Chapter 196: Choice

Saying this, Third Uncle let out a long sigh and pinched his brow, as if he didn't want to talk about what happened next.

Hearing this, I broke out in a cold sweat all over. When Third Uncle paused, I was able to catch my breath.

This story was truly thrilling and terrifying. Listening all the way, I felt suffocated. Especially when I heard about the discovery of a third person, it felt like I was listening to a pingshu performance. So this was how things had developed.

Who was this person? I thought to myself. From his behavior, this person was quite ruthless. The oxygen tank valve couldn't have been knocked open or loosened by itself. Now that it was unscrewed, it must have been done by this person. Moreover, it was very likely opened when he followed Third Uncle in, so the oxygen inside must be nearly gone.

This underwater tomb was quite far from the sea surface. Without oxygen, Third Uncle and Xie Lianhuan would surely be trapped and die here. When this person returned to the boat, he would not say anything about Third Uncle. This ancient tomb would never be discovered, and the people on the boat wouldn't be able to find it even if they searched, so naturally they couldn't expect anyone to come pick them up. This was a very vicious murder tactic. Clearly he wanted Third Uncle and Xie Lianhuan dead inside.

Putting it that way, the situation Third Uncle was in was actually worse than ours. He was alone, and he had gone much deeper into the sea than we had.

But Third Uncle was now sitting in front of me carelessly picking his feet and drinking tea, obviously he had found a way out in the end, so I didn't need to be too nervous.

We both calmed ourselves. Third Uncle paused briefly, then continued.

At that time, seeing that scene, his mind instantly exploded. He hurriedly went up and screwed the valve shut. After screwing it, his whole body was cold with fear.

In that instant, he thought he was finished, surely doomed, and in the way he feared most: trapped alive in a sealed ancient tomb. He regretted his carelessness and was filled with hatred. For Third Uncle, dying in a tomb was one thing—if he died from a trap, that was fate and unavoidable—but to be killed by someone else, he was extremely unwilling, truly furious.

He immediately checked the oxygen gauge. After looking, he gritted his teeth. His own oxygen tank, probably because of the valve's anti-leak function, hadn't completely emptied; it still had one-tenth of the oxygen left. Xie Lianhuan's tank also had some left, but it was barely anything—estimated to last only thirty or forty breaths.

This might be because the time the gas was released was relatively short. If it had been a few minutes later, they would have been completely empty.

This bit of oxygen was almost like nothing. When they came in, Third Uncle had used half, and Xie Lianhuan had used more than half. This amount of oxygen was far from enough to get out.

Thinking of this, Third Uncle became desperate. He looked at the pitch-black tomb chamber around him, and a wave of extreme fear assaulted him. He thought to himself, "Am I really going to be trapped alive here?"

The more he thought, the more frightened Third Uncle became. It was genuine fear, not nervousness or anxiety. At that moment, a thought immediately came to him: he couldn't die here; if he was going to die, it should be somewhere else. For an instant, he almost wanted to jump headfirst into the water inlet and drown himself.

But Third Uncle was a true hero after all. He quickly suppressed that fear. He slapped his own face, cursed himself for being spineless, then calmed down and began to think about what to do.

When me, Fatty, and Poker-face were trapped, we had no oxygen at all, so we could only hope to find oxygen tanks. However, Third Uncle still had some oxygen at the time, and the amount was neither too much nor too little—very awkward. So all his thoughts were quickly drawn to the amount of oxygen. He first began to consider whether there was any possibility that this bit of oxygen could last until he got outside.

Calculating back and forth, there was actually no possible result because the oxygen was too little. Although when he came in he had been very careful and slow, if he went out faster he could shorten the time considerably. But coming in used five portions of oxygen, and now going out would use one portion. That meant his speed going out would have to be five times that of coming in.

Coming in took about thirty minutes, so going out would take six minutes? He wasn't a fish; how could that be done?

This made Third Uncle feel even more distressed. He immediately slapped his face again to slap away his fear and forced himself to keep thinking.

Where could six minutes take him? Getting out of here would take about three minutes. In six minutes, he could only reach the exit of that huge abyss, and that was at top speed.

Once he entered the exit of the abyss, it would take about ten minutes to definitely get out—that is, a half-hour journey. With luck, he could cover it in sixteen minutes. Moreover, he looked at his watch; the tide would soon go out. At that time, the cave mouth would be exposed above the sea surface, and a little air would enter the top of the cave. That way, he might be able to breathe air before reaching the cave mouth. He could also hold his breath for one minute. Then he only needed enough oxygen for another ten minutes of breathing.

But where was he going to find that ten minutes' worth of oxygen? There was no way to get it here. Third Uncle scratched his head and ears, and reflexively looked around, hoping to see something that could give him an idea.

But what inspiration could there be in an ancient tomb? Would he find a Ming or Qing dynasty ceramic oxygen bottle? Thinking about it was still useless. Third Uncle, annoyed, slapped the water surface at the entrance. At that moment, he saw his own reflection in the dark sea water below. He tilted his flashlight, and the reflection became clear. He suddenly discovered what could provide him with ten minutes' worth of oxygen.

Third Uncle really had a brainstorm. What he saw at that moment was the diving suit on his own body.

So how could a diving suit serve as an oxygen tank? Third Uncle thought very cleverly. He tied up the sleeves and pant legs of the diving suit, then scooped it forcefully to fill it with air, and then tied up the collar as well. The diving suit became an air bag. He jumped into the water, untied one sleeve, and used it as an oxygen tube to breathe.

As soon as he went down, he found it really worked. Damn it, he sucked for about three or four minutes before the air became foul.

"It works! It works!" He was overjoyed. He immediately surfaced, ran over, and stripped off Xie Lianhuan's clothes as well, making another air bag. Then he also filled the two water bladders with air. He thought to himself, "Ten minutes, got it!"

Thinking this, he couldn't wait another moment. He immediately dragged all the things and got ready to go into the water and get out.

Third Uncle's personality was not like mine; he wouldn't hesitate or choose a conservative approach. So at that time, he didn't have any hesitation.

However, even if this oxygen could last until they got outside, only one person could barely make it out. That person would have to take the two oxygen tanks, and the other person would have to wait here for that person to come back for him. If that person died on the way, no one would come back. The psychological pressure was enormous.

At the time, Third Uncle didn't feel this was such a serious matter. He thought to himself, "Anyway, Xie Lianhuan's oxygen was already insufficient; this just makes it worse." Moreover, at that moment, he didn't have any mind to care about Xie Lianhuan. He himself had entered a state of extreme excitement.

He placed Xie Lianhuan on the coffin platform, then took the waterproof bag he had used to smash the person (the one containing a human skull) and put it under his head as a pillow, making his position more comfortable. Then he returned to the water inlet and, without a second thought, went into the water.

As Third Uncle had expected, six minutes later, he had entered that abyss. There was still a bit of oxygen left.

Third Uncle's heart had calmed down. He secretly admired himself, thinking, "Even this couldn't trap me. When I get back to the boat, that bastard who plotted against me will be scared to death."

He dragged the two huge air bags behind him with difficulty, but they made him float upward involuntarily, saving him a lot of effort. Relying on memory, he swam toward the exit of the abyss. However, what he didn't expect was that when he swam to the position he thought was the entrance, he was stunned.

There was nothing there, only a stretch of uneven coral reef.

"Huh?" He was puzzled. He shone the light to the sides, and all along the way there was nothing; he didn't see any exit.

His heart suddenly turned cold. Damn it, things weren't going as smoothly as he had thought. It seemed he had misremembered the position of the entrance! In his panic, he broke out in a cold sweat and checked the oxygen gauge. The needle was