Великий божественный суд династии Цин

Глава 19

30. The Mysterious Nine Dragons Mountain

Led by local forest ranger Wang Baoshan, the four of us headed towards our first destination in the mountains: a ravine near Weilongling. Since this area was Wang Baoshan's usual patrol route, he was very familiar with the mountain paths. He led us along several shortcuts, and after crossing a mountain, we arrived at the ravine we had visited before. It was nearing evening, and the sunset had painted the western sky a magnificent red. Patches of fiery clouds edged with gold drifted slowly past us. Seeing such beauty, the fatigue from a day's hike instantly dissipated.

Looking at the winding mountain stream before me, I asked Wang Baoshan, "Brother Baoshan, do you know where this stream comes from? Where is its source?" Wang Baoshan thought for a moment, then replied, "Well, this stream comes from the west. I remember the older generation saying it flows from the Jiulong Mountain area." As he spoke, Wang Baoshan raised his hand and pointed to several high mountains to our west. Looking in the direction he pointed, we saw nine exceptionally tall peaks suddenly rising from the continuous mountain range to the west—these were the nine towering peaks he had been pointing to. "Those nine peaks are called 'Nine Dragons Mountain' by the locals. They are, in order: Swimming Dragon, Azure Dragon, Crouching Dragon, Unicorn Dragon, Broken-backed Dragon, Black Dragon, Coiled Dragon, Cloud Dragon, and Roaring River Dragon. As far as I know, this mountain stream seems to flow down from Nine Dragons Mountain, where these nine giant peaks are located, but I don't know exactly which peak it flows down from."

Upon hearing Wang Baoshan mention the source of the mountain stream, I was overjoyed and said, "That's wonderful! Since you know where the stream is, please take us there tomorrow, Brother Baoshan." Wang Baoshan seemed surprised, asking with a hint of astonishment, "What? You really want to go to Jiulong Mountain? That won't do, it's too dangerous!" "Why? Is it because we didn't bring weapons? Will we be attacked by the wild beasts there?" I asked doubtfully. "More terrifying than wild beasts, there are demons and monsters there!" Wang Baoshan looked at me with a terrifying gaze and said, "Do you remember the expedition team I mentioned? It's said they may have disappeared in that mountainous area. It's a terrifying and ominous place; you absolutely mustn't go." "It can't be that bad," Jenny said. "Didn't you say that a large number of military and police personnel went to search for it later? Since people have gone, we should be fine, right?" "Oh, I forgot to tell you, a team that was later sent to search that mountainous area also..." They nearly perished. All the rescued team members seemed dazed and confused, almost out of their minds. Fortunately, there were many people searching the mountains at the time, and helicopters were also monitoring the ground from the air. Because this team was spotted by helicopters as soon as the anomaly occurred, and other rescue teams were notified, they were rescued from the foot of Jiulong Mountain, thus preventing more serious consequences. Subsequent search and rescue operations focused on the area surrounding Jiulong Mountain for several days, after which the rescue personnel gradually withdrew, and no one dared to go up Jiulong Mountain for another search.

After hearing Wang Baoshan's account, our initial excitement vanished instantly. We never imagined that such a mysterious place existed deep within the Qinling Mountains, amidst the vast forests. Despite my best efforts to persuade Wang Baoshan to take us to Jiulong Mountain, all my pleas were in vain. I initially wanted Dunzi to try and convince Wang Baoshan as well, but after hearing Wang Baoshan's cryptic explanation, Dunzi seemed to become frightened as well and sided with Wang Baoshan, also refusing to go to Jiulong Mountain.

Seeing that our original plans had been disrupted and that darkness was gradually falling, we had no choice but to temporarily set up camp on a relatively flat clearing near the mountain stream, lighting a campfire to spend the night there and discuss our next steps. After a long discussion, we decided to search along the stream for any suspicious caves or similar structures. If we reached the foot of Jiulong Mountain, regardless of whether we found anything, we would not proceed further and would have to turn back immediately. With the plan settled, everyone felt a little more at ease. I silently prayed that we would discover the mysterious stone tablet cave before even reaching Jiulong Mountain.

That night, when everyone was asleep, I, unable to sleep, simply sat on the grass gazing at the starry sky, trying to discern the dangers of my journey. At that moment, the moon was bright and the stars few. The twelve constellations of the zodiac were clearly visible, arranged in their proper order. On the surface, there were no apparent omens. However, when I shifted my gaze from the sky to the nine distant, now inky-black peaks, I suddenly realized that these nine peaks were directly facing nine ominous stars in the sky. According to the descriptions in the *Five Planets Divination*, this terrain is a type of landform called the "Soul-Stealing Palace." In such a place, it is easy to hallucinate and lose one's true nature. After my own analysis, I concluded that the mystery might be that the metal deposits within the mountains are influenced by the gravitational pull of the nine ominous stars, creating a peculiar magnetic field that interferes with people's brainwaves, severely stimulating the cerebral cortex and thus producing hallucinations. Thinking about this, I have a rough conclusion about the mystery of the unexplained disappearance of those scientific expedition members, and the reason why the rescue team that went to the rescue suddenly had an accident.

After dawn, we washed up briefly by the mountain stream and then set off towards its source. With Wang Baoshan, familiar with the terrain, leading the way, he guided us around any obstacles caused by rocks, leading us along nearby paths. Therefore, we encountered few difficulties along the way. Because we were carefully examining the terrain on both sides of the stream, searching for the legendary stone tablet cave, our pace was not very fast. We searched along the way, and by nearly 3 PM, apart from finding a broken animal trap discarded by a local hunter in the stream, we still hadn't found anything.

31. First Entry into the Water Cave

So everyone decided to find a shady, well-ventilated spot beside the stream to rest for a while. Dunzi took a towel from his backpack, humming a little tune, and slowly walked to the stream to wash his face and wipe his sweat. The others and I stayed where we were, discussing what we had seen along the way, analyzing whether there was anything we had overlooked. Just then, we suddenly heard Dunzi shout from afar, "Sinan, come quick! The stream seems to have disappeared over there!" Hearing Dunzi's shout, everyone was startled. Since he mentioned the stream, perhaps he had discovered some important clue. So without hesitation, we got up and ran towards Dunzi to see what was going on.

