Tangdun Strange Tales Notes

Chapter 13

I went to the restaurant and ate a quick bite. Although breakfast was plentiful, I only ate two steamed buns and a bowl of porridge. Then I headed to the parking lot. When I got there, I saw Shi Ping'er and the two men in black standing there. They had all changed into strange clothes, gray-black clothes similar to mountaineering suits. Shi Ping'er looked behind me, pointed at the people, and said, "Everyone's here. We'll distribute the equipment later and then set off. Group B went an hour earlier than us, but they're going in a different direction."

After speaking, Shi Ping'er walked towards a small container truck. I hadn't seen this truck last night. Shi Ping'er opened the container door and had two men in black carry out boxes. After carrying out seven boxes and placing them on the ground, Shi Ping'er pointed to the dark black boxes and said, "Military equipment. It took a lot of effort to get these. They're mainly for your safety. Each box has a combination lock. The combination is your invitation code. Tang Dun is number 1, Lai Bao is number 2, Fu Qing is number 3, Zhong Sheng is number 4, Mi Dou is number 5, Liu Chao is number 6, and I am box number 7. Everyone, please take your things. We don't have much time. We'll leave in 10 minutes. After you take out the equipment, we'll pack it up on the truck."

After Shi Ping'er finished speaking, she squatted down in front of box number 7 and entered the password. Then the box slowly unfolded, revealing drawer-like structures layer by layer. Shi Ping'er quickly took out the contents and put them on. Then we followed her example, opened the box, took out everything, and got into the vehicle—the small container truck. Inside, Shi Ping'er made us take off all our coats and then put on a very small set of clothes that she had taken out of the box. Liu Chao complained, "So small? It's more like it's for my nephew."

Shi Ping'er pulled over her clothes, reached in and took out the black clothes inside, and said, "This is the latest equipment, made in Israel. I heard it was developed in collaboration with the United States. It has a stretch function, and you can pull it out to 2 meters without breaking. It has good toughness and excellent heat retention. It can keep the body temperature constant for 24 hours, so you won't feel hot or cold. It's currently priced at 500,000 yuan a piece on the black market. Whether you wear it or not is up to you."

Old Fu swallowed hard, looked at the clothes for a long time, and then took off some clothes and started to put them on without saying a word. Shi Ping'er turned around, and then we also started to change our clothes. Zhong Sheng also slowly started to change, muttering something to himself.

After we got dressed, we followed Shi Ping'er's instructions and put on the mountaineering clothes hanging in the car. Then Shi Ping'er began to introduce the other equipment and tools: a watch with a compass function, luminous display, waterproof and shockproof, with both digital and analog displays, and capable of emitting a strong light for 30 seconds before the battery runs out if not exposed to sunlight or strong light; a shoulder-mounted flashlight with rechargeable batteries that can last for 3 hours, plus two spare batteries, also waterproof; a dagger; and other items including compressed food, a small oxygen cylinder, a respirator, a gas mask, communication equipment, etc.

After hanging all the stuff on his body, Lao Fu asked Shi Ping'er, "Why isn't there a gun?"

Shi Ping'er glanced at him and said, "Do you think this is a war? What are you doing with a gun? Don't you know it's illegal to carry a gun?"

Old Fu said, "If you can get all these things, why can't you get a gun? What's the use of a broken knife?"

Shi Ping'er didn't answer him, but gave us a rough demonstration of how to use the equipment. Then she warned us not to leave the group without permission after entering the cave. She also set up the formation, with Shi Ping'er in front and me at the rear. Every few minutes, she and I would count the number of people in the middle to make sure that the number of people was complete.

We were sitting in the carriage and couldn't see outside at all, except for a small window that allowed us to glimpse the driver's cab, but that window was always tightly closed. I kept trying to estimate our speed and the road conditions. Based on my intuition, the road conditions weren't very good; the car was frequently experiencing significant bumps. I knew that if I asked Shi Ping'er what route we were on, she wouldn't tell me, so I had to keep it to myself. I looked at my watch and realized that we had been traveling for almost half an hour. Analyzing the map I saw last night, the location where the cave entrance would appear was not far from the reservoir at the foot of Chuanshan Mountain. Normally, it would take about ten minutes to drive from the mountain villa to the reservoir, but it had taken us more than ten minutes now, and the car's speed should have been maintained at 70 kilometers per hour. But intuition is just intuition, and my estimate was probably not accurate.

