Chapter 13 Secrets of the Devil's Col

The four of us were assigned to a tent larger than the original camp's, with warmer felt padding and much brighter lights.

Guards stood outside the tent, even accompanying us to the latrine. Our every move was under surveillance. Zoe and Han Yu went together to the latrine, providing cover for each other and bolstering their courage. Fortunately, the guards didn't overstep their boundaries.

Suddenly struck by a thought, I asked Zoe, "Is he... your father?"

Zoe paused, her eyes dimming. "His name is Daniel, and he's my godfather. He and my father were very close friends since childhood, attending the same schools from elementary to high school, and even the same university. In my childhood memories, he was a kind and gentle person."

"But later..." Zoe hesitated, "I don't know when exactly, perhaps after my father disappeared, his personality changed drastically. He abandoned his gentle demeanor and became tyrannical. And he became particularly obsessed with the Himalayan research project."

"What's his rank in the Z organization?" I asked.

Zoe shook her head and sighed, "I don't know the Z organization's hierarchy. I guess it's a very high rank. Because he approved my joining the Z organization to search for my father, and I stole some of the information from him."

Han Yu said softly, "It seems he intentionally gave you that information, intending for you to find us and use you to uncover the secrets of that year."

Zoe looked at Han Yu in disbelief. "Are you saying I was used?"

Han Yu lowered her head and was silent for a moment before saying, "The information showed that everyone who entered the Devil's Col disappeared without exception. But Daniel said that some members of the expedition team entered the Devil's Col and came back, and the team sent out a message proving it."

After thinking about it, I said, "Is it possible that someone deliberately spread misinformation? Maybe this never happened, and they just wanted the Z organization to continue investigating the Devil's Col."

"That's possible," Han Yu said. "Of course, there's another possibility: the sole survivor who came out of the Devil's Col sent out a distress signal, but when the Z organization sent people to find him, he disappeared."

Zoe kept her head down, contemplating the possibilities, nervously picking at her fingernails.

Seeing this, Han Yu moved closer to Zoe and gently put her arm around her shoulders. Zoe leaned her head on Han Yu's shoulder.

The secrets of the Devil's Col crashed down like waves, and we, caught in the vortex, struggled to find a moment to breathe.

That night, a fierce wind howled outside the tent, and snowflakes rustled against the canvas. The four of us huddled together, trying to find warmth in the endless snow-capped mountains.

...

We only had a month, a tight schedule with a heavy task, so the next day, Han Yu threw herself into intensive research.

Daniel was "generous" with sharing information. He not only gave Han Yu all the research materials but also granted her extremely high authority, allowing her to assign the camp's researchers to assist her. Because some of the researchers had heavy dialect accents, making it difficult for Han Yu to understand, Zoe acted as a translator. Fatty wasn't idle either, running around with Han Yu and taking on most of the manual labor. I didn't have anything important to do, so I helped out occasionally, assisting Han Yu with computer searches.

Our lives were tied to Han Yu, making her the absolute core of our small team.

We had no idea how Han Yu's research was progressing, but Han Yu confirmed two things from the data: first, Daniel was indeed using Zoe to play the emotional card and find the secrets left by the expedition team members that year; second, regarding the survivor in the "water droplet," just as Zoe said, the Z organization did receive a message from the expedition team near the Devil's Col after the rescue mission failed. However, the message was very brief, containing only three English letters: "s.o.s."

After studying all the materials, Han Yu decided to take a look at the underground base.

A 1984 research report from the Mormon expedition team mentioned that they used electromagnetic equipment to survey the mountains around the Devil's Col. The survey found that the rock density hundreds of meters below the mountains near the Devil's Col changed dramatically. There was no rock or soil, it was hollow. It was difficult to determine the extent of the hollow area, and the Devil's Col seemed to have an unknown substance that continuously absorbed and interfered with electromagnetic waves.

The Z organization believed that there must be something special underground in the Devil's Col. So, a few years after the Mormon expedition team disappeared, the Z organization restarted the research on the Himalayas and the Devil's Col. One part of the work was on the ground, conducting research on the Devil's Col; the other part was underground, exploring the mysterious location.

Since heavy machinery couldn't be used on the Himalayas, they could only rely on manual excavation. The deeper they dug, the less oxygen there was. Eventually, the miners had to wear oxygen tanks and breathing masks to work underground. Under these conditions, they couldn't light oil lamps or torches, so the miners could only rely on the faint light of their helmet lamps to dig.

It was through these people going up and down, and baskets of soil and stones being continuously hoisted from the underground, that the tunnel was dug deeper and deeper. The Z organization spent more than a decade and a lot of manpower to finally dig through to the underground and the hollow part of the mountains.

Led by Daniel and the guards, the four of us took a simple elevator down to more than fifty meters underground.

When the elevator landed, I saw two mine tunnels ahead. One of them was sealed off. Daniel said that the sealed tunnel connected to area A. A few days ago, an accident occurred due to a misoperation. The leaking "water droplet" devoured everything there, so it had been sealed off. Now, we could only go to area B.

Fatty and I exchanged knowing glances because we happened to have overheard their conversation the day area A had the accident.

Daniel led us, crouching, into another dark mine tunnel, slowly advancing with the faint light of the headlamps. All we could see ahead was darkness.

This mine tunnel wasn't a straight passage; it sloped downward, and there were multiple forks in the tunnel. Without a guide, one would definitely get lost.

Daniel explained that they couldn't determine the specific location of the hollow area at the time, so they could only dig in a general direction, exploring in a winding manner. This led to the complex and intersecting mine tunnels, some of which were long and winding. If you took the wrong turn, you might never get out.

Daniel smiled eerily, "Some miners suddenly disappeared while digging... So, you have to stay close to me. If you fall behind, you're on your own."

We didn't question Daniel's words because, according to Han Yu's previous deductions, the Devil's Col was filled with "water droplets." If the miners accidentally dug into a "water droplet" during excavation, they would be sucked into it, which could be the reason for their disappearance.

We followed Daniel, weaving left and right through the mine tunnels, walking for about twenty minutes before finally reaching our destination.

Emerging from the mine tunnel, we felt like we had entered a completely different world. Base B, as seen from the inside, was a rectangular room of about one hundred square meters. The floor was made of milky white marble, and each of the four corners of the ceiling had a pale yellow light source. Even the surrounding walls were made of polished rock of some kind, with a delicate texture and a smooth luster. One wall was carved with colorful and symmetrical patterns. Various detection instruments and equipment were placed inside, somewhat out of place with the surrounding environment. https:/

The low, dark mine tunnel contrasted sharply with the spacious and bright interior, and we couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

Fatty even swore directly, "Damn, that's awesome! You Americans are really willing to spend money on enjoyment."

Daniel's subsequent words poured cold water on us and plunged us into deep fear. "We spent more than a decade digging the dark mine tunnel outside, and we only managed to dig this thing. There's no way we could have built this area."

Zoe opened her mouth wide, her face full of shock. "You mean..."

"That's right. When we dug through the tunnel, this place was already like this. Only the instruments and equipment were brought in later," Daniel said, his expression slightly solemn.

Move your fingers, cast your precious gold and silver tickets, thank you!