The existence of the mercury female corpse was undoubtedly a great threat, especially since Hu Hai himself admitted that the strength of the mercury female corpse, Afangnu, was even greater than that of the four masters guarding the inner city.
Therefore, no matter what, Yan Shouyi did not want to add this unnecessary trouble for himself.
"Do you have anything else to say?" Yan Shouyi asked Hu Hai.
Hu Hai shook his head: "Nothing more."
"Good."
Yan Shouyi casually placed the talisman back on Hu Hai's forehead.
Hu Hai was stunned for a moment, then felt deceived, staring at Yan Shouyi with wide eyes, his gaze seeming to say: You tricked me?!
Yan Shouyi turned to discuss with the others: "The imperial city is dangerous, so no more people can be brought in."
Wang Sihui was self-aware: "We'll wait for you in the inner city. Anyway, no one can go anywhere now."
Having witnessed the power of zombies and malevolent spirits, Wang Sihui fully understood the limited role he and his team had within the imperial tomb.
As long as they didn't cause trouble, that was their greatest contribution. If they could help Yan Shouyi even a little, Wang Sihui would be extremely proud.
After all, in this perilous imperial tomb, a slight carelessness could lead to a burial without a trace.
Liang Yinqiu pondered for a moment, and also decided to curb her curiosity about the imperial city, saying:
"I will let the expert team stay in the inner city. After all, there are many cultural relics in the inner city, enough for everyone to research for a while."
She didn't make a definitive statement, implying she hoped for an opportunity to enter the imperial city again in the future.
With the assurances from Liang Yinqiu and Wang Sihui, Yan Shouyi was completely relieved. He trusted the two of them. As long as they agreed, no one would intrude into the imperial city and cause trouble.
With no further worries, Yan Shouyi and Lin Ziqing could confidently enter the imperial city to find the imperial preceptor of the Qing Jiang Kingdom from over a thousand years ago and settle the grievances that had spanned several lifetimes.
At this moment, Liang Yinqiu pulled Yan Shouyi and Lin Ziqing aside. Her expression was no longer as serious as before; instead, there was a hint of a plea in her eyes.
Lin Ziqing, being understanding, saw Liang Yinqiu's thoughts and said, "Professor Liang, please don't worry. We will not touch anything in the imperial city if we can avoid it, and will do our best to restore the imperial city to its original state."
"Good!" Liang Yinqiu smiled and nodded, then added, "But if your lives are in danger, your lives are more important."
When Yan Shouyi and Lin Ziqing were dealing with the four masters outside earlier, Liang Yinqiu had not witnessed it firsthand, but she had heard quite a commotion.
Such a significant disturbance meant that nearby cultural relics were unlikely to have survived.
Liang Yinqiu truly felt for those cultural relics!
That was why she swallowed her pride and politely requested Yan Shouyi and the others.
"But speaking of which, compared to cultural relics, don't we have a living fossil with us right now?" Yan Shouyi pointed at Hu Hai. "If you have anything you want to know about the Qin Dynasty, you can just ask Hu Hai directly."
To his surprise, Liang Yinqiu shook her head: "Although Hu Hai is from the Qin Dynasty and can answer many of our questions, his answers are based on his personal understanding and the limitations of his era, and may not be the most objective answers."
Yan Shouyi suddenly understood, and felt a surge of respect.
Living people have cognitive biases, but cultural relics do not. The inanimate cannot speak, yet they are the most truthful.
The dedication of professors like Liang Yinqiu in their research was truly rare and precious.
After settling everyone, Yan Shouyi and Lin Ziqing were to embark on their journey once more.
To ensure their safety, Yan Shouyi left Yan Gui behind.
There was no longer any significant danger in the inner city, and leaving Yan Gui was more than sufficient.
Taohua Ying, however, accompanied the two of them.
This temporarily assembled team had to part ways upon reaching the inner city. After bidding farewell to Wang Sihui, Liang Yinqiu, and Xia Qi, Yan Shouyi, along with Lin Ziqing, rode Treading Snow towards the gate of the imperial city.
Taohua Ying floated in mid-air, looking at the young master and young lady riding horses together, filled with envy: "Young master, when will you find a servant to be my companion?"
Yan Shouyi was amused and speechless: "Isn't Yan Gui your companion?"
"He's too young; he's just a child." Taohua Ying didn't seem to approve.
"If you say so, do you need to find someone around your age?"
"Age isn't a strict requirement; the main thing is that he's handsome, preferably a cute pup." Taohua Ying licked her lips, appearing quite thirsty. Yan Shouyi was momentarily unsure whether she was looking for a romantic partner or a meal.
As the saying goes, a woman three years older is like a gold brick, thirty years older is like ruling a country, and three hundred years older... directly bestows a golden elixir.
If anyone could have a treasure like Taohua Ying... a treasure of a grandmother, it would be a blessing accumulated over several lifetimes!
It was a shame that Long Feicheng didn't like young calves nibbling on old grass, otherwise, if he could have had Taohua Ying, it would have been better than being a sycophant like Han Gouwang Han San.
As the two and the ghost chatted, Treading Snow had already reached the gate of the imperial city.
Upon seeing the majestic and spectacular red city gate, everyone involuntarily fell silent.
Beyond this gate lay the most core area of the imperial tomb.
It was bound to be fraught with danger.
Yan Shouyi took a deep breath, dismounted, and crouched on the ground, piecing together the four fragments.
Once the four white jade fragments were placed in their correct positions, the gaps seemed to attract each other like magnets, fitting together tightly. Finally, they sealed seamlessly, as flawless as if they had never been broken.
The complete jade disc bore only one character.
Qin!
The single character Qin contained so much historical vicissitude.
Yan Shouyi gazed at the character Qin, becoming somewhat lost in thought. The image of Qin Shi Huang leading his troops to unify the six states two thousand years ago even flashed through his mind.
The King of Qin swept through the six states, what a majestic sight!
With a sword's swing, clouds dispersed; the feudal lords all came from the west!
If there were truly so-called human emperors in the world, Qin Shi Huang would undoubtedly be among them. Many subsequent emperors merely inherited the bloodline.
"Prepare to enter."
Yan Shouyi took a deep breath, held the jade disc with both hands, and placed it into the correspondingly shaped recess.
The jade disc fit into the recess seamlessly. Then, it automatically rotated and disappeared into the city gate. Immediately, the sound of mechanical gears turning echoed from within the gate.
Click!
A clump of dust fell from above the city gate, and then the heavy gate slowly opened.
At this moment, Yan Shouyi should have said something, but considering the possibility of alarming the nameless actor and the mercury female corpse, he swallowed his words.
Lin Ziqing also dismounted and put Treading Snow into the Soul Summoning Bell.
Taohua Ying looked curiously into the imperial city, imagining herself dancing gracefully within its walls. Although she was a ghost king who had lived for several hundred years, she still held onto the romantic aspirations and yearnings of her youth, a romance that many modern women could not possess.
Finally, the city gate opened.
What met their eyes were twelve colossal golden cast human figures!