Notes VII: The Journey to the Ends of the Earth, Chapter 6 (Entrance)

At 7:40, the car stopped, and then the door slowly opened, letting in sunlight. My eyes suddenly felt a little uncomfortable, so I quickly put on my goggles and adjusted the light sensitivity of my glasses as Shi Ping'er had told me before. After feeling a bit better, I got off the car. Once I got off, I looked around and saw nothing but mountains, and everything looked unfamiliar. I had never seen the scenery before. The car was parked in a place that looked like a small canyon. I was wondering why I had never heard of such a place in Chuanshan, a famous tourist attraction, when Shi Ping'er called everyone together. We adjusted our gear one last time and then prepared to set off.

At this moment, Zhong Sheng asked Shi Ping'er if he could not participate, because he was too old and might not be able to handle it. But Shi Ping'er said that the team could be missing anyone, but Professor Zhong could not be missing. Whether this sentence pleased him or not, Zhong Sheng did not say anything else, but silently followed Shi Ping'er to check his equipment.

After everything was ready, Shi Ping'er told the car to return and then led us into the mountains. I hurriedly caught up with Shi Ping'er and asked how much longer we would have to walk. Shi Ping'er took out a compass from her person, looked at it, and said, "We still have a while to go." I was a little surprised that the compass Shi Ping'er was holding was the most traditional folding flip-top type. Shi Ping'er simply said that she liked old things and found them reliable.

I walked at the back of the group, watching the tire tracks of the car slowly disappear from my sight. I felt a wave of unease, but it was quickly dispelled by a thrilling excitement. I straightened my things, rubbed my shoulders, and followed the group into the mountains.

As we walked deeper into the mountains, I felt the sky getting darker and darker, like it was almost dusk. I looked up at the sky and realized that there were hardly any plants growing on the mountainside blocking my view. I grabbed Zhong Sheng, who was in front of me, and asked, "Where is this? Why is it so strange? There are no canyons around here."

Chapter 37 of "Strange Tales of Tangdun"

Chapter 37 of "Strange Tales of Tangdun"

Author: Tang Xiaohao

Zhong Sheng shook his head and laughed, saying he wasn't a geographer and didn't know much about these things, but he knew this place was definitely karst topography, because the area around J City was all karst. I shook my head and continued following the group. We walked for nearly 40 minutes in what looked like a small canyon until we reached a small hill surrounded by bamboo forests. The surroundings looked familiar, so I quickly climbed a nearby hill. Once up, I could see the reservoir next to Chuanshan Mountain in full view, and even some houses. I wondered to myself, "Haven't we gone in a huge circle?" It should only have taken about ten minutes to walk from here along the reservoir.

I quickly jumped down the hill and asked Shi Ping'er. Shi Ping'er smiled and pointed to the way we came, saying, "Go back and walk back. See if you can walk back. If you can, I'll marry you right away."

I hurried back to the small canyon I had crossed earlier, but after only a few steps I realized something was wrong. The path I had come from had vanished, replaced by bamboo groves and overgrown weeds. Shi Ping'er stood behind me, waving and saying, "Take a break now, and wait for your time to run out." She then took something out and placed it on the ground. It resembled a laptop, but with a small satellite-like attachment. After arranging it, she inserted several small, steel-like objects into the ground. Once everything was in place, she took out her communication equipment and placed it next to the laptop, then sat down beside it.

At this time, although Lai Bao was also looking around, most of his attention was still on Mi Dou. Lao Fu was lying on the side, smoking and looking up at the sky. Liu Chao was touching the stones in front of the mountain wall, looking at something. Zhong Sheng was sitting on the ground, grabbing handfuls of soil, looking at it and smelling it, and muttering to himself, "If only I had brought a Luoyang shovel."

Shi Ping'er laughed and said, "That thing is outdated."

