"Still...or a woman?"
However, the results of the investigation disappointed Zhuang Rui once again. The remains inside the coffin were still those of a woman, and the burial items were exactly the same as those in the previous one.
"Damn it, are you trying to harass us? We're all women, why don't you put us together with that guy in the tomb ahead?"
Zhuang Rui cursed angrily, his mood fluctuating wildly today. He was first terrified by the mass grave of a thousand people, and then stimulated by the Golden House.
Just when they were about to uncover the truth about the tomb, another mishap occurred, which even made Zhuang Rui, who prided himself on his strong heart, feel a little overwhelmed.
"Buddha, Jesus, Muhammad, Jade Emperor, please stop messing with me, okay?"
Zhuang Rui clasped his hands together and muttered something to himself. He had never felt so tired since he had acquired spiritual energy. If the tomb owner did not appear below, Zhuang Rui did not know if he would still have the courage to continue the investigation.
After the spiritual energy passed through the tomb chamber containing the two coffins, Zhuang Rui finally breathed a sigh of relief, because in the tomb chamber below, there was also a coffin, and from the senses transmitted back by the spiritual energy, this coffin was much larger than the other two.
This tomb chamber wasn't very large, and it wasn't paved with gold, but the amount of spiritual energy it contained far exceeded that of the previous tomb chambers. The dense spiritual energy was almost tangible, filling every corner of the tomb chamber.
"This...this is Jun ware, this is Ge ware, and wow, Ding ware too?"
After Zhuang Rui discerned the shapes of some objects, various exquisite Song Dynasty porcelains came into view. These porcelains were arranged very neatly and piled up in the lower right corner of the tomb chamber.
To the left of the coffin was a row of weapons, including a two-meter-long hard bow made entirely of gold. It was unknown what kind of bowstring it used, but it remained intact after a thousand years.
The weapons beside them, some with rotten handles, still exuded a sharp, chilling aura, clearly indicating that they were divine weapons that had once drunk human blood.
How much wealth is buried underground?
Zhuang Rui sighed inwardly. This was merely the tomb of a Mongol emperor, yet it contained treasures that could rival the wealth of a nation. How many such places existed across the vast land of China?
"In my lifetime, I must bring more underground mausoleums to light..."
Zhuang Rui made a grand vow in his heart: these gold and silver treasures originally belonged to the people, and there was no reason for them to be buried deep underground and enjoyed by these long-gone lives.
Taking a deep breath, Zhuang Rui focused his attention on the coffin in the center of the tomb. This coffin was not made of gold, but of a type of wood that Zhuang Rui could not identify, and it contained extremely rich spiritual energy.
The coffin was also inlaid with countless diamonds and jewels, as numerous as the sun, moon and stars.
Passing through the outer coffin, inside was a slightly smaller coffin. The coffin was made of the same material as the outer one, and Zhuang Rui even had the illusion that the spiritual energy he came into contact with contained the fragrance of the coffin.
"Golden brocade quilt..."
When Zhuang Rui's spiritual energy entered the small coffin, the first thing he sensed was several thick brocade quilts woven with gold thread, covered with swastika patterns.
People should not associate this symbol with Nazi symbols. In fact, when this symbol appeared, Germany was still nowhere in the world.
The swastika pattern is actually a Buddhist term, a symbol on the chest of the Buddha, representing good fortune and auspiciousness. During the reign of Empress Wu Zetian in the Tang Dynasty, it was pronounced "wan" in Chinese. Under each layer of gold-threaded brocade, jade ornaments were placed. The ancients believed that jade could prevent the body from decaying, and it seems that even the rugged grassland people accepted this concept.
"What...what is this?"
When Zhuang Rui's spiritual energy penetrated the nearly half-meter-thick gold brocade quilt and various burial objects, it finally reached the bottom of the coffin. However, Zhuang Rui's attention was not immediately drawn to the body of the deceased, but rather to an object placed at the very top of the coffin.
The object was square, about ten centimeters high and about thirty centimeters in diameter. It was smooth and moist all over, and was made from a single piece of jade.
Zhuang Rui's gaze was immediately drawn to this object because it radiated brilliant light like the sun, and its rich spiritual energy was a tangible purple-gold color.
Chapter 1158 The Imperial Seal of the State (Part 1)
"What...what is this?"
Zhuang Rui let out a meaningless groan, and his previously tightly closed eyes suddenly opened. He could no longer maintain his composure, because the spiritual energy he was now sensing was something Zhuang Rui had never seen before.
Since gaining supernatural abilities in his eyes, Zhuang Rui's spiritual energy has undergone several upgrades. From the mysterious Jokhang Temple to the pagoda forests of exotic Myanmar and the desolate overseas islands, each upgrade has brought about different changes in the spiritual energy.
From the initial white to light yellow, and then to gold, the range of spiritual energy that Zhuang Rui could sense was gradually expanding. However, he had never encountered spiritual energy emanating from an object like the one before him.
