After preparations were mostly complete, Li Chuang and Rexiti waited for us above.
Everyone else equipped themselves and entered the underground secret chamber.
Meeting Old Man Qu again was truly unexpected. The old fellow was all smiles, addressing me as "Brother Xiang" repeatedly.
Before the stone door, Fu Kui was examining the beast hide on it and asked, "What animal's hide is this?"
Qu Chuan replied, "Third Master, if I'm not mistaken, this should be horse hide."
"Horse hide?" Fu Kui frowned. "In ancient times, killing horses was a very taboo thing, wasn't it?"
Qu Chuan chuckled, "Indeed, killing horses was a great taboo in that era, but it depends on the circumstances. There must be something very important inside that required them to wrap the stone door with horse hide."
Fu Kui nodded slightly and said, "Old Qu, open the door."
Qu Chuan nodded, took out something resembling a "bow" shape, and inserted it sideways into the crack of the stone door. Following that, he began to rotate it slowly. Soon, there was a "thump," as if something behind the stone door had fallen.
After Qu Chuan removed the tool, he pushed with both hands, and the stone door slowly swung open.
Although I had entered tombs several times, I was clearly far behind a seasoned expert like Qu Chuan.
The moment the stone door was pushed open, a gust of air rushed out from within. Along with the airflow came a pungent smell of dried grass.
Jin Qiaoyue took out a bottle of something from her backpack and distributed it among everyone.
I noticed it was a small pill, and she said that taking it could prevent the harm of poisonous gases.
I wasn't sure if it was true or not, as I couldn't understand any of the English on the medicine bottle.
Seeing that everyone had taken it, I naturally swallowed the pill.
Behind the stone door was a long corridor. The corridor was constructed of bricks and stones. The beam of the flashlight illuminated only floating dust motes in the air, and it seemed endless, a pitch-black expanse.
Fu Honglang sniffed the air and then was the first to walk in.
Following him were Qu Chuan, then Fu Kui and his bodyguards, and Jin Qiaoyue.
Fatty, Song Bing, and I walked at the very back.
After walking about forty to fifty meters inside, Fu Honglang stopped and turned to us, saying, "The air ahead is a bit strange. Everyone put on your gas masks."
Everyone took out their gas masks, donned them, and then continued walking inside.
After another several dozen meters, the corridor began to widen, leading to a small stone chamber, roughly sixty square meters.
The floor of the stone chamber was covered with many white bones, it was unclear if they were human or animal. Although they crumbled when stepped on, they were still a bit hard underfoot.
At the far end of the stone chamber were two corridors, leading to places unknown.
I felt this place didn't resemble a secret chamber, but I couldn't quite articulate its purpose.
The bodyguard, Ayuan, placed the battery-powered lamp they had carried down in the center and turned it on, instantly illuminating the entire stone chamber.
There were even more bones on the ground than I had anticipated, piled into small mounds in several places.
None of us were easygoing people, so we paid them no mind, and no one was frightened.
I originally thought Jin Qiaoyue wouldn't be scared either, but her face was somewhat pale, and her legs were trembling slightly.
I noticed these subtle movements, but outwardly she still appeared indifferent.
"Are these human or animal bones?" Fatty asked.
I took a look but couldn't tell, as the bones on the ground had changed shape due to the long passage of time.
"They should be human bones," Fu Kui said.
I didn't know how he could tell, but judging by his expression, what he said seemed to be true.
"Huh? This painting..."
Jin Qiaoyue looked at the murals on the stone chamber walls, her brows furrowed tightly.
Seeing her expression, everyone's curiosity was piqued, and they all looked towards the walls of the stone chamber.
When we entered, we were so focused on examining the bones on the ground that we hadn't noticed the murals here.
The murals were lifelike, and despite being covered in dust, they were still very exquisite.
Most importantly, the colors used were striking, a dazzling array of hues.
I looked around and found that the walls and ceiling of the stone chamber were entirely covered in paintings.
"Old Qu, what do these paintings depict?" Fu Kui asked.
Old Man Qu examined them for a while, clearly unable to decipher them, and gave an awkward smile, "I can't tell either."
"What about you, Brother Fu?"
Fu Honglang smiled, "I'm skilled at entering tombs, but I'm not good at ancient artifact research... However, we have an expert here."
"Who?"
Fu Honglang looked at me, "Brother Xiang, can you make anything out?"
His question drew everyone else's attention to me.
These murals were also a first for me, but judging by the style, they should belong to the Northern Wei period.
However, the State of Taohuai was a country from the Han Dynasty, over a hundred years earlier than the Northern Wei.
Could it be that this country existed from the Han Dynasty all the way through the Northern Wei period?
It wasn't impossible, but who painted these?
Seeing my silence, Fu Kui said, "Mr. Xiang, can you see anything?"
Though his tone was calm, I could detect a hint of condescension in it.
I didn't really care whether he looked up to me or not, but sometimes showcasing one's own value wasn't a bad idea.
So, I began, "Judging by the style of these murals, they should be from the Northern Wei period. The murals of that time featured strong, overt emotions, exaggerated figure modeling, skillful use of fine lines for outlines, and an emphasis on the technique of shading..."
I spoke at length and then added, "However, the State of Taohuai was a small state during the Han Dynasty. If this place were truly the capital of Taohuai, then it would prove that this country existed for at least a hundred years."
Then, I changed the subject, "As for what is depicted here, it's easy to distinguish."
I walked to a corner and pointed at a mural, "Starting from here and looking to the left, then finally up to the ceiling... these murals record a sacrificial ceremony of the State of Taohuai."
"What about this one?" Jin Qiaoyue pointed to a painting on the ceiling, "What does this mean?"
The painting on the ceiling depicted a person riding on a cow. Someone offered him something, after which he cut open his chest and inserted the item into his body.
The thing the person in the painting inserted into his body was a polygonal stone that emitted a yellow glow, clearly a formidable treasure.
But no matter how precious the treasure was, why would one cut open their chest to insert it?
I knew that the artistic techniques in ancient paintings were often exaggerated. Perhaps this painting was describing how precious that stone was, and it was only safe when hidden within the human body.