The black sandstorm came quickly and left just as quickly.
Han Xiao Liu finally escaped the crisis unscathed.
The scene of the sky being completely blocked by the sandstorm and the sound of sand hitting the car were truly terrifying, but even so, Shirley still didn't wake up.
“Bang~”
“This broken car has done its best, but please don't break down on me here.”
Having managed to repair the car, Han Xiao Liu decided to buy a new one after returning. He wasn't planning on driving this car again, even if it wasn't completely destroyed, but for now, he had to rely on this car to get him out of the desert.
“Hmm… Where am I? What happened? Why does my head hurt so much?”
“You’re awake?”
Han Xiao Liu breathed a sigh of relief seeing Shirley wake up. If she stayed unconscious any longer, even if she didn’t die, her body would suffer from lack of nutrition.
“Don't say anything else, drink some water, eat some bread, and have some beef jerky. You were unconscious for three days and three nights, and I carried you out of there.”
“Thank you. Although I don't know what happened after that, I imagine it was very dangerous.”
Shirley was genuinely grateful to Han Xiao Liu. She secretly made up her mind to pack her things and join Han Xiao Liu’s team after returning.
“Don't mention it, you're my designated teammate. If you died, where would I find a teammate as beautiful as you?”
“You're making jokes at a time like this.”
“I just fixed the car, it should take about another day to reach Kuler. You should rest more. The sandstorm has passed, we're safe.”
Shirley nodded. Han Xiao Liu gave her an overwhelming sense of security, and she enjoyed this feeling of being cared for.
The vehicle started up and continued on its way. Han Xiao Liu knew what Shirley was wondering and took the initiative to speak.
“Shirley, you collapsed halfway through the small road. I carried you to the cliff’s edge, and by that time, you were already completely unconscious.”
“What about after that? Did you see anything inside the coffin?”
“Yeah, I saw something. It scared me.”
“What did you see? I had that dream again after I passed out, but I saw the coffin clearly. I saw the Queen of Jingjue lying inside. She looked exactly like me. She opened her eyes and met my gaze, then I fell into endless darkness.”
Han Xiao Liu slammed on the brakes, staring straight at Shirley.
“Tell me, are you Shirley or the Queen of Jingjue? When I lifted the mask, the Queen of Jingjue I saw, her face looked exactly like yours, even the beauty spot on your left eye was almost in the same place.”
Han Xiao Liu’s expression was serious. He truly wanted to know the answer.
Unraveling the mystery, perhaps that's one of the greatest joys of exploration.
“I’m Shirley.”
Han Xiao Liu took a deep breath and continued driving. Although a trace of doubt remained in his heart, because he was also a result of being possessed and reborn, he was still willing to believe what Shirley said was true.
After all, it felt impossible for there to be two people who looked exactly alike in the world.
But Han Xiao Liu didn’t mention that he brought the Queen of Jingjue and the Kunlun Divine Tree with him. After all, this was his secret, and he could only find a chance to use a white lie later.
Han Xiao Liu was looking forward to seeing what would happen when Shirley and the Queen of Jingjue met face to face.
…
Half a day after Han Xiao Liu and Shirley arrived at Kuler, Hu Ba Yi and the others also arrived at the motel on camelback.
“Hey, isn’t that Han Xiao Liu’s car? How come it’s so messed up?”
At this time, Han Xiao Liu’s Cherokee had almost no paint left, and it looked worn and torn, but it was still intact.
“He’s the real deal. Being able to drive a car back from the desert, most people can’t do that. Let's go in and say hello. If it weren't for the mineral water he left behind, we would have died in the desert.”
“Cut it out. It was clearly the white camel that saved us.”
Wang Fatty was still preoccupied with his jade eyeball, and he harbored resentment towards Han Xiao Liu.
Ye Yi Xin looked weak but was alright.
“Brother Hu, Brother Wang, I want to go thank him properly as well.”
“Let’s settle Professor Chen in first, then we’ll go together.”
Professor Chen had gone completely mad. He had once again seen Chu Jian, Sa Di Peng, and Hao Ai Guo die in his surroundings.
Professor Chen, who was already on the verge of collapse from guilt over their deaths, couldn't bear the blow and went completely crazy. He was even crazier than in the original story.
“Shirley, Hu Ba Yi and the others are back alive, but Professor Chen seems to have had a mental breakdown and gone mad.”
Shirley felt a lot of self-blame in her heart. She felt that she was the one who had initiated this archaeological expedition and brought misfortune upon the archaeological team.
“Shirley, don’t blame yourself. Professor Chen went to the ancient city of Jingjue, and he achieved his wish. His rank is quite high, and when he returns to the capital, someone will take care of him.”
Han Xiao Liu’s words did ease Shirley’s heart a little.
“Knock knock knock~”
“Han Boss, it's Hu Ba Yi.”
After opening the door, Han Xiao Liu saw Hu Ba Yi, Wang Kai Xuan, and Ye Yi Xin.
Although the three had washed themselves briefly, they still looked dusty. Their skin was dry and cracked.
“Come in.”
“Han Boss, thank you for leaving the mineral water. We can’t repay your kindness. If you ever need anything from Hu Ba Yi, just ask.”
Wang Fatty turned his head to the side.
Ye Yi Xin looked at Han Xiao Liu with a glint in her eyes.
“Han Boss, I'm very grateful as well.”
Ye Yi Xin didn’t know how to address Han Xiao Liu, because it seemed a little impolite to call him by his name.
“It's fine, it’s good that you're back alive.”
“Han Boss, although it’s presumptuous, I still want to ask, how did you come back? What happened inside the tomb? When we felt the tomb shaking, we didn’t see you and Miss Yang, so we went directly into a stone chamber nearby.”
Han Xiao Liu gave a strange smile. They were indirectly questioning him.
“I ask you, what did you see after passing the dark river? What did you see me and Shirley look like at that time?”
Hu Ba Yi and Wang Fatty exchanged glances before speaking.
“Tons of gold and silver jewelry. As for your appearance, of course, you looked like yourselves.”
“Sure enough, you were already in a hallucination at that place. The treasures you saw didn’t exist at all. Wang Fatty, you took some, right? Take it out and have a look.”
Wang Fatty then remembered that he had secretly pocketed a handful of gold coins. He quickly grabbed his backpack and opened it, and was so scared that he threw the bag away.
“Damn, what is this, it’s black.”
Hu Ba Yi picked it up and took a closer look, gasping in shock. This wasn’t any treasure, it was clearly a human finger bone.
This meant that Hu Ba Yi, Wang Fatty, and the entire archaeological team had gained nothing from their trip to the ancient city of Jingjue this time. What’s more, they had suffered three deaths and one case of madness.
“That place was full of human bones, black ones. And at the time, Shirley and I were both wearing gas masks, so we slowed down the time it took for us to fall into the hallucination.”
“You have good things but you only gave us some?”
“Fatty, shut your mouth! Sorry Han Boss.”
Seeing Wang Fatty’s behavior, Han Xiao Liu didn’t get angry but instead asked back.
“Wang Fatty, what are you to me? Why should I give you my equipment? If I hadn’t left water, would you have even come back? If your mouth doesn’t shut, I won’t be polite anymore.”
“Sorry sorry Han Boss, Fatty has a loose mouth. Don’t take it to heart.”
Hu Ba Yi was so anxious that he even used polite language. He couldn’t hide the embarrassment on his face.
(PS: The picture is of the golden dagger found in the ancient city.)