Wei of the Northern Dynasties [386-534] and Qi of the Southern Dynasties [479-502]. If, according to what Su Jingmo said, both Northern Wei and Southern Qi Dynasties were conquered by the Xu Dynasty, then what happened to the following Liang and Chen of the Southern Dynasties; and the Eastern Wei, Western Wei of the Northern Dynasties, Northern Qi and the Northern Zhou Dynasties <sup>1</sup> ?
Or, what went wrong in the middle of history? What caused a whole Dynasty to disappear?
Qin Cheng doesnât know, and he can only speculate some absurd reasonings.
However, at the moment, Qin Cheng wasnât able to worry about this, because of that sudden explosion in the middle of the night.
The sound wasnât small, and in the silent night at Ninghua Village, the sound was magnified countless times higher. Despite the fact that the police werenât allowed to go into the mountains at night, itâs impossible to determine whether thereâs a police officer who isnât afraid of dying. Just like Jiang Ping right now.
Even if he was found staying inside the tomb, Qin Cheng didnât think that they would give up.
Qin Cheng looked at Su Jingmo, who was in front of him looking very concentrated in trying to hear any movement from outside the tomb, and asked him in a whisper: âWhatâs going on with this explosion?â
After the sound of the explosion outside the tomb slowly disappeared, Su Jingmo was listening carefully, waiting for any sound. After he became a ghost, Su Jingmo discovered that he had a keen sense of hearing, which made him able to perceive things that normal people couldnât.
Once the explosion disappeared, the fierce ghosts that have remained in this tomb for hundreds of years also disappeared⌠however, it was only a small portion of the ghosts.
Far away from the Underground Palace, Su Jingmo could hear some human voices conversing, but he couldnât hear them clearly. However, this was only for a brief moment, because those voices seemed to slowly fade away, meaning that those people were leaving the ancient tomb.
This group of people is different from the Taoist priest that got possessed by the rat immortal who didnât seem to know much, these people clearly know about Taoism. Over the past few days, Su Jingmo found that this group of people were marching towards the tomb, and step by step, they were clearing the obstacles to enter the tomb.
As something unknown surged in his mind, Su Jingmo lightly chuckled. âEverythingâs alright, no one can enter this tombâŚâ
However, before he could finish what he was trying to say, Su Jingmo turned around, looking clearly stunned, and for that brief moment he didnât notice that Qin Cheng was gazing at him, so he simply turned back and said: âItâs already Yin hour <sup>2</sup> , you⌠should go back, right?â
âHmm? Ah yes⌠I should goâŚâ
âŚ
After the explosion, Qu Zhiwen, who originally thought that these grave robbers would take further action, saw them walking away in less than 10 minutes. Then, Qu Zhiwen dragged Jiang Ping, who wanted to walk forward to explore the situation ahead, to hide in the depths of the barren grass. Immediately after this, Qu Zhiwen indicated Jiang Ping to be quiet.
There wasnât any illumination deep in the mountains. Fortunately, this nightâs moonlight was very bright, and with the help of the moonlight, Jiang Ping was able to see that several people were emerging from the tomb.
There were about five people, but he wasnât able to see their faces clearly, and the only thing he could vaguely notice was that they were carrying bags and all of them were dressed in dark clothes. Jiang Ping didnât need to guess too much, he knew that they were grave robbers.
Jiang Ping, who has worked over many and different cases, knew that some grave robbers werenât as simple as they seem. He also knows that some grave robbers have guns and ammunition. Moreover, the explosion just now was provoked by these people, so theyâre even more difficult to deal with if they have explosivesâŚ
Jiang Ping didnât intend to confront them, so he tried the best he could to remember their general characteristics under this limited light, awaiting for the next opportunity to act, when the circumstances are more favorable.
âYuan-ge, do you think that âthingâ is in this tomb? After all the work weâve been doing these past couple of days, it will be for nothing if itâs not there.â
â The one who made the question should be a young man in his twenties. â Jiang Ping thought, and as he carefully listened to their conversation, he couldnât help but wonder: â What are they looking for? â
âKeep your voice low!â The voice of a middle-aged man suddenly sounded in the dark night: âIt should be here. Didnât you just see those fierce ghosts there? Theyâre still wandering in the world of the living. It must beâŚâ
After Jiang Ping saw that the grave robbers were now far away and that he could no longer hear their conversation, he turned around towards Qu Zhiwen. However, when he saw Qu Zhiwen, he didnât see his usual calm face, but looked perplexed instead; probably due to the grave robberâs conversation. In the end, Jiang Ping couldnât help but ask: âYou know what theyâre looking for?â
Qu Zhiwen frowned, nodded, and then shook his head again.
âDo you know or you donât know?â
âI can guess what theyâre looking for, but Iâm not sure if that âthingâ is really in the human world.â Qu Zhiwen stood up and walked towards the big tunnel that the archeologists dug to get inside the tomb: âItâs something that Iâve only seen mentioned in a book. Itâs just an old legend.â
Jiang Ping knew that Qu Zhiwen didnât want to keep talking about it, so he didnât ask anymore and just followed him forwards. However, they hadnât reached the entrance of the tunnel yet when they suddenly heard the sound of footsteps coming from the depths of the tunnel. Immediately, the both of them hid at the side of the tunnel with the help of the dark of the night.
â Are there still grave robbers around? â However, this thought soon turned into surprise the moment they saw Qin Cheng walking out of the tunnel with a flashlight.
