101: Chapter 101 Mermaid? The ancients were right!

These words seemed to strike the experts present like a sudden epiphany, bringing them instant clarity.

For a moment, everyone finally reacted, staring in utter shock at the remains in the Live Stream Room, bound by countless chains.

A question couldn't help but rise in their hearts—could it be that dragons truly exist in this world?

Instantly, everyone became excited!

Looking at the scene before them, everyone's hearts filled with immense hope and expectation.

Meanwhile, the audience in the Live Stream Room completely boiled over.

The bullet chat in the Live Stream Room exploded like a flood bursting through a dam.

"Do dragons really exist in this world?"

"The talk about the Dragon Locking Well locking a dragon... isn't groundless after all!"

"My god, I can't hold it together. Will I actually see a dragon with my own eyes in my lifetime?"

"Did Liu Bowen bind himself here just to suppress an evil dragon?"

"Does a dragon truly exist within this abyss?"

...

The audience in the Live Stream Room discussed fervently, but every sentence revolved around the word "dragon."

For a moment, all the viewers became incredibly excited.

They all believed that a dragon was truly trapped beneath the Dragon Locking Well, and that Liu Bowen was here specifically to keep it locked away.

At this time,

Down in the tomb, the members of the Archaeological Team had already completely finished making rubbings of the content on the stone tablet.

After preserving the rubbings, the Archaeological Team followed Old Professor Zhou's instructions and began exploring deeper once again.

With the illumination of the torches,

Not far behind the stone tablet, the group finally saw a vermilion gate.

Two massive stone pillars stood before the gate, with lifelike five-clawed golden dragons carved upon them.

With just a single glance, one felt as if the golden dragons on the pillars were swimming in water and could fly into the air at any moment.

In an instant, the Archaeological Team members were all struck with awe.

Following Old Professor Zhou's instructions, the Archaeological Team lit the candlesticks in front of the gate, illuminating the area.

The members of the Archaeological Team also took out their flashlights, fully lighting up the structure before them.

The moment it was lit, everyone was stunned.

It was a magnificent, golden palace situated on a cliff!

The palace had four floors, with carved beams and painted pillars, looking grand and majestic.

Beside the stone pillars stood two massive stone statues of lifelike Qilin.

The outer walls were inlaid with white jade, interspersed with countless exquisite patterns.

Higher up, the four corners of the palace's outer eaves were carved with dragons, covered in glazed tiles, decorated with glass, and inlaid with enamel.

It was like an exquisite work of art!

It perfectly achieved the classical "aesthetic of symmetry."

The experts present couldn't help but look on with obsession.

For a moment, many experts failed to react, standing dazed outside the palace.

When the audience in the Live Stream Room saw the palace, they couldn't help but cry out in surprise.

"What a beautiful underground palace! Oh my god!"

"I walk past Beixin Bridge every day; I never thought I was stepping over such a gorgeous palace!"

"Is this the architectural art of the ancients? It's simply breathtaking!"

"I'm so jealous of the ancient emperors! If I could live here, I'd die with no regrets!"

"Holy crap, this palace was originally built for the dead!"

...

Underground,

After marveling at the palace's beauty, the Archaeological Team began to observe it.

Professor Yang held his flashlight, directing the beam toward the vermilion gate.

"Lingxiao Hall..."

Sure enough, it was just as everyone had expected.

The plaque of this palace was inscribed with the three characters "Lingxiao Hall."

Emperor Jiajing had indeed become obsessed, actually building his main burial chamber into the Lingxiao Treasure Hall.

For a moment, the experts present couldn't help but sigh softly in their hearts.

Seeing the palace before them, the Archaeological Team members were all filled with anticipation and were eager to go inside and investigate.

Professor Yang also immediately requested Old Professor Zhou for permission to enter and inspect.

After a moment's thought, Old Professor Zhou resolutely agreed.

Instantly, the entire Live Stream Room became lively.

The Archaeological Team's work was finally nearing its end, as they were about to enter the final location of this great tomb—the main burial chamber!

For a moment, everyone excitedly turned their gaze toward the Live Stream Room.

At Professor Yang's command, the members of the Bodyguard Team and the Archaeological Team slowly pushed open the vermilion gate.

But the moment the gate opened, everyone was stunned.

The entire hall was brightly lit and magnificent.

After hundreds of years, the lights in this hall were still flickering, having never gone out.

It gave people an illusion,

As if they hadn't come to an underground palace, but rather a palace above ground.

For a moment, everyone fell into a state of deep shock.

Seeing this scene, the members of the Archaeological Team were also completely stunned.

There was no strong, pungent smell in the hall, which meant these candlesticks were not lit by the combustion of white phosphorus.

These were indeed Ever-Burning Lamps that had burned for ages without extinguishing!

They had been burning in this hall for an unknown number of years.

Professor Yang walked in slowly, staring at the brightly burning candlesticks in the hall, his eyes gradually showing a look of immense shock.

"This... this is truly the brain oil of a Jiao-person!"

Professor Yang couldn't help but mutter.

He had read in many ancient texts regarding burials that Jiao-people lived on a certain island in the East Sea.

They went into the water to hunt during the day and returned to the shore to rest at night.

Those skilled in diving would specifically capture Jiao-people when they returned to shore to extract their brain oil, offering it to the imperial family to be burned as Ever-Burning Lamps.

Previously, the existence of Jiao-people had never been confirmed, and everyone thought it was just a fantasy of the ancient people.

And no one had ever seen an Ever-Burning Lamp.

Yet now, a real Ever-Burning Lamp had suddenly appeared before everyone, and the legend of the Jiao-people finally seemed to be confirmed.

Everyone had a look of disbelief on their faces.

Old Professor Zhou swallowed hard, looked at the large central screen, and said slowly:

"Is this really an Ever-Burning Lamp made from the brain oil of a Jiao-person..."

But clearly, they didn't know if Jiao-people truly existed either; they had only read about them in snippets of ancient texts.

Previously, they believed that the so-called Jiao-person brain oil was just whale brain oil.

And the so-called Ever-Burning Lamps were just an illusion created by the combustion of white phosphorus.

But now it seemed that wasn't the case.

For a moment, the entire Live Stream Room became incredibly lively, with all the viewers discussing it fervently.

"Holy crap! For real? Jiao-people actually exist?"

"As expected, many ancient legends aren't actually groundless!"

"Maybe Jiao-people were rare to begin with, and after being hunted extensively by ancient people, they've all gone into hiding now!"

"Could Jiao-people be... Mermaids?"

"It's possible! The ancients really didn't lie to me!"

...