Chapter 86

Chapter Eighty-Seven Black Buddha

Upon seeing the white bones of the corpse, the "Partridge Scout" felt an ominous premonition. Hearing Elder Liaochen's grave tone, he knew it was no small matter and asked, "What does it mean when a Bodhisattva closes their eyes?"

Elder Liaochen said: "The moon has seventy-two phases; tonight happens to be the great waning, a time to dispel evil and repay harm. Legend says that during such celestial timing, the earth's yang energy is weak, the lunar star is overhead, making strange occurrences most likely. Who among grave-robbers would dare enter a tomb to steal gold at such a time? I initially thought this was an ownerless empty tomb, never expecting to find a skeleton inside. More eerily, behind the white bones is the Thousand-Eyed Black Buddha. This Black Buddha is no ordinary object. If there are hidden yin spirits in the tomb, our black donkey hooves and glutinous rice will be useless tonight. We must retreat quickly."

Though reluctant, the "Partridge Scout" understood the danger and, without further words, turned with Elder Liaochen and the American priest to return via the passage beneath the Jade Gate.

The three turned and retreated, the rear becoming the vanguard. American priest Thomas walked in front. Seeing the two about to leave, he was overjoyed, immediately found the passage entrance, lit the candle the "Partridge Scout" had given him earlier, and prepared to flee inside.

Elder Liaochen, walking second, suddenly shouted: "Not good!" He grabbed Thomas's collar and pulled him back. Just then, a mass of thick black mist erupted from the passage. Had Elder Liaochen reacted half a beat slower, Thomas would have been touched by the black mist; a delay of even a step might have seen the devout priest already meeting his God.

The "Partridge Scout" and Elder Liaochen knew this was the tomb's poisonous smoke. With such a vicious mechanism installed in the sole passage, the Xixia people's deceit and cruelty were evident. Unaware which of the three triggered the mechanism, activating the poison smoke, they were fortunate that Elder Liaochen, though old, possessed vast experience, which saved Thomas's life.

This black poisonous smoke might be brewed from centipede venom, thick and undispersing, like solidified black liquid. The black mist gushed forth from the passage in increasing volume. The "Partridge Scout" and the others had taken the secret antidote for poison; the "Grave-Seeking Colonel's" secret antidote was likely made for corpse poison. Whether it would work against such thick smoke remained uncertain.

Seeing the intense black poisonous smoke approaching rapidly, the three dared not be careless and retreated toward the corner of the tomb chamber where human bones lay. But here there was no shelter or obstruction; after a few steps, they reached the end. How could they block the smoke from entering the tomb's inner chamber?

The "Partridge Scout" and Elder Liaochen were not worried about having no retreat, for they carried whirlwind shovels and could simply blast back through the thief's tunnel if needed—but they could not block the poisonous smoke. In a moment, they would collapse lifeless on the spot.

Even with the "Partridge Scout's" ingenuity and Elder Liaochen's experience, they were helpless. Ordinary poisonous smoke only required holding one's breath, and with the power of the "Red Silk Marvelous Heart Pill," they could force their way out. But this black poisonous smoke was unprecedented in thickness. Since entering the tomb passage, the three had been cautious and could not have triggered any mechanism; none could fathom how this black smoke had emerged.

Behind them was the tomb chamber's stone wall. The "Partridge Scout" and the three pressed their backs against the wall, with nowhere to retreat no matter their abilities. They could only watch helplessly as the thick black smoke slowly advanced.

Seeing this terrifying poisonous mist, Thomas turned ashen-faced, momentarily forgetting to pray for God's protection. The "Partridge Scout" nudged Thomas's shoulder and asked: "Hey, foreign monk of the Lord of Heaven, your eyebrows are on fire—why doesn't your master come to save you?"

Thomas then remembered he was a clergy member. Forcing calm, he said: "The Almighty Father is likely busy with other matters and cannot come to save me, but I believe I will surely ascend to heaven after death. Life is not important; what matters is reaching heaven after death. Belief in God grants eternal life."

