sorcière

Chapitre 15

In a private room at a hospital in Hangzhou, Jenny lay peacefully asleep on her bed. I placed a bouquet of lilies I had just bought into the antique glass vase beside her bed, then gently drew back the curtains. A beam of bright sunlight softly streamed into the room. In this beautiful sunlight, I gazed intently at Jenny's sleeping face. Her features were distinct, delicate, and her skin fair, reminding me of Sleeping Beauty from childhood fairy tales. To be honest, from the time I met Jenny until now, I had never had the chance to look at her beautiful and captivating face so closely as I did now.

Since being poisoned by the thousand-year-old corpse bees in the treasure cave of the Tomb Raider General, Jenny and Abao have been very weak. So after finally returning to Hangzhou, Dunzi and I arranged for them to be admitted to this most advanced specialist hospital in the city, hoping that professional medical care and nursing would help them recover as soon as possible.

As I was lost in admiration for her beautiful face, perhaps the increasing footsteps outside the ward disturbed Jenny's sleep, or perhaps the bright sunlight streaming through the window disturbed her sweet dreams. Jenny slowly opened her eyes. When she saw me sitting by her bedside, she smiled with surprise and said, "Why are you here so early? I haven't washed up yet; I must look messy and ugly." Hearing this, I realized why Jenny always woke up early when we went camping together—she was afraid we'd see her unwashed and unkempt. I thought to myself, "She's definitely a girl; her first reaction is always to avoid ruining her image in front of others." So I chuckled and said, "You know what? Nature is true beauty. Have you ever seen the delicate pink lotus blossoms in West Lake after a summer downpour? Even though they're bent and swayed by the rain, that fresh, natural feeling is incomparable to any artificially created beauty." Jenny smiled slightly, a little embarrassed, and said, "Alright, it's my bad luck that you see me in this state. Don't try to act innocent." Hearing her say that and seeing her embarrassed expression, I knew that a Hong Kong business tycoon and public figure like her must usually be very conscious of her appearance and behavior. It must be very uncomfortable for her to be suddenly and abruptly visited before she had even finished dressing. So I didn't continue the conversation, just chuckled at her.

Just then, Jenny suddenly remembered something and hurriedly asked me how Ah Bao was doing. Hearing Jenny's question, I put away my smile and said, "Ah Bao's condition is a bit worse than yours. Although he was already detoxified, the doctor said that because this strange poison is so destructive, it caused some damage to some of his organs before the detoxification process, so he needs to rest for a while to fully recover." I paused for a moment and added, "But don't worry, the doctor said it's only a matter of time. He's no longer in any danger, and with some rest, he'll be back to normal. Dunzi is taking care of him now."

Hearing this, Jenny seemed a little relieved and gently asked, "Have you examined the scroll carefully since you brought it back? Have you made any new discoveries?" I had anticipated this question, so I carefully recounted my findings from the past two days. I said, "I've opened the scroll several times and discovered that it seems to be made of animal or human skin. It has densely packed tattoo patterns and symbols resembling writing. In fact, these symbols are very similar to the writing-like symbols we saw in the shaman's hut and on the outer wall of the Lingtai Temple. I remember you sketched some of these symbols in your treasure-hunting notebook before, so I wanted to borrow that notebook to compare these symbols and see if we can confirm that they belong to the same writing system, and then conduct further research."

Jenny nodded slightly after hearing my explanation and said, "I saw these strange written symbols on my way to find the treasure cave. I had a feeling they held some hidden secret, so I drew them down in a separate notebook as much as possible. I never thought they'd actually come in handy." She then pulled a thick, leather-bound notebook from under her pillow and handed it to me. Just as I was about to take it, my phone blared the loud "Dong Feng Po" tune. I answered the phone; it was my old classmate, Hua Yang. He was my college classmate and roommate, and we'd always been very close. But since graduation, he stayed at the university for graduate school, while I returned to Zhejiang to find work, and we hadn't seen each other for three or four years. He said he was on a business trip in Hangzhou and, having this rare opportunity, insisted on giving me a chance to be a good host. These guys, they learned to take advantage of others back in college, and they still haven't changed. So I said goodbye to Jenny, told her to rest and recuperate, and then left the hospital with Jenny's notebook to visit my old classmate at the hotel address Hua Yang had given me.

At a high-end Holiday Inn by West Lake, I met my old classmate Hua Yang, whom I hadn't seen for many years. He was wearing gold-rimmed glasses, a white shirt, and dark trousers, looking every bit the scholar. Of course, old classmates exchanged pleasantries. During our conversation, I learned that after pursuing his master's degree in archaeology at university, he stayed on as an assistant to his advisor, Professor Cheng Zhongyi. He was in Hangzhou on Professor Cheng's behalf to attend a seminar on the protection and renovation of historical and cultural heritage. The conference wasn't until tomorrow, so he still had time and insisted on taking me to visit various scenic spots in Hangzhou.

Sigh, there's nothing I can do. Now that this rascal has me hooked, I'm not getting away. Since I'm going on a trip with an old classmate, it's really inconvenient to carry Jenny's notebook around, so I tossed it onto Hua Yang's desk in his room, intending to store it there temporarily and retrieve it after our trip. However, I didn't use enough force; the notebook didn't land on the desk but hit the edge and fell to the floor. Hua Yang was standing nearby at that moment. Seeing my notebook on the floor, he picked it up and was about to put it back on the desk.

Unexpectedly, when he saw the notebook with several open pages on the ground, he suddenly seemed to have discovered a new continent. His eyes widened as he carefully flipped through it, asking me as he looked, "Si Nan, where did you get these symbols? Are you also studying these 'Ghost Domain Inscriptions'?" "'Ghost Domain Inscriptions'?" I replied. This was the first time I'd heard anyone call these mysterious symbols. Could Hua Yang have some knowledge of these symbols? Thinking this, I temporarily forgot about my planned outing with Hua Yang and quickly went to him, carefully examining the notebook in his hand. The symbols that Jenny had drawn on the notebook, with their irregular and disordered strokes, did indeed resemble what we commonly call "ghost scribbles." No wonder these symbols were called "Ghost Domain Inscriptions."

