Chapter 118: Opening the Gate

Wang Yunting stepped forward and explained the bizarre nature of this tomb gate to the others. If they tried to force it open, it might unleash deadly toxins or highly corrosive acid hidden within.

As realization dawned upon him, Yan Chixiao’s face flushed red with embarrassment on the spot. Just now, when the bronze gate’s demons had seized him, he’d flown into a blind rage and had nearly caused a catastrophe.

He cupped his fists toward Li Yanchu and said in a deep voice, “I acted recklessly just now. Thank you for stepping in, Daoist Master Li.”

His voice was loud and forceful, carrying far more resonance than an ordinary person’s. It was deep and rough enough to shake the ears.

In response, Li Yanchu smiled faintly and returned the gesture with both hands. Although he didn’t know much about tomb-raiding, he’d seen enough tomb-themed movies and novels in his previous life to understand that the main gate was always suspicious in dangerous ancient tombs like this. And one absolutely shouldn’t touch things at random, or one might trigger a chain reaction of deadly traps.

Wang Yunting had stopped him just in time, but only someone with Li Yanchu’s speed and strength could have reacted fast enough to stop Yan Chixiao.

At that moment, Master Shenshan stepped forward and asked Wang Yunting, “Do you have a way to open this gate?”

Wang Yunting was a proper

Mojin Xiaowei

, so he should be well-versed in mechanisms and traps within ancient tombs.

“I’m not entirely sure,” Wang Yunting replied with a troubled look on his face. “But I can try. I just ask that you guard me while I work, Master.”

He turned his eyes to the bronze door carved with grotesque demons and elegant celestial maidens.

“Very well,” Master Shenshan replied solemnly. “I shall do my utmost to protect you.”

With the monk’s deep mastery of Buddhist spiritual power, he would be able to shield Wang Yunting from any evil spirits hidden within the door. But perhaps even more importantly, he could guard against threats from behind. After all, Zhang Ping had died at the hands of Master Wuxing, one of their own team members.

Just then, Li Yanchu looked at Wang Yunting. The man had a soft, androgynous appearance and carried a distinct aura of dark qi, but for now, he seemed to be one of the few trustworthy people in this demon-slaying team.

After all, he and Zhang Ping had been assigned the role of scouts, and Wang Yunting’s shout to stop Yan Chixiao from forcing open the gate had likely prevented a disaster.

Wang Yunting unintentionally made eye contact with Li Yanchu, and the moment he felt that sharp, piercing gaze, his heart sank.

“What kind of look is that? Is this guy planning to stab me in the back or something?”

He immediately turned his head away. Even though Li Yanchu wasn’t currently activating the Five-Lightning Talisman, the pure, righteous yang qi radiating from his eyes still made it impossible to meet his gaze head-on. It was simply too intimidating.

More importantly, Wang Yunting had just seen him fend off Yan Chixiao’s fury-filled strike with a single slash. Combined with that sharp gaze now, Wang Yunting’s wariness shot through the roof.

Li Yanchu was slightly taken aback, as it wasn’t what he expected.

His gaze just now... seemed evasive? Could he be... a well-hidden werewolf?

That passing thought made Li Yanchu’s gaze even more scrutinizing, full of suspicion.

Feeling the stare from behind, Wang Yunting involuntarily shuddered and instinctively took a few steps closer to Master Shenshan. The more he examined the bronze tomb gate, the more unsettled he felt.

Suddenly, he recalled something his grandfather once told him, a certain kind of tomb gate mechanism that could raise evil spirits to guard the gate. But the method for refining such spirits was extremely rare, far beyond the scope of normal exorcism techniques.

This kind of sinister practice was typically avoided by those who built large tombs, because the overwhelming evil qi would block the tomb’s Life Gate[1] and damage the tomb owner’s karmic virtue, bringing misfortune to their descendants.

If an ordinary person encountered these terrifying carvings of demon ghosts and celestial maidens, it might trigger paranoia and fear from just one look, gradually pushing them into a state of agitation and gloom. The evil spirits would then take advantage of the opening to possess their bodies.