The "Partridge Scout" sneered: "Hmph, so your master is this busy. Since he cannot keep up, it shows he is not competent. Better to let a monkey be God—monkeys have abundant energy."

Hearing the "Partridge Scout" say God was no better than a monkey, Thomas flared with anger, about to retort, but the "Partridge Scout" continued: "Foreign monk, if you now take refuge in the Buddha and abandon that damned God, I have a way to keep you from dying. If you refuse, at most one minute, the poisonous mist will spread here. Unless you are not of flesh and blood, you will die within a minute or so, bleeding from the seven orifices from the smoke."

Thomas said: "Now, with death at hand, you remain so calm—I admire you, but please respect my faith… however, however, can belief in a Bodhisattva truly let one live? You're not deceiving me, are you?"

Elder Liaochen had also discerned the key to the poisonous smoke. Hearing the "Partridge Scout's" implication, he likely had devised an escape plan. Seeing the "Partridge Scout" still joking with the American priest at this critical juncture, Elder Liaochen could not help but admire his courage.

As it turned out, the "Partridge Scout" saw the passage ahead completely shrouded in black mist. Instinctively pressing against the wall, he felt a chill, touched something, turned his head, and saw it was a lamp on the tomb wall—likely hanging above the coffin, an eternal lamp.

Now the tomb held no coffin, only an empty lamp set into the wall. The "Partridge Scout" and Elder Liaochen's eyes were sharp: at a glance, they saw the lamp's position was wrong. Conventionally, eternal lamps are placed at three feet three inches three, but this lamp was visibly lower by a block—half an inch—and its base tilted slightly downward. This was surely a hidden wall mechanism; pushing the lamp base upward would flip the entire tomb wall, opening the hidden chamber behind, where burial goods were concealed. The hidden chamber was extremely concealed, also known as the "Inserted Pavilion," where the tomb owner's most important funerary objects were kept. Even if tomb robbers breached the tomb, these items would not easily be found.

At the critical moment, the "Partridge Scout" boldly startled the foreign priest, saw he would rather die than yield, did not abandon God for Buddha, and admired his sincerity, feeling somewhat remorseful. The black mist ahead grew denser, and the "Partridge Scout" dared not overreach. He raised his hand, seized the eternal lamp set into the wall, and pushed upward—the lamp moved as expected. He heard a dull thudding sound, and the wall behind them rotated backward. Dust flew from the stone wall, covering everyone's heads in gray earth.

Behind the wall lay a tomb "Inserted Pavilion" only two zhang wide and high. The rotating mechanism wall brought in the Thousand-Handed Black Buddha and the white bones leaning against the wall. This "Inserted Pavilion" lacked the rare treasures of the outer tomb chamber, containing only a locked box.

The "Partridge Scout" had no time to look closely; he lifted two floor tiles of the tomb chamber, smeared the excavated soil onto the mechanism wall's gaps to prevent the external black poisonous smoke from seeping through, and discovered the soil beneath the "Inserted Pavilion" was relatively loose, giving confidence they could blast back through a thief's tunnel within an hour—this short duration should pose no problem for air retention.

Elder Liaochen, having spent his life grave-robbing, was no stranger to narrow tomb chambers. Seeing the "Partridge Scout" act without pause, he immediately used the whirlwind shovel to blast back through the thief's tunnel, then, turning his prayer beads, sat cross-legged in silent thought.

Thomas, seeing the "Partridge Scout" and Elder Liaochen—one still, one active—each occupied, neither speaking, could not help but ask Elder Liaochen: "Have you noticed something in the black mist outside? It doesn't seem like poison gas to me."

Elder Liaochen closed his eyes, silent, then after a moment opened them and said to Thomas: "How so? You saw it too?"

