Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 910: Descendants of the Sun (2)

In the summer of 2013, the Amazon Jungle, the Golden City archaeological expedition.

The legend of the Golden City and the Golden Lake has circulated throughout the Americas for hundreds of years. Over the centuries, explorers from various countries have come one after another, but no one has ever truly seen the Golden City that sank into the Golden Lake.

Perhaps only the legendary emperor of the Incan Empire, who built the Golden City, has ever fully witnessed its grandeur.

A small makeshift camp had been set up in the jungle for the 23-member Golden City archaeological team. Leading the group was a professor of archaeology named Dolin.

At the moment, Professor Dolin was inside a tent with his assistant, a local guide familiar with the jungle, and a retired soldier responsible for security, discussing their situation.

They had been in the jungle for 20 days — they had reached the Golden Lake early on, but had no clue about the Golden City.

Years ago, the local government had deployed military forces to protect the Golden Lake, preventing illegal explorations. Yet, despite their efforts, some still managed to sneak into the forbidden zone. Over time, the government’s control had waned.

"Professor Dolin, our supplies are running out," said the retired soldier, Santa. "The remaining food will last us at most four more days, otherwise we’ll be starving on our way back."

"Santa, my old friend! Please give me a little more time!" Professor Dolin pleaded. "I've spent my whole life studying Incan civilization, and I’m sure the Golden City exists. The entrance must be nearby."

"A week, at most one more week," Santa frowned. "Professor, you should understand that we’re both hired for this expedition. I'm responsible for ensuring everyone’s safety."This wasn’t an independent archaeological dig; there was a financier behind it. The financier had provided a wealth of data, and after Professor Dolin's recommendation, Santa was appointed leader. However, the financier was absent from the expedition, and even he was only an intermediary — the true backer of this venture remained unknown to all.

...

Even though Santa agreed to extend the time, Professor Dolin still frowned as he stared at the spread-out maps on the ground. Suddenly, cheering was heard from outside the tent.

The group stepped outside and saw the team gathered excitedly. Professor Dolin called over a team member to ask what had happened.

"Professor, one of our members caught a wild boar in the woods. Everyone’s happy and talking about how to cook it."

Dolin was surprised but nodded. "Oh? Who did the hunting?"

Santa, too, was intrigued. While academics might think hunting a wild boar was simple, it was far from easy. Adult boars are aggressive and can be dangerous.

The team member pointed ahead, where a man was reclining under a tree, his hat covering his face.

Curious, Professor Dolin led the group toward him. "Was it you who caught the boar? How did you manage it?"

The young man lifted his hat, revealing a sun-darkened face with tousled hair — an uncommon sight of an Asian face.

Professor Dolin was puzzled. He recalled that this man was part of the team, but not one of his students. Santa had recruited him.

It seemed Santa wasn’t too familiar with the young man either. But Professor Dolin knew Santa well enough to trust his judgment. This young man must have some unique skills.

"Song, did you really catch that boar by yourself?" Santa asked, surprised.

This young man, who only introduced himself as Song, had been found by Santa in a bar. Impressed by Song's fighting skills, Santa had invited him to join the team.

"Is there a problem?" Song yawned, around 23 or 24 years old, always carrying a faint, elusive smile.

For the past 20 days, Song hadn’t interacted much with the others, silently following the group and doing his own thing.

"Incredible!" Santa laughed heartily.

Song shrugged nonchalantly. "I was tired of eating dry rations and wanted some fresh meat. I got lucky; I was just planning to catch a couple of fish, but this big guy came looking for me."

The wild boar would provide enough meat for the whole team for a day and a half — a welcome relief given their dwindling supplies.

However, Professor Dolin suddenly noticed something. "Song, what’s that in your hand?"

Startled, Song raised his hand, revealing a small bone-carved trinket wrapped around his wrist. "Oh, this? I found it on the ground. It looked special, so I wore it. Is there a problem?"

Professor Dolin grabbed Song's wrist, inspecting the trinket closely. "This is an Incan-era soldier's token, much like modern-day dog tags used to identify soldiers. Where exactly did you find this? Song, you must tell me! This could be a significant breakthrough!"

"Well..." Song thought for a moment. "I can’t say for sure, but I can take you there."

"Right away! Let's go right now!"

Professor Dolin, overwhelmed with excitement, had even turned red in the face. He then ordered Santa to leave some men to guard the camp, before heading off with a team.

Song led the archaeological team to a spot beneath a small waterfall, though the journey was challenging. Even Santa, a retired soldier with field experience, was drenched in sweat by the time they arrived, let alone someone like Professor Dolin, a scholar.

Song stood on a large rock beneath the waterfall and pointed to the area beneath it. "There seems to be a small opening down there, but it’s too dark. I was worried there might be poisonous snakes inside, so I didn’t venture further. I found this object inside."

Professor Dolin, who had been sitting and resting, immediately jumped to his feet upon hearing this, shouting, "Quick! Quick! Santa, get some ropes! I want to go in and see for myself!"