"Hua Yang, so you know something about these writing-like symbols?" I asked Hua Yang in surprise. Hua Yang nodded and said, "It's a coincidence. Last month, Professor Cheng happened to acquire several Han Dynasty bronze vessels with these strange writing symbols on them. After extensive investigation and research, Professor Cheng deduced that they are ancient writing symbols. However, the origin and purpose of these writing symbols are very mysterious, and they don't seem to be as simple as ordinary human writing." As he spoke, he pulled up a chair for me to sit down, then pulled up another chair for himself, and continued, "Because this writing is the first of its kind discovered in the history of Chinese archaeology, it has high archaeological and historical research value. Therefore, Professor Cheng has stopped his other archaeological research projects and is now focusing all his efforts on investigating and researching these writing symbols as a completely new topic."

Hearing Hua Yang say this, I was secretly delighted. I was just worried about how to unravel the mystery of these mysterious and difficult-to-understand characters, which were like celestial script. Now, I finally saw hope in solving the mystery of these mysterious characters.

II. Ancheng Ancient House Cellar

Hua Yang then pressed me further about the origin of these symbols. Since we hadn't yet figured out the secrets hidden within the *Burial Scripture*, nor what the outcome would be, I didn't want to involve too many people before things became clear. So, I smiled and said to Hua Yang, "Hey, I'm not as carefree as you. Since graduating from university, I haven't found a satisfactory job in my field. So, I'm temporarily helping out at an antique shop run by a childhood friend. This notebook belongs to a female client from Hong Kong. She wants me to help her study the meaning of these symbols and uncover their secrets. And just as I got the notebook, you called me here."

After listening to my answer, Hua Yang nodded and said with a smile, "I see. I didn't expect that the private collection of antiques has become so popular. Even these ancient characters, such as the 'Ghost Domain Inscriptions,' which are the first of their kind to be discovered in the field of archaeology in China, have already been collected by private collectors." I smiled noncommittally after hearing this.

Then, Hua Yang opened his laptop and showed me several documents and some image files. As I looked, I saw that the bronze vessels in the pictures indeed had inscriptions very similar to the symbols described in Jenny's notebook. The documents detailed the accidental discovery of these Han Dynasty bronze vessels bearing these "ghostly inscriptions" in Ancheng and the process of their archaeological excavation.

In late spring and early summer this year, an old residential area in Ancheng City, Hubei Province, was demolished and rebuilt. According to the plan, a tall shopping center and several commercial and residential communities were to be built on this old area.

At dusk that day, excavator operator Zhao Changsheng was clearing rubble from the foundation of an old house amidst the ruins, as usual. Suddenly, the excavator's bucket seemed to strike something hard, producing a loud "clang" that even made the excavator shake. Zhao Changsheng found this strange. The foundations of these old houses, built in an unknown period, couldn't possibly contain the reinforced concrete of modern buildings. The bricks and stones left on the ground after the houses were demolished had already been cleared away. How could there be a hard object like a rock beneath the foundation soil? Thinking this, Zhao Changsheng decided to climb down from the excavator and check the bucket.

Zhao Changsheng arrived at the excavator bucket and saw that it was now quietly half-inserted into the soil. Next to the bucket, a clump of soil about the size of a pillow had been dug away, revealing an uneven surface of bluestone beneath. Due to the violent impact with the excavator bucket, the bluestone had cracked with a fissure the thickness of a finger, revealing a dark space beneath. Wisps of white mist, accompanied by chilling air, emanated from the crack in the bluestone.

Zhao Changsheng had been operating excavators on construction sites for seven or eight years, and he had heard of and witnessed many instances of antiques and cultural relics being unearthed while digging foundation layers. When he saw the large bluestone in front of him and the dark, cold space beneath its cracks, he sensed that something valuable might be hidden there. Thinking this, he was secretly pleased. It was nearing dusk, and many of his coworkers had already left the site to have dinner nearby, making it less conspicuous to find the treasure now. With this in mind, he immediately returned to the excavator, started the bucket, and cleared away the soil around the bluestone, revealing a massive bluestone about five or six square meters in size. If it were a single piece of bluestone, the excavator bucket alone probably wouldn't be able to dig it up; a crane would be needed to lift it entirely. Fortunately, one corner of the bluestone had been broken off, and the bucket could easily dig out that broken piece. So Zhao Changsheng skillfully started the excavator, and in less than ten minutes, a corner of the bluestone was dug up, revealing a roughly triangular opening just big enough for one person to pass through.

Zhao Changsheng parked the excavator to the side, quickly went to the entrance of the cave, squatted down, and peered into the opening beneath the bluestone. The cave was pitch black; he couldn't see anything below, nor did he know how deep or wide it was. Zhao Changsheng took out a lighter from his pocket, picked up a piece of scrap paper from the ground, lit it, and threw it into the opening. As the scrap paper landed on the ground inside the cave, the burning light allowed him to vaguely make out the general layout of the dark space beneath the bluestone. The ground inside the cave was about three or four meters below the surface, and about five meters wide, resembling the entrance to a tunnel. Zhao Changsheng initially wanted to jump down immediately, but the chilling air blowing from inside the cave filled him with a strange sense of dread. After a moment's thought, he decided to first cover the opening with stone slabs and soil, and then go down to explore further after retrieving ropes and tools.

When Zhao Changsheng returned to his dormitory near the construction site to retrieve ropes, flashlights, and other tools, he happened to run into Li Weigang, a fellow villager who worked at the same site. Li Weigang was puzzled to see Zhao Changsheng rushing out so late without eating, so he stopped him and asked, "Changsheng, where are you going? Aren't you going to eat?" Zhao Changsheng recognized Li Weigang and, realizing they were from the same hometown and worked together, and had a good relationship, and seeing Li Weigang's burly build and strength, and feeling somewhat afraid of venturing alone into the dark underground tunnel to search for treasure, suddenly felt an urge to have Li Weigang join him. So, taking advantage of the fact that no one else was around, Zhao Changsheng recounted to Li Weigang in detail how they had unearthed a hidden tunnel beneath an old house in the construction site ruins that afternoon.

