Everyone paused their chewing, looking up at Scholar Jia, who was speaking with visible excitement. "When it comes to the architecture of a palace, what is the most crucial component?"

Seeing their blank stares, Scholar Jia clarified, "That is to say, what must support the main structure of a palace's architecture?"

Young Master Liu’s mind sparked, and he spoke up, "The pillars. Ancient palaces almost always have numerous pillars for support."

Scholar Jia chuckled, "Indeed, pillars. The moment I stepped into this hall, I sensed something strangely amiss. Now I realize it—there are no supporting pillars inside this hall at all!"

Caterpillar turned and asked, "So what if there aren't?"

Scholar Jia stated with complete confidence, "No pillars implies one thing: there is an issue with this palace's dome."

With doubt clouding their expressions, everyone looked up toward the vast, shadowy ceiling of the palace. Scholar Jia continued, "The area of such a palace is never small, so the dome won't be small either. Without supporting columns, it’s impossible for the dome to have endured a thousand years without any collapse. This suggests that either the material used for this dome is extremely specialized, or the dome is being supported by some kind of force. I lean towards the second possibility."

Young Master Liu looked at him with some disbelief. "Senior Jia, you mean... there's an invisible pillar or something else supporting that massive dome above us?"

Scholar Jia nodded. "Precisely."

Fan Debiao murmured at this point, "This is too... too incredible, isn't it?"

Scholar Jia offered a wry smile. "What do you know? There are many things in this world that defy explanation. Over a decade ago, a few companions and I were in a tomb in Shaanxi, several hundred meters deep, where we saw an underground palace even larger than this one. That subterranean hall also lacked support columns. Later, after we unknowingly disturbed something inside, a mechanism in the underground palace activated. Guess what we saw? Four shimmering, genuine dragons, head down and tail up, holding up the dome of that underground palace."

Scholar Jia's words left the group speechless and incredulous.

Scholar Jia didn't dwell on their reaction. He stood up, gave everyone a rather strange smile, and then pulled out something resembling a crossbow from his backpack, announcing, "Let me show you my real skills, Old Jia’s. There are definitely mechanisms in this palace; I’ll find them for you."

Saying this, he aimed the crossbow-like device at the palace dome, pulled the trigger, and with a soft whoosh, a thin black line shot upward, hitting something above with a dull thud. Scholar Jia pulled back the bowstring with his left hand and, taking out a tinderbox with his right, blew on it to light it. Then, he seemed to press a trigger on the crossbow, and the device suddenly began pulling Scholar Jia rapidly upward toward the dome.

Illuminated by the light of the tinderbox, everyone looked up to see Scholar Jia climb onto the extremely thick central beam of the dome. Then, with a flicker of movement, he vanished from their sight, leaving only the faint, flickering light of the tinderbox.

Young Master Liu presumed he must have spotted something on the main dome beam and crawled into the shadow of the structure. Those below worried that if Scholar Jia encountered danger up there alone, they would be unable to offer assistance. All they could do now was shine their flashlights upward toward the dome, trying to give him as much light as possible.

After about ten minutes, everyone could only see the faint light of the tinderbox constantly shifting direction, confirming Scholar Jia’s movements.

Just as everyone felt their necks getting stiff from looking up, they heard Scholar Jia's excited voice echoing from the dome: "Damn it, I finally found the mechanism." Then, he leaned over the edge and shouted, "Hey, someone come up and give me a hand. How about... Young Master Liu comes up?"

He tossed the crossbow-like device down; the black line was still firmly anchored to the main beam of the dome. Young Master Liu caught the crossbow, and Scholar Jia leaned over again to instruct, "Young Master Liu, press the white button on the crossbow and hold the body tight; it will bring you up."

Young Master Liu agreed, gripped the body of the crossbow tightly, and pressed the button. Sure enough, the device retracted its line automatically, pulling him swiftly upward until he was directly beneath the main beam.

