Chapter 1408: Who Will Open the Coffin?
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
"Outer Sky and Sacred Shelter want us to find out what is inside that coffin. That has been our primary objective since setting foot in this place, so turning back now is not an option," Mister Li explained.
Wang Zhao and Zhong Sanxiao both looked at each other, and after a moment of silence, the latter spoke. "We have to open the coffin, that much is certain. But it is a needless risk for us all to approach it. Surely, it won't take the strength of more than one person to go over there and open it alone."
"What are you trying to say?" Mister Li asked.
Zhong Sanxiao looked at Han Sen and said, "Only one person made it out alive when folks from Sacred came here. And the reason he made it was because of his distance from the coffin. He said he was the furthest away from the coffin when the sh*t hit the fan. So, we should get one person to open the coffin while the rest of us hang back where it is the safest."
"Sh*t! I see it in his eyes; he wants me to be the one to prod the hornet's nest!" Han Sen quickly realized.
Although Han Sen wanted to be the one, he wanted to maintain his innocent look and not be forced to open it at the behest of others.
"Brother Han, your luck has carried you on shielded wings thus far. How about you test the mettle of your luck one last time with the coffin. We will satisfy your every desire, if you do. No request will be too outlandish." Zhong Sanxiao phrased his request carefully, and made sure to make it sound pleasant, but he was well aware that it was a tall order.
Mister Li cut across before Han Sen could respond, though, and said, "How could you even think to place him in such a position? There's a red creature of some sort on the coffin already. You know the danger of this situation, and no volume of luck can change the odds of him opening the coffin without issue."
Han Sen had come to like Mister Li a lot. The old man had looked out for him a lot throughout the length and extent of the expedition.
"Thank you, Mister Li. Only an animal could suggest I be the one to go up there." Han Sen said a whole lot more than this with the icy, dagger-like eyes he gave Zhong Sanxiao.
But Zhong Sanxiao was not happy with this, and he blusterously stepped forward to say, "Do you really think a bronze geno core human could survive everything we've been through? Do you all really think he survived a solo chase with the wolfpack without a scratch? This guy is up to something, I'm telling you. All is not what it seems with him—or with you."
Mister Li came to Han Sen's defense again, saying, "Now listen here; I haven't known Han Sen for very long. And I agree, he keeps to himself; but if there's one thing we know for certain, it's that he's a good man."
"Remember when he pushed the door open? He didn't even hesitate. Even if you are a lucky sod, you'd still wince when pushing it. He just touched it, fearlessly. He knew it would open, and he knew there'd be a bunch of hungry, slobbering wolves waiting for us behind it. He tried to get us killed!" Zhong Sanxiao was getting a little ahead of himself.
"I do not fondly seek to look ill on others, but there is something off about Han Sen," Wang Zhao confessed his own feelings.
"I'll throw my hat into that ring, as well. Something is not right with that dude," Xu Yanmeng chimed in to say.
"If that is how you all feel, then nothing I say can change that. But, if you want Han Sen to be the one to open that coffin, I will be by his side when he does." Mister Li was stalwart in his defense of Han Sen.
Mister Li gave Han Sen a pat on the shoulder, and he told him, "Little Han, don't sweat a thing. I won't let you face danger alone."
"Mister Li..." Han Sen felt touched by Mister Li.
"Mister Li, you don't have to..." Zhong Sanxiao said.
"Well, no one else is volunteering. I have made my decision; I will go with Little Han. And you lot can stand back, just in case something happens." Mister Li was firm in his decision.
"Well, if you're going, so am I!" Xu Yanmeng puffed his chest in a display of newfound courage, and he marched forward to stand beside Mister Li.
"We have to find out what is inside the coffin," Old Qiu said.
Wang Zhao said, "Fine. Let's go, then. All of us. Mister Li saved our lives once before. If that hasn't earned him our trust, nothing will."
"If you agree, then come. But on anyone who goes with us, no oath or bond is laid. You don't need to go any further than you wish," Mister Li said.
"Don't say that!" Xu Yanmeng gave Han Sen a firm gaze, and went on to say, "But if I find out Han Sen is some worm-tongued snake that plans to harm Mister Li, I'll kill him."
Han Sen replied, "I'd only hurt you guys if you did something that would warrant a hurting."
"Bold words." Xu Yanmeng wasn't going to trust Han Sen quite so easily as the rest.
Han Sen had pushed open the door earlier to earn himself geno fruit and save everyone from a possibly fatal incident. He hadn't expected his kindness to be rewarded with suspicion and ire.
Without Mister Li, a fight would have broken out between them already.
Everyone summoned their geno cores next, and when Xu Yanmeng brought out his spear, he pointed it at Han Sen and said, "You're up-front. If I catch you doing anything dodgy, this'll be rammed up where the sun doesn't shine."
Mister Li was as chummy as ever with Han Sen, and this speech made him walk side-by-side with him. He patted Han Sen on the shoulder again and told him, "Let's go together."
Han Sen could not be bothered to explain anything. If he told them what had occurred during and after the wolf chase, it was highly unlikely they'd believe him.
They all approached the coffin with bated-breath. The creature atop it did not move or make a sound, but everyone remained as silent as they could. You could've heard a pin drop.
