Xu Lie's speed was incredibly fast.
Before Zhu Mingzhe and his men could react and point their guns at him, he had already rushed to Liu Zhibo's side.
With his right hand, he grabbed Liu Zhibo by the neck.
His left hand, fingers together like a knife, chopped away the gun in Liu Zhibo's hand.
He roared like thunder, "Try moving!"
No one could have anticipated that this big fellow would be so ferocious, risking his life to hold Liu Zhibo hostage.
Zhu Mingzhe also panicked, "Release my boss, or none of you will survive."
"You never intended to let us live anyway," Li Chonglou said coldly. "What difference does it make whether we release him or not?"
"Who can't kill? If you're brave enough, go ahead and try."
"Brother Xu, if we suffer any more casualties, I'll snap his neck directly. We'll go down together."
Xu Lie understood immediately and replied solemnly, "Don't worry."
Hearing this, even Liu Zhibo himself couldn't hide his panic, but he still braced himself and tried to negotiate, "Do you think you can get out by holding me?"
"That's far too naive. I've already planted explosives in that cave outside."
"The moment my heart stops, they will detonate."
"Try touching me!"
The bodyguards, still unsure who had the upper hand, could only continue to crouch with their heads in their hands.
A flicker of excitement rose in Su Yinchuan's eyes.
He had initially thought Li Chonglou merely had sharp eyesight, but he never expected him to be so courageous, and that the tall man accompanying him was so skilled.
To instantly equalize the situation was an unexpected delight.
At this moment, as the boss, he naturally had to stabilize the situation.
He spoke out, "Liu Zhibo, you don't need to threaten us."
"If we don't capture you, we are certain to die. Capturing you gives us a sliver of hope."
"If you don't want your boss to die, then all of you put down your guns."
The veins on Zhu Mingzhe's gun-holding hand bulged, his expression tense, but in the end, he threw his gun onto the ground.
He had realized that without Liu Zhibo, he wouldn't get a single cent.
If Liu Zhibo died, their efforts would be in vain, a loss that outweighed any gain.
Besides, Su Yinchuan and his group were not desperate fugitives. If they pretended to surrender, these people would not kill Liu Zhibo or themselves, and they could find another opportunity later.
With just that one big fellow, how many could he fight?
As soon as he released his subordinates, they no longer dared to hesitate and followed suit, laying down their weapons.
"Aren't you going to pick up the guns?" Li Chonglou gave Lan Ying a look.
Lan Ying reacted and shouted, "What are you still squatting there like quails for? Cowards!"
The bodyguards, pale with fear, quickly grabbed their guns and pointed them back at Zhu Mingzhe and his men.
With guns in hand, their courage immediately swelled, and the situation reversed.
"Su Yinchuan, you truly are an old fox, trying to guard against me too, aren't you?" Liu Zhibo, seeing the scene, cursed with a face full of venom, "I never expected you to bring in an expert."
He had thoroughly investigated Liu Zhibo's background.
A bunch of rabble surrounding him.
But he never expected him to bring in a martial artist under the guise of appraising items.
Judging by Xu Lie's series of moves in capturing him earlier, none of his subordinates were a match.
He had to admit defeat.
However, he, Liu Zhibo, was no coward.
Even if captured, he might not compromise. It was still uncertain who would have the last laugh.
"President Su was unaware of this matter." As soon as the words fell, Li Chonglou walked up to him and said lightly, "Liu Zhibo, you used my master to scout the ancient site of Hai Commandery, finding the exact location of the Qiang King's tomb."
"Then you sent people to shoot him dead."
"Unfortunately, man proposes, but heaven disposes. My master not only survived but the Qiang King's tomb was also completely looted."
"All your efforts were in vain. This is your retribution!"
Upon hearing this, Liu Zhibo's pupils contracted violently, his face filled with disbelief, "You... your master is Lin Zhendong?"
"He's not dead? How is that possible?"
"That bullet clearly hit his heart!"
Li Chonglou's words were like a bolt from the blue to him.
He had thought Lin Zhendong was as good as dead. His daughter, on the other hand, was troublesome, and he hadn't dared to return to Xihai during this period.
Fearing retaliation.
In the end, he didn't wait for Lin Ying but received other disciples.
He had no idea Lin Zhendong had taken other disciples.
"My master is blessed with great fortune. How could a scoundrel like you harm him?" Li Chonglou's eyes glinted with killing intent. "Karma is a bitch, and retribution is swift. We are here for you this time."
Although his words were not harsh, the naked killing intent in his eyes made Liu Zhibo's heart tremble.
He had met countless people, but he had never seen Li Chonglou's eyes so chillingly cold.
As if devoid of any emotion, it made one's soul tremble.
He had fallen, completely fallen.
If it were just Su Yinchuan, Li Chonglou would never let him live.
For a moment, his face turned ashen.
His eyes were filled with despair and resentment.
"So that Qingyan Shi was used to save his master..." Su Yinchuan suddenly realized.
After all, he was a social elite, with a sharp mind and exceptional intelligence.
Listening to their conversation, he could guess the general idea. Li Chonglou had been looking for Qingyan Shi to save his master.
And the reason he agreed to come here with him was likely because he knew Liu Zhibo was here, and he was here for revenge.
He never expected it.
His unintentional act had saved his own life.
If not for Xu Lie today, not only would his fortune be lost, but he wouldn't even be able to return to his family.
