Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1045: How Could There Be a Path to Immortality in This World? (53): Cognitive Distortion

But it wasn’t just the painted surface of the Terracotta Warriors that was peeling away.

When large chunks of clay flaked off their bodies, hitting the ground and shattering, what was revealed beneath clearly wasn’t inanimate.

They… or rather, it—each one had a gaunt face, their skin a dark gray-black, possibly from centuries of being fused with the clay.

Their heads were bowed.

But soon, some began to raise them… their eyes were shut, but quickly began to open.

Crack—crack—crack!

The clay covering the Terracotta Warriors finally crumbled off entirely, sending up clouds of gray dust. The air was thick with a rotting stench.

The Song Family guards instantly raised their modern weapons. Guns were quickly aimed at Song Haoran and the others. Meanwhile, the seasoned tomb raiders from the Li Family reacted a bit more slowly.

As for the thugs from the Suzuki Group—judging by the terror on their faces—they still needed time to process what they were seeing.

"W-What is this…?"Mr. Ah Qi, who had decades of tomb-raiding experience, had never encountered something so eerie. Tombs—especially ancient ones—sometimes contained unclean things, but the Li Family had passed down plenty of knowledge to deal with such issues.

But living 'people' hidden inside Terracotta Warriors—this was unheard of. Not even the Li Family’s records mentioned anything like this!

“They're… they’re moving again!”

Mu Xianghua cried out in panic, his legs trembling as his face turned pale. A hint of regret even flashed across his face—probably cursing himself for ever accepting this job from the Takizawa family.

But no matter how terrified he was, the group had no choice but to confront the horrifying truth—those 'monsters' emerging from the Terracotta Warriors were slowly walking toward them.

One of them had already climbed out of the pit.

Bang!

A gunshot rang out in the tomb.

The bullet struck the forehead of the first one to emerge. The impact snapped its head backward.

It stopped—but remained standing.

Silence fell over the chamber, all eyes fixated on the creature.

Then, its head, which had been thrown back, slowly lowered.

Its eyes were bloodshot, and deep red tears—blood tears—trickled down its face. Blood also seeped from the bullet wound on its forehead.

A low, guttural growl rumbled from its throat. Instead of dying from the shot, it seemed to have gone berserk—it suddenly lunged forward!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Several Song Family guards instantly opened fire, their bullets raining down on the creature.

Shell casings scattered across the floor.

Under the hail of gunfire, the creature was finally stopped—its body now riddled with holes like a piece of rotting wood.

It had become a blood-soaked monster.

Thud!

It collapsed, but its hand still clawed toward the air. Reflexively, one of the tense Song Family guards fired again, blasting its arm.

Now, it lay still.

Its eyes were closed. But bizarrely, a twisted smile formed on its terrifying face.

"It… it’s smiling?" someone whispered.

"Finally free. Smiling makes sense."

This voice, however, was familiar to the group—it was ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’, Young Master of the Suzuki family. Everyone turned to him instinctively.

He walked up to the monster’s body, crouched beside it, inspecting it briefly before calmly saying, “These people have long been dead. They were refined into living corpses. Their souls were sealed into their bodies by some secret technique.”

He stood up, then casually kicked the body back into the pit. “They were imprisoned for over two thousand years, never seeing the light of day. Now that their souls are finally released, it's only natural they'd smile.”

“Young Master Suzuki, how do you know this?” Song Haoran asked curiously, eyeing him closely—there was something different about him.

‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ turned his face slightly, casually glancing at Song Haoran as he said offhandedly, “Ever heard of Onmyōji? I know a few of their tricks.”

Everyone exchanged stunned looks—though the explanation was incredible, the situation forced them to accept it. After all, seeing something walk out of a 2,000-year-old clay statue, survive a headshot, and go berserk was already beyond comprehension.

“Watch out, Young Master Suzuki!” Mu Xianghua shouted suddenly.

More 'monsters' were crawling out of the pit behind ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’—dense as ants, crowding the edges of the pit.

The terrifying sight made those with weapons break into cold sweat. They quickly raised their guns again.

But ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ simply let out a low hum. He didn’t move much—he just turned his palm upward.

A flash of purple light flared from his hand and shot out!

In an instant, the purple glow illuminated every corner of the tomb. When it touched the monsters, they all halted.

Their bloodshot eyes closed again. Their heads lowered. Silence fell.

“Don’t worry. I’ve put their souls to sleep for now,” ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ said coolly, slipping his hand into his pocket. “The soul powers the living corpse. When the soul sleeps, the body is harmless. Besides…”

He glanced at the well-equipped Song Family guards and smirked. “They might not even be able to beat you. After all, the weapons of you humans are quite effective.”

