Zhang Fan has confirmed that the insects in the Tang Dynasty tomb and the insects on Mars are not from the same batch, given the thousand-year gap between them. However, they both originated from the same technology, which may explain why they share the same evolutionary path.
So when he saw a four-star soldier cockroach peeking out from the end of the cave, he even felt a sense of kinship.
Qiu Wanlan tensed up, whether from fear or because her back was pressed tightly against Zhang Fan's chest, it was hard to tell. They hid in a small, shady spot near the cave entrance; the space was cramped, and the two of them squeezed together to barely fit inside.
According to Zhang Fan, the "Yaksha demon" has very poor eyesight and mainly relies on vibrations to sense its prey, so she dared not move at all, even holding her breath and making a sound.
rustling sound—
A group of demons crawled through the cave one after another. Qiu Wanlan felt her scalp tingle. These flat-bodied, reddish-brown carapace-covered crawling creatures were truly a woman's natural enemy.
As the next successor to the Qiu family headship, Qiu Wanlan always presents herself as a decisive and capable businesswoman in public. However, in the Tang King's Tomb, she is completely out of character and can't seem to muster any strength at all.
rustling sound—
A demon suddenly stopped outside the location where the two were hiding, circled around a few times, and opened and closed its sharp pincers.
Qiu Wanlan was terrified and tried to back away, but Zhang Fan was right behind her, so she couldn't back away. As a result, she pushed Zhang Fan against the rock wall.
Zhang Fan secretly groaned. The rock wall was uneven, and his body was hurting from the bumps. But he dared not make a sound, for fear of disturbing the four-star soldiers outside.
Fortunately, the insect didn't linger in the passageway for long. After circling around a few times and seemingly finding nothing, it continued forward with the main group.
"Second Aunt, the bugs are gone." Zhang Fan nudged Qiu Wanlan's shoulder.
Qiu Wanlan emerged from the cave wall, her back soaked with cold sweat. A gust of wind blew through the cave, and she sneezed.
Achoo!
Qiu Wanlan quickly covered her mouth, afraid that she would summon the Yaksha demon back again.
"It's alright, the bugs have already gone far away." Zhang Fan stepped forward and continued to lead the way.
"Are we still going to go forward? Aren't we afraid of encountering the Yaksha again?" Qiu Wanlan asked with some concern.
As you continue forward, many forks in the road appear, and the surrounding tunnels become more densely packed. Moreover, judging from the scattered rocks and soil around, some of these tunnels were newly dug.
At each fork in the road, Zhang Fan would reach out to feel the wind direction and continue walking in the direction the wind was coming from.
“Yaksha demons don’t actually like the smell of human flesh,” Zhang Fan said as they walked. “If they weren’t forced to, they would actually prefer to rummage through your garbage dump rather than eat you.”
Zhang Fan led the way, stopping and starting frequently. Qiu Wanlan suspected that he had made an appointment with the Yaksha ghost, because every time he stopped and hid, the Yaksha ghost would pass by on the road ahead soon afterward.
"You seem to know a lot about these Yaksha demons?" Qiu Wanlan couldn't help but ask curiously.
“If you’ve ever lived as their neighbor for a year, you’ll understand their habits very well.” Zhang Fan listened carefully to the sounds around him, and finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw light coming through a hole in front of him.
We've already traveled so far; judging by the distance, we should have reached our destination by now.
As the two stepped out of the cave, the blinding light immediately made them squint.
How could there be such a bright light underground?
Once their eyes finally adjusted to the light, the scene before them left them both stunned.
This is a huge underground cavern, with a space as large as a standard football field.
The cave floor is low on all sides and high in the middle. At the highest point of the central rock mountain stands a magnificent underground palace, with a stone staircase extending from the foot of the mountain to the underground palace.
Zhang Fan and Qiu Wanlan exchanged a glance and walked together to the stone steps.
On either side of the stone steps are two stone-carved mythical beasts called Qilin, with their heads held high, chests puffed out, eyes wide open, and long whiskers fluttering, lifelike as if watching over the person who has entered the tomb.
The underground palace before us is undoubtedly the mausoleum of the Tang emperors, because the mausoleums of the queens of the Western Liang dynasty all used phoenixes, not qilin, as the guardian beasts of the tombs.
Zhang Fan confirmed that it was a Qilin, since there aren't many mythical beasts with a dragon's head and a horse's body.
The two walked up the stone steps, one on the left and one on the right. The middle of the steps was sloping, and carved with kui dragon patterns. Qiu Wanlan's eyes were filled with surprise, after all, as a woman, she rarely saw imperial tombs decorated with dragons as a totem.