This was a deep purple, almost bewitching, spiritual energy, incredibly abundant. Although it was only a small wisp, the energy it emitted actually suppressed the golden spiritual energy in Zhuang Rui's eyes—a qualitative difference.
Zhuang Rui had seen purple-gold spiritual energy before, but its purity was far inferior to this one, they were simply incomparable.
The pure energy, after merging into the spiritual energy in Zhuang Rui's eyes, seemed to cause a slight change in his eyes. The originally golden spiritual energy seemed to have been mixed with a hint of purple-gold color.
Zhuang Rui, his eyes enveloped by that spiritual energy, was completely captivated. Every time his eyes changed, the comfortable feeling made him feel like he was floating on air, as if his body and soul had been purified.
Zhuang Rui lost track of time; he even forgot to examine the object, completely absorbed in the thrill of leveling up, feeling as if he were floating away on the wind.
"Brother Zhuang, Brother Zhuang..."
Suddenly, a voice that seemed both far away and close at hand drifted into Zhuang Rui's ears, instantly waking him up.
"Peng Fei, I'm here, what's wrong?"
Zhuang Rui sat up, and as soon as he asked the question, he sensed something was wrong, because the sky had completely darkened, and instead of white clouds, it was filled with countless stars.
When Zhuang Rui arrived here, it was still afternoon. After sitting quietly for a while, the moon was already high in the sky. Looking at his watch, Zhuang Rui realized that seven or eight hours had passed since he first arrived.
"Brother Zhuang, what's wrong? Is something alright?"
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's voice, Peng Fei, who had already run more than ten meters away, turned his horse around and galloped over, his face full of tension.
It's not Peng Fei's fault. Zhuang Rui went out on horseback in the afternoon, and it's been eight or nine hours now. Originally, Peng Fei and Dr. Ren thought that Zhuang Rui had returned to the Alzhai Grottoes on his own, but when they went back in the evening, they couldn't find Zhuang Rui anywhere.
This made Peng Fei anxious and he hurriedly went out to look for Zhuang Rui under the cover of night. However, the grassland was lush with green grass in the summer, and Zhuang Rui was sitting on the grass, so there was no sign of him from the outside.
So Peng Fei wandered around the grassland for several hours without finding Zhuang Rui. Just as he was about to search further, he heard Zhuang Rui's voice.
"Ahem, why is it so late?"
Zhuang Rui pretended to rub his eyes and said, "I rode your big white rabbit out this afternoon, sat on the grass, and somehow fell asleep..."
Zhuang Rui couldn't very well say that he had spent the entire afternoon communicating with the ancient ghosts beneath the tomb, could he? He could only make up a reason on the spot. However, the temperature difference on the grassland in summer is quite large, and in the afternoon, lying on the thick grass to sleep is indeed a very pleasant thing.
"It's a white rabbit, not a big white rabbit..."
Peng Fei corrected Zhuang Rui irritably, then continued, "Brother Zhuang, you can't do this! You falling asleep is one thing, but I was so worried I almost hanged myself..."
In the past two years, Zhuang Rui has become much more well-behaved. Apart from tracking the wild horse herd a few days ago, he has rarely disappeared or gone on dangerous adventures without reason. Peng Fei never expected that such a thing would happen just because he went out to walk the horse.
Peng Fei still had the tent with him; he was determined not to return to the camp unless he could find Zhuang Rui.
Zhuang Rui chuckled and said, "Well, it was my fault. Peng Fei, don't you think that White Rabbit is a bit more formidable than before after I trained her this afternoon?"
"Brother Zhuang, it's a White Rabbit..."
Peng Fei said weakly.
"You're the white rabbit..."
"..."
Peng Fei felt that he could no longer communicate with Zhuang Rui. Why did this brother have to pick on him over the name of a horse?
"White Rabbit it is then. Peng Fei, I haven't eaten anything yet, let's get something to eat..."
After successfully changing the subject, Zhuang Rui felt his stomach growling and couldn't help but look at the bundle on Peng Fei's horse.
Peng Fei noticed Zhuang Rui's gaze and said apologetically, "No, I only have two water pouches. I left in a hurry this evening and forgot to bring any food..."
Actually, Peng Fei didn't forget; he just took the wrong package. The package full of dried meat was in the house, while this package contained oil, salt, and seasonings.
Zhuang Rui rolled his eyes upon hearing this and said, "You little rascal, you haven't forgotten about drinking and sleeping, but you've forgotten about food. It'll probably be midnight by the time we get back. Oh well, we'll just have to make do here for the night..."
The distance from here to the Alzhai Grottoes is a good thirty or forty miles. The two of them only have one horse. Zhuang Rui didn't want to ride with Peng Fei. If one of them rode the horse and the other ran, it would probably take at least three or four hours to get back to the Alzhai Grottoes.