Approaching Dunzi, we saw him staring intently westward. Hearing our footsteps, Dunzi raised his hand and pointed in the direction the mountain stream had flowed, saying, "Look, this stream disappears from the surface over there; it seems to flow underground." We looked in the direction Dunzi pointed and found that, indeed, the stream meandered along the surface for a while before suddenly disappearing about a kilometer or two upstream, as if flowing into an underground river. "If I remember correctly, that should be a granite mountain area, with many huge granite rocks emerging from the ground," Wang Baoshan said, looking at the location. "Could that be the entrance to the ancient cave?" Abao asked from the side. "Let's hope so," I replied. "We shouldn't delay; it's getting dark. Let's hurry and check it out, or we won't be able to see anything after dark." Everyone nodded, then shouldered their backpacks and equipment and continued searching towards the area where the stream disappeared.

The group ran and jumped straight towards the granite rock area. They arrived there in no time. Just as Wang Baoshan had described, this area was indeed a granite rock formation. Countless granite rocks of varying sizes rose from the ground, forming a unique rock landscape, reminiscent of Yunnan's famous "Stone Forest" scenic area. The clear mountain stream disappeared near this "mini Stone Forest." Because of the rocks on both banks, the path along the stream was difficult, so they simply jumped into the stream and followed the current upstream, hoping to find the underground outlet of the stream.

After walking along the stream for another three or four minutes, we indeed came to an irregularly shaped cave entrance beneath a huge granite rock. The entrance was about the size of a water vat, large enough for a person to bend down and pass through. Seeing this, everyone was naturally overjoyed. If this was indeed the ancient stone tablet cave we were looking for, then we wouldn't need to climb Jiulong Mountain, saving a lot of trouble. So we went to the cave entrance and looked inside. Although the entrance wasn't large, it seemed somewhat eerie. A chilling air constantly blew out from inside. The mountain stream flowed out from this entrance. Because part of the entrance was underwater, the entrance shrank or even disappeared as the water level rose, and expanded until it was fully exposed as the water receded. It seemed this was indeed a hidden location.

At this moment, Ah Bao had already taken out his wolf-eye flashlight and shone it into the cave. The cave was very damp, with water droplets constantly dripping from the ceiling. It was deep and winding, making it impossible to see the entire interior at a glance. Since we were already here, we naturally wouldn't just stand outside and look. So we all took out our lighting equipment and prepared to go inside. Firstly, we didn't have enough equipment, and secondly, we didn't want Wang Baoshan to risk going in with us. More importantly, before the secrets of the Burial Ground Mystery Scripture were fully explained, and before the extent of the danger was determined, we didn't want too many people involved. Therefore, we unanimously decided to have Wang Baoshan wait outside. This way, if anything happened to us, someone could help find a rescuer. Because Wang Baoshan didn't know the true purpose of our cave exploration, he wasn't very interested in going inside. Since we decided to have him stay outside, he readily agreed. Before we entered the cave, he handed Dunzi a hunting rifle that he usually carried on his back and used for patrolling the mountains.

We took several imported LED headlamps from our backpacks. These lighting devices were originally used in underground mining operations because they could be worn on the head, eliminating the need to hold the light in your hand and freeing up a hand for other tasks. They were widely used in mining. Later, they were adopted and applied in various fields requiring work in dark environments. Now, these energy-efficient and waterproof LED headlamps are widely used in outdoor sports and adventure. This time, Ah Bao had learned from his previous dangerous experiences and, in addition to the wolf-eye flashlights he had used before, he also prepared an LED headlamp for everyone. With everything ready, we set off into the cave.

Ah Bao had always been our trailblazer, so naturally he led the way. Jenny and I walked in the middle, with Dunzi carrying his hunting rifle at the back. The four of us, crouching low and hunched over, waded through the stream, making our way deeper and deeper into the cave. Over thousands of years, the stream had eroded the cave walls, making them exceptionally smooth, so we didn't have to worry about being scratched by the sharp edges. For some reason, the cave felt particularly cold and damp, with gusts of cold wind blowing in our faces, making the cool temperature inside seem like two completely different worlds compared to the sweltering heat outside.

After walking for about two hundred meters, the space inside the cave gradually opened up, and the water level beneath our feet gradually rose from our ankles to about our knees. It seemed we had been heading downhill the whole time. After walking for so long, there was still no sound inside the cave, except for the constant "tinkling" sound of water droplets falling from the cave ceiling onto the water's surface. It was strangely quiet.

"Something's not right. How come there isn't even a bat or a mouse?" Dunzi said疑惑地. Hearing Dunzi's words, Abao in front also said, "Yeah, along the way, this water cave seems very 'clean.' We haven't seen a single bat, let alone a spider or mosquito. It doesn't seem to make sense." After listening to Dunzi and the others, I reached out and touched the stone wall of the water cave. Sure enough, there wasn't a speck of dust; it was truly exceptionally clean. So I said, "Yes, it really is very clean. But the reason there's not a speck of dust here makes sense. I think it's probably because the water level in this mountain stream was quite high a while ago, filling the entire cave and washing away all the dust inside. Plus, a cold wind keeps blowing from the depths of the cave towards the entrance, preventing dust from getting in, making it exceptionally clean." I hesitated for a moment, then continued, "But logically, this cool cave should be the best place for the animals and insects in the mountains to cool off and escape the heat, yet we haven't seen a single spider, which is hard to understand." "That's right," Jenny added, "did you notice? When we came along this mountain stream outside the cave, I clearly saw quite a few small fish, but here, I've been looking, and I haven't seen a single one. It seems these small fish only live in the section of water outside the cave."

"Yes, it's very strange. Anyway, everyone be careful, let's keep going and see what happens." Ah Bao said, taking his beloved military dagger in his hand and continuing into the cave. We followed Ah Bao's steps, slowly advancing deeper into the water cave. At this moment, I don't know why, but I felt very depressed, as if I had some kind of bad premonition. I always felt that something dangerous was lurking in this cave, which was why no other living thing dared to enter. But this feeling was just a premonition, and I didn't know if it was true. Before I was sure, in order not to affect everyone's mood or add to their mental burden, I kept this bad feeling to myself and didn't tell anyone.

After walking for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the stream water was already above our thighs. We had already turned left and right quite a few times inside this water cave, and by now our minds were so muddled that we couldn't tell our direction, let alone east, west, north, or south. Jenny took out her Type 65 compass from her bag, trying to determine our current direction. But she immediately realized that the compass had malfunctioned here; it seemed that there must be some iron ore or meteorite-like object in the vicinity interfering with the Type 65 compass's normal operation.

