In Sumeru, pretend to be a scholar!

Chapter 96 "Happiness Returns" (19/20, please subscribe for the first time)

Time passed slowly, and the tent was quiet except for the sound of Wang Yan turning the pages of his book and occasionally writing or drawing in his notebook.

He meticulously compared the floral carving symbols he had recorded with the diagrams and symbolic meanings in "Albiruni: A Preliminary Exploration of the Symbolic System of Flora," his keen eye leaving no detail unnoticed.

Next to the meticulously drawn line diagrams by Albiruni on the pages of the book are detailed annotations explaining the meanings of different flowers in the civilization of Flora.

The lotus symbolizes purity and new life, the rose represents love and sacrifice, and the iris embodies secrets and protection.

Different flowers have different interpretations in different environments.

As Wang Yan read, he quickly marked on his notebook, constantly trying to construct possible mapping relationships in his mind.

However, most of the comparisons seem to have subtle differences—either the number of petals is different, or the posture is slightly off, making it difficult to perfectly match the lifelike reliefs in the temple that have survived the ages.

Most of them are ambiguous, and it's difficult to interpret Wang Yan's words using such comparisons; they're too unrigorous.

However, Wang Yan was not discouraged. After all, archaeological deciphering is never something that can be accomplished overnight. He took a deep breath, rubbed his slightly sore eyes, and prepared to turn to the next chapter of the book.

As his fingertips traced the edge of the book, his gaze inadvertently swept over an illustration in the corner of a page.

It was a simple drawing depicting "Lily of the Valley in the Sand," a simple yet distinctive image: slender stems, drooping bell-shaped flowers, and unique spiral patterns at the base of the leaves.

Wang Yan's movements suddenly stopped.

He quickly looked down, flipped through the notes in his hand, and soon found a record—Type F-7, bell-shaped drooping flowers, with spiral patterns on the stem, located in the middle of the third pillar on the west side of the main hall.

Next to the record was a sketch he had drawn from memory. Although the strokes were simple, the outline of the bell-shaped flower and the spiral pattern of the stem almost overlapped with the image of the "Lily of the Valley in the Sand" in the book!

Wang Yan's pupils suddenly contracted, and his heart skipped a beat in his chest.

He subconsciously held his breath, brought the pages close to his eyes, and carefully compared his sketches with the written notes next to them.

That's right, their morphological features are highly consistent!

A surge of intense excitement coursed through my spine like an electric current, instantly dispelling all my fatigue.

Wang Yan suddenly sat up straight from the cushion, his hands trembling slightly, not from fear, but from the excitement of about to uncover the truth.

In fact, he was prepared for a long battle, but he didn't expect that he would find a clue in just one morning.

Although a more in-depth and systematic comparison of the distribution patterns, combinations, and relationships with other floral patterns of all the "Lily of the Valley" reliefs in the temple is still needed, his intuition told him that this discovery was a crucial first step.

Like finding the core piece of a jigsaw puzzle, the work ahead finally has a clear direction.

My gaze returned to "Albiruni: A Preliminary Exploration of the Symbolic System of Flora," where, next to the image of "Lily of the Valley in the Sand," it was clearly stated: "The meaning of the lily of the valley is 'the return of happiness,' symbolizing the happy return after a period of waiting."

"The return of happiness after waiting?"

Wang Yan's eyes flickered slightly as he pondered the implications, realizing that the meaning behind it was not a good one.

The prerequisite for reunion is separation. Only after separation can we wait for reunion, right?

"So, when this temple was built—the goddess of flowers had already fallen?"

Wang Yan couldn't help but speculate.

If this conjecture is correct, then it explains why there was nothing inside the temple.

Because the goddess of flowers has already fallen, this temple was simply built to await her return; it is not a normal temple dedicated to the goddess of flowers, and it is even very likely that no priests reside there permanently.

But if that's really the case, then this temple—may not hold the great secret that Wang Yan thought it to be.

Thinking of this, Wang Yan's eyes flickered slightly, and finally he shook his head: "Never mind, even if I don't gain anything, I am still an epistemological scholar, and deciphering these hidden texts is my job."

if I get it I am lucky, but if not, it is fate.

Wang Yan has already made great progress by studying under Falushan, so there's no need to be too disappointed if this trip doesn't yield any additional gains.

"However, now that we have a lead, we can share it with them. Having someone to help will always make things faster."

Wang Yan also didn't forget that there were two scholars of the School of Knowledge among the relics.

He closed his notebook, carefully put away "Albiruni: A Preliminary Exploration of the Symbolic System of Flora," got up, and quickly walked out of the tent, heading towards the entrance of the ruins.

