened next?”

“Next… After that guy took his group out, I secretly followed behind. Inside the ancient tomb, after they entered the tomb room with the pool, I didn’t know there was a passage at the bottom of that pool at the time. I thought they would come out after going around, so I stayed in the darkness of the corridor. After waiting for a while, they didn’t come out. I felt something was off and feared they might be in danger, so I followed them in. As for what happened afterward, that guy should have told you about it. I was just following behind, and he should know better than I do.”

At that moment, I recalled a detail and asked, “So when he said you were posing as a girl to guide them through the mysterious formations, was that true?”

Uncle San responded with a “Hmm”: “What girl?”

I recounted the situation as described by the dull oil bottle, and Uncle San’s eyes widened, “Is that really the case?”

I grinned inwardly, thinking, “Don’t say you didn’t know.” However, Uncle San really gasped, stood up, and paced back and forth: “Did he really say that?”

“The environment at the time made it impossible for me to mishear.”

Uncle San squinted and asked me to elaborate, so I tried hard to recall what the dull oil bottle had said and recounted it in detail.

After listening, Uncle San stroked his chin and shook his head repeatedly: “No, no! He’s lying!”

“Lying?”

“I was on the stone steps, and the fog was too thick; I didn’t see the situation at that time. I can assure you with my life that I definitely didn’t go down there, and I had no idea what traps were involved. We can’t just take that guy’s word for it.”

I frowned: “But given his situation at the time, I don’t think he had any reason to lie to us. He could have just chosen not to mention it, and we wouldn’t have been able to do anything about it.”

Uncle San slapped his forehead, thought for a moment, and said, “That’s true. But if we assume what he said is true, there’s still a problem. Look at what this guy said: ‘I’ was squatting there, and he only saw ‘my’ back. Their entire judgment relied solely on that back view. Throughout the whole process, aside from that Huo Ling who might have seen ‘my’ face, the others only based their judgment on a diving suit to conclude it was me…”

I exclaimed, “Oh!” As I recalled his words, I realized it was indeed the case. “So, this person who guided them through the hidden formations wasn’t you, but someone else who had a similar back and even appearance to you?”

Uncle San nodded, his expression becoming very serious: “If that guy is telling the truth, it must be that way. And didn’t you notice? That guy didn’t see my face; he had the chance to see it, so why didn’t he?”

I thought back to the details the dull oil bottle mentioned and suddenly got a jolt: “Huo Ling, he stopped Huo Ling for a moment!”

Uncle San nodded: “Yes, that’s the detail. I never knew about this. I really didn’t expect that such things happened in those brief minutes…”

I felt a headache coming on. Indeed, the situation at that time was so chaotic, and visibility was extremely low. The dull oil bottle could easily have misjudged. Moreover, if we look at it this way, Uncle San’s conclusion about that person being him was entirely suggested by Huo Ling, who was the only one who had seen that person’s face. If she was in cahoots with that person, it could be a clever deception. The dull oil bottle and the others might have wronged Uncle San.

I suddenly recalled what the dull oil bottle had said at the time: “If this really is your Uncle San.” Was he also doubting that the person wasn’t Uncle San?

But then it didn’t make sense again. The dull oil bottle had seen Uncle San not just this once; he had seen him before he lost consciousness and had seen Uncle San’s face. A mere back view couldn’t deceive him. How could this be explained?

I brought up this question, and my third uncle sighed, saying, “I don’t know about that. Maybe that young man was mistaken in his final moments. You see, he thought he was chasing me all the way in, and in that state of confusion, he could have had a hallucination.”

I shook my head and replied, “That’s too far-fetched. A person like him is unlikely to make such a hazy mistake.”

My third uncle said seriously, “If that’s the case, then he must be lying, because I haven’t deceived you.”

Hearing this, I sighed deeply in my heart; my greatest fear had come true. All along, I had been very tense whenever I heard about the overlapping experiences of my third uncle and the silent oil bottle, fearing that there would be some kind of nonsensical contradiction, which would mean that one of them was definitely lying.

However, as I listened, I found that their accounts generally matched up, which had put me somewhat at ease. I thought that even if it wasn’t the absolute truth, it should be close to the facts. But now, as the matter seemed to be coming to a conclusion, we hit a critical snag at the end. If my third uncle wasn’t involved, then someone else must have caused the confusion for them, and my third uncle would be completely innocent. If he was involved, then it would be the opposite; he would be a cunning villain with ulterior motives. Just this one point represented two entirely different outcomes.

