The crystal skull was new for Xia Lei. He remembered reading about it in a book titled Unsolved Mysteries of the World. The story piqued his interest, effectively engraving itself into his memory. In the book, the crystal skull was said to be made by the Mayans. They had created a total of thirteen crystal skulls, which was later brought to the American continent by the Native Americans. It was said that the skulls were modelled after a female skull and had the same dimensions as a regular human skull. Mayan astronomers regarded that it held supernatural powers that carried the secrets of the origins of the universe and mankind. The crystal skulls were closely tied to the survivability of humans at the end of this aeon. Humans would need to place all thirteen crystal skulls in the right position to generate a magnetic field, which would push the planet into its correct orbit.

But of course, it was nothing more than a hoax. Even the end of the world predicted by the Mayans turned out to be untrue. The crystal skulls exhibited in the British Museum were said to be manufactured by grinding wheels. They were products of modern times and far from being historical relics.

Regardless of the crystal skulls excavated from the Mayan civilization ruins, or those that the Native Americans had brought over to the American continent, they were obviously not the same type as the apex skull that stood tall on the pyramid. The apex skull may appear crystal clear but it did not necessarily mean that it was made out of crystalline material. It looked like a real skull!

Tsukino Kyoko mimicked Xia Lei’s motion and studied the crystalline skull. Despite that, Tsukino Kyoko was just a regular woman that did not share Xia Lei’s superhuman abilities. The lights provided by the fluorescent sticks were weak. All she could see was darkness. Albeit so, it did not hinder her from making correct deductions. “Boss, are you still looking at that skull? I can go retrieve it for you when we’re about to leave. You should bring it away, it belongs to you.”

Xia Lei turned to face her, curious. “Why do you say that it belongs to me?”

Tsukino Kyoko explained, “It’s just a very odd feeling. People who had entered this place left it behind for some reason. It’s as if they were waiting for your appearance.”

Xia Lei gulped, body going rigid at her words. He wasn’t keen on believing it but he had no way to prove her wrong.

The Israelis that first found this place had sufficient time to acknowledge its existence. The armed forces that barged in later to kill everyone too had enough time to explore the place. The likelihood of them not noticing the crystal skull was small. But that begs the question. Why hadn’t they taken it away?

In addition, Xia Changhe seemed to have extensive knowledge about the secret passages beneath the pyramid’s base. How was it possible for him to not notice the crystal skull? Why did he not take it away?

If Xia Lei were to judge things by the series of events that happened, the crystal skull was perhaps waiting for the right person to appear!

But who was the right person?

Xia Lei thought to himself darkly. “If my father knew about the pyramid and crystal skull’s existence, he should’ve told me about it long ago. Why was he so adamant on keeping it a secret? He learnt new secrets, left me a message and left? Why is he so sure that I’ll come here? He literally has no idea that I’ve deceived the CIA and obtained the footage from Williams.”

Things didn’t seem to click, nothing made sense. Xia Lei decided to give up and went for the sarcophagus.

The sarcophagus was open. Its heavy lid was pushed to the ground. The ‘AE’ engraving on its surface is still considerably clear. Its insides were positively empty, the bottom covered with fine dust. Air circulation within the cavern was pretty decent and the air would carry dust.

Staring at the empty bottom, Xia Lei’s mind was flooded with a set of images. The prehistoric chosen one had collected medicinal powder from the ray of light and kept it inside an amber. Said amber was kept inside the sarcophagus. The glimmer of the crystal skull on top felt almost eager to relay him a message...

“Boss?” Tsukino Kyoko’s voice rang.

Xia Lei snapped out of his trance. “Yes?”

“Nothing. I just felt that you look kinda weird,” answered Tsukino Kyoko.

Xia Lei chuckled lightly. “What do you mean? Why do I look weird?”

Tsukino Kyoko replied, “Well... To be honest, weird isn’t the right word. The face you make when deep in thought is really attractive.”

The light was scarce but he could see the red of her cheeks.

Who would’ve known that a veteran ninja would blush a pretty pink after saying things like that? This was almost difficult to believe.

They locked eyes, the shift of the atmosphere intense.

Tsukino Kyoko took one step forward. The wobble of her footing was hesitant, but the second step was firm. Her protruding chest was suddenly in close proximity to his body.

Frantically, Xia Lei took a step back and switched the topic. “Uh, let’s go check out other places. Yeah, you’ll take the left while I take the right. If you find anything, call out to me.”

A glint of disappointment flashed before Tsukino’s eyes. Yet, she nodded and heeded his instructions.

