Supernatural Insight Eyes
Chapter 361 - 0360 Stele

Chapter 361: 0360 Stele

The next day, before dawn broke, a sudden event occurred and spread among the local businessmen who had come here to seek their fortunes.

In an effort to expedite work, the Stone Mining Workers took shifts around the clock, working without rest.

However, during the late-night hours, a sudden scream erupted from one of the Stone Mining Workers, alarming everyone.

One of the workers, while excavating raw stone, found red soil seeping blood on the ground. The surrounding Stone Mining Workers noticed it too; the soil was strikingly red, like freshly spilled blood, and even emitted a strong stench of blood.

This frightened everyone, and some bold Stone Mining Workers, refusing to believe it was just a coincidence, decided to dig deeper.

Yet, as the shovel dug further, they uncovered numerous human bones, white and gleaming, emitting a white light that was eerie and horrifying in the darkness, instantly, the atmosphere became tense. These bones were not just found in one location; all the Stone Mining Workers encountered the same scene.

It felt like they were excavating a mass grave, as skeletons came into view, clearly human bones, making the scene terrifyingly vivid.

No one kept count, nor did they dare to estimate how many skeletons were buried there. The foreman of the mining area was the first to learn of the news, leading the Stone Mining Workers to strike, as they feared they might uncover even more horrifying things if they continued.

With no other choice, the foreman had to temporarily halt the excavation.

When Ye Qiu, accompanied by Ozawa Ichiro, arrived at the mining area, the gates were closed.

Du Hao, Li Jinglong, and others arrived in succession and, upon hearing the news, found it unbelievable.

It was supposed to be an emerald mine, so how did human bones appear? Anyone hearing about this would be terrified.

Some of the more timid businessmen, no longer interested in staying, quickly left this troubled spot.

Only a few bold businessmen lingered at the entrance of the mining area, curious to find out more.

Du Hao sighed, knowing that buying raw stones had to be temporarily halted, as even the foreman was not in the mood to deal with raw stone transactions, preferring to resolve this troubling issue quickly.

Ozawa Ichiro, however, showed some resolve. Under the watchful eyes of Du Hao and others, Ye Qiu followed Ozawa Ichiro through the gates of the mining area, where they were received by the foreman.

"Mr. Ozawa, I’m afraid you can’t go in today," said the foreman.

Yet, to the foreman’s surprise, Ozawa Ichiro had no intention of giving up. He insisted, "It’s just some dead people’s bones, after all. And as we discussed earlier, I must definitely go inside."

Seeing that persuasion was futile, the foreman allowed Ozawa Ichiro and his group to enter.

The Hou Jiang mining area was situated beneath a large mountain. Although extraction had just begun, one fifth of the mountain had already been excavated, and several caves were gradually deepening, some leading to the underground.

Accompanying Ozawa Ichiro, besides Ye Qiu, were five other people.

The group entered the mining cave, where Ye Qiu and the five others did not engage in conversation. Throughout their journey, they remained taciturn, revealing only a hint of information.

Ye Qiu noticed the silence of these five men, who arranged themselves in a pentagon shape around Ozawa Ichiro, at a distance neither too far nor too close, about half a meter apart, maintaining consistent steps. This confirmed for Ye Qiu that Ozawa Ichiro’s identity was no ordinary one.

The five men followed Ozawa Ichiro’s lead, with Ye Qiu maintaining a certain distance from them on one side.

The one-meter span was precisely the distance Ye Qiu needed to launch any counteractions in response to sudden situations.

As the seven delved deeper into the mining area, Ye Qiu saw the so-called blood-soiled soil, indeed strikingly vivid, with a somewhat pungent blood smell.

What exactly was this place?

Ye Qiu was puzzled. If this place was just a jade mine, Ye Qiu didn’t believe it—it was definitely extraordinary, and considering Ozawa Ichiro’s demeanor, it was very likely hiding a significant secret.

Yet, Ozawa Ichiro had consistently refrained from stating what specific kind of special gemstone he wanted Ye Qiu to find.

As they ventured deeper, the smell of blood grew thicker, and human bones began to appear.

These bones varied in shape, some protruding from the ground; a palm broke through the earth, devoid of any flesh, leaving only the white bones of the fingers—a sight so horrifying, it was an understatement, and could likely scare a more faint-hearted person to death.

The bones became more numerous, and even Ye Qiu frowned deeply, his brows locked together.

Could this place have once been a battlefield?

Ye Qiu couldn’t help but think of the jade with the human figure inside it that he owned—the figure in the jade was vastly different from these white bones. It wore clothes, and although not clearly visible, Ye Qiu was sure it wasn’t just a skeleton but had the texture of flesh, like a body encased in ice.

Ozawa Ichiro seemed to know his way around, appearing as if he had been here several times before.

Seeing Ye Qiu’s puzzled look, Ozawa Ichiro, speaking fluent Chinese, said, "Don’t be surprised. In fact, I have been here before, but we hadn’t dug this deep previously, so these white bones and blood-stained soil were not exposed."

Ye Qiu understood and continued walking for another ten minutes until they reached a crossroads—such interconnecting caves were not unusual.

Ozawa Ichiro turned towards the other cave entrance and pressed on, the five men still closely guarding around, occasionally glancing at Ye Qiu. Despite their efforts to hide their vigilance, they couldn’t escape Ye Qiu’s notice.

These men remained wary of him at all times.

Ye Qiu didn’t point it out, as he too was constantly on guard against these men from the island nation.

People from the island were deeply cunning, a people skilled in concealment and patience, and Ye Qiu wouldn’t let his guard down because of a temporary collaboration. Even Ozawa Ichiro might seize any moment to strike against him.

Soon, they reached a dead end; Ye Qiu discovered they had walked into a huge hollowed-out cave.

This was the end of the path, but the inside wasn’t dark. Oil lamps burned, illuminating the surroundings.

A jade mining area with this appearance?

Ye Qiu was slightly shocked by everything he saw before him.

This place was unlike the mining tunnels they had just passed through, which were filled with a mixture of stones and mud. Upon closer examination, Ye Qiu noticed that the deepest part of the mine was surrounded by huge slabs of stone, each massive and flat, lining the walls.

Most astonishingly, these stone slabs bore strange ancient carvings, both surprising and puzzling.

"This is our true destination for this trip. The next task is up to you," Ozawa Ichiro slowly began.

Knowing why Ye Qiu was surprised, he explained, "This mine was discovered long ago, but the news was never spread beyond these walls, not even by the stone mining workers."

Ye Qiu pondered. No wonder he had never heard any news about this place; it was sealed off to stop the spread of information.

Yet, when Ozawa Ichiro confidently stated that the stone mining workers wouldn’t speak out, Ye Qiu picked up on something in his words.

The workers who unearthed this place likely met with misfortune.

"Could it be that this man from the island’s true purpose is for these carvings on the rocks?" Ye Qiu speculated thoughtfully.