At first, Li Wei couldn't quite believe such a good thing could happen, but seeing the flashlight and rope in Zhao Changsheng's hand, and looking at Zhao Changsheng's serious expression, he quickly believed it. So he put down his rice bowl and followed Zhao Changsheng to the construction site ruins with great enthusiasm.

Night had fallen, and the two men, flashlights in hand, quickly removed the layer of soil covering the tunnel entrance and together moved the stone slab covering it. A deep, dark tunnel entrance appeared before them. Zhao Changsheng, still feeling uneasy looking at the cold, eerie air emanating from the entrance, was about to say something to Li Weigang when, before he could speak, Li Weigang leaped into the tunnel. He then waved to Zhao Changsheng above, saying, "Come down, it's just a bit dark in here, nothing to be afraid of." Seeing that Li Weigang had gone down, Zhao Changsheng simply said "Oh," and then jumped down after him.

When they turned on their flashlights, they found themselves at the entrance to a tunnel. The tunnel walls on either side were constructed of long, sturdy bluestone slabs, with a few water droplets seeping from them, making the space feel unusually cold. Looking further ahead, about five or six meters into the tunnel, was a stone door with a perfectly polished surface. A large, lifelike stone carving of a beast's head adorned the door, startling Zhao Changsheng at first glance. The tunnel floor was also paved with square stones, making it very smooth. It was also spotless, without a single rat in sight.

III. Trapped in the Stone Chamber

Upon reaching the stone gate, they found it to be a gray-black granite gate, about 2.5 meters high and 1.8 meters wide. Besides a raised animal head in relief in the center, the gate's surface was also adorned with 81 thumb-sized, outward-protruding hemispherical studs. Below the animal head were eight large seal script characters, but Zhao Changsheng and his companion couldn't decipher them and didn't pay much attention to their meaning… The two of them tried to push the gate inwards, working up a sweat but failing, and were quite disappointed. “This gate is quite impressive, isn't it? There must be a lot of good stuff inside. It's a pity it's so heavy, otherwise we would have struck it rich,” Li Weigang said disappointedly, scratching his head. “That's right, we were almost at our hands on the old stuff inside, why are we stuck here?” Zhao Changsheng muttered as well. After pushing for a while, the two were also tired, so they lit a cigarette and sat cross-legged against the stone walls on either side of the passage.

Before they'd even finished half a cigarette, Zhao Changsheng and his companion suddenly heard a creaking sound coming from the stone door beside them. Turning around, they saw the door slowly opening by itself. Excited, they immediately stood up, ready to enter and search for treasure. But as soon as they stood, the door stopped opening, leaving only a tiny crack, not enough for one person to pass through. They were very puzzled; why did the door stop opening as soon as they stood up? They tried sitting back down, and as soon as Zhao Changsheng leaned against the stone wall, the door creaked open again. This time, Zhao Changsheng realized he must have triggered some mechanism on the wall, so he quickly turned to check the stone wall behind him. Li Weigang also rushed over to help search. Finally, they discovered a sliding stone slab on the wall. When pushed by an external force, it will cave into the stone wall, thus activating the switch of the stone door. Under the control of the switch, the stone door slowly opens. Just now, Zhao Changsheng had unintentionally moved his back and leaned against this stone slab, thus opening the switch of the stone door in front of him.

Seeing that the stone gate had opened and having ascertained the reason, the two were overjoyed, believing it to be a blessing from heaven, and that they were about to make a fortune. They hurriedly grabbed their flashlights and headed towards the stone chamber inside. When they reached the stone gate, by the light of their flashlights, they saw that the stone chamber wasn't very large, probably around twenty or thirty square meters. The walls of the chamber were painted with brightly colored patterns, mostly depicting sacred mountains and islands, gods and mythical beasts. In the center of the chamber stood a tall bronze cauldron, its lines smooth and beautiful, its design ancient and imposing. Looking further, they saw piles of gold and silver utensils, bamboo slips, and silk books on the floor and in the corners; although not large in size, there were quite a few.

Upon seeing this, the two were overjoyed. They couldn't wait to rush forward and select the finest antiques. However, Li Weigang took a few steps ahead of Zhao Changsheng. But after only two steps, Li Weigang heard a loud crash behind him, followed by a tremor that shook the entire ground. He realized something was wrong and instinctively turned around. He saw a thick, massive stone wall suddenly appear behind him, completely blocking the passage he had come from. Zhao Changsheng was no longer behind him; he was probably blocked by the wall. Li Weigang then realized he might have fallen into a trap set in the passage and felt a chill run down his spine. Using the light of his flashlight, Li Weigang saw three ancient characters carved on the stone wall, but he didn't recognize them. He tried to push the stone wall, but no matter how hard he tried, it wouldn't budge. So he shouted loudly, hoping that Zhao Changsheng outside would quickly find someone to help pry open the huge stone wall, but no matter how loudly he shouted, he did not hear any reply.

Fortunately, Li Weigang was usually carefree, bold, and simple-minded. He figured he was only temporarily trapped in the stone chamber. He was sure Zhao Changsheng outside would go back and call for help to rescue him. With that thought in mind, he wasn't in such a hurry, so he simply took his flashlight and went inside the stone chamber.

Li Weigang arrived at the center of the stone chamber and examined the enormous cauldron. The cauldron was exquisitely decorated and crafted; though covered in mottled patina, it remained a fine work of art. However, its size made it difficult to move. So he moved to the perimeter of the chamber, intending to search for any other valuable antiques he could take. When he saw the various gold and silver vessels haphazardly piled along the walls and corners, he was overjoyed. He immediately took off his shirt and hurriedly wrapped the gold and silver items inside.

As he moved to the innermost stone wall of the chamber, he suddenly noticed a wooden platform, about the size of a desk, in front of it. On it sat what appeared to be a seated human figure. Li Wei shone his flashlight in that direction, wanting to see more closely what deity or bodhisattva was enshrined there. But as soon as he shone the flashlight, he was so terrified he nearly fainted.

