Chapter 35: Grand Entrance

After leaping into the entrance, a long, narrow dark tunnel came into view.

Lu Ling tried to move, but found he had no room to maneuver.

After a moment’s thought, he ordered his three trusted men to strip off their nightwear, tie them to their arms, and wrap them into cloth shields to guard against hidden arrows.

Indeed, as they emerged from the narrow tunnel, assassins hiding in the shadows immediately struck, attacking the four of them.

Fortunately, Lu Ling was highly skilled in martial arts, and his three Jinyuwei companions were all elite soldiers selected from a hundred, and with prior alertness, they used their cloth shields to block the arrows, then charged out of the tunnel with Lu Ling and slaughtered every assassin lying in wait at the exit.

Lu Ling knew these assassins were merely appetizers—deeper in the underground cavern lay even greater dangers!

He exchanged a glance with his three Jinyuwei, clenched his teeth, and pressed forward resolutely.

But strangely, the enemy’s forces seemed truly limited to just this small group.

Lu Ling and his men advanced cautiously for a long time without encountering a second ambush.

Soon after, they passed through a corridor lined with carved human-made marks and came upon a sealed stone door.

Lu Ling frowned, immediately raised his cloth shield, and stepped cautiously toward the stone door.

Before he could reach it, a grinding sound came from the cavern wall—the entire stone door suddenly rose up with a thunderous rumble!

“It’s a mechanism!”

The three Jinyuwei were startled, quickly raising their cloth shields to protect Lu Ling.

Lu Ling frowned, staring into the open stone door, where a vast natural cavern lay before him.

The cavern was extremely spacious, with sharp stalactites hanging from the ceiling, numerous openings and stone platforms lining the walls, and strange statues of demons and gods scattered about.

Candles were planted on the stone platforms and the ground below, casting bright light.

By the candlelight, Lu Ling saw a stone platform at the cavern’s center, with four Heavenly King statues standing at its corners, and at its very center rested a hollow iron seat, upon which sat a white-clad figure with disheveled hair and a ghostly mask.

At that moment, the white-clad figure sat with arms resting on the armrests, gazing coldly at the four men behind the door.

“Lu Ling… you’ve finally arrived!”

A faintly resonant voice issued from behind the mask, echoing throughout the cavern.

Lu Ling frowned and said coldly, “You’re waiting for me?”

“Correct!”

The white-clad figure replied calmly, then looked at him with indifference: “What, are you, the esteemed Jinyuwei Central Commander, too afraid to step forward and speak?”

Lu Ling sneered, “Why enter? To fall into your trap?”

The white-clad figure shook his head in disappointment. “The Lu family of Fanyang, a renowned clan—you’re young, yet hold the rank of Fourth Rank Lower. I thought you were some brilliant young talent. Turns out you’re just a coward!”

Lu Ling’s face darkened. “You’re provoking me?”

The white-clad figure glanced at him coolly. “So what?”

“….”

Lu Ling’s expression shifted.

At that moment, he froze slightly, as if noticing something, then suddenly clenched his teeth, abandoned his earlier hesitation, waved aside the Jinyuwei blocking his path, and strode boldly through the stone door.

“Central Commander!”

The three Jinyuwei cried out in alarm, exchanged uneasy glances, then reluctantly followed.

Watching this, Su Haoming, who had been hiding and trailing behind, shook his head.

Because of his presence, the Jinyuwei corporal who should have died in the previous Ghost Market trip had survived.

That meant Lu Ling had never experienced his brother’s death, his character had not matured, and he remained the reckless Jinyuwei Central Commander.

Indeed, excessive interference in the plot isn’t always beneficial.

If they hadn’t followed him, Lu Ling and his three men would have been wiped out here…

Thinking of this, Su Haoming tapped his toe, slipped silently through the still-open stone door before it closed.

“Boom!”

The heavy stone door slammed shut behind him.

Lu Ling’s heart sank, but he felt no regret.

He raised his shield and drew his blade, staring coldly at the white-clad figure.

