In the last Taihe Hall, Ye Fan walked around the grand hall a few times but found no unusual traces.
"Brother Chen, are you sure the treasure is hidden in the palace as recorded in the handwritten notes?"
Looking up at Chen Fei, Ye Fan asked in a low voice.
Chen Fei nodded heavily, "There can be no mistake. I remember very clearly that it was recorded that the treasure was hidden in the palace. Although the exact location was not mentioned, considering the situation at the time, they would not have dug for treasure here. Due to the urgency, the best way would be to hide all the treasures in one room. After all, this palace is extremely secret, and ordinary people cannot find it. Even this time, it was thanks to your intelligence that we got in; otherwise, we would probably still be circling outside."
Hearing Chen Fei's assurance, Ye Fan frowned in thought.
"Ye Fan, I always feel that the throne seems a bit strange. Come and see."
At this moment, Shen Bao walked over and said to Ye Fan in a low voice.
Ye Fan was slightly stunned and walked over with Shen Bao.
The throne was made of bronze, coated with a layer of gold.
Generally speaking, the dragon chair should be carved with golden dragons, as dragons are a symbol of imperial power, and only the Son of Heaven can use them.
Since this palace was built entirely in imitation of the imperial palace, the dragon chair should also be the same.
However, this throne had no golden dragons or phoenixes, but was smooth and without any carved traces.
Ye Fan's expression was grim. This throne was indeed a bit strange.
He walked up the steps slowly with Shen Bao and looked around the throne. All sides were smooth, with no place to touch.
"Could it be that the treasure is related to this throne?"
Shen Bao muttered to himself, his face filled with frustration. He then grabbed the throne and tried to rotate it forcefully.
"Don't..."
Ye Fan quickly called out a warning, but it was too late. Instantly, the throne rotated, and the ground here suddenly collapsed, sending them both falling down with the throne.
They fell more than ten meters deep, and there was a trapdoor above. The moment they fell, it closed.
Bang, bang.
They both hit the ground hard.
"It hurts so much."
Ye Fan felt severe pain all over his body, as if his bones were broken.
Fortunately, the bottom was not paved with white marble. Otherwise, at a height of more than ten meters, it would have been certain death.
Enduring the severe pain, Ye Fan slowly got up. His right arm had been dislocated and could not be moved for the time being.
Not far away, Shen Bao was groaning, struggling to get up.
He was even more seriously injured than Ye Fan, with a bleeding head, but fortunately, they were all superficial wounds and did not affect his bones.
However, falling from above had shaken his internal organs.
He walked over with difficulty and pulled Shen Bao up from the ground.
"Brother Shen, you're going to kill me! At this height, we can't climb back up."
Looking up at the sky, illuminated by the flashlight, Ye Fan said with frustration.
Shen Bao's face was full of gloom, "Who knew there was another level underneath? But since there is another level, there must be a way to get to the top. Otherwise, how did those people leave when they built it?"
Ye Fan's eyes lit up, and he looked at Shen Bao in shock.
"Brother Shen, this is the first time you've said something so sensible since I've known you."
His face was filled with excitement.
Shen Bao gave Ye Fan a look of disdain. Seeing that Ye Fan's arm was immobile, he said dismissively, "Let me deal with your arm first, lest it affects your combat ability if we encounter danger."
Saying that, he grabbed Ye Fan's arm and applied force.
Crack. Ye Fan's body trembled, and then the pain disappeared. His arm was reset.
After moving it and feeling no significant impact, Ye Fan quickly took out medicine from his backpack.
Both of them had wounds and needed to be treated as soon as possible. Otherwise, in such a dark and damp place, infections and suppuration were very likely.
After an hour of treatment, they finally finished. They then organized their belongings and began to look for an exit.
Fortunately, they had their backpacks, which were filled with food and water. Otherwise, in this place, they would have been in grave danger.
Not far from their side, there was a rapid river, with water rushing forward.
"If we follow the underground river all the way, we should find an exit."
Shen Bao looked at the river and said in a low voice.
But Ye Fan frowned, "Don't you find it strange?"
"Strange? What's strange about it?"
Shen Bao asked Ye Fan, confused.
"This palace is at least sixty to seventy meters above the Tianwang River's water surface. At such a high altitude, even if we fell to this underground level, we should still be fifty meters above the water level. How could there be an underground river at such a height?"
Ye Fan asked Shen Bao with a grim face.
This time, Shen Bao was stunned. He had only thought about following the underground river to get out and hadn't really considered so much.
"You mean this underground river has a problem?"
Shen Bao asked, confused, but he couldn't explain what was wrong.
Ye Fan nodded heavily, "There must be something wrong with this river water. However, we don't know what it is yet, and we can't figure out what the problem is. But try not to go near the water to avoid danger."
"We have already been separated from the people above. If we want to get out alive, we can only rely on ourselves, so we must not act rashly."
Knowing that Shen Bao was brave, Ye Fan repeatedly warned him.
Seeing Ye Fan's serious expression, Shen Bao also knew that this matter was no small matter. He could only nod helplessly, "Don't worry, I will follow your commands."
The two walked along the underground river. The further they went, the wider it became, and finally, a large open area appeared.
"What is that?"
Suddenly, Shen Bao pointed to the ceiling above and exclaimed.
Following the direction Shen Bao pointed, the flashlight beam shone directly upwards.
They saw dozens of objects hanging on the stone wall of the ceiling not far in front of them.
They were all wrapped in white cloth, and no one knew what was inside.
Ye Fan cautiously walked over and observed carefully.
"This seems to be a corpse, but why is it hanging here?"
Judging from its shape, it was indeed a body. After being dried, it was wrapped in white cloth.
Mummies were made this way, but generally, these corpses would be buried. Why were the corpses here hanging in mid-air? Could this be a ritualistic sacrifice?
The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was only two to three hundred years ago. Many customs and habits were the same as they are now, but there was never any mention of such a custom.
"Let's get one down to see if it's really a corpse."
After observing for a while, Shen Bao said in a deep voice. He then picked up a stone from the ground and threw it at the corpse.
As a former law enforcement officer, Shen Bao's aim was very good. The stone directly hit the white cloth hanging the corpse. Due to the age, the white cloth was very rusty. Upon being hit by the stone, it instantly tore.
Then, the corpse hanging below immediately fell down.
Ye Fan, with sharp eyes and quick hands, suddenly strode forward and caught the corpse.