It was somewhat similar to the eyeballs hidden in the walls earlier, but the malevolent carvings on this bronze gate were clearly far more advanced and possessed active aggression. Even someone like Yan Chixiao, with his powerful physical constitution, had nearly fallen victim to it.

𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

After a long, careful inspection, Wang Yunting stepped up to Master Shenshan before he leaned in and whispered a few words. The high monk gave a slight nod in response.

Then, the abbot of Jing’an Temple stepped up before the bronze tomb gate and began chanting Buddhist scriptures. His voice was deep and resonant, filled with commanding solemnity, and rang out clearly in every ear present. With that, a wave of peaceful compassion began to ripple through everyone’s hearts.

Mr. Ma, the immortal-invoker, and Old Ghost Wu, the corpse-rearer, both visibly tensed; their expressions were heavy, and their brows were tightly furrowed. This kind of Buddhist power exerted a natural suppressive effect on people like them.

Even Wang Yunting, a seasoned

Mojin Xiaowei

who had spent years walking among tombs, felt its influence, though it was much milder in comparison.

“Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ!”

Master Shenshan rolled the prayer beads in his hand as he chanted the sacred Buddhist mantra. One by one, glowing golden characters took shape in the air. The demonic spirits carved on the bronze gate seemed to sense the overwhelming majesty of this Buddhist power and began to stir, and they were visibly terrified.

Surprisingly, the statues of the elegant and dignified celestial maidens suddenly turned vicious and hateful, and their eyes were filled with venom. Then, they lunged straight at Master Shenshan. In the blink of an eye, they were upon him.

“Exorcize!” Master Shenshan loudly shouted as his expression turned solemn and majestic.

Then, the six-character Buddhist mantra shot out toward the celestial maidens. The wave of resentful, yin-filled qi only resisted for a moment before retreating like a tide. The golden characters of the Buddhist mantra branded themselves onto the massive bronze door, exorcizing evil and repelling darkness.

In that instant, the grotesque demon carvings and the celestial maidens on the door fell into complete silence. It was as if all life and spirit qi had been stripped away, leaving only lifeless stone. Even when staring at them directly, there was no longer that heart-piercing, malevolent pressure.

Wang Yunting then swiftly and precisely stepped up and lightly tapped the bronze door in several places with his fingers, which produced a series of dull, echoing thuds.

In the blink of an eye, he delivered three or four clean, rapid strikes, each executed with precision. Then, with a soft grunt, he reached out and gripped the head of one of the demon carvings on the gate, giving it a gentle twist.

Click!

A deep, round hole instantly appeared on the bronze tomb gate, and the chest of the fierce demon carved upon it caved in.

The bronze gate exuded a sense of ancient, timeworn majesty. The demonic figure engraved on it was ferocious and terrifying, while the celestial maiden was exquisitely beautiful. Yet, the entire scene was infused with a strange, sinister aura.

And yet, at the most critical moment, Wang Yunting had managed to locate the hidden mechanism on this treacherous bronze gate, leaving everyone deeply impressed. Even Li Yanchu looked at this

Mojin Xiaowei

with newfound respect.

Damn, this guy’s the real deal!

A fierce look of resolve flashed in Wang Yunting’s eyes. He gritted his teeth and, without hesitation, extended his hand with his fingers shaped like a saber and thrust it into the round hole. Within seconds, half his forearm disappeared into the opening.

The people around him instantly held their breath. Who knew what kind of danger lay hidden within that deep, dark hole? One misstep, and it wouldn’t just be his arm, his entire life might be over.

Roughly five breaths passed, and Wang Yunting’s body suddenly stiffened. Then, everyone heard a deep, rumbling sound.

RUMBLE!

Just then, that incredibly heavy bronze tomb gate began to slowly open. In a flash, Wang Yunting jerked his hand back and, with a twist of his body, performed seven or eight mid-air somersaults. In one bound, he leapt five or six zhang away.

1. “生门” in English can be translated as "Life Gate" or "Birth Gate". It's a term from the Chinese philosophical system "奇门遁甲" (Qi Men Dun Jia), referring to a specific auspicious direction or gate associated with growth, new beginnings, and positive outcomes. ☜