Chapter 13 The Truth

As the Hungry Ghost left, the blizzard gradually subsided. Even more exciting, Jiang Chengzi and his group returned to the camp.

"Teacher Zigui, Mr. Jiang!" Lu Yu was the first to spot them.

"You... it's so good you're all right." Shang Mo crawled out of the tent, feigning concern as he looked at Jiang Cheng and the others.

Seeing Shang Zuo still acting, Fatty gnashed his teeth. He and Huai Yi grabbed the impostor and pinned him to the ground, starting to tear at his clothes. "Still pretending, huh? You think we don't know who you are?"

Fatty, looking ferocious, roared, "Shang Zuo, let me tell you the truth, I saw through your disguise a long time ago. I didn't expose you because I was playing the long game!"

Hearing this, Gongsun Zhiruo and the others looked puzzled. "What are you talking about? He's Shang Mo, Shang Zuo's grandfather, how could he be..."

Zigui explained the whole story to them in concise terms.

"He's the grave robber Shang Zuo?!" Han Juanjuan widened her eyes, re-evaluating the old man who had been with them all along.

They had seen photos of Shang Zuo before, and he did resemble the old man in front of them, but the age difference was too great, so no one had considered it.

"But how did Shang Zuo become like this?" Lu Yu looked curiously at the old man being restrained.

Huai Yi sneered, his hands not stopping for a moment. "Then you'll have to ask him."

Seeing Fatty and Huai Yi tearing at his clothes, Shang Zuo turned pale with fright and abandoned his disguise. "Stop! You... you don't have to do this, I'll talk, I'll talk, okay?"

"I am Shang Zuo." The old man, lying on the ground with a mournful expression, said, "I didn't mean to deceive you. I... I have my own reasons. Please, you must believe me!"

Bai Xi stared at him, clutching the flare gun in his hand, ready to fire at the slightest provocation. He was constantly on guard against the Hungry Ghost.

Shang Zuo gestured for Fatty and Huai Yi to release him. Gongsun Zhiruo also told Huai Yi to let Shang Zuo go first so he could stand up and talk.

The two of them remained unmoved.

It wasn't until Jiang Cheng spoke that Fatty and Huai Yi let go, allowing the disheveled Shang Zuo to climb up from the ground.

"Let's talk inside the tent," Shang Zuo said. "I have something to show you."

Hearing this, a gleam flashed in Jiang Cheng's eyes. According to their previous deduction, the reason Shang Zuo was being chased by the Hungry Ghost was that he had taken something from the Holy Maiden's Tomb.

And the reason he had become like this was probably related to that item. It was like some kind of curse.

After entering the tent, Shang Zuo slowly took off his coat, his movements awkward due to his hunchback.

But when he took off the innermost layer of clothing, everyone's eyes paused, and some even started breathing rapidly.

Shang Zuo was bare-chested, his exposed skin pale and covered in terrifying cracks, with red flesh visible inside.

Even more frightening, on his back, wrapped in golden cloth, was a strange and enormous bulge. Seen through the cloth, it looked like a huge tumor growing on his body.

The tumor pressed down on him, causing him to be hunched over.

The golden cloth was fastened around his chest and waist with silk ribbons to barely hold it in place.

Shang Zuo looked at everyone with a complex and helpless expression, and after a moment, he said in a hoarse voice, "Don't be afraid, I'm a person, not a ghost."

After saying that, he untied the knot around his chest.

The next moment, the golden cloth slipped down, and Lu Yu's eyes widened, and he couldn't help but exclaim in shock.

Fatty, Huai Yi, and the others who were closer instinctively retreated, and Bai Xi even raised his gun, pointing it directly at Shang Zuo.

On Shang Zuo's back, a human head had appeared!

The head was a bizarre, dark green color and was tightly attached to Shang Zuo's back. Half of the face was fused with the skin of the back, and the area of connection was covered in horrifying blood vessels.

The blood vessels, like thick earthworms, writhed constantly, as if continuously transporting nutrients from Shang Zuo's body to the head.

Even more terrifying, this head was not like an ordinary human head, but a deformed head about one and a half times the size of a normal head.

The two ends were very pointed, forming a bizarre oval shape. The head's face was painted with exaggerated makeup, and a green earring hung on one ear. It looked like a woman.

"Don't be afraid, let me explain slowly." Now that things had come to this, Shang Zuo calmed down. He endured the discomfort in his back and sat down.

"I am Shang Zuo. Shang Mo was my grandfather. He... he died more than ten years ago." Shang Zuo said in a sentimental tone, "What I said before was true. He was an archaeologist, and I am a grave robber. We broke off relations long ago."

"His only mercy to me was that he didn't call the police to arrest me."

"After my grandfather passed away, I found a notebook among his belongings."

"According to the last entry in the notebook, there is a Holy Maiden's Tomb on the summit of a snow mountain. My grandfather and his colleagues had confirmed through various channels that this tomb was real, not a fabrication."

"At first, I didn't take it seriously, but later I learned from my parents that there was no body in my grandfather's coffin, only ceremonial burial garments."

"His body was never recovered. He died during an expedition."

"After detailed comparison, his last known location was in this country."

"And the so-called snow mountain is the Gawu Zhangde Snow Mountain under our feet."

"So your grandfather died in this snow mountain, and you wanted to find out the truth about his death," Han Juanjuan said, as if understanding something.

"No." Shang Zuo looked at him and shook his head. "I'm not interested in his death, but his notebook said there was treasure in that tomb."

"You know, for us, business in China is getting harder and harder. If you get caught, you might get a bullet. So we had to turn our attention to foreign countries, and this place was the first thing that came to my mind."

"Although my grandfather was old-fashioned, he had a very keen eye. I trust his judgment. If he said there was treasure in this tomb, then there definitely is." Shang Zuo's eyes showed no emotion when he spoke of his grandfather, as if he were discussing an insignificant stranger.

"So I told my foreign boss about my plan. He was very interested, so we assembled a team and came to this snow mountain together."

"My boss wanted to see the Holy Maiden's Tomb with his own eyes, so he personally led the team. There were more than 20 of us, all experts in this field."

"At first, things went smoothly. We successfully found the Holy Maiden's Tomb based on the notes left by my grandfather. However, there were no valuable treasures inside, until we opened the stone coffin where the tomb owner's body was stored." Shang Zuo suddenly lowered his voice.