Chapter 59: The Nine Dragon Tomb Gate

A vaulted passage and a tomb tunnel are two entirely different concepts.

A vaulted passage refers to the main corridor inside an ancient tomb, starting from the tomb gate, usually featuring multiple branch paths, and leading all the way to the main burial chamber, sometimes even encircling it. A tomb tunnel, on the other hand, comes in various forms, such as sloped tomb tunnels and shaft-style tomb tunnels. Among them, a sloped tomb tunnel refers to a path extending obliquely upward from outside the tomb gate to the point buried under the earth, serving as a passage for logistics and personnel during the construction of the underground burial chamber.

Meanwhile, imperial gardens built on the surface of the ground also typically feature a wide avenue flanked by stone sculptures, known as the spirit path or the heavenly way.

The location where Cheng Xiangru and the others currently found themselves was none other than a tomb tunnel, specifically a sloped one, and its end was bound to be the tomb gate.

Normally, because tomb tunnels served solely as passages for logistics and personnel, they were left undecorated. Furthermore, once the tomb owner was interred, a large portion of the tomb tunnel would be backfilled.

However, the tomb tunnel where Cheng Xiangru and his companions now stood completely subverted everyone's understanding. Not only were the walls on both sides lined with smooth bricks and adorned with exquisite murals, but to create a specific atmosphere, intricate wind-powered sound-generating mechanisms were even hidden within the mouths of the Kalavinka sculptures.

Chen Shangke entered last, and like the others, he was frozen in shock by what met his eyes. "Good grief, how much silver did this damn thing cost to burn? If it looks like this on the outside, I bet the inside is even more unbelievable—definitely packed with treasures everywhere!"

In a rare exception, Lin Xiaqi did not subject Chen Shangke to her usual sarcastic remarks. "I reckon so too!"

Seeing that everyone had descended, Boss Zhou clapped his hands to snap the group out of their daze. "Alright, stop staring. Let's move downward."

Leng Ying snapped her fingers and took the lead at the front. "Everyone in the back, keep up closely and don't fall behind. Right now, what we've arrived at is the Great Qing dragon vein that's been mentioned in countless movies, television shows, and illustrated novels. Look at my left hand—these divine beasts painted on the wall with human faces and bird bodies are the legendary Kalavinka, known for their singing and dancing. According to legend, when Shakyamuni lectured on the Dharma, Kalavinkas surrounded him, singing and dancing along..."

Boss Zhou frowned, feeling irritated by the chatter. "Leng Ying, we're tomb robbing here, not going on a sightseeing tour. You're really ruining the atmosphere."

Leng Ying nodded. "Indeed! Then let me sing a song for everyone."

With that, she cleared her throat and actually began to sing, "Mother, keep watch over my, my red bridal gown, and don't let me leave too early, too early..."

Lin Xiaqi nudged Cheng Xiangru and whispered, "Little Cheng, listening to this is giving me goosebumps. Why don't you talk her into keeping quiet for a bit?"

Let alone Lin Xiaqi, even Cheng Xiangru felt a chill run through his entire body, as if countless pairs of eyes were staring at him from the surrounding darkness.

Leng Ying's voice was ethereal, and whether intentionally or not, she added a multitude of vibratos. Her singing echoed within the silent tomb tunnel like the resentful moans of wandering spirits, genuinely making one's spine crawl.

Boss Zhou gritted his teeth. "Leng Ying, would you mind not singing anymore?"

Leng Ying smiled. "Sure, sure! Even I was creeping myself out with my own singing, but the atmosphere was definitely right. If you hadn't said anything, I would have thought you liked it."

Boss Zhou fell silent, unwilling to speak further. He suspected Leng Ying was deliberately targeting him, but he had no proof.

Although Leng Ying stopped making noise, the eerie atmosphere conjured by her song still clung to the group, lingering for a long time without dissipating.

Walking at the very end and unable to see the situation ahead, Chen Shangke broke the eerie silence by shouting, "How much longer do we have to walk? Why is this tomb tunnel so damn long?"

Leng Ying shouted back in response, "We've arrived!"

Seeing that both Leng Ying and Boss Zhou had stopped, Cheng Xiangru walked over to Boss Zhou, raised his flashlight to illuminate the space ahead, and instantly gasped in shock at what he saw.