The humanoid figure sitting cross-legged before him wasn't a statue of a deity or bodhisattva, but a desiccated corpse with shriveled skin, sunken eye sockets, and a terrifying face. Li Weigang was initially startled, caught off guard. But when he realized it was just an ordinary desiccated corpse, he wasn't particularly afraid. Just as he was about to turn away, he suddenly found his belt firmly gripped by the corpse. A corpse that had been dead for who knows how many years could hold onto a person so tightly? Li Weigang was truly terrified at this moment. When he looked up at the corpse's face again, he saw that its eyes had suddenly opened, now staring at him with an eerie expression. Li Weigang was so frightened by this sudden sight that his heart pounded wildly before he fainted.

Meanwhile, Zhao Changsheng, who was blocked by the stone wall, was about to follow Li Weigang into the stone chamber to collect treasures when, before he could even take a step, a massive stone wall suddenly crashed down from the sky with a deafening roar, firmly blocking his way. Had Zhao Changsheng taken just one more step, he would have been crushed to death instantly. This sudden appearance of the stone wall filled Zhao Changsheng with dread, and he remained shaken for a long time.

After about a minute or two, Zhao Changsheng slowly came to his senses and remembered Li Weigang, who was trapped inside. He hurriedly pounded on the stone wall in front of him and shouted Li Weigang's name. But after shouting for a long time, there was no response from inside. At this moment, Zhao Changsheng realized that they had fallen into a trap in the stone chamber. He recalled the extremely dangerous traps in novels and movies, which could either break limbs or kill instantly. He also remembered that the two of them had originally come for money. They wanted to take back one or two old items to resell so they could buy new clothes for their wives and children and renovate their dilapidated house. But now, not only had they not gotten any old items, but Li Weigang was also trapped in the stone chamber, his life hanging in the balance. If something went wrong and someone died, it would be a serious matter. The more Zhao Changsheng thought about it, the more frightened and anxious he became. The final decision was to return to the construction site dormitory first, gather some fellow workers, and then use tools like crowbars and picks to try and open the thick stone wall to rescue Li Weigang inside. Although this would expose the secret of the gold and silver artifacts inside the stone chamber, and he might not get any benefit from it, it was the only way to proceed, after all, the life of his fellow villager Li Weigang was more important.

IV. Emergency Rescue

When Zhao Changsheng rushed to the workers' dormitory near the construction site, he saw his fellow workers playing cards in small groups on the open ground outside the dormitory building. Zhao Changsheng immediately ran over and explained what had happened. At first, everyone was overjoyed to hear that a cellar containing antiques had been discovered at the construction site, but then they became very anxious upon learning that someone was trapped inside and their fate was unknown. After Zhao Changsheng explained the situation, everyone ran to the tool shed to get crowbars, pickaxes, ropes, hammers, and other tools, and then followed Zhao Changsheng to the entrance of the hole beneath the foundation of the ancient house on the construction site.

To make it easier to enter the tunnel, someone even turned on the lights at the construction site. One by one, the group jumped into the tunnel and followed Zhao Changsheng to the stone wall. They then took tools and began working on it. Because the stone wall was indeed incredibly heavy, and the space inside the tunnel was quite narrow, so many people couldn't stretch their arms and legs properly. Therefore, after working for a long time, they didn't make much progress, only managing to pry open a narrow gap in the stone wall.

At this moment, the bright lights and unusual noises from the construction site alerted the site manager, who also came to the entrance of the tunnel. After learning what had happened, he immediately contacted his superiors and, fearing for his life, dialed 110 (the police emergency number). The news then spread like wildfire around the construction site. "I heard they unearthed an ancient treasury on the construction site." "There's a royal tomb beneath the site." "Many people have died on the site trying to seize the unearthed antiques." Various rumors quickly spread near the construction site and even throughout Ancheng City.

Thirty minutes later, personnel from the construction site command center, the police (110), the municipal cultural relics management bureau, the municipal cultural relics protection unit, the medical rescue team, and even the Ancheng Municipal Party Committee had all arrived. In addition, residents living near the construction site and passersby, hearing that treasure had been unearthed, also flocked to see it. In no time, the entire construction site was packed with people, and the entrance to the passageway was completely blocked.

Shortly after, police cordoned off the area around the entrance to the passage, prohibiting unauthorized personnel from entering. Equipment such as oxygen cylinders, oxygen pumps, gas cutters, and drilling machines were also brought in. Relevant departments quickly established a temporary command group for the rescue and preservation of cultural relics, responsible for coordinating and directing the rescue and excavation work on site. To quickly rescue the trapped individuals while minimizing damage to the cultural relics, after discussing several emergency plans, it was ultimately decided to first drill a hole in the stone wall and inject oxygen to ensure the trapped individuals had sufficient oxygen to survive. Then, to protect the cultural relics inside the stone chamber from damage, it was decided to dig vertically down into the ground above the passage near the stone wall. Once the stone wall was breached, a crane would be used to lift the massive boulder up, allowing access to the chamber for the rescue.

Once the plan was finalized, several workers carried a medium-sized drilling machine into the tunnel, and an oxygen pump was immediately sent down. While the drilling machine was busily working inside, several professionals specializing in ancient site surveys arrived at the construction site. Upon arrival, they used various specialized tools and equipment to survey the ground, determining the exact location of the underground passage and stone chamber, and clearly marked the location of the stone wall on the ground with lime powder. Then, a group of workers quickly rushed to the location marked with white lime and began shoveling away the soil layer by layer. Many hands make light work, and everyone was highly motivated for the rescue. After about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, the upper layer of soil had been excavated, revealing the solid rammed earth layer formed by the original construction of the cellar. Digging down another half meter or so, they finally uncovered a massive bluestone structure.

At that moment, a heavy-duty crane, under the direction of the rescue command team, had already arrived at the construction site. After the nearly two-meter-long stone wall was cleared from the ground, it was secured to the crane's hook with thick steel chains. After more than ten minutes, the massive stone wall was finally lifted from the ground, and the stone chamber was finally opened. A commotion erupted from the crowd. Fortunately, the police were present to maintain order and ensure the safety of the cultural relics, preventing any looting.

After the stone wall was lifted out, personnel from the cultural relics protection unit rushed over to examine it closely and discovered that the three large characters "断龙石" (Severing Dragon Stone) were engraved on it in seal script. At the same time, Li Weigang, who had been trapped inside the stone chamber, was also carried out by his coworkers who had rushed in. Meanwhile, cultural relics experts entered the tunnels and stone chambers to clean and record the artifacts unearthed during the excavation. They conducted a rescue excavation and restoration of this accidentally discovered ancient site.

