OBS Chapter 1 The Stone Coffin Opens Its Eyes
Chapter 1 The Stone Coffin Opens Its Eyes
dark.
The thick darkness, thick with the stench of mud and stone, pressed relentlessly against every inch of Yang Jin's skin.
He was awakened by the shock of suffocation.
His lungs felt like they were on fire, and his chest felt like it was being tightly constricted by an iron clamp. With each breath, he inhaled a foul, pungent odor of rotting wood and some kind of herbal medicine.
Yang Jin suddenly opened his eyes, only to find everything pitch black, so dark he couldn't see his own hand in front of his face... He couldn't even see his newly bought Huawei MasterMaster... that was the trophy that Sister Li had worked on for a whole month to get.
He tried to raise his hand, and the back of his hand hit something hard with a "thud," feeling rough, like a stone.
An extraordinary master turned to stone—who could bear that!
He struggled to move his body and found that the space around him was very small, making it difficult to move his body, and there was a hard stone surface above his head.
This looks like a stone coffin.
Are you playing this high?!
"Liu Zi, stop playing around."
"Let me out!"
Boom boom boom!
Yang Jin tried tapping the stone wall, but stopped after two taps because of the pain.
Not only did his hands hurt, but his whole body ached so much that he broke out in a cold sweat.
He was suddenly jolted awake. Before he was locked up... he'd been beaten?!
He quickly touched his buttocks, thankfully finding no fatal injury.
Suddenly, his consciousness blurred, and fragments of memory surged in like a tidal wave:
"...fell off a cliff..."
"...What a pity, only seventeen..."
"...According to ancestral custom, young men who die violent deaths are buried in a suspended coffin for three days to allow their souls to rest in peace..."
Hanging burial?
Xuanzang?!
What Xuanzang?!
Has Maixu Planet changed its theme again?
Then lock them up, why are you locking me up?
Wait, hanging burial?!
I've time-traveled!
And then... he was buried alive?!
No, it's already buried!
Fear, like a venomous snake, instantly gripped his heart.
He pounded hard on the coffin lid, the muffled sound of the stone wall echoing in the narrow space, making his eardrums ache, but he didn't budge.
The air inside the stone coffin was rapidly depleting, and a feeling of dizziness immediately followed.
"No... I can't die here... My extraordinary master!!!"
His survival instinct made him scream wildly.
"Help! Someone please help me!"
"I'm alive!"
But it was no use. Yang Jin could only force himself to calm down, turn his body to the side with difficulty, and feel around on the coffin walls and lid with his hands.
Running your fingers across the stone surface, you feel its coolness and see traces of chisel marks. The seams of the stone coffin are filled with mud that hasn't fully dried, and it creaks when you put your hand on it.
He fiddled with his fingers for ages, using a technique unparalleled on the entire planet of Mai Xu, but he still couldn't find any hope of survival.
Despair, like a shameless little bitch, slowly devoured him.
Just as his consciousness was about to collapse—
hum!
Deep in my mind, a crisp popping sound came out without warning, like a fairy descending to earth to open the bottle of wine worth 9888 for Sister Li.
Immediately afterwards, a faint yellowish-brown light appeared in his head, rapidly expanding and converging into the phantom of an ancient and imposing square cauldron!
The body of the cauldron is dark yellow and is carved from an ancient rock. Its surface is covered with mysterious patterns, in which the veins of mountains and rivers, birds, beasts, insects and fish can be vaguely seen.
At the center of the tripod's belly, an ancient and simple character "岳" shines like a star.
Mountain Cauldron!
A massive flood of information rushed into Yang Jin's consciousness, regardless of whether he could withstand it or not.
[Master of the Cauldron: Yang Jin]
[Refinable Cauldron Spirit: Earth-Walking Marmoset (Gray)]
[Refining in progress...]
[Refining successful!]
Almost the instant the information appeared, a faint warm current rose rapidly from his tailbone, just above his anus, and quickly spread throughout his body.
Where the warm current passed, the stiff, cold muscle tissue seemed to be injected with new vitality, and the pain and panic caused by suffocation were relieved.
Even more amazingly, his perception of the surrounding stone walls suddenly became clear!
It was no longer pitch black, but he could "feel" the texture and density of the stone, the weak points at the joints of the stone coffin... He could even vaguely "hear" the extremely subtle vibrations deep within the stone wall, like the pulse of the earth.
