Hearing what Hao Zhengyi said, Sun Fatty's expression also turned uneasy. Hao glanced at him and continued, "I'm giving you ten minutes to get back to the dock. That's the upwind side; the deadly aura shouldn't affect you there. Keep an eye on the people at the dock—don't let them wander around. If anyone inhales the dead aura, their death will be on your heads. Alright, go now. The ten-minute countdown starts."
"Come on, you must be joking! Ten minutes isn't enough, make it twenty!" In the end, Sun Fatty still tried to bargain. Everyone understood his meaning—drag out every possible minute, because by then Xiao Heshang should be finishing his call and coming back. But Hao Zhengyi wasn't buying it. Looking at his watch, he said, "Nine minutes forty-five seconds… nine minutes forty-four seconds… nine minutes…"
Only then did Sun Fatty start to panic. If Yang Jun had inhaled the dead aura after going down the well earlier, then we would still have the leverage that Hao and Crow feared. Hao saw through that, which was why he dared to openly disregard us. In the end, he gritted his teeth and turned back to me, Yang Jun, and Hugo: "Let's go. I don't believe it—if the pit is dug crooked, how deep can the explosives go? Leaving three or five meters unblasted, just to let those two dig and have some fun."
Sun Fatty's words suddenly cleared something up for me—finally understanding what had puzzled me all along. I jumped up and stood in front of Hao Zhengyi, saying, "You said no blasting within ten minutes!"
Hao was stunned for a moment, then his expression darkened. I had no time to deal with him further and immediately ran toward the spot where Crow had buried the explosives. After a few steps, feeling uneasy, I shouted loudly, "No one blasts the explosives within ten minutes! Anyone who does is a bastard!"
Within just a few steps, I reached the spot where Crow had buried the explosives. I didn't dare dig it up; that would be too provocative to Hao. I couldn't guarantee he wouldn't detonate it the moment I touched it.
Standing about ten meters from the explosive pit, I stared at its shape, then looked toward the dry well ahead, recalling the exact spot underground where the dead aura was emanating. Finally, I fully understood Hao Zhengyi's intention in placing explosives here.
Suddenly, Sun Fatty's shout came from behind: "Lazi, it's almost two minutes! Any progress?"
I glanced back at Sun Fatty. He was standing in front of the stoic Hao Zhengyi, checking his watch and whispering into Hao's ear: "Chairman Hao, it's not even ten minutes yet. Keep your word—you're the head of the Religious Affairs Commission; you can't go back on what you say. Lazi! Two minutes!"
When I ran back to Sun Fatty, it was still less than two and a half minutes. Sun Fatty asked, "Go or stay?"
I didn't answer. Instead, I glanced at Hao's expression—just as I imagined, he was watching me with a stone-cold face. Though Sun Fatty caught on to some signs, given the life-and-death stakes, he still couldn't relax: "Lazi, I'm not kidding. Give me a straight answer. What exactly is Chairman Hao hiding?"
After looking at Hao, I turned to Sun Fatty: "Nothing's wrong. Big Saint, put your mind at ease. Chairman Hao was just joking with us. The amount of explosives buried earlier is only enough to make some noise. Fifteen is considered unlucky, so just think of it as Crow lighting a big firecracker—two bangs combined into one sharp crack."
As I spoke, Hao had already taken off his glasses, giving me a half-smile.
I went on to explain briefly. Crow had dug a half-meter square pit and buried about two kilograms of plastic explosives in it. He was just creating the appearance of wanting to blast open the ground to release the dead aura below. But thinking carefully, could digging a small hole on the surface and dropping two or three kilograms of explosives really blow out the underground dead aura?
I had just foolishly released the dead aura about twenty or thirty meters down the well. To rapidly trigger the dead aura at that location, you'd need to dig a pit at least seventeen or eighteen meters deep and bury around a hundred or eighty kilograms of explosives.
If, like Crow, simply digging a shallow pit and planting explosives could bring out the dead aura, then when Xie Pang built the hotel on the island—he'd used hundreds of kilograms of explosives to blast the underground rock for the foundation (he mentioned this last night while telling us about his rise to wealth). The hotel is only about ten minutes' walk from this dry well. That explosion's power would have long since triggered the dead aura underground here.
