Chapter 28: Robo Bay Prohibited Zone

  I found that since Huang Daxian's death, Old Professor often muttered to himself that he would go to heaven after his own death.

  Was it Huang Daxian and Tang Guangze's quarrel that affected him?

  Recalling the scene of Wong Tai Sin's death, I still feel a heart that is terrified and unstoppable.

  That mournful begging voice is the most chilling.

  "I'm such a good person, I give money to beggars on the street, I often help others, as long as they're in trouble, I'll provide them with some assistance... but they're like a group of demons..."

  The old professor said, and suddenly burst into tears. He took off his glasses, wiped his eyes with his hand, and continued: "Huang Daxian kept repeating that Dr. Tang should take people back. He said, you will all die, no one can escape, they are here to find something... But Dr. Tang didn't believe him, saying Huang Daxian was driven mad by being locked up in prison..."

  "But I knew Huang Daxian was not joking, just like the people who were sent there at that time, no one could come back alive, I only hope they..."

  I couldn't help but ask: "Who are they?"

  This is the second time I've heard about them, I remember that small notebook on the corpse we dug up with Lin Wu Xuan in the sand had these words written on it, but didn't specifically say what they were.

  Waiting for them to come and get it? Is it that box they're coming for?

  What Huang Daxian said is about that box, right?

  The box was taken away by my grandfather, and after my grandfather's death, was it in my father's hands?

  The old professor shook his head violently, looking like he was on the verge of collapse. The terrified look on his face wasn't fake at all. His hands were shaking severely: "Who are they? I don't know who they are either..."

  "You think you know, probably that place is definitely at Tieban River." My heart sank suddenly, the feeling of grasping the answer and then letting it slip away again, eroded my entire mind, almost driving me crazy.

  Tiěbǎn River is a place I've heard of. That river is quite famous because the Lop Nur "Female" Corpse was once unearthed there.

  But will we go to the same place? I think not, rivers have their source and confluence. The place where the Lop Nur female corpse was found is near the Luobu Lake area, but the origin of the Tieban River is from the Tarim River.

  So it means we have to go through a place called Lop Nur in China which is known as a forbidden zone.

  Robo Peak is not a place that anyone can pass through, the rumors about Robo Peak are incredibly mysterious, Robo Peak has always been a symbol of mystery, with many unexplained phenomena, also known as the "Death Zone".

  No matter whether it is a person or a scientific expedition team or an airplane, as long as they fly over the Robo Lake, they will encounter some unexplained disappearances.

  Robo has nine unsolved mysteries, which are some materials I have browsed when reading books.

  Then I will give a few examples of more significant events:

  In 1949, a plane flying from Chongqing to Dihua (Urumqi) went missing over the sky of Xuanwei County. This time is close to the time of the Korean War. Now I know that my grandfather participated in the reconnaissance event of the Korean War, and I am very sensitive to numbers, especially between 1950 and 1953. When I think of this math, my body suddenly shakes violently. The time difference is only one year, or even less than a year. Maybe they have some kind of connection.

  After nearly eight years, the plane was found in the eastern part of Robo Lake, and all personnel on board had died. What is puzzling is that the plane was originally flying northwest, why did it suddenly change course and fly due south?

  In June 1996, Chinese explorer Yu Chunshun disappeared during a solo trek in the Lop Nur desert. When his body was discovered by helicopter, forensic examination showed that he had been dead for five days, due to deviating from his planned route by over 15 kilometers and being unable to find water sources, ultimately dying of thirst. After his death, people found that his head was facing the direction of Shanghai, which made me suspect at the time that Yu Chunshun's death was too mysterious.

  Of course, the most mysterious thing is that someone said that the famous scientist Peng Jiamu mysteriously disappeared in Lop Nur, and was selected as one of the top 10 unsolved mysteries of the 20th century, because it is the most suspenseful, the most shocking, and the most unthinkable.

  All of the above happened in the restricted area of Robo Lake. If I had known that we were going to pass through Robo Lake this time, damn it, I wouldn't have come even if you killed me. Can I say now that I regret it?

  But what's the use of regret now? We're already in the desert and so many people have died, there's no turning back.

  Thinking of this, I took a glance at the old professor. This nearly fifty-year-old man looked quite vigorous physically, but compared to us, he was just an old fellow who liked to make trouble for no reason. Why didn't he just stay home and enjoy his life instead of running around causing trouble? It seriously showed that he didn't understand the inner world of intellectuals.