This feeling... is like the heartbeat of his first love that he once heard...
This is... the ability of the Earth-Walking Marmoset Spirit? Vibration perception? Stone control?
Yang Jin didn't have time to think it through; his will to survive overshadowed his memories of his first love.
He concentrated all his strength, gathering that newly born, miraculous power in his hands. Following his intuition and using his unparalleled finger techniques, he targeted the weak point at the seam between the coffin lid and body...
"Open it!"
A roar between life and death.
A strange sensation came from my fingertips, as if I had resonated with the stone in some way.
The mortar that had filled the cracks in the rocks, still wet, actually loosened and peeled off!
Immediately afterwards, a slight "crack" sound came from the rock at the edge of the coffin lid, and a crack appeared!
There's a crack... no, there's hope!
Yang Jin was greatly encouraged and increased his efforts, launching an even fiercer attack than when dealing with Sister Li.
The cracks spread and expanded rapidly, like a spider web.
finally--
"Boom!"
With a muffled thud, a gap appeared on the edge of the coffin lid!
The cold air, carrying the fresh scent of grass and trees, flowed into the stone coffin.
Yang Jin took deep, greedy breaths, the cold air filling his lungs and triggering a violent cough, but he was also overjoyed at surviving a disaster.
At least, I won't suffocate.
If he suffocates to death, it would be too frustrating for him to have transmigrated here, and he would be letting down his extraordinary master.
He paused for a moment, and when he had regained some strength, he struggled to open the stone lid, squeezed out of the stone coffin, and rolled onto the ground.
Yang Jin then realized that he was standing on a hard, rough rock platform.
The night wind was biting, and it sent shivers down my spine.
Yang Jin lay on the ground, panting for a long time, before struggling to sit up and look around.
The sight before him made him gasp.
This is a stone platform carved into a sheer cliff, protruding several meters outwards, with sheer cliffs on three sides.
Below, the sea of clouds churned, and the moonlight was desolate, outlining the undulating black mountains like a lurking succubus.
One kick and there's no going back.
The stone coffin from which he had just escaped was placed in a shallow niche inside the stone platform.
Looking around, similar stone niches are lined up one after another on both sides of the cliff face, densely packed and incredibly eerie.
Some of the coffins were dilapidated, revealing bare bones.
The night wind blew across the cliff face, making a strange, mournful sound, even more frightening than the singing of the new girl with the raspy voice.
This is the "Hanging Burial Cliff" that has been passed down through generations in Heishan'ao, according to my memory.
All young and strong people who die violently or suddenly must be suspended here for three days, supposedly to use the evil energy of the mountain winds to suppress the "vengeful spirits" of the deceased and prevent them from causing trouble and disturbing the village.
"I've transmigrated here, and before I've even had a chance to enjoy myself... I'm being buried like a dead person?"
Yang Jin leaned against the cold stone wall, his fragmented memories coming back to him, even more intense than those of Sister Li who had been away on a business trip for three months.
He, or rather, the original owner of this body, Yang Jin, the son of Yang Sanmu, a hunter from Heishan'ao, had a dispute with Sun Yaozu, the young master of the Sun family, a family of herbalists in the village, three days ago.
Sun Yaozu falsely accused Yang Jin of stealing an old ginseng from him. His henchmen beat Yang Jin severely and then made Yang Jin "fall off" and fall off a cliff.
The villagers found the "corpse" at the bottom of the cliff and, according to ancestral tradition, carried it up the cliff to be buried and sealed it in a stone coffin.
"Stealing? Accidentally?!"
Yang Jin wiped the dried blood off his face and said fiercely.
In the original owner's memories, it was clearly Sun Yaozu who wanted to monopolize that ginseng, maliciously framed him, and even took advantage of his unpreparedness to viciously attack him!
"The Sun family... Sun Yaozu...you all deserve to die!"
He cursed under his breath, but his voice trembled slightly from exhaustion and the cold.
The night wind picked up, whipping up the sea of clouds below the cliff and revealing a bottomless darkness... even darker than Ye Wenjie's Dark Forest.
He can't stay here. If he stays any longer, he'll either get so angry he'll freeze to death or he'll die of cold.
However, the cliff is so steep, so high, so dangerous, and so dark...
