Chapter 1389 — Two Doors

"Male Thief, you young rascal, do not push this old man too far!" Elder Yu glared at Wei Zhao through gritted teeth.

"Push you? How have I pushed you? I asked you before - you came to rob this tomb for just these two things, and I agreed to let you have them. Are you going back on your word?" Wei Zhao mimicked Elder Yu's tone: "Elder, do not push your humble junior!"

"You—" Elder Yu's mouth hung open, glaring at Wei Zhao, yet utterly without the means to work up any temper at all.

"You what?" Wei Zhao gave Elder Yu a cool glance. "This medical practice notes, I'll keep with me for now. I'll hand it over when we get out - saves you from grabbing the goods and running off without letting me copy it."

"Hmph, suit yourself!" Elder Yu drew a deep breath and forced down the rage deep in his heart. He decided not to squabble with Wei Zhao for the moment; once his injuries healed and they were out of the ancient tomb, he would finish Wei Zhao off in one stroke and seize every fine thing on his person!

Just think: at the risk of being blasted into grave injury by Wei Zhao, he would snatch the Qi Gathering Pill, the medical practice notes, and the alchemist's notes from Wei Zhao. By then, though he himself would be badly wounded, Wei Zhao would surely be hurt far worse, perhaps even dead - and at that point he could also take all the pills off Yu Xiaoke, then make a clean run back to the Yu family to recover. His merit and his gains would be boundless!

In Elder Yu's eyes, so long as he handed a single Qi Gathering Pill, the medical practice notes, and the alchemist's notes over to the hidden Yu family, that alone would be an enormous merit. To find even one of them would make the trip worthwhile - and here all three were within reach.

And if he secretly kept back one Qi Gathering Pill and a number of other pills, the Yu family would never know. When the day came that he broke through to the Heaven Grade in one leap, all the humiliation he had suffered today would count for nothing. At this thought, Elder Yu made up his mind.

"Male Thief, you're taking only these things?" Old Hei gave Wei Zhao a puzzled look, unable to understand why Wei Zhao had locked horns with Elder Yu just like that. There were so many fine things in this ancient tomb - what use did Wei Zhao have for some medical practice notes and alchemist's notes?

He had never heard that the Husband-and-Wife Thieves needed such things before either. Still, these matters were not for the likes of him to meddle in. Ever since he learned that Wei Zhao was a Profound Grade expert, Old Hei had not dared to overstep.

"The other things, for now, don't catch my eye." Wei Zhao spoke flatly. "Don't ask what you shouldn't ask. Mind your own business!"

Old Hei started, then nodded, smiling bitterly in his heart. This loose mouth of mine - what did I have to go asking for? Clearly Wei Zhao did not want to say more, and these matters had little to do with him anyway. To keep his life was the greatest fortune Old Hei could ask for!

He thought of Old Keng, Lord Hao, and James, who had come tomb-robbing with him - all dead. Two of them he had killed himself; one had been eaten by a monster. After this tomb raid, Old Hei reckoned he would no longer be able to make a living in the trade. Killing Lord Hao was one thing - Lord Hao had been a traitor to his own side - but Old Keng had died for nothing!

If the whole business could have been kept quiet, that would have been one thing, but the Husband-and-Wife Thieves and the heroine Yan both knew, and he could hardly bind them to silence. So when Old Hei went back this time, he too would have to think about changing trades.

"In that case, let's find a way out and leave." Yu Xiaoke had no wish to linger in this ancient tomb either. "Are we still going to the burial chamber where the coffins are kept?"

"I don't want to go. There's nothing left worth taking, and it's dangerous at every turn. Better we get out quickly." Old Hei shook his head. He had no wish for complications; the haul this time had already been no small thing.

"Everything I want is on the Male Thief's person. Naturally I won't go courting death again!" Elder Yu gave a cold snort.

One of his eyes was ruined - needless to say, how galling it was.

"Then let's just find an exit. The way we came in is certainly no good now." Wei Zhao had already achieved his aim, so he did not much care.

In truth, Wei Zhao still wanted to take a look at the main burial chamber. After all, Old Man Wei had said that Zhang Liju seemed to possess a kind of ability to detect rare natural treasures and spirit medicines - an ability that perhaps came from some treasure. And a fine thing like that, at least along the whole way here, Wei Zhao had not seen.

Elder Jiao was a man especially sensitive to treasures. If any such good thing truly existed, Elder Jiao would likely have alerted him - but by the look of things, there was none.

"Where's the way out?" Yu Xiaoke smiled bitterly. "For now we can only follow this passage forward and see what lies ahead."

The others nodded. After leaving the stone chamber, they began to follow the passage onward. This time there were no doors on the stone walls either; it seemed there were only those four stone chambers here, and Zhang Liju's hoard was not so very rich after all.

Still, that was hardly surprising. A man like Zhang Liju was probably the sort who cared nothing for fame or profit - otherwise he could not have lived out his whole life alone without wife or concubine. Had he craved comfort, he would long ago have had a house full of wives and concubines, and he would never have carried these things into his tomb.

They walked perhaps three or four hundred meters before the passage reached its end. From the look of it, the underground palace was not so very complicated; all the tangled routes had been concentrated up at the entrance above.

What appeared before them were two stone doors. The two doors were very much alike, yet slightly different. On each door was carved a different design, and at the exact center of each door was something like a puzzle - the sort of sliding-block game known as Huarong Dao.

"Where is this? Why are there two doors?" Catching sight of the scene ahead, Elder Yu could not help asking.

"Elder Yu, this must be the legendary Gate of Life and Gate of Death..." Old Hei's expression was somewhat grave, yet there was a note of delight in his voice as well. "From past experience, the Gate of Life leads safely out of the tomb, while the Gate of Death leads to the final resting place of the coffins - the dead one's burial chamber. Legend has it that whoever takes it will be buried with the dead forever!"

"Then what are we waiting for? I'll take the Gate of Life - only an idiot would take the Gate of Death!" Elder Yu said impatiently. "Open the Gate of Life at once and let's get out of here!"

"...Elder Yu, this Gate of Life and Gate of Death... the truth is, I don't know which one is the Gate of Life and which is the Gate of Death..." Old Hei smiled bitterly. You're the idiot, he thought. Naturally no one would take the Gate of Death in this tomb - but in some simple tombs, the Gate of Death might well hold great treasure!

But he dared not say such a thing to Elder Yu's face. To curse Elder Yu as an idiot - was that not courting death? So he could only say it in his heart.

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