Chapter Twenty-Four: The First Group of Tourists

“Pay up!” Tang Long said with a smile, signaling to Zhang Xiu’e with his eyes to collect the money first. The ticket price was three hundred per person, totaling eighteen hundred for six people. Many onlookers stared in disbelief—were there really fools willing to pay to go in and play?

“Is mobile payment okay?” the girl with the ponytail asked tentatively.

Tang Long replied casually, “Transfer, scan code, swipe your phone, chat apps, red envelopes, cash—any way you want to pay, we accept it all!”

Once the ponytail girl had paid for herself and her friends, Tang Long took several copies of the ‘agreement’ from Lian Sheng’s hands, handing them along with a pen to the group.

“Here, take a look. If there are no issues, please sign the contract.”

“There’s a contract?” The ponytail girl’s friends were all quite surprised.

Tang Long smiled, “Of course. Even though you paid, we must also be responsible for the ‘Ghost King Cave’. It’s clearly stated: If you don’t heed staff warnings inside and damage the cave, you’ll be held fully liable for any losses.

And the last clause, bolded—if you intentionally damage the cave and provoke the local villagers’ anger, you may have your leg broken, and the villagers will bear no legal responsibility!”

Hearing Tang Long’s words, the ponytail girl and her friends widened their eyes in disbelief.

Was that really written into the agreement?

Tang Long reassured them with a smile, “No need to worry. As long as you don’t deliberately damage the ‘Ghost King Cave’ and follow the guides' instructions, you’ll be fine.”

Tang Long wasn’t trying to scare them—the ‘broken leg’ clause was something he and Zhang Xiu’e had devised together, destined to become a signature feature of the ‘Ghost King Cave’.

If you recklessly destroy things inside and anger the villagers of Yutou Village, having your leg broken is only fair!

Of course, the villagers would never bully guests or deliberately cause trouble. To ensure this, Zhang Xiu’e had specially bought body cameras for the guides—evidence could always be checked. The clause was more of a warning for those entering the cave.

If you engage in destructive behavior inside, punishment will be severe, not just financially, but physically.

“After signing the agreement and a body search, we can set off!” Tang Long urged.

The six young people, though their origins were unknown, were certainly not fools.

Three hundred yuan was not a cheap ticket, but they should also notice how many villagers were accompanying them.

Each guest would have a villager by their side—first, to ensure they didn’t damage the cave; second, for their personal safety.

They were paying to have fun, so it was only right to make sure they came and left with joy.

After reading through the ‘Cave Entry Agreement’, the ponytail girl found no major issues and quickly signed her name. Her friends, seeing her sign, followed suit without hesitation.

“Sharp objects are not allowed inside the cave!”

“Each person gets a walkie-talkie—stick close to us, don’t get separated!”

After Tang Long finished his instructions, he had two villagers lead the way, followed by the ponytail girl’s friends and himself, making a party of twelve.

“It’s so cold in here!” As soon as she entered, the ponytail girl shivered—the cave was at least ten degrees colder than outside.

“Wait!” Tang Long, following behind, called out urgently.

The lead villager stopped and turned to ask, “Village chief, what’s wrong?”

This was the villagers’ first time guiding tourists into the cave, and they were excited. In half an hour, they’d get a ten-yuan commission. Not a lot, but not insignificant, especially right at their doorstep.

Plus, it was work for the village—there’d be merit shares.

“Go outside and fetch some coats for them, don’t let them freeze,” Tang Long ordered. Soon, two villagers ran out, returning shortly with six green military coats.

Tang Long smiled, “Normally, these coats would be rented for ten yuan each. The ticket price isn’t discounted, but the coats are a gift. Come back often. Put them on—the cave is much colder than here!”

“Thank you!” The ponytail girl took a coat from Tang Long. These coats were newly bought and had never been worn. Though each cost only dozens of yuan, they were pure cotton and very warm.

“Be careful, let’s go!” Tang Long commanded.

The ponytail girl walked beside Tang Long, curious. “Are you the village chief?”

“Yes, my name’s Tang Long, chief of Yutou Village. The ‘Ghost King Cave’ belongs to our village!” Tang Long nodded with a smile.

Yutou Village? Tang Long?

“My name’s Jiang Xue, and these are my classmates,” the ponytail girl said with a smile. “School’s on break, so we came to Taoyuan County for a few days. When we got back, we heard about your ‘Ghost King Cave’.”

She lowered her voice, “Was this really created by lightning?”

Tang Long nodded with a smile. “It rained heavily a few days ago—we saw it ourselves, so it’s true.”

“Did the ‘Ghost King’ really live here before?” One of Jiang Xue’s female classmates up ahead suddenly turned around and couldn’t help but ask. The cave was chilly, and just mentioning the ‘Ghost King’ made it seem colder.

Tang Long shook his head. “I don’t know if the ‘Ghost King’ ever lived here, but the scenery inside is truly spectacular!”

He shone the spotlight overhead, “Look up—what does that look like?”

The cave was twenty or thirty meters high, its ceiling studded with thousands of stalactites, some long, some short, some thick, some thin. Under the spotlight, they gleamed in various colors, an impressive sight.

“So beautiful!” Jiang Xue and her classmates exclaimed.

“Watch your step. If you want to take pictures, we can stop for a bit,” Tang Long said with a smile.

“I want to take pictures!” Someone with a DSLR echoed immediately. “Help me with the light—I want to capture this!”

Tang Long stood where he was and said with a smile, “This can be considered the ‘Ghost King Cave’s’ first scenic spot. This stalactite forest is about two hundred meters long; I’ve named it ‘Ghost Sword Forest’.”

The first cluster of stalactites seen upon entering was naturally the ‘first scenic spot’. As for ‘Ghost Sword Forest’, Tang Long had just made that name up.

“Watch your step. The cave hasn’t been artificially excavated at all—it’s completely natural, so the ground is uneven. Be careful, everyone.”

Tang Long reminded them again. For the first batch of visitors, nothing must go wrong!

The further they went, the rougher the path became. It wasn’t that Tang Long and the villagers didn’t want to take them deeper, but it was simply difficult to navigate.

Even so, Jiang Xue and her classmates were thrilled, taking many spectacular photos.

Stopping and starting, their visit stretched from the planned thirty minutes to nearly an hour, but Tang Long didn’t urge them to leave.

Since they enjoyed it, let them linger and play a while—it was only right to grant this privilege to the very first visitors to the ‘Ghost King Cave’.