"Based on our analysis, I think there are a few key points that should be highlighted," Mu Yiran continued. "First, the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* is a painting, and it's possible that, like the paintings we've encountered, it can expand into a world within the painting.
Second, regarding the version of the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* that appeared on our bones, there are currently three options: the Northern Song Dynasty version, the Southern Liang Dynasty version, and the original version.
Third, the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* possesses the attributes of a shamanic scripture—this is a point I personally think we should pay more attention to. If 'spiritual power' is crucial in the painting, then the shamanic scripture might not be an ordinary shamanic scripture, but rather one infused with powerful spiritual power. Now, the content of a shamanic scripture has appeared on our bones; is there some connection between these?
These are the points I currently consider important; please feel free to add your suggestions."
"Let's start by discussing these three points," Shao Ling said. "Too many loose ends can easily lead to confusion. We can continue to expand our discussion, but it would be best if someone took notes, putting them in writing and listing them as items to make our thinking clearer."
A group of grown men exchanged glances, none of them really wanting to be the clerk—most of them had terrible handwriting. "
At this moment, I'm really thinking about Gu Qingqing," Ke Xun said.
Gu Qingqing's handwriting was beautiful and neat, and she was also good at taking notes…
"Let's have a vote," Ke Xun said. "I'll count to three, and everyone point to their preferred clerk."
Everyone could tell Ke Xun was trying to lighten the mood, so they all nodded in agreement.
"One, two, three." As soon as Ke Xun finished speaking, several hands pointed to Shao Ling.
Shao Ling: "…" He felt like he was being bullied in this team…
"Typing with a laptop." "Fortunately, Mu Yiran offered a more understanding solution, but Shao Ling swears he absolutely saw him point a finger at him just now!
Some people appear to be big shots, but secretly engage in clandestine voting, humph.
" "Regarding the first point," the seemingly innocent but actually cunning big shot got to the point, "If the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* is a painting, and can expand into a world within the painting, is this world the starting world of the entire 'Entering the Painting' event? Or, is it the first painting in the entire 'Entering the Painting' event?"
"If it is the first painting, then if we want to find the source of the entire 'Entering the Painting' event, the focus should be on this painting," Zhu Haowen said.
"This leads to the second question," Shao Ling said, "If this painting is the source of the entire 'Entering the Painting' event, then which version of the painting is it? Is our bone structure this version of the painting? Why is this painting reflected in our bone structure?" After a long period of contemplation, Ke Xun shook his head: "
The problem is stuck here. After all, as President Shao just said, all three versions of the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* have been lost. We can never identify which version it is based on the style of the paintings. Let's put this question aside for now. Maybe we can deduce it after we collect more information."
"Then the third question, the attributes of the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* as a book of witchcraft, might explain Shao Ling's last question," Zhu Haowen said. "If it is something imbued with the spiritual power of witchcraft and possesses supernatural power, then the patterns on our bone structure are likely influenced by witchcraft." "
We know that the previous batch of people who were painted had these patterns on their bone structure, just like us. This shows that these patterns are also inherited," Qin Ci said. "And regardless of which version of the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* it is, the previous batch of people we know of who were painted were definitely not the last batch besides us. There must have been many batches of people who were painted before them, and perhaps the experience of being painted was repeated every hundred years or so." " Going back further, we might be able to trace it all the way back to when this version was first created. Those people who entered the painting back then, the first group of people to enter the painting, what is their connection to the *Classic of Mountains and Seas*?"
"Old Qin has hit the nail on the head," Mu Yiran said. "The first group of people to enter the painting would definitely not be like us, coming from all over the country and being complete strangers at first. Due to the limitations of the times, the first group of people to enter the painting must have known each other or even been acquainted, or they were deliberately brought together.
"So, what kind of situation would bring thirteen people who might know each other or might have been deliberately gathered together to this *Classic of Mountains and Seas*?
"And what conditions did they trigger that started this bizarre and terrifying event of entering the painting that has continued for thousands of years?"
