Chapter 73: The False Miracle

The space inside the stone gate was vast, easily the size of two or three football fields. I couldn’t say for certain whether this was a side chamber or the main tomb chamber, but judging by its sheer scale, I decided to call it the tomb chamber for now.

Beneath my feet lay a sea of golden artifacts and translucent jewels. Five bronze pillars serving as supports were set in five directions, their bases buried beneath golden sand. These pillars were crafted from the same material and with the same technique as that towering bronze pillar we saw earlier, likely made from the leftover scraps of that massive structure.

Fourth Brother stood rooted to the spot, staring upward at something. I followed his gaze, and when I looked, I was stunned.

Illuminated by firelight on the tomb chamber wall a few dozen meters away from us was an immensely large, colorful painting depicting a ghost market. The mural wrapped around the entire chamber; it had to be the largest mural I had ever seen.

The entire mural seemed to float in midair. Pavilions with carved beams and painted rafters were hidden amidst swirling clouds, while the lower half depicted a bustling marketplace. From the market, nine ribbons extended outward, ending at a palace hidden in fierce flames.

It was practically an ecstatic feast for gods and ghosts. Every ghost was depicted with remarkable accuracy. I had no idea what anti-oxidation measures the artisans had used, but the colors hadn’t faded in the slightest, looking breathtakingly beautiful. Even an outsider like me who knew nothing about murals could feel its overwhelming impact.

“So this is the Ghost Market Map. If someone dug this up, it would definitely be considered a wonder of the world, right?” The words blurted out of my mouth before I could stop them.

Fourth Brother laughed when he heard me. He patted my shoulder and shook his head, saying, “It’s not the original. How could the real Ghost Market Map be this small? Besides, this is just scratching the surface. Look further up. Our target is up there.”

I raised my head again and dimly saw, about a hundred meters above us, the ghost heads on the five bronze pillars wrapped by five iron chains. Suspended in midair by those chains was a jade coffin glowing with an eerie green light.

The design of this jade coffin struck even more fear into me than the mural. Based on our conventional knowledge, a “jade coffin” meant attaching jade tiles to the outside of a wooden coffin, but this one shattered that notion entirely. I could clearly see that it was definitely not as simple as sticking jade tiles onto it.

It was a single, solid block of jade, hollowed out from within.

I was astonished by the information Fourth Brother had casually let slip. It might not have meant much to him, but to me, it was a major revelation.

I pulled out my phone and snapped a few pictures of the mural suspended above. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of Marquis Hou rolling around like a madman in the pile of gold, and a wave of pity suddenly washed over me.

Even now, he still believed he had found the true Nieyao Ghost Market Map. But if this wasn’t even the real Ghost Market Map, then where was the real one?

“Old Luo! Give me a hand, let’s go up and take a look!” Fourth Brother shouted. “Gan Ji, stay down here and don’t wander off!”

Fourth Brother tossed me the bag containing the jade casket, then he and Old Luo each grabbed a bronze pillar and climbed up.

I was carrying Lu Ayao on my back and was about to find a spot without gold to sit down when a few people shoved me hard from behind. Taken completely off guard, I tumbled straight into the golden sand along with Lu Ayao, getting a mouth full of grit.

I brushed the sand from my hair and realized it wasn’t ordinary sand, but finely ground gold dust. I scrambled up awkwardly and pulled Lu Ayao out of the sand pit, only to see a group of people from Fourth Brother’s team charging into the golden mountain in the tomb chamber.

“After raiding so many tombs, we finally hit the jackpot! Hahaha, this is enough money to last me a lifetime!”

All this gold covering the floor felt surreal. Sure, taking even a single piece back would keep me fed and clothed for half a lifetime, but I still remembered what Lu Ayao had told me before he passed out. So I stood to the side and didn’t move.

Their backpacks quickly bulged to capacity. In the end, only a girl named Xiao Qi and I remained standing by the threshold. She came over, crouched down, touched Lu Ayao’s forehead, and asked me, “Why aren’t you picking anything up?”

I didn’t answer her, asking instead, “Why did you all follow my Fourth Brother in here? What are you really after?”

