Ying Zheng returned to Ji Fa and told him about the swamp encounter earlier.
Ji Fa smiled and said, "If you try so hard, I'm afraid you may not be able to enter the core of Shennongjia this time next year."
As he spoke, Ji Fa took out a brocade silk from his arms: "This is the map of Shennongjia. You should follow the route on it. By the way, don't let others see this map."
Ying Zheng responded and took the map, carefully opened it and looked at it.
The texture and quality of this map are very similar to the map of the entire China that Ji Fa gave him before, except that the scale is smaller and only the area of Shennongjia is drawn.
The peaks and rivers marked on the map are very detailed, and several accessible routes are also marked. There is also a red route that is particularly eye-catching, with a red circle in the center.
Turning it over, you can see that the red route's travel strategy is also written in detail on the back. Where to take turns, where there is a reliable water source, and what dangers you should pay attention to are all clearly marked.
"Master, what is this red line...?" Ying Zheng pointed at the red line and asked.
Ji Fa explained: "That is the route to the Fire Eye, and the red circle is where it is."
Ying Zheng actually had a rough guess, but he just wanted to confirm: "So, the overlord who protects this place is in this position?"
Ji Fa nodded and said, "It's late autumn now. If you want to see Baxia, you should leave quickly."
"Yes." Ying Zheng took the map and ordered the team to change direction and follow the red line.
With Ji Fa's help, it was indeed much more convenient. Not only did he avoid a lot of detours, he also avoided a lot of trouble.
After entering the depths of the jungle, there are more and more trees, birds and animals that I have never seen before.
The vegetation was relatively good. Although I had never seen it, I just didn’t want to provoke it. However, the strange birds and beasts were more or less dangerous, so the team marched more carefully.
Sure enough, as Ji Fa said before, in the core of the jungle, most of the flowers, birds, fish and insects are white.
According to Ji Fa, these birds and insects should have lived in bitterly cold places earlier, and then gathered in Shennongjia.
Somehow, those white birds and beasts seemed to be afraid of strangers and extremely alert. When they noticed the slightest movement, they scattered and fled.
Thorin originally wanted to capture some while he was resting, but it was difficult to move in the jungle and Ying Zheng wouldn't let him hunt, so he had to give up.
Along the way, the team crossed many bridges, including wooden bridges, stone bridges, and bridges made of iron cables. Some bridges were rotten and impassable.
These bridges were all built by Shennong, that is, the 108 bridges built by him.
However, tasting Baicao back then was only a superficial act. Shennong's real purpose was, of course, to use Jiuding and Tianmu to control the dragon veins there, which was the inner core of the Fire Eye.
Ying Zheng ordered the team to stay where they were, repair the nearby bridges, and try to restore the remains of Shennong. He followed Ji Fa to Huoyan to see Baxia.
After leaving the team, Ying Zheng asked: "Master, you said before that Shennong's Tomb is in Shennongjia. Can you take me to see it?"
Ji Fa knew that he was curious, so he said: "Didn't I say that every time our successors build a new mausoleum, they will completely seal the previous one. I think the Shennong Mausoleum has been sealed for thousands of years, even if it is Even if you find it, you will definitely not be able to get in."
Ying Zheng blinked and said, "Why, Master hasn't gone in before?"
"Of course not, I'm not as curious as you." Ji Fa rolled his eyes at him.
Ying Zheng chuckled and said: "This is not just curiosity. I am the last one, and no one will come in the future. Don't I just want to sort it out and pay homage to it?"
"That's true." Ji Fa nodded and said, "It's rare that you have such thoughts, so let's go to the location of Shennong's Mausoleum first."
The Shennong Mausoleum was also within the range of the red circle. The two adjusted their direction slightly and came to a valley.
"The ruins of Shennong's Mausoleum are deep under our feet, and also in the back mountain where the Fire Eye is." Ji Fa said, "It's just that you need to look carefully for the entrance."
Ying Zheng tied up the two horses, then took out the black iron snail from the package and measured the direction. The snail needle indicated that the royal tomb was indeed located directly below.
"Master, the specifications and layout of the tomb of ancestor Shen Nong should be the same as those we supervised, right?" Ying Zheng asked.
"The main tomb must be the same, but the virtual tomb and the corridor may not be the same." Ji Fa said, "And even if we find the entrance, we can't go in. Why don't we worship first and remember the direction? That’s it.”
Ying Zheng nodded and said: "It seems that this is the best we can do. Then we will do as Master said."
He took out the dry food, cooked meat, and wine that he had prepared long ago, found a suitable place, built a simple place with wood, and the two of them began to worship.
Ji Fa took the lead and said: "The ancestors of Shennong have spirits in the sky. Ji Fa, a descendant of the Tiancheng lineage, brought his disciple Qin Wang Yingzheng to worship the ancestors."
Ying Zheng followed up and said: "Ying Zheng, a descendant of the Tiancheng lineage, greatly respects his ancestors and hereby bows down."
The two of them bowed three times together.
Suddenly, there was a noise from the ground about three feet away from the right rear.
The two looked back and saw that the stones in the soil were shaking.
Ying Zheng was immediately alert, stood up and took out his saber from his waist, protecting it in front of Ji Fa.
Ji Fa looked indifferent, squinting his eyes and stroking his white beard.
The earth and rocks rose upward little by little, and the surrounding soil also turned outwards, as if something was about to climb up from the ground.
After a few breaths of time, the stone, which was about the same size as the table, was finally pushed away, rolling aside along with some gravel.
Ying Zheng's expression became even more nervous, staring intently at the hole left by the earth and stone.