A series of questions shrouded everyone in a fog of mystery, and they couldn't help but fall into deep thought again.
Ke Xun saw Luo Yi yawn, so he got up to make coffee for everyone and casually asked, "What do you guys want to add to your coffee?" "Here we have milk, cream, condensed milk, coconut milk, sugar, chocolate..."
"Chocolate, thank you darling, mua!" Wei Dong raised his hand.
Ke Xun: "...Speak properly, don't be so flirtatious."
"Do you have marshmallows, bro? I like marshmallows." Luo Yu said.
Ke Xun: "...What kind of taste is that? But we do have marshmallows."
Zhu Haowen: "With milk, thank you."
Qin Ci: "Honey, please."
Shao Ling: "Coconut milk, thank you."
Ke Xun: "Ah, sorry, I just remembered, we seem to have run out of coconut milk."
Shao Ling: "..."
Ke Xun: "How about I add whipped cream and mint bar?"
Shao Ling: "..."
Ke Xun: "Trust me, this is Hawaiian-style coffee, refreshing and cooling."
Shao Ling: "..." It's the dead of winter, and you want me to cool down? Are you even human?
Ke Xun: "It's decided then." Shao Ling: "
..." Not at all pleasant and I don't want to talk to you anymore.
Ke Xun brought out coffee to distribute to everyone. Looking at his companions in front of him, each posing and drinking their own different flavors of coffee, Ke Xun suddenly found it very interesting.
These people came from different parts of the country, with different lifestyles and personalities, but they came together because of the painting incident. They supported each other, went through life and death together, cried and laughed together, and shared the despair and pressure of having no tomorrow.
This feeling was both heartbreaking and heartwarming.
Ten people.
If it was really as Yi Ran predicted, when thirteen people who could pass through the painting together were gathered, the entire painting incident would undergo earth-shattering changes... Putting aside those changes for now, I'm just very curious about what the remaining three people who can luckily pass through with the existing people will be like.
Will they also have completely different personalities and lifestyles? Will they also have their own specialties and skills?
"—Huh?"
Thinking of this, Ke Xun suddenly frowned.
If the constant entry into the painting was the painting's behind-the-scenes force filtering those who entered, then those who survived now were all people with certain abilities, or at least enough luck.
The painting's behind-the-scenes force needed such people, and what could it use them for?
The painting never offered a clear path to death; it always left a way out for those who entered it. Therefore, it likely hoped to gather all thirteen participants… In other words, it hoped these thirteen participants could solve the mystery—not just the mystery within each painting, but perhaps the mystery of the entire event.
So, shifting our perspective, does this mean that our individual abilities or attributes could provide some form of assistance in solving the mystery?
Perhaps our way of thinking needs a change.
"Dongzi," Ke Xun looked up at Wei Dong, "Regarding the *Classic of Mountains and Seas*, stop pondering its background, its era, and all the questions we just raised."
"Huh?" Wei Dong was taken aback. "Are you insulting my intelligence? *Sob*"
"While I may be insulting your intelligence, I trust your professional skills," Ke Xun handed him the bone structure diagrams. "From now on, treat these diagrams as ordinary pictures. Analyze them from your professional perspective. Don't let any thoughts related to known clues interfere. Analyze them with the purest perspective and approach. Find what's strange, interesting, or illogical. Understand?"
"OK," Wei Dong took the papers. "I understand. I can use your computer for a bit. I'll take pictures of them and analyze them using computer graphics software. I'll be more adept at that."
He then took the papers and went to his study.
"Radish," Ke Xun said, turning to Luo Yu, "I've noticed you know quite a bit about animals, plants, and the natural world. Although I haven't read much of the *Classic of Mountains and Seas*, I know it describes many plants, animals, and geographical features. Now, based on your interests and knowledge, try to figure out the noteworthy parts of the *Illustrated Classic of Mountains and Seas*."
"Okay, brother," Luo Yu nodded repeatedly.
