Chapter 5: Urgency Is Key

The tunnel at the end of the mine shaft had been excavated into a "T" shape. This resulted from striking the middle section of a skeleton and then digging outwards from there, following its recumbent form. The tail end of the skeleton had been fully uncovered, and current excavation efforts were focused on the head.

Based on the size and scale of the skeleton, and at the current excavation speed, it was estimated that it would take another half-day to complete.

At this moment, the excavation work had paused. A buzzing crowd had gathered, their chatter audible even from a distance to Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang, who were approaching rapidly. The two walked between the skeleton's ribs.

The skeleton was enormous and exceptionally long. No claws or similar features had been found yet. Its immense size suggested it was a colossal serpent, with the excavated portion alone spanning nearly thirty zhang.

The color of the skeleton was also peculiar, semi-black and semi-translucent, resembling black jade.

“It’s even glowing. What on earth is it?”

“Could this glowing thing be what they’re actually trying to dig up?”

“Do you think this thing is worth a lot of money?”

The tall and short men reached the back of the crowd, overhearing the chatter. Some were discussing curiously, while others whispered amongst themselves, seemingly formulating ideas.

In short, the front was completely blocked by onlookers. Some stood on tiptoes, craning their necks, while others even jumped up like gibbons, hanging onto the skeleton above to get a look. The sheer crowd made it difficult for latecomers to see what was happening.

Shi Chun immediately began tapping shoulders. “Excuse me, coming through, excuse me…”

Some made way, others were slow to react, and some shuffled reluctantly, shrugging their hands to indicate it was too crowded to move. A few even looked him up and down, giving the impression of "everyone's squeezed, why should we move for you?"

The impromptu group certainly wasn't adhering to many rules.

Seeing their reactions, Shi Chun, not one to tolerate such behavior, directly whipped out his lash. It whistled through the air, eliciting cries of "ouch!" and strange shouts, along with angry accusations and demands to know why he was hitting them.

Shi Chun was too lazy to answer; he just wanted to see clearly what was happening upfront.

Regardless, sometimes violence was indeed more effective than politeness. At least people quickly made way, even if it meant squeezing to create a path for him.

With that whip, he certainly displayed the spirit of "East Nine is my territory."

Following behind, Wu Jinliang’s heartstrings trembled slightly, and he broke out in a cold sweat. It was one thing to sneak around before, but wasn't doing this in public a bit much?

He realized this leader truly didn't treat himself as an outsider; he wasn't polite at all, lacking any of the stealthy awareness expected of a thief.

When he first decided to sneak in, he expected a thrilling journey of constantly hiding and dodging. But after getting inside, he found he seemed to have overthought it. The whole situation felt like it had been skewed by the leader's presence, and what was happening now was wildly off-kilter.

There were indeed too many people crowded together. Even following closely behind the leader, he couldn't reach the very front, re-blocked by those pushed back from the front. Fortunately, he was tall enough that from his current position, he could roughly see what was going on. With a quick glance, his eyes instantly widened!

Shi Chun, of course, pushed his way to the front. The foremen standing there heard the whipping commotion behind them, glanced back at him, and seeing he was one of their own, redirected their attention back to the upper diagonal.

Looking up, Shi Chun's eyes also widened slightly, with a hint of disbelief.

On the rib-like skeletal structure, another skeleton had appeared, resting on the spine. It hadn't been fully excavated yet, but even half-buried in the earth, its exposed, grotesque outline clearly revealed a serpent's head. It was unclear if this was the head of the main skeletal structure.

Whether it was or not wasn't important. What was important was that besides the two eye sockets on the serpent's head, there seemed to be another cavity in the center of its brow, though it was unclear if this was also an eye socket.

What captivated everyone was a cluster of ethereal, shimmering purple mist within the indented bone cavity that appeared to be a third eye. It resembled a small nebula formed by countless tiny, sparkling purple stars, constantly shifting its internal shape. At times, it drifted like flowing clouds; at others, it seemed like countless eyes staring; then again, it transformed into innumerable enchanting butterflies fluttering their wings, truly beautiful.

The shimmering purple nebula was roughly as tall as a person, a comparison made evident by a man standing on the serpent's skull, reaching out to touch the nebula.

Indeed, it took immense courage. To casually touch the shimmering purple nebula without knowing if it was harmful, many people held their breath, watching intently.

Everyone who could see knew that this nebula was absolutely extraordinary. What kind of treasure it was remained unknown, but it was likely the employer's primary reason for the excavation.

Some secretly wondered, *how daring is this employer? To leave such a rare treasure unguarded, are they so confident no one can steal it?*

On either side of the serpent's skull, others were excitedly swinging picks, breaking through the earth, intending to unearth the entire skull. Soil and rocks continuously tumbled down. Fortunately, the deep underground location was humid, so there wasn't much dust.

The foreman touching the nebula waved his hand through it back and forth, stirring it in various ways, but it seemed to have no effect on the nebula. From time to time, he let out exclamations of "Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!" in surprise.

Shi Chun was itching with impatience from his "Oohs." In his mind, he was cursing the man's ancestors, *Ooh, my foot! What's going on? Just say it!*

Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore. He tucked his whip into his waist and was about to leap up and try it for himself.

Unexpectedly, a foreman in the front row suddenly shouted, “Everyone down! Stop digging, and you, stop touching! Everyone, get down and wait for Mr. Shen to make a decision.”