Less than five meters in front of them stood a towering, story-high, massive double-leaved stone gate, rising with solemn severity.

Carved in high relief upon the stone gate were numerous intertwined, ferocious dragons. Each dragon was baring its claws and fangs, vividly lifelike. Under the beam of the flashlight, they looked as though they might lunge forward at any moment to tear intruders into shreds.

Cheng Xiangru patiently counted and discovered a total of nine dragons carved across the two door panels. Every single one was a five-clawed imperial dragon. In addition to the usual four claws, there was an extra claw right over the center of the chest, its tips gleaming with a chilling light.

"How come none of these dragons have eyes?" Cheng Xiangru noticed that the eye sockets of all nine relief-carved dragons lacked sculpted eyeballs, making them look like unfinished works.

Boss Zhou explained, "Ancient artists painted dragons without dotting the eyes to prevent them from coming alive and flying away. Therefore, this style of portraying dragons is also known as 'imprisoning the dragon.' The only ones audacious and arrogant enough to imprison dragons to guard a gate would be the imperial family of the Great Qing. It seems we haven't come to the wrong place after all; this must be the Great Qing dragon vein!"

Leng Ying had somehow drifted over to the side of the tomb gate and was enthusiastically studying a multicolored stone sculpture.

Meanwhile, Zhurof and Lin Xiaqi were observing another multicolored stone sculpture on the corresponding opposite side.

Boss Zhou cupped his chin, frowning in deep thought, presumably pondering how to open the tomb gate.

As for Chen Shangke...

Cheng Xiangru looked around before finally spotting Chen Shangke crouching in a corner, picking up items and stuffing them into his pockets.

Sensing a beam of light shining upon him, Chen Shangke looked up and locked eyes directly with Cheng Xiangru.

"Little Cheng, come here... come quickly..." Chen Shangke’s face was filled with excitement as he beckoned to Cheng Xiangru with stealthy, lowered gestures.

Puzzled, Cheng Xiangru walked over, squatted down, and asked in a low voice, "Brother Chen, what is it?"

Chen Shangke leaned close to Cheng Xiangru's ear and whispered, "Quickly, pick them up. There are lots of Five Emperors coins on the ground, and their condition is quite good. They can fetch a lot of money."

The Five Emperors coins refer to either the Greater or Lesser sets of five ancient Chinese currency coins, which folk customs believed possessed the power to ward off evil and deflect taboos.

The Greater Five Emperors coins refer to the Banliang coins of the Qin dynasty, the Wuzhu coins of the Han dynasty, the Kaiyuan Tongbao coins of the Tang dynasty, the Songyuan Tongbao coins of the Song dynasty, and the Yongle Tongbao coins of the Ming dynasty.

The Lesser Five Emperors coins refer to the Shunzhi, Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong, and Jiaqing Tongbao coins.

Although this was the Great Qing dragon vein, it must have been constructed during the early Qing dynasty—long before the concept of the Lesser Five Emperors coins even existed. Therefore, the coins scattered across the floor were all Greater Five Emperors coins, which commanded extraordinarily high prices in the antique market.

While Cheng Xiangru liked money, he had his own bottom line. Having suffered for so many years because of his father's identity as a grave robber, he deeply despised tomb raiders and certainly wouldn't degrade himself in such a manner.

He shook his head, stood up, walked over to Leng Ying, and stared at the stone sculpture as well. "What are you staring at it for?"

The stone sculpture in front of Leng Ying had a very bizarre shape: it possessed a human face with distorted features, yet a dragon's body. Furthermore, the dragon's body was coiled like a snake, painted with five-colored lacquer which, though severely oxidized and faded, still retained bright colors.

As Cheng Xiangru looked at the stone sculpture, he felt deeply ill at ease throughout his entire body, constantly sensing that the sculpture's eyes were staring right at him and shifting their pupils as he moved.

"Don't look at its eyes!" Leng Ying suddenly reached out to block Cheng Xiangru's view, whispering a warning: "You'll get hypnotized!"

Just as Leng Ying finished speaking, Zhurof let out a sudden, miserable shriek from the other side.