The sun was blazing, and the desert heat was intense, but Wang Yan didn't feel anything at the moment. He didn't know if he was used to it or if his inner joy made him ignore the temperature.

Upon entering the ruins, there was no one in the front hall; the three of them must have gone into the main hall at the back.

Wang Yan continued deeper into the passageway and heard Kavi's slightly excited voice.

"There must be a secret passage here."

"You're not architecture students, so you might not know, but ancient desert civilizations loved to hide all sorts of secret passages."

"Although this temple is not large, I have read Senior Farusan's records. There are even underground water veins beneath the temple. Under such circumstances, the design of the temple must have taken this into account."

"Since we didn't find any water source inside the temple, either the temple was poorly designed, or there was a hidden water source."

Kavi's voice was loud and clear; he had absolute confidence in his profession.

Wang Yan quickened his pace and entered the main hall.

Then they saw Kavi and Farusan standing side by side in a corner on the west side of the temple, both with their heads down, gesturing with their fingers in the air.

Elhesen stood a few steps away, leaning against a section of the remaining stone pillar, his arms crossed, his expression calm.

He didn't participate in the discussion, but his gaze was also fixed on the area that the two were focusing on, as if he was silently observing and digesting the information.

Wang Yan's arrival drew the attention of several people.

Kavi was the first to turn around, his eyes lighting up as he waved to Wang Yan: "Wang Yan! Come here quickly, I think there's something here."

Wang Yan nodded and walked over: "I've also made some discoveries."

"Hmm?" The three were immediately drawn in by his words. "You deciphered the Huadiao carvings here?"

The three of them sounded incredulous, mainly because it was too fast; it had only been a morning.

"No, not yet, I've just found a clue." Wang Yan quickly shook his head and then told Elhesen what he had discovered. Elhesen's eyes flickered slightly: "The return of happiness? The fact that flowers with such meanings could be inscribed in the temple does indeed suggest that the goddess of flowers had already fallen."

If the goddess of flowers had not perished, who would you hope would return?

Furthermore, if the goddess of flowers had not perished, would carving flowers with this symbolic meaning have been interpreted as cursing the deity?

Don't underestimate the sensitivity of religious people.

"If the temple was built after the fall of the goddess of flowers, then what Kavi just said about the water supply for daily use seems a bit untenable. It's very likely that the temple was never used after it was built."

Elhesen made the same deduction as Wang Yan.

Kavi frowned slightly. Since it involved his profession, he did not get angry because of Elhesen's denial. Instead, he began to think about it seriously.

After a long pause, he shook his head: "No, even if the temple wasn't used, the secret passage definitely exists."

"Why?" the three asked, puzzled.

"Because neither the front hall nor the main hall truly points to the Flower Goddess. If the temple was built to await the Flower Goddess's return, then it should at least have a shrine to her, right?"

The previous guess was that it was an abandoned temple. It's normal that there were no shrines or statues inside, since it was abandoned and it's reasonable that things were taken away.

But if we say that this temple has never been used since it was built, then it should be brand new. If it is a brand new temple, even if it is only for waiting for the return of the gods, then there should at least be something that points to the gods.

Generally, such things are shrines or statues, but there are none in this site.

Upon hearing this, the three couldn't help but nod in agreement; what Kavi said made sense.

"So do you think the secret passage is down here?"

Wang Yan pointed to the area where Kavi and Farusan had just been studying.

"I'm about 80% sure," Kavi nodded.

Wang Yan looked at Farusan: "Then shall we—try prying this open?"

Farusan immediately rolled her eyes at her disciple: "If it's a hidden passage, then there must be a mechanism. Forcibly opening it could trigger a chain reaction."

Many relics in the desert are destroyed not because their self-protection systems malfunction, but because they are forcibly opened by gilded guilds, causing a chain reaction within them, or even self-destruction.

As a scholar who enjoys conducting research, Farusan was very unhappy with this behavior.

However, she also knew that she couldn't blame the gilded tour group. After all, they didn't know anything about it, and they were just trying to obtain resources to survive by breaking into the ruins.

As long as people don't cross the line of humanity, destroying some historical sites is nothing.

"Then—" Wang Yan hesitated.

"Enough with the nonsense. If there is a secret passage, then the way to open it probably lies in these carved wooden figures."

Farusan reached out and pointed at Wang Yan.

"Now it's up to you."

As soon as he finished speaking, Elhesen and Kavi both looked at Wang Yan and nodded.

The pressure suddenly fell on Wang Yan.

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