Director Xiong hadn't expected the Frozen Colossus to pull this trick. By the time he tried to dodge, it was already too late. A burst of white gas sprayed onto him, forming a cloud of white mist that enveloped Director Xiong. Then, this mist seeped through the pores all over his body and penetrated inside him. Director Xiong's eyes rolled back as he collapsed to the ground.
"Old Xiao, what's wrong with Old Xiong? Is there any chance to save him?" I shouted loudly to Xiao Heshang.
Taking advantage of the time that Old Xiong had bought him, Xiao Heshang had already run to the other end of the cave. "Old Xiong has been poisoned by the Frozen Colossus's death qi. Quickly deal with the Frozen Colossus. If we act fast, Old Xiong might still be saved."
Sun Fatty said, "Easier said than done. If it was that simple, we'd have dealt with it already."
Sun Fatty and I continued shooting at the Frozen Colossus's face, but all we managed to produce were wisps of white smoke—no other effect.
"It's useless. The Frozen Colossus's skin itself is like an ice shell; your bullets can't penetrate it. Think of something else!" Xiao Laodao had already reloaded his shotgun shells, but he still looked pale from the previous scene. He hesitated and didn't dare provoke the Frozen Colossus recklessly.
I tried shooting several bullets at the same spot on the Frozen Colossus's face, but its body was much tougher than I had imagined. The impact from several continuous shots still couldn't pierce its outer skin. Fortunately, the Frozen Colossus seemed to have used up some energy from releasing that death qi just now—it hadn't fully recovered yet.
In the blink of an eye, the magazine emptied. While I was changing clips, my hand touched the short sword that Third Uncle had given me a few days ago. Suddenly, a scene that Third Uncle had told me about flashed in my mind—Wu Rendi cutting open the monster's body with one stroke...
I gritted my teeth and pulled out the short sword. Sun Fatty beside me jumped in surprise. "Lazi, what are you trying to do? Kill it by hand? The bullets don't work, how could your dagger do anything? Don't mess around—I'm counting on you!"
I didn't have time to argue with Sun Fatty. Taking advantage of the Frozen Colossus's slow recovery, I wanted to try stabbing it once. I didn't dare hope to pierce it with one stab; at best, I hoped to make a cut so my bullets could penetrate.
I crouched and took a few steps forward, preparing to make my move, when the Frozen Colossus suddenly turned its head toward me. Its murky pupils stared straight at the short sword in my hand. Then it suddenly opened its mouth and sprayed a stream of death qi at me again.
We were too close. There was no way to dodge that breath of death qi. I was done for! My whole body turned icy cold, and I instinctively raised my hands to shield my head. But then, something unexpected happened—the blade of my short sword actually split the death qi in two, and the two halves quickly dissipated.
Not only was I, Sun Fatty, and Xiao Laodao stunned, but even the Frozen Colossus was shocked. It took a few steps backward, then suddenly sniffed hard. The death qi that had penetrated Director Xiong's body earlier surged back out and was sucked into the Frozen Colossus's body.
"Lazi, what are you waiting for? Stab it!" Sun Fatty saw the opportunity and shouted at me.
"Little Lazi, watch it and don't let it move. I'll check on Old Xiong," Xiao Heshang quickly ran to Director Xiong's side. He checked his pulse and immediately started performing CPR. I don't know where he learned it, but his chest compressions looked quite professional. However, after going through the process, there was no sign of Director Xiong waking up. Finally, Xiao Heshang bit his lip and started giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
I glanced at Director Xiong's condition and asked Xiao Heshang, "Is Old Xiong going to make it?"
Xiao Laodao replied during the pause for mouth-to-mouth, "Don't worry about Old Xiong's life or death. Just focus on dealing with the Frozen Colossus."
The Frozen Colossus was clearly wary of the short sword in my hand. Even when I was talking with Xiao Heshang just now, it didn't dare to sneak an attack.
It kept retreating until it finally reached a corner inside the cave. It didn't charge at me, and I didn't dare to stab it either. We stayed about seven or eight meters apart, locked in a stalemate.
From Xiao Laodao's side came Director Xiong's weak voice, "Damn, what just happened? Laodao! Why are you kissing me?"
Hearing Director Xiong wake up, I instinctively glanced in his direction. Just as I was distracted, maybe sensing Director Xiong's recovery was not good news for it, the Frozen Colossus moved.
Still, it didn't dare charge at me. Instead, with a howl, it charged straight at Sun Fatty. I was too late to stop it. Without thinking, I flicked my wrist, and the short sword flew toward the Frozen Colossus's back.