Not long after, a stone tablet slowly rose from the ground, and it seemed that there were words engraved on it.
"It is indeed Ba Xia." Ji Fa said.
Ying Zheng's mood relaxed and he slowly approached the pothole.
The stone tablet finally rose up, and the turtle shell below it also appeared in sight. It had edges, wrinkles, and a gray-white color, giving it a rather primitive and old feel.
Maybe the turtle shell was too big and couldn't come up completely. The stone tablet was tilted to the side, and a huge head was raised.
The head is similar to that of an ordinary turtle, but the front beak is like an eagle's beak, two spikes protrude from the lower jaw, a pair of big eyes are like copper bells, and the pupils are slender like snake eyes.
"You're here." It didn't open its mouth, but its voice was extremely low and accompanied by echoes.
Ying Zheng bowed and saluted: "Ying Zheng of the Qin State, pay homage to Senior Ba Xia."
Ji Fa also walked closer, bowed and said: "Senior."
In terms of seniority and seniority in the beast clan, Ba Xia belongs to the Xuanwu clan and is the leader of the beasts together with the snake clan. If he had not taken the blame for the dragon clan, he would not have to carry the big stone monument all the time, and the other eight mythical beasts , is a bit lower than Baxia in terms of status and even seniority.
I saw Na Ba's eyes looking towards Ying Zheng, as if he was looking at him carefully. His eyelids closed twice from bottom to top, and then he heard it say: "I heard something moving here, so I came over to take a look. , as soon as I heard that you were worshiping Shennong, I knew it was your Tiancheng tribe who came."
Ying Zheng smiled and said, "Senior's hearing is really good. He can hear sounds even through the ground."
"Maybe it's because the surroundings are too quiet." Ba Xia whispered, "If you're done worshiping, just jump down. The front mountain has been sealed by this deity." The two of them responded and bowed to the tablet they just erected. He was polite, and then jumped into the pit along the stone tablet one after another.
The footing point was a little bumpy and sloped, so there was no doubt that I was jumping on a turtle shell.
In the dim light, Ying Zheng squinted his eyes and saw a gentle slope extending downward in front of him.
"Senior Baxia, it's very offensive to step on your back when we first meet." Ying Zheng said, "Why don't you lead the way and we will follow behind."
Just listen to Ba Xia say: "Why, are you walking slowly, Master Xian? Don't worry, there is a waterway ahead, we will arrive soon."
"This junior has no such intention." Ying Zheng explained slightly nervously.
Ji Fa smiled and said, "Senior, this kid has just met you for the first time. If you joke with him, you will make him nervous."
Ba Xia said: "Okay, let's wait until we get to the place. You guys can hold up the stone monument."
Ying Zheng subconsciously held on to the stone tablet, and saw Baxia's limbs exerting force, then quickly retracting them, and the turtle shell slid downwards against the ground.
It turns out you can still play like this!
The ground was not smooth and the slope was not too steep, so the speed was not very fast. However, Ying Zheng felt very strange and wanted to laugh but did not dare.
Just when he covered his mouth, he saw a pool of clear water appearing in front of him. In an instant, Ba Xia had dived into the water.
After losing strength for a moment, Ying Zheng almost slipped and fell, so he quickly grasped the stone tablet again.
The water surface did not reach the top of the feet. It seemed that Ba Xia deliberately maintained the depth.
If viewed from a distance, Ji Fa and Ying Zheng are holding a large stone tablet floating on the water and moving forward. This scene is quite strange.
The water surface is getting wider and wider. Although the light is very weak and the water quality is not very clear, judging from the ripples on the water surface, there should be a lot of fish swimming underwater, and they don't seem to be too small.
The height of the space became larger and larger, and it became more and more empty. Gradually, they seemed to have arrived at an independent space similar to an underground lake.
There is actually a cave deep underground in this primeval forest!
What is different from the outside world is that the shore is gradually blurring. It is all bare and there is no shadow of a tree.
Not long after, a small island appeared in the center of the lake. In the center of the island grew a tree with two trunks. The lower half of the trunk was intertwined, and the upper half grew separately and upward.
The leaves are not dense, with red fruits on the left branch and green fruits on the right branch.
"That's... the Xuanwu tree!" Ying Zheng said unconsciously.
He still vaguely remembered that the last time he went to Jiuyou, Ji Fa asked him to eat those two kinds of fruits, but he suffered from diarrhea for a long time.
"Yes, it's a basalt tree." Ji Fa said, "This is the only basalt tree in China. Have you ever eaten this fruit?"
"The only one?" Ying Zheng asked, "What about outside China?"
Ji Fa smiled and said: "There used to be one in the west, but it was destroyed long ago because of something."
"Oh, I heard Li Si mentioned this before." Ying Zheng said, "This Xuanwu fruit is also called the forbidden fruit over there, but ordinary people have never seen it."
"That's right." Ji Fa said, "Between Jiuyou and Jiuxiao, the mountains and the sea are opposite to each other. Only Shennongjia is different. The corresponding position of Jiuyou below is also land, and there are also basalt trees."
Ying Zheng was surprised: "Does that mean this is the only land connection point?"
"Yes." Ji Fa nodded and said, "The ancient Egg Clan creatures that existed here were originally going to go to Jiuyou through the passage here, but after Pangu was attacked by the Dragon Clan, the passage was forcibly closed. "
"So they couldn't leave?" Ying Zheng said.
Ji Fa nodded.
At this time, Ba Xia had already reached the shore, and the two of them jumped onto the island in one stride.