I knew about the Luoyang shovel, but I'd never actually seen what it looked like. I only knew it was used in archaeology, so I asked Zhong Sheng what it was for. Zhong Sheng said that the Luoyang shovel was originally used by tomb raiders in Luoyang, hence its name. The inventor is unknown, but the Luoyang shovel's drilling method is very accurate in identifying underground artifacts with minimal error. However, it's inefficient, can damage artifacts, and has limited depth. It can't pass through rocks, groundwater, or sand layers during drilling, and it requires a high level of skill. Skilled users can drill down to 30 meters. The tool basically consists of three parts: a probe, an iron rod, and a shovel head. So, in the earliest archaeological work, due to a lack of readily available tools, the Luoyang shovel was frequently used by both tomb raiders and archaeologists.

I laughed as I heard this and said, "Isn't archaeology the same as tomb raiding?" Zhong Sheng shook his head, smiled, and didn't say anything, continuing to "play" with his soil. I also shook my head. This just proves a saying I've always liked to say: the real masters are always among the people.

About an hour later, Shi Ping'er's communicator suddenly beeped. Shi Ping'er jumped up, grabbed the communicator, put it on her ear, and said to us, "Get ready! Everyone gather around me, hurry up, time's up!" Everyone gathered around Shi Ping'er, and as soon as we got together, the whole place started shaking, almost making it impossible to stand. I immediately dropped to the ground, then felt a wave of dizziness. After the shaking stopped, the small mountain in front of us began to crack open, as if it were rising—no, it should be falling, I can't quite say. I just felt dizzy, and looking at the mountain made me feel lightheaded. I quickly closed my eyes and lowered my head. When the shaking stopped and I looked up, I saw that a cave had appeared!

The appearance of the cave shocked everyone present, including Shi Ping'er. Zhong Sheng kept saying "this," trembling all over, before finally managing to say, "This is unbelievable! How could such a thing happen! Impossible!"

I patted Zhong Sheng on the shoulder and said, "Nothing is impossible, we all saw it." Shi Ping'er only then realized what was happening and quickly urged everyone to go inside, saying that if they were too late, they might not be able to get in. I suddenly thought of a problem, but shook my head and didn't dwell on it. I helped Shi Ping'er pack her things and rushed inside. When I reached the entrance, I was startled; there was almost nothing inside. Shi Ping'er quickly pulled out a few glow sticks from her bag and threw them in. She saw something like a slide appear, and then saw that it was flat ground below. She was the first to slide down, and then shouted to me, "You're the last one in!"

Almost no one else hesitated like I did before entering the cave; they all slid in, and I couldn't pull them back even if I tried. I gritted my teeth and finally slid in myself.

After I slid down, I noticed that everyone was looking in one direction, which was the cave entrance. Only Shi Ping'er was shining a flashlight into the cave, searching carefully. The question that had just occurred to me was: if the cave entrance is closed, how will we get out?

It seems everyone has figured it out now. Just as Lao Fu was about to climb back, the cave entrance closed instantly, as fast as a person closing their mouth. It didn't even give us time to react; it was just a moment.

The closure of the cave entrance shocked us once again. Mi Dou's shout brought us back to our senses. Lai Bao grabbed Shi Ping'er and asked, "How do we get out?"

Shi Ping'er said, "What do you think about me being with you?" Lai Bao let go of Shi Ping'er and patted Mi Dou on the shoulder. Lao Fu sighed, took out a cigarette, and was about to light it when Shi Ping'er grabbed it and said, "Even in a cave at a tourist attraction, smoking isn't allowed, is it?"

Old Fu grumbled as he put away his cigarette. Shi Ping'er took the lighter and threw it on the ground, saying, "I'm reiterating: no smoking, no leaving the group without permission, and you must stay with everyone if you need to go to the toilet!"

Notes VII: The Journey to the Ends of the Earth, Section 7, Group B

Shi Ping'er continued walking forward, saying as she went that everyone should take out a glow stick and hold it in their hands, to use when needed. She and I could turn on our flashlights one after the other, but the others didn't need to be turned on; we could just follow along slowly.