Although throwing knives was not my strong suit, at such a close distance and with such a huge target, I really had no reason to miss. Unfortunately, some things often just don't go as planned.
The instant my short sword was thrown, the Frozen Colossus seemed to sense it and suddenly leapt up sharply. Despite its massive size, its movements were surprisingly swift. The short sword slid past its feet and flew toward Sun Fatty.
Sun Fatty let out a startled "Ah!" I didn't have time to see if the blade hit him before the Frozen Colossus landed. With nearly a thousand jin of weight, it struck the ground with a booming crash. The ground beneath it collapsed, revealing a hole about three to four meters in diameter. The Frozen Colossus then fell right into the pit.
"Shen Lazi! Are you taking revenge on me for that desert incident?" Sun Fatty's face had gone pale. He had reacted quickly just now—when the Frozen Colossus jumped, he saw a white flash heading toward him. Without thinking, he turned his head just in time for the short sword to stick into the pile of ingots behind him, narrowly missing his double chin.
Sun Fatty was unharmed, and I finally let out a sigh of relief. Seeing his panicked face, I couldn't help teasing, "If I wanted to take revenge, I would've done it long ago. No need to wait until today. Fine, once each, no debts between us."
I spoke while looking for the short sword where it had fallen. After searching through the pile of ingots for a while, I found the knife about ten meters behind the pile.
Surprisingly, the short knife had pierced straight through the ingots—over a thousand of them—without any resistance. The blade still looked like a pool of water, without a single scratch.
I sheathed the short sword and walked over to Xiao Heshang. "Old Xiao, is Chief Xiong okay?" By then, Xiong Ba had already stood up, grabbing Xiao Heshang's collar and cursing. Although just awakened, he looked vigorous and fierce. Someone like Old Taoist Xiao could probably kill thirty or fifty men without breaking a sweat.
Xiao Heshang was seriously explaining to Xiong Ba, but it seemed he wasn't making much sense. "Do you think he's hurt? Old Xiong, let go. Didn't I say? I'm saving you, not taking advantage."
"Alright, alright, let's talk outside," I pulled them apart. "The way back is completely blocked. Think about what to do. If the dam above fills up, the water will pour in even without opening the floodgates. No one will be able to escape then."
Sun Fatty came over and gave me a grim look. "What else can we do? Just move the rocks."
That seemed to be the only way out. Xiong Ba finally let go of Xiao Heshang, and the four of us began clearing the stones blocking the corridor above. After moving a few rocks, we suddenly saw an outrageously fat rat crawl out from the rubble. I was puzzled—if it was that fat, how did the falling stones not crush it?
Even stranger, the fat rat showed no fear of people. It seemed to take a liking to Sun Fatty, wriggling toward his foot and trying to climb up his pant leg.
When it reached his pants, Sun Fatty realized it and jumped a few times, shaking the rat off onto the ground.
"Lazi, kill it for me!" Rats were Sun Fatty's weakness. He said just seeing one would make his whole body tremble.
"Don't kill it," Xiao Heshang's eyes lit up when he saw the fat rat. "This is a Wealth Rat."
Old Taoist Xiao pinched the fat flesh on the rat's back and picked it up. "Heh, with this treasure, this trip wasn't in vain." But the rat resisted strongly, twisting its head and struggling constantly.
Sun Fatty, still wary of the rat, stepped back worried it would break free and run toward him. "Old Taoist, what's the point of showing off a rat? Watch out for plague or Black Death or something. Honestly, why not just kill it?"
"I'd sooner kill you than kill this one," Xiao Heshang chuckled, holding the rat. "This treasure is far rarer than the Frozen Colossus."
Chief Xiong glanced at the fat rat. "Forget about Wealth Rat or Money Rat, let me tell you, this is a chinchilla. My niece once had one just like it."
Xiao Heshang rolled his eyes, half-smiling. "A chinchilla? Does your chinchilla have a gold ingot mark on its forehead?" He parted the brown fur on the rat's forehead, revealing a yellow ingot-shaped birthmark or scar.
I was curious and reached out to touch the Wealth Rat's forehead. Unexpectedly, it went wild—twisting violently and baring its two front teeth, squeaking fiercely. It looked like if I dared to touch it, it would bite me.
The Wealth Rat twisted so frantically that Old Taoist Xiao lost his grip. The rat slipped free, rolled on the ground, and scurried excitedly into the ingot pile opposite us.
Inside the pile, the rat was particularly lively, running wildly and occasionally poking its head out, shaking it toward Sun Fatty as if greeting a beloved grandparent's dog.
