38: Chapter 38: Generous Payment

Each scroll condensed the insights and sentiments of ancient scholars towards the scenery of heaven and earth; these masterpieces, having withstood the baptism of time, were all the more precious, becoming synonymous with "priceless treasures" that could drive any collector mad.

He gently put the scrolls away one by one, filled with deep emotion, and secretly thought to himself: "If these treasures were brought out for exhibition, I fear the entire antique world would suffer an earthquake! By then, even experts from the Palace Museum would likely have to line up to pay their respects."

Hu Tian knew that this was only a part of the Heavenly Kings Mansion treasure; in the remaining few boxes, how many secrets were waiting for him to uncover, and how many legendary gaps were waiting for him to fill? Just thinking about it made his scalp tingle with excitement, as if the blood in his entire body were boiling.

Hu Tian carefully put away each scroll, fearing that the slightest carelessness would damage these handed-down treasures; his movements were as gentle as treating a newborn baby, even deliberately slowing his breathing for fear of blowing away the ink charm on the paper.

These paintings and calligraphies had experienced a hundred years of vicissitudes, yet they were still preserved so perfectly, showing how much effort the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom had put into transferring the treasures back then; it was truly "ingenious" and breathtaking.

The sandalwood boxes had excellent sealing properties, and combined with the constant temperature and dryness of the cellar all year round, these fragile paper and silk were spared from moth damage and mildew; it could be called a perfect "time capsule," freezing history at its most glorious moment.

This was only the second box, and there were five more boxes waiting for him to open; Hu Tian felt his heart was about to jump out of his throat, that sense of anticipation like thousands of ants scratching at his heart.

He carefully rolled up the paintings and calligraphies and put them back in the box, his gaze already impatiently cast towards the third sandalwood box, his eyes flashing with a light like a hungry wolf seeing a fat sheep, greedy and excited.

The third box was heavy, emitting a muffled metallic sound when opened, as if what was inside was not objects, but an entire mountain of gold.

Inside was a set of golden booklets, the light instantly illuminating the dim cellar.

[Item Name: Twelve Volumes of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom King-Conferring Gold Booklets! Crafted from pure gold, each volume weighs five catties, engraved with the titles and oaths of kings such as Yang Xiuqing and Shi Dakai, the handwriting clear and shimmering with gold light. This is ironclad evidence of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's enfeoffment system, an epic-level cultural relic.]

[Estimated Value: 24,000,000 Yuan] [Absorbed Energy: +24,000 points, Total Energy: 1,945,040 points]

Hu Tian stroked the cold gold booklets, the heavy feeling making him unable to help but grin: "Good heavens, where is this a book? It is clearly a history book built of gold bricks! The ancients did not deceive me; there is a golden house in books, this is simply 'a golden book hidden in a golden house'!"

It was as if he could feel the blood and ambition of those heroes of that time, transmitted through his fingertips.

Hu Tian shifted his gaze, his eyes landing on a separate vermilion-lacquered wooden box next to the gold booklets; he slowly lifted the lid and was instantly stunned on the spot, his breathing coming to a halt.

Inside the wooden box, twelve gold seals were neatly arranged, each one exuding a heavy historical aura, gleaming with golden light, dazzling and mesmerizing, as if twelve golden dragons were sleeping in the box.

These gold seals varied in size, but without exception, they were finely cast, with intricate patterns on the seal faces, coiled dragon designs, and a majestic aura; each one was wrapped individually in bright yellow silk, preserved extremely well, exuding a majesty of ruling over the world.

The system notification sounded immediately, the tone even carrying a bit of excitement: [Item Name: Twelve Gold Seals of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Kings! Cast from pure gold, each seal weighs eight catties, with the seal scripts corresponding to the Heavenly King Hong Xiuquan, East King Yang Xiuqing, West King Xiao Chaogui, South King Feng Yunshan, North King Wei Changhui, Wing King Shi Dakai, and the seals of the six kings enfeoffed in the later period; the seal knobs are all coiled dragon shapes, finely engraved, and magnificent. This is the symbol of the highest power of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and also a peerless, unique artifact for studying the political system of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, an epic-level cultural relic.]

