Haji Hu Is Making His Move

“Lots of things look alike,” Chen Guan said. “If two rocks on the roadside happen to resemble each other, do I have to claim them as family?”

No matter what the truth was, he couldn’t admit right now that the coffin had anything to do with him.

Otherwise, someone would be coming by to invite him for a chat soon enough.

“But I do want to see it for myself,” Chen Guan said.

Yin Chen pressed a hand to his temple, as if he’d expected that exact reply.

“I knew you’d say that, which is why I’m telling you right now—not happening.”

“We can’t touch this thing right now. The Great Wall’s people have sealed off that valley. The entire outer perimeter is cordoned off with warning lines—even recon drones aren’t allowed to fly low. If you really want to come over, you’ll have to get approval from the Great Wall first.”

Yin Chen finished speaking, glanced toward the defensive line in the distance, then panned the camera back. Beyond the cordon, several Great Wall soldiers were recalibrating rune pillars. A cold white light ringed the valley, and even the snow kept its distance.

“That place isn’t one anyone can just walk into anymore. The coffin’s sitting right there, and no one can get close to it.”

Chen Guan didn’t press further. He just stared at the black coffin, thoughts sinking heavy behind his eyes.

Yin Chen was about to say something else when a shout came from somewhere nearby—someone yelling about reinforcing the defense line. The voice came through the wind and snow, chaotic but urgent.

“Let’s leave it here for now,” Yin Chen said, pressing a hand to his earpiece. “Don’t go anywhere. Stay at the school. I’ll update you once I’ve looked into it more.”

Chen Guan nodded. “Fine.”

After the video call ended, the hallway fell quiet for a moment.

An Changqing watched him. Long Ao stayed silent too.

Hong Yuan hoisted her axe onto her shoulder and planted herself right at the stairwell entrance.

With that kind of stance, even teachers passing by had to take a detour.

Chen Guan scanned the three of them. “What’s all this? Trooping up like you’re expecting a siege?”

An Changqing tucked the report under his arm. “Afraid you’ll head to the Northern Territories.”

“I haven’t even walked out the door yet.”

“If you really wanted to run, a door wouldn’t stop you,” Long Ao said.

Hong Yuan nodded vigorously, fully agreeing with Long Ao.

Chen Guan didn’t argue. After all, Yin Chen had made it clear—even if he wanted to take a look, he couldn’t right now.

He put his phone away, hitched the coffin strap higher on his shoulder, and headed toward the dormitory building.

An Changqing fell in half a step behind but didn’t reach out to stop him. He only added a quiet remark at his side.

“Don’t go out tonight.”

“I wasn’t planning to anyway.”

“Good.”

Long Ao walked ahead, deliberately blocking the path.

“If you vanish again in the middle of the night, I’m going straight to the infirmary to ask if the system logged you as dead again.”

“…That’s really unnecessary.”

By the time they reached the dorm floor, it was already close to the dead of night.

The hallway lights burned steady. Outside the window, the night pressed down on the distant glow of the city, quiet with a lingering dampness that hadn’t quite faded.

An Changqing only stopped once he’d walked Chen Guan to his door. Long Ao leaned against the wall across the hallway.

As for Hong Yuan, she’d moved into Su Yuehe’s dorm. Like Chen Guan, Su Yuehe had a single room. Back then it hadn’t seemed strange, but now it was obvious—she’d probably applied for a single room to practice forbidden arts.

Su Yuehe’s video request popped up again at that moment and hung up after a second. She was probably still wrapping things up in the Northern Territories. In the end, she only sent a message.

【Don’t go anywhere.】

Chen Guan looked at those three words and replied with a single “Okay.”

The people outside the door finally seemed to let out half a breath. Clearly, they’d gotten Su Yuehe to send that.

Chen Guan might come across as cold, but deep down he was someone who softened easily.

Chen Guan pushed the door open, closed it behind him, and locked it. He stood with his back against the door for a moment, taking in the familiar yet unfamiliar space.

The room was still. Moonlight from the window spilled across the floorboards, casting a pale wash of light.

Only in these moments did he truly feel like he was back.

He set the coffin against the wall, then reached into his storage ring and pulled out a badge that had been gathering dust.

The badge was engraved with the military emblem of the Great Wall.

It was a private communication marker that Colonel Li Ce from the military department had given him before—it could connect directly to an encrypted channel.

Chen Guan held the badge in his palm and pressed it lightly.

A thin thread of blue light flickered on.

Soon, a ring of dark patterns surfaced around the badge’s edge. A low male voice came through from the other end.

“Little classmate, I heard you just took a stroll past the gates of hell. What’s with the late-night call?”

Chen Guan sat on the edge of the bed, one hand resting on his knee.

“Thank you for the concern, Colonel. That coffin in the Northern Territories—do you know about it?”

The other end went silent for half a second, then Li Ce spoke. “I was at the scene. Though you’re quick on the news.”

“Yin Chen sent it to me.”

“I knew that kid had a loose mouth.” Li Ce paused, the faint rustle of papers turning in the background. “That thing—the Great Wall’s already sealed it off. Very few people can even get to the site, and no one at all can get near the coffin itself.”

Li Ce’s voice dropped lower. “There’s a containment formation around the outer edge of the valley, and beneath that, an old prohibition layer stacked underneath. Our people tried three times—couldn’t even send in a talisman probe. Anyone who gets close either gets dizzy, or outright gets knocked back. Right now, that coffin’s just sitting there, and nobody can do a thing with it.”

“Actually, there were people inside the Great Wall who wanted to reach out to you about this, but Jing stopped them. He said he’d handle it all himself. Looks like he hasn’t gotten around to telling you yet.”

White Tiger? Chen Guan understood. Kitty Tiger was working his magic again.

He wasn’t some nameless, ordinary student anymore. It made sense for people to recognize that the coffin on his back matched the one in the Northern Territories.

For now, all he could do was wait for White Tiger to contact him directly. Hopefully, he’d already finished up his business in Rust Harbor.

Li Ce continued, “Since you still remembered to reach out to me, I’ll throw you a little extra—something I’m allowed to say. The old markings on that coffin’s lid? Nearly identical to the pattern on yours. Just older. And judging by the look of it, the owner didn’t take very good care of it.”

“And there’s stuff you’re not allowed to say?”

“Of course there is. That’ll have to come from Jing. I’m just a lowly colonel.”

“Is there something inside it?”

“Yes.”

Li Ce answered even faster this time.

“The instruments picked up a weird reading—like it’s empty, but like there’s something there at the same time. The moment that thing appeared, all the monsters in the area went out of their way to avoid it. The beast tide pulled back by half, and the other half didn’t dare push into the valley either.”

Chen Guan asked again, “You didn’t find out where it came from?”

“We checked.” Li Ce didn’t hold back. “Couldn’t figure it out. The thing looked like it grew out from under the snow on its own. Beneath the valley is an old battlefield. Things were buried there. Once the wind and snow stopped, it just surfaced by itself.”

Chen Guan’s gaze fell on the coffin beside his bed, his mind picturing what the other one might look like.

“I want to go see it.”

“Not right now. Like I said—you’ll have to ask Jing.”

After that, the two exchanged a few more lines. Li Ce’s answers were honest and to the point: classified, can’t say, ask Jing.

Seeing there was no more information to be gotten, Chen Guan ended the call.

The room returned to dead silence. Moonlight poured through the window.

He sat on the edge of the bed, glancing at the Great Wall badge in his palm, then at the coffin against the wall.

If anything, his talk with Li Ce had only raised more questions. And every single thread pointed to something ominous.