395: Human head relief, bizarre layout

"My goodness, this hidden compartment must be hiding a huge secret. Streamer, open it up and take a look!"

"Boss Ye, don't let your guard down. I feel like this tomb is full of traps; every step is a 'soul-shattering' experience!"

"Sister Mi and Xin Xin, don't be afraid. With Ye Bai around, everything will turn out fine. We'll just hug our screens and keep following them on the adventure!"

Ye Bai squatted down, carefully clearing the dust and debris around the hidden compartment. He lightly tapped the edge of the compartment, tilting his head to listen, trying to catch clues from the subtle sounds.

That dark red "blood water" was still slowly trickling out, its metallic stench growing stronger and more nauseating.

Yang Mi covered her nose, her brows furrowed tightly. She leaned back slightly, her face full of disgust and fear.

"Mr. Ye, this smell is awful. This hidden compartment won't have some other scary thing jump out of it, will it?"

The Live Stream Room bullet comments immediately followed suit.

"Sister Mi, hold steady! This is the critical moment. Maybe the treasure is inside!"

"This smell really is overwhelming. Boss Ye, move faster, don't let the evil spirits get the upper hand!"

Ye Bai didn't respond, his gaze focused to the point of obsession. He pulled a small but exquisite crowbar from his backpack.

He slowly worked it into the crack of the hidden compartment and applied a bit of force.

With a "creak," the door of the hidden compartment loosened slightly.

In the silent Tomb Chamber, this tiny sound was like a clap of thunder. Fatty subconsciously gripped the gun in his hand.

"Mr. Ye, watch out for hidden weapons!"

"Streamer, be careful not to trigger a mechanism. My poor heart can't take any more of this!"

bullet comments flooded the screen, every line filled with worry.

As the door of the hidden compartment was slowly pried open, a gust of eerie, cold air rushed out.

Everyone looked closely and saw a palm-sized bronze statue inside.

The Statue's form was bizarre, appearing half-human and half-something else. Its head seemed to wear a bird-beak mask, and its entire body was covered in fine, dense patterns.

A faint, ghostly light shimmered between the patterns, making it look quite unsettling.

"Holy crap, what kind of Statue is this? It looks wicked!" Fatty clicked his tongue.

Yang Mi leaned in for a look, a flicker of curiosity in her eyes, but she quickly backed away because of its creepy appearance. "Ye Bai, could this thing be an ill omen?"

The Live Stream Room also broke into discussion.

"This Statue looks like something from the style of Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs. Could this tomb be related to foreign cultures?"

"Whatever it is, it feels like it's worth a fortune. The Streamer really hit the jackpot this time, but he'd better be careful not to get cursed!"

Ignoring everyone's warnings, Ye Bai reached out, steadily picked up the Statue, and turned it over to examine it.

His fingers traced the patterns, his thoughts unknown.

At that moment, a sinister, cold laugh suddenly echoed from deep within the Tomb Chamber. The sound was ethereal and shifting, sounding both male and female, reverberating through the empty chamber and piercing their eardrums.

Xin Xin was so scared she burst out crying with a "waa" sound. "There's a ghost! I want to go home!"

"Streamer, run! You can't stay in this ghost of a place; it's incredibly cursed!"

bullet comments urged them to flee frantically, though there were still those who just enjoyed the spectacle.

Ye Bai's expression darkened. He carefully tucked the Statue into his backpack and pulled out several yellow talismans, handing them to everyone.

"Keep these yellow talismans close to your body. These are Evil-Suppressing Talismans; ordinary ghosts and spirits won't be able to get near you."

As he spoke, he gripped his luoyang shovel and took a defensive stance, scanning the dark corners around them.

"Playing tricks... I'd like to see just what kind of 'deity' you are."

Fatty also raised his gun. Although his hands were shaking violently, he forced himself to stay calm. "Mr. Ye, let's fight it! We can't let it scare us!"

The viewers in the Live Stream Room cheered them on.

"Boss Ye is mighty! This aura of his can definitely hold down the fort and drive that ghostly thing away!"

"Fatty, don't chicken out! That gun of yours isn't just for show. Cover everyone!"

The sinister laughter drew closer and closer, and cold sweat broke out on everyone's backs.

Ye Bai suddenly hurled the luoyang shovel in his hand toward the source of the laughter.

A loud "clang" rang out, as if it had hit something hard, and the laughter stopped abruptly.

Immediately after, a black shadow darted out from the darkness, moving as fast as lightning toward the tomb's exit.

Before anyone could see what it was, it had already vanished.

"Phew..." Fatty let out a long breath. "It finally ran off. Scared the life out of me!"

The Live Stream Room bullet comments were also full of cheers.

"The Streamer is amazing, he scared the ghost away!"

"This trip is way too thrilling, more satisfying than watching a horror movie!"

Ye Bai didn't lower his guard. He picked up his luoyang shovel and continued searching in the direction the shadow had fled.

Strange footprints gradually appeared on the ground. They were long and narrow, like the tracks left by a bird's claws.

However, upon closer inspection, they were several times larger than those of ordinary birds. The claw marks were deeply embedded in the stone slab, radiating an eerie power.

"These footprints aren't right, Mr. Ye. We haven't run into some ancient demonic bird guardian beast, have we?"

Fatty's voice trembled, his eyes filled with terror.

Yang Mi and Xin Xin huddled close together, shivering. The hearts of the viewers in the Live Stream Room also tightened.

"Streamer, be careful! There are too many bizarre things in this tomb; it feels more and more dangerous!"

"Maybe we should retreat first. Treasure is good, but life is more important!"

Ye Bai remained unmoved. He squatted down to study the footprints carefully, muttering to himself.

"Bird claw prints, bronze statue... there must be some connection here..."

He stood up and walked quickly in the direction of the footprints. Though filled with dread, Fatty and the others could only grit their teeth and follow.

Before long, the footprints disappeared in front of a stone wall.

A massive relief was carved into the stone wall. The image was blurred, as if eroded by time, but one could faintly see it depicted a sacrificial scene.

Numerous small figures surrounded a person wearing a bird-beak mask, seemingly in worship. The object that person held in their hands was exactly like the bronze statue in Ye Bai's backpack.

"Mr. Ye, what does this relief mean? Could that bronze statue be a sacrificial artifact?" Fatty asked curiously.

Ye Bai shook his head. "I don't understand it fully. This is a piece of sacrificial history from our country's ancient times, said to have been passed down since the han dynasty."

"Then what does this relief have to do with this place?" Fatty scratched his head, looking confused.

Ye Bai's gaze was solemn. He lowered his eyes and stared at the ground for a long moment, then suddenly, he raised his finger and made a cut.

In an instant, blood flowed out, staining the ground and spreading toward a hollow.

Ye Bai dripped the blood into the hollow, and suddenly, the entire relief came to life, becoming vivid and lifelike!

They seemed to have a life of their own, moving within the hollows to form complex patterns, combining into a massive, grand design.

Looking at the intricate and mysterious lines and patterns on the relief, everyone felt strangely familiar with them.

Finally, all the lines converged onto Ye Bai's right arm, and the relief slowly became static again.

A hideous human head was revealed. The face was extremely distorted and terrifying; the eye sockets were sunken, the nasal bone protruded sharply, the cheeks were gaunt and hollow, and the cheekbones stuck out, making it look like a vengeful ghost seeking a soul!

Everyone couldn't help but gasp. "Holy crap... what the hell is that!?"

"So disgusting! Streamer, hurry up and throw that thing away!"