After a moment, Uncle Diao approached Wang Feifei and said, "Miss Wang, come with me." With that, he walked toward an unoccupied area. Wang Feifei was startled but quickly rose and followed. Young Master Liu’s curiosity, far from diminishing, was now at a fever pitch; he wasn’t about to miss out on any good story, so he hopped up from the ground and trotted eagerly after them.

Uncle Diao led them to a secluded corner and eyed Young Master Liu for a moment, clearly finding his presence awkward. But then, recalling that the young man was, in a way, family to him, he decided it wouldn't matter if he knew, and didn't frown or drive him away. Uncle Diao paused, adjusted his glasses, and said to Wang Feifei, "Miss Wang, may I see that photograph again?" Wang Feifei took out the photo and handed it to him without a word, though her expression clearly showed intense anticipation for whatever answer Uncle Diao might offer next. Uncle Diao accepted the photograph carefully, holding it close to his eyes, scrutinizing it intently. He was completely absorbed, his gaze fixed without a single blink. For such a simple picture, he stared for a full three minutes, unable to tear his eyes away. Young Master Liu and Wang Feifei had no idea what he was contemplating, but they dared not interrupt.

Presenting the photo back to Wang Feifei after a while, Uncle Diao let out a long sigh. "Honestly, I don't know what's going on!" Hearing this, Young Master Liu was stunned. What game was this old man playing? The photo clearly showed him; why was he speaking in riddles? What was the point? "This... what is this?" Wang Feifei asked Uncle Diao, her expression one of disbelief. Uncle Diao slowly removed his glasses, his eyes vacant, radiating an aura of mystery. He stated, "What I mean is, I have absolutely no idea how I ended up in this photograph." "No way? Old Uncle, how could you be in a photo and not know how you got there?" Young Master Liu couldn't grasp his meaning. "Could it be...?" Wang Feifei began, but Uncle Diao cut her off. "Yes. I have amnesia."

Upon hearing that Uncle Diao suffered from amnesia, Young Master Liu froze. What in the world was happening? He’d never heard Uncle Diao mention this before, so he immediately pressed for details. Uncle Diao gathered his thoughts and recounted his history to Young Master Liu and Wang Feifei. Only then did Young Master Liu realize the depth of Uncle Diao’s past, which differed significantly from the man he thought he knew.

In 1965, Uncle Diao had just concluded an arduous archaeological expedition. Exhausted, he was planning a much-needed rest when his superiors urgently sought him out just as he was about to leave the institute. Uncle Diao’s superior informed him that the archaeological team was set to collaborate with a French joint venture company (Tour) to search for a thousand-year-old city in the Taklamakan Desert, and Uncle Diao was to be sent. Already worn out, Uncle Diao wanted no part in any further activities recently. He almost refused, but the prospect of visiting the desert he had long yearned for, especially alongside French archaeologists, unsettled him, and he vaguely agreed. What Uncle Diao hadn't anticipated was that the Tour expedition team and his own archaeology unit, after deliberation, decided to appoint him as the overall leader for this excavation. Upon hearing this news, Uncle Diao was instantly re-energized, determined to make a spectacular showing in the desert and bring honor to the Diao family name.

After a long night of intensive discussion, the members of the two archaeological teams finally settled on the route to traverse the desert and the division of personnel and supplies. (The Golden Ancient City was not yet public knowledge at that time.) They decided to depart—perhaps a bit too hastily, but it was ordered from above. The next day, they reached the edge of the Taklamakan Desert. Since it was the first time for everyone to enter the desert, they were thrilled by everything they saw, jumping around excitedly. Uncle Diao’s heart swelled with an ineffable joy. After they were fully prepared, everyone returned to their tents for a night’s sleep. The following morning, Uncle Diao woke up early, eager to venture into the sands, only to receive sudden notification from headquarters: the entire archaeological activity was canceled. Uncle Diao was completely bewildered. Everything was ready; why was it called off so abruptly? He went to inquire about the situation with the French contingent, but after some questioning, the result was that those French archaeologists had received the news early and had already returned home. This news sent Uncle Diao’s spirits plummeting from a peak to a valley. But there was nothing to be done; he simply packed his things and went home.

After returning, Uncle Diao rested for a long time, feeling groggy, losing track of how much time had passed. He didn't return to work for nearly two months. Ever since that incident, Uncle Diao felt a prolonged sense of emptiness, frequently dreaming of the desert. He couldn't fathom why—was it regret over not entering the desert? Only a few days after returning to work, Uncle Diao was reassigned to another archaeological team, and the matter of the desert gradually faded. It wasn't until Old Wu brought forth that sheepskin scroll that the feeling of emptiness returned. He sensed that the matter was not simple and instructed Old Wu to organize the current group to head into the desert.