"President Shao," Ke Xun then said to Shao Ling, "You studied literature and history, and Brother Qin has plenty of patience and attention to detail. You two will be responsible for collecting information related to the *Illustrated Classic of Mountains and Seas* from literary works and historical materials."
"Okay," Shao Ling and Qin Ci nodded in agreement.
"Haowen," Ke Xun said, looking at Zhu Haowen.
"I can make a simulator." Before he could speak, Zhu Haowen spoke first. "I'm very interested in the coordinates of these art museums. I can try to simulate all the ways to connect them using a simulator."
Ke Xun looked at him in surprise: "That sounds impressive—how long will it take to make this simulator?"
"A long time," Zhu Haowen slightly curled the corners of his lips, "However, I started writing the simulator program as soon as you discovered that the coordinates could be connected, and coincidentally, I finished it last night."
Ke Xun gave him a thumbs up: "I trust you to get things done. Go for it."
Looking at this person's seemingly carefree and nonchalant face, yet always warm and full of vitality, Zhu Haowen finally understood why his coach had made him the team leader.
He seemed to have a natural talent for seeing even the most inconspicuous strengths in everyone, for uncovering potential that everyone might not even know they had, and for skillfully binding together a group of people who might never be friends, creating a cohesive whole where everyone could contribute their strengths and work together perfectly.
This guy is truly a born… um… sun. All the planets revolve around him, and all the planets can feel his light.
"What about you? What are you planning to do?" Zhu Haowen snapped out of his thoughts and casually asked him.
"Someone like me, who doesn't have any skills or abilities, can only be a cheerleader and cheer you on from the sidelines," Ke Xun struck a sexy cheerleader pose, "Go, go! Go Haowen! Programming is invincible, always strive for first place!"
Zhu Haowen: "…" Sun my ass, he's a black hole.
As for Mu Yiran, Ke Xun didn't need to give him any instructions. He just leaned in and gave him a light kiss on the temple when no one was paying attention, then nestled into the beanbag chair and turned on his phone.
He opened Weibo, which he hadn't logged into in a long time, and glanced at his follower count. He didn't know when it had surpassed 100,000… emmm, maybe handsome gay men are more in demand in real life. After all, it's an era that values looks, and everyone's selling bromance. He just happens to have both.
Ignoring the thousands of unread comments, reposts, and private messages, Ke Xun simply posted a Weibo:
"Corgi has a human: Does anyone know what things in ancient Chinese mythology are related to hemp rope?"
—After all, his, Mu Yiran's, and Shao Ling's bone structure is different from others, which is an absolute point that cannot be ignored.
To ensure his Weibo post reached a wider audience, Ke Xun also attached several old selfies… This is truly using his looks to find clues, Ke Xun sighed. Although it was late, many night owls
couldn't stop scrolling through Weibo. Ten minutes later, there were already dozens of comments under this post. Cat Grandpa's domineering aura: Ahh ... [Licking] [Licking] Qing Si Ran: Ahhhhhh, groundhog screams!!! [Frustrated] [Licking] [Licking] Xiao Ye Zi, are you happy today?: Handsome guy, are you going to play bondage play with your boyfriend? [Dog head] Cute Snoopy: SM beginner's guide to bondage play: [Web link] Take it, you're welcome! Wan Yan Gou Zi: The correct way to gag: [Web link] Take it, you're welcome! Chu Mi Chu Mi Miao: Dangerous game - the bottom's gay bondage play: [Web link] Take it, you're welcome [Dog head][Dog head] Adult video resources: Click to watch passionate domestic real-life sex movies Xiao He Cai Lu Jian Jian Jio: The poster should reflect on why he was targeted by those selling videos. Ke Xun: "..." After filtering out a large number of comments that were licking faces, silly, funny, flirting, and advertising, Ke Xun finally found a seemingly useful message among the hundreds of comments. Author's Note: Ke Xun: Haowen... do you know how to repair the internal system of a phone? My phone seems to be infected with a virus. Haowen: ...I'm just a computer science student. How did your phone get infected? Ke Xun: Well... I clicked on a few web links provided by netizens... Haowen: ???