After walking for a while, Shi Ping'er and I each used our communicators to confirm the number of people. Shi Ping'er said on the other end, "We should be able to meet up with Group B soon." I was stunned. Group B had already entered? How did they get in? I thought about it for a long time and realized that there must be more than one entrance to this cave, otherwise how could Group B have gotten in!

After entering the cave, I started to observe it closely and secretly took some stones and put them in my bag. It basically looked like a cave, but it lacked one thing, something that caves usually have: water! This place that resembled a cave didn't have any water. I touched some stalactites, and they were very dry. If I applied a little pressure, the material would turn into sand and flow down. There were also fungi growing under the stalactites, some of which looked like mushrooms. Although I was wearing gloves, I still didn't dare to touch them. I didn't know if these things were safe. It wouldn't be good if something stuck to my gloves, and it would be even more terrifying if it was corrosive.

The cave was incredibly dark. We walked for over half an hour and saw nothing. The cave was terrifyingly deep, with not a single ray of light. Sometimes we could see a tiny glimmer of light, but it was just the beam of a flashlight reflecting off the stalactites. Suddenly, Mi Dou screamed, and the whole group stopped. I saw Lai Bao grab Mi Dou and hug her tightly. Lao Fu also rushed over, but Zhong Sheng took a step back from me. Shi Ping'er asked me through the communicator what was wrong. I said I didn't know, and she told me not to move while she went to check. Then I saw Shi Ping'er's light shining in my direction as she slowly approached. Although I was closest to Mi Dou and Lai Bao, the path was too narrow, only wide enough for one person to pass at a time. The entire path was trapezoidal, with large and small stalactites on both sides. This place, which could only be called a "path," was far too narrow for two people to walk side by side. It seemed that Shi Ping'er was also squeezing her way through.

Shi Ping'er walked over to Mi Dou and asked her what was wrong. Mi Dou said that she stepped on something soft and seemed to have fur. At this moment, Lao Fu said, "Why bring a woman here! So troublesome!" He was immediately silenced by Lai Bao's shout. At this moment, Shi Ping'er told everyone to step back to a slightly more spacious place so that I could pass.

Everyone retreated back to where they came from. I slowly walked back along the path, and when I reached Shi Ping'er's spot, she pointed downwards. I looked down and saw a glove on the ground—a very thick glove. I picked it up and asked Shi Ping'er, "Whose glove is this? Did you drop it?"

Shi Ping'er picked up the gloves, waved them in front of me, and said, "I didn't drop them, and neither did we." I was stunned for a moment, then thought for a moment and said, "Did someone from Group B drop them?"

Shi Ping'er nodded, looked behind me and whispered, "There's something I have to tell you. Anyway, we're already in here, but you have to promise me that you won't tell anyone else after you find out... Wait a minute, I'll go tell them to rest where they are. You go ahead and wait for me. I'll tell you later. They'll probably hear us here."

After saying that, Shi Ping'er walked towards where Lai Bao and the others were. I slowly walked towards the spot where Shi Ping'er had stopped earlier. As I walked, I paid attention to the ground and found that the soil layers were strange. Sometimes it was mud, sometimes it was clods of mud, and sometimes it was completely sand. After walking for a while, I reached the spot where Shi Ping'er had stopped earlier, but I found that I could still see footprints ahead. These were definitely not our footprints. Our shoes were basically the same type of hiking boots. When we stepped on mud, our footprints would definitely have two deep holes at the front and back, which were the marks left by nails. However, the footprints extending in front of us did not have these holes. Moreover, the footprints were very deep, indicating that the person was very heavy or carrying a heavy load. Furthermore, there were no patterns on the bottom of the footprints.

As I was watching, someone patted me on the back. I was startled and trembled all over, almost falling to my knees. Shi Ping'er then spoke up, "You won't admit you're a coward."

I'm actually quite timid. When I was little, I crawled under the table the first time I heard the phone ring... My mom still tells everyone about it, which makes me a frequent target of ridicule.

Shi Ping'er glanced back and said to me, "Did you see those footprints?" I nodded. Shi Ping'er continued, "These footprints aren't entirely left by Group B. Look closely at the area next to the footprints." I followed the beam of Shi Ping'er's flashlight and saw another set of footprints next to the central footprint. Those footprints were the same as ours. Shi Ping'er said that was where Group B left them.

