Chapter 253: Alien Civilization

The Queen of Gold’s sleeping quarters were not large, but they were complete in every detail, and their luxurious decorations left everyone astonished.

The floor of the chamber, without exception, was paved with glazed bricks, each displaying an amber hue of alternating red and yellow, uniform in color and semi-transparent, clearly indicating their superior quality. On either side stood two elegantly curved candle stands, each holding about a dozen small candles. The stands were crafted entirely from gold, inlaid with various rare red and blue gemstones. Using the light from a wolf-eye flashlight, Uncle Diao walked over and lit the candles one by one with a lighter. The candlelight, reflected and refracted by the glazed tiles, metal vessels, and gemstones on the candle stands, illuminated the entire tomb chamber as brightly as daylight.

In the light, everyone noticed that the walls were made of white marble, adorned with several murals. Anyone with a basic knowledge of history knew that noble individuals often decorated their tombs with murals, a typical burial custom. Yet the subjects of these murals exuded an air of mystery. Besides the murals, the floor around was scattered with many exquisite burial items—gold vessels, various jewels and jade, and some objects whose purposes were unknown. However, one thing was certain: the intricacy and rarity of these items far exceeded everyone’s expectations.

At the center of the chamber stood a raised platform made of marble, and upon it rested a golden coffin. The coffin was crafted with special techniques, its lid carved with an image of a golden phoenix spreading its wings and several coiling dragons. The phoenix was in the center, flanked by dragons, playfully soaring among clouds. Just from the appearance, it was evident that the tomb’s occupant held an extraordinary status. The coiling dragons alone were enough to speak volumes.

As Liu Dashao hesitated, Wang Feifei suddenly cried out in alarm: “Goodness, look! There are Chinese characters on the murals!”

In a Western tomb over a thousand years old, the appearance of Chinese characters alongside local scripts was indeed a shocking discovery. Liu Dashao quickly asked Wang Feifei, “Quick, read what it says!”

Wang Feifei studied the text for a moment before reading aloud, “In the night, a great star appeared in the middle of the sky, as large as a five-dou vessel, flowing to the northwest, stopping ten zhang above the ground. Its light was fiery, red and yellow, five zhang long, moving like a snake, while smaller stars moved toward the southeast like falling rain. After a while, it vanished, followed by a pale vapor like bamboo shoots rising into the sky, obscuring the view.” She paused and asked, “What does this mean?”

Liu Dashao thought for a moment and replied, “Judging from the literal meaning, it seems to describe a meteor shower.”

Master Zhang nodded and said, “Indeed, it resembles a meteor shower. But the line ‘a great star appeared in the middle of the sky, as large as a five-dou vessel, flowing to the northwest, stopping ten zhang above the ground, its light fiery, red and yellow’ doesn’t describe a meteor. It sounds more like…”

“Some kind of flying machine,” Uncle Diao’s eyes lit up as he completed Master Zhang’s sentence.

Upon hearing this, Liu Dashao suddenly had a thought and stammered, “Wait… in ancient times, there were no flying machines. If there really was one, could it be… what we now call an unidentified flying object—UFO?”

At the thought of UFOs appearing in ancient times, it was indeed astonishing. But Master Zhang clapped his hands and exclaimed excitedly, “Exactly! It must be an unidentified flying object. Now I understand why the Great Healer used insect techniques and possessed such extraordinary Taoist powers, enabling him to mobilize hundreds of thousands of Yellow Turban followers to challenge the mighty Han army. Why? Because he received the divine book *Taiping Jing* from beyond this world. If that’s true, then…”

“Then what?”

“Then all the mysterious puzzles we couldn’t solve before can finally make sense!” Master Zhang said, his voice trembling.

“After the failure of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the real strength of the Yellow Turban army suddenly vanished. The Great Healer Zhang Jiao was merely recorded by historians as having died of illness. All these mysteries remain unsolved to this day. But what if Zhang Jiao was an alien? Think about it. Moreover, what we saw earlier at Boddhisattva Mountain was only a symbolic tomb. If that’s the case, then the occupant of this tomb might actually be the real Zhang Jiao!” Master Zhang’s shocking words left everyone gasping in disbelief, mouths wide open in exaggerated ‘O’ shapes.

Master Zhang’s deduction was truly mind-boggling. However, based on the ancient text Wang Feifei discovered, there was no more reasonable explanation other than an unidentified flying object. Because of this discovery, everyone temporarily abandoned the idea of opening the coffin and instead rushed to examine the murals closely.

The tomb chamber contained only a few murals—two on each side. The ancient text Wang Feifei had read was inscribed on the first mural. The image on this mural indeed matched the description: dozens of burning fireballs falling from the sky. If one didn’t guess wrong, it was a meteor shower. The early Western peoples were not influenced by Central Plains culture, so although their artwork was exquisite, it was somewhat rough compared to that of the Central Plains. Nevertheless, the meteor shower in the sky was unmistakable.