Even if he were in his prime, with injuries all over his body and extremely weak, he wouldn't be able to get down without ropes and tools.
Does one have to die immediately after transmigrating?
Yang Jin's gaze returned to the mountain cauldron that was quietly floating in his head.
Yes, he has a cheat code.
Aren't the protagonists in novels all about using cheat codes to defy fate and reach the pinnacle of life?
How could he forget about the cheat code?
[Master of the Cauldron: Yang Jin]
[Refining the Cauldron Spirit: Earth-Walking Marmoset (Gray) (Fusion Rate: 3%)]
[Earth's Essence: None]
[Mountain Favorability: None]
[Spiritual Talents: Weak Rock Skin (damage reduction), Basic Vibration Perception (3 zhang), Weak Stone Control (can affect the structure of rocks within 30 jin)]
[Evaluation: The Mountain-Walking Cauldron originates from the spirit of ancient mountains and can grant a glimmer of hope to the humblest of children.]
"Vibration perception... Stone control..."
Yang Jin muttered to himself, his gaze sweeping over the rocky platform beneath his feet and the surrounding cliffs.
He closed his eyes again, trying to actively activate the faint vibration perception.
hum...
The world immediately changed in his "perception".
It is no longer a visual image, but a strange vibrating outline, like the ultrasonic flashing images used by bats in movies.
The thickness of the rock platform beneath his feet, the structure at the junction with the mountain, a very hidden horizontal crack three zhang above the left cliff, a protruding but relatively stable rock five zhang below the right... all of this was presented in his mind in a vague yet clear way.
He could even "sense" a faint but continuous vibration of water deep within the cliff face—was it an underground river? Or... a ley line?
"Wow, that's awesome!"
"That superpower is amazing!"
"Wait, there seems to be a road over there..."
Yang Jin suddenly opened his eyes and looked at the horizontal crack on the left.
In his perception, the crack extended inward, seemingly connecting to a cavity inside the cliff face. Although it was winding, it should lead down to the bottom.
Take a look.
He struggled to his feet and walked to the other side of the crack.
The crack was narrow, allowing only one person to squeeze in sideways. It was dark and deep inside, with no way to see clearly, and it smelled damp and musty.
He had no torches, no tools, only injuries and newly acquired superpowers.
Going down there might mean a slim chance of survival.
But if they stayed on the cliff, they would freeze to death before dawn. If they were discovered, they might be turned into zombies on the spot and beaten to death... Wouldn't that mean certain death?
He had no choice, just like when he first went to work on the planet Maixu.
Without hesitation, Yang Jin squeezed into the crevice.
The rough rock face rubbed against his wounds, causing a stinging pain.
He gritted his teeth and relied on his superpower, Vibration Perception, to grope his way forward in the darkness.
My mind is filled with many chaotic thoughts... I'm thinking of his extraordinary master again. If I had my phone, at least I could turn on a light...
"Damn it, I didn't delete my chat history... If Sister Li sees this, she'll definitely kill me!"
"Why think about that? Whether we can go back is another matter."
"Let's focus on surviving first."
The cracks were sometimes narrow, sometimes steep, and sometimes piercing.
Fortunately, his superpower, weak rock manipulation, can temporarily solidify loose rocks and slightly blunt sharp stones.
He didn't know how much time had passed, but it felt like a very long time.
Just as his strength was about to be exhausted and his consciousness was beginning to blur, he suddenly heard a faint sound of water ahead, along with a very weak vibration feedback that was different from that of rocks—it was a frequency unique to wooden structures.
He perked up and struggled to crawl forward.
At the end of the crack, there is a slightly larger natural rock cavity.
In one corner of the cave, there were some fragments of decayed wooden utensils piled up, which seemed to be offerings or relics placed here many years ago.
More importantly, on the other side of the cave, there is a rough stone staircase that has been clearly carved by man and extends downwards, with rusted iron chains nailed to the edge of the staircase!
This secret passage may have been left behind by the mountain people who were responsible for hanging burials long ago.
Yang Jin didn't care about any of that. He held onto the slippery rock wall and started to go down the stone steps.
The stone steps were steep and slippery, and the iron chains crumbled and fell with rust at the slightest touch, making them difficult to use for leverage.
He could only rely on the rock wall to descend step by step with difficulty, his movements even more clumsy than when he first learned street dance.
