At that moment, I was drowsily convinced that I was about to die. I had already resigned myself to it, thinking that if this is what dying feels like, then it’s not so bad. As I drifted in and out of consciousness, I lost track of how long this hazy state lasted. Gradually, I felt something gently tapping my face. The sensation was very distant at first, but slowly became clearer.

Then my senses began to revive, and I gradually regained consciousness. Initially, I only had a vague sense that my body had returned, but as my awareness sharpened, I started to feel my surroundings.

The first thing I noticed was the coolness—very refreshing. Walking through the Devil’s City had left me mentally drained and suffocated by the low-hanging clouds, but the coolness around me felt particularly pleasant, as if I had been submerged in an ice-cold bathtub.

Soon I realized that the dry, cracked feeling in my lips had disappeared. My lips felt cool, as if something icy was seeping into my mouth. I licked once, then again, and then a third time, only to discover that it was water!

Could someone be saving me? I was overwhelmed with joy. My body reacted instinctively; I desperately sucked in the water, moving my lips with all my strength, bit by bit, feeling the coolness begin to fill my insides.

After drinking the water, I sank back into a deep sleep. In the fleeting moment before losing consciousness again, I thought I heard a few familiar voices speaking. I couldn’t make out the words and didn’t have the strength to focus, and in an instant, I lost awareness once more.

When I woke up again, it felt like I had been asleep for a very long time. All sorts of sensations returned at once—hearing, touch, and my strength started to come back. My awareness became clearer, and finally, I managed to open my eyes.

The first thing I saw was a rugged, familiar face grinning at me. As I looked at this face, I immediately sensed something was off, but I couldn’t figure out why. Who was this? I closed my eyes and thought for a moment, searching through the faces of the drivers in our group. Was it the one driving the 876? No. The one driving the water truck? No.

After thinking it over, I couldn’t figure out who this person was in the team. Suddenly, I jolted and realized why—it wasn’t someone from the team; it was… huh? Isn’t this face Wang Fatty?

My mind raced. What? Wang Fatty? How could he be here? That’s impossible; he had already returned to Beijing.

Am I dreaming? Am I hallucinating?

I opened my eyes again, and there was still that familiar round face, now a bit older and with a beard, staring at me and leaning in closer.

I closed my eyes once more, feeling that something was not right. No, no, it couldn’t be Wang Fatty. Even in a dream, I wouldn’t dream of him.

I bit my teeth hard and opened my eyes for the third time. This time, my mind was very clear. I looked again, and it really was Wang Fatty. He was lighting a cigarette and turning to say something to someone behind him. My hearing was still unclear, and I couldn’t make out what he was saying. Then, I saw another familiar head lean in; it was Panzi.

What on earth is going on? I furrowed my brow, thinking, could it be that I never entered the Gobi Desert at all, and I’m still in Hangzhou? Was everything that happened before just a dream?

Recalling the events that took place, a flood of memories surged back. We encountered sandstorms, the car broke down, people went missing, and there were sunken ships embedded in the mounds of earth… Everything felt incredibly real; it was absolutely impossible that this was a dream.

At that moment, my hearing returned, and I heard Panzi say, “Little Third Master, how are you feeling?” I strained to arch my back, trying to sit up, and Panzi came over to support me. As I sat up and let out a sigh of relief, I took in my surroundings. It seemed like we were in a cave, with a campfire burning inside. I noticed several sleeping bags and equipment scattered around, and outside the cave was pitch black, clearly indicating that it was already night.

I also saw the Muffled Oil Bottle sitting by the campfire, cooking something, while Aning was still lying in one of the sleeping bags and had not yet woken up. I gradually realized that I was not dreaming. “What’s going on?” I massaged my temples and asked Panzi, “How did you guys end up here? I’m not dreaming, am I? Didn’t I die?”

“You didn’t die; you almost did,” Fatty replied. “If it weren’t for my sharp eyes, we wouldn’t have found you. By that time, you guys were already starting to smell.”