"Forget it, let's just take it one step at a time." Jenny looked at her malfunctioning Type 65 compass and said helplessly, "We're already in here, so it's not that important whether we figure out the direction or not." "I've had a strange feeling about this cave ever since we entered. If something's really not right, let's go back first. I'll ask Baoshan to help us get a few more hunting rifles before we come back in," Dunzi said, frowning. "Otherwise, if something really attacks, this broken rifle of mine won't be enough to hold it off."

We knew Dunzi was always timid, but as long as we were determined to go in, he would follow even at the cost of his life. So we ignored him and continued to let Abao lead the way, heading towards the bottom of the water cave. Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, Dunzi had no choice but to grit his teeth and follow the group forward.

32. Black Python

We walked along the water tunnel for a while longer, and I estimated that two or three hours had passed since we entered. Suddenly, a very large cave appeared before us, probably four or five hundred square meters. The waterway had formed a pool here. Looking ahead, there were no other paths visible on the stone walls, and there were no more ways to go. "Is this the bottom of the cave? It can't be that fast, can it?" Dunzi said, looking around with his gun raised. Yes, we'd reached the bottom so quickly; it was a bit unexpected. Although the cave had felt a bit strange, we hadn't encountered any obstacles along the way. It was too peaceful. I thought to myself, looking around carefully again, and indeed, I couldn't find any other entrances.

Just as I stood in the water, wondering what was going on, I suddenly felt a strong current rushing towards my feet. "Something!" I yelled, and quickly dodged to the side. In a flash, the water parted, revealing a dark back that briefly surfaced before submerging again. All of this was clearly visible through our LED headlamps. "What was that?" Dunzi shouted, aiming his gun at the water. "Too fast, didn't see clearly," Abao replied, "but it seemed quite large." Just then, another ripple appeared on the surface, indicating the thing was heading towards Jenny. Seeing Jenny in danger, I quickly grabbed a military tactical knife from my backpack and ran towards her. At the same time, with a loud 'bang,' Dunzi's shotgun fired. A hail of pellets rained down into the water like a shower of petals. The gunshot had barely faded when a splash erupted on the water's surface, followed by a long, thick body bursting forth from beneath. In less than half a second, we could finally see it clearly. It was a giant black python. Its eyes glowed red, its body was as thick as a bowl, and strangely, two fleshy lumps protruded above the corners of its eyes, like two tumors on its head. Its neck, riddled with bullet holes from the shotgun blast, was also covered in a dense mass of bloody bullet holes. Suddenly wounded, the python became enraged, opening its gaping maw to reveal two rows of sharp, barbed teeth.

I've seen pythons before, even giant pythons as thick as a bowl, but this kind of black python—with eyes like vermilion, a tongue like a whip, fleshy horns on its head, and a body entirely black, gleaming like black satin—was the first I'd ever seen. At that moment, the python extended its tongue, using the vibrations of the surrounding air to pinpoint our location, then changed direction and swam towards Ah Bao, who was closest to it. Because of the close proximity and the waist-deep water, movement was extremely difficult. Ah Bao had no time to escape and was quickly blocked by the black python.

With no other option, Ah Bao gritted his teeth and made a desperate decision. He grabbed his cold steel dagger and charged at the black python. Seeing the urgency of the situation, fearing that Ah Bao might be caught by the python if he made a mistake, I disregarded my own safety and ran towards Ah Bao with my dagger. Dunzi quickly stood aside, reloading his hunting rifle, preparing to fire another shot at the python. In that instant, before we could even see what was happening, we heard a splash. In the beams of our headlamps, we saw Ah Bao suddenly slip and fall into the water. At that moment, the black python, as if it had been expecting this, lowered its head and submerged again, swimming towards the fallen Ah Bao.

At that moment, Ah Bao was lying in the water, unable to stand up due to loss of balance. His entire body was submerged, making movement even more difficult. The black python was rapidly moving its body towards him, and the rest of us, unable to run fast enough in the water to help, were filled with anxiety. The worst fears came true. Just as Ah Bao struggled to his feet, the black python swam behind him, twisting its body and skillfully coiling around one of his legs. At that moment, due to the fall, Ah Bao's cold steel dagger had fallen into the water and was nowhere to be found. He could only cling tightly to the python's body with both hands, trying his best to prevent it from continuing to coil around him, but it was too slippery, and he couldn't hold on securely. With just a twist of the python's body, Ah Bao was about to be completely constricted. In that critical moment, I mustered all my strength and lunged forward, finally reaching Ah Bao's side. Without even standing up, I raised my right hand and plunged the sharp blade into the black python's back. Although I knew this wouldn't kill it immediately, time was of the essence, and I didn't have time to choose where to strike. I could only try to find a way to get Ah Bao away first.

Suddenly attacked from behind, the black python felt a sharp pain in its back and was immediately startled, turning its head to check the commotion. In that instant, the python's tight coils around Ah Bao loosened. Taking advantage of this fleeting opportunity, Ah Bao forcefully freed himself from the python's body, then retrieved the fallen military-grade cold steel dagger from underwater and slashed the python's neck with all his might. The cut must have struck a vital spot; the python went into a frenzy of pain before quickly diving into the water, its blood staining the surface red.

Seeing the blood bubbling in the water, Dunzi fired his shotgun again. It seemed he'd loaded a huge amount of gunpowder and iron pellets this time; the gunshot was deafening. The strong smell of gunpowder quickly filled the water cave. But as the smoke gradually dissipated, we found the water surface returning to calm. We didn't know if we had truly dealt with the giant black python.

We stood around the cave entrance, watching the changes in the water. The bright red python blood that had been flowing out of the cave was slowly carried away by the mountain stream, and the water surface became clean again. Since no more blood was flowing, the giant python must be dead, or it had escaped to somewhere else. It seemed that at least we were safe for now.

33. Carnivorous white lice discovered

Although the terrifying moment had passed, we were all still shaken. I touched my rapidly beating heart and said, "Just as I expected, there's a ferocious creature in this cave. It devoured all the fish, beasts, and even insects that accidentally entered the water cave. No wonder we couldn't see anything alive after we entered." After hearing my words, Jenny looked around and said, "I was searching for other passages in this water cave. Now, seeing this blood gradually diluting, I suddenly remembered that these other passages might be hidden beneath the surface. That's how fresh, clean mountain spring water flows out from these passages and washes away the blood."

