The fall was completely unexpected; it was entirely different from stumbling while trekking through the jungle. I didn’t even have time to react before I was already rolling down the cliff. In the chaos, I desperately reached behind me, hoping to grab onto something to stop myself, but all I felt were the bare, moss-covered rocks, and my hands slipped right off. Then my knee hit a stone, and I lost my balance, tumbling all the way to the bottom of the cliff.

Fortunately, the drop wasn’t very high, and below was water and mud, so I didn’t suffer any fatal injuries. However, I quickly realized that the current was strong, pulling me downstream. I thrashed around for a moment, grabbing onto something underwater that I couldn’t identify, gritting my teeth and struggling to stand up, only to find that the mining lamp was hanging too high on the cliff for me to reach.

After catching my breath and feeling around, I didn’t sense any broken bones, so I began to observe my surroundings. I couldn’t see clearly, but I could feel that I was standing in a swamp, my feet sinking into the mud. From the area illuminated by the mining lamp, I could see that the rocky surface I had fallen from was likely part of some ruins.

I was puzzled as to how there could be a cliff behind that tree. Where was the person who had spoken earlier? Were they clinging to the tree like a gecko? I called out loudly, but there was no echo in response. It felt as if that person had intentionally lured me into falling. Suddenly, I remembered the sounds I had heard during the day and thought, “Oh no, I must be hallucinating. Could the forest here be messing with my nerves?”

After thrashing around a bit more, I swam to the edge of the cliff, grabbing onto a protruding rock to steady myself. The weak light reflected off the stone wall from the mining lamp began to illuminate my surroundings, and I attempted to climb up. However, the moss was far too slippery, and there was nothing to leverage, so I slid down every time I tried.

I tried several angles but to no avail. The only way forward seemed to be downstream along the rock wall into the darkness of the swamp. But with the current being so strong, there could easily be a well or a steep drop nearby. If I lost my footing, I could be sucked into a whirlpool or plunge down a small waterfall, which would likely lead to serious injury or worse.

After hesitating for a moment, I realized that I was essentially trapped. I could either wait for dawn or hope someone would come to rescue me. I was absolutely unwilling to wait until morning, so I shouted for help as loud as I could.

They might be close by; it was so quiet here that if I called out loudly enough, they might hear me.

But fate was not on my side. As I shouted, my voice grew hoarse, and after a long while, I received no response—only silence. The stillness was eerie, and there was not a single sound in the darkness to spark my imagination.

I could hardly call out anymore, and my frustration was beyond words. I thought to myself, “Why do I have to encounter such misfortune?” Taking a deep breath to steady my nerves, I looked at my watch, wanting to see when the fog might clear. Once the fog dissipated, visibility would improve, allowing the mining lamp’s light to shine more broadly. Perhaps then I could find a way to climb up, or I might discover something underwater to help bring the mining lamp down.

I glanced at my watch. Based on yesterday’s experience, the fog shouldn’t last for more than a few hours. The time was bearable. I touched the stone protrusion beside me to maintain a more comfortable position. Looking around, I thought to myself, “I can’t see anything. How am I going to pass the next few hours?”

My feet were stuck in the mud, which made me feel very uncomfortable. This sensation was definitely unpleasant. I remembered the stories Panzi had told me, and at that moment, I felt as if the mud was crawling with insects, occasionally lifting my feet to check, only to realize it was just an illusion.

This illusion made me uneasy. I tried to lean against the rock and climb higher to get my feet out of the water, but each time I failed. Gathering my courage, I felt my way along the rock wall, trying to see if there was anything submerged in the water that I could step on to lift myself out. Perhaps I could find some branches or debris to use for my mining lamp.

As I moved my feet, I indeed stepped on something, but it wasn’t a branch. The sensation startled me. It was fine and thin, like human hair.

I suddenly broke out in a cold sweat. I had an extreme aversion to hair, and ever since returning from Xisha, I felt nauseated whenever I encountered my own hair in the first few weeks.

I quickly pulled my foot back, too scared to reach out again. But as I moved, I kicked something else. This time it was soft, and I suddenly realized that there might be something large buried in the mud here.

Out of caution, I activated the blue light on my watch and aimed it underwater. This blue light was originally designed just to allow people to see the electronic display in the dark, and it hardly penetrated the water. I had to crouch down and submerge my watch into the water.

Then I was stunned. Under the ghostly blue light, I saw a person submerged in the mud, buried within it, their hair swaying like water plants in the current.

My hands trembled as I moved, and I realized this was a corpse—a fresh one. Although it was completely wrapped in mud, I could see that he was wearing a military uniform, very similar to the one worn by Fatty.

Then I sensed something was off. Turning the watch to get a better angle, I reached forward with force and discovered that the mud below was filled with dead bodies, all submerged, their limbs intertwined like a mass grave after a massacre. Moreover, all of them seemed to have died not long ago.

I pulled the corpse in front of me out of the mud and found it heavy, as if it were filled with lead. I immediately noticed the various equipment on the person’s waist, which was identical to that of Fatty and Panzi.

I trembled and suddenly understood what was happening—Uncle Three’s team was actually here!