I looked at Fatty fiddling with a few coins, realizing they were Aning’s markers, but I still couldn’t figure it all out. “So how did you end up here?” I asked curiously.

“We’ve been following your group the whole time,” Panzi said, pointing to the Muffled Oil Bottle. “You didn’t know, but after you guys entered the Gobi Desert, Third Master’s team immediately followed. Every campsite you set up, this guy left markers to guide us. We kept a distance of one station behind you the whole time.”

“What?” I didn’t quite understand Panzi’s words. “Markers? Behind us… he…”

Panzi explained, “This was Third Master’s plan. This guy and the Black Bear were arranged by Third Master to cooperate with that foreigner, with the aim of blending into the group. Because Third Master said that at this point, it was impossible to figure out Jude Kao’s true intentions on our own. The only way was to infiltrate the group, just like Jude Kao did back in the day. I really didn’t expect you to get mixed up in it too. Had I known, Third Master would have just invited you directly.”

I still couldn’t quite grasp it and spent a long time trying to understand Panzi’s words. “Wait, wait, wait, what? My Third Uncle? Are you saying he planned all this? Then… what about you guys?”

“We were already prepared in Golmud, and our people had been ready for nearly half a month in Dunhuang. As soon as your group set off, we followed closely behind. At that time, this guy left us a message telling us you were in the group, and Third Master was quite surprised. Little Third Master, you really are something; didn’t Third Master tell you not to wade into these murky waters anymore? Why did you still come?”

I took a deep breath, suddenly feeling very weak. Damn, I thought, I really didn’t expect this. That… that guy with the black glasses took care of me all the way here… It seems I still owe it to my Third Uncle…

Panzi continued, “Since you were inside, Third Master had to consider your safety, so he had the Black Bear keep an eye on you. This time, the stakes are high. Jude Kao miscalculated; he thought he had gotten rid of Third Master, but we had already made plans long ago.”

“What about my Third Uncle?” I looked around, not seeing any sign of him.

“Third Uncle was behind us, and we took a wrong turn. This time we brought quite a few people, and it was hard to keep track with so many. Wang Fatty and I took the lead, clearing the way in front of you, leaving marks along the route for Third Uncle. I didn’t expect that something would go wrong when you reached this place.”

At that moment, my thoughts became clear, and I suddenly remembered that during my long conversation with the Silent Oil Bottle that night, he mentioned that he was on my side and that I didn’t need to worry. So that was what he meant. It turned out this was Third Uncle’s plan.

I really hadn’t anticipated this layer of it; it seemed that the old fox was indeed an old fox. When it came to dealing with Third Uncle, I really wasn’t qualified.

“Consider yourselves lucky. We followed you the whole way; otherwise, you would have been dried out by now,” Fatty said. “With your physique, you still want to do this line of work? I think you should really go back and focus on your small business.”

I asked Panzi, “Why did he come too?”

Panzi replied that the good hands from Changsha had all gone to work for others, and now Third Uncle had brought in a new batch of rookies who lacked experience, so he had invited Fatty to help out, at the same old price.

Fatty chimed in, “What? You still look down on me? Let me tell you, I brought you back.”

I waved my hand, feeling a sudden sense of calm. Third Uncle’s people truly felt like family; they were my own people, and I didn’t have to be on guard all the time. Moreover, I was used to collaborating with these people, knowing their skills. The most reassuring part was that the Silent Oil Bottle was genuinely on our side, which meant everything would be fine.

Earlier, Fatty had been feeding me water, and as I gradually regained my strength, I took a few sips myself. They advised me not to drink too much at once, saying I needed to hydrate slowly.

I noticed A Ning was unresponsive and didn’t know what was going on, so I asked Panzi if she was okay.

