PCJ – Chapter 533 Another Haunted House

Zhang Jiaohua wasn’t very familiar with the capital. Until now, the places he had visited were mostly near Guluba Alley. But this place—he knew it all too well.

There were few places in the entire city that left as deep an impression on him as the haunted house did. The alleys around the haunted house were already etched deeply into Zhang Jiaohua’s memory. So even after winding through the city for quite a while, once they ended up near the haunted house, Zhang Jiaohua immediately realized what was going on.

“Could it be that the tomb they’re targeting is the underground tunnel beneath the haunted house?” Zhang Jiaohua thought to himself.

The van drove straight into a courtyard near the haunted house. There were several siheyuan (traditional courtyard houses) here. Since the location was so close to the haunted house, most of the neighboring courtyards had already been demolished. But these few remained intact. Although the buildings hadn’t been torn down, the main gates had been removed. Large characters meaning “demolish” were scrawled in white lime across the courtyard walls, with a big circle drawn around them.

The van stopped in the yard, and the group quickly used wooden boards to block off the entrance, making it look like a heap of abandoned ruins.

Zeng Lei got out of the van and looked around, frowning. He had never been to this place before, and there were no obvious landmarks nearby. Had he looked carefully to the side, he might have seen the roof of the haunted house, but with only the roof visible, it was hard to recognize. He had no idea there was such a spot so close to the haunted house.

“Brother Zeng, please come in,” said Ma Fusong, still speaking politely. But Zeng Lei could detect a trace of cold malice in his smile. The game was clearly up now.

“This big job of ours is here?” Zeng Lei tried to read Ma Fusong’s expression.

“Yes, right here. Let’s talk inside.” Ma Fusong nodded.

Old Five and Old Seven flanked Zeng Lei on either side. If he tried to resist, they were ready to attack. What they didn’t know, though, was how skilled Zeng Lei actually was. A few thugs who knew a little martial arts would be no match for him.

Zeng Lei had no plans to flee. He was here to complete a mission—and return victorious.

Zhang Jiaohua stopped his bicycle at the gate of the courtyard, then kept moving forward. Though it was his first time here, thanks to reconnaissance by Fei Mao and the Mountain Leopard, Zhang already knew the layout of the place in detail.

He glanced toward the haunted house and became more convinced that the tomb robbers’ target really was the tunnel beneath it. He remembered clearly that after entering the haunted house tunnel, the path led in this exact direction.

The haunted house area had supposedly seen deaths during demolition, but Zhang Jiaohua never figured out exactly where. Now, standing here, he had a good idea: this had to be the place. Demolition had halted at this point, likely because someone accidentally unearthed the tunnel. That explained the rubble and collapsed stones found in parts of the tunnel—it was caused by the demolition.

If the demolition accidentally broke through into the tunnel, the Yin energy inside would’ve leaked out, which could seriously harm ordinary people. Without purging that energy, they might fall gravely ill—or even die. These tomb robbers likely got wind of the situation from the construction crew and figured a tomb lay beneath. This was the capital, after all—once the imperial city—so it was entirely possible for rare treasures to be hidden underground. A secret tunnel here might very well lead to a treasure trove. Such rumors were enough to attract desperate outlaws like these, even if people had died down there.

The Mountain Leopard led Zhang Jiaohua to a small grove nearby, where construction debris had been piled up. This was close to the siheyuan but concealed enough to stay out of sight and earshot.

Zhang Jiaohua released Fat Monkey as well. With the three of them—Fat Cat, Mountain Leopard, and Fat Monkey—keeping constant watch on the courtyard, Zhang wasn’t the least bit worried the tomb robbers would escape underground undetected.

Clank clank clank…

A loud mechanical noise suddenly rumbled from the courtyard.

Zhang Jiaohua stood up in surprise. What exactly were these lunatics doing?

“Brother Ma, is this big job underground?” Zeng Lei asked as he watched the group use a large drill to bore through the concrete floor of one of the rooms. Very quickly, they made a sizable hole.

Clank clank clank…

The drill roared. The hard concrete broke apart like tofu, soon turning into a mess of fragments.

Ma Fusong had several people pry the broken concrete aside with shovels and then had others continue digging with hoes.

