186: Chapter 186 Wandering in the Ancient Castle

At 9:00 AM the next day, Amit arrived on time.

He stood at the entrance of the villa, dressed the same as yesterday: white shirt, dark trousers, polished leather shoes, and now holding an off-white sun hat.

"Mr. Li, the car is ready. Shall we go to Jaigarh Fort first today?"

"Yes." Li Xin nodded.

Surendra stood nearby, holding a tray with two bottles of water on it.

"Mr. Li, take these for the road. It's hot today, so drink plenty of water."

Li Xin took them and tucked them into his backpack.

They got into the car, which was the same black Mercedes.

The car drove out of the alley and onto the main street. The street was even busier during the day, packed with people and vehicles. Motorcycles darted back and forth through the traffic, and horns blared incessantly.

Suddenly, a vendor pushing a cart selling coconuts was nearly sideswiped by a passing bus. He cursed furiously, but no one paid him any mind, so he had to leave, disgruntled.

Amit, sitting in the passenger seat, turned around to chat with Li Xin.

"Mr. Li, have you been to India before?"

Li Xin smiled and replied, "I've never been here before; this is my first time."

"That's great! For the rest of the way, I'll take you to properly experience the local scenery."

"Hmm, thanks." Li Xin responded indifferently.

Amit continued his introduction.

"Jaipur is a wonderful city with a deep heritage and exquisite architecture. Let's visit Jaigarh Fort first today, and if there's time, we can visit Amber Fort in the afternoon. How does that sound?"

Interest sparked in Li Xin's eyes, and he nodded with a smile.

"Hmm, that sounds good. Hearing you say that, I'm looking forward to it even more. Let's go to Jaigarh Fort first, and we'll see about Amber Fort later."

Amit nodded with a smile, "Don't worry, neither of those spots will disappoint you."

Li Xin smiled faintly and looked out the car window, "Then I shall wait and see."

"Haha, we'll be there soon." Amit laughed.

The car left the old city and turned onto a mountain road. The road was narrow, with sparse woods on both sides. The city walls in the distance were still visible, winding along the mountain ridge, though they were difficult to see clearly.

Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the entrance of the ancient fort.

A large parking lot was filled with dozens of tour buses and private cars. Tourists of all skin colors gathered together, making a noisy clamor.

Some people were buying souvenirs, haggling happily with the vendors, while others were taking photos, striking poses that were hard to look at.

Still, it was certainly quite popular.

Amit bought the tickets and led Li Xin into the ancient fort.

The ancient fort was built on the mountain, constructed entirely of gray-white stone. The walls were very high, with battlements on top. At the main entrance stood two stone elephants, their trunks curled, carved with great detail. The stones were covered in cracks, clearly showing their age from years of wind and sun exposure.

Amit pointed at the walls and began his introduction.

"Mr. Li, this Jaigarh Fort was built in 1592. It was originally ordered to be built by Maharaja Man Singh, and subsequent generations of Maharajas gradually expanded it..."

Li Xin interrupted him, his tone casual.

"I heard the military sealed this place off in 1976. Why was that?"

Amit's smile faltered for a moment, and he forced a weak smile.

"Actually, it was... uh, for renovations. The ancient fort had fallen into disrepair, and the military stepped in to assist with maintenance."

He swept his gaze around thoughtfully and replied indifferently, "Hmm, it does look quite old."

Changing the subject, he added, "But online rumors say otherwise. It's hard to say whether they were helping with maintenance or helping to 'find something'."

Amit subconsciously looked left and right, then whispered.

"Mr. Li, please don't go around saying that. Those are just street rumors and shouldn't be taken seriously. Let's just enjoy the tour."

"Haha, understood, understood." Li Xin shrugged and turned his gaze to the stone elephants beside him.

"Let's enjoy the tour then."

The two continued touring the ancient fort.

The ancient fort looked massive, containing plazas, palaces, and temples inside.

The entire area was built from stone, with walls carved with various patterns, some of which were inlaid with gemstones.

Although there were many tourists, they were spread out, so it didn't feel crowded.

Li Xin looked around as he walked, stopping every now and then to take a photo. The camera was the same Leica he had bought in Dubai. He took pictures of the walls, then the stone carvings.

He stopped when he reached the reservoir.

Before him was a fairly large rectangular reservoir, all built of stone. The bottom of the pool had long since dried up and was overgrown with weeds. A warning sign stood by the pool, written in both Hindi and English, saying "No Entry". The paint on the sign had peeled badly, making the words almost illegible.

Amit stopped by the pool and spoke.

"This is the oldest reservoir in the ancient fort, built back in Maharaja Man Singh's time. Rumor has it there's a secret passage at the bottom of the pool that leads directly outside the city..."

Li Xin stared at the weed-choked pool bottom and said indifferently, "So, the blockade back then was also related to this secret passage?"

