The experiences that followed were quite ordinary. We were panting, looking at each other, feeling as if everything that had just happened was a dream. The fat guy’s face was pale, urging us to leave quickly, not daring to stop for a moment. I was mostly in a daze during the subsequent events, especially towards the end; I could only recount the general course of what happened.

We hardly stopped at all and made our way back to the waterway entrance, choosing a direction and starting to search for another exit along the stone wall.

After six hours, we entered a waterway entrance, enduring hunger. The three of us simply walked on in silence, not saying anything to avoid wasting energy.

“You can survive on fat for one to two weeks without food; the discomfort is only for the first few days,” the fat guy said. “I’ve been through this before; just hang in there.”

At first, I doubted whether we could make it out alive, and I suddenly understood why my uncle referred to this journey as a “road of no return.” The distance was simply too long; the amount of food one person could carry was nowhere near enough for the round trip. He had already foreseen the tremendous hardships of the return journey.

Marching through the channel on an empty stomach, the fat guy planned to get us out in one day, but going uphill was much more exhausting than going downhill. After two days of hunger, we could no longer endure it and started thinking of solutions. The food available here was extremely limited—there were only dried tree branches and many small bugs in the crevices. The adventure manual said that in the wild, when there’s no food and you can’t tell what’s edible, eating bugs is the safest option. We began trying to catch some to eat, but the bugs here were also very few and quite small, about the size of sunflower seeds.

The oil bottle (a nickname for one of our companions) was still in a daze, but he improved a bit later, although he still couldn’t remember anything. We told him several times what had happened, but he couldn’t grasp it. Fortunately, he didn’t need support anymore and could walk with us.

With the bugs, we managed to hold on for three more days. Finally, we saw living tree roots appear on the walls of the well. The fat guy judged that we must be very close to the surface. We wandered around and finally found several vertical wells leading upwards. The fat guy climbed up and discovered that this was the grove we passed through when we first entered the rainforest.

The holes here were very small, and we couldn’t squeeze through, so the fat guy used bullets to break a small hole, creating a directional explosion that shattered the rocks between several holes, allowing us to barely squeeze inside. The ground had changed beyond recognition; all the swamp water levels had dropped to their lowest point, exposing the muddy earth and the gnarled tree roots. At this time, the sun was high in the sky, and all the venomous snakes were underground, which should be the safest time.

The rainforest was bright and sunny, with the sounds of birds and fragrant flowers, easily creating a beautiful illusion that made one think it was a paradise. However, we knew that this moment of peace was absolutely an illusion. The more peaceful it seemed, the less we could afford to rest.

We calculated the time and realized that we definitely wouldn’t be able to exit the canyon before dark; at most, we could reach the middle of the canyon. If we encountered any obstacles, the three of us, exhausted, would surely suffer losses.

All three of us had survived through countless hardships, and I didn’t want anyone to sacrifice at this critical moment. But at this point, there was no better solution; we could only give it our all. Fortunately, there weren’t many chicken crown snakes in the canyon, and we could cover ourselves in mud. This journey could be said to be completely left to fate.

Next came the long trek, and there’s no need to elaborate on the process; I truly don’t want to bring it up again. We crawled and struggled through the muddy terrain, all of us bearing wounds, with ticks crawling all over us and no time to deal with them. As night fell, the tension increased, and we quickened our pace at the slightest sound.

We spent a day and a night quickly traversing the canyon and returned to the Gobi Desert, where we indeed saw Ding Zhuozhama and the others waiting outside. It felt like a rebirth. As soon as the Fatty emerged from the canyon, he nearly fainted, and Ding Zhuozhama and the others could hardly believe their eyes upon seeing us.

Outside the canyon, we rested for three days. Everyone was dazed and exhausted. During those three days, I didn’t think about anything or worry about anything; I felt that sleep was the most important thing, and everything else was just garbage. For the first time, I truly felt a sense of relief, as if all the mysteries and unresolved issues no longer had anything to do with me.

Dun Youbing still showed no signs of improvement; he either sat in the tent in a daze or leaned against a rock staring at the sky. We all sighed, but there was nothing we could do. No one expected that after pursuing things to the end, it would result in such a situation.

However, Panzi was unexpectedly rescued by Zaxi. Lying in another tent, he was sometimes conscious and sometimes unconscious; I didn’t dare to tell him about Uncle San. Zaxi said that Wen Jin had instructed them about some things; they knew how to guard against snakes. When the signal smoke came up, they had entered the camp to search and found the camp in the jungle, where they discovered Panzi.

I calculated the time; it must have been the day after we went to capture Wen Jin. I thought that as long as we could survive that night, we would meet Zaxi, and everything would have been different. Unfortunately, that night had too many variables.

After resting for another two days, Zaxi told us it was time to set off. According to his memory, we were now in the middle of a devil city loop, which had strange mechanisms set up. We needed precise navigation to get out. Once we left, there might be roads on both the east and west sides; as long as we reached a road, we could seek help. At that moment, I also wanted to know the whereabouts of Uncle San and Black Glasses, but I had already lost all strength. Zaxi said they might have exited through another entrance or perhaps hadn’t come out at all, but there was nothing more we could do.