After listening to Jenny's explanation, we felt her analysis made a lot of sense, so we decided to go underwater to check. We opened our waterproof backpacks and took out the diving gear, including masks and small oxygen tanks that Ah Bao had specially prepared for us, and then we dived into the water one after another. Because we hadn't yet confirmed whether the black python was dead, and fearing another attack, each of us carried a military-grade cold steel dagger, ready to deal with any unexpected events.

When we dived down, we discovered that the pool inside the cave was shaped like a huge bowl, shallow around the edges and deep in the middle, where the bottom was completely obscured. We didn't dare swim towards the center yet, fearing a sudden attack from the black python. So we circled the perimeter of the pool first, but found no cave entrance or crevices, indicating that the underground current likely originated from the middle of the pool. Since that was the case, we had no choice but to proceed cautiously.

Because the water was relatively clean, underwater visibility was quite good. When we dived to the bottom, with the help of our waterproof headlamps, we saw several huge rocks on the bottom of the pool. Years of erosion by the water had worn away their sharp edges, making them very smooth. Long, thin, green algae grew on the rocks, swaying with the current like the hair on a floating corpse, creating an eerie and unsettling effect. In the middle of those boulders, a dark opening was faintly visible. Judging from the way the algae swayed around the opening, the clear mountain spring water gushed out from this opening.

Strangely, when we carefully examined the bottom of the pool, we found no trace of the black python's corpse. It seemed the python might not have died, but had escaped or gone into hiding. In any case, this was extremely disadvantageous for us. It's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark. This fierce battle had cemented our enmity with this black python. Not only might it gather accomplices to fight us, but even if it lurked in the shadows and suddenly attacked us, we would be caught completely off guard.

Thinking of this, I broke out in a cold sweat again. But because I was submerged, I couldn't tell which part of my body was water and which was sweat. Fearing the black python might suddenly leap out of the narrow opening, we moved extremely carefully, inching closer to the entrance. Our LED headlamps, while providing illumination, were only suitable for close-up objects. And since we were underwater, their range was limited. For viewing further distances, a wolf-eye flashlight was clearly more suitable. So, once we reached the edge of the opening, Ah Bao took out the wolf-eye flashlight and shone it inside. The wolf-eye flashlight could illuminate a distance of thirty to forty meters underwater, which was quite good. Under the flashlight's beam, we saw that the space inside the cave was extremely narrow, barely wide enough for one person to pass through. Because the water flow was suddenly constricted at the fold, the water pressure increased dramatically, creating a powerful jet of water that shot out from the cave.

Ah Bao, holding up his wolf eye, peered into the cave for a long time. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, as if he had discovered something. He turned back, gestured to us, and told us to go in first and follow closely behind. Then he squeezed his way into the cave. Seeing that Ah Bao had already entered, we didn't dare linger and followed him into the cave one by one. Because the space inside was narrow, only allowing one person to pass at a time, there was no way to turn around or go back. So, from the moment I entered the cave, I secretly prayed that we wouldn't encounter the black python here. Otherwise, we wouldn't be able to move freely and would only be able to watch helplessly as we and our companions were slowly strangled to death by the black python.

We swam forward one after another inside the cave. The current was incredibly strong, and the spray was so powerful that it hurt a little when it hit us, slowing our pace. Since I was behind Ah Bao, I could only see his back and didn't know what he was doing. He swam for a while, then stopped, paused briefly, and then continued swimming. I didn't understand why Ah Bao had stopped for so long and assumed he had noticed something amiss, so I quickly reached behind my back and gestured for Jenny and the others to prepare. However, after a while, Ah Bao was still swimming ahead as if nothing was wrong. Perhaps I had been overthinking it, and my heart finally settled back into my chest.

After struggling forward for several dozen meters, the narrow cave gradually widened. I swam to Ah Bao's side and gestured to him, asking if he had found anything and why we had suddenly stopped. Seeing my puzzled look, Ah Bao opened his clenched hand. Upon closer inspection, I saw a piece of bronze about the size of a watch face in his hand. Judging from the bronze spots on the surface, the texture of the cross-section, and the color, it was definitely a bronze artifact. Moreover, the decorative patterns on the fragment resembled those from the Warring States period, which perfectly matched the era of the Warring States bronze jue we had seen at Huang Ya San's place. At this moment, Jenny and Dunzi also arrived. Seeing the bronze fragment, everyone felt as if hope was within reach, and their spirits immediately rose.

This discovery further confirmed that the Warring States period bronze jue (a type of ancient Chinese wine vessel) found by the old man in Weilongling in the mountain stream was indeed washed out from this water cave. This also further confirms that the water cave we were in was very likely the same ancient cave where Li Shaojun of the Han Dynasty discovered the 'inscribed stone tablet'. With this exciting discovery, our previous fears were somewhat alleviated. So we quickly patted Abao on the shoulder, pointed to the depths of the cave, and asked him to lead the way and continue forward.

So Ah Bao put away the bronze fragment and turned to swim forward. But before he had gone two meters, he suddenly trembled and quickly retreated. Seeing Ah Bao's unusual behavior, I knew something strange had appeared again, so I quickly turned on the wolf-eye flashlight I had prepared and shone it forward. I saw a thick, long white object drifting towards us about twenty meters in front of us. The thing was thin at both ends, thick in the middle, and slightly curved, looking very much like a white python. Suddenly, a thought flashed through my mind: could there have been two giant pythons, one black and one white, living in this cave, and now the black python had summoned the white python to avenge it? As I was thinking this, the white python gradually approached us, but strangely, it didn't move at all, as if it weren't a living creature.

So we didn't attack rashly, but pressed ourselves against the cave wall, afraid to move, watching the white object drift past us. When it was less than a meter away, we realized it was the black python we had encountered earlier. Now, its body was covered with countless tiny white insects, making it appear white. Upon closer inspection, I saw that these insects were about the size of mosquitoes, with hard shells, resembling common lice, except their color was white. They were now crawling on the python's corpse, greedily devouring its body. Wherever it bit, a chunk of flesh was immediately gone. They ate incredibly fast, and in no time, the python's bones were exposed. Seeing this, I felt a chill run down my spine; even the hairs on my skin stood on end. I felt an intense itch all over my body, extremely uncomfortable. I thought to myself, if I were surrounded by these little bugs, it would be really unbearable.

Just as I was watching with trepidation, Leopard patted my shoulder, urging me to keep going. But I was still stunned by the sight before me, and Leopard's pat startled me. When I came to my senses, I realized it was just Leopard telling me to follow. Watching the python carcass drift away, I mustered my courage and continued swimming forward with Leopard. Because I was constantly worried about more of those horrible flesh-eating white lice ahead, I couldn't calm down, making the journey quite difficult.