No one commented on his use of "you humans." Maybe they noticed, maybe not—but their minds were focused elsewhere.

The monsters were quiet again. The threat seemed averted. Everyone breathed a little easier.

“Hahaha! As expected of Young Master Suzuki!” Mu Xianghua quickly ran over, grinning and flattering him.

‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ couldn’t be bothered to care… In truth, if it weren’t for being threatened by some hidden terrifying powerhouse, Ba Qi wouldn’t give a damn about the lives or deaths of these tomb raiders — or rather, it would be even happier to see them die. That way, it could effortlessly collect a number of souls.

“You all saw it, didn’t you?” ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ now looked at Zhang Qianrui and Song Haoran. “This tomb isn’t as simple as you imagined. Maybe you’ve had plenty of tomb raiding experience before, but the path ahead in this one may not be something you can handle… I advise you, if you want to retreat, now’s your chance.”

Mu Xianghua was stunned… Wasn’t this Suzuki Young Master supposed to be determined to get the treasures of the imperial tomb? Why was he now speaking as if he wanted to give up?

Not just Mu Xianghua — even the people from the Zhang and Song families looked at ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ with some confusion.

‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ of course knew what they were thinking, but… but it was helpless too! What could it do?

That mysterious bigshot had said to ensure these people left safely… So, in order to survive, it and Ren Zhen had no choice but to protect this group.

But the bigshot’s instructions were so vague… What did “protect” even mean?

Were they supposed to escort these people all the way to the treasure at the tomb’s end? Or would it still count as “protection” if they and Ren Zhen violently drove them out?

Of course, the latter was just Ba Qi’s own speculation — since the bigshot had them acting as guardians, it was unlikely they’d want this group hurt. But even so, it was still a line of thinking worth exploring.

Since the instructions didn’t specify whether to go in or out — if people from the Zhang or Song families chose to leave on their own, wouldn’t that technically still be within the bigshot’s boundaries?

In other words, if Ba Qi could persuade them to retreat, it would perfectly complete the bigshot’s mission — and as a reward, it and Ren Zhen could recover after leaving. Even though their recovery would only be 30% of full strength, it would still save them years of effort.

Of course, the motive for persuasion wasn’t just one.

For example, Ba Qi — though it would never admit it — was an extremely petty creature. With a mysterious bigshot secretly watching but refusing to show up, yet allowing the Zhang and Song families to run wild here, didn’t that mean the bigshot couldn’t personally enter this place? Perhaps due to some restriction? But clearly, the bigshot still wanted the secret treasure deep inside the tomb. Yet the desire wasn’t so intense as to intervene directly — hence this “go with the flow” type of arrangement — with Ba Qi and Ren Zhen as bodyguards.

Still—

If I can’t have it, then no one else should either…

With that mindset, Ba Qi was now enthusiastically trying to get everyone to leave.

Ba Qi’s thoughts weren’t hard to read, and the ‘Suzuki Yuichi’ standing beside him — Ren Zhen — immediately saw through them. So it stayed quiet. It had no interest in the Suihou Pearl; what it cared about was Ba Qi. Its arrival was entirely due to the symbiotic contract it had formed with Ba Qi, so now it was quite content to remain idle.

But neither of these two troublesome partners had considered one thing!

That was — the bizarre, undead Terracotta Warriors appearing in this place, and the strange abilities of ‘‘Suzuki Chun Xin’,’ were already far beyond the scope of science — they were shattering everyone’s understanding of reality.

Song Haoran was someone who liked to tempt fate — he enjoyed it. Adventure was born from a restless heart. And ever since obtaining the Sun God’s Emblem, which gave him near-immortality, this tendency had become almost pathological.

What else lay deeper in this tomb?

He was extremely curious… Just how powerful was this so-called Onmyōji art of ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’’s? He really wanted to see for himself!

But Mr. Ah Qi thought differently.

Although this tomb exploration had elements of fulfilling the Li family’s ancestral wishes, his main priority was protecting Zhang Qianrui’s safety. Even if there was a family rule that descendants must enter the tomb, the Li family’s old madam would never want to see the young miss thrown into such extreme danger. After all, there were countless tombs in the world — they didn’t have to complete the trial in this one.

The clash of two completely different opinions now occurred.

“I plan to go deeper,” said Song Haoran first. “Since Suzuki Young Master is skilled in Onmyōji arts, I trust he can ensure our safety… Right?”

He suddenly recalled what ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ had said to Mr. Ah Qi earlier, and now grew even more curious as to what had triggered this behavior from him.

