The two inspected several cave entrances and found that the terrain was mostly the same, so they couldn't tell which was higher or lower.
Song Hao chose a cave entrance and said, "Let's walk forward and see. If it doesn't work, we'll turn back and look again."
The two continued on their way. To save electricity, they only used one headlamp. The underground caves were a maze, with no clear distinction between naturally formed sections and those carved out by primitive humans. Fortunately, Song Hao had made simple marks on the stone walls to avoid retracing his steps.
As they walked, they suddenly found themselves in a vast, open cavern. The light from their headlamps seemed to be drawn far away, and they had arrived at a large, empty cavern. Even their coughs echoed. The cavern was about thirty meters high and wide, with a flat floor and smooth walls. There wasn't a single stone in sight, clearly indicating that it had been deliberately man-made.
At this moment, Song Hao was stunned by a pattern on the front stone wall. It was a human figure over ten meters tall, complete with limbs, hair, eyes, nose, and mouth, arms and legs outstretched, and a naked body. However, there were several distinct lines carved on the limbs and torso, seemingly representing the route of the Jingluo River. Furthermore, there were more than a dozen such huge human figures carved on the surrounding stone walls, each depicting a different Jingluo route.
Upon closer inspection, Song Hao exclaimed in surprise, "It really is Jing Luo!"
"What scriptures do you think are depicted in this large painting?" Wang Li asked in surprise.
Song Hao excitedly said, "Human meridians! Do you see this? On this human figure drawing, the directions of the Lung Meridian of Hand-Taiyin and the Heart Meridian of Hand-Shaoyin are engraved on the arms, and the directions of the Kidney Meridian of Foot-Shaoyin and the Spleen Meridian of Foot-Taiyin are engraved on the legs. There are even markings of the Ren Meridian on the torso. Although the acupoints are not marked, the locations of these meridians are very precise, and they are surprisingly consistent with those depicted in modern medical books."
"No way!" Wang Li exclaimed in surprise, "How could these primitive people understand medical matters?"
At this moment, Song Hao suddenly realized and said, "I understand. Jing Luo's discovery should be found through introspection within the human body itself. The traditional explanation is incorrect."
Wang Li said, "Brother Song Hao, what are you talking about? I don't understand."
Song Hao excitedly said, "To modern people, the discovery of the meridian system seems like a summary of experience. It's as if the ancients accidentally discovered that certain parts of the body could cure diseases. For example, if someone accidentally cut their finger or another part of their body, and then massaged it, some corresponding symptoms would inexplicably disappear. Over time, these points would accumulate and form what is known as the meridian system. But this explanation is incorrect. The complexity and wonder of the meridian system cannot be discovered in daily life; rather, it is an internal experience that people undergo."
“That’s it!” Song Hao said with another realization: “This place has those magical medicinal stalagmites that can activate the meridians in the human body. The ancients may have already had this feeling, and it was amplified by the stalagmites they obtained by chance, thus further confirming the existence of the meridians.”
"I didn't see any signs of totems or deities on any of the stone wall patterns I saw. Only this human figure pattern with the human body meridian is carved, which shows that the ancient humans who once lived here revered themselves, not any gods."
"Our ancestors were great! They correctly recognized their own innate potential and believed they should develop it. That's why they described the meridians hidden in the human body so precisely. They were showing future generations that this is what humans are like! Meridians have always existed in the human body! This is something that the ancients verified, not something that anyone invented."
Chapter Forty-Six: The Warp and Weft of Heaven and Earth
Song Hao spoke with great excitement and abandon. Wang Li listened, completely bewildered and uninterested, but still stood there listening politely.
"Strange!" Song Hao stopped speaking at this moment, because he found a profile human figure pattern on the other side of the stone wall. Instead of meridians and acupoints, a straight line was carved in the center of the human body, connecting the Baihui acupoint on the head and the Huiyin acupoint between the two genitals. The line hung down, perfectly straight and upright.
Beside this pattern are several other strange patterns, in which the "Jingluo" (meridians) are mostly straight and distributed along the torso, presumably within the body, some even running straight through the internal organs. There is also a large, spring-like spiral that encircles the body. There are as many as seven or eight of these strange "Jingluo," which are distinct from the twelve meridians and eight extraordinary meridians described in medical books.
"This...is this also a Jingluo?" Song Hao asked in surprise, "Or is it a mysterious Jingluo hidden inside the human body that has not yet been discovered?"
Song Hao then shook his head and said, "It couldn't possibly be from the Jingluo school. It must be an artistic imagination that these ancient humans spontaneously developed. The human body only needs the twelve regular meridians and the eight extraordinary meridians, which naturally formed a perfect Jingluo theory."
"Yes, the ancients who sensed such a complex Jingluo system, in order to tell future generations about its real existence, displayed the valuable things they had learned. People today should no longer engage in meaningless debates about whether Jingluo exists. The ancients have already proven it to us."