Fortunately, this underwater passage wasn't too long. After swimming forward less than a hundred meters, we saw Ah Bao quickly rise to the surface. So we followed suit. When we surfaced again, we found ourselves in a large cavern.

34. Longshan Cave

We floated on the water and looked around. It was a huge cave, its walls and ceiling draped with stalactites of all shapes and sizes. Some resembled swords drawn from their sheaths, others pillars reaching for the sky, dragons frolicking in the sea, and still others towering peaks. This bizarre and wonderful karst landscape made us marvel at the wonders of nature. If we didn't have an important mission, we would definitely have explored it more thoroughly.

After a quick survey of our surroundings, we found ourselves in a small pool inside a cave. The pool connected to an internal river that stretched into the distance. A natural passageway beside the pool also followed this riverway, extending into the darkness of the cave and disappearing into the distance. Because we could feel a strong, cold wind blowing in our faces, I deduced that the cave was connected to the outside world and should have some oxygen. I tentatively removed the oxygen tank and took a breath of the cave air. Although it wasn't particularly fresh or comfortable, it was enough for us to breathe. So, I took the lead in packing up the small oxygen tanks and diving equipment, putting them back in our waterproof backpacks. Worried about those horrible flesh-eating white lice in the water, and seeing that a riverbank had appeared, I quickly called everyone to climb ashore.

Once we reached the shore, we realized that the exposed riverbank inside the cave was actually part of the underground riverbed. Because the riverbed sloped left and right, the right side was slightly higher than the left. This was because the water level in the underground river was low, causing the right side to be exposed, forming the riverbank we saw. As a result, the riverbank was extremely damp and covered with algae and moss, making it very slippery. Along the way, we almost slipped and fell several times, making the journey very difficult. Thankfully, we were wearing headlamps this time, which freed our hands to hold onto the cave walls and barely support ourselves as we moved forward.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, we found ourselves in a small cavern. Although not large, strangely, the stone walls of this cavern had numerous passageways and openings. I counted them in all directions and found that, including the passageway we had come from, there were ten in total. The underground river we had followed earlier also split into nine branches here, flowing slowly out from nine different openings. This completely baffled everyone. "Damn it! How did we end up in such a maze? Which way should we go?" Dunzi said, looking through the openings with his wolf-eye flashlight, but he couldn't figure out anything.

Jenny and I examined several of the cave entrances. We found that while the entrances varied in shape, they were similar in size, and the interiors were also roughly the same – somewhat cramped and very damp, with a chill blowing in our faces. It was difficult to decide which way to go. I stared at the entrances for a long time, pondering carefully, when suddenly something occurred to me. I said to everyone, "Do you remember Brother Baoshan saying that this mountain stream flows down from Jiulong Mountain?" "Of course we remember! How could we forget? What's the story behind it?" Dunzi asked, leaning closer. “Look, besides the cave entrance we just came from, there are nine cave entrances left. Didn’t Brother Baoshan say that Nine Dragons Mountain is composed of nine giant peaks? So, is this just a coincidence?” Jenny frowned and thought for a moment after hearing what I said, then said, “You mean, these nine passages might lead to the nine peaks of Nine Dragons Mountain?” I nodded and said, “Yes, I think it’s very possible. Look at the direction the stream flows from when we came here; didn’t it come from the Nine Dragons Mountain? And Brother Baoshan himself told us that he heard from the older generation that this stream should come down from Nine Dragons Mountain. Therefore, it’s not impossible that these nine passages lead to the nine peaks. Maybe we’re underground between the nine peaks of Nine Dragons Mountain right now.”

Upon hearing my words, Dunzi's expression changed slightly, and he said with a hint of panic, "What? You mean we've unknowingly wandered into Jiulong Mountain? Isn't that very dangerous? Didn't we say we wouldn't come here? Quick, quick, let's go back first. It wouldn't be good if something happened." Jenny and Abao just smiled slightly and ignored him. So I patted Dunzi on the shoulder and said, "Brother, can you be a little braver? Don't listen to Brother Baoshan's exaggerated talk. Actually, I've already figured out most of the mystery." "Really? Then tell me quickly what exactly happened? And the mystery of the expedition team's mysterious disappearance," Jenny asked doubtfully after hearing my words.

So I explained, “Last night, when you were all asleep, I couldn’t fall asleep for some reason, so I got up to look at the stars, check the celestial phenomena, and predict good or bad fortune. At that moment, I saw from the position of the nine inauspicious stars in the sky that Jiulong Mountain is a type of terrain in feng shui called ‘Soul-Stealing Palace.’ According to the ‘Five Stars Divination,’ this kind of terrain can cause people who enter it to lose their souls, become confused, and die. My guess is that the reason is that these nine peaks are directly opposite the nine inauspicious stars. Under the influence of the gravitational pull of these nine stars, a special magnetic field is generated in the mountain. If a person enters this terrain, the cerebral cortex is disturbed and stimulated by the magnetic field, making it very easy to hallucinate, thereby losing one’s true nature, losing reason, or even going insane, mentally collapsing, and dying. Therefore, there is no such thing as Qin Shi Huang’s forbidden land or any demons or monsters in this mountain, as Brother Baoshan described.”

Jenny and Ah Bao nodded repeatedly after hearing my words. Only Dunzi remained worried, saying, "Even if it's really as you say, and there are no ghosts or demons in these mountains, this magnetic field that can drive people mad is not something to be trifled with. I don't want to become a fool or a madman in the future." "Hehe, don't rush me, I haven't finished yet." I smiled after hearing Dunzi's words, and then added, "Because the magnetic field in these mountains is generated by the gravitational pull of nine stars in the sky. Due to the Earth's rotation and revolution, the positions of those nine stars relative to the Earth will change periodically. For this reason, I speculate that the peculiar magnetic field in Jiulong Mountain is like the tides of the ocean, rising and falling, with a fixed cycle of change, and it doesn't exist every moment."

35. Jade Compass of Nine Dragon Cave

Hearing what I said, Dunzi still seemed a little uneasy, so he asked, "Even if there is a cycle, how do you know if we'll just run into its trap if we go there now?" "Hehe, don't worry, I saw the Nine Stars directly opposite the Nine Peaks at 1 a.m. yesterday, and it's 9:15 p.m. now, there are still several hours to go." I glanced at the waterproof Swiss gold watch on Abao's wrist and then said to Dunzi with a smile.

