Chapter Forty: The One Within the Coffin

"Jarvis, can you reconstruct these inscriptions?" Tony looked helplessly at the damaged characters before him, shaking his head. He was certain that these writings concealed immense secrets related to the cult.

"I'm sorry, sir, but the destruction is quite thorough. I may not be able to retrieve any relevant information for now. Perhaps we need the expertise of an archaeologist." After all, Jarvis was an intelligent system, not a specialist in ancient scripts.

"Alright, it seems we'll have to set this information aside for now." Though Tony was eager to conduct a large-scale excavation, he knew S.H.I.E.L.D. would never permit it.

For now, he abandoned his research into the characters, turning his attention to the immense relief before him. "Jarvis, are there any myths or legends anywhere that resemble the monster depicted on this relief?"

"I'm sorry, sir. I couldn't find any relevant myths or legends. However, if we include games, the creature depicted here does somewhat resemble the fishmen." Jarvis continued to compare the image with figures from various mythologies, but few legends described such twisted and hideous monsters.

Tony hadn't expected much. After all, this was a secretive cult, and one that operated only in a small town. If it were so easy to find related information, Tony might have to question whether S.H.I.E.L.D.'s agents spent their days slacking off—especially since they already had a statue of that so-called evil god in their possession.

"Scan all the information here into my private database. How do I get inside, Jarvis?" Tony shifted his gaze. He'd already spent quite some time down in this cavern, and unlike archaeologists, he didn’t have the luxury to spend weeks studying a single stone.

"Data upload complete, sir." Ever since Tony had entered the cave, Jarvis had been diligently recording data, knowing Tony would later scrutinize the footage. "A probe has detected a movable secret door beneath the idol, but I haven't found any mechanism to open it."

Tony approached the secret door Jarvis mentioned. Over the years, it had fused completely with the surrounding rock, making it indistinguishable to the untrained eye.

"But I'm not just anyone." Tony raised his right hand, and the cutting laser sprang to life. If there was no mechanism, that was fine—he was Iron Man, after all.

The laser easily sliced through the door. With a firm push, Tony toppled it over, finally revealing the hidden chamber below.

What surprised Tony was that the underground space was not as pitch-dark as the outer corridors, but instead bathed in an orange glow.

Jarvis's warning came just then: "Warning, subterranean magma detected."

"Subterranean magma? Jarvis, why didn't you detect this earlier? How could there be magma here?" Tony was startled. This underground space, so close to the surface, harbored molten rock—completely implausible. Who would build a town atop magma?

"Sir, it’s possible the rock walls of this chamber interfered with my sensors. Only after you opened the secret door did my detectors pick up the magma." Jarvis quickly analyzed and offered this conclusion.

"Very well. It seems this secret cult has hidden more than a few mysteries. Can you tell if this is due to an elemental issue or something more mystical?" Tony scraped a stone from the wall and placed it into his storage compartment. He’d need to analyze these samples later—there might be something to uncover.

"Sir, for now, it appears to be an elemental property of the rock, but we can't rule out the influence of mystical forces." Jarvis lacked sufficient data to offer more guidance.

Tony shrugged and strode deeper into the cavern. The place intrigued him more with every step.

Following the source of the light, Tony squeezed through a narrow passage and finally emerged into a vast underground cavern. His pupils contracted at the sight before him.

In the very center of the enormous hollow stood a colossal altar. Atop the altar rested a giant crystal coffin, and through its translucent sides, he could see a woman dressed in white, her eyes closed. A peculiar long sword pierced her abdomen. Though she had clearly been dead for some time, the corpse retained an uncanny vitality.

Surrounding the altar were human skeletons, bound to crosses—dozens at a glance. The orange magma encircled the altar, casting an eerie glow that, together with the crystal coffin and bones, created a tableau at once sinister and sacred.

Tony took a deep breath. Judging from the scene, this cult had practiced human sacrifice. But if they worshipped an evil deity, it was not entirely unthinkable.

"Sir, I'm detecting a faint life force from the woman inside the crystal coffin." Jarvis's report snapped Tony from his thoughts, leaving him incredulous.

"Jarvis, are you certain?" Tony could hardly believe it. According to all available data, this cavern had been abandoned for over twenty years. Even assuming some cultist had miraculously survived and continued the rituals, with such a grievous wound and locked inside a crystal coffin, unless the cultist had just left moments ago, the woman ought to be long dead.

"Sir, you might want to get closer. The presence of magma may be interfering with my life detection instruments." Jarvis's voice calmed Tony somewhat. After a moment’s thought, Tony engaged his thrusters and flew directly to the crystal coffin.

Since the cult had practiced human sacrifice, every inch of this chamber could be a grave for nameless victims. Tony had no desire for his armor to tread upon human remains, even if it was only a possibility.

Up close, Tony scrutinized the woman within the coffin and noticed more peculiarities. She appeared very young, her beautiful face showing not a trace of pain, her skin as pale and flawless as porcelain, seeming almost translucent; her jet-black hair gleamed and flowed smoothly. She wore an elaborate gown from some distant land, her hands folded gracefully over her abdomen, her bearing elegant and noble. If not for the strange sword impaling her, she might have seemed merely asleep.

"Alright, Jarvis, I must admit—she does not look like someone who’s been dead for years." Tony regarded this beauty, so unlike any he’d ever encountered, and had to concede that she certainly didn't appear to be long dead.