Amit tensed up and quickly waved his hands, "Mr. Li, please don't make such connections. It's purely a rumor. The blockade back then was just for building renovations and had nothing to do with any secret passage."

"Hehe... you weren't there, how do you know it's just a rumor?"

Amit gave a wry smile.

"I'm just a small tour guide; how would I know these things? It's just that the higher-ups don't allow discussion of this. Besides, this reservoir was sealed off long ago by the military."

"When did that happen?"

Amit hesitated for a moment.

"Probably... shortly after 1976."

Seeing his troubled expression, Li Xin stopped questioning him and nodded gently, "I understand. Let's not talk about this anymore. Please show me somewhere else."

Amit breathed a sigh of relief and quickly gestured to lead the way, forcing a smile, "Thank you for your understanding, Mr. Li. Let's head towards the main hall; the stone relief carvings there are the best in the entire ancient fort."

"Hmm." Li Xin didn't respond further.

He walked slowly behind him, but his gaze inadvertently swept back to the dried-up reservoir behind him.

"AI System, Scan the reservoir area."

[Scanning... Approximately 22 meters below the reservoir, a large amount of gold has been discovered. The estimated reserves exceed the online rumors.]

"Oh? How much?" Li Xin's lips curled up.

[Preliminary estimate: approximately 80 tons of gold below the reservoir. There are also a large number of gold and silver jewelry, ornaments, and artifacts; a detailed list will require precise Extraction. However, there is interference from a mysterious force here. Extraction will be somewhat troublesome.]

Li Xin's eyes smiled, and he pondered to himself.

"80 tons of gold is indeed more than expected. But what the hell is this mysterious force? Could it be an energy field generated by the religious beliefs here? Hmm... perhaps that's why, despite there being a large amount of wealth, no one has taken it. It's my gain, then."

After figuring this out, Li Xin continued the tour with Amit. When passing by a palace, the System popped up another notification.

[Mysterious religious energy force field interference detected. Adjust detection frequency to avoid interference?]

Li Xin looked at the murals as he walked and thought silently.

"Not for now. I need to know the true intensity of the interference. How clear is the signal right now?"

[Clarity of the main gold storage area is 82%, secondary storage points at 73%. The density of the deep-layer gold exceeds initial estimates, and the energy force field significantly interferes with Extraction. It is recommended to extend the Extraction time.]

"A single Extraction time of 12 hours should be fine, but I'll adjust it based on the situation. Now, arrange the Extraction order, with core targets as the priority."

[Arranged.]

When they reached the east side of the ancient fort, the System popped up another notification.

[Second Treasure Trove detected. Located approximately 15 meters underground, a double-layered secret chamber structure. The upper layer contains a large amount of gold and silver jewelry and antiques; the lower layer is pure gold. Estimated total gold is approximately 120 tons, with some gold and silver jewelry.]

Li Xin did the math in his head.

80 tons below the reservoir, 120 tons in the double-layered secret chamber. That adds up to 200 tons.

He continued walking with Amit. They reached a platform with a wide view, where they could see the entire city of Jaipur. It was gray and hazy, with houses densely packed together and pink walls enclosing the old city.

Amit pointed into the distance.

"That over there is Amber Fort, that is the Water Palace, and that is..."

Li Xin wasn't listening; he was thinking about tonight.

"The tour is about done; let's head back."

Amit checked his watch.

"It's only eleven o'clock; it's still early. Do you want to go see Amber Fort?"

Li Xin paused, turned his head casually, and smiled faintly.

"No, let's just visit Jaigarh Fort today. I have other things to handle this afternoon."

Amit was stunned for a moment, then nodded, very tactfully, "Alright, let's head back now. If you want to visit other historical sites later, feel free to call me anytime."

The two walked out. When they arrived at the parking lot, the driver was waiting in the car. Seeing them come out, he started the engine.

Just as the car drove out of the parking lot, a modified SUV drove towards them. The body was grayish-green, with an antenna mounted on the bumper and dark-tinted windows.

As the two cars passed each other, Li Xin took a look.

There were four men in the car. Two had European faces, and two had Central Asian faces. The person in the passenger seat was holding a device that looked like a thermal imager.

Li Xin casually took a photo and sent it to Liu Mo, asking him to check it out.

A few minutes later, Liu Mo sent a message.

"Boss, we've seen that car. It was in the old city yesterday, and today it's here at the ancient fort again."

Li Xin looked down at his phone.

"What kind of people are in the car?"

Liu Mo replied instantly, "All four are foreign nationals. They are equipped with military-grade thermal imagers and have an antenna mounted on the car; it might be a long-range data link."

"They look quite professional."

"Should we... make contact?"

Li Xin thought for a moment and replied.

"No contact, no avoidance. They watch the ancient fort, we watch them."

"Understood."

The car went down the mountain and entered the old city. The street was still just as busy, packed with people and vehicles.