Amid the meteor shower, one could vaguely discern a large object shaped like a disk or funnel. The center was red, while the surrounding area emitted a yellow glow. Below the mural was a woman kneeling in worship. Her facial features were only briefly sketched, but her reverence for the red glowing object was evident.

Looking at the second mural, it depicted a figure with arms spread wide and feet together, floating in the air. The posture was almost identical to that of Jesus. Below this figure were countless people kneeling and worshipping the floating person, swords and blades in hand. Although the floating figure’s face and features were not detailed, the flowing lines of the clothing clearly indicated it was a woman. Liu Dashao turned to Master Zhang and asked, “These people are arranged in order, not like ordinary warriors. This display seems more like an army.”

Master Zhang did not answer Liu Dashao but merely nodded with a grim expression. Liu Dashao, puzzled by Master Zhang’s demeanor, exchanged a glance with Wang Feifei, who approached and asked, “Master Zhang, you look unwell. Maybe you should let someone check on you.”

Master Zhang waved his hand hastily, “No, I’m fine… Let’s move on to the next mural.”

Wang Feifei signaled to Liu Dashao that she couldn’t help further, and Liu Dashao nodded reluctantly.

Reflecting on the situation, Liu Dashao recalled that ever since Master Zhang suggested the tomb’s occupant might not be from Earth, he had been excited and enthusiastic. But after viewing the first two murals, his expression had grown increasingly grim. From his face, it seemed he had something unspeakable to say. Thinking this, Liu Dashao said nothing outwardly, but his interest in the murals vanished. He continued to glance at Master Zhang while pretending to examine the murals.

The third mural looked familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before, though he couldn’t recall where. Fortunately, Fan Debiao reminded him, “Hey, Boss, isn’t this the same painting we saw at Boddhisattva Mountain? How did it end up here?”

Liu Dashao suddenly understood and laughed, “This painting is identical in content to the one we saw earlier, but it’s not the same painting. Look, this one is in color, a painted mural, whereas the previous one was a relief carving, and the sizes differ. But since the same image appears here, we can conclude the two tombs must be related. Perhaps they belong to the same tomb occupant.” He turned to Master Zhang with a meaningful smile, “Isn’t that right, Master Zhang?”

Master Zhang ignored him, merely grunting and looking even more troubled.

Approaching the fourth mural, Liu Dashao was slightly startled. The woman depicted in this mural bore a striking resemblance to the woman in his dreams. In the painting, the woman lay on a bed, her eyes vacant, her mouth wide open. Judging from the image, she appeared already dead. Beside the bed stood a man holding a worm in his hand, placing it into the woman’s mouth. Unlike the previous murals, which were merely outlined in colorful lines, this one was painted with meticulous detail and a rich sheen, appearing as if it had been painted recently.

Liu Dashao was momentarily stunned, instinctively stepping back and exclaiming, “This woman is clearly already dead, yet this man feeds her a worm? And she looks exactly like the woman in my dream wearing Taoist robes. Could my dream actually be connected to this tomb?”

At Liu Dashao’s words, Fan Debiao’s face changed, and Master Zhang reacted even more dramatically. His legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious. This only strengthened Liu Dashao’s suspicion that Master Zhang was hiding something.

Wang Feifei quickly knelt beside him and pinched his philtrum. After a while, Master Zhang slowly regained consciousness. Seeing everyone staring at him, he awkwardly smiled, stood up, dusted himself off, and joked, “I don’t know why, but I suddenly felt dizzy and fell.”

“Master Zhang—” Liu Dashao suddenly called out.

“Ahh… What… what is it?”

“Are you hiding something from us?”

“No… No, I’m not hiding anything. Haha, nothing at all.”

Fan Debiao grabbed Master Zhang’s collar, “Ge, don’t you know the government’s policy—confession brings leniency, resistance brings severity? I’ve long suspected you. You’d better come clean now, or else if we find out ourselves…”

Master Zhang lowered his head in silence. Liu Dashao inwardly rejoiced, realizing Fan Debiao had actually stumbled upon something.

After a long pause, Master Zhang finally spoke, “Mr. Liu, Mr. Diao, Brother Fan, Miss Wang, I have a request. I know Mr. Liu is a man of principle. Sigh… this matter… even if you refuse, I won’t hold it against you.”

Liu Dashao thought to himself that Master Zhang indeed had something to hide, though he didn’t yet know what. He replied, “Alright, tell us what it is. If it makes sense, we’ll consider it.”

Master Zhang slowly raised his head, scanning the faces of the group before speaking, “Later, I will open the coffin. I only ask that you do not stop me.”

“Open the coffin? Isn’t that exactly why we came here?”