Scholar Jia extended his hand and pulled Young Master Liu onto the beam. He then beckoned and turned, crawling forward along the beam. Young Master Liu glanced down, and his head swam, but he braced himself, climbing forward slowly and fearfully, following close behind.

Fortunately, the beam was very thick, wide enough for a person to crawl along slowly, though turning around required extreme caution.

Young Master Liu followed Scholar Jia until they reached the junction where the dome met a wall. Scholar Jia stopped and said, "Young Master Liu, look up at the glazed tiles and patterns on this dome."

Young Master Liu looked up and saw that the entire dome was constructed of azure glazed tiles, inlaid with twelve massive white pearls. Around these pearls, strange lines were drawn in yellow, making the entire dome pattern resemble a celestial map of the stars.

Scholar Jia then asked, "Young Master Liu, what do you see on this wall?" Young Master Liu followed Scholar Jia's gaze and saw that where the dome met this wall, twelve smaller white pearls were also inlaid. However, they were connected by grooves, suggesting these pearls could move freely within the intersecting troughs.

Scholar Jia explained, "I believe this is where the palace’s hidden mechanism lies. Only when all twelve pearls are set in the correct positions within the grooves can we unlock the palace's true secret."

Young Master Liu managed a wry smile. "Senior Jia, then what can I do to help you by coming up? I don't understand astrology, nor mechanisms."

Scholar Jia chuckled, "I just need you up here to stabilize my nerves. I can read faces, and by your features, you are a person blessed with profound fortune, not destined for an early end. As long as you are near me, I can operate this stellar mechanism boldly and without reservation."

Young Master Liu was left speechless by Jia’s words, which were hard to distinguish as sincere or jest—it turned out he only wanted the young man there so he could operate with peace of mind just by looking at him. Young Master Liu cursed internally: Damn it, he’s treating me like a lucky talisman. If the mechanism malfunctions, am I going to be buried with him?

While he was thinking, Scholar Jia turned back to examine the stellar mechanism on the wall, then turned back to Young Master Liu with a mischievous grin, saying, "Are you cursing me in your head, boy? But you will certainly be a fortunate man in the future; believe me, I'm not lying to you..."

As he was speaking, his smile suddenly vanished, and he made a strange grimace, winking and nodding toward the space behind Young Master Liu. Young Master Liu was initially puzzled, then suddenly felt a distinct chill running down his back, raising goosebumps. He instantly realized that something untoward must be happening right behind him.

At that moment, a faint, drawn-out sigh sounded from behind Young Master Liu, like the plaintive moan of a grieving woman waiting for her lover. Young Master Liu’s spine instantly stiffened. Could a female ghost be behind him?

He dared not move, feeling cold sweat instantly soak his entire body. Just then, an ice-cold chill seemed to approach his back, and an icy hand landed squarely on his left shoulder. Young Master Liu was overwhelmed with a terror that threatened to shatter his courage.

Just as he was about to move, Scholar Jia noticed his intent and urgently shouted, "Don't turn around!"

Young Master Liu froze, his mind a chaotic mess. He then felt the spectral presence behind him slowly drawing its face closer to his neck. Was it going to bite him? Or suck his blood? Young Master Liu saw Scholar Jia’s expression turn frantic, but Jia was pinned to the beam and couldn't turn around to help.

Young Master Liu suddenly hardened his resolve. I'm about to be bitten by a ghost; it's death either way, might as well fight. He violently threw his head backward with all his force, feeling as if he had slammed into a block of cold, hard ice. He became momentarily dizzy, and the pain was excruciating.

With that collision, Young Master Liu heard a piercing shriek from behind him. The female ghost seemed completely unprepared for this tactic and was likely struck hard; the spectral claw resting on his shoulder instantly loosened.

Young Master Liu took the opportunity to deliver a sharp kick backward with his right foot, feeling it connect solidly with something hard behind him. He heard an even sharper, prolonged cry of pain. He squeezed his eyes shut and lashed out with a wild punch, but to his surprise, his fist met empty air.