Among the two, I still trusted the silent oil bottle more because he had narrated his account without any necessity to do so. Whether he was lying or not had no significance for him. However, my third uncle’s account this time was different from the past; it was very clear and without any flaws. If he were lying, he wouldn’t be able to construct a lie to such an extent. I felt it was unlikely that he would deceive me this time. Moreover, with only this little contradiction left, if he wanted to lie, he could easily cover it up without needing to state a fact that contradicted the silent oil bottle. He could have said he followed them in and then fainted, waking up to find them all gone, and I wouldn’t have found any flaws in that.

This seemed like a “Rashomon” situation, completely unsolvable in its intricacies. It appeared that both of them were telling the truth.

Thinking of this, I suddenly had a strange idea. Prioritize the surface evidence; since I believed my third uncle wasn’t lying and the silent oil bottle also wasn’t lying, could it be that both of their accounts could hold true?

This was a bit like the thinking of the fat guy—simple and straightforward. If I divided the situation into three parts and confirmed the first two, then the last one must also hold true.

I shared my thoughts, and my third uncle was also pondering. After a moment, he shook his head and said, “How could that be possible? If both of these statements are to be true, then there must have been two of me in that tomb at the time.”

“Two third uncles?” I pondered in my heart, thinking that seemed absolutely impossible. My third uncle didn’t have a twin brother, nor could he split himself; this assumption lacked logic. However, if I were to consider it from the fat guy’s perspective, I wouldn’t need to think about logic but rather list all possibilities using enumeration.

I took out a piece of paper and began to write down the possibilities. However, after some thought, I realized that under the premise that neither of them was lying, there could only be one conclusion: Uncle San was outside the Qimen Dunjia formation, and the person that Men Youping saw inside was someone who looked similar to Uncle San.

So, the real question wasn’t how there could be two Uncle Sans, but rather where this lookalike came from. Enumerating the possibilities, there were a couple: one was that this person was a stranger who came from the sea, and the other was that this person had been hiding in the ancient tomb all along. These two options seemed rather forced. The more likely scenario was that this person should be one of the ten individuals.

This was supported by the fact that when recalling Men Youping’s account, it became clear that the two situations in which they discovered Uncle San were quite peculiar, and it was entirely possible that it was someone from their team who had gone down to the sea.

However, I had never heard Uncle San mention anyone in the team who looked like him. Now, discussing this topic, if there was indeed someone, he should have thought of it, especially since I had seen the photo. But that photo was so blurry that everyone looked somewhat similar, making it unreliable.

Could it be a case of disguise? I recalled the young man’s skills, but then realized it was impossible. A disguise required three to four days of preparation and five to six hours of makeup. Given the situation at that time, how could he have managed that?

With this thought, I reached a dead end and couldn’t help but feel frustrated, letting out a long sigh.

Uncle San noticed the change in my expression and asked what I was pondering. I recounted my reasoning process. After listening, he laughed and said, “Why are you thinking like that fat guy? His mind is twisted.”

But just after a few laughs, he seemed to think of something, his expression changed, and he inhaled sharply, saying, “Hey, wait a minute, could it be that this is how things are?”

I hurriedly asked him, “What’s wrong?”

Uncle San’s face turned pale as he said, “Don’t say that; that fat guy has some skills. With this analysis, I think I understand what’s going on, but… if it really is like this, then things are very strange, even a bit eerie.”

I urged him to speak quickly, and Uncle San continued, “You mentioned that there is another person in the ancient tomb who looks like me, which makes sense. However, I feel that this person doesn’t need to be too similar. Think about it: that young man was poisoned and must have been disoriented, and he was only unconscious for a few seconds. As long as there is a slight resemblance, he could easily make a mistake.”

I nodded, “Right, but is there anyone in your team who fits that description? If there was, you would have noticed long ago; after all, it’s quite rare for two people in the world to resemble each other.”

Uncle San’s expression was strange. He took a deep breath and shook his head, saying, “You’re mistaken. Actually, there are cases in the world where two people can look similar, and in the archaeological team back then, there was indeed such a person who bore a seven-point resemblance to me, but no one found it strange.”

I gasped and thought, “No way,” and quickly asked, “Who is it?”

Uncle San stared at me and replied, “Of course, it’s Xie Lianhuan.”