After my explanation, Dunzi had nothing more to say, and then said, "Since that's the case, I'll trust you one more time, but we need to head back by midnight." I nodded and said, "Of course, I believe not only you, but also Jenny and Abao don't want to become fools or lunatics. By the way, from now on, Abao, you keep an eye on the time and update everyone on the current time every now and then, so everyone has a sense of time and can decide whether to return." "OK, no problem," Abao replied with a smile. Seeing that I had made the arrangements, Dunzi didn't say anything more. I saw that there wasn't much time left, so I randomly found a tunnel entrance, made a mark next to it with my cold steel dagger, and then we all crawled into the tunnel entrance one by one and continued forward.

Bending over and crouching low, we walked for a while in this not-so-wide passage. The passage was very quiet; the only sound was the soft splashing of our feet in the ankle-deep water. We estimated we had walked about one or two hundred meters. We clearly felt the passage begin to slope upwards, which further confirmed my hypothesis that these passages led to the nine giant peaks of Jiulong Mountain. It seemed we were now in the heart of Jiulong Mountain. Since everyone was perfectly normal and didn't feel anything amiss, it confirmed that the special magnetic field, as I had predicted, had indeed not yet appeared.

As the incline increased and the water beneath our feet made the path increasingly difficult, we had to use both hands and feet, clinging to the stone walls of the passage to move slowly. After about an hour, we finally emerged from the narrow, dark river channel, and before us lay what appeared to be a relatively open cavern, with the faint sound of rushing water still audible. To assess our surroundings, everyone turned on their flashlights. When I shone my flashlight forward, I was suddenly stunned by what I saw. High in the cavern, a white waterfall cascaded down from the ceiling, like a white ribbon falling from the sky. It was a truly magnificent sight. The waterfall crashed into the pool below, creating gusts of cool, cold wind. It was then that I realized the cold winds we had felt along the way had come from here. What surprised me even more was a huge stalactite next to the waterfall, upon which stood a tall stone tablet, its size very similar to the "inscribed stone tablet" I had seen at Professor Cheng's place. Could this be another "inscribed stone tablet" engraved with "Ghost Domain Inscriptions" and their corresponding "oracle bone script"? No wonder Professor Cheng's "inscribed stone tablet" alone couldn't decipher all the "Ghost Domain Inscriptions"—it turned out there was more than one "inscribed stone tablet." Thinking this, I rushed over to investigate, but just then, I heard a shout of "Watch out!" and my body was firmly pulled back by a strong hand.

I turned around and saw it was Ah Bao. Seeing me turn around, he pointed to a small pool in front of me. Looking closely, I saw that the waterfall had cascaded down, forming a shallow pool around the huge stalactite where the "inscribed stone tablet" stood. And in this pool, countless white carrion lice swam about like stars in the sky. This sight truly gave me a chill. If Ah Bao hadn't been quick-witted and agile, I would have stepped into this swarm of lice, and I wouldn't be standing here now.

I glanced at Dunzi again, and saw that he was also staring blankly at the swarm of lice in the water, unsure of what to do. I guessed that he was also feeling apprehensive about seeing these carrion lice. Just when we were at a loss, we suddenly heard Jenny's excited shout, "Sinan, come and look! There are indeed quite a few bronze artifacts here!" Hearing Jenny's shout, we immediately rushed over. It turned out that after Zhenni arrived at this cave hall, she walked in another direction, and on a relatively flat area, Jenny discovered a man-made stone platform. On it were placed some bronze tripods, incense burners, wine vessels, and other bronze utensils. Judging from their placement, this stone platform seemed to be a place for sacrificial ceremonies.

I picked up one of the bronze jue (a type of ancient Chinese wine vessel) and examined it closely with my wolf-eye flashlight. I found that this jue was indeed very similar to the one I had seen at Huang Ya San's house. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that the bottom of the jue also bore two identical mysterious "ghost domain inscriptions." Although the patina was faded, the characters were still clearly discernible. I then looked at the location of the stone platform and noticed that it was next to the underground river. It seemed highly likely that the bronze jue in Huang Ya San's possession had fallen into the underground river for some reason and, over the years, had been carried away by the current to the mountain stream. However, since I saw that the sacrificial implements on the stone platform in front of us were all neatly arranged and seemingly intact, I believed that the bronze jue in Huang Ya San's possession might have been lost from another cavern.

Therefore, it seems that the "Stone Stele Cave" discovered by Li Shaojun in the Han Dynasty was likely one of the nine karst caves on Jiulong Mountain. When Li Shaojun painstakingly buried the stone tablets and bronze artifacts from that cave in his tomb before his death, intending to bury this secret forever, he never imagined that eight other karst caves still held this ancient mystery.

But then a new question popped into my head. Since we knew there were nine passages leading to nine different caves on our way here, why did Li Shaojun only know about one? Unless he hadn't come from our passage. Thinking this, I went back to the waterway exit we'd used to climb into this cave. The entrance was inside the waterway, a very narrow opening, barely wide enough for one person to squeeze through. Because the water level was low, most of the opening was visible. If the water level were higher, I estimated this small opening would be submerged. In that case, it would be much harder for an ordinary person to find the passage. My doubts gradually cleared up.

Then, Ah Bao walked a short distance to the other side of the cave, before returning to tell us that there was a hidden exit leading outside. We followed him to investigate, and sure enough, after walking about sixty or seventy meters, we emerged from a huge crevice in the rock. Because no one had ventured there for centuries, the crevice was overgrown with tall, dense thorns and weeds, completely obscuring the exit. Fortunately, Ah Bao's "little dog leg" machete was sharp enough, and he quickly carved a path. We followed Ah Bao out of the crevice and onto the outside of the cave. We found ourselves on the mountainside, surrounded by towering peaks, their outlines barely visible. A mountain breeze blew, and the air felt much fresher and more comfortable than inside the cave. Ah Bao checked his watch; it was nearly eleven o'clock at night, and time was running out. He then reminded everyone... Hearing Ah Bao's reminder, we quickly returned to the cave, intending to find a way to examine the stone tablet more closely.

