Things happened so suddenly that everything before their eyes was beyond imagination!
"This..." Everyone was in disbelief.
However, the nine dragon corpses and the copper coffin lay ahead, an unshakable reality right before them!
Everything before them defied common sense and overturned their understanding, causing a strong shock to everyone's mind.
In the chaos just moments ago, Ye Fan and the others did not panic and flee. They remained together until the peak of Yuhuangding settled down. Though they were all thrown to the ground, there were no major casualties—only a few people suffered minor arm injuries.
At this moment, their faces were filled with shock. The incredible scene in front of them would be etched in their memories forever.
The nine massive dragon corpses lay silently ahead, and the huge copper coffin was so imposing that it overwhelmed the senses. Everything was so striking and mysterious.
No one could speak, their minds were in turmoil, their faces etched with expressions of shock, fear, and unease. They were unable to calm down.
After a long period of stunned silence, Lin Jia finally whispered, "We should hurry down the mountain."
Everyone nodded, agreeing that they should leave immediately. No one wanted to stay here even a second longer. The atmosphere at Yuhuangding felt chilling, and no one could understand why nine dragon corpses would bring a copper coffin here, why they had landed on Mount Tai. Despite the facts before them, they could not fully accept it, and anxiety gripped their hearts.
Under the blood-red sunset, Yuhuangding was in ruins, especially around the copper coffin, where a massive pit had been created, and the cracks radiating out from it were a meter wide, like a spider's web stretching in all directions.
One of the cracks, winding like a centipede, stretched toward Ye Fan and the others. Fortunately, the crack narrowed near the end, no wider than a palm, preventing any ground collapse or pitfall.
As they were about to leave, Li Xiaoman pointed ahead and said, "What's that?"
A half-buried jade fragment was shining under the sunset light, reflecting a glimmer.
Although everyone was still somewhat afraid, they walked a few steps forward and saw a corner of a round altar exposed beneath the large crack, along with a broken piece of jade shaped like a jade book.
"How could this be? Could something be buried beneath?"
The round altar was not large, simple and ancient, made from five different colors of mysterious stones, radiating the aura of time. No one knew how long it had existed.
"Look, there's more ahead!" Wang Ziwen, standing at the front, exclaimed in surprise, pointing toward an even larger crack.
Beneath the nearly two-meter-wide crack, another five-colored earth altar could be seen. The round altar had been cracked, and a jade tablet inside had emerged, covered with complex symbols and characters none of them could recognize.
At this moment, everyone looked shocked, and the words "fengchan" (sacrifices to heaven) came to their minds. This was highly likely to be an ancient altar used for sacrifices to the heavens!
The five-colored earth altar containing jade tablets was reminiscent of what was described in the "Baihu Tongyi" written by Ban Gu during the Eastern Han Dynasty, which stated: "Some say that the seal is made with gold mud and silver rope, others say it is stone mud and gold rope, sealed with an imperial seal."
Similarly, Sima Qian's "Records of the Grand Historian" (Shiji) also mentioned: "Flying heroes and tangible results, recorded with gold mud and stone."
In just a short while, everyone was astonished to find that beneath the surrounding cracks, there were many such five-colored altars—over thirty in total.
Each five-colored earth altar was ancient, with marks of time clearly visible. Most of them contained jade pieces or stone tablets, all inscribed with difficult-to-decipher ancient characters.
Everyone felt amazed, vaguely sensing that there might be some connection between these altars, the dragon corpses, and the copper coffin.
Ye Fan, who loved reading "mystery" books, was more knowledgeable about the concept of "fengchan" than others, and his heart was shaken. Could it be true that the ancient emperors and kings really performed sacrifices to heaven here?
Perhaps the legends were true, or how else could there be so many five-colored altars? Based on the characters on the altars, many of them were Oracle Bone Script, seemingly confirming this theory.
Though everyone should have left immediately, they were unintentionally drawn in and had already circled around the copper coffin. They were shocked by the nine huge dragon corpses, the massive twenty-meter-long copper coffin, and the numerous five-colored altars underground.
"It doesn't seem dangerous, but those dragon corpses…"
After circling halfway around, their fear gradually subsided, but they still felt uneasy and decided to leave the mountain quickly.
"Look, there's a giant altar in the central pit!"
The copper coffin had created a massive pit in the ground, and as the group turned to the other side of the copper coffin, they looked down and were once again stunned.
At the bottom of the pit, there was a gigantic altar. Unlike the other earth altars made of mud, this one was constructed entirely from five different colored giant stones, solidly supporting the twenty-meter-long copper coffin, without a single crack or flaw.
This enormous five-colored stone altar was clearly different from the other earth altars. It was centrally located at Yuhuangding, grand and imposing, much larger than the others.
Despite the immense impact from the descending copper coffin, the altar had not been damaged in any way, leaving everyone astounded at the quality of the mysterious stone used.
On this huge five-colored stone altar, besides the copper coffin, there were also many jade blocks and stone tablets, all filled with ancient energy.
Both the jade blocks and stone tablets were inscribed with highly mysterious ancient characters—more primitive than the Oracle Bone Script, resembling heavenly symbols or drawings.
On the giant altar, an entire row of these jade blocks and stone tablets were neatly placed, untouched by the impact of the copper coffin, which further added to their puzzlement.
"We should leave quickly," Ye Fan and Zhou Yi both urged.
Everyone nodded in agreement. This place was not suitable for prolonged stay. Even though it hid countless secrets, this was not the time to explore them. The nine dragon corpses and the copper coffin made everyone uneasy.
As everyone began to turn to leave, a female student let out a sudden scream. A large stone underfoot rolled into the pit, and she lost her balance and began to fall.
"Watch out!" A male student, quick to react, grabbed her just in time, and a few other classmates helped pull her back up.
The stone that had been stepped on rolled into the pit with a loud rumble, then with a heavy thud, it struck the five-colored stone altar.
Instantly, the massive stone altar glowed with a five-colored, hazy aura, and everyone felt a great force enveloping their bodies. Their legs felt as if weighed down by lead, making it impossible to move even a single step.
"Boom!"
The five-colored stone altar shook violently, causing the entire Yuhuangding to tremble. The group standing near the edge of the pit suddenly felt the world spinning, but they couldn't move. The force from the tremor sent them all tumbling into the pit.
They all landed on the stone altar, and fear overwhelmed them!