However, it would be somewhat unfair to say that Hao Zhengyi and Crow were just bluffing to divert us. I had just carefully examined the blasting point Crow dug out. He had excavated a pit about half a meter deep, angled roughly at 45 degrees. The plastic explosive inside was also specially treated, entirely wrapped in a thick lead casing, except for the part where the detonating wires were connected, which remained exposed. If detonated, the entire charge would act like a rocket launcher. Based on some directional blasting knowledge I learned in the Special Forces, Crow's target was a location corresponding to the 45-degree angle from the blast point — exactly the spot where I had accidentally released the Deathborne Miasma. In other words, Hao Zhengyi and Crow intended to use the violent shockwave generated by the explosion to enlarge the fissures inside the well, accelerating the venting of the Deathborne Miasma.
Although Sun Fatty was a former police officer, he had no experience with directional blasting using explosives. As for Nicholas Hugo, a clergy member of the Church, he definitely wouldn't be messing with explosives. Not to mention Yang Jun, who had just returned to the civilized world and had been hiding in the basement watching TV all day. Although I had formally studied directional blasting theory and practice while in the Special Forces, I was nearly killed at the bottom of the well earlier, and my mind hadn't fully recovered. That was why I almost fell into the trap set by Hao Zhengyi and Crow.
Halfway through my explanation, Sun Fatty finally understood the situation. After I finished, he looked at Hao Zhengyi and said, "Brother Director Hao, you went through such a big detour. Honestly, why didn't you just throw the explosives directly into the well and detonate them there? That would have been much simpler."
After I blew the cover, Hao Zhengyi actually relaxed. He looked at me and said, "I didn't expect there are still people in the Bureau of Paranormal Investigation who understand blasting. I really misjudged. With you two as subordinates, Hao Wenming's luck isn't too bad." Then he gave a strange smile and looked at me again. "Ten minutes are up!" As he said the last word, he snatched the blasting detonator switch from Crow's hand and pressed it right in front of me.
"Boom!" The explosion was loud. Although there were only two kilograms of explosives, the violent shockwave from the blast point was transmitted right beneath our feet.
Hao Zhengyi startled me this time. Even though I had seemingly figured out his real purpose based on my military blasting knowledge, I wasn't one hundred percent sure. If the blast did cause the Deathborne Miasma to leak out of the well, none of us—except Yang Jun—would survive. My first reaction was to grip the handle of the gun strapped behind my waist. If I was wrong, then all I could do was grab the masks and goggles off Hao Zhengyi and Crow as emergency protection. I wasn't the only one with this thought; when my fingertips touched the gun handle, I saw Sun Fatty's hand also move toward his waist.
Moments after Hao Zhengyi detonated the explosives, there was a commotion from the dry well, and then a large volume of thick black Deathborne Miasma continuously poured out of the well opening, like dense smoke from a large chimney. Compared with before, the Deathborne Miasma was incomparably more intense. The miasma spread outward for more than thirty meters before gradually dispersing into the air.
I breathed a sigh of relief — at that instant, cold sweat had already drenched my underwear. Sun Fatty collapsed to the ground and, watching the black miasma streaming from the well, said to Hao Zhengyi, "Brother Director Hao, next time when you do something like this, can you give us a five-second countdown so we can prepare?" Before Hao Zhengyi could respond, Hugo bit his teeth and interrupted, "Sun, you expect there to be a next time? For God's sake, just drop it!"
About seventeen or eighteen minutes later, the black miasma from the well began to thin, and after nearly an hour, the Deathborne Miasma inside the well completely dissipated. Hao Zhengyi glanced at the four of us from the Bureau of Paranormal Investigation and said, "Anyone interested in going down to the bottom of the well for another walk?"
Hao Zhengyi suddenly changed his attitude, and the rest of us felt a bit uneasy. Sun Fatty blinked and looked at Hao Zhengyi, saying, "Brother Director Hao, since when did you become so agreeable?" Hao Zhengyi removed his mask, smiled faintly at Sun Fatty, and said, "I suddenly changed my mind. Given the current situation, taking you all down there might be a pretty good idea."
After speaking, Hao Zhengyi turned to look at Yang Jun, who was still sitting on the ground in a daze. He stared at Yang Jun for a long while, then shook his head as if talking to himself, "You've endured this for so long, you must be nearing your limit. Even if your body truly is immortal, having been exposed to the Deathborne Miasma for so long will cause permanent damage. I hope you won't have to drag around a crippled body through what should be your seemingly endless life."
