He placed the jade pendant flat in his palm and examined it carefully. The pendant was translucent, bearing a striking resemblance to the material of the jade coffin in which the female corpse had lain. The pendant was carved into the shape of a transformed tiger, its body decorated with swirling linear engravings and abstract three-legged patterns. It had phoenix eyes and phoenix claws, while its two fangs resembled elephant tusks, giving it a vivid, lifelike appearance.
Although the jade pendant wasn’t larger than a palm, its intricate details were clearly visible—even the character “king” on the tiger’s head was distinctly visible.
Fan Debiao was an old hand at destroying the “Four Olds” and had smashed many treasures before. Upon seeing it, he immediately said to Liu Dashao, “Brother, this is definitely an extraordinary piece of jade craftsmanship. The carving techniques of the Three Kingdoms era were already impressive enough to be considered masterful. Selling it could fetch at least a Jiefang-brand truck.”
Liu Dashao wasn’t particularly interested in the pendant’s market value. What intrigued him more was the tomb itself. After all, their purpose for coming here wasn’t just grave robbing—it was to uncover the truth behind the recent series of strange events.
Rather than discussing the pendant’s value with Fan Debiao, Liu Dashao handed it directly to Daguo and said, “Daguo, take a look at this.”
Seeing that Liu Dashao ignored him, Fan Debiao went off on his own to rummage through the mummy.
Daguo picked up the tiger-shaped jade pendant and examined it. “This tiger design is the totem of the ancient Ba Kingdom in Sichuan. The Ba people revered the white tiger. A few years ago, in the Ba Kingdom burial site unearthed in Fuling, many weapons bore this tiger motif. Back then, only people of high status could wear such tiger-shaped ornaments. This female corpse must have been someone important.”
“You can’t say that!” Caqingchong interjected. “Since her coffin was placed just outside the main burial chamber, she was likely a concubine or servant buried alongside Master Zhang Jiao. At most, she might have been a personal bodyguard—nothing particularly significant.”
Daguo nodded thoughtfully after hearing Caqingchong’s words. “You make a valid point, Chongzi. Originally, we just planned to take a quick look and leave. But now, seeing how injured we all are, that Great Virtuous Teacher really is despicable. We can’t afford to care about national losses anymore—we at least need to grab one of these burial artifacts and sell it to cover our medical expenses.”
Upon hearing Daguo’s decision to rob Zhang Jiao’s tomb, Fan Debiao immediately became excited. “You’re absolutely right! This time, we’ve lost all our investment just getting in here. When we get to that old fellow Zhang’s coffin, I’ll definitely pick out a couple of valuable items too. But for now, let’s figure out how to open this box first.”
After battling the female corpse, Liu Dashao had completely forgotten about the black box. Now that Fan Debiao mentioned it, he suddenly remembered. He thought that since the box had been placed inside the jade coffin as a burial offering for the female corpse, it must have some connection to the tomb itself. Perhaps it even contained the secret he had come here to uncover.
Liu Dashao grew impatient with anticipation. He watched Fan Debiao flipping the black box over and over from all sides, his face displaying a helpless expression. Liu Dashao snatched the box away from Fan Debiao.
Due to his insufficient grip strength, the moment Liu Dashao took hold of the box, his hand immediately sank downward. Luckily, he reacted quickly and stabilized it with his other hand. This box was surprisingly heavy—if he hadn’t steadied it in time, it might have crushed his hand.
Liu Dashao carefully examined the box. It was a perfect cube, small enough to be held in both hands. Judging from its material, it appeared to be made of iron. However, its entire surface was pitch-black, and based on Liu Dashao’s current knowledge, he couldn’t identify exactly what kind of iron it was. Despite its small size, the box was extremely heavy, indicating that this was no ordinary container.
Liu Dashao continued examining the box from all angles. It was completely sealed, with tiger motifs identical to those on the jade pendant cast onto all six sides. There was no keyhole on any of the surfaces. If not for its cubic shape, he wouldn’t have even considered it a box—it looked more like a solid iron weight.
After thoroughly inspecting the box and confirming it was indeed a solid block, Liu Dashao handed it over to Daguo.
Daguo accepted the box and, like Liu Dashao, his hand immediately sank under its weight. He wore the same puzzled expression as he picked it up and began examining it, his brow furrowing.
Seeing that even Daguo couldn’t figure out the box’s secrets, Fan Debiao kicked the female corpse into the river and said, “This box is just an iron weight. Let’s forget about it for now and focus on looting that old Zhang’s grave first.”
Liu Dashao calculated the time they had been inside—it had already been more than two days. They had only eaten some compressed biscuits and half a crucian carp. Everyone must be starving by now. Although people can survive up to seven days without food but with water, under these circumstances, they definitely wouldn’t make it out of the tomb.
He turned to Daguo and said, “Daguo, our top priority now is to get out of here as soon as possible. Even if we can withstand hunger, worsening injuries will become a serious problem.”
Daguo placed the box onto the boat and looked at it thoughtfully before speaking. “You guys shouldn’t underestimate this iron box. This iron is forged from black iron ore. Judging from its weight and density, I can confidently say it must be hollow. It has a name—‘the Pure Yang Treasure Box.’”
After hearing Daguo’s explanation, Liu Dashao realized the box was made from black iron ore, which explained its incredible weight. Back then, black iron ore was considered an extremely valuable alloy—more precious than gold at the time. Clearly, this box was quite valuable.
Upon hearing the name “Pure Yang Treasure Box,” Liu Dashao found it somewhat peculiar. Anything preserved inside such an expensive box must be extraordinary. Since Daguo knew the name of the iron box, he must know something about it.
Liu Dashao asked Daguo, “Daguo, what exactly does ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ mean?”
Daguo replied, “This box is called the ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ because it contains hidden mechanisms—like hidden needles or poison gas. During the Three Kingdoms era, before Confucianism became dominant, many different schools existed, some of which specialized in designing intricate mechanisms. These mechanisms ranged from large-scale systems capable of guarding mountains and tombs to tiny devices hidden in hairpins. The precision of these mechanisms still astonishes people today, making it hard to imagine how they were designed with the limited computational abilities of that era. This ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ was created by the Mohist school during the Three Kingdoms period. Don’t underestimate this small box—it could kill everyone nearby if opened incorrectly.”
After hearing Daguo’s explanation, Liu Dashao felt a creeping fear toward the “Pure Yang Treasure Box.” However, thinking about how it might relate to his own fate, he steeled himself and resolved to deal with it.
Liu Dashao continued questioning Daguo, “Daguo, since the ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ is made from such valuable materials and incorporates advanced technology from its time, whatever’s inside must be worth seeing.”
When Fan Debiao heard Liu Dashao wanted to open a box that could potentially kill them all, he immediately objected. “Brother, you can’t be serious! If we open it the wrong way, we’ll all die here. Who cares what’s inside? Isn’t the box itself valuable enough? Let’s just take it and sell it.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about!” Daguo scolded Fan Debiao before turning his gaze back to the “Pure Yang Treasure Box.” “What’s inside this box must be closely related to the Great Virtuous Teacher. I believe whatever’s inside will help us greatly when we start looting the tomb.”
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