Tomb Raiders: She Comes from the Ancient Martial Arts World

Ignoring why Wu Xie was making that strange expression, Ling Yue walked directly to Ma Rila's side and kicked her as she lay on the ground, staring blankly at the night sky and singing listlessly.

Marila turned his head blankly and looked over, only to find that it was Ling Yue, whom he hadn't really interacted with along the way. He jumped up and sat up quickly.

This powerful figure, Marila, was someone he sensed was not to be trifled with, so he avoided him whenever possible, fearing that he might suddenly get hit by Ling Yue's stick.

Ling Yue gestured with his chin toward the sand dunes beside him. "I have something I want to ask you."

After saying that, he took the lead and walked over there.

How could Marila not go? He hastily wiped his face with his sleeve and scrambled after them.

The others in the camp saw it but didn't pay much attention. They were all about to die, so why would they care what others said?

After crossing the sand dunes, Ling Yue found a place to sit down and gestured for Marila to sit down as well.

Ma Rila nervously found a spot a little further away, glancing tentatively at Ling Yue before sitting down. Seeing that Ling Yue didn't seem angry, Ma Rila quickly sat down.

Ling Yue didn't waste any words and went straight to the point: "Marila, you're a native of this place, right?"

Marila nodded with a sheepish smile: "Yes, yes, yes, we've lived here since my grandfather's generation!"

Ling Yue took out a small, flat bottle from his pocket and tossed it to Ma Rila.

Marila hurriedly caught it, then looked closely and immediately beamed with joy: "Oh, it's wine! Wine! Hehe, thank you, boss! Boss, feel free to ask me anything!"

He couldn't wait to take a sip, and immediately felt completely refreshed.

"A spider hangs from the beam, a magpie falls from the sky," Ling Yue asked, "Do you have any other similar stories?"

Marila didn't care how Ling Yue knew that. After taking a sip of wine, he held it carefully in his arms, smelling it every now and then. After thinking for a moment, he said, "There really is!"

"Boss, as you know, places like ours have all sorts of strange stories and legends since ancient times. There are the most legends about the Lord of Gutongjing. Besides the fact that the Lord of Gutongjing is like a spider with eight arms and eight legs and can ride the clouds to capture souls, there are also legends related to the long-lost ancient city of Gutongjing."

While smelling the aroma of the wine, Ma Rila recounted various stories.

It turns out that the oldest legend about Gutongjing in the local folklore dates back more than a thousand years.

At that time, an army of the Han Dynasty emperor discovered the ancient city of Tongjing. After entering, they discovered some secrets inside.

Afterwards, this army brought something back from the ancient city of Tongjing and presented it to the emperor. The emperor also had a very skilled geomancer by his side, who, based on the army's description, roughly drew a map of the ancient city of Tongjing.

“The older generation always says that we are the descendants of the army that the emperor left behind to guard the outermost perimeter in order to retrieve the treasures from Gutongjing,” Ma Rila said.

Ling Yue sorted through this information in his mind, trying to filter out the parts that were related to the clues he already knew.

"Legend has it that the ancient city of Tongjing is the remains of a great monster that has become a spirit over the years. It is usually an inanimate object, without even a breeze. But when a special wind blows, the monster will briefly awaken. At that time, whether the person inside its belly will receive endless treasures or be taken directly to hell by the monster depends on their fate."

The stories told by Ma Rila are all fantastical, jumping from one topic to another, and some of them even contradict each other.

"Some say that Gutongjing was a treasure that fell down when the gods were fighting in the heavens. With the gem passed down through generations of Gutongjing city lords, one can open this divine artifact, become the master of Gutongjing, and from then on, be able to go to heaven and earth and do anything!"

“When I was little, my grandfather said that a group of people went there before the founding of the People’s Republic of China. Goodness, there were so many people that they were brought in truckload after truckload! And what happened? There was an earthquake, and those people never came back. I guess they were all swallowed up by Gutongjing!”

Because of Ling Yue's threat of force and the kindness of a bottle of wine during a difficult time, Ma Rila racked his brains to dismantle the nonsensical, half-truths he had heard.

After talking for almost half an hour, I finally ran out of things to say.

He smiled obsequiously at Ling Yue: "Boss, I've told you everything I know, what do you think?"

Ling Yue did get some potentially useful clues from it. She nodded, stood up, and reminded him before leaving, "You should drink the wine, otherwise you won't be able to keep it."

