Things had developed to this point, and Yan Shouyi and Lin Zitong were certain that the National Preceptor had visited the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor, and possibly was still here.
Otherwise, who wrote the human-skin letter from two thousand years ago that was hidden in the sword scabbard of the Ancestral Dragon Sword?
The human-skin letter contained only six words: "Yan Shouyi, you are here."
Such a direct address meant that someone was waiting in the imperial mausoleum, waiting precisely for Yan Shouyi.
Yan Shouyi scanned his surroundings. The empty Zhangtai Palace was deathly silent.
If someone was waiting for me, and I had already reached Zhangtai Palace, shouldn't they have appeared by now?
It was a pity that Yan Shouyi could not make a sound, as it would alert the Nameless Actor. Otherwise, he might have roared, "I'm here, where are you?"
At this moment, Lin Zitong noticed something peculiar.
"Big idiot, Hu Hai said the imperial city is guarded by the Nameless Actor and the Mercury Female Corpse. Once too loud a sound is made, it will be heard by the Nameless Actor, who will then awaken the Mercury Female Corpse," she said. "When the National Preceptor entered the imperial mausoleum back then, he couldn't have done so without making any noise, right? Do you think that Mercury Female Corpse had already awakened?"
Yan Shouyi rubbed his nose, a subconscious gesture when he was thinking.
If Empress Afang had awakened, perhaps she had already been wandering within the imperial city. If they happened to meet, it would be troublesome.
However, with the National Preceptor's methods, it was possible that he not only subdued the Nameless Actor and the Mercury Female Corpse but even controlled them instead...
"Young lady, young master."
Taohua Ying floated in mid-air, her brow furrowed. "This Zhangtai Palace is a bit strange."
"Strange? How is it strange?"
Yan Shouyi broke off his train of thought and asked Taohua Ying.
Yan Shouyi and Lin Zitong were both living people, modern people, and their thoughts often coincided.
But this identical way of thinking also limited their abilities, occasionally preventing them from discovering new clues.
It was Taohua Ying, a female ghost who had lived for hundreds of years, who could always think from a different perspective.
"Since ancient times, emperors have been the sovereigns of the nine and five. They were very sensitive to the number nine. Palaces could only be built up to nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine, steps could be at most ninety-nine, and even the bead curtain on the emperor's head could only have nine strands. But..."
Taohua Ying pointed in surprise at the red lacquered dragon-carved pillars in Zhangtai Palace. "Not only are there ten pillars in Zhangtai Palace, but there are also ten dragon totems carved on them, and each dragon is accompanied by ten auspicious clouds. This does not align with the emperor's reverence for the heavens."
Reminded by Taohua Ying, Yan Shouyi and Lin Zitong also noticed these details.
It wasn't just the pillars; many things in Zhangtai Palace originally only needed nine, but an extra one was added to make ten.
For example, the feather fans behind the dragon throne, the steps outside the palace, and the auspicious beast patterns on the roof beams.
Lin Zitong did not know much about history. She said, "Could it be that Emperor Qin Shi Huang was a tyrannical emperor who disregarded the laws of heaven? Alas, if only Xia Qi or Professor Liang had followed us in. They know more about Emperor Qin Shi Huang."
"That might as well be bringing Hu Hai in, considering he had a part in supervising the construction of the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor," Yan Shouyi said offhandedly. He then realized he had spoken incorrectly and looked back, seeing Lin Zitong pouting, a little angry.
"Do you think I'm stupid?" Lin Zitong asked angrily.
Yan Shouyi was stunned. "No!"
From childhood to adulthood, he had only ever avoided Lin Zitong. In terms of intelligence, he willingly admitted defeat.
Moreover, Lin Zitong had always been "magnanimous," never jealous or prone to tantrums, a model wife. She had never gotten angry over such a trivial matter before.
Yan Shouyi couldn't figure out which of his words had upset Lin Zitong.
However, Lin Zitong only pouted and wasn't genuinely angry or bothered. The current environment was not suitable for throwing a tantrum, and Lin Zitong understood this.
As the saying goes, those involved are often blind, while bystanders see clearly. Taohua Ying, floating in mid-air, covered her mouth and chuckled, thinking:
They say pregnancy makes one foolish for three years. Miss must suspect she has become stupid because of her pregnancy!
But Young Master seems to be completely unaware that Miss is pregnant, and I wonder how long Miss intends to keep this a secret.
Hmm... I've been with Miss for a few days now. Logically, the child in Miss's womb should have more vigorous life force, but now looking again, there's no movement at all?
Could it be a dead fetus?!
Taohua Ying was startled and quickly spat "pei pei pei" three times, cursing her own bad luck.
It seemed that Miss had used some kind of secret technique to halt the child's development. But why would she go through such trouble?
Taohua Ying had been with Lin Zitong for too short a time and didn't understand their affairs well, which made her a bit dejected.
Seeing that Lin Zitong was no longer angry, Yan Shouyi took out the Yan Xing Luo Pan and walked around Zhangtai Palace.
Suddenly, he seemed to discover something, his expression becoming serious as he consulted the Yan Xing Luo Pan, as if adjusting something.
"Did you find something?" Lin Zitong couldn't help but ask.
"No, hiss... no..."
Yan Shouyi's brow was tightly furrowed, as if he were solving a very complex mathematical problem.
"The third pillar is off by two inches, the dragon totem carved on it is also crooked, and the corresponding carpet shows irregular distortions. This should not be a workmanship issue."
"This is..."
Yan Shouyi's eyes suddenly widened, and he said in a deep voice, "An illusion technique?"
Upon reaching this conclusion, Yan Shouyi frantically searched his mind for records of illusion techniques in the Luban Shu.
"Illusion technique" was just a general term. To achieve the purpose of illusion, there were no less than dozens of methods recorded in the Luban Shu.
But there was only one method that was applicable to the current environment and could be maintained for over a thousand years.
What surprised Yan Shouyi even more was that this method was not a secret skill of another sect or religion, but a supreme skill of the Luban Sect itself!
This technique was named—Yi Ye Zhang Mu! (A Leaf Blocks the Eye!)
In the Luban Shu, Yi Ye Zhang Mu was a technique recorded in household feng shui. Through the design of the house's structure, it caused the owner's family to experience hallucinations and their vision to be obscured.
Once the formation was complete, anyone who stepped into it would be affected by Yi Ye Zhang Mu and would not be able to see the true situation.
The current Zhangtai Palace was affected by Yi Ye Zhang Mu, making it appear empty at first glance.
Ma Xingping and Ma Jinxuan were also influenced by Yi Ye Zhang Mu, leading them to see various illusions.
Yan Shouyi was now certain that whether it was the current emptiness or the resurrection of the clay figures seen by the Ma siblings, it was all an illusion!
Zhangtai Palace was not as they saw it!