The foreman who had been waving his hand in the nebula, along with several miners swinging picks, immediately jumped down one after another.

This action was like dousing the impatient Shi Chun with a bucket of cold water. He stared at the foreman who had spoken, unsure of the man's authority given such an order. If he truly was a leader, openly defying him would be problematic and risk exposure.

However, like everyone else, from the moment he first saw the shimmering purple nebula, he concluded that this was the main objective of the excavation. After all, he had personally inspected the large skeleton earlier and found nothing remarkable. His previous doubts now had an answer.

Although the Land of Exile was a legendary place, where many illustrious figures had fallen into disgrace, and he had heard many moving and tragic tales, this shimmering purple nebula was the first extraordinary sight of its kind he had ever witnessed. He knew at a glance that it was something out of the ordinary.

The appearance of this object led Shi Chun to assume that his time was likely running out.

He had previously mistaken Shen Youkun's target to be the enormous skeleton, which would have been difficult to transport and involved a complicated process. But if the target was this nebula, taking it away might not be hard at all.

This meant that once the objective was achieved, the excavation would likely end.

The consequence of ending would be a halt to work and dismissal, after which personnel would inevitably be consolidated. Once they consolidated, his strategy of infiltrating and causing trouble would no longer work, and any missing people would be immediately noticed.

These were secondary concerns for him; he had the courage to confront discovery if it came to that. The real problem was that his purpose for infiltrating had not been achieved, and now they were about to wrap up?

He knew Shen Youkun was there for illicit activities, but he hadn't found any leverage against him on this trip. After leaving the Land of Exile, Shen Youkun wouldn't let him off the hook.

What kind of leverage was digging up a treasure underground? Many people in the Land of Exile dug for resources underground for money.

Unless he could clearly articulate the specific wrongdoing, he couldn't use it to threaten anyone.

Could he really threaten Shen Youkun with those large amounts of ill-gotten supplies? Maybe if someone else with real power were to operate, but for a small fry like him facing a force that could reach into the city gates, trying to use that as leverage was simply laughable.

Therefore, his gaze returned to the shimmering purple nebula. If he could figure out its purpose, there might still be a chance.

However, he also knew that even if he got to touch the nebula, it was unlikely he could immediately figure out its function.

If there was truly no other way, then he would have to find a way to seize the object and secure it in his own hands first.

The problem was that he hadn't yet laid hands on it, so he didn't know if the treasure could be taken. The foreman's previous interaction with the nebula was still vivid in his mind.

Since Shen Youkun came for this item, he presumably had a way to retrieve it. If all else failed, he would have to wait for Shen Youkun to take it, then figure out how to snatch it from him.

However, the opposing side had superior numbers, and provoking a brawl would be troublesome. But perhaps the bodies of the murdered foremen could be used, claiming Shen Youkun intended to silence everyone, and using that to incite the crowd...

In a flash, his mind had already cycled through various plans. He decided to first try to touch the nebula.

When faced with the unknown, to dismiss something as useless without even trying wasn't his style.

There was no time to lose. He also knew his time was indeed limited; the foreman he'd encountered on the way had already gone to notify Shen Youkun, who would arrive soon.

Fortunately, he also had a mouth. After a quick thought, he suddenly shouted, “Mr. Shen will be here any moment! Mr. Shen has spoken: only two people are to remain here as lookouts; everyone else, retreat immediately to the corner and wait there.”

As he spoke, he retrieved his whip, walked to the very front, turned to face the crowd, and slightly brandished the whip in a show of dominance, clearly not holding the crowd in high regard.

There were too many people gathered. If he could manage to take the shimmering purple nebula, stealing it in front of so many people seemed inappropriate.

He didn't know if this bluff would work, but he didn't care for now. If it was a method, he would try it first.

He was the fellow who had just whipped his way to the front, recognizable by the wounds on his arm. Many remembered him, and those who had been whipped showed displeasure.

Seeing this scene, Wu Jinliang immediately felt a headache coming on. *This guy's at it again.*

“You are…” the foreman who had just given the order asked hesitantly.

Seeing his suspicion, Shi Chun's eyes flashed. Adapting quickly, he instantly changed his plan, deciding to first quell this man's doubts. He swiftly raised his whip, pointed it at the foreman, and cut him off, saying, “You and I will stay and watch. Everyone else, go around the corner and wait.”

He then gestured with his whip for the other foremen to comply. “Mr. Shen has something to attend to. You all keep everyone in line later; no one is to peek.”

Everyone thought to themselves, *What else could he be doing? He's just going to collect that shimmering purple treasure in front of us and doesn't want anyone to see how he does it.*

Upon hearing that he would be allowed to oversee the scene, the foreman who had given the previous order felt greatly relieved. His doubts were set aside for the moment, and he waved to the crowd, saying, “Everyone, follow Mr. Shen’s instructions. Disperse for now!”

The other foremen immediately began shouting, urging the crowd to retreat.

Shi Chun, who was now holding his whip behind his back, secretly breathed a sigh of relief. *Good, it worked.*

Wu Jinliang, amidst the crowd, was somewhat dumbfounded. He thought "leaving two people" meant he would be one of them, but instead, it was others. What was the meaning of this?

After catching Shi Chun's gaze, although he didn't know why, he still turned and cooperated, following the crowd away.