Xia Lei could read her expression like an open book. The man was no rookie in the field of love. While he was far from being a womanizer, he was fairly certain he knew a great deal about the female heart. Xia Lei had many attractive qualities. Appearance, capabilities, temper, wealth, fame, influence and even his adaptability on the battlefield. It was almost natural for Tsukino Kyoko to feel attracted to him. It was also understandable that she intended to drop hints in private. However, Xia Lei was the father of four children. He needed to control his lower half better, Xia Lei was determined to be a good father and husband.

The base of the pyramid was wide. It took one full hour for Xia Lei to arrive at the end of his side. He arrived at their beginning point only a few moments earlier than Tsukino Kyoko. The two returned to the sarcophagus. Nothing had changed, things were the same. They found nothing new.

Xia Lei checked his watch. “We’ve been away from Sa’im and the rest for three hours. It’s about time we leave this place.”

Tsukino Kyoko remarked, “I took a look at the satellite phone earlier and noticed that we’ve got no signal. I wonder if everything’s alright out there.”

“They should be fine. No one knows we’re here,” replied Xia Lei. He went closer to the rock walls and began to climb it.

Tsukino Kyoko only started climbing after him. Yet, she caught up to him, thanks to her superb climbing speed. She surpassed the man and led the climb.

They finally reached the rope. Tsukino Kyoko gripped the rope and continued her climb while Xia Lei waited for her to enter the tunnel before doing the same. The woman offered a hand to ease him into the tunnel after he had reached the spot. The space was so tight it was virtually impossible to avoid bodily contact.

The crystal skull entered their sight once again. It was the only reason stalling their exit.

“Boss, I’ll go get it for you,” offered Tsukino Kyoko.

“Wait.” Xia Lei immediately tugged on her arm and slid his body along the curve of hers to stand up. He straightened his back and gripped a skull on the top of the tunnel’s entrance. His grip was careful as he attempted to shake it loose.

Crack!

A crisp sound rang out. Surprisingly, Xia Lei had broken the skull without using much force.

Whoosh!

Xia Lei frantically retracted his arm, crouched down and pulled Tsukino Kyoko into the tunnel. But in the blink of an eye, Tsukino Kyoko wrapped her arms around his waist and flipped him over. When they fell to the ground, her body was on top of his.

She was using her body to shield Xia Lei!

Clink! Clink! Clink!

The edges of the opening and inner walls had sparks of fire.

“Ah!” Tsukino Kyoko let out a dulled groan.

The trap mechanism only had one wave of attack, stopping almost as fast as it ensued.

Xia Lei peeled Tsukino Kyoko away from his body, immediately spotting the black steel needle stabbed into her ass. It looked like the kind of arrow that the Native Americans used, save for the fact that it had no feathering at its end.

Xia Lei gripped the needle and removed it, quickly sinking his mouth onto her wound. He sucked at it vehemently, trying to remove all the toxic blood from her system.

“Boss, you...” Tsukino Kyoko’s mind was delirious. Not only was it plagued by fear and anxiety, but the feeling was also slowly replaced by excitement and bashfulness. The conflicting emotions overwhelmed her brain.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

“Ptui!” Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Xia Lei resumed his efforts.

It went on. Ten mouthfuls of blood later, the blood spilling out of Tsukino’s wound was finally brilliant red. However, Xia Lei wasn’t content just yet. For extra precaution, he dove in for another few mouthfuls.

“Boss, thank you...” Tsukino Kyoko’s voice was meek, face flushed like a tomato.

“There’s no need to thank me. You didn’t need to protect me earlier.” Xia Lei sighed. “I am the one who should be thanking you.”

Tsukino Kyoko avoided his gaze. “Boss, I’ll willingly die for you. There’s no need to thank m- Ah!”

Xia Lei squeezed at her wound mercilessly. Under his strength, her pale cheeks were gathered to one side. More blood oozed out from her wound.

Xia Lei drawled a relieved sigh. “Alright, you should be fine now. The toxin on the arrow is crazy potent but time has worn its potency. Thank goodness for that or you’d be long dead. Was throwing yourself in front of me really worth it?”

“It’s worth it. I told you, I’m willing to die for you.” This time, Tsukino Kyoko’s gaze was unwavering. She no longer hid from his attention.

It was Xia Lei’s turn to turn away. He looked at the skull opposite them and quickly made a decision. “Those arrows were shot from the eyeholes of the skull over there. Its position is coincidentally parallel to us. I think each skull hides a trap. The speed of these arrows is insane, almost comparable to bullets. There’s no way for us to hide from its attack.”

“Uh... Boss...? Tsukino Kyoko’s voice was strained. “Can you please let go of my butt already?”

“Huh?” Xia Lei turned around, only to realize that his palms were still gripping the plump flesh. His fingers were still around the wound. He immediately jerked his arm away and turned around.

He may have stripped her pants away yet he was bashful to watch her put it on.