Then, Young Master Liu heard a heavy object drop from above with a distinct thump. He opened his eyes; the ghost was gone. Young Master Liu quickly righted himself on the beam, shook his throbbing, dizzy head, grabbed the beam, and cautiously peered down. He saw his companions on the ground, holding their guns, gathered in fearful distance around a black, humanoid shape lying prone on the floor. He let out a quiet breath of relief. The ghost had apparently been smashed to death upon impact—quite unexpected.

Young Master Liu turned and glared at the visibly shaken Scholar Jia. Seeing the fury in the young man’s eyes, Scholar Jia’s old face flushed with embarrassment. "Young Master Liu... you see... I didn't know such a thing was hidden up here in the dome. I told you... I told you you were a man of deep blessings, didn't I?"

Before Young Master Liu could reply, Caterpillar shouted from below, "Mr. Jia, Young Master Liu, are you two alright? What is that thing that fell onto the ground?"

Scholar Jia immediately shouted down in his characteristic high-pitched voice, "We are fine; Young Master Liu and I are both well. What fell down was a Black Corpse Fiend, struck down by the heroic Comrade Young Master Liu!"

Hearing this, Young Master Liu felt a mix of annoyance and amusement, looking helplessly at Scholar Jia, who was smiling craftily at him, shaking his still aching and dizzy head.

Then, Fan Debiao’s voice drifted up from below: "Old Master Jia, didn't you say you found the mechanism? How is it going?"

Scholar Jia replied, "I found the mechanism; it’s quite complicated. I'll have Young Master Liu help me decipher it now."

With that, he turned back to Young Master Liu with a serious expression and said, "Boy, I'm about to start breaking the mechanism; you stand watch for me." He then turned and began studying the star chart pattern formed by the twelve pearls and grooves.

Young Master Liu smiled bitterly, temporarily setting aside his resentment. He focused intently on how Jia would decipher the stellar mechanism.

Scholar Jia’s expression was solemn; his eyes were fixed on the grooves and pearls on the wall. He held the tinderbox in his left hand and held his right hand suspended in mid-air, hesitating to make a move. Time ticked by, and Young Master Liu could see beads of glistening sweat forming on the back of Jia's neck.

He softly asked, "Senior, is it difficult?"

Scholar Jia shook his head slightly. "I can't be certain that the stellar map on this wall must be arranged exactly the same as the one on the dome."

Young Master Liu considered this and told him, "Senior Jia, we have no other choice. The dome serves as our reference point."

Scholar Jia sighed softly and slowly shifted a pearl within its groove. Young Master Liu casually glanced up at the dome again and was suddenly horrified to see that the twelve pearls on the celestial map above seemed to have moved, their positions completely different from the constellation he had just observed.

He quickly said to Scholar Jia, "Senior Jia! Something is wrong! Look up at the dome; it seems those twelve pearls have moved their positions on their own."

Scholar Jia startled and quickly looked up at the dome, falling silent, muttering, "How could this be? Could this be a stellar mechanism array that changes constantly? No wonder I didn't notice anything when I first came up, and a Black Fiend suddenly appeared."

Young Master Liu anxiously asked, "Then what do we do?"

Scholar Jia pondered for a moment, then looked up sharply and said, "Young Master Liu, I will tell you the positions of the twelve stellar mansions, and then you report the position of each star based on the stellar locations, and I will set the positions. As long as we keep up with the changes in the stellar positions, this stellar mechanism array can be deciphered."

He then pointed at the twelve pearls on the dome and began explaining to Young Master Liu the changes in the positions of the twelve constellations and the terminology for various directions. He explained, "The ancients, in order to observe and describe the positions and movements of the sun, moon, and five planets, as well as the transition of the solar terms, divided the ecliptic from west to east into twelve sections. Their names, in order, are: Xingji, Xuanxiao, Jianglou, Daliang, Shenchen, Chunshou, Chunhuo, Chunwei, Shouxing, Dahuo, Ximu. These twelve stellar mansions change their positions according to the time of day and the season. [Zero][Point][Read][Book] This stellar array diagram is based on this principle, incorporating mechanics theory. The mechanism before us is designed to make the star map on the wall align with the star map on the dome according to the changes in the star chart, unifying the positions with the changing stellar positions of the dome, and the mechanism will activate."