Chapter 38 of "Tangdun Strange Tales Notes"

Chapter 38 of "Tangdun Strange Tales Notes"

Author: Tang Xiaohao

I couldn't figure it out for a long time. Did Group B join yesterday or not long ago? Otherwise, would we be ahead of us? Shi Ping'er looked at me with a biting lip expression, as if she wanted to say something but wouldn't. I almost kicked her when I saw her like that.

Shi Ping'er finally spoke, but after hearing what she said, I almost fell to the ground.

“Group B came in three years ago,” Shi Ping’er told me.

Before I could even ask a question, Shi Ping'er continued, "In other words, they are Group A, and we are Group B. We are the second group, and they are the first group."

I shook my head to indicate that I didn't understand. Shi Ping'er told me to squat down and lean against the stalactite, and to keep my voice down so that no one else would know... The group that came in before had been prepared by Mulin Group 5 years ago. They were ready 3 years ago and then found a way to get in, but they used a blasting method to enter the cave, and did not wait for the natural appearance of the cave entrance which only happens once every 30 years.

Group B consists of four people. Only one of them is from the Mulin Group, namely Shi Ping'er's sister, Shi Mei. The other three are from Thailand. One is a professor's assistant at a Thai university and the organizer of the famous Thai treasure hunting organization "Baiga." The other two are from South Korea and Cambodia. The South Korean man's father once made a fortune in 1985 while salvaging a shipwreck in the South my country Sea with the British explorer Michel Hartcher. This incident attracted the attention of China's archaeological community, which began to focus on marine archaeology and discovered the famous "Nanhai No. 1" shipwreck in 1987. The Cambodian man is said to be quite old. Although he is also a member of the Thai Baiga expedition team, he is said to be a retired Cambodian soldier, which means he is a mercenary.

Led by Shi Mei, the four men entered the cave using explosives. Within 24 hours of entering, they completely lost contact with the outside world. Half a month later, the Mulin Group concluded that the group was dead. However, the Mulin Group's higher-ups did not give up exploring Biyun Cave, because the exploration of Biyun Cave was not under any official jurisdiction and was conducted in secret. Originally, the Mulin Group planned to enter the cave again in 5 years, but during this period, they discovered that the cave entrance might appear once every 30 years, and this year, they prepared another team to enter the cave. Of course, this team was not the same as the current one. As a result, an accident caused the Mulin Company to temporarily disband the previously formed team and reorganize our current unprofessional ragtag group.

Notes VII: The Journey to the Ends of the Earth, Chapter 8: The Mysterious Organization

I asked Shi Ping'er if she chose to participate this time because her sister went missing here. Shi Ping'er nodded and then said, "After that incident, the higher-ups thought the previous team was unreliable, so they temporarily organized the team you are now."

"What happened?" I asked, glancing again in Lai Bao's direction. My heart was pounding with anxiety; what if we couldn't get out of this cave? I'm not even married yet! I should have saved a child before coming here…

Just as Zhang Aimin reappeared, Mulin Group received another communication from Group B. Although Mulin Group had announced the deaths of all members of Group B, they had not actually given up and had been secretly investigating the team. They had stationed people near Chuanshan for a long time, and the communication equipment had been kept on. But a miracle happened. Shi Mei's voice came through the communicator. Her voice was very calm. She said that they had spent nearly 5 hours entering the deepest part of the cave and found some things, but they were not sure what these things were. They were very strange and needed to be investigated on the spot. If possible, they would also bring some things out for further study.

Although the news from Shi Mei shocked the senior management of Mulin Group, they immediately sent a message back to inquire about their situation. However, there was no response from Shi Mei. Mulin Group reviewed the communication recordings and found that Shi Mei seemed to firmly believe that they had only been in the cave for 5 hours and there was nothing else wrong. Then, a day later, they received another message from Shi Mei saying that they had decided to bring back something very important, and that a helicopter might be needed if necessary. After that, there was no further news.