“No, I want to take something. It’s extremely important to me.”

“What? Take something?” The tomb raiders behind Uncle Diao shouted in protest, “No way! Absolutely not! These items were obtained at the cost of our lives. Why should you get to take them?”

“I know that too… Well, forget it. It’s fate. I have nothing more to say.” Master Zhang extended his hand toward Wang Feifei, “Miss Wang, do you have a syringe in your medical kit?”

Wang Feifei stepped back cautiously and asked, “What do you need a syringe for?”

Master Zhang replied, “I heard that injecting air into a vein creates bubbles that block blood circulation to the heart, causing sudden death within seconds. Is that right?”

Wang Feifei nodded and smiled, “Oh, I didn’t know you had some medical knowledge.” Then she suddenly felt uneasy and stepped back again, trembling as she asked, “What… what do you intend to do with the syringe?”

Master Zhang’s face turned pale, and he forced a bitter smile, “If I can’t retrieve that item, I have no choice but to die. I’d rather die here.” He turned to Liu Dashao and said, “Mr. Liu, I know you are an upright person. There’s a hidden compartment in my bag containing my notes on the *Taiping Jing* over the past few years. If you manage to escape this ancient tomb after I’m gone, please take them with you. Consider it my gift to you.”

Liu Dashao remained calm and tried to comfort him, “Master Zhang, are you suffering from some illness? Let me help you. Even if medicine and assistance are scarce here, I believe I can save your life.”

Wang Feifei also said, “Yes, Master Zhang, don’t you trust us?”

“I do trust you. Mr. Liu is the only legitimate descendant of Zhang Tian-shi, and I know his medical skills are superb. But for my condition… there’s nothing he can do. My only hope is to retrieve that item. I know this is excessive, but I have no choice!”

“Why? At least tell us the reason. Without a reason, how can we let you take it?”

“Alright, since you insist on knowing, I’ll explain briefly.” Master Zhang said, then turned to Fan Debiao and asked, “Captain Fan, give me a cigarette.”

“Haha… Mr. Ge, you still smoke?” Fan Debiao said, handing a cigarette to Ni Ren Zhang.

Ni Ren Zhang smiled bitterly, “Since a man is about to die, I might as well smoke.” He lit the cigarette, took a deep puff, then started coughing uncontrollably. After a while, he finally regained his composure and slowly said, “During the Jian’ning period of Emperor Ling of Han, an epidemic spread. ‘Great Sage and Good Teacher’ Zhang Jiao received a divine book from a foreign land and traveled to the Ji Province, an area severely affected by the disaster. Under the guise of healing, he began spreading his teachings. Legend says Zhang Jiao healed people with only magic and incantations. Many sick citizens recovered after drinking the talisman water he provided, and he was revered by the people as a living immortal. Zhang Jiao then dispatched eight emissaries to spread his teachings further. As a result, his followers grew increasingly numerous, eventually reaching hundreds of thousands, spread across the eight provinces of Qing, Xu, You, Ji, Jing, Yang, Yan, and Yu, nearly covering three-quarters of the country at that time. Many people, eager to join Zhang Jiao, sold their properties and traveled thousands of miles, rushing to him in droves. The roads were so crowded that people could barely move, and it was said that over ten thousand people died from being trampled along the way.”

“During the Xiping period of Emperor Ling of Han, Zhang Jiao established the Taiping Taoism, based on his extensive recruitment of students, training of disciples, and gathering of followers. Soon after, the number of Taiping Taoism followers reached hundreds of thousands. Zhang Jiao organized them into thirty-six groups, with the largest groups numbering over ten thousand and the smaller ones six to seven thousand. Zhang Jiao called on farmers to rise up and overthrow the Eastern Han dynasty, proclaiming the slogan, ‘The Blue Heaven is dead, the Yellow Heaven shall rise. In the year of Jiazi, all under heaven shall prosper.’ He set the uprising date for the early Zhongping period of Emperor Ling and actively planned the rebellion. After the uprising began, Zhang Jiao, as the leader of Taiping Taoism, led the main force of the Yellow Turban Army in Ji Province and called himself the ‘Heavenly General.’ They burned government offices, looted villages and towns, causing the provinces and commanderies to lose control and forcing local officials to flee. Within ten days, the entire country responded to the uprising, and the capital was shaken. The Yellow Turban Army fought fierce battles against the Eastern Han imperial forces in regions of Hebei, Yingchuan, Wancheng, and Yanzhou. For various reasons, these three factions of the rebellion fought separately and eventually failed one after another. However, what is puzzling is that with the demise of the Yellow Turban Army, Zhang Jiao and his original Yellow Turban confidants also vanished without a trace. Think about it—how could hundreds of thousands of followers disappear without a trace in the river of history?”