Li Xin leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.

200 tons.

80 tons in the reservoir, 120 tons in the double-layered secret chamber.

With the interference from these mysterious religious forces, it can only be extracted in two batches. 100 tons each time.

I still need to scout the situation tonight to avoid any accidents when the time comes.

Back at the villa, Surendra was waiting at the entrance.

"Mr. Li, lunch is ready. Would you like to eat in the dining room, or shall I send it to your room?"

"Let's eat in the dining room."

"Very well!"

Li Xin walked into the dining room; several dishes were laid out on the table, including Indian specialties, and it smelled quite fragrant.

He sat down and ate slowly. Halfway through the meal, Liu Mo sent a message.

"The area around the ancient fort has been scouted. There is a patch of woods about 9.8 kilometers to the northeast, backed by a low hill with an open view in front. It's about one kilometer from the road, but there is no lighting at night."

"Hmm, let's go check it out tonight."

"What time?"

"Around seven o'clock; it will be dark by then."

"Very well."

After finishing his meal, Li Xin went upstairs and lay down for a while.

He didn't go out in the afternoon. He flipped through some books in the study and looked at maps. He tried reading about the history of Jaipur, but after flipping through a few pages, he couldn't really get into it.

At seven o'clock, Liu Mo was waiting at the entrance of the villa. He drove an SUV, gray and very ordinary, with a local license plate.

"Get in."

Li Xin got into the passenger seat. Liu Mo started the engine and drove out of the city.

The sky was completely dark, and there were few vehicles on the road. After driving out of the old city, there were no streetlights, and they relied only on the headlights, which barely illuminated a small stretch of road ahead. On both sides of the road were pitch-black farmlands, with a few scattered houses occasionally revealing specks of light.

Twenty minutes later, they arrived at that patch of woods.

Liu Mo parked the car on the side of the road and turned off the engine. He turned off the headlights, and the surroundings instantly went dark.

"This is the place."

Li Xin got out of the car and looked around. The patch of woods wasn't large, backed by a low mound, with an open plain in front. On the road in the distance, headlights flickered on and off. The moon was not visible in the sky, and there were very few stars.

The ground was covered in a mix of gravel and dry grass, and the air was filled with the smell of earth mixed with the scent of dry grass.

"AI System, confirm the distance."

[The straight-line distance from the current position to the reservoir is approximately 9.6 kilometers. It is within the Extraction range.]

"What about the double-layered secret chamber?"

[Approximately 9.8 kilometers from the double-layered secret chamber. It is also within the Extraction range.]

Li Xin stood up and brushed the dust off his hands.

"This is it."

Liu Mo walked over.

"Boss, what are you doing? What do you need me to do?"

"Nothing much, let's set up a security perimeter here. I need to come here tonight. Two roving sentries at the 500-meter outer perimeter, two fixed observation points at the 200-meter middle circle, and you personally bring two people to follow me within the 50-meter inner circle."

"Should we bring thermal imagers?"

"Yes, bring them, four handheld ones. We'll be able to detect any living creature approaching within 300 meters at night."

Liu Mo spoke again, "Very well, are there any other arrangements?"

"No, that's enough. You just need to be responsible for security; don't worry about anything else. If there's any anomaly, notify me first; do not act on your own."

Liu Mo nodded.

"Understood. Don't ask, don't look, don't interfere."

The two stood there for a while. The wind blew from the north, feeling chilly. There was dog barking in the distance, which stopped after a few sounds.

"Let's go back." Li Xin said.

They got in the car, and Liu Mo made a U-turn.

"Are we arranging this for tonight?"

"No, let's arrange it for tomorrow night. Let's get a good rest tonight."

"Very well, I understand."

The car drove back, passing the foot of the ancient fort mountain, and Li Xin glanced out the window. The entire ancient fort was hidden in the darkness, pitch black and indistinguishable. However, there were several cars parked at the foot of the mountain, all with their headlights off, making it impossible to identify the vehicle models.

Liu Mo saw it too.

"Those cars were there this afternoon."

"Do you know who they are?"

Liu Mo shook his head and said, "Not sure, but judging by their appearance, they are definitely not ordinary tourists."

"Go around them, don't get close."

Liu Mo stepped on the gas, and the car accelerated past them.

Back at the villa, it was almost nine o'clock.

Li Xin went upstairs and took a shower. He lay on the bed and opened the system panel.

[Reservoir: 80 tons. Double-layered secret chamber: 120 tons. Total 200 tons. Extraction speed 50 tons/hour, estimated four hours. However, due to interference, it can only be extracted in two batches, two hours each. Good luck!]

"Haha, I hope so. We'll act tomorrow night, starting with the reservoir."

[It is recommended to start at midnight. It will be able to avoid other treasure hunting teams and is suitable for Extraction.]

"Good."

He closed the panel and closed his eyes.

200 tons.

Tomorrow, we act.