Back in front of the stone tablet, staring at the swarms of carrion lice in the water, I was momentarily distracted, my anxiety mounting as time ticked by. Suddenly, Jenny said, "Leopard, tie a slipknot at one end of the safety rope and throw it over the stone tablet. See if you can lasso it." I immediately understood. She wanted to lasso the tablet, then have someone climb up the rope to the stalactite where it was located, thus safely reaching the tablet while suspended in mid-air over the carrion-infested pool. It seemed like a feasible plan. However, lassoing the tablet would take some effort. After all, we weren't American cowboys, nor had we ever grazed horses on the desert plains. Lassoing the tablet with a rope would be quite difficult. But since we hadn't come up with any other solution yet, we had no choice but to try.

After hearing Jenny's suggestion, Ah Bao quickly took out a bundle of neatly arranged rope from his backpack. This rope wasn't thick, only about the thickness of a finger, and very light, but its load-bearing capacity was extremely strong; it was a special expedition rope made of special materials. Ah Bao skillfully tied a slipknot at one end of the rope, forming a loop, and then tried to throw it towards the stone tablet. Perhaps it was truly divine intervention, but it actually looped right away. At that moment, I almost wanted to hug and kiss him, but then I thought it would be a bit disgusting for two grown men to do this, so I joined Dunzi and Jenny in excitedly shouting loudly.

36. Terrifying Illusions

Afterwards, Ah Bao volunteered to climb up the rope to the huge stalactite, and then used the high-resolution professional digital camera we had prepared beforehand to photograph all the inscriptions on the stone tablet. After he finished, he checked the time and it was already 11:53 PM. Just then, Jenny noticed that the carrion lice in the pool were behaving strangely. She said, "Si Nan, look, these carrion lice used to be gathered together, but now they've suddenly become restless, biting each other and scattering." After hearing Jenny's words, we squatted down and looked closely, and sure enough, it was exactly as she described. Seeing this, I guessed that this was very likely related to the special magnetic field phenomenon within Jiulong Mountain. Since the carrion lice had sensed the abnormality occurring here, it meant that Jiulong Mountain was currently being affected by the nine ominous stars in the sky, and the surrounding magnetic field was gradually strengthening. Thinking this through, I realized that time was of the essence, so I said, "Quick, everyone, let's head back the way we came! The special magnetic field here is starting to intensify." With that, I ran back the way we came. Hearing this, the others also sensed the urgency and quickly grabbed their backpacks and began to evacuate.

After entering the waterway, the path sloped downwards. Years of erosion by the water had worn the stone surfaces smooth, making the ascent difficult but now a huge help. Seeing this, I simply sat down and slid down quickly. The others, seeing how quickly this saved them, followed suit.

And so, the path that had taken us so long to climb was slid through in less than ten minutes. When we returned to the cavern with its ten passages, it was already past midnight. Because we weren't sure how far we were in the underground waterway before leaving Jiulong Mountain, we didn't dare rest for a moment. We retraced our steps along the old path we had come from. Having already walked this route, our fear was lessened, and we walked much faster. During this time, everyone was focused on getting out, and although the cave was originally very cold, we were all sweating profusely and panting heavily.

About forty or fifty minutes later, we returned to the pool. At this point, less than half an hour remained before the peak of the magnetic field at Jiulong Mountain, which I had calculated. Everyone quickly retrieved their diving equipment and plunged underwater, swimming back with all their might. After only a minute or two underwater, the previously dark and narrow waterway suddenly became bright and open. Then, I saw a beautiful woman in white robes and a white belt floating towards me from the white light. Her beauty was indescribable—noble, aloof, simply unparalleled. Just as my eyes were involuntarily drawn to her, the white light suddenly flashed and turned into a red light. Then, a giant black python emerged from the red light. It was covered in blood, baring its fangs and its eyes gleaming with fury, charging rapidly towards me. I recognized it immediately—it was the same black python we had killed earlier! Now it seemed even more terrifying and ferocious than before, radiating a strong, malevolent aura, its sinister energy chilling to the bone. Could it be its vengeful spirit coming to claim our lives? Thinking this, I suddenly felt extremely tense, my body instinctively retreating. But as I retreated, I discovered that my escape route had vanished, replaced by a stone wall. The vengeful spirit of the giant black python rapidly approached me, opening its massive, blood-red maw, ready to swallow me whole.

At this critical moment, a strong thought suddenly flashed through my mind. I told myself that none of this was real, just a very vivid hallucination. I told myself this over and over again, gradually building my confidence. Just as the giant python's vengeful spirit was about to swallow my head, the red light suddenly disappeared, replaced by the same dark and narrow waterway. At the same time, I realized that I had been retreating in the hallucination, until I reached a stone wall and couldn't retreat any further, but in reality, I was blocked by the stool behind me. At this moment, I also noticed that the stool seemed to be immersed in some kind of hallucination as well, constantly trying to move towards me. Unable to move forward because I was blocking him, he was frantically flailing his limbs, appearing extremely tense. I managed to turn around and forcefully pull the stool away, trying to bring him back to his senses. After some struggle, he finally regained his senses. Afterwards, we also managed to bring Jenny and Ah Bao, who were also deluded by the hallucination, back to their senses. There was no time to explain anything further to them, so I took the lead and quickly swam back.

When we reached the enormous cavern where we had fought the giant black python, and walked from the water to the shore, Ah Bao told us it was already 1:30 AM. It seemed we had finally escaped the magnetic field of Jiulong Mountain and gotten rid of its strong interference with our cerebral cortex. We had finally escaped another dangerous ordeal. At this moment, Dunzi, while packing his diving gear into his backpack, said, "That hallucination was fucking terrifying! I saw a huge swarm of carnivorous white lice rushing towards me from behind, and my path was blocked by a large rock. It was truly frightening." Hearing Dunzi's words, Jenny chimed in, "Yeah, I also had some terrifying hallucinations. But there was still some time before the magnetic field of Jiulong Mountain was at its strongest. How could we have hallucinated?" "It's because the magnetic field wasn't at its strongest then that I was able to barely escape its interference using my willpower and wake you all up. If we hadn't escaped the magnetic field's range by the time it reached its peak, we probably would have died from mental breakdowns by now," I replied with a laugh. Dunzi wiped the cold sweat from his brow and muttered, "Lucky, lucky."