More importantly, the nature of the spiritually rich object remains unknown, and the identity of the tomb's occupant is still unclear. Zhuang Rui, of course, did not want to return to the Alzhai Grottoes, and used this as an excuse to stay.
After hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Peng Fei thought for a moment and agreed. He didn't want his white horse to carry two people, so he said, "Okay, Brother Zhuang, you set up the tent and clear a place to start a fire. I'll go see if I can catch a few rabbits to roast..."
As Peng Fei spoke, he took the tent off the horse's back and also took out a bow and a quiver from the side of the horse's back.
"Alright, rabbits are at their fattest this season, shoot a few more..."
Zhuang Rui looked at the bow and quiver, and his lips curled slightly. If he had seen this thing before today, he might have been a little curious, but after seeing the giant golden bow in the underground tomb, the thing in Peng Fei's hand was like a child's toy.
After Peng Fei left, Zhuang Rui quickly set up the tent, then cut off the grass five or six meters in front of the tent and dug a shallow pit about thirty centimeters deep in the ground. In the summer, the grass is moist and there are few dry branches and leaves, so there is no fear of fire.
After finishing his work, Zhuang Rui saw that Peng Fei had not returned yet, so he sat down cross-legged in front of the tent, focused his mind, and channeled the spiritual energy in his eyes into the earth beneath him.
The purplish-gold spiritual energy almost made Zhuang Rui lose himself in it again, but fortunately he remembered that this time he was going to find out the origin of the object. It took him a lot of effort to use his spiritual energy to wrap the square jade base.
"Um?"
Suddenly, Zhuang Rui sensed that the spiritual energy seemed different from before, because he seemed to "see" the shape of the object.
The discovery that it was about "seeing" rather than making judgments based on its shape shocked Zhuang Rui. Could this be a function brought about by the upgrade of spiritual energy?
However, before Zhuang Rui could examine the changes in spiritual energy in detail, he was shocked by the first item that the upgraded spiritual energy "saw"—it was actually a jade seal.
Since the Qin Dynasty, the imperial seal has been called "Xi" and is made of jade. The seal worn by the emperor, empress, and empress dowager is called "Xi". "Yu Xi" is a common name for the imperial seal, which refers specifically to the seal used by the emperor.
It is quite normal to find imperial seals in imperial tombs, because both emperors and ministers had the custom of burying their personal seals with them.
Archaeologists often determine the identity of the tomb owner by examining the seals found in the tomb, which are among the most common items found in tombs.
However, this jade seal caused Zhuang Rui's eyes to widen and his mouth to gape wide enough to swallow an egg, his face filled with shock.
The entire jade seal is pure white. Although it was hidden in a coffin, no stains have seeped into it. The base of the seal is square, about 20 to 30 centimeters in length and width. The top is a dragon-shaped knob, carved with five coiled dragons in the shape of a tiger, so lifelike that it seems to be alive.
What surprised Zhuang Rui was the eight bird-script characters he saw through the jade seal, which clearly read: "By the mandate of Heaven, may the Emperor live long and prosper."
"Could it be...the Imperial Seal of the State?"
Even though Zhuang Rui was used to seeing all kinds of rare antiques, he still felt his lips go dry at this moment. It wasn't that he was shallow-minded; it was just that this thing was too significant.
"Brother Zhuang, what's with that expression? Is something ghostly?"
Just as Zhuang Rui was about to investigate further, Peng Fei's voice suddenly rang out in front of him. It was like a child being caught doing something wrong, which startled Zhuang Rui so much that he shivered and quickly withdrew his spiritual energy.
Even though he was extremely anxious, Zhuang Rui didn't want Peng Fei to notice anything amiss. After calming himself down, he said, half-truthfully, "That's right, I just saw an old Mongolian ghost who's a thousand years old. He told me there are Mongolian emperors' tombs nearby..."
"Tch, Brother Zhuang, have you gone mad from all that archaeology? In broad daylight... no, under the bright moon and stars, what kind of ancient ghost could there be? Alright, you help me start a fire, I'll peel off these two rabbits' butts..."
Peng Fei scoffed at Zhuang Rui's words, raised his hand, and revealed two plump wild rabbits with arrows stuck in their bodies. Each rabbit weighed about five or six pounds, enough for two people to eat.
Chapter 1159 The Imperial Seal of the State (Part 2)
Zhuang Rui chuckled, gathering the collected dry branches to start a fire, and said, "Hehe, there's no ancient Mongolian ghost here, but the terrain is undulating, with rolling hills, like a dragon vein. Maybe it holds the tomb of a Mongolian emperor..."
"Come on, Brother Zhuang, even if it existed, you wouldn't be able to find it. Didn't I tell you, the Mongolians have very unique burial customs? Even their descendants can't find them, let alone you..."
Peng Fei curled his lip, quite dismissive of Zhuang Rui's words. Although he knew nothing about archaeology, he had been hanging out with Zhuang Rui and Dr. Ren for some time and had learned some basic knowledge from their interactions.