mijobooks Chapter 18 Ancient Relics
Chapter 18 Ancient Relics
Qingyun Alley is even more mysterious at night than during the day. The bluestone pavement gleams under the moonlight, and the doors and windows of the shops on both sides are tightly closed, but the light shining through the cracks is not ordinary light, but various strange colors—soft blue, warm orange, mysterious purple, as if each shop is hiding a different secret.
Editor-in-Chief Qin sat at the stone table under the purple dragonwood, his face appearing particularly solemn in the flickering lantern light. Li Shancheng had just finished playing the video left behind by Chen Ya, and the other data on the miniature hard drive had also been preliminarily analyzed.
"Ancient relics...rebooting the world..." Editor-in-Chief Qin repeated these words, his fingers unconsciously tapping the table. "I should have thought of this sooner. Thirty years ago, there was a debate in the metaphysical community about 'rebooting the Heavenly Dao.' Some radicals believed that modern humans had strayed from the right path and needed to be 'purified' and 'reshaped.' But the mainstream view was that this was a dangerous delusion. I never expected that they would actually find a way to implement it."
"What are ancient relics?" Xu Qingqing asked.
"To be precise, there are seven items." Editor-in-Chief Qin stood up, walked to the front of the main room, and pushed open the door to signal them to come in.
Inside the room, Editor-in-Chief Qin lit several old oil lamps and took out a long wooden box from deep within the bookshelf. Opening the box, he found a roll of yellowed silk. He carefully unrolled the silk on the table; it depicted a detailed star map, with seven particularly bright stars marked with gold lines and connected by bands of light.
"This is the 'Seven Stars Boundary Map,' which, according to legend, depicts seven key nodes that maintain the balance of the world," Editor-in-Chief Qin said, pointing to one of the stars. "The Wen Shu array eye corresponds to this 'Wen Qu Star,' which governs knowledge and inheritance. The other six array eyes correspond to the other six stars, each with a different function."
His hand moved to the center of the star map, where a blurry circular symbol was drawn: "And here is 'Tian Shu,' the center around which the seven stars revolve. Legend has it that seven sacred artifacts left from ancient times, collectively known as the 'Seven Star Relics,' are buried at the location of Tian Shu. Each relic possesses the powerful ability to alter the rules of reality."
"Which one did Hanshan Technology find?" Li Shancheng asked.
"It's uncertain, but it's very likely a 'Tianquan relic'," said Editor-in-Chief Qin. "Tianquan is all about change and transformation, which aligns perfectly with the concept of 'rebooting the world.' Moreover, according to Chen Ya's description, they need seven carriers—which correspond exactly to seven relics or seven array nodes."
Liu Wei had been listening quietly, but suddenly spoke up: "Engineer Chen mentioned that she overheard Lin Han talking to someone... that person said, 'Tianquan has awakened, it just needs a mature vessel.'"
Editor-in-Chief Qin's expression grew even more grim: "If the Tianquan relics have truly awakened, then time is even more pressing. Awakened relics will actively attract energy, accelerating the cultivation process of the carrier."
"What should we do?" Xu Qingqing asked.
"Let's go to the Wen Shu Secret Treasury again," Li Shancheng said firmly. "Chen Ya said the clue lies in 'the source of knowledge, in the earliest records.' The secret treasury preserves the oldest records of the array's core; there must be information about the relics there."
Editor-in-Chief Qin thought for a moment and nodded in agreement: "But this time we can't rush things like last time. We need to search systematically, and the secret vault may have changed due to energy loss, so we need to be extra careful."
"I want to go too," Liu Wei suddenly said.
The three of them looked at her.
"Engineer Chen is my mentor and my friend." Liu Wei's eyes were filled with tears, but her voice was firm. "I want to know the truth about her sacrifice, and I want to stop those lunatics with my own hands. Besides... I know a lot about the experiments at Hanshan Technology, so maybe I can be of help."
Editor-in-Chief Qin looked her over and finally nodded: "Okay, but we need to thoroughly check if there are any other control runes or trackers in your body."
He gestured for Liu Wei to sit down and took out an antique bronze mirror. The mirror's edge was engraved with Bagua (Eight Trigrams) patterns, and its surface wasn't ordinary glass, but rather a layer of flowing, mercury-like substance. Editor-in-Chief Qin held the mirror up to Liu Wei and chanted an incantation.
The mirror began to change, reflecting not Liu Wei's image, but a diagram of the energy flow within her body. Meridians, acupoints, energy nodes... all were clearly visible. Li Shancheng saw a dark red spot of light near Liu Wei's spine, slowly pulsating.
"There's another one here," Editor-in-Chief Qin pointed to the point of light. "It's not a rune, it's a biological implant, a miniature energy beacon. It's continuously transmitting your location."
"Can it be removed?" Liu Wei's face turned pale.
"Yes, but the process will be very painful." Editor-in-Chief Qin took out several tools from the medicine cabinet. "No anesthesia is needed because anesthesia can affect energy flow and may trigger the beacon's self-protection mechanism."
Liu Wei gritted her teeth: "Let's go."
Editor-in-Chief Qin had her lie face down on the bed and inserted specially made silver needles into acupoints on her back. Each needle landed precisely on an energy node, guiding the energy flow around the beacon area. Then, he used a small jade knife to make an almost invisible incision in her skin.
There was no bleeding, and a dark red light emanated from the incision. Editor-in-Chief Qin's fingers emitted a soft white light as they reached into the incision, carefully enveloping the small, glowing object. Li Shancheng saw that it was a crystal the size of a grain of rice, with intricate rune carvings on its surface.
"Get ready, I'm going to take it out," said Editor-in-Chief Qin.
Liu Wei gripped the bed sheet tightly and nodded.
Editor-in-Chief Qin pulled sharply, and the crystal was removed. Almost simultaneously, Liu Wei's body trembled violently, letting out a suppressed groan. But soon, the trembling stopped, and the incision on her back healed rapidly under Editor-in-Chief Qin's energy guidance, leaving only a faint red mark.
"It's a success." Editor-in-Chief Qin placed the crystal into a specially made small box, the inside of which was engraved with isolation runes. "Now they can't track you down."
Liu Wei sat up, her face pale, but her expression was noticeably more relaxed: "Thank you."
"Take a break, we'll set off at midnight," said Editor-in-Chief Qin. "Shancheng, come with me, there are some things we need to prepare in advance."
They arrived at the courtyard, where Editor-in-Chief Qin removed a small piece of bark from the trunk of the purple dragonwood tree—not ordinary bark, but a special part that emitted a faint purple light.
"Purple Dragon Wood is an accessory spiritual plant of the array's core. Its bark can be made into a 'Spiritual Rhinoceros Talisman' to enhance your connection with the array's core." Editor-in-Chief Qin ground the bark into powder, mixed it with the juices of several herbs, and made purple ink.
Then, he drew a complex rune on Li Shancheng's left palm. As the last stroke was completed, the rune emitted a faint glow and then seeped into the skin, leaving only a faint purple mark on the palm.
"This is a temporary spiritual imprint that lasts for twelve hours," Bishop Qin explained. "It will make your senses more acute in the secret vault and make it easier to understand ancient records. But be aware that the imprint will consume your mental energy; if you experience headaches or dizziness, tell me immediately."