Xiao Qi immediately pulled a handkerchief soaked in alcohol from her bag to cool Lu Ayao down. She lowered her gaze and said, “I don’t know the full story. This operation is strictly confidential. When we came, Tian Yuqing only told me to handle the medical side of things.”

So she was from the Tian family.

I asked again, “Aren’t you curious? They’ve poured so much time and manpower into this. Practically everyone from the Five Masters is involved.”

At my words, Xiao Qi smiled. “Young Master Gan, we might be around the same age, but I’m not like you. This is my tenth time going underground with a team. In this line of work, secrets are everywhere. What boss ever tells you their true purpose when they hire you?”

Her words choked off any reply I had.

Xiao Qi glanced at me and added, “Still, if you’re really that curious, I can let you in on a little something. What I know is limited, though. Do you want to hear it?”

My eyes instantly lit up. “Yes!”

She shifted her position, crouched down, and looked me in the eyes. “I know they’re working on some kind of project. I don’t know the specifics, but I managed to sneak a look at the name. The team number is 4341951009, and the project is called the ‘Nine Rings Project.’”

I had heard of the “Nine Rings Project” from Tian Yuqing before. It was a massive archaeological project with a large and mixed group of participants. Among the Five Masters, the ones leading it were likely Fourth Brother, Tian Yuqing, and Tan Qiu.

But if entering Shennongjia was, like the Gansu Dragon-Falling Corridor, another key node in the “Nine Rings Project,” why weren’t there any professional archaeologists involved? Would the higher-ups really be so at ease letting a bunch of Outer Eight Gates^[1] “remnants” handle it?

Besides, Fourth Brother said he had come here to find something. No matter how you looked at it, that didn’t sound like professional archaeological work.

Just then, I heard Fourth Brother’s voice echoing down from above. He called out, “Gan Ji! Bring up the casket and let me take a look!”

My heart tightened. They had already been climbing for over twenty minutes and were long gone up the pillar. That Chen Si had insisted on tossing his bag to me before climbing, even after I told him the Jade Casket was just a useless box in my hands. Now that he needed it, I was the one who had to deliver it to him.

I groaned inwardly. Just looking at that soaring bronze pillar made my legs go weak. But I had no choice now. I slung the bag over my shoulder and said to Xiao Qi, “Fourth Brother’s calling me. I’ll go up and check. I’ll leave Old Lu to you for now.”

Without waiting for her answer, I stepped down from the stone platform and approached the bronze pillar Fourth Brother had climbed. I picked out footholds and began hauling myself up. Fortunately, the pillar was intricately carved, providing plenty of places to step and grip.

I climbed the first twenty meters quickly. But by the time I reached nearly fifty meters, I was breathing heavily. The people below had shrunk to the size of ants, while the Jade Coffin above loomed closer and closer.

I clung to the pillar and paused for two minutes, my legs feeling weak. I turned around to steady my breathing before continuing upward. With light present, the pillar was much easier to climb. For the final stretch, I hooked my arm around a chain, stepped onto a hideous carved demon head, and hauled myself over.

Once at the top, I didn’t see Fourth Brother or Old Luo anywhere. Only then did I realize that what I had thought were five iron chains was actually a simple suspension bridge system. All five chain bridges led to the Jade Coffin set in the center.

“Fourth Brother!” I called out.

My voice echoed through the open air, but Fourth Brother was nowhere to be seen.

I looked toward the distant Jade Coffin. The other four bronze pillars were too far away to see clearly, so my voice might not have carried that far. Fourth Brother and Old Luo were likely waiting for me on one of the other pillars. But to reach them, I had to cross that massive Jade Coffin.

I swallowed hard, pulled the half piece of Blood Jade from my pocket, and aligned its seam with the half hanging around my neck. Pushing them firmly together until they locked into place, I tucked the restored Luan Bi back against my chest beneath my shirt.

Whoever is resting inside, brother or sister, I’m just passing through. I haven’t touched a single thing of yours, so please don’t hurt me by mistake!

I pressed my palms together and silently offered a few prayers. Then, gripping the chains of the suspension bridge, I slowly made my way toward the Jade Coffin.