Fortunately, the Earthwalker's slight talent for rock skin prevented his hands and feet from being torn and bleeding when rubbing against the rocks.
He walked down about a hundred steps and then a light appeared ahead—not sunlight, but a faint, pale blue fluorescent light.
The stone steps began to turn, leading to a larger natural cave.
In the center of the cave, there is a small underground spring with clear water.
Some moss with a blue glow grew by the pool, smelling slightly fragrant, and casting a hazy glow over the cave.
To Yang Jin's surprise, a wild beast was lurking by the pool!
At first glance, the creature resembled a raccoon, but it was larger, with grayish-brown fur that blended almost seamlessly into the rock.
If he hadn't been so observant, he wouldn't have noticed at all.
It was drinking water when it heard the noise. It suddenly looked up and stared at Yang Jin warily with its eyes glowing yellow in the fluorescent light.
Is it a wildcat? Or... some kind of monster?
Yang Jin was stiff and dared not move. Who knew if this thing would bite?
In his current state, he probably couldn't even beat a stray dog.
The creature stared at him for a while, its nostrils flaring as if it had caught a scent that made it uneasy. It lowered its head, let out a soft whimper, and then turned and darted to a crevice on the other side of the cave, disappearing in a few moments.
Yang Jin breathed a long sigh of relief, almost collapsing from exhaustion.
In the past, petting a cat was like an emperor capturing a tiger, a feat that would last for eternity. Now, seeing a stray cat is like encountering a tiger; I tremble with fear.
This time travel... is so frustrating.
He staggered to the edge of the pool, not caring whether he could drink it or not. After all, cats could drink it, so he probably wouldn't die from it either. He scooped up the icy spring water and drank it down in large gulps.
The cool spring water did indeed slightly relieve my thirst and fatigue.
After drinking his fill of water, he slumped down by the pool and, using the light from the fluorescent moss, began to examine the body he had acquired for free.
The clothes I was wearing were tattered; they were fine before, but they wore out when I got down.
Regarding the injuries... there are multiple abrasions and bruises, and a deep wound on the left arm. The blood has temporarily clotted and a scab has formed on the surface, but it has not fully healed. If there is any slight movement, it will bleed out, and there is also a risk of infection.
Fortunately, there were no fractures.
Or rather, the system cured him.
As the mountain cauldron refined the earth-walking takin, the warm current flowing out was slowly nourishing his body.
"We've already put them on."
"What do we do next?"
"Hiding here isn't a good solution."
"We need to get out of here as soon as possible and find a safe place to hide."
"Where to?"
"Damn memories, hurry up and remember them."
"Isn't there a nice older sister like Sister Li, Sister Wang, Sister Chen... or something like that! If all else fails, even an aunt would do!"
Yang Jin was anxious.
Since Sun Yaozu has framed him for murder, once he discovers that Sun Yaozu has "come back to life," he will definitely not let it go and will definitely kill him again.
He must not expose himself until he has sufficient means to protect himself.
I thought for a long time, but I still couldn't think of a place to go.
Yang Jin cursed.
Thinking he should go down the mountain first and hide at Widow Li's house, he figured that with his knowledge as a time traveler and his silver tongue, he should be able to hide there temporarily.
He rested for a while and regained some strength before getting up to explore the cave.
There was indeed an exit at the other end of the cave, but it was hidden by old vines and scattered rocks.
He parted the vines, revealing a dark mountain forest outside, with scattered lights visible in the distance—the direction of Heishan'ao Village.
Night had fallen, and the mountains and forests were silent, with only the occasional cry of an owl.
Yang Jin glanced back at the deep cave, then looked at the lights of the village below the mountain.
Yesterday, Yang Jin perished on the cliff.
Today, Yang Jin, without the extraordinary master, must retrace the path of Mai Xu Planet just to survive... Is this fate?!
"Sun Yaozu... Sun family... Once I rise to power, I'll make sure you're all wiped out."
He cursed Sun Yaozu viciously, constantly talking about his revenge.
He's not a gentleman, he's a spirited young man, and a spirited young man's revenge always lasts from morning till night.
Then, he walked into the forest, cursing and swearing, heading towards Widow Li's house in Heishan'ao Village.
The mountain wind swept through the treetops, its mournful sound mingling with the humming of the ancient stone cauldron's phantom image, and Yang Jin's words, "Birdsong and Fragrance of Flowers."