"Godfather, there's no need to waste words with this kind of person. Let's get out of here quickly." Lan Ying stepped forward and snatched the transfer agreement from Liu Zhibo's hand, tearing it into pieces with a rip.
Su Yinchuan nodded and said, "Little Li, Little Xu, let's leave this tomb first."
"There's no signal here. Once we get outside, we'll call the police and bring him to justice."
Li Chonglou, however, did not move. He retorted, "President Su, if you handed him over for justice, to what extent could you go?"
Su Yinchuan was slightly taken aback but quickly responded, "Death penalty is unavoidable."
"Just for tomb raiding, kidnapping, extortion, and murder, I will use all my connections to ensure he gets his just deserts."
Since he knew Li Chonglou and Xu Lie were here for revenge, he was determined not to let Liu Zhibo live.
However, taking a life without authorization was illegal.
He had a good impression of Li Chonglou and did not want him to make a mistake.
Calling the police and using the power of the law was the most appropriate solution.
"Okay, you wait for me here for a moment." Li Chonglou nodded in agreement.
Then he turned and walked to the tomb wall, using his LED light to examine the murals on the wall carefully.
Su Yinchuan followed behind him, looking confused, "Little Li, do you understand it?"
"I don't, but that doesn't stop me from remembering it." Li Chonglou took out his phone and took a series of photos.
He could actually understand some of the murals.
The story depicted was about Wang Mang sending envoys with gold and goods to lure the Qiang people from beyond the frontier to surrender. Driven by self-interest, the Qiang King decided to offer the Western Sea Commandery and a secret treasure.
That secret treasure was Shi Boliang.
However, the Western Sea Commandery lasted only a little over ten years before it was abandoned.
Shi Boliang then fell into Wang Mang's possession and disappeared without a trace. The Qiang people, enraged at being deceived, recaptured the Western Sea Commandery.
But there was no sign of the secret treasure, and the Qiang King lived his life regretting it.
Apart from these, the other patterns were about power struggles and internal strife within the Qiang tribe, which no longer attracted Li Chonglou's attention.
From this information, he saw a huge clue.
Shi Boliang was passed from the Qin people to the Qiang tribe, then obtained by Wang Mang at the end of the Western Han Dynasty, and later disappeared without a trace.
He wondered if his master had gone to Wang Mang's tomb to search for it.
He had to return as soon as possible to inform him of the situation.
As for Su Yinchuan, he felt it was best not to let him know, as the matter was of great importance and could not afford any negligence.
Su Yinchuan was skeptical, but seeing Li Chonglou's demeanor, he didn't press further.
After he finished taking photos, he had the remaining three bodyguards escort Zhu Mingzhe and his men out of the cave.
Xu Lie continued to hold Liu Zhibo hostage as a safeguard.
As long as he was handed over to the police, with Su Yinchuan's influence in Xihai, he truly didn't need to worry anymore.
Liu Zhibo had nowhere to run.
As they retreated, no one spoke, each with their own calculations.
Zhu Mingzhe and his group were looking for an opportunity to escape.
Liu Zhibo's eyes flickered with inner turmoil until they were near the cave entrance, when his expression became resolute.
Just as Su Yinchuan's bodyguards escorted his subordinates out of the cave, Liu Zhibo grinned and said, "You think you've won, right?"
"Enough nonsense, hurry up and go!" Xu Lie impatiently tightened his grip, causing Liu Zhibo's face to turn pale.
Li Chonglou frowned upon hearing this, a bad feeling rising in his heart.
But before he could figure out why,
Suddenly, Liu Zhibo raised his left arm and tried to smash it at Xu Lie behind him.
Unfortunately, his martial arts skills were far inferior to Xu Lie's.
With a slight sidestep, he dodged the blow.
Liu Zhibo missed his target, his arm hitting the cave wall fiercely. The watch crystal on his left hand was immediately shattered.
"It's bad!" Seeing this, Li Chonglou's heart lurched.
RUMBLE!
Almost simultaneously, a deafening sound erupted from the cave outside.
The entire tomb chamber began to shake violently, and debris rained down from the ceiling.
The cave entrance was completely blocked by collapsed rubble.
Everyone was stunned. Su Yinchuan's eyes widened. His bodyguards and Liu Zhibo's subordinates had already exited the cave.
They were all blown into minced meat.
Liu Zhibo, that inhumane beast!
"We're going to die anyway, so dying together in this Qiang King's tomb is the best outcome!" Liu Zhibo sneered, as if killing so many people had brought him immense pleasure.
"Freak, madman!" Lan Ying's pretty face turned pale as she murmured.
Thinking that she would have been blown to smithereens if she had gone out first, she couldn't help but feel a chill down her spine.
Li Chonglou's eyes blazed with rage.
He had underestimated the animalistic nature of people like Liu Zhibo and overlooked the fact that a cornered dog would bite.
He didn't care about his own subordinates, so what else was he capable of?
The explosives were buried at the cave entrance, originally intended to destroy evidence after killing Su Yinchuan.
Now they had become the tools to bury themselves.
With the tomb passage blocked, everyone would die inside.
In a tomb filled with stones like this, it was impossible to escape with manual labor alone, without modern tools.
This... was the real great tribulation, wasn't it?
Li Chonglou took a deep breath and slapped Liu Zhibo fiercely across the face.
SLAP!
A cracking sound echoed throughout the cave.
Liu Zhibo, however, still wore a sinister grin, looking at Li Chonglou triumphantly as if he were the final victor.