"I see!" Amid the cheers of the crowd, Owen also had some recognition and understanding of Krupp's explanation and views. Therefore, he stopped asking questions and just turned around and waved to a few people recruited from the Tribunal behind him. Those people came forward and surrounded him and Krupp in the middle. These people are all experts of the Tribunal stationed in East Asia. Normally, only those at the bishop level can recruit them. However, no one at the bishop's level would come to the Far East, except Owen. Owen is one of the twelve High Table Mages of the Inquisition, and a person with considerable say in the middle level of the Inquisition. In addition, there are big bosses like Krupp behind him who provide financial and material support, which makes his position more stable and he can speak the truth internally. As long as these two people reach an agreement, it is impossible for others to say anything, as long as they do it. So as an advance team of people set off first, and another team was divided to build a backup camp, the entire team began to move vigorously again, moving forward along the traces left by the big snake. To Krupp's surprise, the trip was not as far as he imagined.
In the afternoon, the sun began to slant westward. When it was close to dusk, they had walked more than 20 miles along the traces left by the big snake. Just when everyone thought they needed to move on, the advance team brought surprising news. "In the woods ahead, we found, um, traces of a stone road, Mr. Krupp." The captain of the advance team didn't look much more relaxed than the audience, because this was really weird. In this place where there is no road, the grass and trees are growing wildly, and it is impossible to take a step forward without a machete in hand, there is a neat and tidy stone road. How can he not think about his words first? However, everyone was surprised, but Krupp was only excited. In the tropical rainforests of South America that cannot be detected by any instrument, he has seen the traces of human beings more than once. It is also in such unexpected places that moss and vines cover the ground, forests are thick, spiders as big as your face, and mosquitoes that can kill you with one bite are everywhere. But maybe hundreds of years ago, or even thousands of years ago, those ruins that are now buried deep under the soil and covered by tree roots and weeds used to be the palace or altar of a certain kingdom. With his rich experience, Krupp quickly gathered his troops and opened up the formation. He couldn't wait to go and see the ruins. Whether it was the treasure inside or the big snake that made people feel stressed just by looking at the traces, he was fascinated by it. At his silent urging, everyone pulled out several teams and moved forward in search formation. As for the porters who came from the Kingdom of Goryeo, they were responsible for logistical support in place. Adventure and glory, of course, have nothing to do with these people. For a group that enjoys eating white rice, they will not appear in those so-called great deeds that will be commemorated in the annals of novels. These porters are just doing some kind of work that will not be remembered. It is dangerous and difficult. Of course, Krupp didn't care what these porters were doing or thinking. At this moment, all his thoughts were focused on heading to the ruins. When the sun was about to set on the other side of the mountain, Krupp had already reached the place where the advance team had discovered the stone road. Here, the traces of the big snake's movements stopped abruptly, as if it was unwilling to destroy this place and did not leave any terrifying ravines like before. Krupp squatted on the ground, gently sweeping away the layer of dust floating on the surface, and then his hand touched the cold stone slab. "Did the royal family build it before entering the customs?" Owen asked, narrowing his eyes.
"I am not sure." Krupp shook his head, "We can't draw any conclusions from just a stone slab or a stone road. We can only be sure by going deeper and discovering more things. It would be better if you could find something like a road sign or a map in it. " “I wish those things existed.” At this time, Owen had taken the torch from someone else's hand and looked into the depths of the dark jungle where nothing could be seen. "I always feel like I have an uneasy, scary feeling here." "horrible?" Krupp smiled, "Of course it's scary here. If someone has no feeling for a ruin hidden in the mountains, doesn't think it's scary, and doesn't have the slightest respect for the unknown environment, he's not an ignorant idiot. , is an idiot who is indifferent to everything around him. Even though I have the most experience among everyone, I can't help but feel scared, just like a diver who suddenly encounters a trench at the bottom of the sea. The deep darkness seems to swallow up his life and soul just by looking at it. Nothing left. However……" Krupp's smile grew brighter, "Who doesn't want to personally explore the mysterious abyss full of whirlpools, turbulences, forks, and even hidden monsters?" "I don't want to." Owen shook his head. "So you're not a diver." Krupp put away his smile and asked the captain of the advance team if they had found any clues. The captain shook his head, "Mr. Krupp, several of the team members we sent out have not returned yet." He touched his beard a few times and said, "They should be farther away now and are preparing to return." As soon as he finished speaking, there was a faint sound in the forest, and several people emerged from it. They were the members of the advance team. One of them was holding a round object in his hand. "what is that?" When Owen asked, the man immediately brought something in front of him, startling the battle-hardened High Table Mage. It was a skull wearing a helmet, and there were already cracks on the face, from the forehead to the corners of the mouth. It's not because of trauma, but because of the damage caused by wind and rain over the years. Owen stretched out his hand in disgust, but before touching it, he pulled it back like an electric shock. He took a step back and looked at Krupp. Krupp knew the mage's "herbiphobia", so he just smiled, and then picked up the skull and looked at it like a stone. But as he carefully looked at the helmet on the skull's head, the smile on his face could not help but solidify. "This is not equipment from the last few decades or a hundred years." Krupp took a deep breath, "It's not even from this millennium." "Well?" Owen's eyes widened, "You mean..."