Fortunately, due to timely rescue, Li Weigang only suffered temporary shock and mild hypoxia, but his life was not in great danger. When relevant personnel learned about the specific circumstances of their initial entry into the stone chamber through questioning Zhao Changsheng and Li Weigang, medical staff explained that Li Weigang's repeated shocks and surprises caused over-excitation of his cerebral cortex cells, resulting in hallucinations and ultimately causing him to faint. Afterwards, because the incident was discovered early and reported promptly, it did not cause significant damage to the discovered cultural relics and historical sites, nor did it result in major casualties. Therefore, the relevant departments only gave Zhao Changsheng and Li Weigang a severe reprimand and education before concluding the investigation.

A total of 137 ancient artifacts were unearthed from the stone chamber, along with a seated ancient mummy. Among them was a giant bronze cauldron, its simple design and exquisite craftsmanship suggesting it was a rare Han Dynasty bronze cauldron, a national treasure of immense value, and the most valuable item discovered. The remaining artifacts included 31 bronze vessels, 15 gold items, 39 silver items, 23 bamboo slips, 15 silk scrolls, and 13 other miscellaneous items made of pearls and jade. Most of these are Han Dynasty artifacts of high archaeological research value.

Based on the eight seal-script characters "Emperor Wu's Alchemy Chamber, Entry Prohibited" engraved on the stone door inside the passage, and the dates and events recorded on bamboo slips and silk scrolls unearthed from the stone chamber, archaeologists deduced that this stone chamber was a secret underground alchemy chamber set up by Emperor Wu of Han during his pursuit of immortality. The giant furnace was the alchemy furnace used in the process. The ancient mummified corpse was likely a Taoist master who performed alchemy for Emperor Wu. Furthermore, a mysterious writing system was discovered on the bronze artifacts unearthed, including the giant furnace. This writing system is significantly different from all previously known writing systems and is a first in China and even the world.

Seeing that I had finished reading the materials, Hua Yang continued, "Later, the research on the mysterious symbols on these bronze vessels was handed over to Professor Cheng Zhongyi. Because these bronze vessels with these symbols were all excavated from a stone chamber containing a mysterious mummified corpse, and because these symbols were engraved on the bronze vessels, Professor Cheng temporarily named them 'Ghost Domain Inscriptions' based on this characteristic." He paused and continued, "This archaeological research is just beginning. Professor Cheng and his research team are currently conducting intensive investigations and research on the origin of these mysterious characters, their meanings, and so on." I nodded after hearing this, thinking that it seemed that to unravel the mystery of these ancient fragments, we would first have to rely on Professor Cheng and his team.

V. Missing

Then, Hua Yang looked at Jenny's notebook, which depicted the "Ghost Realm Inscriptions," and exclaimed with delight, "Currently, very few unearthed artifacts with these 'Ghost Realm Inscriptions' have been discovered, so the number of such inscriptions collected is very limited, greatly restricting further research. However, the notebook in your Hong Kong client's possession contains a vast number of 'Ghost Realm Inscriptions,' making it a valuable resource for research. Therefore, if possible, I hope to take the 'Ghost Realm Inscriptions' depicted in this notebook back to Professor Cheng. I believe he will be very pleased to see them." Hearing Hua Yang's words, I thought to myself, even if he hadn't said anything, I would have gone to visit the old professor who had taught us about Qin and Han dynasty funerary customs, hoping that his profound knowledge would help us unravel the ancient mystery of these fragments. So I smiled and said, "Since my old classmate has asked, of course there's no problem. Besides, I haven't visited Professor Cheng for several years. When you go back, I'll find some time to go back and visit him with you." I looked at the "Ghost Domain Inscriptions" in the notebook and continued, "We can also ask Professor Cheng more questions about these 'Ghost Domain Inscriptions'."

Hua Yang was clearly delighted to hear me say that. He patted me hard on the shoulder and said with a smile, "You really are an old classmate! It's settled then, I'll arrange it for you. Now let's go out and have a good look around. I've heard so much about West Lake in Hangzhou, but I've never had the chance to come before. Today is a rare opportunity, so you can be my free tour guide for the day and take me for a spin, haha." With that, he pushed me out of the hotel and headed towards the West Lake scenic area.

The next day, I went to the hospital early to visit Jenny and Ah Bao. I told them in detail what I had learned from Hua Yang about the "Ghost Domain Inscription" on the ancient scroll we had. Jenny and Ah Bao were very excited after hearing it. Then I told them about my plan to go back to my alma mater with Hua Yang soon to visit Professor Cheng, whom I hadn't seen for many years, and to ask him about the "Ghost Domain Inscription." Everyone was very supportive.

Four days later, Hua Yang's conference in Hangzhou ended, and I went with him back to our alma mater to visit Professor Cheng Zhongyi. But before we even arrived at Professor Cheng's research institute, Hua Yang suddenly received an urgent phone call. Hua Yang said, "Ah, this is Hua Yang. Oh, Li Ke, what's wrong? What's missing? How did it disappear? Have you reported it to the police? How could this happen? Okay, okay, I'm coming right away." "What's wrong? Is it urgent?" I asked. Hua Yang put down the phone, looking anxious, and said to me, "Yes, Li Ke from the research institute just called to say that Professor Cheng Zhongyi suddenly disappeared last night. He wants me to go to the research institute immediately." "Ah? How could this happen?" I was also very surprised and murmured.

Half an hour later, we arrived at the office building of the archaeological institute where Professor Cheng works. The institute's office building is an old-fashioned structure with two offices, one on the north side and one on the south, connected by a corridor; it's probably from the 1960s or 70s. When Hua Yang and I entered the office on the north side of the second floor, Hua Yang introduced me to his colleague, Li Ke, who had called him earlier. Li Ke looked to be about twenty-four or twenty-five years old, with a quiet and elegant appearance, and was quite beautiful. She was said to be a top student who graduated from Tsinghua University and was also one of Professor Cheng's capable assistants. Li Ke shook hands with me to welcome me after Hua Yang's introduction. Because the matter was sudden and urgent, we didn't have time for pleasantries and immediately got to the point.

