Folk Strange Stories Part 1: The Witch Ancestor of Miao Township Chapter 7 Section 1: The Dried Corpse in a Cave

"I wasn't very confident either. Talking about other things now is of no use. After giving the sniper rifle a simple waterproof treatment, Lao Wang and I advanced into the water pond, with the others following behind. Slowly, we made our way towards the waterfall.

The water from the waterfall hitting my body hurt more than I had imagined, but that didn't matter anymore. On the inner side of the waterfall's mountain, I discovered two rows of giant steel nails used for climbing. Due to the waterfall blocking the view, it was impossible to notice them from the outside. These steel nails were also treated to be slip-resistant. Lao Wang pointed to Song Chunlei and said, 'Chunlei, go up and take a look.'

Though Song Chunlei had less experience, he was the most agile among us. Two minutes later, he climbed down and reported, 'Captain Wang, Shen was right. There's a cave up there.'

'Did you see Mott's group?'

'No, but there are traces of someone passing by the entrance, as if deliberately left behind.'

'Then that's probably it. Let's go up, but be careful.' Lao Wang issued the command.

Climbing about ten meters on the steel nails, I saw the cave that Song Chunlei mentioned. The entrance was a gap about the height of a person. The moment I stepped into the cave, I felt an intense headache, as if a rush of air had blown out from the top of my head. The pain made me lose consciousness instantly. Everything went black, and I almost fell from the entrance. Luckily, Lao Wang behind me gave me a push, shoving me directly into the cave entrance.

The instant I entered the cave, I regained consciousness. The headache disappeared completely, and I opened my eyes to see the surroundings with remarkable clarity (I wasn't wearing night vision goggles). There was no sensation of looking at things in the darkness. This feeling was surprisingly good. Lao Wang came over and gestured, asking what had happened. I waved my hand to indicate I was fine, just slipped a bit earlier. Lao Wang grinned, playfully motioned a strike towards me, conveying that he would "train" me properly later.

After the whole team entered the cave, Lao Wang signaled, and we split into two teams, sneaking along both sides of the cave wall. My eyes gradually adjusted to the dark environment, so I turned off the night vision scope of the sniper rifle.

The interior of the cave was gourd-shaped, and the deeper we went, the more spacious it became, as if there was no end. How big was this mountain? Had it been hollowed out by the cave? After walking for about twenty minutes and still not seeing the end, not to mention the whereabouts of Mott and the dozen or so others. 'Damn, is there an end to this road?' Lao Wang finally couldn't help but speak explicitly, though he lowered his voice significantly.

'Lao Wang, there are people ahead.' Liu Jingsheng, who was at the front, made a discovery, speaking in a hushed tone. The entire team's movements stopped instantly, guns pointed at the figure about twenty meters ahead. The figure didn't seem alive. I could see clearly; there were five or six people kneeling on the ground, their backs to us. They appeared very small and thin, and their heads were hanging low, motionless, completely devoid of any vitality.

Liu Jingsheng and Song Chunlei were at the front. Lao Wang signaled to them to provide cover, then they ran a few steps to the figures. Their actions were quite unusual; they held their guns still and unmoving at the kneeling figures, as if someone had pressed a trigger point on them. After two or three seconds, Liu Jingsheng spoke. His voice changed tone, sounding extremely unnatural, 'Come... and take a look.'

Approaching, I finally understood. Five bodies were kneeling on the ground. To be more precise, there were five headless mummies. I couldn't tell how long they had been dead, both hands tied behind their backs, and all the muscles and fat had dried up, clinging tightly to their bones. The mummies' clothing had been stripped off, and I could recognize that they were five male bodies, and they had been dead for quite a few years.

'What kind of place is this?' Lao Wang muttered, then realized he should report to the platoon leader. Only then did he notice that the radio communication device had no signal; the cave must have blocked it.

'Today isn't going smoothly!' Lao Wang hesitated for a moment and said, 'Wang Zuo, Wang Guofeng, you two go outside the cave and report the situation to the platoon leader. Then stay outside the cave, receive the comrades who will come to reinforce us.'

Seeing them about to leave, I said to Wang Guofeng, 'Guofeng, let's exchange guns.' Wang Guofeng was momentarily puzzled but quickly understood. Inside the cave, there were twists and turns, and if we encountered combat, the sniper rifle wouldn't be as useful as an assault rifle.

Lao Wang didn't object either; he watched as we exchanged firearms and magazines. After a brief pause, he said, 'Wang Zuo, give Shen La two more magazines.' After Wang Zuo handed me the magazines, he removed his night vision goggles, saying, 'Lazi, this won't be useful for me outside; you take it.'"