"I did not say anything." Krupp picked up the skull and suddenly nervously opened and closed its jaw a few times, "That's what it said." Owen just pursed his lips and nodded at Krupp's joke, which was not funny at all, as if he had heard it before. Krupp was only focused on the helmet at the moment, and then he turned around and pointed to a vague bird-shaped pattern on it. "This is the pattern of [Shang]." "Shang? That long-ago dynasty?" Owen looked at the Tang translator on the side, but the man just shook his head in embarrassment, saying that he, like Owen, had no idea what Krupp was talking about. Krupp did not expect the translator to have profound knowledge, because being a translator does not require learning history, as long as he can listen and speak. "The mysterious bird of destiny, descended to give birth to quotient." Krupp turned the helmet in his hand and let the head fall to the ground. "What appears before us now are souvenirs from ancient times. These ancestors from ancient times used their extraordinary wisdom, courage and perseverance to create this splendid civilization and artwork. Anyone who sees it should be deeply impressed by it. It is to be deeply moved.” His eyes gradually became watery, "This is not an easy thing. After thousands of years, we meet these great people again." "But these guys are dead, dead." Owen kicked the skull to the side of the grass. "Compared to those things, I am more curious about why this skull is still so intact. You have to know that after so many years, it has been exposed to wind and rain, let alone taking shape." , even if it has long since turned into soil, I would not be surprised. However, this skull is still so intact. To be honest, I can't figure it out. " "That's right if you can't figure it out." Krupp smiled and said, "Many things in the world are originally unreasonable. If you can explain it, we will explain it. If you can't explain it, we will put it aside. Why are there ancient prehistoric ruins in tropical rainforests? Why are there ruins of city-states in the sea? Why are there a group of people forgotten by the world in a corner that we don’t know about? Where exactly is the center of the world? Are we actually in some kind of self-righteous trap, like crawling around on a ribbon, thinking that we are the ant moving forward? " "Mr. Krupp, I have to say that you are more of a profound philosopher than an explorer." Owen couldn't hear the profound meaning in Krupp's words, and he just felt dizzy. Krupp didn't take it seriously and nodded at him: "Mr. Owen, sometimes don't think about it if you don't understand it. Don't explain it if you can't explain it. As long as you don't intentionally embarrass yourself, everyone will be happy." "Makes sense." Owen waved, and the group lit torches and began to march along the stone road. "Is this man wearing a helmet a soldier?" Somehow, Owen still cared a little about the skull just now. "Yes, these people should be soldiers guarding a certain mausoleum or altar. As for why they died here, whether it was due to disease or war, I'm afraid we have to see the scene to know." "Maybe the big snake ate them." Owen shook his head, "You know, what a huge monster that is."
"I don't know yet," Krupp smiled. "After all, I haven't seen it with my own eyes." After a while, after passing through layers of dense forest, everyone came to a deep valley. There are layers upon layers of tall trees in the deep valley, vying to squeeze out of the deep valley and compete for sunlight. The stone road has disappeared here, and there is only soft soil ahead. "Nothing at all?" Owen was a little disappointed. "Don't jump to conclusions so quickly yet." Krupp was not anxious at all and pointed to the trees, "Didn't you notice that there is only one kind of tree growing in this deep valley?" Owen opened his eyes and looked, and sure enough, there were only nanmu trees here, unlike other places where there were all kinds of trees. "Someone planted these giant trees here?" "Of course, it was probably planted by the ancestors." As soon as Krupp finished speaking, a strong wind blew, and the branches were pressed down by the wind. In the deep valley, huge broken stone sculptures vaguely revealed their raised arms. Everyone's spirits were lifted again, and they immediately began to prepare ropes and climb down, regardless of the fact that it was getting dark. After one, two, and several people landed on the ground dozens of meters below, Krupp and Owen landed along the rope. As soon as they landed, they couldn't help but exclaimed. Under the cover of the huge tree canopy, there are huge stone sculptures everywhere. The faintly visible corridor, the broken street lamps, and the fallen soldier statues all prove that this is the center of the ruins - a certain palace or altar. "Shang left a huge building complex here. Maybe the dead soldier was guarding its periphery." Krupp touched the stone statue next to him, and felt the weight of time transfer to his hands across the river of time, making his heart agitate. "We have really arrived in front of this huge treasure in Changbai Mountain, right?" Owen said excitedly. "Hard to say." Krupp still maintained some sense, "Because the information I got is that this is the dragon vein of the royal family. It should have been built before they entered the customs, and it is only a few hundred years old. However, this is a building that belongs to Shang. Could it be that their dragon veins are hidden under Shang's ruins? According to my research, Shang was indeed a huge country, but it was unlikely that it would have such a distribution of power in Changbai Mountain. This is really a puzzling thing. " "Mr. Krupp, why don't you think about the problem at hand first." "Hmm? In front of you?" "Yes, it seems that the soldiers guarding the tomb still have descendants, or are they still alive?" Krupp became more and more strange as he listened. He raised his head and looked forward, only to see three people standing on the rocks in front of them, staring at them, which made everyone nervous.
Is this a ghost from ancient times, or is it the descendant of those guardians who are still carrying out the orders of King Shang to this day? Which emperor issued such an order spanning thousands of years, Tang or Zhou? However, this romantic thought was soon dispelled when one of the three people spoke. "It's been a long time, Mr. Krupp. I don't know if you have been so successful in the stock market recently. Are you doing well?" Yin Xiu jumped down from the stone, half-smiling. Krupp had never "seen" Yin Xiu. He just stared at Liu Banxian, then turned around and looked around. He was relieved to find that Ren Qi, whose look alone was enough to make people tremble, was not here. However, he suddenly realized that the tone of the "outsider" in front of him was very similar to Liu Banxian, who had met him before. Could it be? "I see, then we have indeed not seen each other for a long time." Krupp gave a cruel sneer. (End of chapter)