Mythological Revival Begins with Sanxingdui

"Do you think the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor holds any secrets left behind by the First Emperor?"

Gu Changsong also guessed Jiang Ran's thoughts.

"Traces of ancient civilizations cannot be so easily erased. Perhaps some clues can be found in the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor."

Jiang Ran answered truthfully.

So the two of them rushed to Xi'an without stopping.

As one of the top archaeologists in the Great Xia Dynasty, Gu Changsong easily obtained the right to visit the Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum through connections.

The places they visited this time were not the exhibition area, but some areas that were still under excavation.

The moment the two arrived, the watch on Jiang Ran's wrist reacted violently.

"Our guess was correct. The First Emperor did indeed inherit the legacy of ancient civilization. These terracotta figures should be some kind of biological puppets, but for some reason they lost their original function."

After conducting a round of testing, Jiang Ran came to a conclusion.

"Any clues about the Nine Cauldrons?"

Gu Changsong was most concerned about Jiuding.

"No, although there are traces of an ancient civilization here, they are mostly discarded items; there aren't many valuable things here..."

Before Jiang Ran could finish speaking, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his wrist.

The red light flashed and disappeared in an instant.

"There's something there!"

With Jiang Ran's current mental strength, it's impossible for him to have any illusions.

That fleeting red light was absolutely real.

So he took a step back.

The stinging sensation in my wrist returned, and the red light reappeared.

Jiang Ran looked around to make sure no one was there, then greeted Gu Changsong.

Gu Changsong immediately understood, reached out and grabbed Jiang Ran's arm, and the two of them instantly descended. The originally hard ground was now like flowing water, allowing him to descend into it without any hindrance.

A moment later...

A feeling of weightlessness washed over them, and the two were surprised to find that there was an underground palace there.

A crystal ball the size of a basketball was placed in front of them.

"Information Hub!"

Jiang Ran had seen this crystal ball before in the Yuwang Gene Bank. It was part of the central system, through which one could control the entire gene bank.

"Who dares to trespass on the First Emperor's Mausoleum!"

Just then, an angry shout rang out.

Before the two could react, they felt a terrifying killing intent approaching.

"Teacher, watch out!"

Upon sensing the danger, Jiang Ran immediately used his mental power to distort the surrounding magnetic field.

A beam of light grazed past their bodies.

A large hole suddenly appeared in the stone slab behind us.

"It's a pulsed light."

Jiang Ran only needed one glance to recognize what had just attacked them.

This is one of the weapons commonly used by warriors in ancient times.

"Who exactly are you?"

Seeing that Jiang Ran and the others had dodged the attack, the same majestic voice rang out again.

It was only then that Jiang Ran noticed that the one speaking was actually a stone statue.

This stone statue is two meters tall, wearing armor and holding a battle sword, looking extremely fierce.

"We meant no harm, we just wandered in by mistake..."

"You're lying!"

Jiang Ran was interrupted by the stone statue before he could finish speaking.

His eyes flashed red again, and he launched another attack.

This attack was much faster than before, so much so that Jiang Ran had no time to dodge.

"Bang!"

The pulsed rays hit Jiang Ran.

Strangely, Jiang Ran didn't have a big hole punched in the stone slab like before. Instead, she felt an indescribable sense of comfort, like a traveler in the desert suddenly receiving the nourishment of rain.

Not only was he stunned, but even the stone statue opposite him was a little confused.

Are you alright?

When Gu Changsong saw that Jiang Ran had been hit, he quickly checked him to see if he was injured.

"No...it's nothing."

Jiang Ran snapped out of her daze.

"Who exactly are you?"

The stone statue asked a question again, but this time its tone was noticeably gentler.

Although he is an AI android, it doesn't mean he has no brains.

If your strongest attack can't even harm the opponent in the slightest, then what's the point of fighting?

"My name is Jiang Ran, and this is my mentor, Professor Gu Changsong. We are here to search for clues about the Nine Cauldrons."

This time, Jiang Ran did not lie, but chose to tell the truth.

If he wasn't mistaken, the other party was likely an AI android with the Xie Zhi system, capable of detecting lies.

"The time is not yet ripe for the Nine Tripods to appear in the world."

The stone statue's words surprised and delighted Jiang Ran.

He was prepared to gain nothing, but unexpectedly, there were clues to the Nine Cauldrons here.

What does "the time is not yet right" mean?

Gu Changsong questioned the other party.

"King Yu decreed that technology be sealed away for ten thousand years to allow the imperial star to recuperate. Now that the ten thousand years have not yet arrived, no one is allowed to open the Nine Cauldrons without authorization."

The stone statue resembles a general reading an imperial edict, exuding an imposing aura.

"Why was it possible for the First Emperor?"

Jiang Ran countered with a question.

"Although he possesses the authority of a human king, he has not activated the Nine Cauldrons."

The stone statue's words surprised Jiang Ran.

The Nine Cauldrons haven't been activated?

Could it be that he guessed wrong?

"I know this is hard for you to believe, but the First Emperor did not activate the Nine Tripods. He voluntarily gave up immortality. In fact, he further sealed off ancient civilizations for the sake of the Imperial Star. The standardization of writing and the unification of cart tracks are the best proof of this."

"You mean after he swept across the land, he destroyed all traces of ancient civilization?"

Jiang Ran reacted very quickly and understood his meaning instantly.

"That's right. Ancient civilizations are a double-edged sword. The current Imperial Star simply cannot withstand such damage from civilizations. Only after the Imperial Star's protection system is repaired can the flame of civilization be rekindled."

"Wait, you said the Imperial Star Protection System? What's that?"

"..."

The stone statue immediately shut its mouth upon hearing this, clearly realizing that it had said something it shouldn't have.

Seeing that he remained silent, Jiang Ran simply stopped hiding his identity and directly revealed that he had obtained access to the Yuwang Gene Bank.

"To be honest, I am actually in charge of the Yuwang Gene Bank. With your Xiezhi system, you should be able to tell whether I am lying or not."

"You're in charge of the Yuwang Gene Bank? Then why are you unaware of the Imperial Star Protection System?"

The statue sounded somewhat shocked after it was determined that he was not lying.

"..."

Clearly, the stone statues are not so easily fooled.

Just as Jiang Ran was pondering how to answer the question, the stone statue spoke again: "Actually, there's nothing wrong with telling you. Back then, the Imperial Star was affected by the war, and the Earth's core protection system was also severely damaged. It will take ten thousand years to repair. Before that, all kinds of civilizations must be sealed off to prevent any further accidents."

"If the only goal is to repair the Imperial Star's defense system, then why implement a genetic lock on humanity?"

Jiang Ran was very puzzled by this.

Civilization is sealed off, genes are shackled—isn't this tantamount to completely restricting humanity?

Aren't they afraid that extraterrestrial civilizations might attack again during these ten thousand years?

How will humanity resist then?

"Human nature is unpredictable, and there are too many variables in ten thousand years. Even the most advanced AI cannot predict whether humanity can adhere to its principles. Rather than letting you develop unchecked, it is better to completely block all your evolutionary paths. Once the Imperial Star's protection system is repaired, it will all be worth it."

Jiang Ran understood that they planned to sacrifice ten thousand years of human development time to repair the Imperial Star.

He couldn't judge whether it was worth it.

As the stone statue says, the human heart is unpredictable, and even in today's society, there are still people who wantonly destroy the environment.

If tiny countries dare to dump nuclear waste into the ocean, I can't even imagine what they would do if they had a more advanced civilization.