Just now, all my attention was focused on that coffin, and I didn’t take a close look at the porcelain jar. I hurriedly stepped back a few paces, and the jar wobbled and rolled a few times before changing direction and rolling toward the stone door of the corridor. Finally, it hit the door frame with a “clang” and came to a stop.

We looked at each other, puzzled. Could it really be true what the Fatty said—that there was a zongzi inside?

We were stunned for a moment, hesitant to approach. The Fatty lowered his voice and said, “Everyone, this jar really does seem a bit eerie. How about we take the initiative and shoot a few darts at it?”

Of course, I disagreed and whispered, “Absolutely not. Let’s find out what it is first!”

The reason I said this was twofold. First, I could tell that this blue-and-white porcelain jar from the Ming and Yuan dynasties was definitely a rare treasure. A jar of this size is hard to come by in the world; it’s likely that smashing one would mean losing it forever. Second, I had no idea what strange thing might be inside. If it really was a zongzi as the Fatty said, we would inevitably end up fighting again. I had already expended too much energy underwater and definitely couldn’t run away.

However, we were currently in an ancient tomb over ten meters deep underwater, and I didn’t know how long the air would last. If we continued to hold back, it wouldn’t benefit us at all. This back-and-forth was hard to decide; I’ve never been good at making decisions, and I was sweating profusely from anxiety.

At this moment, the Fatty saw my indecision and said, “We can’t be sure there’s a zongzi inside. This place connects to the sea; it could be that some crabs or lobsters crawled in. There’s no need to scare ourselves here; let’s go over and take a look.”

The woman shook her head: “Our main goal is still to enter the main burial chamber. We shouldn’t waste An Ning’s time on the way. I think we should avoid it if we can and see if there are any other exits.”

When I heard this, I thought it was a good idea. I immediately checked the left and right sides of this ear chamber carefully again, but unfortunately, it was obvious that there was no second door and no holes for us to crawl through.

The Fatty was getting a bit restless and said, “At this point, we either move this jar aside or go back; there’s no other way. But I’ll tell you upfront, since we’ve made it this far, I, Wang Fatty, definitely won’t be scared back by a jar!”

I looked at An Ning’s expression; she was also very determined. Zhang Tuzi didn’t say a word, and I didn’t know what he was thinking. The three of them looked at me together, as if seeking my opinion.

I still didn’t have a clear decision in my mind. I thought that rushing in recklessly wasn’t wise, but the Fatty also had a point—many things in this ancient tomb were just self-scares. Looking at An Ning’s expression, I couldn’t help but soften my heart and said, “Alright then, let’s take it step by step. If nothing happens, we’ll let it be. If it turns out to be something troublesome, we have our four darts in hand, so we’re not afraid!”

The Fatty patted me on the back, showing encouragement. I took out the air gun, turned off the safety, and aimed at the jar. The Fatty took the lead, and the four of us cautiously moved toward the door’s edge.

I wasn’t particularly scared, just feeling a bit tense. With the diving suit on, I couldn’t sweat it out, making it extremely uncomfortable.

Just when we fat guys were about to see what was in the jar, suddenly there was a noise, and the jar actually rolled over. My heart raced, and I almost pulled out my gun. The fat guy quickly took two steps back and gestured for us not to move. We watched as the porcelain jar suddenly rolled again, this time making a direct arc and rolling into the dark corridor with a gurgling sound. We could still hear it rolling far away until it hit something with a “clang” and disappeared.

We immediately followed it inside. It was pitch black, and when I shone my flashlight, I saw that it was a straight corridor made of white marble bricks, very simple, with nothing inside. Only on both sides of the ground were two light troughs, each with lamp sockets every meter. At the other end of the corridor, there was a jade door, and there were also two slightly smaller doors on the left and right sides, making a total of three doors, all wide open. It seemed that someone had already entered, and the jar had come to a stop in the middle of the left small door, motionless.

I genuinely felt that something was strange; the jar’s movement seemed like it was leading us, as if it was about to say, “Follow me.” This was definitely a conscious action. Could it be that what was inside the jar was not rice dumplings, but a ghost?

I glanced at the dull oil bottle, but I couldn’t tell if he was nervous or scared. I had to voice my thoughts. The fat guy listened and found some sense in what I said. He couldn’t help but gasp and said, “What you said does have a bit of meaning. I also thought just now that it rolled like a bowling ball.”

I bitterly smiled inside. The fat guy noticed that I was a bit lost and continued, “Since we’ve come this far, let’s not hesitate here. Let’s just follow it and see what its purpose is. After all, whether we stick our necks out or pull them back, it’s all the same.”

Everyone nodded, and the fat guy patted me on the back, saying, “This bare stone slab road usually has traps. Wu, you take a look and see if there are any issues with this place.”

I knew it was my responsibility, so I nodded and shone my flashlight on the ground. The bottom of the corridor was covered with small stone slabs, which could very likely trigger traps. I thought that since my uncle had been to this place, if there were traps, they might have been triggered or destroyed. But if there weren’t, it could be troublesome. I reminded them and then adjusted my backpack before being the first to move forward.

To avoid traps, it was best to crawl close to the wall, but there were light troughs on both sides of the corridor, which were dark and I didn’t know what was in them. We could only walk along the edge of the troughs. I told them to pay close attention to their footing, but honestly, I had no idea myself. Every step I took had to be careful—how heavy or fast I stepped mattered. This was indeed something that required experience, which I didn’t have, so the more I walked, the more anxious I became.

After walking a dozen steps in this uneasy state, I was drenched in cold sweat. The others behind me saw how tense I was and started to panic as well. The fat guy said, “It seems that this job of avoiding traps isn’t easy. Little comrade, if you’re too tired, we can take a break.”

I didn’t have time to argue with him, so I said, “Stop shouting! If I lose focus for even a moment, we’re all done for.” Before I could finish my sentence, I suddenly felt a tremor beneath my feet. I turned around and saw that a stone slab under Aning had sunk, and she was looking at me with a face full of panic.

I sighed in despair, thinking how unlucky I was. I was going to end up riddled with arrows. Just then, I heard a whistling sound as a crossbow bolt flew past her ear. Before I could react, a second arrow was already on its way, aimed straight at her chest.

It all happened in the blink of an eye. Aning’s expression changed, and in a flash, she spun around and caught the arrow mid-air with her hand. The movement was so quick that it happened in a fraction of a second, and I didn’t even catch a glimpse of her shadow.

I was astonished by her skills, but there was no time to think. I felt a series of vibrations under my feet and yelled, “Get down, there are hidden crossbows!”

As soon as I finished speaking, a dozen white streaks shot toward us. I quickly ducked to avoid one, and at that moment, I suddenly saw something white and furry crawling out of the jar in the distance, quickly darting into the stone door on the left. I was about to shout, but suddenly felt a sharp pain in my chest. I looked down and realized, to my horror, that I had been hit by two arrows, which appeared to have sunk in two or three inches.