He placed the jade pendant flat in his palm and began to examine it carefully. The pendant was entirely transparent, bearing a striking resemblance to the material of the jade coffin in which the female corpse had lain. The pendant was shaped like a transformed tiger, its body entirely covered with engraved swirling patterns and modified three-legged motifs. It had phoenix eyes and phoenix claws, while its two fangs resembled elephant tusks, making the design vivid and lifelike.
He placed the jade pendant flat in his hand and examined it carefully. The pendant was entirely transparent, resembling the material of the jade coffin in which the female corpse lay. The pendant was shaped like a distorted tiger, its body adorned with swirling and triangular patterns, with phoenix eyes and claws. The tiger’s fangs resembled ivory, and the overall design was vivid and lifelike.
Though the pendant was smaller than a palm, its details were clearly visible, even the character “王” (king) on the tiger’s head could be distinctly seen.
Fan Debiao, an old hand at destroying the “Four Olds,” had smashed many treasures. Upon seeing this, he said to Liu Dashao, “Brother, this is definitely an extraordinary piece of jade. The carving technique from the Three Kingdoms period reaching this level is nothing short of miraculous. Taking it out could at least fetch us a Liberation-brand truck.”
Liu Dashao wasn’t interested in the market value of the tiger-shaped jade pendant. What truly intrigued him was the tomb itself. After all, they hadn’t come here to loot tombs but to unravel the series of strange events that had been occurring recently.
Liu Dashao didn’t discuss the pendant’s market value with Fan Debiao. Instead, he handed it to Big Cricket, saying, “Big Cricket, take a look at this.”
Seeing that Liu Dashao ignored him, Fan Debiao went off on his own to rummage through the desiccated corpse.
Big Cricket picked up the tiger-shaped pendant and examined it, saying, “This tiger shape is the totem of the Ba Kingdom in Sichuan. The Ba people worshipped the white tiger. A few years ago, in Fuling, a Ba Kingdom burial site was unearthed, and many weapons there bore this tiger design. Those who could wear such a pendant were people of high status. It seems this female corpse was no ordinary person.”
“Don’t jump to conclusions!” Green Worm interjected. “Since this female corpse’s coffin is outside the main burial chamber, it suggests she was a servant or perhaps a personal guard buried with Zhang Jiao. Nothing extraordinary.”
Big Cricket nodded and said, “Green Worm makes a valid point. We came here intending to leave quickly, but now we’re all injured. That Zhang Jiao is truly despicable. Forget about national losses; at least we should take a few artifacts to sell for some money to cover our medical expenses.”
Hearing that Big Cricket decided to loot Zhang Jiao’s tomb, Fan Debiao immediately got excited: “You’re right. We’ve lost all our revolutionary capital this time. When we get to that Zhang guy’s coffin, I’ll pick a couple of valuable items too. But first, let’s figure out how to open this box.”
After the battle with the female corpse, Liu Dashao had almost forgotten about the black box. Now that Fan Debiao mentioned it, he realized that since the box was placed in the jade coffin as a burial item, it must have some connection to the tomb. Perhaps it contained the secret he had come here to uncover.
Liu Dashao was eager. He saw Fan Debiao holding the black box, turning it over and over, with a look of innocence on his face. Liu Dashao snatched the box from Fan Debiao’s hands.
Because Liu Dashao didn’t use enough force, as soon as he took the box, his hand sank. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and steadied it with his other hand. The box was indeed heavy; if he hadn’t stabilized it in time, his hand would have been crushed.
Liu Dashao examined the box carefully. It was square, small enough to be held with two hands. From the material, it appeared to be made of iron. However, the box was entirely black, and with Liu Dashao’s current knowledge, he couldn’t determine what kind of iron it was. Despite its small size, the box was incredibly heavy, indicating it was no ordinary item.
Liu Dashao turned the box over and over, inspecting it. The box was sealed, with tiger icons similar to the pendant on all six sides. There were no keyholes on any of the sides. If it weren’t for its regular square shape, he wouldn’t have associated it with a box at all—it seemed more like a solid iron weight.
After examining it thoroughly and confirming that the iron box was indeed solid, Liu Dashao handed it to Big Cricket.
Big Cricket took the box and also felt its weight, his face showing the same confusion. He picked it up and frowned.
Seeing that even Big Cricket couldn’t figure out the box, Fan Debiao kicked the female corpse into the river and said, “This box is just a lump of iron. Let’s forget about it for now and focus on looting Zhang Jiao’s tomb. We’ll deal with this later.”