"Then our group's senior management decided to send a second team into the cave, but just as they were about to be sent out, our consulting department received news that the book you have had appeared." Shi Ping'er stood up and shook the sand off her body as she said this, "The detailed records about this cave were actually deciphered from that book."

My mind went blank for a moment, and then one image after another flashed through my mind, from when I learned about the book from the Fu family, all the way to Yang Zhan's death, Wang Qiang's affair, Zhong Sheng's appearance, and him telling me about the book's origin, and so on. A whole bunch of things were swirling in my head. I shook my head hard and asked Shi Ping'er, "You said before that the people in this team are all related to that book, but... I don't understand what the connection is? Or rather, what is the connection between the book and the cave?"

Shi Ping'er sat down again and slowly said, "The organization that created that book... was called Tianya, which is the predecessor of the current Mulin Group."

When I heard what Shi Ping'er said, I trembled all over again. I was in complete chaos, utterly in chaos.

Shi Ping'er sighed and said, "Let me tell you this: you should know what the Tianya organization was originally created for. All the senior members of this organization are hereditary, that is, they are passed down from generation to generation, and they have been passed down to the present day."

I looked at Shi Ping'er and said, "Then...you are too?"

Shi Ping'er nodded and said, "Yes, me too. My father told me these things when I was 18. After that, I knew why the schools I attended since I was a child were all top-notch in the area, and the university I got into was one of the most prestigious in the country. Of course, I relied on my own abilities. All my expenses, tuition and other costs were covered by the group. After graduating from university, I went directly to work for the group and received a lot of other education."

I chuckled and said, "Including things like fighting, right?"

“Fighting, etc.” Shi Ping’er glanced at me and said, “It’s not about fighting.”

I shrugged: "It's still the same."

However, in the early years of the Republic of China, a traitor within Tianya stole the book. He then hired the most famous security escort agency of the time to protect himself and the book to Shanghai, intending to escape abroad from Shanghai. He planned to return to China after the domestic situation stabilized and steal all the treasures and other items described in the book. This traitor didn't realize that he was already being watched by the organization when the book was stolen. Tianya didn't send anyone to capture him, as the traitor only knew there was one copy of the book and didn't know there was a second one. He genuinely believed that the book he possessed contained the secret to immortality. The higher-ups at Tianya decided to use a counter-strategy. Their original plan was to distribute both books to the martial arts world, causing those with ulterior motives to fight each other. Although the books recorded the locations of the hidden treasures, they were all fake; without combining the two books and using special methods, it would be impossible to find the real locations. Therefore, they allowed the traitor to escape, only keeping a close watch on him. However, unexpectedly, he was ambushed on his way by Lao Fu's great-grandfather and his men…

After the book was stolen, Tianya wanted to retrieve it, but then thought it was for the best. The traitor was dead, and the book had successfully reached the market. So he just kept an eye on the Fu family. No matter what, the book couldn't fall into the hands of foreigners. If it fell into the hands of foreigners, or traitors or collaborators, no matter what, no matter the cost, he had to find a way to get the book back.

Fortunately, the first volume of this book has always been in the hands of the Fu family. During the War of Resistance against Japan and the Civil War, the people of Tianya did everything they could to protect the Fu family and their ancestors, and they were determined not to let the Fu family suffer any harm. It is because of this that the Fu family has been able to live peacefully until now.

I quickly asked, "Where did Lao Fu's great-grandfather, grandfather, and father go? You surely know, right?"

Shi Ping'er shook her head and said, "You probably wouldn't believe me if I said I didn't know, but the truth is we really don't know where they went."

I looked at Shi Ping'er with suspicion, but I knew that with her ability to cover up, even a lie detector probably couldn't detect her. Perhaps there was another reason why she wouldn't tell me, so I had no choice but to give up.

Apart from the original organization and the twenty-five people who wrote the book, no one else in Tianya had actually been to the treasure locations and ancient tombs. They also did not pass on the methods to decipher the locations in the book to future generations. They only said that these places should be sealed away forever, since the Qing Dynasty was over and the world had returned to the hands of the Han people. However, the descendants of the Tianya organization believed that although these things should be sealed away, their value and the secrets they contained should be used to benefit future generations. So they tried every means to decipher the locations in the book.

