Chapter 23: Inside the Coffin
In the darkness, someone was weeping softly, and someone else was trembling. Whenever they closed their eyes, the horrifying image of foreheads being pierced, blood splattering, and brain matter flowing out would surface—like a nightmare, like a ghost, lingering in their hearts.
It was hard to forget the gruesome deaths of their classmates: the sorrowful and beautiful blood blossoms, the unwilling despair, the eyes that could not close, the youthful faces that kept appearing before them. Four years of shared study, thirteen vibrant lives, all gone forever on the same day.
Though they were temporarily safe now, many could not calm down. In fact, they were even more terrified. The dead classmates and the ferocious divine crocodiles kept haunting their minds—perhaps they would never be forgotten for the rest of their lives.
The giant bronze coffin was pitch black. Some female classmates were sobbing, and some male classmates were sighing. Although they had escaped, the road ahead was uncertain and unpredictable.
The nine dragons pulling the coffin—where were they heading? Where was the other shore? Where was paradise? Light had not been seen, yet the sea of suffering was already boundless. Were they traveling along the ancient path walked by deities? Where did the gods reside? What kind of place was that...
It was only after a long time that the bronze coffin quieted down. According to Earth time, it was now late at night. Everyone was exhausted and mentally drained, and they all fell into a drowsy sleep.
Many were still anxious and fearful in their dreams, tightly clutching the relics of the deities, as if seeking support and reliance from them.
It was a tormenting night. Many could not sleep well, constantly waking from nightmares. Some girls even woke up crying. It wasn’t that they were weak or cowardly, but the experience was too terrifying. Many things, whether true or false, were just stories if only heard—no matter how shocking. But experiencing them firsthand was a completely different matter.
A group of urban men and women, whose daily lives were extremely comfortable, suddenly going through such a brutal event—it was an unimaginable mental shock. Seeing with their own eyes the legendary demons gnawing on the corpses of their companions, watching people around them die one after another—how could they not be afraid?
Even someone as carefree as Pang Bo found it hard to sleep. It wasn’t because he was afraid, but because he was constantly disturbed by those around him. Ye Fan was the same; it was hard for him to sleep as people nearby kept talking in their sleep or crying in their nightmares.
Only five or six hours had passed when most people woke up. It took another two hours for everyone’s emotions to calm down slightly. At this moment, no one knew where the bronze coffin was traveling in the universe, and everyone began to think about practical problems.
The bronze coffin was very stable, with no vibration at all, as if it had already stopped in the starry sky. Was there a next stop? Perhaps it might drift forever in the desolate depths of the universe.
“What kind of place will we reach?”
After crying and venting, even the naturally weak female classmates had to start thinking about this question.
“Will we reach the place where the deities reside?”
The ancient starry path was created by the ancestors. At the distant end, there might really be deities, and they might arrive at a mysterious world.
“Do gods really exist? We’ve already seen the nine dragons pulling the coffin, seen the legendary Great Thunderclap Monastery, and seen the mythical Crocodile Ancestor. There should be no reason not to believe. But I still find it hard to accept this reality. In my understanding, deities might just be a race, or they might have once coexisted with us on Earth.”
As modern people, almost none of them believed in the existence of gods, but now they had to face it. Hearing Wang Ziwen say this made it easier to accept.
“Perhaps, for us, those deities are not unfamiliar. Maybe they are just a result of human evolution, possibly ancient figures we know well.”
“Whether it’s evolution or a special race, we have to admit that gods do exist, and it’s clear that ancient ancestors had dealings with them.”
At the summit of Mount Tai, there was a Five-Colored Altar built by ancient ancestors. Countless years ago, the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, along with seventy-two kings, ascended Mount Tai for the Fengshan ceremony. This alone was enough to indicate something.
“Perhaps those deities are our ancestors...”
The Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors were god-like ancient figures. Legends say they themselves were deities. So it could be imagined that the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai was not simple; there were many possibilities.
Perhaps they were calling out to life in the stars, sending some kind of message into the desolate universe.
Perhaps they could truly fly through the sky and burrow into the earth. The ancient land had made them feel constrained, not vast enough, so they ascended Mount Tai, left Earth, and entered the depths of the vast universe.
Perhaps Earth was just a waystation, a temporary stop for those beings who were both human and divine, a chapter in their long lives.
Perhaps...
What exactly happened in that distant ancient era? No one could say for sure. Everything was just “perhaps.” Only one thing was undeniable: ancient ancestors had already opened the starry gate and explored into the boundless depths of the universe.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?”
The bronze ancient lamp had gone out, and the coffin was pitch black. Everyone was not too scattered; they were all close together. Right next to Ye Fan, someone was leaning against the coffin wall, not making a sound. This caught his attention.
“What’s wrong? Still holding a grudge about me beating you up?” Pang Bo was very dissatisfied and sneered, “You almost pushed Ye Fan off the Five-Colored Altar, nearly killing him. Beating you up was cheap. Throwing you into the pile of divine crocodiles wouldn’t have been too much.”