Panzi reassured me, “Don’t worry, your companion’s constitution is better than yours. She’s already woken up once, and now she’s eaten something and gone back to sleep. This isn’t the desert; you both just fainted from dehydration, not from sunburn. Just replenish some saltwater and get more sleep, and you’ll be fine.”

Panzi teased me, probably noticing that both A Ning and I were disheveled. I didn’t have the energy to retort, so I ignored him. Although I felt a bit weak physically, my spirits were quite good. I got up, ate a little, and asked what kind of cave this was and how they had found us.

Panzi told me this was still in the Devil’s City, in a cave on a rocky mountain, which Fatty had discovered. After the incident, Zaxi and the others had escaped to the place where their vehicle broke down. When we waited for a long time without seeing them, Zaxi realized that neither A Ning nor I would know how to navigate the Arab stone piles, and they didn’t know if we had encountered trouble or if we were just lost.

At that moment, the Silent Oil Bottle used a mirror to signal them. They caught up, and Black Glasses stayed behind to take care of the remaining people while the Silent Oil Bottle brought Panzi in to find us.

I asked how they managed to find us in such a large area. Panzi said the place was a bit eerie; the arrangement of the stone mountains seemed designed, and they had just followed their instincts. In fact, the route they took was exactly the same as ours, and they eventually spotted A Ning’s mark, leading them to us lying in the sand.

Speaking of this, I couldn’t help but feel a chill run down my spine. I nodded quickly and said, “Indeed, this damned place seems like no matter which way we go, we can’t reach the end, yet we’re not retracing our steps either. I don’t know what’s going on.” My heart tightened again as I thought, are we still stuck in the Devil’s City? How are we going to get out?

“We’re not as foolish as you think; we’ve left markers all along the way, so you can rest assured,” Panzi said.

The Fatty added, “The markers I set are all big stones, visible from a kilometer away. Plus, I’ve figured out why we can’t get out of here.”

“Oh,” I sighed in relief and asked, “Then why is that?”

Panzi explained, “At first, we didn’t know either, but it was Fatty who figured it out. To be honest, we’re not in the original Devil’s City anymore; we’re at least one hundred and fifty kilometers away from it. This is a vast area of yardang landforms, made up of dozens of small Devil’s Cities, with a Gobi desert in between. All the Devil’s Cities are connected by rock formations, forming a huge chain of Devil’s Cities. If you follow this chain, it’s three thousand six hundred square kilometers. Do you think you can get out?”

I shook my head, “That’s impossible; what are the odds of that? I can walk in any direction and not deviate at all?”

The Fatty said, “If I say you’re stupid and you still won’t admit it, the direction you choose to walk is designed by someone else. That’s because there are many stones in this Devil’s City, and their arrangement is very particular. Often, when you go around a rock formation, one side has more stones while the other has fewer. But because the stones are so chaotic, you can’t immediately tell which way is easier or harder to walk; it feels about the same. However, subconsciously, you can distinguish the direction with fewer stones and reflexively choose that path, which results in you walking along a route designed by someone else. Moreover, almost every intersection is like this; even if you make a wrong judgment at one intersection, you still have countless opportunities to correct it afterward. This trick is quite common in ancient times, and there’s a simple name for it given by the common folk: it’s called Qimen Dunjia.” He then looked at the Silent Oil Bottle, “Brother, I’m not wrong, am I?”

The Silent Oil Bottle glanced at us, ignored him, and stared at the fire, seemingly lost in thought.

I chuckled and said, “When did you learn about Qimen Dunjia?”

The Fatty replied, “You don’t know a lot of things. Just look at that expression; he seems to get it.” I thought to myself that this guy probably just learned it on the spot. Changing the topic, I asked the Fatty, “So you’re saying that someone used these broken stones in the Devil’s City to create an illusion?”

The Fatty nodded, “That’s exactly it. But it’s not a particularly profound formation; if someone is a bit dim-witted or has particularly keen observation skills, they will definitely notice. These stones have been here for a while; this place was probably a battlefield. The Queen Mother of the West must have been a master of arts and techniques, and these stones were used for defense.”