Thomas nodded: "The last moment I was turned in by the rotating door, I was close to the black smoke. Looking inside, it seemed to contain a humanoid figure, especially resembling a Buddha statue. What exactly is it…"

The "Partridge Scout," bent over blasting the thief's tunnel, heard Thomas and Elder Liaochen's words and could not help but lift his head. At the instant the wall rotated into the "Inserted Pavilion," he also saw the apparition in the black mist.

Elder Liaochen pondered, pointed to the multi-armed Black Buddha statue on the *wall, and said: "That Black Buddha is said to be the evil god worshipped by the ancient Tuyuhun, governing and controlling darkness. The sect venerating the Dark Black Buddha was eradicated by the government as early as the late Tang. I never expected a Dark Black Buddha statue to still be hidden in the Xixia court. The material of this Black Buddha might be the ancient Persian rotting jade. Legend says this rotting jade is a rare strange stone—it has a jade name but is not jade. Any person or beast that touches it will instantly have their flesh, blood, and organs turn to pus, leaving only a skeleton. The deceased's spirit will then attach to the Dark Black Buddha, thus becoming an undying vengeful spirit."

Elder Liaochen pondered, pointed to the multi-armed Black Buddha statue on the *wall, and said: "That Black Buddha is said to be the evil god worshipped by the ancient Tuyuhun, governing and controlling darkness. The sect venerating the Dark Black Buddha was eradicated by the government as early as the late Tang. I never expected a Dark Black Buddha statue to still be hidden in the Xixia court. The material of this Black Buddha might be the ancient Persian rotting jade. Legend says this rotting jade is a rare strange stone—it has a jade name but is not jade. Any person or beast that touches it will instantly have their flesh, blood, and organs turn to pus, leaving only a skeleton. The deceased's spirit will then attach to the Dark Black Buddha, thus becoming an undying vengeful spirit."

The "Partridge Scout" looked at the white skeleton and said to Elder Liaochen: "It seems this skeleton was, in life, a loyal guard who chose to remain in the treasure cave, touched the rotting jade and died, guarding the cave's riches. We three encountered this sudden thick black smoke—perhaps it is not poison smoke at all, but…" He trailed off, and all understood his meaning.

Elder Liaochen instructed the "Partridge Scout" and Thomas to avoid letting their skin touch the Black Buddha statue, to hurry and blast through the thief's tunnel to escape. If truly a Black Buddha spirit were at work, this single "Inserted Pavilion" could not withstand it. Elder Liaochen recalled the skeleton's hand clutching a string of keys, took them, and noted there was a box in the "Inserted Pavilion"—perhaps it held the "Dust-Chasing Pearl." Perhaps one of these keys opens this box? Let us try.

Elder Liaochen lit the candle; in the "Inserted Pavilion," no need to search for southeast corners—any light would suffice. He picked up the keys and tried one; sure enough, one fit the box's lock. The "Partridge Scout's" thief's tunnel had already blasted out over one zhang. As displaced soil fell, he saw Elder Liaochen had opened the box and, unable to resist, wanted to see if the "Dust-Chasing Pearl" lay inside. He lowered his whirlwind shovel and, together with Elder Liaochen, lifted the box lid—yet inside lay only a tortoise shell carved with strange symbols.

The "Partridge Scout" burned with hope; though mentally prepared, he could not help but feel utter disappointment, as if a basin of ice water had been poured over him in the depths of winter, chilling him to the bone. He stood frozen, felt a sweetness in his throat, and vomited a mouthful of fresh blood, which splattered onto the tortoise shell.

Elder Liaochen startled, knowing the "Partridge Scout" had a passionate heart and was overly preoccupied; such people are prone to emotional extremes and vomiting blood. Worried the "Partridge Scout" might faint, he and Thomas quickly reached out to support him.

But at that moment, Elder Liaochen noticed the Black Buddha on the wall—its hundreds of eyes, which had somehow opened, stared in the darkness at the three tomb intruders, emitting an evil, resentful aura.