Liu Dashao calculated the time. They had been inside for over two days, surviving on a few compressed biscuits and half a crucian carp. Everyone must be starving. Although a person can survive for seven days without food as long as they have water, in their current state, they wouldn’t make it out of the tomb alive.
So, he said to Big Cricket, “Big Cricket, our top priority now is to get out as soon as possible. Even if we can endure the hunger, our injuries worsening will be a serious problem.”
Big Cricket placed the box on the boat, looking at it and saying, “Don’t underestimate this iron box. It’s made of Xuan iron. Based on the box’s weight, I’m certain it’s hollow. It has a name—’Pure Yang Treasure Box.'”
Hearing this, Liu Dashao thought to himself that the box was made of Xuan iron, no wonder it was so heavy. Xuan iron was an extremely precious alloy at the time, even more valuable than gold. This thing must be quite precious.
The name ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ struck Liu Dashao as peculiar. Something stored in such a valuable box must be extraordinary. Since Big Cricket knew the box’s name, he must have some understanding of it.
Liu Dashao asked Big Cricket, “Big Cricket, what does ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ mean?”
Big Cricket replied, “The box is called ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ because it contains hidden mechanisms, such as concealed needles or poisonous smoke. During the Three Kingdoms period, Confucianism hadn’t yet gained dominance, and there were many sects. Some of these sects were skilled in designing various mechanisms, ranging from large-scale mountain and tomb defenses to tiny devices hidden in hair. The precision of these mechanisms is still astonishing today, unimaginable given the computational capabilities of that time. This ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ from the Three Kingdoms period was created by the Mohist school. Despite its small size, if opened incorrectly, everyone around would perish.”
After Big Cricket’s explanation, Liu Dashao began to feel a sense of dread toward the ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box.’ But realizing that the box was tied to his life, he steeled himself to proceed.
Liu Dashao continued to ask Big Cricket, “Big Cricket, since the ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ is made of such precious material and incorporates advanced technology from that era, whatever is inside must be worth a look.”
Fan Debiao, hearing Liu Dashao’s intention to open the potentially deadly box, immediately objected: “Brother, this time you’re wrong. If we open this box incorrectly, we’ll all die here. Whatever’s inside, the box itself is valuable. Let’s just sell it and be done with it.”
“You know nothing!” Big Cricket scolded Fan Debiao, then looked at the ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ and said, “Whatever is inside this box must have a significant connection to Zhang Jiao. I believe that with its contents, looting the tomb will go much smoother.”
Fan Debiao was an old hand at destroying the “Four Olds” and had smashed many treasures before. Upon seeing it, he said to Liu Dashao, “Brother, this is definitely an extraordinary piece of jade craftsmanship. The carving techniques of the Three Kingdoms era were already incredible to reach this level. Selling it could fetch at least a Jiefang brand truck.”
Liu Dashao wasn’t interested in the pendant’s market value. What intrigued him more was the tomb itself, as his purpose for entering wasn’t for grave robbing, but to uncover the truth behind the recent strange occurrences.
Ignoring the pendant’s price, Liu Dashao handed it to Daguo and said, “Daguo, take a look at this.”
Seeing Liu Dashao wasn’t paying attention to him, Fan Debiao wandered off by himself to rummage through the mummy.
Daguo picked up the tiger-shaped jade pendant and examined it, saying, “This tiger shape is the totem of the ancient Ba Kingdom in Sichuan. The Ba people worshipped the white tiger. A few years ago, in Fuling, many burial sites of the Ba Kingdom were unearthed, and many weapons there bore similar tiger motifs. Back then, only people of high status could wear such tiger-shaped ornaments, so this female corpse must have been someone of importance.”
“You can’t say that!” Caiqingchong interjected. “Since her coffin was placed just outside the main burial chamber, she must have been a concubine or something, maybe even a personal bodyguard to that old Zhang Jue fellow. She’s not that significant.”
After hearing this, Daguo nodded and said, “Chong, your analysis makes sense. We originally came here just to take a look and leave, but now everyone’s been injured like this. That ‘Great Sage’ really is despicable. We can’t worry about national losses anymore—we at least need to grab a burial artifact to sell for some medical expenses.”