At this point, a voice came from the sleeping bag; it was Anning, who softly said, “What you said is incorrect. The Queen Mother of the West is actually the creator of Qimen Dunjia. The divine book that the Yellow Emperor received was given to him by the Queen Mother of the West. When it comes to Qimen Dunjia, she is the ancestor.”

It turned out that the woman wasn’t asleep, which startled us all. I immediately thought of the legend of the Nine Heavens Xuan Nu, and my heart sank. Indeed, the legends and some historical records from back then say that when the Yellow Emperor unified the Central Plains, he received strong support from the Kingdom of the West Queen Mother.

Thinking back to the ancient boat, I realized that this place must have been a shallow lake back then, with these rocky mountains protruding above the water surface. The underwater rocks would ground the boats, so the boatmen would be more inclined to navigate in areas with fewer hidden reefs, making it easier to get lost. This might also be the reason why the Kingdom of the West Queen Mother has remained undiscovered for so many years.

At this point, I suddenly felt a twitch in my eyelid and said to Panzi, “Are you saying that the Devil City here is a ring?”

Panzi nodded, and I asked, “How do you know that?”

Panzi shook his head, “That’s what our guide said. What’s wrong?”

I excitedly drew a circle in the sand, “You don’t know, I’ve read Wen Jin’s notes. She said that the West Queen Mother was protected by an invisible city wall. This city wall is unseen by others, but if you bump into it, you will surely turn back. Here, thousands of years ago, it should have all been water, meaning there was a waterway, similar to a moat, forming a circle. If we assume this protective belt is something no one can enter, which has concealed the ancient city of the West Queen Mother for so many years as an ‘invisible city wall,’ then the Kingdom of the West Queen Mother should be within this circle, right in the middle of this Devil City.”

After I finished speaking, everyone looked at me in silence, as if I were a fool.

I felt confused by their stares and shrugged, “Is what I said wrong?”

Panzi patted my shoulder and said, “Little Third Master, what you said, we could have guessed without looking at Wen Jin’s notes. However, if the situation were really that simple, the ancient city of the West Queen Mother would have been discovered long ago. This is the Qaidam Basin, not the Taklamakan Desert. Although it’s seldom visited, countless geological surveys have been conducted here. So if the Devil City is indeed here, the situation must be very special; it’s likely buried entirely beneath the Gobi or in a place that’s hard for others to discover. You think just getting there will allow you to see it? That’s naive.”

I thought about it and asked them what their plans were.

Panzi said they originally intended to follow An Ning’s team to reach Tamu Tuo and discuss things further. But now that they had encountered such a big surprise here, according to Ding Zhu Zhuoma, if they continued to walk for another two days along the ancient riverbed to the west of this Devil City, they would reach the rocky pass where her team had parted ways with Wen Jin. After that, Ding Zhu Zhuoma didn’t know the way anymore. He planned to rest there after we recovered and wait for Third Uncle’s team. Then, they intended to follow the river downstream because the ancient city must be near the river, and the team back then must have traveled the same way; they could try their luck that way.

I said to Panzi, “But the ancient riverbed at this point has basically merged with the Gobi, making it impossible to see clearly.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Fatty said, pointing to a pitch-black area outside.

We were at the bottom of the cave and didn’t know what he meant, so we walked out. As soon as we reached the cave entrance, a cold, damp breeze hit us, and then I heard a very familiar sound.

The outside was pitch black, and I couldn’t see what the situation was, but I was very familiar with this feeling. For a moment, I found it hard to believe what I was thinking. As I stepped out of the cave, my face was instantly hit by raindrops, and I finally realized, “Damn, it’s actually raining outside.”

But how could that be possible? This is the Gobi Desert, where it might only rain once a year, and definitely not in this season. I walked back and said, “What on earth is going on? Why is it raining?”