“Wait a minute, that’s strange. The book has always been in the Fu family’s house. No matter how you decipher it, you should be able to combine the two volumes, right?” I interrupted Shi Ping’er and asked.

Shi Ping'er said that although that was the case, each of the twenty-five people who created the book kept their own part in case of unforeseen circumstances. The part kept by the Shi family was the best preserved, and it was engraved on a jade screen passed down in their Shi family. It used a special mathematical algorithm, and the location was the specific location of the Chuanshan treasure recorded. The method used was... that method of immortality, those few medicines and a talisman. In fact, the other medicines were added later to deceive people. The only one that was really related to the location was the bitter bean grass. The talisman was actually a map, and the bitter bean grass represented time.

Notes VII: The Journey to the Ends of the Earth, Chapter 9: The Five Vanished People

Shi Ping'er laughed as she said this: "I think modern people's minds are far less sharp than those of our predecessors. The methods used by our predecessors are completely impossible to crack later. If there is no real method, it is probably impossible to crack them forever. Take this place for example. That symbol is a map, which may be deciphered, but getting to this place is not such a simple matter. You saw it too. After we came in, we could no longer see that place, right?"

I thought about what happened before entering the cave, nodded, and asked, "What happened?"

Chapter 39 of "Tangdun Strange Tales Notes"

Chapter 39 of "Tangdun Strange Tales Notes"

Author: Tang Xiaohao

"To put it simply, you probably wouldn't understand if I explained it in more complicated terms. Normally, it would be very difficult for people to come to this place where the cave entrance appears. Regardless of whether it's the time when the cave entrance is supposed to open, even at normal times, it's impossible to come here. The so-called small canyon we entered doesn't actually exist. You should know what Qimen Dunjia is, right?"

I nodded to indicate that I knew. My earliest knowledge of this came from Hong Kong movies, which seemed similar to the magic I saw in Journey to the West. Later, in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, I saw a story about Zhuge Liang casually placing a few piles of stones and instantly bewitching someone from Eastern Wu. I later learned that this was a type of Qimen Dunjia. After going to university, I read many books and asked many people. Basically, there were two opinions: one was that this thing existed but was lost and no one knows it now; the other was that this thing was just feudal superstition, it didn't exist at all, it was all a scam, and only an idiot would believe it.

Of course, someone as incredibly curious as me would believe the former.

"This place was sealed off in this way from the very beginning. How to describe it... let's use the term 'barrier' that you often see in Japanese manga. You may be able to see this place, but what you see may not be what we see when we come in. If you want to get in from the outside, you can never get in unless you use the correct method. Even if you know the correct opening time of the cave, it will be in vain if you want to come in. We once deciphered this location, but we never came in. We even used a helicopter to fly over and land directly, but we rejected it in the end. First, the sudden appearance of a helicopter around J City, especially a civilian one, would cause a lot of trouble. Second, we couldn't guarantee that the place where we landed would be around this cave."

"So we immediately deciphered the method of entry and finally found an algorithm in the jade screen passed down in our family. First, we had to use feng shui to deduce the numbers. After that, we used that algorithm to calculate the time and direction so that we could get in. The earliest B group knew the way in, but they had to blow it up before the hole was opened."

After Shi Ping'er finished speaking, she stood up and said, "Now I've told you everything I need to tell you. We should set off."

I grabbed her and asked, "There's still a huge question, sister, why were we all gathered here? You haven't told me yet."

Shi Ping'er sighed and said, "Are you really stupid or just pretending? Even after all this, you still don't understand. Do you need to know what the purpose of writing this book was in the first place?"

I said, "Overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming!"

Shi Ping'er continued, "That's right, but there's no Qing Dynasty anymore, no more anti-Qing sentiment. It was said later that only those with great wisdom and destiny can find these places and be connected to that book, do you understand?"

I nodded, but I didn't understand a thing. All I knew was that her meaning was that our coming to this cave was fate, or something like that. Who was she trying to fool? I don't have a brain on my butt. I thought about it and decided to let it go. This question mark would eventually become a period, or maybe even an exclamation mark. I'd deal with it then. Anyway, we were already in here.