“I’m sorry, but the Li family is withdrawing from this operation,” Mr. Ah Qi said in a deep voice. “Mr. Mu Xianghua, apologies for the mid-way withdrawal. Regarding the deposit you already paid, we’ll compensate you according to the standard agreements.”

Zhang Qianrui opened her mouth but didn’t refute anything.

She understood when she could act as the miss, and when she needed to obey. The sight of those undead Terracotta Warriors in the tomb had already made her want to retreat.

Since the Li family intended to leave, Song Haoran didn’t try to stop them.

Instead, he gathered the Song family’s personnel and said, “You’ve all seen what’s going on here. From this point forward, this won’t be an official Song family operation — this is my personal decision. From here on, you may choose to follow me or wait outside.”

“Strategist! You’re doing this again! Hahaha!”

“We’ve risked life and limb together so many times, and every time you say this crap at the final moment. Aren’t you bored yet?”

One of them even raised his submachine gun and grinned wickedly. “Didn’t Suzuki Young Master say it? These things we’re holding are pretty damn lethal — what are we afraid of?”

Truly a bunch of lunatics…

Mr. Ah Qi coldly observed this bloodthirsty group from the Song family and shook his head. He made a mental note — best not to get too involved with the Song family.

Song Haoran gave a devilish smile and said, “Fine, up to you. But I need a few of you to escort Luo Qiu out.”

With that, he turned to look behind him. “From here on, this isn’t just some casual adventure game. For you, it’s still too—”

But Song Haoran suddenly stopped talking… because Luo Qiu was gone.

“Where is he…” Song Haoran frowned, instinctively looking around. “Did any of you see him?”

“Strategist, who are you talking about?” a Song family member asked curiously.

Song Haoran froze, frowning deeply. “It’s… it’s… wasn’t there someone else who came in with me?”

“Strategist, there was no one else. I remember clearly.”

“Is that so…”

Song Haoran lowered his head, deep in thought about something.

“Uncle Ah Qi, I also feel like… someone’s missing…” Zhang Qianrui glanced at Mr. Ah Qi beside her with confusion and asked softly.

Mr. Ah Qi looked puzzled. “Missing who?”

Zhang Qianrui shook her head and hesitated. “It feels like someone really important… like he just spoke to us a moment ago… but I can’t remember.”

Mr. Ah Qi replied, “Everyone on our side is accounted for. As for the Song Family, let them worry about themselves. If someone really is missing, they’ll notice… In any case, Miss, it’s not safe to linger. Let me escort you out first.”

Zhang Qianrui nodded... the unsettling feeling of someone being missing gradually faded from her heart.

Just before leaving, she instructed someone to collect some of the clay that had flaked off the Terracotta Warriors.

Chinese purple, Chinese blue...

She didn’t know why, but she couldn’t help caring a little.

...

Soon after, the Li Family gathered all their personnel and began to withdraw.

Ba Qi wasn’t exactly satisfied with the outcome, but he was happy that fewer Li Family members remained — it made his and Ren Zhen’s task that much easier.

At this moment, Song Haoran walked up to one of the motionless “monsters,” squeezed the muscles on its arm, and exclaimed in awe, “These muscles are solid… like steel. But they don’t look like they were soldiers in life.”

“Perhaps they were craftsmen buried here after the construction of the royal tomb,” ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ said calmly. “Young Master Song, since you've decided to proceed, there’s no point wasting time here.”

Song Haoran made a “please go ahead” gesture.

‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ said nothing and walked ahead silently.

Just then, ‘Suzuki Yuichi’ approached and asked in a low voice, “You’re not taking the souls from these undead?”

‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ shook his head. “Their souls were already nearly depleted, trapped in those bodies. They only remained stable while inside the undead, but once released, they dissipate instantly—completely useless for consumption… By the way, haven’t you also felt like… someone’s missing?”

‘Suzuki Yuichi’ paused to think. “Feels like yes… and also no. Could it be…”

“I’m afraid our perception has been distorted,” ‘Suzuki Chun Xin’ said darkly. “That mysterious being really is dangerous…”

...

...

The tomb chamber quickly became empty… except for the immobilized undead.

Whether they had moved on or retreated, all footsteps had faded into the distance—until no sound remained.

Luo Qiu slowly walked among the many undead.

“You no longer have anything left to trade.”

His voice was soft.

“But I do enjoy a good story.”

He stopped before one of the undead and gently tapped its forehead with a finger.

Its body instantly disintegrated, leaving behind only a faint wisp of light that drifted into Luo Qiu’s palm.

He cupped the glow to his ear, closed his eyes, and listened.

(End of Chapter)