The tombs of the emperors of Great Yu are all located in "North Tomb," that is, heading north out of the Imperial Palace, past Back Lake, then walking northeast for a stretch.
The tomb of the Grand Ancestor Emperor of Yu Country lies deepest within this tomb complex.
Under the cover of night.
Zhang Yan Yi waved his sleeve, summoned Qingyun, and swept up his two disciples and Zhao Douan, ascending into the night sky, over the city walls, directly towards the tomb. Considering that tonight’s deed was indeed dishonorable, the group deliberately waited inside the Heavenly Master Mansion for an hour or two, moving only at the dead of night when everything was silent.
"Whoosh—"
The night wind brushed their faces. Quickly, the group of four descended from the sky, silently drifting into the core area of North Tomb, landing on the tiles of a rooftop.
The emperor’s tomb is part of a vast mausoleum complex, with the Grand Ancestor’s tomb surrounded by special governnt offices responsible for its guardianship. However, in the depth of the night, the staff within North Tomb were all asleep, and only a few lamps lit the courtyard.
Yet from this position, one could clearly see soldiers patrolling the distant city walls near the tomb; the torchlight pierced several holes in the dense night, clouds in the sky concealed the stars, and in the silent night, strange bird calls could be heard.
"The Grand Ancestor’s tomb is just ahead." Zhang Yan Yi stood with his hands behind his back, his black priest robe rging into the night’s darkness.
Stabilizing himself on the tiles, Zhao Douan lowered his voice, "Not... aren’t we being a bit too flashy?"
Zhang Yan Yi rolled his eyes slightly and said faintly, "Relax, I’ve already set a blind eye technique; the guards here at the tomb are rely ordinary soldiers, and this technique is more than sufficient. The real protection cos from the chanisms and array within the tomb itself."
Jin Jian held her magic wand in one hand and awkwardly adjusted her glasses, whispered, "How do we go down?"
Zhao Douan had a plan for this problem, confidently stating, "First off, we’re just here to scout, not to grave rob... and tonight’s actions can’t be known to outsiders, so force entry is not an option. Secondly, once the tomb is sealed after burial, it becos completely shut, with no so-called door. Thus, my idea is to first use teleportation to bypass the outermost layer of soil, to enter the underground corridors or chambers and then deal with the chanisms inside... even if we make so noise in there, no one outside will know."
Zhang Yan Yi said nothing, only squinting to calculate for a mont, "There’s an array just outside the tomb as a barrier; however, with here, I can naturally protect you all to cross through this array."
Excellent! Zhao Douan then turned to Jin Jian; the young priestess raised her chest, "I can teleport us, but..."
She looked slightly troubled and conflicted, "I can’t guarantee where we might randomly appear. Only a general direction."
Zhao Douan smiled, "No matter, the tomb structure may differ, but the underground surely has plenty of space; just follow your instincts later, even if we appear in the soil, with our cultivation, we can imdiately compress the earth, creating a small area."
Beside them, Gongshu Tianyuan was eagerly readying himself, the priest of the Artisan God’s path, his plump face with eyebrows raised in excitent. He wasn’t carrying his usual large bamboo tube tonight but exchanged it for a treasure chest. At this mont, the short, stout priest placed the treasure chest on the ground, opened its lid, and, as if performing magic, pulled out two iron shovels, tossing them to Zhao Douan and Jin Jian. He himself carried one on his shoulder, laughing, "I won’t claim expertise in anything else, but removing the chanisms within the tomb is my responsibility. Take these shovels, once inside, listen to my commands."
Then there was a great sense of talent finally being unleashed, a chance to fulfill ambitions.
Leave the professional matters to professionals. Without violently damaging the tomb, tonight’s operation indeed should follow Gongshu Tianyuan’s leads.
Zhao Douan accepted the iron shovel, looked at the group with deep emotion, sensing truly "a wealth of talent"...
"If that’s the case, let’s proceed with the plan, Heavenly Master." Zhao Douan looked towards Zhang Yan Yi.
The Old Heavenly Master, exuding the deanor of an expert, gave a light nod, raised his hand, and prepared to gently wave it; as planned, the soldiers stationed on the distant city walls would simultaneously fall into an Illusion Realm.
And the group would seize the opportunity to enter, undoing the illusion when leaving, ensuring that even if soone noticed anomalies, they wouldn’t go as far as opening the tomb for confirmation.
"Let’s go, we’re ready to head to the tomb’s top." The group carried their shovels, ready to move.
Just then, the Old Heavenly Master’s ears twitched, his expression changed slightly, ceasing his spell, pulling Zhao Douan’s sleeve and whispered, "Soone’s coming! Hide first!"
Zhao Douan grew wide-eyed in shock!
The group working on their stealthy task quickly hid on the opposite side of the roof ridge, lying down, hands gripping the ridge, cautiously peeking their heads out, looking south towards the mausoleum.
Indeed, noise was heard outside the mausoleum; a squad of soldiers guarding the periphery of North Tomb, along with officials, were escorting a carriage arriving at the arch of the "Ancestor Tomb."
Suddenly, the small staff stationed inside the Ancestor Tomb awoke, grabbing lanterns and pushing open doors, rubbing sleepy eyes as they opened the gates, shocked, "Sir, what has happened?"
An elderly court lady from Yangxin Hall stood by the carriage, shook the gold dal in her hand, and said calmly, "Tonight, Junior Guardian Zhao has co to the Ancestor Tomb for an urgent matter. This is an imperial decree, seeing it is equal to seeing His Majesty."
The group of small officials guarding the tomb were stunned, hurriedly knelt down, "We were unaware of the Junior Guardian’s arrival, apologize for failing to greet properly..."
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