With teams already scouting the terrain ahead and others chasing after us, we unconsciously quickened our pace.
According to our original plan, we only needed to survey three locations on the first day to achieve our goal.
However, all three places we visited had been explored, and according to the monkey, the same tools were used in two of the three places, while the third place was dug by a different group of people.
From this perspective, the number of teams heading into the mountains has far exceeded my expectations.
Seeing that it was still early, we decided to hurry to the next location so as not to fall too far behind.
The location is in a valley with steep cliffs on both sides and a gap of only two meters in the middle.
Looking up, the sky above was only a narrow strip of paper, barely the width of a palm.
In feng shui, this terrain is called "Buddha Holding a Pearl." The two mountains are like the Buddha's palms clasped together. If a burial site is placed in this location, it is as if the Buddha is holding a pearl, and all evil will retreat. It is wonderful beyond words.
As the sun set, I looked at the deep, dark canyon and waved to Jiang Man and the others: "This isn't the place we're looking for. We can retreat to a safe place and set up camp!"
The monkey scratched its head: "Young Master Duan, since we're already here, shouldn't we go in and take a look?"
"It's not very meaningful. This kind of terrain is called 'Buddha Holding a Pearl,' which is considered an auspicious place, but only for ordinary people! Those high-ranking officials and nobles consider themselves the chosen ones of heaven and would not choose such a restrictive burial site. Of course, there is one exception, which is to bury underage children."
I waved my hand and said, "The place where the dragon and phoenix hold a pearl is the first choice for the royal mausoleum. Any pit dug in these mountains is a place with excellent feng shui. We are just using the process of elimination to try our luck among the best feng shui locations. This canyon is the worst feng shui location among the places we have seen today. There is no need to waste time here."
After hearing my explanation, the others didn't say anything. Everyone was exhausted after a day's trek and immediately prepared to leave.
"boom!"
Just a few hundred meters from where we walked, a loud bang suddenly came from the other side of the canyon.
Holy crap!
The monkey walking next to me was startled and turned around, still shaken: "What's going on? An earthquake?"
"It's an explosion!"
Jiang Man turned to look in the direction of the canyon and said to me, "It seems that some people have different ideas from you. They may think that there may be something to be found in that canyon."
"Impossible! The legend of the Miao Jiang Immortal Palace has been circulating for several years, and its scale must be considerable. As you just saw, the canyon is only about two meters wide. It would be extremely inconvenient to transport the excavated stones or materials in. In a feudal society without machinery, tomb excavation was mainly done by manpower, and the terrain there was not advantageous."
I finished speaking with absolute certainty, hesitated for a moment, and then walked back: "Everyone, be alert of your surroundings, let's go back and take a look!"
When Lin Que heard that I wanted to go back, he said speechlessly, "Brother, since you've already confirmed that the canyon isn't the Miao Jiang Immortal Palace, why should we risk encountering other teams and go back for a trip?"
“We didn’t want to run into other teams, and those people must have thought the same thing. Using explosives in these deep mountains can make a noise that can be heard for miles and easily attract the attention of others, but these people still used explosives. I suspect they must have discovered something.”
I cocked my pistol and then strung the crossbow: "I need to find out why these people are willing to make such a fuss and use explosives."
As the sun sets, the light in the mountains is already dim, and the valley is pitch black.
I pulled down the night vision goggles on my helmet, picked up my crossbow, and was the first to enter the canyon.
The canyon was vast and deep; even when I moved very quietly, I could still hear my own footsteps.
About twenty meters deep, I could smell the gunpowder in the air. I saw a large rock blocking half of the passageway ahead, so I quietly crouched down behind it and began to observe the situation inside.
At this moment, smoke and dust billowed in the canyon, and two men were holding up handheld power stations amidst the smoke.
"Cough cough cough!"
One of them fanned the smoke with his hand and shone his flashlight into the cave in front of him: "Well, is it open yet?"
"Damn, that's so sturdy!"
As the voices echoed, two more people emerged from the cave: "The door inside is made of a single piece of bluestone slabs; you can't blow it open with exposed explosive charges! You'll need to drill two blasting holes in the door!"
"It didn't explode?"
The people guarding outside were getting impatient: "We just fired a shot, which has already made a big commotion. It might attract other teams! The terrain here looks like Buddha holding a bead, not like a large tomb. Since we can't open it, let's retreat. There's no point in wasting time here!"
"We've come all this way, it would be such a waste to leave like this! Besides, even the door studs on that stone door are gilded. If a tomb can afford to spend so much on its exterior decorations, there must be something good inside!"
The man who emerged was unwilling to give up: "There are countless teams eyeing the Miao Jiang Immortal Palace in these mountains. Even if we risk our lives, it's still uncertain whether we can find it. Now that we've found the tomb, let's just go for it. That way, even if we don't find the Miao Jiang Immortal Palace in the end, we won't have been left empty-handed! If you're not confident, then retreat first. I'll do this job myself!"
"Alright, we've all been working together for so long, why argue over such a small thing!"
Another person stepped in as a peacemaker: "In the time it takes to argue, we've already fired our second shot! Da Zhuang is right. We've already invested a lot of money in this search for the Miao Jiang Immortal Palace. It would be such a waste to retreat now. How about this, let's hurry up and try one more time. If it works, we'll all get rich together. If it still doesn't work, we'll retreat immediately, okay?"
"Alright, let's get started, let's get moving!"
After discussing it, the four of them prepared for a second explosion. Just like before, two people went into the cave and two people stood guard outside.
Hearing the clanging sounds coming from the cave, the monkey lowered his voice and said to me, "Young Master Duan, judging from their conversation, that cave up ahead seems to be a tomb! Should we take them under control?"
"Wait a little longer!"
I raised my hand to stop the monkey: "Since they've already decided to blow it up, let them finish the job, so we don't have to waste our own effort!"
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