Liu Dashao asked, “Jia Zhuangyuan, what should we do next?”
Jia Zhuangyuan rolled his eyes, his expression turning serious. “I’m not sure what this mechanism is either. Everyone stay alert. I’m going to operate it.”
Everyone nodded. Jia Zhuangyuan slowly extended his hand into the groove, placing it on the round sphere and gently pressing down.
Liu Dashao said, “Zhuangyuan Jia, what should we do next?”
Zhuangyuan Jia blinked, composed himself, and said, “I’m not entirely sure what this mechanism is. Everyone, stay alert. I’m going to operate it.”
Everyone nodded. Zhaungyuan Jia slowly reached into the groove, placed his hand on the sphere, and gently pressed down.
At that moment, a faint sound seemed to emanate from underground, gradually growing louder until it became a deep, rumbling “boom.”
Everyone stood nervously in place, unsure of what would happen next.
Suddenly, Liu Dashao exclaimed, “Everyone, look at the heavy water lake! What is that?”
Others followed his pointing finger and saw a long, black object suddenly emerge from the bottom of the transparent, greenish heavy water lake, rapidly rising to the surface.
Yang Weidong shouted, “Everyone, be alert!”
Everyone quickly stepped back a few paces from the lake, raised their guns, and nervously watched the heavy water. Liu Dashao wondered, “What could possibly appear this time?”
The black, elongated object burst out of the heavy water, swayed a few times on the surface, and then floated there. Everyone finally saw clearly that the black object was actually a small boat made of some unknown material.
When they focused on the boat, a chill ran through their hearts. Inside the pitch-black boat sat a person—a living person dressed in exotic clothing! A girl who appeared as fluid and ethereal as water under the serene green light of the heavy water.
For a moment, everyone exchanged panicked glances. Then, the girl slowly began to row, parting the water and steering the boat toward the shore where everyone stood.
Suddenly, Zhaungyuan Jia let out a hearty laugh, startling everyone and causing them to break into a cold sweat. He chuckled, “Ingenious, truly ingenious! If this boat were brought to the surface, it would undoubtedly be a treasure of immense value.”
After saying this, he noticed everyone glaring at him and awkwardly added, “I got carried away in my excitement. Please forgive me.” Then, with a sly smile, he said, “Can’t you all see that the girl in the boat is just a dummy?”
Everyone was stunned, looking at him in confusion. Fan Debiao opened his mouth wide and asked, “You’re saying the girl in the boat is a dummy?”
Zhaungyuan Jia nodded with a smile, “Have you all been so startled by the sudden appearance of the boat that you’ve lost your senses? Can’t you see that the girl’s body is completely still, and only her right hand is mechanically rowing in circles? Look at her facial expression—it’s always the same, meek and submissive.”
By now, the boat was almost at the shore. Everyone listened to Zhaungyuan Jia’s explanation and looked closely. Indeed, the girl’s facial expression remained unchanged, and she was only mechanically rowing.
Despite this, everyone still felt uneasy and hesitated to move. Zhaungyuan Jia glanced at them with a hint of disdain, walked to the edge of the heavy water, and stood as if welcoming the rowing girl.
When the boat reached Zhaungyuan Jia, he grabbed the bow, pressed a button on the girl’s right arm, and turned to the group with a playful grin, “Comrades, let’s board. I’ll be your boatman.”
Seeing him press the button on the girl’s arm and stop the boat, while the girl remained motionless, everyone finally relaxed and boldly stepped forward.
As they approached the boat, they saw up close that the dummy was actually a wooden figure. Everyone marveled at the ancient craftsmanship and the ingenious mechanism.
After signaling everyone to board, Zhaungyuan Jia pointed to the wooden girl’s arm and said, “See this triangular button? This is the mechanism that controls the boat. Turn it left, and the boat turns left; turn it right, and it turns right. Turn it to the tip of the triangle to move forward, and press it down to stop.”
After demonstrating, he looked up at the sky and sighed, “The ingenuity of the ancients is truly unbelievable. This trip to Tibet has really opened my eyes.”
By now, Zhaungyuan Jia had turned the boat around and was rowing toward the palace. Suddenly, Liu Dashao asked, “Senior Jia, what is this boat made of? It feels strange—resilient yet elastic. It doesn’t feel like rubber or wood.”