When Hao Zhengyi finished speaking, Yang Jun lifted his head and coldly stared at him. At the same time, a layer of mist began to spread all over Yang Jun's body. His teeth clenched so tightly they made a grinding sound, and the muscles in his face trembled violently. He looked like he was suffering tremendous pain. Yang Jun's current condition was caused by me. Seeing his body shaking wildly, I hurried over to help him up, but before I could touch his arm, Yang Jun pushed me away with force: "Get out of the way!"
The moment those words left his mouth, Yang Jun vanished right in front of me and reappeared about fifty or sixty meters away.
Having been with the Bureau for over half a year, I had witnessed similar instances of teleportation several times and no longer found it surprising. But Yang Jun's subsequent behavior now sends chills down my spine just thinking about it.
Yang Jun squatted on the ground and let out a loud howl. Black Deathborne Miasma poured out from his mouth, eyes, nostrils, and ears from the inside out. Although the air was slowly suppressing the miasma, the Deathborne Miasma was rapidly emanating from all of Yang Jun's orifices. Within seconds, the miasma quickly enveloped him.
I was stunned by the sight. After recovering, I blamed myself for causing Yang Jun's condition and wanted to rush to his side, though I had no idea how to help. Suddenly, Crow leapt over and blocked me. Hao Zhengyi spoke behind him: "He won't die, but if you get too close and inhale the Deathborne Miasma, you will."
I pointed at Yang Jun and shouted to Hao Zhengyi, "What's wrong with Yang Jun?" Hao Zhengyi glanced at me coldly and then immediately shifted his gaze back to Yang Jun. "The explosion released Deathborne Miasma which resonated with the miasma inside Yang Jun's body. Yang Jun couldn't suppress it and had to vent it out." Hearing Hao Zhengyi's explanation, Sun Fatty interrupted, "Is venting the Deathborne Miasma really that difficult?"
"Venting Deathborne Miasma?" Hao Zhengyi looked at Sun Fatty with rare disdain and said, "Hao Wenming must have taught you guys poorly. The nature of Deathborne Miasma is 'allowing it in but not out.' Once inhaled through the seven orifices, it hides inside the five viscera. Small amounts may allow survival for several years, but ultimately cause death by organ failure. Excessive inhalation suppresses the vital energy and turns the person into a living corpse. This is why Yang Jun survives—any normal person would have become a zombie long ago after inhaling that much."
At this point, Hao Zhengyi paused, then continued, "But Yang Jun is really going through hell this time. Even if he manages to vent all the Deathborne Miasma, his internal organs have suffered serious damage. It will be a long time before your director Wu has the ability to heal him." By then, the miasma had finished venting from Yang Jun's body surface. The lingering dense mist rapidly decomposed in the air, exposing Yang Jun's body. Unable to hold on, he collapsed sideways to the ground. Hugo and I immediately rushed over and supported him from both sides. Yang Jun closed his eyes, but he didn't seem unconscious. The black miasma covering his face was completely gone, restoring his pale complexion. However, his face looked extremely pale, with no sign of blood.
"I knew it, why did you suddenly decide to bring us all down the well?" Sun Fatty stayed where he was instead of following me. He withdrew his gaze from Yang Jun and looked at Hao Zhengyi. "Brother Director Hao, you must have planned this carefully. Without anyone holding you back, you're just using us as bait for Consultant Xiao to come rescue us. Besides, you don't have to worry about any traps down there since neither Consultant Xiao nor you are around. Honestly, your plan is quite clever."
"My perspective is different, so the cause and effect here are different," Hao Zhengyi replied slowly, looking at Sun Fatty. "But you're not entirely wrong. Still, don't think so badly of me — you're all Hao Wenming's subordinates after all, and we do have some connection. Don't provoke me. Even if Consultant Xiao returns, he might not know what's going on down there. Whether to go down or not is up to you."
"Then I guess we'll officially send you two down the well," Sun Fatty said with a knowing smile, seemingly expecting Hao Zhengyi's response. "If there's anywhere you need us, just let us know… or rather, pretend I never asked. Well then, safe travels."
At that moment, Yang Jun opened his eyes and said to Hao Zhengyi, "Wait... I'm coming down with you."