Looking at the jade in the box, I asked, "Is this the Jade Seeker?"
Yang Hanxue nodded, "It should be."
As he spoke, he reached in and took out the coin-sized jade.
Just as I was about to ask him how the Jade Seeker was used, he found a porcelain basin, filled it with water, and then placed the jade inside.
Soon, a magical scene unfolded. As soon as the jade touched the water, ripples spread.
Logically, without external interference, still water should not move on its own.
But now, this law was completely broken. I looked in disbelief at the ripples in the water, gradually noticing that they had a certain pattern.
The ripples formed a circle, with smaller ripples outside the circle that were self-contained.
I felt like I had seen this shape somewhere before, but I couldn't recall it at the moment.
"Brother Xiang, doesn't this look like the Bagua diagram?" Yang Hanxue said.
His reminder made me suddenly realize that it really was!
I leaned closer to examine it, my mind filled with questions. How could such a small piece of jade cause this basin of water to ripple?
And moreover, make it form a Bagua diagram?
If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I simply wouldn't have believed it.
I took a deep breath and said, "It's too miraculous, this is truly unheard of."
Yang Hanxue smiled and said, "I told you, many things in this world cannot be explained by science. The wisdom of the ancients is endless, and we always judge them with modern concepts, which is a ridiculous thing in itself."
I agreed with his statement. Take Emperor Qin Shi Huang, for example, who is often called a tyrant for his "burning of books and burying of scholars," "harsh laws," and "large-scale construction."
But who truly understood Qin Shi Huang, and how could anyone know why he did these things?
As the saying goes, your position determines your thinking.
Where you stand dictates how you think.
Many historians have never been emperors or Qin Shi Huang; they merely judge based on subjective speculation, which is inherently unreliable.
For example, if you have never gone hungry, how can you know what hunger feels like? You can only assume that hunger is uncomfortable, but you don't know how uncomfortable it is.
Therefore, there is no such thing as empathy in this world; suffering and joy can only be endured alone.
Extending this concept to history, we find that many things are merely our speculations. As for the truth, no one can know it except the person involved.
Of course, this is my own opinion, and whether you agree or not is up to each individual.
Looking at Yang Hanxue, who was admiring the ripples, I asked, "Brother Yang, have you seen anything?"
He shook his head, "I don't understand Bagua and Feng Shui very well. I need to find a specialist to discern its intricacies."
I smiled, "I do know someone who is proficient in Feng Shui and antiques."
"You're referring to Mr. Bai Zhujing from Guangling, aren't you?" Yang Hanxue asked.
"Oh? You know him too?"
Yang Hanxue smiled, "You've racked your brains to get me to go to Guangling with you... It's not that I don't want to go with you, but I truly have important matters to attend to right now."
"Are you looking for Shen Wansan's tomb?" I asked.
Yang Hanxue sighed and slowly nodded, "There's nothing to hide from you now. I am indeed looking for Shen Wansan's tomb."
"And after finding the tomb?" I pursed my lips, "What do you want to get from Shen Wansan's tomb?"
Yang Hanxue did not answer the question, only saying, "This is just the first step. As for what happens next, I can't say for sure."
I wanted to ask Yang Hanxue to take me along, but I felt it would be too abrupt.
If he refused, I would be in an awkward position.
Rather than that, it was better to leave a good impression on him and ask him to go to Guangling after he finished his own affairs.
He took the Jade Seeker out of the porcelain basin and placed it back into the jade box.
Unexpectedly, something shot out from the jade box. Before we could react, Yang Hanxue's chest area suddenly started smoking.
I was startled, and Yang Hanxue immediately pulled off his clothes!
The vest he took off continued to smoke and then, in a moment, it caught fire.
"It should be potassium permanganate," Yang Hanxue said with a wry smile.
"Potassium permanganate?" I was a little confused.
"Potassium permanganate is an inorganic compound that ignites when it comes into contact with organic matter."
Yang Hanxue paused and sighed, "I didn't expect that someone had already extracted this substance back then..."
Just as I was about to sigh, I noticed a tattoo on his chest!
I was too familiar with this tattoo!
The moment I saw the tattoo, I immediately thought of that familiar face – An Ying!
Staring at the tattoo on Yang Hanxue's chest, I slowly took a deep breath, my mind becoming a little chaotic.
Why did he have this tattoo too?
Could it be that he was also...
"Brother Yang, I have a request," I said.
Yang Hanxue looked at me and said, "Go ahead."
"You're planning to find Shen Wansan's tomb, right?"
"Yes."
"Can I go with you?"
Yang Hanxue was slightly taken aback, and his brows furrowed.
"I know a Feng Shui master, and we are quite close. She might be able to help," I said.
He thought for a moment and said, "Brother Xiang, although you gave me the Wandering Immortal Pillow, which helped me a great deal... this journey is fraught with unknown dangers, and I truly don't wish to involve you."
I smiled, "What's there to it? Meeting Brother Yang has opened my eyes... I'm also quite curious about Shen Wansan's tomb."
Saying this, I put away my smile, cupped my fists, and said, "I hope Brother Yang can satisfy my curiosity."
Yang Hanxue gave a wry smile, "Since Brother Xiang wants to accompany me, it's not impossible. However, I cannot guarantee that we will find Shen Wansan's tomb, and it's possible we'll go on a wild goose chase."
I said, "A wild goose chase is a wild goose chase. Following Brother Yang will also broaden my horizons."
Yang Hanxue smiled, "Since Brother Xiang has said so, I cannot refuse. We will depart in two days."
"Okay!"
For some reason, seeing the tattoo on Yang Hanxue's chest made me excited. I had a feeling that I might see Sister Ying again!
It had been nearly half a year since she left, and that subtle longing made it difficult for me to let go.
Of course, besides that, there were the things Wang Yang had said. Could Sister Ying really achieve immortality?