Reborn As Super Heiress

Chapter 1397: Chapter 1382: The Inscriptions on the Stone Door

Although this ancient tomb is buried underwater, in fact, the tomb’s seal is excellent. Until a breach is opened in the passage, no one knows the specifics of this tomb, but Huo Sining, using the Heavenly Eye Skill, can see that the tomb’s passage has not been flooded by reservoir water; it is entirely empty inside.

This situation was also discovered by Professor Xie and other experts after opening the passage and entering, as they could visually observe that the bluestone walls and floor of the passage were dry, indicating no erosion from water flow.

Huo Sining took a camera and started comprehensive photography after entering the passage.

This is a rule during the archaeological process; once the passage is opened and entered, the entire excavation process must be thoroughly documented.

The purpose of doing so is firstly to prevent any accidents during the process that could lead to unexplained loss or damage to ancient artifacts;

Secondly, it is to present the situation inside the ancient tomb completely, serving as future research material.

In fact, during archaeological processes, it often happens that certain objects, buried for hundreds or thousands of years without air contact, begin to oxidize once the tomb is opened and air enters. Oxygen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, water, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides exercise strong corrosive effects, leading to chemical and light corrosion, sometimes causing artifacts to oxidize instantly, even weathering into fragments.

Thus, using a camera for continuous photography serves another purpose: in case of such oxidation reactions, it can capture valuable data, greatly aiding post-excavation restoration efforts.

Seeing Huo Sining with the camera, Xie Daoyuan nodded approvingly and pointed to the large stone gate saying, ”This is called a wind-blocking wall, the first entrance of the passage. It is a huge stone slab weighing over a thousand pounds, and it can completely isolate the tomb chamber from outside the passage.”

Xie Daoyuan continued his analysis, saying to Ji Kun, ”Xiao Ji, arrange for the personnel outside to turn on the fan, and assign two reliable people to guard the entrance. Also, bring in a few walkie-talkies.”

Ji Kun nodded and left without any objections after hearing Xie Daoyuan’s words.

A fan is a necessary tool in the archaeological process since the inside of the ancient tomb is a sealed space, with air becoming thin over hundreds or thousands of years. Without air, entering the tomb chamber can cause either suffocation or death; hence, air must be brought in using a fan.

In fact, Huo Sining and the others only walked ten meters into the passage, not having reached the main tomb chamber, already feeling discomfort due to poor air quality mixed with a strong decaying odor, making it unbearable.

Once Ji Kun stepped out, the fan was quickly turned on, and with fresh air flowing in, everyone felt easier to breathe, visibly more relaxed in appearance.

Huo Sining’s gaze lingered on the inscriptions carved on the stone gate’s protrusion, curiously asking, ”Professor Xie, there’s writing on the door, what is it?”

Xie Daoyuan had already noticed the writings on the stone gate. Initially planning to study them after sampling, since Huo Sining mentioned it, he decided not to delay. Directly taking out a graphite pencil, he began tracing the carved markings one stroke at a time.

Xie Daoyuan traced with great care while Huo Sining and a few other experts watched closely. As a few characters were traced, the experts, including Xie Daoyuan, instinctively frowned, perplexed by the strange inscriptions on the stone gate.

Huo Sining was initially indifferent, suspecting the inscriptions might be some sort of passcode for opening the gate, but when her camera adjusted its light and focus to Xie Daoyuan’s traced characters, revealing some bizarre symbols, her hands trembled, nearly dropping the camera.

Her eyes were fixed on the stone gate, suddenly breathing rapidly, her gaze exceptionally bright.

The characters resembled those found on a few sheets of parchment and the Classic of Mountains and Seas presented by Madam Yan!

Why would such unusual inscriptions appear in a Ming Dynasty tomb?

For a moment, Huo Sining’s mind churned with various strange ideas and questions.

This puzzled Huo Sining greatly. While she’s been perplexed about the content on the parchment, she never sought specific answers. However, witnessing these characters again incited her curiosity to decipher their meaning.

Completing the tracings of the inscriptions on the stone gate, Xie Daoyuan and the experts stood dumbfounded, puzzled by these cryptic markings.

This typography deeply intrigued Huo Sining, reminding her of an incident from last year with Gu Xu in Zhouzhuang, where she obtained a carved red lacquerware concealing Shen Wansan’s moonlit white agate and a nautical chart bearing similar inscriptions.

Shen Wansan lived during the Ming Dynasty, as is the tomb, hinting at a connection between the tomb and Shen Wansan?!

Huo Sining’s heart skipped at this possibility. Driven to uncover the mystery, she looked around for any link between the tomb and Shen Wansan.

Unlike Huo Sining’s intent, Su Qingqing casually followed her, curious, asking, ”Ningning, what are you looking for?”

Huo Sining didn’t answer, and Su Qingqing wasn’t surprised but approached her teacher, asking Professor Xie, ”Master, this door weighs over a thousand pounds, how do we open it?”

Professor Xie’s brows furrowed, eyes on the inscrutable characters before slowly responding, ”Such doors are typically mechanized. The mechanism must be somewhere in this passage. By deciphering the text’s meaning here, we can locate it.”