It turned out to be her

At that moment, I still hadn't recovered from the shock and the inexplicable sorrow after viewing the murals. I followed Xueru into the passageway like a puppet. Since Xueru's master wanted to see me, Zhang Jinya and Fatty Wu could only stay in the antechamber. They seemed reluctant, but faced with Xueru, a Happy Ghost with a bad temper, they had no choice but to hold back their complaints.

Xueru led me straight to the main tomb chamber this time. Upon arrival, I noticed a man in armor standing guard at the entrance. His complexion was pale, and he radiated a cold, ghostly aura. Just approaching him made my skin crawl, clearly indicating that this man was not of the living. His armor was distinctive, with animal skin edging on the shoulder and chest plates, a style heavily influenced by nomadic tribes. Such armor was not typical in Chinese history, except for the dynasties established by ethnic minorities. The armor of soldiers during the Qing and Mongol Yuan periods was almost devoid of metal, unlike his. This piqued my curiosity, and I surmised that his armor might be from the era of Emperor Tuoba Tao. I silently noted all these details.

I had a guess about the man's identity — he was likely one of the soldiers who had been buried alive with Hua Mulan. Despite being a woman, Hua Mulan was deeply respected by her soldiers for her ferocity in battle, always leading the charge. It was common for devoted soldiers to be buried with their leader. For example, when Emperor Li Shimin died, it was recorded that tens of thousands of ethnic minority soldiers wanted to commit suicide to follow him in death. However, Li Shimin, being benevolent, issued a decree forbidding such acts, so instead, they cut their faces with knives as a form of mourning. In ancient times, people valued their appearance highly, as it was a gift from their parents not to be damaged. The fact that soldiers would rather cut their faces than be buried alive shows the profound impact ancient generals had on their troops. Hua Mulan, an outstanding general during the Northern Wei dynasty under Emperor Tuoba Tao, had a significant influence on the army. Although she was not recorded in official history due to her gender, it would have been strange if no one had chosen to be buried with her.

"Young man, you've finally arrived."

The armored man looked up at me, and a faint smile slowly emerged on his pale, wooden face. He then said in a chilling tone, "The general has been waiting for you for a long time."

That voice... it sounded so familiar!

I couldn't believe it as I looked at the man, finally remembering where I had heard his voice. It was the night I had acquired the Hundred Spirits Blade, when I experienced sleep paralysis. At that time, unable to open my eyes, I had heard three voices.

One was Xueru's, which I had already identified.

Another was a man's voice, which belonged to the man before me.

And then there was a clear, cold female voice, which I now remembered was Hua Mulan's. No wonder her voice sounded so familiar to me every time she spoke.

"What? Remember now?"

The smile on the man's face grew more pronounced, making my scalp tingle. People say that a ghost's laugh is more unnerving than its cries. Although I knew his laugh was different from those ghosts who wished me harm, and that he was probably expressing goodwill, I was still not used to it. Nevertheless, I nodded. The man patted my shoulder, telling me to seek him out if I ever needed anything. His hand was as cold as ice, and the mere touch made my skin crawl and shiver involuntarily. Realizing the difference between us, he looked at me apologetically and then pushed open the heavy stone door of the main tomb chamber, allowing me to enter. The strength he displayed was startling; a blow from him could easily kill a person on the spot.

Boom!

Regardless, the stone door of the main tomb chamber was finally open. I stopped chatting with the ghostly guard and entered the tomb with a heart full of trepidation. As soon as I stepped in, the door closed behind me with a loud bang.

I then noticed that there were torches lit around the main tomb chamber. Although they didn't provide as much light as modern incandescent bulbs, I could still make out the furnishings inside, albeit a bit dimly.

The main tomb chamber was similar to others I had seen, square and roughly two hundred square meters in size, with a huge stone sarcophagus in the center. There was nothing particularly remarkable about it.

After entering, I merely glanced around and then my gaze settled on a woman next to the stone sarcophagus. She was sitting with her back to me, draped in full armor. Had it not been for her slender back, I wouldn't have been able to tell she was a woman. She sat holding a sword, and unlike others, she didn't exude a ghostly aura; she seemed almost human. I knew this was because of her high spiritual cultivation, similar to that of the White Impermanence, Mr. Bai, who also didn't give off a ghostly vibe. However, Mr. Bai's appearance was grotesque, with his tongue hanging down to his chest, and he wore strange clothes and a tall hat with the words "You've come too" written on it, clearly indicating he was not human.

Without a doubt, the woman sitting with her back to me was Hua Mulan. Seeing her in person, I felt as if I were in a dream. I couldn't believe that this heroine, widely known in folklore, had not entered the cycle of reincarnation and had appeared before me after such a long passage of time.

"You've come."

Hua Mulan had not turned around since the beginning; she remained seated with her back to me and slowly said, "The murals in the antechamber... Have you seen them?"

Her voice, which had obsessed and driven me mad, was now close to my ear. It took me almost ten minutes to snap out of my daze. I calmed my excitement and said, "I have seen them and learned about your life. Can you tell me now why you wanted me to come here?"

"Because... something is after your life!"

Hua Mulan sighed softly, "Not long before you entered here, it had already left the main grave. To prevent it from harming you, I had to hide you in here."

The main grave?

A thought struck me; could it be the thing from the main grave of the Ten Dire Tombs? When we entered the Qinling Mountains, we encountered a tomb tiger, a living corpse. At that time, Qingyi speculated that something from the main grave might have already emerged, and now it seemed it was after my life!

However, at this moment, I was less concerned about my own predicament and more curious about the woman before me. With a hopeful gaze at her graceful silhouette, I asked a question so embarrassingly nerdy that I blush even now thinking about it, "Can you turn around? I want to see your face..."

Hua Mulan's body jerked violently, clearly not expecting such a question. In fact, not even I expected such a question to slip out so unguardedly. I felt a bit embarrassed, but to my surprise, Hua Mulan actually stood up slowly and turned around. Her face was covered with a black veil, and I could only see her eyes, which were like cold stars. They were the most moving and profound eyes I had ever seen, and I still can't forget the astonishment they brought me the first time our gazes met.

But with her turning around, many of the mysteries that had puzzled me suddenly became clear.

The first time the Smiling Corpse impersonated Uncle Li to take my life, the mysterious woman in a cloak who came to my shop and thwarted the Smiling Corpse was Hua Mulan!

The second time the Smiling Corpse impersonated Zhang Jinya and lured me to the back mountain of Dingtao Village to attack me, the person who stood by my side when I was unconscious was also Hua Mulan!!!

Because the mysterious person who saved me those two times had the same physique and aura as Hua Mulan, I was certain of it the moment she stood up!

So... she had been protecting me in secret all along, saving me three times!!!

I stared at Hua Mulan, dumbfounded, not knowing what to say. Hua Mulan hesitated for a moment, then reached for the veil on her face and tore it off...