Upon hearing Daguo’s decision to rob Zhang Jue’s tomb, Fan Debiao immediately became excited: “You’re absolutely right. This time, we’ve lost all our revolutionary capital already. When we get to that old man’s coffin, I’ll also pick out a couple of valuable items. But for now, let’s figure out how to open this box first.”
After battling the female corpse, Liu Dashao had indeed forgotten about the black box. Now that Fan Debiao mentioned it, he suddenly remembered. He thought that since this box was placed inside the jade coffin as a burial item for the female corpse, it must be connected to the tomb itself. Perhaps it even contained the secret he had come here to uncover.
Liu Dashao was eager to investigate further. He watched as Fan Debiao held the black box and turned it over front to back, left to right, with an expression of complete helplessness. Finally, Liu Dashao snatched the box from Fan Debiao’s hands.
Unfortunately, Liu Dashao didn’t grip it tightly enough, and the moment he caught it, his hand sank downward. Luckily, he reacted quickly and used his other hand to steady it. The box was surprisingly heavy. Had he not reacted in time, his hand might have been crushed.
Liu Dashao carefully examined the box. It was a perfect cube, about the size that could be held in both hands. From the material, it seemed to be made of iron. However, the entire box was black in color, and with Liu Dashao’s current knowledge, he couldn’t identify what kind of iron it was. But considering its small size and extraordinary weight, judging by its density alone, it was clearly no ordinary box.
Liu Dashao turned the box over repeatedly. It was completely sealed, with tiger motifs identical to those on the jade pendant cast on all six sides. There was no keyhole on any of the six faces. Were it not for its regular cubic shape, he wouldn’t have even considered it a box, mistaking it instead for a solid iron weight.
After thoroughly examining it and confirming it was indeed a solid block, Liu Dashao handed the box to Daguo.
Daguo took the box and his hand also sank slightly, his face displaying the same puzzled expression. He picked it up and examined it, frowning.
Seeing that even Daguo couldn’t figure out the box’s secret, 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 whatever treasures that old Zhang whatever’s tomb holds.”
Liu Dashao calculated the time—they had been inside for more than two days already, surviving only on some compressed biscuits and half a crucian fish. Everyone must be starving by now. Although a person can survive seven days without food but with water, they certainly wouldn’t be able to escape this tomb in their current condition.
He then said to Daguo, “Daguo, our top priority now is to get out as soon as possible. Even if we can endure hunger, worsening injuries will still pose a serious threat.”
Daguo placed the box on the boat, looking at the iron box and said, “Don’t underestimate this iron box. This iron is forged from mysterious black iron. Based on the weight and quality of this iron box, I can be certain—it must be hollow. It has a name: ‘The Pure Yang Treasure Box.'”
After hearing Daguo’s explanation, Liu Dashao thought to himself that the box was made from mysterious black iron, explaining its extraordinary weight. Mysterious black iron was considered a very valuable alloy at that time, even more precious than gold. This box must indeed be quite valuable.
Hearing the name “Pure Yang Treasure Box,” Liu Dashao found it somewhat strange. Whatever was stored 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 ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ because it conceals hidden mechanisms inside—like poison needles, toxic smoke, and so on. During the Three Kingdoms period, Confucianism hadn’t yet become dominant. There were many sects, and many among them were skilled in designing various mechanisms. These ranged from grand ones capable of guarding mountains and tombs, to tiny ones hidden in hairpins. The precision of these mechanisms still astonishes people today, making it hard to imagine how such designs could have been created with the computational capabilities of that time. This ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ from the Three Kingdoms era was created by the Mohist school. Don’t underestimate this small box—it could kill everyone nearby if opened incorrectly.”
After hearing Daguo’s explanation, Liu Dashao began to feel fear toward the ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box.’ However, thinking that this box might be connected to his own fate, he steeled himself and resolved to proceed.
Liu Dashao continued asking Daguo, “Daguo, since the ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ is made from such valuable materials and incorporates advanced technology of the time, whatever is inside must be worth seeing.”
When Fan Debiao heard Liu Dashao wanted to open a box that could cost them their lives, he immediately objected: “Brother, you’re wrong this time. If we open it the wrong way, we’ll all die here. Regardless of what’s inside, isn’t the box itself valuable enough? Why don’t we just take it out and sell it?”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about!” Daguo scolded Fan Debiao, then looked at the ‘Pure Yang Treasure Box’ and continued, “What’s inside this box must be closely related to the Great Sage. I believe that with whatever is inside, our tomb raiding will go much more smoothly.”
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