  "Little brother, I can only tell you this much. The rest is up to you." The old professor's eyes flickered with a hint of emotion that was hard to detect, as if he wanted to say something more to me, but he was still hesitating.

  In that one second, I was very sure that the old man had something hidden from me. My intuition told me that what he just said to me was related to me, and he must have hidden important things from me. Realizing this, I couldn't calm down anymore. I directly grabbed the old professor's clothes and interrogated him: "What are you hiding from me? What you heard is not just those things, right? You know how Huang Daxian died, what ritual he was performing when he died... all these things you've seen, you clearly know what's going on. Maybe the next person to die will be you! Anyway, you're so eager to go to heaven, and you'll drag down Yu Gang, that brainless guy, and that innocent little girl, Xiang'er. If everyone who's left alive dies, your sin will be deep. Even if you die, don't think about going to heaven... I think Jesus won't let you into heaven either..."

  The old professor's face turned whiter and whiter, as if a gust of wind could blow him away. Seeing this effect, I was very satisfied in my heart, but at the same time, I had a deep sense of guilt. He had only accidentally overheard their quarrel, and now I was like a ruthless interrogator, completely disregarding his feelings, repeatedly striking at his emotional bottom line.

  Yes, I want him to collapse.

  "Dr. Tang said... He said you can find that box if you bring it with you... He also said..."

  The old professor's emotions seemed to break down under my persistent questioning, and he began to sob quietly. The suppressed crying sounded like it had been bottled up in his heart for a very long time, filling me with a pang of guilt.

  I don't want it to be like this either, but I don't want to die without knowing what's going on.

  Maybe I'm just a selfish person, in order to survive, as long as I don't kill people, I'll do anything, let alone I've already killed people.

  The old professor's words shocked me suddenly, why did he say that taking me with him would find the box? Why?

  This reminds me of what happened that night in the dorm, someone broke into my room and said they were looking for a box? Slap, now I remember that at that time I forgot how Yu Gang knew about that box. It seems necessary to find Yu Gang to talk about this matter.

  "What else did he say?"

  I pressed him tightly and asked him.

  "Hurry up and tell me, what did Dr. Tang say, and what does it have to do with me?"

  At this moment, I'm as anxious as a fish out of water, if I don't find the answer soon, I'll definitely die. If I don't know the answer, I don't know what I'll do either.

  "He said..."

  The old professor was shaking all over and looked as if he might pass out at any moment.

  He will die, and I guess I'll be 'done in' too.

  A strong thought suddenly flashed through my mind, I'd rather die than him, at least he's lived to this age. I was shocked by my own thoughts, how could I have such a terrifying idea.

  That's not me.

  Suddenly, the old professor's strength increased, he violently broke free from my grasp, took a step back, and a fierce glint flashed in his eyes as he pulled out a gun and pointed it at me.

  Damn it, now even this old man has a gun. If I had known he was armed, I would rather die than interrogate him in that way.

  Will he shoot me dead?

  At that moment, I didn't know how to react. No one had ever pointed a gun at my head before. At that moment, my mind was completely blank because I was convinced that the old professor would pull the trigger.

  "Don't force me..." His hand trembled, as if he was very reluctant to do so.

  In that second, I panicked and hastily said: "I won't 'force' you, put down the gun, okay? You don't have to get a life sentence for this."

  "You keep asking me non-stop about things I don't know... how can I tell you..."

  The more he says this, the more I suspect that he just doesn't want to tell me, and as for why, I also can't figure it out.

  "I didn't know I couldn't say it, I just wanted to know what Dr. Tang was hiding from me..."

  "Bullshit..."

  I'm covered in black lines, and the normally elegant old professor suddenly cursed.

  "Perhaps they are absolutely right, you're nothing good." The old professor's face suddenly sank, and a burst of resentment shot out from his eyes.

  Wait, someone actually said I'm not a good person? Who the hell is that little bastard, daring to speak ill of me behind my back and ruin my reputation. Don't let me catch him, or else he's dead for sure.

  Hearing this, I didn't even have time to be afraid. My eyes locked tightly onto the old professor and asked: "Who said I'm not a good person? Tell me, I promise I won't kill him."

  At that time, I had forgotten that a gun was still pointing at me. As I took a step towards the old professor, he poked the gun against my temple. Seeing the gun, I was so frightened that I sat down on the sand immediately.

  Old man, you're scaring me like this, does your wife know? He knows and won't he beat you to death?