Liu Dashao nodded, “Indeed, the disappearance of the Yellow Turban Army has long been an unsolved mystery. But I think on one hand, they might have died of starvation and cold, and on the other, they were widely suppressed throughout the country, which is why the main force of the Yellow Turbans vanished completely, leaving only scattered bandits.”

Ni Ren Zhang laughed bitterly, “Suppression? Do you really think the Eastern Han army could resist the ‘Chu’ army of the Great Sage and Good Teacher? These are purely conjectures with absolutely no basis. History is history; no matter how it is, it cannot be changed. Without evidence, it’s just fabrication—a mere excuse for those so-called historians to justify themselves.”

“Then what evidence do you have?”

“I have evidence. I found proof of their existence in another place.”

“Where?”

“Right here—in the Golden Ancient City!”

A thought flashed through Liu Dashao’s mind, and he blurted out, “You’re talking about the Golden Ancient City?”

“Exactly. After the rebellion failed, Zhang Jiao did not die, but instead brought his large group of followers and eventually arrived in the Western Regions.” As Ni Ren Zhang said this, he let out a long sigh, as if releasing a burden he had carried in his heart for many years. His expression suddenly became very relaxed. After a while, he threw the cigarette butt on the ground and stepped hard on it, saying, “Not only the Golden Ancient City, but even the original definitions of beliefs in Buddhism, Taoism, and Islam today all originate from those three divine books!”

Ni Ren Zhang’s words shocked everyone, and they couldn’t help but exclaim, “Ah…”

Liu Dashao carefully scrutinized Ni Ren Zhang’s words, trying to determine how much truth there was in them. After thinking for a long time, Liu finally asked, “Wait a minute, Ni Ren Zhang, the people of the Western Regions dominate the northern deserts—how could they be closely related to the Yellow Turban Army? Are you sure you’re not mistaken?”

“Even if the people of Golden Ancient City are descendants of Zhang Jiao’s army, what’s the connection with those unidentified flying objects depicted on the murals? Besides, we still haven’t confirmed whether there’s any other civilization outside Earth, especially in ancient times?”

Ni Ren Zhang smiled and said, “Humanity has only developed for a few million years, yet we’ve already flown into space and landed on the moon. Remember, Earth has existed for billions of years, and the universe formed even hundreds of billions of years earlier. Civilizations outside Earth are possible. Many historical records, including the most authoritative ‘Records of the Grand Historian,’ document such phenomena. The earliest records of unidentified flying objects date back to the Xia Dynasty.”

“But what do unidentified flying objects or aliens have to do with the Yellow Turban Rebellion?”

“Didn’t I just say? The three divine books of Zhang Jiao came from an extraterrestrial civilization, and the tomb’s owner here is very likely the real Zhang Jiao. This Zhang Jiao not only commanded the entire Yellow Turban army but also mastered all the divine books. This was already illustrated in the murals of the Bodhisattva Mountain. The alien who came to Earth not only helped Zhang Jiao build a powerful army but also taught him a kind of worm technique. This worm technique had a wide range of uses—not only could it control large numbers of ‘Chu’ to serve him, but it could also reveal the secret of immortality to humans. I don’t know why the Yellow Turban Rebellion, despite having so many favorable conditions, still ended in failure. But I can say this: the Great Sage and Good Teacher was completely out of sync with history. Zhang Jiao was definitely a woman. The murals from two different places have already proven this. Also, I can speculate that ‘Golden’ and ‘Yellow Turban’ were just misinterpreted homophones. The real name of this place should be Yellow Turban Ancient City. The Yellow Turban Queen lying here is none other than the Great Sage and Good Teacher—Zhang Jiao!”

After listening to Ni Ren Zhang’s explanation, Liu Dashao vaguely realized that the tomb’s owner lying in the phoenix coffin might indeed be Zhang Jiao, and Zhang Jiao might actually be a woman. He then asked, “Even if the person in the phoenix coffin is indeed Zhang Jiao, how does that relate to you asking Wang Feifei for a syringe to commit suicide?”

Ni Ren Zhang’s aged face immediately turned pale. He opened his mouth, as if wanting to say something, but after a while, he finally stammered, “You’ve seen my face and hair. It’s because I tried to practice those two divine books that I’ve become this inhuman, ghost-like creature. Lately, I’ve discovered that I’m aging nonstop. Look!”

After saying this, Ni Ren Zhang extended his hand: “In just three short days, three more age spots have appeared on my hand!”

Liu Dashao looked and indeed saw that Ni Ren Zhang’s once agile hands had now slowly become withered, like those of a lonely, solitary old man: “So what are you trying to say?”

“Only one item inside that coffin can free me from this nightmare and let me live a normal life. That’s the reason I risked my life to come here. Now I don’t want anything else—I just want to be an ordinary person.”

“Alright, I’ve said what I needed to say. The rest is up to you all to decide.”