After climbing halfway up the stone steps, you reach a platform in the middle. To continue upwards, you need to pass through an archway.
The archway bears the four large characters "Nantianmen" (South Heavenly Gate), and four tall and majestic golden figures stand before it, each holding a pipa (a Chinese lute), a sword, a red dragon, and a parasol, respectively, their eyes wide open in anger.
Qiu Wanlan bowed very respectfully to the four three-zhang-tall golden statues, and then began to remove the small, clasp-like items from her body and throw them into the sand pit in front of her.
"What are you doing?" Zhang Fan was baffled by Qiu Wanlan's strange behavior.
After throwing away the loose items on her body, Qiu Wanlan bowed to the golden statue again before pointing to the sand pit in front of her and saying, "The old man said that when passing by the 'Unarmor Removal Pool,' one must remove any gold or stone objects from one's body, otherwise one will be cursed with bloodshed."
Zhang Fan looked at the sand pit with suspicion. There were many rusty swords, spears, and halberds stuck in the sand pit. In the center of the sand pit was a black boulder with the four characters "见龙卸甲" (Jianlong Xiejia, meaning "Seeing the Dragon Remove His Armor") carved on it.
"Walk!"
Zhang Fan refused to believe it and pulled Qiu Wanlan forward.
I refuse to believe it. I'm not going to throw it away. What can you do to me?
clang!
As they passed through the archway, the Jin man's sword suddenly slashed down at Zhang Fan's head without warning!
Holy crap!
The slap in the face came so quickly!
The sword crashed to the ground, sparks flying.
As Zhang Fan pushed Qiu Wanlan aside, he rolled sideways on the ground, barely avoiding the Jin man's sword.
call!
Another golden figure spun its treasured umbrella, circling around Zhang Fan.
Zhang Fan could already see the sharp tip of the umbrella. This spinning umbrella was no different from a spinning chainsaw. If it hit, it would cut a person in half in no time.
The other two golden figures, one on the left and one on the right, hurled their pipa and red dragon at us, completely blocking our escape routes.
Seeing that there was no way to avoid it, Zhang Fan did not retreat but advanced, charging directly towards the golden man holding the pipa.
Bang!
The pipa in the Jin man's hand slammed solidly into Zhang Fan, sending him flying.
flutter!
Zhang Fan flew several meters away and fell to the ground. Although he moved his backpack to his chest as a cushion, the force of the Jin man's pipa was considerable, and he felt as if his whole body was broken apart.
But it was precisely because he was knocked away that Zhang Fan temporarily escaped the Jin army's siege.
"Remove your armor immediately!"
Qiu Wanlan stood in the middle of the Jin people and shouted, but the Jin people only attacked him. Qiu Wanlan stood there and was completely unharmed.
Zhang Fan was a little confused, but he didn't have time to think too much. Taking advantage of the moment before the Jin people raised their weapons again, he immediately threw away everything related to metal, such as his backpack, dagger, and shovel.
clang!
The Jin people took all these things away and returned to their original posture, remaining motionless.
"See, I told you but you wouldn't listen!" Qiu Wanlan walked over with a reproachful look and helped Zhang Fan up.
Zhang Fan got up and wiped the sweat from his forehead. Looking at the dagger attached to the golden sword, he admitted defeat this time.
Those who don't heed the old man's advice will suffer the consequences.
After calming down, others might be amazed by the efficacy of the "Armor-Removing Pool," but to Zhang Fan, it was just a few large magnets.
The weapons in the golden statue's hands should also contain magnetic components, so when someone carrying a metal object passes by, the magnetic force will trigger the mechanism on the golden statue, causing the weapon to chase and attack him.
After removing all metal objects from their bodies, the golden statue stood quietly to the side, watching as the two safely passed through the archway.
Sunlight streamed down from behind the archway.
The two looked up and were surprised to see a vast expanse of blue sky above them.
The roof of the underground palace in front of us was covered with a layer of rock and soil, and lush trees grew on it, like a hanging garden, giving people a very unreal feeling.
Zhang Fan finally understood. When the Tang Dynasty imperial tombs were first built, this underground palace was likely constructed using natural underground karst caves.
However, over the millennia, as the top of the underground palace was continuously eroded by flowing water, it eventually collapsed, forming a sinkhole, which is the source of sunlight inside the underground palace.
The fallen rocks and soil at the top covered the underground palace, and over the years, this magical hanging garden was formed.
The two climbed the steps and finally arrived at the underground palace.
The stone plaque above the main gate of the palace is inscribed with the three large characters "Lingxiao Palace".
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