"According to you, at least one person dies every night," Liu Yanlei said. "So, whether we light it or not makes no difference, since someone will die anyway, right?"
"Death begins at night," Shao Ling said. "We might as well observe the situation and decide whether to light it or not based on the circumstances. We might as well each take a rhinoceros horn in hand, just in case."
No one objected to this suggestion, and everyone took out the rhinoceros horns from the box and counted them; there were exactly thirteen.
"It seems your suggestion is correct," Luo Yu casually played with the rhinoceros horn in his hand. "It looks like these rhinoceros horns were prepared for us, and the quantity is just right."
"So, does this mean that we still need to light these rhinoceros horns in the end?" Li Yi asked warily.
"There's no use guessing now. We can only wait and continue to ponder the existing clues," Shao Ling said.
"I'm hungry." The young female painter, Xue Ge, who seemed to be prone to daydreaming, suddenly came back to her senses and said inexplicably.
"Wow, beautiful lady, we're about to die, and you still have the mood to eat?" Luo Yu looked at her in surprise.
"It's better to die well than starving." Xuege's nonchalant expression seemed to completely disregard Ruhua's bizarre situation, and she turned to go to the kitchen on the first floor. "Is there anyone to help?"
The other two female members, Fang Fei and Chen Xin'ai, followed her out of the room.
The rest of the crew remained in the captain's cabin, examining the contents of the boxes. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, they were unable to decipher the ancient seal script on the bamboo slips.
"I think we should first figure out what the purpose of this ship's voyage at sea is," Qin Ci said. "If possible, we should also find out its destination."
"Since the flag on the ship bears the name of the state, this ship must be official," Shao Ling said. "Given the living standards of the Qin Dynasty at that time, ordinary people couldn't have built such a ship privately, so this must be an official vessel.
"There was no such thing as maritime trade during the Qin Dynasty. Although this ship is carrying a lot of grain, clothing, medicine, and daily necessities, it shouldn't be used for commercial trade."
"It is said that Qin Shi Huang enjoyed sea tours to admire his territory and demonstrate the power of the Qin Dynasty. Could this ship be considered a patrol vessel dispatched by Qin Shi Huang during one of his sea tours?"
"There's no need for a patrol vessel to carry jewels and expensive items," Zhu Haowen said cautiously.
"This ship gives me the impression that it's simply for a long voyage," Qin Ci continued. "It carries a large amount of food, clothing, daily necessities, and medicine to prevent illness. It's clearly prepared for a long journey. What could be the purpose of a state-appointed official ship undertaking a long voyage without demonstrating military power?"
"Cultural exchange?" Yu Long, with his dark flaxen hair, said. "Aren't there many books on board?"
"That's quite possible." Shao Ling nodded.
"Long voyage, cultural exchange—these two keywords only remind me of crossing to an island nation." Qin Ci said.
"It could also be the Korean peninsula." Zhu Haowen added calmly.
"Crossing to the east… Ah! I know! This painting tells the story of the eminent monk Jianzhen!" Wei Dong's eyes lit up.
"…Jian your mind is a mess!" Ke Xun slapped him on the head, swatting away his brilliant idea. "Even a lousy student like me knows that Jian Zhen is from the Tang Dynasty, but this painting depicts a story from the Qin Dynasty!"
"Oops, oops," Wei Dong rubbed his head. "The Qin Dynasty… there are some too, right? Xu Fu's voyage to find the elixir of immortality was from the Qin Dynasty, wasn't it?"
"…Are you sure it was a voyage to find the elixir of immortality and not a voyage to find candy?" Ke Xun glanced at him sideways.
"Xu Fu! Xu Fu!" Wei Dong quickly corrected himself, "I just blurted it out—Xu Fu took young boys and girls to sea to find the elixir of immortality for Qin Shi Huang, that's correct, right?"
"It is said that there were indeed several large-scale sea patrols during the Qin Shi Huang period," Shao Ling said, "and the most famous one to send ships on long-distance voyages was Xu Fu. I agree with Mr. Wei's guess. This painting most likely depicts what happened at sea when Xu Fu sailed east. After all, the navigation technology of the Qin Dynasty was limited by the times, and it was impossible to frequently make long-distance sea voyages. Only the historical event of Xu Fu's eastward voyage is certain to have happened."
"Legend has it that Xu Fu took young boys and girls to sea to search for the fairy islands, but they never returned. Could it be that they encountered these…monsters at sea, and that's why the whole army was wiped out and couldn't return?" Li Yi guessed.
"But some experts say that Xu Fu actually took people to an island nation and then stayed there. Are the island nations all our descendants?" Yu Long said.
Shao Ling shook his head slightly: "That statement is rather arrogant. The island nation already had indigenous inhabitants during the Qin Dynasty. However, during China's Warring States period, the island nation was in the Stone Age, specifically the Zomon culture, living by gathering and hunting. In other words, they were still in a primitive clan society.