But Han Sen's Nine-Life Cat pendant began to burn when they neared it. And the closer Han Sen got, the hotter it burned.
Chapter 1409: Opening the Coffin
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
When Han Sen touched the pendant, he was scalded by the heat it had generated.
"The pendant did not have a reaction to the leader of Blood Legion, assuming that was who he was. But why is it reacting so strongly to this? Is this the real Nine-Life Cat? Or maybe what I saw was an apparition, and the bones of the leader actually reside in this coffin." There was a lot to question and a lot to be wary of.
Still, assuming that was true, Han Sen noted that it would be very strange for the coffin to be placed where it was. Authority figures or leaders of much renown weren't known for making their resting places at the entrances of their palaces.
The group walked forward until they were only three meters away from the coffin. There, they could now see the creature clearly, and make out all of its distinct features.
The so-called beast was curled up, and it had its head tucked beneath its tail. There was not, however, any lifeforce that Han Sen could detect.
But suddenly, the tail moved. Unsure about what this meant, everyone stopped in their tracks and remained dead still. They peered at the creature with intense, twitching eyes.
"It's alive!" Xu Yanmeng hollered.
The creature's tail swung again, like the slow lashing of a whip. The creature unfurled to look at the group that was approaching, and it did so with eyes that looked like a couple of red sirens.
"It's alive!" Zhong Sanxiao also called out, trembling as he took one step back in fear.
The creature really did look like a cat, complete with oval eyes. Its gaze was menacing and cold, but it wasn't directly threatening.
Everyone readied themselves for a fight. The group that had come before them encountered this creature and died shortly after, after all.
But the motionless standoff went on longer than anticipated. The cold, uncaring gaze of the cat developed into one of disinterest after a certain amount of time elapsed.
After a while, with the prospect of immediate danger diminishing, Zhong Sanxiao said, "Now is the time to strike. It's not attacking, so let's take advantage of that."
Everyone knew it might be for the best to remove the stranger-danger that cat might-or-might-not pose, but they'd have to do it together, if they chose to attack it.
"No," Mister Li said, with a resolute voice. "It is not hostile to us. If we provoke it, and make it hostile, we may not even live long enough to regret it."
"We can't just stand here, though," Zhong Sanxiao pleaded.
Mister Li said, "We can continue to approach it delicately, and assuming it does not do anything more, we will try to open the coffin."
Everyone in the team looked at each other, to see how they each felt about that. Although they were all worried about what might happen, they all agreed it was best to approach the coffin slowly without directly inviting hostility from the cat.
Each step they took was slow and steady, exercised with great care and caution. And each time one foot settled back on the ground, they looked at the beast intently, to see if it had moved at all.
When they reached the coffin, the cat had not moved an inch. It merely looked at them, with its tail brushing softly against the coffin it rested upon.
Everyone approached the coffin from a different direction, surrounding it. Strangely, the creature seemed to be watching Han Sen.
"Get a firm grip around the edges, and lift it up," Mister Li commanded softly.
They placed their hands around the smoothed edges of the coffin and dug their fingers as far they could underneath it.
They did not care much for the coffin or what might rest inside. Their main worry was how the creature would behave once they began moving the lid. They feared it was ready to pounce.
"Three... two... one..." When Mister Li finished the countdown, everyone heaved the hefty lid up.
The combined strength of the group removed the lid with ease. They lifted it as high and as straight as they could, and strangely, the cat did not move an inch.
The beast looked as disinterested as it first had, and it didn't seem to care about what they were doing.
Their mission was to find out what was in the coffin. Once they caught a glimpse of what was inside, they could return. With the lid safely removed, they all stole a glance inside. What they saw surprised them.
It was empty. There was not a single thing inside it.
"It's empty? Why is it empty?" Wang Zhao asked aloud.
Old Qiu then drew attention to the vacant lid of the coffin, with a voice that trembled and shook. "The creature is gone."
Everyone turned to look where Old Qiu was staring.
The cat was gone. It was as if it had completely vanished into thin air.
"Where did it go?" Xu Yanmeng asked, looking around in a near-panic, fearing a sudden ambush or pounce.
Everyone thought it most strange, and did the same. But no one was able to see where it might have wandered off to.
"Look, we've seen what's inside the coffin. We can leave now; we've done what was requested of us. We really should get moving before something ill falls upon us," Wang Zhao suggested, trying his best to conceal the nervousness that tried to break up his words.
"Okay. Let's put the lid back before leaving," Mister Li said.
When they lifted the lid up and set it back down on the coffin, their faces changed.
It made Xu Yanmeng scream at the top of his lungs, and he yelled, "The suction! I can't get my hands free."
"Me, too! Oh f*ck." Zhong Sanxiao tried to pull his hand free, but he was unable to.
Everyone was suffering the same misfortune, finding their hands to be stuck in a vacuum stemming from the coffin. They couldn't get their hands free.
Han Sen held onto the lid like the rest, pretending he was suffering the same fate. Truthfully, the suction that gripped the others didn't seem to be affecting him.
His compatriots already thought poorly enough of him as it was, so he made sure not to reveal his fortune.
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