After finishing, he began instructing Young Master Liu on the sequence of stellar changes and directional shifts. Fortunately, the star chart was directly above Young Master Liu's head. After about ten minutes of effort, he finally had the pattern memorized.

Scholar Jia, uncertain of Young Master Liu’s memory, questioned him several times about the shifts in the dome’s stellar positions. Seeing that Young Master Liu answered correctly, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and told him, "Your task now is to face the dome and report to me, one by one, the sequence of changes in stellar positions and directions. I will operate the star map on the wall. Remember, even a tiny error will cause our failure, or even invite danger."

Young Master Liu nodded and forced a relaxed tone, "No problem, I guarantee I will complete the task." Scholar Jia nodded gravely and turned back to face the star map on the wall, whispering, "Begin!"

Young Master Liu’s heart tensed. He quickly focused his attention on the celestial changes on the dome and began reporting the stellar mansion and direction for each star individually. Scholar Jia rapidly moved the pearls in the grooves, positioning them precisely according to the reports.

Fortunately, the movement of the stars on the dome was not very fast. After about fifteen minutes, Young Master Liu was still continuously reporting the stellar mansions and directions of the dome's pearls, and Scholar Jia was mostly done moving the pearls. However, he did not call for a halt, so Young Master Liu kept reporting the changes.

Finally, after about two more minutes, Scholar Jia said, "That's it. The stellar positions on my end now match every position you reported from the dome. The rest is up to fate."

Saying this, he turned to watch the changes in the stellar positions on the dome with me. The twelve white pearls were still slowly shifting. Young Master Liu suddenly felt a spike of tension because he noticed the twelve pearls seemed to be shifting toward forming a straight line.

Scholar Jia suddenly shouted, "Twelve Pearls in a Line! I understand now, Twelve Pearls in a Line is the activation time for the mechanism."

He abruptly turned to look at the star chart on the wall. Sure enough, the twelve pearls in the star chart on the wall were also aligning into a straight line.

Young Master Liu nervously clenched his fists, feeling his palms drenched in sweat, his eyes fixed on the stellar pattern on the dome, unsure what change would occur when the moment of "Twelve Pearls in a Line" that Scholar Jia mentioned finally arrived.

Finally, under the tense gaze of both Young Master Liu and Scholar Jia, the twelve pearls in the star charts on both the dome and the wall all formed a single straight line. A heavy kaka sound echoed above their heads. The circular dome with its strange stellar map suddenly cracked open down the middle, then slowly parted to both sides. The gap grew wider and wider until the entire stellar map had retreated into the side walls. The center of the dome had become a dark, gaping hole leading upward.

The kaka sound continued, emanating from the hole above. Scholar Jia whispered to Young Master Liu, "Guess what will emerge from inside?"

Young Master Liu shook his head, unsure. For some reason, he felt a powerful sense of dread in his heart, as if something truly terrifying was about to appear from that circular opening.

Indeed, a rectangular object slowly descended from the opening. Only when it had fully appeared over their heads did Young Master Liu and Scholar Jia's faces change drastically as they realized the object was a large, cyan sarcophagus, tightly bound by four thick black chains running over its top.

Young Master Liu and Scholar Jia stared dumbfounded as it slowly drifted past them and began falling toward the hall floor.

As if waking from a dream, Scholar Jia clapped Young Master Liu on the shoulder and said, "Let's hurry down! I suspect this sarcophagus hides an earth-shattering secret."

Young Master Liu looked at him confusedly. "What earth-shattering secret?"

Scholar Jia gave him a secretive smile and remained silent, instead retrieving his crossbow from his embrace. He told Young Master Liu, "Young Master Liu, you go down first. Tell them not to touch the sarcophagus. I’ll explain once I’m down there."

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