"When did you discover that Professor Cheng was missing?" Hua Yang asked, frowning. “Last night, or rather, this morning, we officially discovered that Professor Cheng was missing.” Li Ke paused briefly before continuing, “After get off work last night, everyone else in the institute went home, except for Professor Cheng and the data entry clerk, Xiao Zhang. Professor Cheng seemed to be organizing the ‘Ghost Domain Inscription’ data, while Xiao Zhang stayed in the office because she still had some documents to enter. Later, Xiao Zhang recalled that when she returned around 8:30 pm after finishing the data entry, she saw Professor Cheng working in his office. But this morning, when everyone came to work, they found that Professor Cheng, who usually arrived at the institute very early, was not there. He hadn’t informed anyone beforehand that he wouldn’t be coming today. Later, when the two out-of-town guests that Professor Cheng had arranged to meet today came to see him, he still didn’t show up. So someone called him, but no one answered his phone. When they called Professor Cheng’s home, his family said that he hadn’t gone home at all last night. That’s when everyone realized the seriousness of the problem, so someone called the police.”

After hearing Li Ke's explanation, Hua Yang and I basically understood what had happened. Hua Yang frowned and muttered to himself, "Strange, where did Professor Cheng go? He's such a meticulous person. If something urgent had happened, he would at least have made a phone call to someone to give instructions or left a note in his office. It's impossible for him to just leave without a word."

Hearing Hua Yang's words, I casually asked, "Did something sudden happen that prevented Professor Cheng from making a phone call or leaving a note? Like, was he kidnapped or abducted?" Hua Yang thought for a moment and replied, "That's unlikely. Although Professor Cheng has some research funding, he's ultimately an old scholar, not someone extremely wealthy. If someone wanted to kidnap someone, they wouldn't kidnap him." Li Ke, standing nearby, nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, kidnappers usually have two purposes: revenge or money. Our Professor Cheng is usually kind and unassuming; he's unlikely to have any enemies. And as Hua Yang said, he's not wealthy; he doesn't have any enormous wealth. Why would anyone kidnap him?" "Yes," Hua Yang added, "if we have to say Professor Cheng has any wealth, I think it's only his vast knowledge of archaeology." But as soon as he said that, he seemed to realize something, and his eyes widened. After Hua Yang finished speaking, I immediately realized the same thing and quickly said, "That's right, could the kidnappers have kidnapped Professor Cheng hoping to use his extensive archaeological knowledge? To identify some national treasure or find some ancient ruins?" Hua Yang and the others nodded in agreement with my speculation.

We hadn't expected this sudden turn of events. Since things had come to this, I decided to stay at Huayang's rented apartment and wait with him for news from the police. However, the next day, while we anxiously awaited leads from the police regarding Professor Cheng, Huayang suddenly received a call from an unknown number. It was a strange man on the phone who said Professor Cheng was a guest at their place and asked us not to alert the police. He then said they wanted to see the bronze vessels with "ghostly inscriptions" unearthed in Ancheng City, Hubei Province, and hoped we could bring them over for their appreciation. Finally, he arranged a place and time with Huayang, and again warned us not to notify the police, and that we shouldn't send too many people—no more than two or three at most.

Receiving this call confirmed our earlier suspicions. The kidnappers were indeed after the batch of precious artifacts with "ghostly inscriptions" that had been unearthed earlier. Since they were after these artifacts, Professor Cheng's life wouldn't be in too much danger for the time being, so Hua Yang and I were somewhat relieved. Immediately afterward, Hua Yang called Li Ke and asked her to come over to discuss countermeasures.

VI. Li Family Genealogy

After careful discussion, the three of us came up with a plan: Hua Yang and I would first take several artifacts bearing the "Ghostly Inscriptions" to negotiate with the kidnappers, while Li Ke would then notify the police and cooperate with them in the arrest operation. With the handover time set by the kidnappers fast approaching, we split up to carry out our plan.

Hua Yang drove me to the research institute first, where he retrieved three bronze artifacts from the vault: a square ding with cloud-patterned inscriptions and a pair of bronze sheep lamps. Then, as the kidnappers had demanded, we drove to an abandoned construction site on the outskirts of the city. Just as we parked the car, Hua Yang's cell phone rang again. Needless to say, it was that unfamiliar male voice again. They were likely hiding somewhere in the abandoned construction site, monitoring our movements, so he first praised us on the phone for keeping our word and coming alone instead of notifying the police, as they had requested. Then he made us get out of the car, and following his directions, we walked a winding, crooked path until we finally arrived at an unfinished six-story building.

As soon as we reached the second floor, we saw seven people scattered around in the middle of the room. Among them was a man who was bound and squatting on the floor. Upon closer inspection, we recognized him as Professor Cheng. Standing next to the professor was a short, stout middle-aged man, probably in his fifties, with a slightly balding head, wearing a light yellow t-shirt and gold-rimmed glasses. Upon seeing us, he flashed a forced, insincere smile and said in a thick Taiwanese accent, "Oh, this must be Mr. Hua? It's truly an honor. I'm so sorry to have troubled you so much. By the way, did you bring what I asked you to bring?"

"It's all here, take it," Hua Yang said coldly, handing over the artifacts in the wooden box. Professor Cheng seemed quite anxious seeing that we had actually brought the artifacts, and was about to say something when Hua Yang gave him a wink, stopping him. At this moment, a young man wearing sunglasses took the wooden box, quickly opened it, and handed it to the short, stout middle-aged man for inspection. After examining it carefully for a few minutes, a satisfied smile appeared on his face again, and he said to us, "Not bad, not bad, Mr. Hua is indeed a man of his word."

We ignored him, glanced at Professor Cheng sitting on the ground, and quickly ran over to untie him. The tall, angry-looking men around us were about to stop us when they saw us going to untie the ropes, but the short, stout middle-aged man stopped them with a look.