“Are you sure there’s something under this house, Brother Ma? People have lived here for who knows how many years. If anything were buried underneath, it would’ve been discovered long ago. Why would it still be here for us to dig up?” Zeng Lei asked doubtfully.

“Relax. I wouldn’t take this kind of risk if I weren’t confident. You think I’m doing this for fun?” Ma Fusong smiled.

With the electric drill leading the way, they worked fast. Soon, they had dug several meters down and uncovered bricks.

“Quick! Bring the drill—we’ve hit bricks!”

Someone brought the drill over and pressed it into the bricks. The drilling noise roared again.

The drill sank entirely into the bricks without reaching the bottom. After circling around, the whole brick structure collapsed with a loud crash, revealing a pitch-black hole—like a gaping, hungry mouth.

“It’s open!” Everyone jumped in excitement, as if they could already see endless treasure waiting for them.

Old Five and Old Seven rushed to jump in and search for treasure.

But Ma Fusong pulled them back. “Wait! Don’t forget what Brother Zeng here is best at. He’s a renowned treasure-hunting expert. With him leading the way, our chances of success are much higher. Right, Brother Zeng?”

Zeng Lei smiled. “You flatter me, Brother Ma. But since you trust me, I’ll give it my all.”

“Spoken like a true man. When we find the treasure, we’ll have a proper drink together.” Ma Fusong laughed heartily.

Zeng Lei didn’t waste words. He geared up and leapt down into the hole. After looking around briefly, he quickly chose a direction and moved on. Unfortunately for him, that direction led straight toward that terrifying creature.

“What should we do, Brother Ma?” Old Five asked.

“Follow him, but keep a distance. If anything goes wrong, pull out immediately,” Ma Fusong ordered.

“What about Zeng?” Old Seven asked.

“He’s not coming back. He knows too much. We can’t afford to let him live. I’ve confirmed—he’s a cop from the Panjiayuan precinct. He infiltrated us to bring us down. After spending so long undercover, he knows everything about us,” Ma Fusong whispered.

“That bastard—I even treated him like a brother. Turns out he’s a damn spy,” Old Seven cursed.

“Should we deal with him now?” Old Five asked.

Ma Fusong shook his head. “No need. We need someone to lead the way. This route isn’t easy to navigate.”

“Brother Ma, I heard a lot of people died in here. Is this really worth the risk?” Old Seven asked.

“Of course! If we find the treasure, we’ll be rich for life. It’s said this tunnel was built by Empress Dowager Cixi. That old witch hid loads of treasure down here. But she wasn’t foolish—she hired dark practitioners to lay deadly traps. We just need to clear them out.”

“If she set traps, how did she plan to get the treasure herself?” Old Seven asked.

“Idiot. She left herself a way in—from the Forbidden City. We don’t have that access, so we’ll have to clear the path ourselves,” Ma Fusong said confidently.

Before heading down, Ma Fusong pulled Old Seven aside. “Stay up here. This trip is too risky—I need one of our own on the surface to keep an eye on things.”

Old Seven wanted to go treasure hunting too, but he agreed and stayed above with two other men.

Once Zhang Jiaohua confirmed that most of the tomb robbers had entered the tunnel, leaving only three guards behind, he and his animals infiltrated the courtyard. With Fat Cat’s help, they easily lured the guards away and then jumped into the tunnel.

“If it weren’t for my curiosity about that ghostly thing, I wouldn’t bother meddling in this mess,” Zhang Jiaohua muttered to himself. Last time, he hadn’t even gotten a clear look at the ghostly creature before fleeing in panic. It had become a lingering regret. But now, Zhang wasn’t the same as before—his strength had doubled, and his confidence was sky-high. He was itching to face that thing again. With Mountain Leopard, Fat Cat, and Fat Monkey—who had also grown stronger—he now had a solid team at his side.

Zhang Jiaohua and Drill Mountain Leopard moved with great speed, but made almost no sound along the way. In this tunnel, even the slightest noise could travel far and echo with a rumbling roar. Because of this, Zhang Jiaohua could clearly hear the movements of Ma Fusong and his group as they walked.

Last time, that ghostly creature had likely suffered significant injuries, but Zhang didn’t know how well it had recovered by now.

Aside from the sounds of footsteps, there was not a single other noise in the tunnel. But the more silent it was, the more eerie it felt.