With no vehicle, we had to walk. What we lacked most was labor, because the water at that time had been brought over by Uncle San’s group; after they set off, there was still a lot left, but we couldn’t carry it all away. Moreover, considering the prolonged trekking time, the water we could carry wouldn’t last until we found the road.

So Fatty suggested that we halve the food, discard the tents, and use the extra space to carry more water. Eating less wouldn’t matter; without water, we wouldn’t last more than a few days.

So we did as advised, setting off with a large amount of water, crossing the Gobi Desert. The initial part of this process was inevitably hard, but it was on a different level compared to marching through the rainforest. Four days later, we exited the devil city, and after another week of walking, we finally reached the road. We flagged down an SUV with some travelers, used a military vehicle’s phone to contact people from Qiudekao, and about thirty hours later, a convoy from Anning Company arrived to rescue us.

Everyone was exhausted, some were crying tears of joy. What a journey it has been; perhaps only those involved truly know. On the way back, the fat guy leaned against the car and suddenly started singing: “Climbing high peaks to gaze at my hometown, the yellow sands stretch for thousands of miles. Where does the sound of camel bells come from, ringing in my heart.”

His voice, which sounded like a broken gong, suddenly became melodious. I felt a wave of emotion and melancholy wash over me. In an instant, tears streamed down my face, my vision blurred, and all the past flashed before my eyes like a dream. It was as if I could hear those forever lost voices echoing endlessly across the vast Gobi Desert.

After returning to Golmud, I weighed my options and wrote an email to my second uncle, explaining everything that had happened. Half an hour later, he called me and said he understood. He instructed me never to mention this to anyone and told me not to worry; he would handle it and asked me to return to Hangzhou immediately.

Of course, I couldn’t go back right away. The fat guy, the quiet oil bottle, and Panzi all had to stay in the hospital for a while.

The fat guy was exhausted but recovered after receiving a few bags of nutrients. Panzi was lucky; I explained my third uncle’s situation to him, and he was distraught. I was too worn out to say much to him. He returned to Changsha before fully recovering, saying he would wait for news about my third uncle. I told him to inform me immediately if he heard anything.

The most serious case was the quiet oil bottle. After being hospitalized, he regained consciousness, but we found that he couldn’t remember anything. The overwhelming stimulation had left his thoughts very confused, and the doctor said he needed to rest quietly.

He could remember very little to begin with, and now he didn’t even recognize me. That feeling was truly devastating. Looking at him, I couldn’t bear to watch any longer.

I was the last one to return home. After taking a hot shower, I idly went through the pile of letters that had accumulated. Suddenly, I found one that was actually sent by my third uncle.

My heart skipped a beat as I looked at the date and noticed there was no postmark. I quickly opened it and discovered it was a long letter.

“Dear Nephew,
By the time you read this letter, I may be missing without a trace, or perhaps I have already died.
I don’t know if you have learned the truth by now, but I feel I owe you an explanation.
I am about to do something that is my destiny, something I cannot escape. I feel this may be my last chance. I have chosen to destroy my own career for this matter, and if I do not find the answer this time, I would rather choose death.
The things you want to know are written below; you can read them slowly. You must have been very curious as to why I have deceived you time and again. After you finish reading, you will understand that I myself am a deception.
I am very sorry, but no matter how you see me, you will always be my beloved nephew. You must believe that everything I have done has been to protect you. I have never intended to harm you or your Wu family in any way.
Perhaps I have already become Wu Sanxing, or maybe I have worn this mask for so long that I cannot take it off anymore.”

I apologize for not being able to explain all the details in this letter. I want to convey that everything that has happened in this matter has its inevitable reasons. And I am, in fact, just an accident. The twists of fate at that time led to all of this occurring, and by the time I found myself deeply involved, there was no way to turn back. The events in Xisha actually hide a much larger secret, and the backgrounds of Wen Jin and the others are far more complicated than they seem. During my investigation into them, I discovered that some of them have no background at all, and I have no idea where they came from or what they did before.

If you dig deeper, you will find that there must be something hidden behind this expedition team. Everything is unfathomable, so if you continue to get caught up in this matter, you must take a look at my fate to understand what price is required to uncover this secret.

I sincerely hope that this matter ends here. After you learn the truth, you can continue with your life; do not get entangled in it any further. I know that when you reflect on the entire sequence of events, you will still find many puzzles, but those are no longer related to you.

Finally, as a parting message, remember well the words left by your grandfather:
“Nothing is more terrifying than the human heart, not even ghosts or gods.”
— Your Third Uncle, Yu Dunhuang

Below is a long description of the events that is almost identical to what Wen Jin said. I silently read through it, and after finishing, tears flowed uncontrollably down my cheeks.
(End of Season One of “Grave Robbers’ Chronicles”)