Professor Cheng was somewhat surprised to see me at that moment, and said with a wry smile, "Si Nan, you really know how to pick your time, haha." While helping the professor untie his ropes, I smiled and replied, "How can we, as his disciples, ignore our teacher's plight?" Hua Yang then took the opportunity while untying Professor Cheng's ropes to whisper in his ear, "One of Si Nan's clients in Hong Kong has a large amount of 'Ghostly Inscriptions' data. He heard that you, Professor, are doing research in this area, so he brought the data with him to consult you." The professor was taken aback by Hua Yang's words, then laughed and said, "Alright, but we'll have to see if this old body of mine can survive this ordeal first. If the King of Hell wants me to go to his place to study the 'Book of Life and Death,' then there's nothing I can do." Hua Yang and I exchanged a smile; Professor Cheng was always so humorous and witty, even at a time like this, he didn't forget to joke.

Seeing that we had untied Professor Cheng and helped him to his feet, the short, stout middle-aged man next to us took a few steps forward, leaned in, and smiled at me and Hua Yang, saying, "Oh dear, I forgot to introduce myself. My surname is Yue, I'm the third oldest in my family, everyone calls me Yue Laosan. I run a small business in Taipei. I enjoy collecting antiques and artifacts. Last time I saw the Han Dynasty artifacts unearthed in Ancheng, Hubei on TV, and I was very curious, so I came here to visit Professor Cheng, hoping to admire these things and feast my eyes." He paused for a moment, looked around warily, and then lowered his voice, saying, "In addition, I have another matter I would like to ask Professor Cheng for help with, but he has a rather bad temper. I've been pleading with him all night..." "It was no use, and it even made him furious, so I had no choice but to temporarily tie the old professor up. I'm truly sorry. The reason I invited you here, Mr. Hua, is to ask you to persuade Professor Cheng to be less stubborn and to help me out." Hua Yang and I understood the gist of the story and were about to ask what he wanted Professor Cheng to do when Professor Cheng coldly replied, "He wants me to find an ancient tomb. The artifacts inside are national property, invaluable materials for studying our country's history. If they were to rob and damage the tomb, what a huge loss it would be for our country's archaeological research! Tomb-robbing gangs like them are capable of anything. I'd rather die here than help them."

After hearing their explanation, we understood the whole story. Just as we suspected, these kidnappers were indeed a Taiwanese gang involved in the theft and smuggling of cultural relics. They had kidnapped Professor Cheng to get him to help them steal from an ancient tomb.

At this moment, the man called Yue Laosan, after hearing Professor Cheng's words, immediately lost his smile, revealing an angry expression. Seeing the tense atmosphere, I knew that directly confronting them would only lead to disaster. Those tomb-raiding gang members were all ruthless; if we angered them, who knew what they might do? We had to outsmart them, not fight them head-on. Thinking this, I deliberately walked up to Yue Laosan with a smile and said, "Mr. Yue, please don't be angry. Professor Cheng is just confused for a moment. I'll go and talk to him for you; everything will be fine." Hearing this, Yue Laosan's anger subsided somewhat, and he put on his fake smile again, patting my shoulder and saying, "Hey, this young man is quite sensible and knows what's important. Oh, may I ask your name, young man?" "Just call me Si Nan," I replied with a smile. At this moment, Hua Yang and Professor Cheng were quite surprised to see that I had sided with the bad guys. They both stared at me wide-eyed, speechless for a moment.

I walked over to Professor Cheng and the others, and whispered two words in front of them, "Feign surrender!" Then I immediately raised my voice and said, "Oh, Professor Cheng, don't you see our situation? If we really fight them head-on, will we have a good outcome? Besides, even if you don't help them find that ancient tomb, they'll find someone else to help them. What's the point?" As I spoke, I winked at them vigorously. Professor Cheng and Hua Yang didn't understand my intention at first, but after my prompting, they seemed to grasp what I meant. After a while, Professor Cheng said, "Alright, I agree. But you can only take what you want, and you absolutely cannot damage the ancient tomb ruins." "Hahaha, that's more like it! Absolutely no problem!" Yue Laosan finally smiled genuinely for the first time when Professor Cheng agreed.

Taking advantage of the moment when the other party was slightly less vigilant, I whispered to Professor Cheng and Hua Yang, "Li Ke has already contacted the police and should be arriving soon. Let's try to stall them for time and be prepared to escape at any time." Professor Cheng and Hua Yang smiled and indicated that they understood. At this moment, Yue Laosan came over, took out a worn and yellowed ancient book from a suitcase, and handed it to Professor Cheng. Professor Cheng took out a pair of reading glasses from his jacket pocket, put them on, and then took the yellowed ancient book and began to read it. We stood next to Professor Cheng and read along with him, only to realize that it was a family genealogy. However, this family genealogy was very different from other family genealogies. The first page recorded a very magical story. What surprised us even more was that after this magical story, there was a rubbing of a fragmented piece of paper with some characters that looked very similar to the "Ghost Domain Inscriptions." These characters were mixed with some oracle bone script that we could recognize, making it seem very mysterious.

VII. Mysterious Legends

This family genealogy records the following event: After Emperor Wu of Han ascended the throne and took control of the government, the Western Han Dynasty entered its most prosperous period in history. At this time, the Western Han Dynasty was powerful, society was stable, and resources were abundant. Faced with such a beautiful land, Emperor Wu of Han began to indulge in this wealthy and luxurious life, hoping to live as long as possible so that he would have more time to enjoy all these wonderful imperial pleasures.

Just as Emperor Wu of Han was searching far and wide for extraordinary individuals and alchemists in search of the elixir of immortality, an alchemist named Li Shaojun came to pay his respects. He claimed that during his travels in the Eastern Sea, he had ascended three immortal mountains. On one of these mountains, he saw a colossal stone tablet towering into the clouds, inscribed with strange, divine script. He then presented Emperor Wu with a rubbing of the inscription he had taken from the tablet. Emperor Wu found the script on the rubbing to be indeed a mysterious script unlike anything he had ever heard of or seen before. He then summoned learned officials and scholars from both the court and the provinces to authenticate the script. After their examination and discussion, everyone agreed that the script exhibited continuity and a structured order, indeed resembling some ancient script rather than a random collection of symbols arbitrarily created by ordinary people. Emperor Wu was overjoyed upon hearing this. He reasoned that since the legendary three immortal mountains truly existed in the Eastern Sea, and these mountains were inscribed with mysterious characters, it meant that the ancient legends were not mere fabrications, and that immortals must reside on those three mountains. If he could find the immortals dwelling on those mountains, his wish to attain immortality might be fulfilled. Therefore, Emperor Wu of Han began sending people to the Eastern Sea to search for the legendary immortal mountains.

