Jin Wang led the group to three similar places. The structures seemed like they were designed by the same person/s. The only difference was that almost all of them were a lot more damaged and showed signs of fights. But none of these marks were recent.
Zeng Yu took about two hours and checked every nook and cranny of all three structures, making sure no creatures were left.
"It seems safe enough. The Shi and Ma clan should take the first and we will take the last," Hao Xuan said to the group after returning back at the camp.
The first two sites were really close to the base camp, less than five minutes away. If something were to go wrong, they could easily call for backup.
"We have no problems with this," the couple behind Ma Yu nodded in approval. The Shi clan did the same.
"Perfect!" Hao Xuan smiled.
He then went to the science team and told them to separate into three as well and continue gathering data. He gave the creature he had brought back from the temple to them as well.
Yin Da who was the chief science officer of the party was elated to see it. It would be a perfect specimen to experiment on.
"Thank you, captain!" he said while looking at the caged creature with glittering eyes.
Hao Xuan actually had mixed feelings when he saw the look on Yin Da's face. That is NOT the face of someone that has his sh*t together.
It was the same face Sixth used to make whenever he saw 'Thick Thighs'.
"No no, don't go there," Hao Xuan told himself and took a few steps away from him.
"Um, so is there anything you have to report to me?" he asked when Yin Da completely ignored his existence.
"Ah yes. This is for you," Yin Da didn't look up and simply snapped his fingers. One of the men standing behind him walked up and handed Hao Xuan a file.
"This is everything we have found so far," he explained while standing up. Picking up the cage he finally looked at Hao Xuan, "Will keep you updated of any further progress," and walked away.
Hao Xuan was speechless at the man's behavior, only managing to mutter "..thanks….?" a few seconds after he had already walked away.
The file had a lot of data, most of which Hao Xuan couldn't understand. The only thing that caught his eye was "unknown energy" that seemed to be present everywhere in the world. Whether it was the tombs or the camps outside, the energy was there. And it looked like the energy levels were increasing.
They had only been there for a few days and already, the energy levels had almost doubled.
"Senior brother, did you need something?" Ma Yu's voice interrupted Hao Xuan's thought process.
He looked up and saw her grinning at him with her hands behind her back. He couldn't help but break into a smile himself. She looked like a more immature and chibi version of Sin.
"What was it about the Spiritual fire you were talking about?"
Ma Yu was surprised by his query, "Does senior brother really not know?"
"No."
"Oh. Well, spiritual fire is a living fire. It's at the higher tier of flames and has a lot of uses. You can find a lot of information about it on the network once we get out. I don't know much more about it myself. Only that it's like a living person."
"Hmm, that's good to know," Hao Xuan mumbled while stroking his chin, lost in thought. A few seconds later he looked Ma Yu right in the eyes which made her slightly blush, "Do you trust me?"
"Eh?" She was taken aback by Hao Xuan's sudden inquiry, but it didn't take long for her to come up with an answer, "Mhm," she nodded mechanically after a couple of seconds of blanking out.
Hao Xuan wasn't expecting such a cute reaction and was a bit surprised himself. Wanting to tease her a bit more, he stepped forward until he was only a step away from her.
Ma Yu's heart skipped a beat when she saw Hao Xuan smiling at her from a few inches away, but she didn't back down.
"Dummy, why so serious?" Hao Xuan flicked her on the forehead and burst out laughing.
Ma Yu's face turned scarlet red when she realized Hao Xuan was just messing with her and she huffed in mock anger.
But then Hao Xuan's tone suddenly turned serious and the smile on his face vanished, "You have to do one thing," he met her gaze, "As soon as something strange happens, come back. No matter what it looks like, whether there is gold and silver in front of you or godly weapons, turn around. Something is not right with this place," he finished and patted her shoulder.
She looked at him strangely before nodding. Only then did Hao Xuan walk away, but he stopped again after taking a couple of steps.
"And if you see a giant statue with gold engravings sitting on a throne, run away as soon as possible. And no matter what you do, do NOT look at its face," he said while glancing back.
She nodded once again like an obedient child, prompting Hao Xuan to continue walking.
Ma Yu stood there dazed, while Shi Chun spied on her from some distance away, hiding behind Bao Bao. He had followed Ma Yu over wanting to talk to her for a bit, but stopped when he saw Hao Xuan and their interaction afterward.
His fists were tightly clenched as he stared at Ma Yu, and then in the direction Hao Xuan had disappeared in.
Bao Bao saw her master's despondent look and licked him. She couldn't understand what was going inside his head but what he was feeling was plain for all to see.
He patted Bao Bao's head and mumbled, "Does captain Deimos like Lady Ma Yu as well?"
Bao Bao tilted her head sideways in confusion.
"Of course he does. Lady Ma Yu is beautiful, strong and from a famous family," he continued talking to himself, answering his own query.
The two old men were standing a few meters behind him. They had seen everything from the beginning and heard Hao Xuan's warning to Ma Yu and knew there wasn't anything between them.
One of the men took a step forward but was stopped by the other, who shook his head.
"Don't. This is good for him. He has been too relaxed. This will motivate him to get stronger. Let the young captain serve as a stepping stone for the Young Master."
They looked back at Shi Chun and sighed. It was meant to be this way…
****
After resting for a bit, Hao Xuan led the Red Legion and Hyson's group to the furthest tomb they had found.. It was also by far the biggest.