Marila sighed, though reluctant, he still slowly sipped his wine.

He looked like he wanted to savor every last drop before finishing it.

Ling Yue ignored him and ran into Wu Xie, who had been standing there for who knows how long, on his way back.

Wu Xie glanced behind her, didn't ask any further questions, but tilted his head to the side, "Want to chat?"

Ling Yue, who had long wanted to talk to him, followed him without hesitation.

When they set up camp, they chose a sheltered, low-lying spot surrounded by sand dunes.

Wu Xie found a sand dune and sat down.

Ling Yue, who had just gotten up and taken only a few steps, had no choice but to sit down as well.

Wu Xie looked up at the sky, unconsciously tracing the few stars he could make out, and didn't hide the fact that he had been eavesdropping: "Ling Yue, can you tell me what you're looking for in Gutongjing?"

Ling Yue also looked at the stars in the sky.

Ling Yue looked at the stars in the sky, wondering if others felt the same way, and suddenly felt homesick.

In this new world, are the night sky and stars still the same as before?

She let out a long breath, revealing a rare hint of exhaustion. She propped herself up with her hands behind her back, but feeling uncomfortable, she simply lay down on the ground.

With his hands on his abdomen, Ling Yue closed his eyes, concealing the vulnerability in them, and said in his usual calm voice, "Before asking me, why don't you tell me what you want to do?"

Wu Xie turned around and looked at her serene face with her eyes closed.

At that moment, he truly felt as if he had found a sense of peace.

He knew this emotion was dangerous, yet he couldn't resist the fleeting moment of craving.

Quickly regaining her composure, Wu Xie turned to the side, looking down at Ling Yue. Her voice was light and hesitant, carrying a hint of uncontrollable dependence: "Ling Yue, can I trust you?"

Ling Yue opened her eyes and glanced at him.

Their eyes met; one remained calm, while the other concealed a hint of vulnerability and helplessness.

Ling Yue: "..."

Is this bewitching concubine Daji trying to win her heart?

The human eye is a magical thing; some say that eye contact is like a kiss between two souls.

Just as Wu Xie was about to lose control and reveal his true emotions through his eyes, Ling Yue was the first to look away and sit up again.

She was so frank that Wu Xie was caught off guard: "Wu Xie, are you seducing me?"

"W-what?" Wu Xie exclaimed in surprise, his cheeks rapidly warming up in the dim light.

Ling Yue gave an ambiguous "humph": "You probably don't know, but in my training, how to use psychological tactics to achieve my goals was a required course."

She turned to look at Wuxie: "Although I've never used it before, I've learned it quite well. Do you want to give it a try?"

Wu Xie lowered his head and unconsciously clenched a handful of sand in his hands.

As the sand continued to flow away, Wu Xie's panicked heart gradually calmed down.

He turned around and looked back at him: "Your training is very special, so who exactly are you?"

Ling Yue thought for a moment, wondering what kind of person she really was to Wu Xie.

Finally, Ling Yue gave his answer: "I'm an outsider."

Wu Xie's expression faded. "A trap?"

Once again directly confronting Wu Xie's suspicious nature, Ling Yue shook his head and smiled.

It was a rare smile, but it made Wu Xie feel somewhat uncomfortable.

She said, "Wu Xie, you and I are not from the same world as any of you. Whatever your plans or schemes are, I never care."

Wu Xie stared into her eyes: "Then what do you care about?"

Ling Yue revealed the purpose of his acceptance of the conversation: "I am interested in the secrets of the Yuezhi civilization in Gutongjing, and I am looking for a way out."

She gazed at him: "A road home."

From the moment he accidentally discovered the connection between the Yuezhi civilization and the Empress, Ling Yue has been trying his best to increase the weight of his position.

Whether it's about the ancient city of Tongjing or what Wuxie wants to do.

She vaguely sensed that Wu Xie knew a lot about that mysterious power hidden on the other side of the world, something that ordinary people had no way of knowing.

She needs Wuzhen's help.

But Ling Yue knew that if he wanted to get help from others, he had to have some leverage so that he wouldn't completely lose control in this "transaction" and become a pawn to be manipulated at will.

So, Ling Yue approached Wu Xie, his emerald-gold eyes gazing into Wu Xie's eyes, and whispered, "Wu Xie, if you help me, I will help you too."