Zhaungyuan Jia smiled and said, “I noticed it when I first grabbed the bow, but I don’t know what material it is. What’s important now is that this boat is our only means of crossing the heavy water.”
Liu Dashao nodded and said nothing more.
The boat slowly made its way to the palace at the center of the heavy water lake. Everyone gazed at the mysterious palace, wondering what awaited them inside. In truth, everyone was somewhat numb by now—the golden ancient city, the彼岸花, the water monster, the haunted house—there had been too many wonders and oddities along the way.
Fortunately, the heavy water remained calm, still emitting its serene glow, with no signs of anything unusual.
As the boat drew closer to the palace, a long, white marble staircase extended from the high palace entrance. Liu Dashao looked at the palace, which had slept underground for who knows how many years yet still stood grand and magnificent. He suddenly felt a sense of heaviness. Would these strangers from thousands of years later disturb the peace of this sacred place? And what would this underground palace offer in return to these unwelcome intruders? Would it welcome them, allowing them to unveil its mysteries, or would it punish them for their disturbance?
Under Zhaungyuan Jia’s control, the boat stopped at the foot of the white staircase. Everyone cautiously stepped onto the stairs.
Zhaungyuan Jia said, “Earlier, you all saw the bubbles rising from the heavy water, transforming into the illusions of white women flying toward this palace. I don’t think this is without reason. Once we enter the palace, everyone must be extremely careful. Don’t wander or touch anything!”
Everyone acknowledged his warning and slowly ascended the stairs.
Zhaungyuan Jia, walking ahead, seemed unusually cautious. He paused every few steps, and it took quite some time to reach the top of the hundreds of stairs.
As they stepped onto the platform in front of the palace, everyone suddenly felt small. The grand palace was resplendent and magnificent. To be honest, Liu Dashao had seen the underground tomb of Zhu Youxiao and visited the golden ancient city, but for some reason, neither compared to this palace above the heavy water. He suddenly had a thought: this palace didn’t seem like something of this world. It seemed to move with his thoughts, and this realization terrified him! It felt like a living thing! Suddenly, Liu Dashao snapped out of his reverie, clenched his teeth, and let out a solemn shout, “Infinite Heavenly Lord!” When he looked at his companions, he noticed they too seemed to have just awakened from some kind of trance or daydream.
At that moment, Zhaungyuan Jia suddenly cursed, “Damn it, this palace is eerie. Just now, I thought I saw it move.”
Fan Debiao also said, “I felt it too. It was like it almost stole my soul. Luckily, I heard Dashao’s shout and snapped out of it.”
Others nodded in agreement, murmuring similar sentiments.
Everyone stood rooted to the spot, tense and uncertain about what would happen next.
Suddenly, Liu Dashao whispered urgently, “Quickly, look at the heavy water lake! What is that?”
Following the direction he pointed, the others saw a long, black, strip-like object rising from beneath the transparent green lake, moving upward at an incredible speed toward the surface.
Yang Weidong shouted, “Stay alert!”
Everyone hastily stepped back from the lakeshore, raising their guns and watching the heavy water nervously. Liu Dashao wondered what would emerge this time.
With a whoosh, the black strip shot out of the heavy water, swayed on the surface, and then floated there. Now everyone could see clearly—it was a small boat, made of some unknown material.
As they looked closer, a chill ran down everyone’s spine. Inside the pitch-black boat sat someone—a living person dressed in strange, foreign clothing—a young girl wearing exotic attire, her figure strangely fluid and graceful under the eerie green glow of the heavy water.
Everyone exchanged uneasy glances. Suddenly, the girl slowly began to row, cutting through the water and steering the boat toward the shore where they stood.
Without warning, Jia Zhuangyuan let out a loud laugh, startling everyone. He said joyfully, “Ingenious craftsmanship! Truly ingenious! If this boat were brought to the surface world, it would be an incredible treasure.”
After saying this, he noticed the angry glances from the group and awkwardly added, “I got a little carried away. My apologies, comrades.” Then with a sly grin, he continued, “Didn’t anyone notice that the girl in the boat is just a dummy?”
Everyone was taken aback, puzzled. Fan Debiao opened his mouth wide and asked, “You’re saying that girl in the boat is fake?”
