The bronze casting of the earth and mountains, and the use of mercury to symbolize the slow and endless veins of water, this kind of mysterious design alone is unique among the large tombs of various dynasties that have been excavated.

The black bull was obviously also shocked by this bronze map of the rivers and seas. Suddenly, I heard that this was a map of the ancient Dian Kingdom, and asked puzzledly: "Old Su, aren't we in the tomb of the assassin of Yizhou County in the Western Han Dynasty, how can there be a map of the ancient Dian Kingdom?" Also, what does it mean to be true? ”

Black Bull and I explained: Since passing through the fluorite mine and entering this tomb through the Bronze Gate of the Giant Serpent, everything has not been the same as before. First of all, the display utensils are different: the huge bronze statues in the tomb are full of typical ancient Dian style in terms of artistic techniques and casting techniques. The bronze casting technology of the ancient Dian Kingdom is unique in the history of Chinese bronze and has obvious ethnic and regional characteristics. Later, we entered the bronze room and found that there were countless bronze objects inside, and these bronze components were of excellent parts. Among them, the shellfish storage vessel is a unique utensil of the ancient Dian Kingdom, and the bronze carving on it describes the scene of the life and sacrifice of the ancient Dian people. There is also the bronze drum placed in front of the bronze barrier, which is a unique musical instrument of the ancient Dian Kingdom, in ancient times, it was not only a musical instrument, but also a ritual and valuable instrument, and only the royal family and the nobles of the upper class could have it.

Secondly, from the setting of the ancient tomb mechanism: the mechanism of the Yizhou Thorn History Tomb is full of charm and weirdness - the theory of magic is often mixed with evil magic. However, since passing through the lock dragon well, the mechanism in the ancient tomb has become more orthodox, and it seems to be full of mysteries, but it is nothing more than the five elements, gossip, I Ching, astrological and other mathematical theories.

Therefore, on the surface of various signs, since we have passed the lock dragon well, we have entered another ancient tomb, this ancient tomb is the tomb of the ancient Dian royal family. The bronze mercury map of the rivers and mountains in front of us confirmed my suspicions.

After hearing this, Hei Niu asked excitedly: "After you say this, it is likely that there are important members of the royal family lying in this mutton fat white jade coffin?" The funeral goods must be huge! ”

"Not necessarily, the ancient Dian Kingdom finally surrendered to the Han Dynasty, and the families of the dead country, even if they were members of the royal family, were not rich. Besides, we don't know who is lying in the jade coffin. With that, I looked at Gao Moli, hoping to get some answers from him.

Gao Mo stared intently at the map of the ancient Dian Kingdom on the ground, and when the mercury filled the ditch, the magnificent mountains and rivers were fully revealed. Gao Moli actually knelt down in front of the map that symbolized the territory of the ancient Dian Kingdom.

His knees were solemn and majestic.

The black bull didn't know why, and when he saw Gao Moli suddenly kneeling down on the bronze ground, he thought that there was something wrong with it, and he was stunned, his legs bent, and he also knelt down. said to me: "Old Su, the little brother has knelt down, why don't you kneel down quickly?" I've left you a blank space, so come and say goodbye. ”

I suddenly felt funny in my heart, and said: "Gao Moli is kneeling down to worship the mountains and rivers of his motherland, what are you doing with it?" ”

"Didn't you say that this is a map of the ancient Dian Kingdom? Could it be that the little brother is ...... Are you a descendant of the ancient Dian people? The black bull stood up on his knees and continued: "No wonder the little brother is extraordinary, it turns out that the bloodline is different from ours!" ”

I wanted to tell Hei Niu about this, Gao Moli was the protector general of the ancient Dian Kingdom, but I didn't know where to start, so I had to endure it for the time being. I thought to myself, after figuring out the reason why Gao Mo has been alive for so long, I will tell Hei Niu again.

Gao Moli stood up and asked, "Is the mechanism broken?" ”

The thick fog that lingered on the bronze floor gradually dispersed, and everything around it became clear. Twelve gilded palace figures knelt around the jade coffin, and the ground that had been poured upon us was restored to its original appearance, and the satchel I used to identify the thirteenth phantom palace figure fell to the ground.

I replied rather proudly: "The Twelve Heavenly Gate Array has been completely cracked. ”

"But why hasn't the coffin been opened yet?" The black bull looked around the coffin and asked impatiently, "Do we need to exert some external force on it?" ”

"Don't worry."

As soon as the words fell, the last trace of mercury in the mezzanine of the jade coffin flowed out of the gap. With a dull "click", the huge jade stone cracked from the middle like a golden cicada shedding its shell. The originally integrated jade block was divided into two, and the jade walls on both sides slowly descended into the bronze ground like a fantasy.

As the jade continued to fall, a small mutton fat white jade coffin surfaced from the coffin bed. This coffin is smaller than the white jade coffin on the outer layer, but it is still warm and white, like mutton fat.

"What's the coffin? It's also mutton fat and white jade! "The black bull held the spotlight, and we went up to watch together.

The light from the spotlight was all sucked into the coffin wall, and it was inferred that the jade coffin should have no mechanism. Looking closely, we found that different phoenixes were carved around the jade coffin, namely the Phoenix Dance for the Nine Heavens, the Phoenix Picking Up Tung Branches, the Phoenix Bathing in Fire, and the Rebirth of Nirvana. Among them, the phoenix bath in fire is the most vivid and realistic: the fire is raging, a phoenix spreads its wings in the sea of fire and roars, and the body burns into the sky, and its shape is tragic. The next one shows a phoenix standing on top of the ashes, combing its newborn feathers with its beak, as if it had been reborn.

The black bull looked at the phoenix figure on the coffin and asked, "Why is there a circle of phoenix patterns engraved, could it be that there is a woman buried in this jade coffin?" ”

I explained: "The phoenix is one of the four spirits in Chinese folklore, and like the unicorn, it is a collective name for male and female, male is phoenix, female is phoenix, and its general name is phoenix. Therefore, even if the coffin is engraved with a phoenix, we cannot infer the gender of the tomb owner from this. ”

It is difficult to tell which of the four patterns on the four sides of the jade coffin is the beginning and which is the end, and it seems to be reciprocating and endless. Among them, I am afraid that there is another meaning.

The origin of the phoenix is about the Neolithic Age, is a mythical animal in Chinese myths and legends, according to the "Erya Shi Bird" Guo Pu note: its "out of the country of the Oriental gentleman, soaring beyond the four seas, passing Kunlun, drinking the pillars, the weak water of the feathers, the wind and the land, seeing the world is peaceful." ”

In mythology, the phoenix dies once every 500 years, and when the phoenix's life is about to end, it will collect sycamore branches and burn itself, and at the right time, it will ignite a fire around its body, and then be reborn in the flames, and gain a stronger life force than before, this rebirth process is called "Phoenix Nirvana". In this way, the cycle continues, and the phoenix gains immortality, hence the name "immortal bird".

What does the pattern of phoenix nirvana mean when engraved on the inner coffin?

At a loss, I found Gao Moli staring at the side of the phoenix bathing in fire, where there were eight extremely hidden traditional seal characters, which could only be revealed in the light at a certain angle. I quickly asked him what those eight words were.

Gao Moli looked at me and said slowly: "Nirvana rebirth, the fifth reincarnation." ”