I grinned. "Dasheng, it's acting cute for you. Why does it like you so much? You two must have been a couple in a past life. Looks like it came to find its husband today."
Sun Fatty was surprised too but snapped back at me, "Cut it out. You're the one destined to be with it for three lifetimes. Just accept it. Old Taoist," he turned toward Xiao Heshang, "Is this Wealth Rat here just for those gold ingots? Seriously, can you stop fooling around?"
Xiao Heshang kept smiling at Sun Fatty, making him uncomfortable.
Old Taoist Xiao laughed heartily. "You're right, Wealth Rats, also called Golden Rats, are rare and obsessed with gold and jade. They have a pathological fascination with gold artifacts and jade. The rarest thing is their extraordinarily keen sense of smell—they can detect gold veins buried 500 meters underground. Your Bureau of Paranormal Investigation should have records. Before the Yuan and Song Dynasties, catching a Wealth Rat was considered an auspicious omen and had to be reported to the court. According to Song laws, hiding auspicious omens without reporting was punished by sixty lashes and exile three thousand miles. Yuan laws had tiers—southerners hiding omens faced execution, northerners lost wealth and were exiled three thousand miles. Even so, by the Ming and Qing Dynasties, only a few remained. From the Republic era until liberation, there have been no reports of Wealth Rats, so it's a surprise to see one now."
Xiao Heshang looked like he wanted to laugh wildly but was stopped by Sun Fatty's words: "Who says you're the one who found it? It clearly came to me." Xiao Heshang shivered. "I was the one who found it! You wanted to kill it just now, now it's running to you?"
Sun Fatty shrugged. "Then call it and see if it listens."
Xiao Heshang was too angry to reply. Sun Fatty made a face. "You won't call? Then I will." He squatted down and made a feeding gesture with his right hand. "Tsk tsk, kitty, poo! Forgot it's a rat. Come here, little guy, come here, good stuff here, come to big brother."
The Wealth Rat peeked out from the ingots and squeaked happily. Seeing Sun Fatty squat, it crawled out slowly (if Xiao Heshang was right about its obsession with gold and jade, then its attitude toward Sun Fatty was beyond that). It crawled toward Sun Fatty.
Sun Fatty endured his fear of rodents as the Wealth Rat rubbed against his foot. Finally, the rat climbed up Sun Fatty's pant leg to his shoulder, squatting there and squeaking nonstop as if it wanted to say something.
Xiao Heshang was amazed at the bond between the man and rat and was about to comment when I stopped him. "Old Xiao, forget the chinchilla and Wealth Rat talk for now. We need to get out first. I'll help you keep the Wealth Rat when we're out. Let Sun Desheng enjoy it for now. After we're out, I'll help you."
Xiao Heshang had no better choice and nodded. Before I could call Sun Fatty over, he was already trembling, telling me, "Lazi, help me get it down. I can't take it."
I reached out for the Wealth Rat. It had been calm before, but when I tried to grab it, it showed its teeth and looked fiercely angry. "Dasheng, I can't help you. Your wife is pure and won't let any other man touch you. You're so lucky!"
Sun Fatty was helpless. Originally, Xiao Heshang suggested he "temporarily" watch the Wealth Rat and return it after we got out.
Sun Fatty refused and gritted his teeth to bear it. Finally, I came up with a plan: using a few gold ingots as bait, I lured the Wealth Rat into Sun Fatty's uniform pocket. The pocket was large enough that the rat's head still poked out, occasionally squeaking to remind Sun Fatty it was there.
The three of us returned to the cave entrance and resumed moving the rocks. The more stones we moved, the more seemed to come down, as if endless. Every time we carried a few rocks from below, several more would fall from the cave ceiling above, instantly filling the gap we had just cleared. After more than half an hour, the four of us still hadn't cleared a corridor five meters wide.
"No more moving. It's useless. The more we move, the more stones fall down. We barely moved a few stones before nearly getting our heads crushed by falling rocks," Sun Fatty sat down on the ground inside the cave, panting heavily.
What Sun Fatty said was true; all of us understood this clearly in our hearts. Chief Xiong wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "Then we have to wait for people outside to find a way in."
Old Taoist Xiao shook his head and said, "Rely on the people outside? They'd still have to come down into the pit. When we came in, at least there was a corridor. Now, who knows what condition the corridor is in? It might have collapsed, maybe even the entrance itself."
After Xiao Heshang's words, no one inside the cave spoke. The sound of the earlier collapse had been loud, and it was very likely that the degree of the collapse outside was just as severe as Old Taoist Xiao had said.