The Informal Tomb Raiding Diary: She is the occupant of the tomb!-Chapter 280 - 260: Highway Story Time (Part 2)

"Little Leng, is this true, or does it just sound like something you made up?" Liu Laonian hunched his shoulders, looking a bit scared. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

That’s why the storytelling environment and music are so important; a similar setting enhances the listener’s immersion. I smiled, "Absolutely true!"

"Was it a female ghost crying?" Dong Sanqi asked.

"No. You know, Westerners generally don’t believe in ghosts and gods, so when they hear crying, they naturally think someone needs help."

The young explorer immediately threw on his clothes and walked out the door. The house was surrounded by a cornfield, and a patch of silver lotus flowers grew before the house. He walked through the flowerbed and stood before the cornfield; the crying was coming from inside.

"That crying sure wanted to lure him in, typical movie trope!" Dong Sanqi switched to a live commentary mode.

"No, he called out twice from outside, and a woman walked out."

"Walked out and ate him?" Liu Laonian asked hastily.

"Are you stupid? If he was eaten, how could he tell others about it?" Wang Datou glared at Liu Laonian disdainfully.

"Not only did she not eat him, but she also got pregnant with his child. The two spent a wonderful time together, and six months later, the woman disappeared."

"Disappeared?"

"What about the child?"

"Did any money go missing?"

I looked back at the three of them, shook my head, and said, "Of course, the child disappeared as well, not yet born. No valuables were stolen; the woman didn’t take anything with her."

The three began discussing whether the woman was murdered or if the young explorer was a psychopathic killer.

In fact, it wasn’t that complicated; the woman simply disappeared, more like leaving without a word.

The explorer grieved for a long time. Years later, he married and had children, and buried this matter deep in his heart.

"That’s it? What kind of strange thing is this?" Dong Sanqi expressed disappointment.

"The strange part is that thirty years later, he participated in an expedition. Inside a cave, they discovered an ancient ship. The place isn’t near the sea, yet the outer deck of the ship was covered with shellfish, indicating it had sailed the seas, and they deduced the ship was built in the 17th century."

"A seafaring ship running aground in an inland cave? That’s indeed strange," Wang Datou chimed in.

"The strangest part was that there was a box on the ship, and suddenly the sound of a baby crying came from inside."

Upon hearing this, the three widened their eyes, eagerly awaiting the next part.

"The explorer opened the unlocked box, and inside lay a baby girl. Upon seeing him, the baby stopped crying and even smiled at him."

"What? A living baby in a several centuries-old ship?" Liu Laonian wore a face full of surprise.

"Maybe it was abandoned by nearby villagers, and they just happened to find it," Dong Sanqi suggested.

"No one knows who abandoned it, but the baby’s hand held a freshly picked silver lotus flower."

The three fell back into discussion. I waited for them to finish before continuing, "The explorer took the baby girl, and a DNA test confirmed they were direct relatives."

"Didn’t you say many years had passed, the baby should have grown up by now," Wang Datou questioned.

"Yes, about ten years, which is why it’s called a strange and mysterious affair."

"What happened later?" Dong Sanqi inquired further.

"Later, the girl gradually grew up, everything was normal. About her mother and her birth, no one knew what really happened."

Why her mother appeared in the cornfield, why she cried, why she left without a word, and why she placed the child in a box, all remained mysteries.

The explorer, in recollection, said that at the time he felt entranced, being with that woman, asking nothing, only feeling sweetness and happiness as if in an endless dream.

Upon waking from the dream, the many loopholes became evident, but he couldn’t resolve the doubt in his heart, and he eventually died in my tomb.

Originally, he and his companions had escaped to the main tomb chamber, where he shared many past adventures.

But he was unwilling to die trapped in the tomb, and after resting, he took his companions to find a way out again.

Afterwards, his companions returned, bringing back his backpack.

After his companions committed suicide, I obtained their backpacks.

In his exploration notes, I found many interesting things. He said the charm of exploration lies in the unknown, novelty, and challenge. He participated in over a hundred big and small expeditions in his lifetime, always pursuing self-transcendence. Whether he ultimately transcended himself, I do not know. I only know he failed to surpass his companions, and during their escape, was devoured by the snakes chasing them.