"The scriptures are not false!" Song Hao concluded with a sigh.
Seeing that Wang Li looked a little tired, Song Hao smiled and said, "Brother Wang, you must be tired. You should rest for a while. I still want to look at these murals some more."
Wang Li shook his head and said, "It's not some kind of martial arts manual, what's the use of looking at it?"
Song Hao laughed and said, "Even the secret techniques for becoming an immortal are not as reliable as this proof that the meridians exist within the human body. The meridians were discovered and proven by our ancient Chinese, not invented by anyone. You and I are born with them. What is a god? Humans themselves are gods!"
Wang Li yawned and said uninterestedly, "Whatever, I'm going to take a nap." With that, he lay down and fell asleep.
Song Hao carefully examined the patterns on the stone wall again, feeling even more excited. The ancients, before the invention of writing, had already proven the existence of the Luo River, which was truly admirable.
"Why aren't the acupoints marked?" Song Hao thought to himself, then shook his head and said, "The meridians and Luo Rivers were discovered, and the acupoints were easy to spot. Back then, there was no written language, so it's possible that the existence of acupoints hadn't been discovered on a large scale yet. Besides, some acupoints are being discovered nowadays. The main thing is that with the discovery of the meridians and Luo Rivers, and the activation of medicinal seedlings and stalagmites, the flow of qi and blood is smooth, and all kinds of diseases are prevented. Acupoints have become less significant to them."
“That should be it!” Song Hao nodded and said, “Also, these mysterious meridians…” Song Hao was confused again for a moment.
Song Hao turned off his miner's lamp, closed his eyes, and sat quietly, sensing the wondrous sensation of meridian flow brought about by the stalagmite.
In a trance, I entered a meditative state. I seemed to see the sun, moon, and stars in the sky, and the rivers and lakes on earth, clearly defined like lines of latitude and longitude…
"Could it be that everything in heaven and earth has its own laws?" Song Hao wondered in his mind.
"The essence of life, the cause of disease, the means of treatment, and the origin of illness lies in the flow of Qi and blood. It determines life and death and treats all diseases. The goal is to achieve health without the need for medicine. This is just the beginning, the beginning of a true understanding of life."
"The correspondence between man and nature! The human body is a complex system, and so is the natural world. There should be a 'meridian' connecting man and nature, otherwise how can there be any connection? The Five Elements and Six Qi are another way of corresponding. More importantly, man needs to increase the sensitivity of his own meridians in order to be more sensitive to nature."
"Modern people have a far from sufficient understanding of themselves, especially of the classics. Their understanding is still in a verification stage. They have not yet fully and clearly grasped the essence that the ancients had already refined. They are still in a vague stage of understanding. It is unclear whether they have regressed or fallen behind."
Song Hao sat there, thinking, and slowly drifted off to sleep.
The underground was quiet, so quiet that he could hear his own heartbeat. After a short nap, Song Hao woke up and, sensing his surroundings, faintly heard the sound of dripping water.
A thought struck Song Hao. He turned on his headlamp, stood up, and followed the sound of dripping water. There wasn't much water left in his backpack.
After passing through a stone cave, the sound of dripping water became clearer. Below one stone wall, Song Hao saw an underground river flowing slowly in one direction. Water droplets continuously seeped from the top of the stone wall, falling into the underground river with a crisp sound.
Upon seeing the scene before him, Song Hao was overjoyed. He quickly went back to wake Wang Li, took him to the underground river, and said happily, "Let's follow this underground river. It should be connected to the river on the surface. This way, we'll have a chance to get out."
Wang Li said helplessly, "Then let's give it a try."
The two then followed the direction of the underground river. They talked as they walked to dispel the loneliness.
Wang Li asked, "I wonder how many days we've been down here?"
Song Hao said, "It should take about three or four days."
"Sigh! The villagers must think we're already in danger," Wang Li sighed, shaking his head.
Song Hao laughed and said, "Then let's go back and give everyone a surprise."
Just then, a splash came from the river ahead, and something surfaced. Song Hao and Wang Li stopped at the sound, shining their headlamps in the direction they were looking. They discovered a water monster, somewhere between a fish and a beast, emerging from the river. It was about the size of a goat, with a single-horned fish head, its gills flapping, and a ferocious appearance. It had short legs, a scaly body, and a long tail like a crocodile. Although it had eyes, they were blind, likely due to the darkness underground and the lack of light over the years, causing it to atrophy. It stood in the river, shaking its head and wagging its tail, using its keen sense of smell to search its surroundings. It had already sensed the presence of strangers.
The monster seemed to sense the light from the miner's lamp, tilted its head, and began to swim quickly toward them. Its deteriorated vision had led to an enhanced sense of smell and hearing, allowing it to quickly pinpoint the location of its target.
"Run!" Song Hao pulled Wang Li, who was somewhat stunned, and the two of them ran away.