Listening to Uncle Diao’s narrative, Young Master Liu could only grasp a fraction of the entire picture: Uncle Diao had indeed been in the Taklamakan Desert, perhaps even reaching the Golden Ancient City. Others had died or gone missing, and Uncle Diao had survived for unknown reasons, albeit with amnesia. But why did Uncle Diao’s team and the Tour expedition lie to him at the time? Had they discovered something in the Golden Ancient City that both teams decided must remain secret, leading to Uncle Diao’s memory loss? Then again, even if Uncle Diao had lost track of time, surely the other members of the archaeological team must have said something to him? Unless their discovery was so monumental that it needed to be buried forever beneath the rolling sands. But then, why was the Tour expedition now restarting the operation? Was there a new discovery on Wang Feifei’s father’s corpse?

"Uncle Diao, do you remember absolutely nothing about entering the desert?" Young Master Liu summarized his thoughts and asked. Uncle Diao shook his head. "Completely blank. However, seeing the map on this sheepskin scroll brings back a few fragmented memories, but I can't piece them together." Young Master Liu pondered deeply, feeling the situation was far from straightforward. He then linked the Golden Ancient City with the Chu connection. Could Uncle Diao’s discovery align with the truth he sought? Damn, if that were the case, the scope of this affair would stretch back millennia and cover all of China. The thought sent a chill down his spine.

"It seems the truth will only be found when we reach the Golden Ancient City," Wang Feifei said after a long silence. "Indeed," Young Master Liu nodded. "We can’t just go straight to the Golden Ancient City; we must first figure out this map," Uncle Diao said, pulling out the sheepskin scroll. Young Master Liu was confused. "Uncle Diao, have you not figured out what this map means yet?" "My knowledge only allows me to recognize it as a map, but where exactly it leads from where, I’m not clear. I pushed my limits to get this far, but the trail went cold here," Uncle Diao explained. "How about we put the map aside for now, go to the Golden Ancient City first, and then circle back to study the map?" Young Master Liu suggested. Uncle Diao shook his head. "I feel this map is more important. If we don't understand what's on it, we’ll just be standing around aimlessly even if we reach the Golden Ancient City." At this, Young Master Liu felt a slight imbalance. "If you can’t make sense of this map either, wasting time here is pointless." Uncle Diao ignored Young Master Liu’s comment and picked up the sheepskin scroll to examine it closely.

"Ahem..." Wang Feifei started to speak, but she was interrupted by a sudden voice: "Perhaps, I can be of assistance to you." As the words faded, a dark silhouette descended from above, landing steadily in the center of the group. The resulting swirl of dust lifted slightly from the ground, indicating the height from which this person had dropped. The figure standing before them was the one completely bundled up like a mummy. That person’s eyes didn't focus on anyone in the group but gazed off to the side, the look still distant, conveying an impression that nothing in the world concerned him. Just looking at those eyes made Young Master Liu deeply uncomfortable. To think this person had been eavesdropping on them—could he be key to this whole affair? Fortunately, everything they had just discussed offered no useful insight, so no one felt the urge to confront him. Besides, the three of them together lacked the capability to do anything to him anyway.

Young Master Liu covertly signaled Uncle Diao, indicating whether he should show the map to this newcomer. After all, neither he nor Wang Feifei were eager to do so. Uncle Diao gave a slight nod, took the sheepskin scroll, walked over to the figure, and said, "Clay Man Zhang, can you read this map?" Clay Man Zhang? Hearing Uncle Diao address him that way, Young Master Liu nearly burst out laughing. In his estimation, a mysterious figure with such impressive skills should have a cool name, like 'The Enigma' or some sort of 'Hero,' not 'Clay Man Zhang.' It sounded far too ordinary. Furthermore, this man surnamed Zhang gave Young Master Liu a distinctly shifty impression.

Clay Man Zhang took the sheepskin scroll from Uncle Diao’s hand and began to study it closely. In the intervening gap, Young Master Liu discreetly asked Uncle Diao about the man’s background. Uncle Diao replied that he didn't know the man's origins either; Old Wu had brought him in as a mediator. Uncle Diao mentioned that Clay Man Zhang hailed from Changsha and had surfaced in the tomb-raiding circles there three years ago. Rumor had it his skills in delving into tombs were exceptional. Though young, he had already earned a wide reputation in the Changsha tomb-raiding community. Old Wu had gone through many connections to secure his involvement.

"I see," Clay Man Zhang said suddenly. "This is a composite map." "A composite map? What do you mean?" Uncle Diao asked him. Clay Man Zhang pointed to a circle on the map and stated, "You are all currently here." "You don't need to tell us that; Young Master Liu grasped that much already. Look here, there’s a broken line," Uncle Diao pointed to two separated lines. Clay Man Zhang shifted his gaze to where Uncle Diao pointed. "I understand this. This represents two different map scales superimposed."

Two different scales?! Upon hearing this, the three of them finally grasped the full implication.

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