“Hey, wake up, say something.” The person next to him gave him a push.
But unexpectedly, the person not only didn’t respond but fell to the ground with a “thud.”
“You... what’s wrong?!” The one who pushed him was startled and backed away in fear.
At this moment, everyone felt something was wrong. Even if someone was deeply asleep, falling to the ground like that would probably wake them up. Yet he remained motionless, lying there quietly like a piece of dead wood.
“Wake up, wake up!” Pang Bo stepped forward, pushed him, and when he still didn’t wake up, patted his cheek. Suddenly, he exclaimed in shock, “Why is his skin so cold? His body is also a bit stiff!”
Hearing this, everyone felt their hair stand on end, a chill running from head to toe. A bad premonition arose in their hearts.
Ye Fan sensed something was very wrong. He reached out to check his mouth and nose. Finally, he was stunned and said, “He’s dead. He stopped breathing long ago.”
“What?!” Everyone screamed.
How could a living person suddenly die? Not long ago, he was talking in his sleep, suffering from nightmares. Now, he had silently lost his life. It was truly suspicious.
The bronze coffin immediately became tense and oppressive. In the darkness, everyone breathed heavily, their bodies cold. It was too sudden and eerie, inexplicable. Everyone tightly gripped the relics of the deities in their hands.
“Turn on your phone and see how he died.” As Ye Fan spoke, he raised his own phone and looked forward with the faint light.
It was a pale face, with bulging eyes wide open, mouth slightly agape, and a trace of blood at the corner of the lips.
“He’s really dead...” Everyone was dejected and terrified. The sudden death made everyone feel a chill down their backs, as if something terrible existed in this bronze coffin.
A few brave classmates began to examine his body, trying to find the cause of death.
“Look, his neck...”
His neck was covered with bruises and blood marks, as if he had been strangled. The purple-red marks were shocking.
“Ghost... there’s a ghost in the coffin!” A female classmate, trembling with fear, spoke, full of terror.
Hearing this, many felt their scalps tingle. The purple-red bruises looked exactly like the finger marks left by a vengeful ghost, as if he had been choked to death.
Especially since they were in such a coffin, it made people even more suspicious and imaginative. The coffin within a coffin not far away looked like the gate to hell, chilling to the bone. Many involuntarily stepped back a few paces.
Ye Fan frowned, reached out and touched the corpse’s throat, and found that the Adam’s apple was crushed. It was soft there, with only the skin still intact, not torn. A few drops of blood stained his hand, looking eerily beautiful and chilling to the heart.
“It’s not a ghost; it’s murder!” At this moment, Liu Yunzhi said this with a gloomy expression, coldly glancing at Ye Fan.
Pang Bo saw him looking at Ye Fan and shot him a sideways glance, saying, “What do you mean?”
“Judging from the wound, he was strangled. Who could have done this silently?” Liu Yunzhi’s face was cold as he stared at Ye Fan and Pang Bo. “Only the person closest to him, with extraordinary strength, could have done it!”
With these words, the implication was clear. The finger was pointed directly at Ye Fan, because he was right next to the deceased, had an extraordinary physique, and was known for his great strength.
“You’re talking nonsense!” Pang Bo was furious. He grabbed the Great Thunderclap bronze plaque and wanted to smash it over.
Liu Yunzhi sneered, looking at him, “Are you trying to help him kill me to silence me?”
Ye Fan grabbed Pang Bo, stopping his impulse.
“It’s Ye Fan! He’s the one who killed him!” The female classmate who had always sided with Liu Yunzhi and had spoken for him and Li Changqing several times screamed in terror, “It must be Ye Fan! He’s taking revenge for almost being pushed off the altar!”
Hearing this, everyone immediately thought of what had happened not long ago. A few people stepped back.
“That’s right, it’s Ye Fan! He killed our classmate!” Li Changqing gritted his teeth, “And maybe someone helped him!”
Pang Bo felt an urge to rush over and give them a good beating.
“Buzz”
Liu Yunzhi raised the Vajra Pestle in his hand, and it emitted a metallic sound, with a faint flow of light.
Everyone was startled. The relics of the deities in their hands had all become ordinary and could no longer emit light. But Liu Yunzhi’s Vajra Pestle still had divine power, which surprised everyone.
“Ye Fan, you’re too vicious. Even if he was wrong first, you shouldn’t have taken such deadly revenge...” Liu Yunzhi stepped forward two paces, holding the Vajra Pestle.
“I said I didn’t kill anyone. Do you believe me?” Ye Fan looked around at everyone.
“I naturally believe you!” Pang Bo was the first to step forward.
“I believe you too!” Zhang Ziling also stepped forward.
Ye Fan looked at the others and said, “Don’t you believe me?” Then his gaze lingered on Li Xiaoman.