However, after more than ten years of effort, no trace of the immortal mountain was found. Instead, because everyone knew Emperor Wu of Han's thoughts, alchemists from all over the country pretended to be able to find the immortal mountain to deceive Emperor Wu of Han, hoping to gain the emperor's trust and receive generous rewards.

However, to Emperor Wu of Han's utter surprise, the mysterious inscriptions presented by the man named Li Shaojun did not truly originate from the mythical mountains of the East Sea. In fact, the inscriptions were taken by Li Shaojun from a stone tablet he had accidentally discovered in a mountainous region in the north. Several bronze vessels bearing similar mysterious inscriptions were also found at the same time. To avoid revealing anything amiss from the bronze vessels or the stone tablet, Li Shaojun only made rubbings of the inscriptions from the stone tablet and presented them to Emperor Wu. As a result, Emperor Wu was indeed deceived. Li Shaojun thus gained the emperor's trust, received generous rewards, and was granted a noble title and honors, leading to the prosperity of his clan.

Later, after Li Shaojun was granted a title and ennobled, his power grew increasingly immense. Fearing that the vessels and stone tablets would one day be discovered and reported to Emperor Wu of Han, thus exposing his lies, he secretly hid them in his own tomb, which he was preparing to build. Ultimately, the vessels and tablets were buried deep underground along with Li Shaojun's remains after his death, never to see the light of day again. Later, Li Shaojun's descendants recorded this event in their family genealogy, also briefly noting the location where Li Shaojun buried the bronze vessels and stone tablets inscribed with mysterious characters that he had discovered.

After we finished reading this ancient legend, Yue Laosan chuckled and said, "This is a family genealogy of a friend of mine. At first, he and the rest of his family thought it was just a story their ancestors fabricated to glorify the clan, so they didn't take it seriously. It wasn't until they saw these ancient artifacts with what looked like mysterious characters unearthed in Ancheng, Hubei, on television that they began to believe that what was recorded in the genealogy might be true. So he entrusted this matter to me, asking me to find that secret treasure trove for him. But the clues recorded in this genealogy are too few, and we've searched for a long time without finding the ancient tomb. So, in desperation, we had no choice but to ask Professor Cheng for help."

Just then, Yue Laosan suddenly received a phone call. He said, "Huh? The police? We've already crossed the new bridge? Okay, okay, I understand. We'll leave right away. See you at our usual spot." He hung up, his eyes flashing with a fierce light as he stared at me and Hua Yang, demanding sharply, "You...you called the police?" "How could we? We've been standing right in front of you the whole time. How could we have had a chance to call the police?" I deliberately retorted. "You called the police when you arrived, didn't you?" Yue Laosan shouted, clearly enraged. I replied, "If we had called the police when we arrived, they would have come with us. Why would they have waited until now? Aren't they afraid you'd run away before they arrived?" Time was of the essence, and Yue Laosan clearly didn't have much time to think things through. He was temporarily convinced by my words and stopped suspecting us, ordering his men to quickly lead us and the artifacts away.

I thought to myself, "That Yue Laosan is indeed a cunning old fox. He actually set up lookouts halfway here. As soon as he saw a large number of police cars heading this way, he immediately notified Yue Laosan. We didn't expect this beforehand. Now it might take another seven or eight minutes for the police to arrive. It seems this old fox is going to get away this time." Thinking of this, I realized that I had better make some noise and stall for time until the police arrived. So when Yue Laosan's men pushed us, trying to get us away quickly, I deliberately dragged my feet and walked very slowly. Seeing me like this, Hua Yang and the others also started to dawdle.

At this moment, Yue Laosan suddenly said, "Mr. Si Nan, please don't have any illusions. I know exactly what you're thinking, hehe, hurry up and go!" Seeing our slow pace, he knew we were deliberately stalling for time, so he pulled out a Type 64 pistol from his pocket and pointed it at us. Looking at the dark muzzle of the gun in his hand, I knew in my heart that these desperate thugs were capable of anything. A wise man doesn't fight a losing battle; it seemed the only option was to go along with him for now and find another opportunity to escape. And so, the three of us were pushed into a Buick minivan, and before the police arrived, we quickly left the abandoned construction site.

As soon as we got on the bus, we were blindfolded, and then we were jostled around for a long time. When the blindfolds were removed, we found ourselves in a simple, dilapidated old house. Because the windows were all boarded up, we couldn't see outside and couldn't determine our location. However, judging from the bumpy ride, we must have been taken to a remote village or suburb.

For the next few days, Professor Cheng, Hua Yang, and I were confined to this dilapidated room. Initially, Professor Cheng was reluctant to search for the ancient tomb, but records indicated it contained artifacts bearing the "Ghost Domain Inscriptions" that he was researching. Finding the tomb might be helpful for his future research. Furthermore, I suggested that we avoid conflict with the artifact thieves and smugglers and wait until we were in the wild to find an opportunity to escape. So, Professor Cheng accepted my advice and joined us in carefully studying the clues in the genealogy. After two or three days, Professor Cheng, with his extensive archaeological knowledge and experience, had roughly deduced the location of the recorded ancient tomb.

When we told Yue Laosan about this, he was naturally very happy. He immediately ordered his men to go out and purchase all the necessary tools and equipment for excavating the ancient tomb. Two days later, after everything was ready, Yue Laosan and his eight men, plus myself, Professor Cheng, and Hua Yang, a total of twelve people, set off in a grand procession towards the location of the ancient tomb.

8. Mound

Taibai County in Shaanxi Province is a remote mountain town. Located on the south bank of the Yellow River, it is surrounded by towering mountains. This terrain, with mountains on three sides and water on one side, has made this originally small land a strategic location fought over by military strategists since ancient times. From the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, it has been an important military stronghold in Northwest China. And this is the destination we are heading to with Yue Laosan and his group.