âHow could he be here?â Jiang Ping whispered to himself as his mind raced with countless thoughts. He didnât think that Qin Cheng could be a murderer, but⌠â What is he doing inside an extremely dangerous tomb like this one so late at night?! â
Thoughtfully looking at the youth who just walked out, Qu Zhiwen whispered: âDo you know him?â
âHeâs a member of the archeological team of the Ninghua Village tomb. Heâs also involved in those homicide casesâŚâ After he said this, Jiang Ping rushed closer to Qu Zhiwen and asked him: âHe got away from those various homicide cases by chance, can you see if thereâs a possibility that heâs a Taoist priest like you?â
âIâm not a Taoist priest. Itâs not that all the people who can exorcise ghosts are Taoist priests, they just know how to exorcise them.â Qu Zhiwen said helplessly: âAs for whether heâs a Taoist priest or not, I donât know. I can see ghosts, but I canât see other peopleâs professions.â
âButâŚâ Qu Zhiwen looked at the youth walking away and said: âHeâs indeed covered with ghostly Qi.â
â Moreover, that young man seems to be hiding an object on his body⌠â After thinking of this, Qu Zhiwen led Jiang Ping into the tunnel.
The tunnel, that was blasted by the ghost-busting explosion, was now much more âcleanerâ. However, before the rooster could even start to crow in the morning, there were still several hungry fierce ghosts ready to attack them.
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At that moment, a ghost with his bloody head hanging from a tendon in his neck jumped at Jiang Ping with the intention of attacking him. However, at the most critical moment, Qu Zhiwen pulled out a talisman from his pocket and stuck it on the ghostâs severed head. Instantly, the fierce ghost got covered in fire and burned out in the twinkling of an eye.
Since Jiang Ping couldnât see any ghosts, he only saw Qu Zhiwen suddenly taking out a talisman and âstickingâ it on the air; then the talisman in front of him exploded and burned out quickly.
âWhat⌠was that?â
âA fierce ghost with a severed head.â After he said that, Qu Zhiwen suddenly asked him: âWould you like to see? I have a way of making you see ghosts.â
âForget it.â Jiang Ping shook his head, he wasnât interested in anything thatâs beyond his knowledge.
Qu Zhiwen just laughed and didnât mention it again.
The light from the flashlight wasnât strong enough to see the road ahead clearly, but that didnât matter because Qu Zhiwen stopped walking once they reached the bottom of the tunnel.
âWhatâs wrong? Ahead of us should be that outer coffin chamber, donât you want to look whatâs there?â
âI canât get through.â
âThereâs no brick wall, nor earth pits in front of us, so why canât we get through?â
âThe tombâs owner wonât let us in.â Qu Zhiwen said as he turned around, then he laughed and said: âDeputy Bureau Jiang, Iâm afraid I canât help you with any future matters regarding this tomb.â
Jiang Ping frowned lightly as he followed Qu Zhiwen outside, then he asked in a stern voice: âWhat do you mean?â
âThis is an Imperial Mausoleum, even if the Dynasties change, the Emperors of each Dynasty are also the Son of Heaven. There are certain things that I cannot control, and Taoist priests with deeper Taoism knowledge canât advance rashly. Thereâs no way of knowing whether youâll die or not. The Emperor doesnât allow me to take another step forward. If I donât know what Iâm getting myself into, then Iâll only end up suffering.â
âAccording to what youâre saying, then this Imperial Mausoleum canât be entered? Then why have so many Imperial Mausoleums been opened and yet nothing happened?â
Qu Zhiwen suddenly looked back at Jiang Ping for a long time before replying: âThatâs because those Emperors have long been reincarnated. However, the Emperor hereâŚâ While pointing his finger at the ground, Qu Zhiwen took a deep breath and continued: âHeâs still stuck in this great tomb.â
â No wonder those grave robbers were sulking one after the other. The âthingâ that this great tomb hides is more valuable than any gold and silver treasure⌠No, Iâm afraid money canât measure the value of that âthingâ. â Qu Zhiwen thought.
âDeputy Bureau Jiang, I have one last thing to say to you. This tomb canât be touched, and I prefer to not risk my own life in gambling with this tomb. â
Jiang Ping sighed lightly and shook his head: âAlright⌠however, why can Qin Cheng, the youth who walked out of the tomb alone a while ago, enter and leave this tomb safely and unharmed?â
While looking at the dark depths of the tunnel, Qu Zhiwen whispered: âWho knowsâŚâ
Another mystery itâs added to the mix!!
F for those fierce ghosts lol itâs not their fault that they got stuck in the world of the living instead of entering the cycle of reincarnation~
What do yâall think of Qu Zhiwen? I already luv him â¤
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Footnotes
<ol><b>ĺćć˘</b> <b>nĂĄn chĂĄo liĂĄng</b> = Liang of the Southern Dynasties [502â557]. <b>ĺćé</b> <b>nĂĄn chĂĄo chĂŠn</b> = Chen of the Southern Dynasties [557â589]. <b>ä¸é</b> <b>dĹng wèi</b> = Eastern Wei of the Northern Dynasties [534-550]. <b>輿é</b> <b>xÄŤ wèi</b> = Western Wei of the Northern Dynasties [535-557]. <b>ĺé˝</b> <b>bÄi qĂ</b> = Qi of the Northern Dynasties [550-557]. <b>ĺĺ¨</b> <b>bÄi zhĹu</b> = Zhou of the Northern Dynasties [557-581]. <b>ĺŻ ćś</b> <b>yĂn shĂ</b> ; 3 to 5 am, in the system of two-hour subdivisions used in ancient times.</ol>