"But during the Qin Dynasty, bronze and iron production tools suddenly appeared on the island nation, and rice cultivation technology seemed to appear out of thin air. They transitioned from the Neolithic Age to the Iron Age in a very short time—this phenomenon seems to prove that Xu Fu indeed brought the advanced technology, culture, and products of the Qin Dynasty to the island nation."
"If this picture depicts the scene when Xu Fu sailed east, then it at least proves that the people on the ship were not all wiped out, otherwise how could they have ended up in an island nation?
I remember that historical records state that Xu Fu was ordered by Qin Shi Huang to sail out to sea twice to search for immortals. The first time he failed, so Qin Shi Huang ordered him to sail out to sea a second time. He claimed that when he sailed out to sea for the first time, there were giant sharks blocking his way, preventing him from sailing far. Qin Shi Huang then sent archers to follow him out to sea, and they indeed shot and killed a shark. Then Xu Fu's second voyage began."
"I think this is particularly crucial—the *Records of the Grand Historian: Annals of Qin Shi Huang* mentions that Qin Shi Huang had a dream in which he fought with the sea god. Upon waking, he asked someone to interpret the dream. The interpreter said that the water god was originally invisible, and it used large fish and dragons as scouts—scouts are roughly equivalent to reconnaissance soldiers. Now, this evil god has come out to cause trouble, and as long as it is killed, the true benevolent god can be seen.
The key points are: first, 'the water god was originally invisible'; second, it used dragons as scouts, or we can understand them as patrol soldiers, for example, patrolling the sea? Third, as long as the dragons are killed, the evil god's obstruction can be broken, or rather, the deadly trap can be broken, and the benevolent god can be seen—or rather, escape to a place of life, pass through the barrier, and leave the painting?
So, can we assume that the trap in this painting lies with the dragons that might appear in the sea? If we want to leave the painting, we must find a way to kill it. But the sea is so vast and deep, how can we find the dragons?
The answer is the rhinoceros horn in our hands." According to the legend of the Niuzhu Rhinoceros horn painting, once we ignite the rhinoceros horn, it will attract creatures from 'another world' to fight the fire. Whether they are benevolent gods, malevolent gods, or ghosts, they all belong to another world.
"We will use the burning rhinoceros horn to lure the dragon, find a way to kill it, and then use the same method to lure the 'originally invisible' water god. I think this water god might be the seal. Once we find it, we can leave the painting.
" "These are just my personal opinions, offered as a starting point. If you all have other ideas, please feel free to share them so we can brainstorm." After
saying this, Shao Ling's gaze swept across the faces of everyone present, finally landing on Mu Yiran's face.
This man spoke very little, but for some reason, Shao Ling felt that this man could not be ignored.
Shao Ling's well-reasoned and evidence-based analysis seemed to have stunned everyone present. Wei Dong and Luo Yi looked at him with admiration. Li Yi was the first to recover and nodded in agreement: "I think what you said is close to the truth. That's exactly what happened."
Yu Long also nodded: "Impeccable. I think this is the only way we can leave the painting. Only by killing that giant shark can we leave."
Liu Yanlei's eyes flickered slightly: "I also think what you said makes sense, but here's the problem—how do we kill the so-called giant shark?"
"There are crossbows in the warehouse below deck. I saw them earlier," Yu Long said. "Since the historical records say that the giant fish was shot down, let's use those."
Li Yi and Liu Yanlei nodded in agreement.
Shao Ling turned to the veteran members who hadn't yet spoken: "What do you all think?"
Qin Ci glanced at his companions and said cautiously, "Based on the lessons learned from the previous paintings, all guesses and speculations could be key to unlocking the painting. We should try not to overlook any possibility.
"So, we support your deduction, but it's necessary to remind you—the unnatural forces within the painting are irresistible.
"Once that force wants or needs to kill you, it will definitely succeed. You won't be able to resist, let alone fight back.
"Of course, the rules of each painting are different. Perhaps this painting can kill the unnatural forces. I'm only saying this to remind those of you who are entering the painting for the first time not to underestimate it. The cruelty of the 'painting' far exceeds your imagination. "
Also, the use of the crossbow is a problem. It's best to learn how to operate it before dark."
Shao Ling nodded: "Thank you for the reminder. Then let's hurry up and move the crossbow to the deck to familiarize ourselves with it."
The group said no more and headed towards the staircase leading to the lower deck.
Wei Dong, walking at the back, quietly nudged Ke Xun with his elbow and whispered, "This Shao Ling is quite something. I feel like I'm seeing another Boss Mu, even overshadowing our Boss Mu. He barely said a word the whole time."
"Isn't that a good thing?" Ke Xun looked at her boyfriend's straight back as he walked ahead of her. "I wish everyone who enters the painting could steal his thunder with their own abilities. At least that way, he wouldn't always have to carry everyone's expectations and lives on his shoulders. That's too heavy, too burdensome."