Jia Zhuangyuan smiled and nodded. “You were all too startled to think clearly. Didn’t you notice that the girl’s body doesn’t move at all, and only her right hand is mechanically rowing? Look at her facial expression—has it changed at all?”
By now, the boat was nearly at the shore, and everyone looked closely as instructed. Indeed, the girl’s expression remained unchanged, and her movements were purely mechanical.
Even so, everyone still hesitated nervously on the spot. Jia Zhuangyuan gave them a slightly disdainful look and walked toward the edge of the heavy water, as if ready to greet the girl in the boat.
When the boat reached him, Jia Zhuangyuan grabbed its bow and pressed his hand against the girl’s right arm. Then, turning to the others with a grin, he said, “Comrades, come aboard. Let me be your boatman.”
Seeing that the boat stopped immediately when he pressed the girl’s arm, and that the girl remained motionless, everyone finally felt reassured and stepped forward.
Up close, everyone could see clearly that the girl was just a wooden figure, and they marveled at the ancient craftsmanship and mechanical ingenuity.
After signaling everyone to board, Jia Zhuangyuan pointed to the girl’s arm and said, “Look at this triangular button. This is the control. Turn it left to steer left, right to steer right. Turn it toward the tip of the triangle to move forward, and press down to stop.”
He demonstrated as he spoke, then sighed dramatically, “The ingenuity of the ancients is truly beyond belief. This trip to Tibet has really broadened my horizons.”
By now, Jia Zhuangyuan had turned the boat around, heading slowly toward the palace in the middle of the lake. Suddenly, Liu Dashao asked him, “Master Jia, what is this boat made of? It feels strange—flexible yet elastic, not like rubber or wood.”
Jia Zhuangyuan smiled and replied, “I noticed that when I first pulled the boat, but I don’t know what material it is. What matters now is that this boat is our only way across the heavy water.”
Liu Dashao nodded and said nothing more.
The boat drifted slowly toward the palace at the center of the heavy water lake. Everyone gazed at the mysterious structure, wondering what awaited them inside. Truthfully, they were all somewhat numb by now—gold cities, man-eating flowers, water monsters, haunted tombs—it had been one miracle and horror after another.
At least the heavy water remained calm, glowing faintly with no sign of disturbance.
The boat drew closer and closer to the palace. A long, white jade staircase stretched down from the palace entrance high above to the lake’s edge. Liu Dashao looked at the grand palace, which had slumbered beneath the earth for who knows how many years, and suddenly felt a heaviness in his heart. He wondered if their arrival, thousands of years later, would disturb the peace of this sacred place. And what kind of welcome—or punishment—would this underground palace offer to these unexpected intruders? Would it reveal its secrets willingly, or punish those who dared to disturb it?
Under Jia Zhuangyuan’s control, the boat stopped in front of the white staircase. Everyone, still on high alert, boarded the steps one by one.
Jia Zhuangyuan said, “Earlier, you all saw those bubbles rising from the heavy water, transforming into white female figures flying toward this palace. I don’t think that was random. Once we enter, everyone must be extremely cautious—no wandering off or touching anything!”
Everyone acknowledged and slowly began climbing the staircase.
Jia Zhuangyuan, leading the way, now seemed unusually cautious. He paused every few steps, and it took a long time to climb the hundreds of steps to the top.
Reaching the platform in front of the palace, everyone suddenly felt small. The palace was magnificent, golden and dazzling, breathtaking in its beauty. Honestly, Liu Dashao had seen the underground tomb of Zhu Youjiao and visited the golden city, but somehow, both paled in comparison to this palace above the heavy water. A sudden thought struck him: this palace didn’t seem to belong to the human world—it seemed to move with his thoughts. That feeling terrified him. It was as if the palace were alive! Suddenly, Liu Dashao snapped out of his reverie, bit his tongue, and shouted solemnly, “Wuliang Tianzun (Infinite Celestial Venerable)!” Looking at his companions, he saw that they too had just shaken off some kind of trance or daydream.
At that moment, Jia Zhuangyuan suddenly cursed, “Damn it, this palace is strange. Just now, I thought I saw it move.”
Fan Debiao added, “I felt it too. I almost lost my soul to it, but Dashao’s shout brought me back.”
Others nodded in agreement, murmuring similar experiences.
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