Thirty-seven, eleven corpses

After quickly attaching our diving gear, we continued our journey back the way we came. Confirmed that we had escaped the danger posed by the magnetic field of Jiulong Mountain, everyone felt much more relaxed, and our steps became lighter. We soon emerged from the water cave and returned to the granite forest in the mountains. As soon as we came out, we saw Wang Baoshan dozing off by the stream. Although he was asleep, he wasn't in a deep sleep, because he immediately woke up when he heard the splashing sounds we made while waking. Seeing that we were all safe and sound, he immediately ran over to greet us with a smile. As he ran, he asked, "Brother Dunzi, you're all out? Why did it take you so long? Did you find anything?" Before we could answer, Dunzi proudly replied, "Of course! We found a lot, and we even went to Jiulong Mountain, which exposed your old story, haha." "What? You really went to Jiulong Mountain?" Wang Baoshan asked in surprise. "Yeah, there are no ghosts or demons there, just a special strong magnetic field. As long as you time it right, nothing will happen. Look at us, we're all fine, aren't we?" Dunzi's words left Wang Baoshan completely bewildered, utterly confused. Only we knew what Dunzi meant, and seeing Wang Baoshan's puzzled expression, everyone burst into laughter.

It was around 7 PM when we returned to Xi'an after saying goodbye to Wang Baoshan. Having spent so much time scrambling through the water cave, the four of us were covered in mud, looking like four little monkeys. Our arrival in the hotel lobby attracted quite a few surprised glances. Back in our room, we quickly took cold showers to wash off the mud before heading to a restaurant for dinner. While eating, we discussed our next steps. Now that we had discovered the secrets hidden in Jiulong Mountain and had personally found another "inscribed stone tablet" in one of the caves, we needed to time our visits to the other caves. Since we already had a general understanding of the caves, we were quite relaxed when preparing the necessary equipment for our next entry.

The next morning, Dunzi went out early to find some old friends in the area, hoping to find some necessary tools from them. I also sent the photos I'd taken with my digital camera of the inscription on the stone tablet to my old classmate Huayang via the internet, asking him to ask Professor Cheng to help translate these parallel inscriptions of "Ghost Domain Inscriptions" and "Oracle Bone Script" into modern characters. By noon, everyone was ready, and the four of us set off again for the Qinling Mountains.

Over the next few days, we simply set up camp on a clearing beside the mountain stream. Every day, we would enter one of the caves in Jiulong Mountain to examine and photograph the contents of the "inscribed stone tablets," and then calmly return to the camp as night fell. This went on for three days without incident. With the contents of five stone tablets already in our hands, the day when we could completely decipher the "Ghost Domain Inscriptions" was drawing ever closer, and everyone was extremely excited.

That day, as usual, we arrived at the sixth cave in Jiulong Mountain. As soon as we emerged from the narrow waterway into the cave hall, we were met with a foul, fishy stench. This unusual smell immediately alerted everyone. Ah Bao quickly switched on his wolf-eye flashlight and shone it around the cave. The light immediately revealed the problem: backpacks, trekking poles, lighting equipment, measuring instruments, and other items were scattered haphazardly on the floor. Seeing these items, I had a pretty good idea of what was going on, so I said, "Everyone, quickly look around. I suspect this is where the expedition team had their accident. Hopefully, we can still find survivors." After I said this, everyone sprang into action, running in four different directions to search carefully. Jenny, while searching, shouted loudly, "Is anyone there? Is anyone still here?" But after a long time, only Jenny's own echo reverberated through the cave. It seemed there was no one else there. Just as I was thinking this, I suddenly heard Ah Bao shout loudly, "This is terrible! Come and see!"

Hearing that there was new information from Ah Bao, I immediately ran over with the others. Ah Bao was standing in front of a huge stalactite. His eyes were closed, and upon hearing our arrival, he pointed to the ground ahead and said, "Eleven corpses, all here. Not a single one survived." Hearing Ah Bao's words, I was first startled, then looked in the direction he was pointing. In the beam of the wolf-eye flashlight, I saw a shallow pool of water, about ten square meters in size. Several human corpses lay scattered in the water, their tattered uniforms confirming they were members of the expedition team Wang Baoshan had mentioned. From the exposed parts of their bodies, it was clear that the soft tissue had long since disappeared, leaving only stark white bones. It was a chilling sight. I knew without a doubt that this was the work of the carrion lice living in these cave pools. I looked more closely at the shallow pool. Sure enough, they found clumps of carrion lice gathered together in the water.

Looking at the horrific scene before me, I slowly explained, "It's possible that when this topographical research team entered the Jiulong Mountain area, they were affected by the mountain's magnetic field, causing everyone's mental state to become abnormal. However, since they hadn't initially entered the center of the magnetic field, the impact wasn't too severe. Later, when they inadvertently entered this cave and thought it would be suitable for camping, they settled down here. But they never expected that while they were sound asleep at midnight, they would suddenly be affected by the strongest magnetic field, experiencing hallucinations, and ultimately falling into the pool, becoming a meal for carrion lice." After I finished speaking, everyone fell silent. Everyone felt a deep sense of regret for the unfortunate fate of this research team.

After observing three minutes of silence for them by the pool, we left and continued searching the cave, hoping to find the sixth "inscribed stele." However, after a careful search, we found no stele or bronze artifacts in the cave. The only discovery was a stone platform with bronze artifacts, similar to those we had seen in other caves. But this time, the platform was empty. Dunzi's first thought was that the expedition team had hidden them, so he went to check the packages discarded at the bottom, but found nothing. Just as everyone was puzzled, I suddenly thought of a crucial factor and said with a smile, "Oh dear, we've been so clever, yet so foolish! This cave is very likely the 'Ancient Cave for Hiding Steles' discovered by Li Shaojun of the Han Dynasty. Since he moved those bronze artifacts and stele to his tomb, of course it's empty here." Hearing this, everyone immediately understood. Dunzi slapped his forehead and laughed, saying, "Oh yeah, how could I forget about that?"

Having understood this, we went to check the cave's exit. Sure enough, the entrance to this cave was much larger and easier to spot than the others. The entrances to the caves we had previously discovered were all very small, either hidden in crevices behind bushes and brambles or buried by collapsed rocks, making them almost impossible to find. This cave, however, was located behind a waterfall, like a water curtain cave. There were no weeds growing around it, and it wasn't buried by rocks, so it was relatively easy to spot when the waterfall's flow was weak. Therefore, when Li Shaojun of the Han Dynasty and his research team entered the Jiulong Mountain area, they invariably found this cave first.

To avoid disrupting our search plan, we spent another four days in the mountains, exploring the other four caves one by one and taking photos of the various "inscribed stone tablets" before heading back to our hotel in Xi'an. During this time, we also found a beautifully crafted jade box in one of the cave halls. Since we didn't have the right tools to open the copper lock on the jade box, and we didn't want to damage this exquisite artifact, we decided to take it back for further study.