Panzi replied, “Young Master, you should thank this rain. Otherwise, if we hadn’t come to get you, you would have ended up like a salted fish. When we found you, the rain had already started. Now the outside is flooded; we can’t get out. If you don’t want us to carry you, you’ll have to stay here, and it won’t be comfortable. After this rain, the old riverbed will definitely be full of water, flowing downstream. Even if we can’t see the riverbed, the water knows where to go, so don’t worry.”

At that moment, I remembered what Dingshu Zhuoma had told me: “Time is running out; if you miss it, you’ll have to wait another five years.” I thought, could this rain be what she meant? The more I thought about it, the less plausible it seemed, but seeing that the silent oil bottle wasn’t saying anything, I felt more at ease.

After that, I went to rest, but I didn’t sleep well. When I woke up the next day, I once again thought I was dreaming. We rested for two days in this cave, and both Anning and I had recovered. Anning had gotten close to the Fatty since it was Panzi and the others who had saved her. She didn’t say much, but she suddenly became very cold towards me, perhaps thinking that I was also sent by my uncle and had deceived her.

I didn’t care; I thought to myself that I had almost died and wouldn’t hold a grudge over this. On the third day, we set off, following the markers. We waded through water up to our ankles and walked for two days in the rain, finally returning to the outside and reuniting with Black Glasses. The people outside were already in despair, and when they saw us come out safely, they could hardly believe their eyes.

Outside, Panzi rested for another day. He suggested that I stay here and wait for my uncle to arrive before deciding whether to go in. However, at that moment, I felt embarrassed to face my uncle, and the message from Dingshu Zhuoma had already made up my mind to find Wenjin. We didn’t have much time left, so I insisted on going ahead with Panzi.

Meanwhile, Anning organized her own team. Most of the people wanted to go back, as the situation for the Caucasians was very dire. The team doctor said that when my uncle’s team arrived, they must leave immediately. After making some arrangements, Anning told Panzi that she also wanted to join us, as her team had also been at the forefront.

Anning’s joining was not an issue; Panzi couldn’t refuse me, and besides, we had a vehicle for this stretch of road, which wasn’t dangerous, so he agreed. Just right, there was one vehicle for me, Fatty, Panzi, the silent oil bottle, and Anning, while Black Glasses stayed behind to wait for my uncle.

In the next two days, we followed the gradually rising water level of the riverbed, going deeper into the Gobi. Due to the rainwater erosion, many tributaries appeared in the riverbed, and we searched for each one. However, no matter how we looked, we couldn’t find that rock mountain. My binoculars were already cracked, and I started to doubt whether that mountain had already turned into a vast sea.

The rain stopped before we set off, and we finally rested by the riverbed. The tires of the car were worn out badly, and later, one even burst. We could only drive for a while before getting out to inflate it, and then continue driving—it was truly miserable.

The fat guy said, “What if that old lady was just talking nonsense? What if that mountain doesn’t even exist? Or maybe it’s not a mountain at all? It could just be a hill that has been eroded by the wind over the past decade or so.”

I felt otherwise; no matter how I looked at it, Duzhuoma didn’t seem like a fraud. Perhaps the course of this ancient river had already changed.

“What should we do? If we keep going, we’ll run out of gas, and it’ll be tough to go back.”

“This place where the water can gather is the lowest point of the entire plain. There should be a lake there. Why don’t we try to find that lake first? Then we can start looking for traces of the river from there; at least that will narrow down our search.”

Thinking about it, there was no other option. We continued on our way, and as we drove up a slope, suddenly, Panzi shouted a curse and slammed on the brakes.

We all slammed into the seat in front of us, and the fat guy cursed, but before he could finish, several of us were stunned.

On the other side of the slope was a sheer cliff, and the front of our car had already gone over the edge, with two tires hanging in the air.

With our hearts racing, we got out of the car and walked to the edge of the cliff, discovering a massive basin before us, shrouded in mist—a vast oasis sunken in the Gobi Desert!