“I’ve entered. What now?”

The white-clad figure laughed, clapping his hands.

“Clap… clap…”

“Excellent, Lu Ling…”

His tone was amused, then suddenly turned icy. “You’re truly foolish!”

Before he finished speaking, dozens of figures surged from the shadows behind the platform, each wielding a long blade held before them.

From the cavern walls above, over a dozen archers emerged, drawing their bows and aiming at Lu Ling and his three men below.

The white-clad figure sneered, “I expected you to walk into my trap, but I never thought it would be this easy. Lu Ling, if a fool like you can rise to such a high rank, are all the court ministers blind?!”

At these words, Lu Ling’s face turned as dark as storm clouds.

Seeing this, Su Haoming, still hidden, felt his blood pressure spike.

Blood pressure! My blood pressure!

This early-stage Lu Ling is so damn infuriating!

No choice—he had to prepare to intervene early…

Just as Su Haoming was thinking this, a gentle breeze brushed his face, revealing a figure only he could see.

“Brother Lin!”

Su Haoming’s face lit up with joy.

Before entering the cavern, he and Lin Yu had split up—he followed the stronger Lu Ling’s group, while Lin Yu secretly protected his cousin Su Wuming.

Since Brother Lin had arrived here, that meant his cousin Su Wuming had arrived too!

Indeed, Lin Yu whispered with a smile, “Don’t rush to act yet—watch how your cousin performs.”

Before he finished speaking, a calm voice echoed from an opening in the cavern wall.

“I don’t know what the court ministers think…”

“But from your tone, it sounds like you hold deep grudges.”

The white-clad figure stiffened, snapping his head up.

A figure stepped out from the opening in the cavern wall.

He walked onto the platform with his hands behind his back, strode directly beside the archer, and revealed his familiar face.

“Su Wuming…”

Lu Ling stared at the figure above, his expression complex.

Su Haoming, hiding behind them, had not seen the wall’s situation and assumed Lu Ling had merely been provoked.

In truth, his decision to enter the stone door was not mere recklessness—he had received Su Wuming’s secret signal.

Seeing all eyes turn toward him, Su Wuming smiled faintly and clapped his hands once.

Instantly, the archers on the stone platforms turned their bows, aiming at the white-clad figure below.

Seeing this, the assassins before the white-clad figure were stunned, scrambling to shield him, staring in shock at the suddenly traitorous archers.

Not just them—even Su Haoming, hidden in the shadows, was stunned by the reversal.

“...What’s going on?!”

Regaining his composure, Su Haoming looked at Lin Yu, astonished and delighted.

Lin Yu smiled and explained, “Su Wuming didn’t order his men to search for other hidden entrances—he found Fei Jishi stealing chickens instead. This man has lived underground in the Ghost Market for years, knows every tunnel like the back of his hand—he’s a living map of the Ghost Market.”

“And since the mastermind focused all his forces to ambush Lu Ling…”

“The two factors combined allowed Su Wuming to sneak in secretly and arrive here first.”

“Those archers were already captured—he brought them here himself. The ones you see now are all Chang’an constables.”

“No wonder he’s my cousin!” Su Haoming exclaimed in admiration, then sighed, “But Brother Lin, if he’s already handled everything, what’s left for us to do?”

“Don’t rush!”

Lin Yu glanced at the platform. “See those four Heavenly King statues? Inside them lie the slumbering Four Ghosts of Youli. Their strength is formidable—Lu Ling and these Chang’an constables alone may not be enough to defeat them…”

He’d thought those four ghosts weren’t even here!

So they were inside the statues!

Su Haoming suddenly understood—he’d only heard the name “Four Ghosts of Youli” from Lin Yu, never their details.

Lin Yu grinned. “Now the white-clad figure ambushes Lu Ling, Su Wuming ambushes the white-clad figure, the Four Ghosts of Youli ambush Su Wuming—and we ambush the Four Ghosts of Youli. That’s how you make a grand entrance—shine before all eyes!”

(End of Chapter)