At that moment, Song glanced up at the top of the waterfall, thinking, *Is this one of the many tributaries of the Amazon River, after countless splits, that finally ends up here?*

Watching the archaeological team busy themselves exploring the cave beneath the waterfall, Song had a slight smile on his face and quietly muttered, "Indeed, without a bit of guidance, they’re utterly useless... I almost wasted my pocket money."

After casually stretching his muscles, Song suddenly jumped into the pool and swam towards the area beneath the waterfall. It wasn’t his first time exploring this place.

The last time was a few months ago. That expedition? Total annihilation!

Suddenly, the force of the current surged, and every inch of progress required tremendous effort. But then, Song seemed to hear a sound.

It was the same whisper that had occasionally echoed in his mind since he had survived a few months ago. He had tried countless times to remember the strange voices and their patterns, but each time it remained vague.

He seemed to understand the meaning of the whispers, but could never fully organize them into his own language. It was always elusive.

What secrets could be hidden in here... How intriguing!

By now, some members of the archaeological team had made it ahead and secured ropes. Bit by bit, they pulled themselves past the force of the waterfall and reached the cave behind it. Just as Song had said, there was a moderately sized cave.

Professor Dolin examined the surroundings, while Santa inspected the cave's edges. "There are signs of excavation here, though they’ve been worn down by the water. But it’s still noticeable... Someone’s been here."

"Ancient people from the Inca Empire, perhaps!" Professor Dolin took a deep breath, grabbed a powerful flashlight from a team member, and shone it inside the cave.

The path ahead was tricky, sloping downward, with loose rocks and moss that made it very slippery due to the damp air.

But after passing that downward slope, the inside became dry. About 50 meters in, Professor Dolin discovered some ancient murals on the walls, which excited him greatly.

"These are sacrificial murals!" Professor Dolin exclaimed loudly. "As expected, the mysterious information given to me by the sponsor was correct. This is the ancient record-keeping style of the Inca Empire!"

"Is it... the City of Gold?" One of Professor Dolin’s students nervously asked.

"This... this doesn’t seem to depict the City of Gold." Professor Dolin continued to study the murals as he moved along. When he reached the final mural, he suddenly stopped, looking surprised, muttering, "A black sun, swallowing the sky... What does this mean?"

On the mural, a black sun was depicted, with ancient Incas kneeling below it. Nearby, there was an image of an ancient priest, tears streaming from his eyes.

Song stood behind the group, watching as they gathered around the mural in silence. He quietly observed his surroundings, his hand resting on the gun at his waist.

"Professor, what does the black sun mean?" a student asked.

Professor Dolin frowned, "The Inca Empire worshipped the sun god, the protector deity of the Inca civilization. In their mythology, the sun god’s name was Inti, son of the creator god Viracocha. Inti, as the embodiment of the sun, symbolized light... So why would the ancient Incas carve a black sun? I still don’t understand... But this discovery could be a major breakthrough in the study of Inca civilization! Make sure you record all these murals, don’t miss a single detail!"

Santa, uninterested in archaeology, was more focused on finding the treasures of the City of Gold. So, he continued to search the cave.

Suddenly, Santa stopped. In a corner of the cave, he discovered some modern items — a canteen, a hiking boot, and a few bullet casings!

Someone had been here before them!

Santa suddenly remembered Song, the mysterious and capable man. He recalled Song standing nearby while he was scouting the area, so he called out, "Song, come check this out! Song!"

But after calling several times, there was no response. Perplexed, Santa turned to look, only to realize Song was nowhere in sight — at least, not within his line of vision.

Frowning, Santa glanced at the others. Professor Dolin’s group was busy documenting the murals, and the rest of the team was assisting. No one seemed to notice his actions.

"Song?" Santa called out again... Suddenly, something flashed in the corner of his eye.

A dark shadow!

It was so fast that Santa instinctively fired a shot at where the shadow had passed. The gunshot immediately alarmed everyone!

"What happened?" Professor Dolin asked in fear.

Santa replied loudly, "I don’t know, but... but there seems to be something here!"

He glanced back at the others, then shouted again, "Everyone be careful, there might be something dangerous here... What’s wrong with you?"

The team was staring at him, their faces filled with terror. Santa felt a chill run down his spine. He swallowed hard and slowly turned around. In the darkness, a pair of giant eyes were staring at him!

Shhhhhh—!!!!

What Santa saw was a terrifying gaping maw! It was an enormous python, covered in black scales, with a blood-red horn atop its head!

Before Santa could react, his vision went dark. The giant python had already swallowed the upper half of his body!

The black-horned python raised its head, with Santa’s legs kicking desperately in its mouth. But soon, they went limp, and the python opened its maw once again, swallowing him whole.

Panic erupted among the archaeological team.

In the darkness, a pair of eyes watched the entire scene unfold. The figure remained motionless, hiding behind a rock. It was Song.