[Estimated Value: 960,000,000 Yuan] [Absorbed Energy: +96,000 points, Total Energy: 2,041,040 points]

[Treasure Source Analysis: After the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom established its capital in Tianjing, Hong Xiuquan modeled after the Ming and Qing dynasty rituals to cast the kings' gold seals to demonstrate the legitimacy of the Heavenly Kingdom's regime. In 1864, the Xiang Army broke through Tianjing, and the Heavenly Kingdom collapsed. The kings' gold seals were either looted by the Xiang Army or scattered with the remnants. In official historical records, this batch of gold seals had long been missing and was listed by the historical community as the first of the "Top Ten Missing Treasures of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom." Today, their reappearance is truly a blessing for the nation!]

After reading this introduction, Hu Tian was a bit dazed, his brain experiencing a momentary blank.

Nine hundred sixty million!

This was just the estimated value given by the system; if they were to actually enter the auction market, this number would likely multiply several times over, which was simply a true portrayal of "wealth rivaling a nation."

Moreover, the historical significance carried behind these twelve gold seals could not be measured by money at all; they were the highest witnesses to that magnificent history.

He gently picked up a gold seal and looked at the face; he saw the four big characters "Seal of the East King" strikingly visible, the seal script vigorous and powerful, the gold as bright as new, as if time had never left a trace on it.

Hu Tian murmured: "Yang Xiuqing... did you use this seal back then? Did you also hold it, pointing out the mountains and rivers, stirring up words?"

No one answered him; in the cellar, only the faint crackling of the torches on the wall could be heard, as if narrating the vicissitudes of the past.

He carefully examined the gold seals one by one; every time he turned to one, his mind would automatically conjure up that magnificent history that eventually ended in blood and fire, his mood complex and indescribable, with both nostalgia for the heroes and sighs for the ruthlessness of history.

These gold seals witnessed the birth of a dynasty and also witnessed its collapse; now, after waiting silently in this deep, underground darkness for over a hundred years, they had only reappeared before the eyes of the world today, regaining their brilliance.

"Good stuff, really good stuff."

Hu Tian swallowed his saliva, took a deep breath, and carefully put the twelve gold seals and gold booklets into the System Space one by one, his movements smooth and flowing, as if he were putting away his own toys, a surge of pride in controlling history rising in his heart.

Just as Hu Tian was about to open the fourth box, a harsh yet pleasant mechanical notification sound suddenly came to his ears.

[Ding! Detected that the host's current energy value has reached 2,041,040 points, meeting the upgrade conditions; do you wish to consume 2,000,000 energy points to upgrade to LV4?]

Hu Tian's movements suddenly paused, his brows slightly furrowed, then relaxed: "This system really knows how to pick its moments, jumping out just when I am immersed in the vicissitudes of history, but... I like it!"

However, he quickly adjusted his mood; since the conditions were met, there was nothing to hesitate about; anyway, he had more energy than he could spend.

"Upgrade!"

Hu Tian thought silently in his heart, his tone decisive and unquestionable.

[Ding! Upgrade successful! Current level: LV4, remaining energy: 41,040 points.]

As soon as the voice fell, Hu Tian felt a warm current surge into his mind, his whole spirit invigorated, and every cell in his body seemed to be cheering and leaping, as if he had been reborn.

Immediately after, the system notification sounded again, this time with a bit of generosity, as if it were giving out a year-end bonus.

[Congratulations to the host for upgrading to LV4, obtaining the following rewards: 1. Treasure Hunting Radar scanning range increased to 100 meters, adding treasure hunting positioning function, capable of marking and locking target treasure coordinates; 2. Underground scanning depth increased to 30 meters, capable of penetrating deeper soil layers to detect buried artifacts; 3. System Space capacity expanded to 50 cubic meters, storage capacity significantly improved; 4. Added skill 'Treasure Hunting Clues', capable of obtaining global coordinate hints for lost treasures once a month.]

After hearing this series of rewards, a flash of surprise crossed Hu Tian's eyes, and his mouth almost stretched to his ears.

The scanning range had doubled, and the underground detection depth had also increased, which meant his efficiency in treasure hunting would be higher in the future, allowing him to discover more treasures hidden in the depths; it was truly "like a tiger with wings."

And the System Space expanding to fifty cubic meters solved his most pressing problem—the treasures in this cellar were truly too many, the original space was almost full, and now he could finally "contain all rivers."

As for that "Treasure Hunting Clues" skill, although it could only be used once a month, it could directly provide coordinate hints for lost treasures; this was simply a cheat within a cheat, and from now on, the world's treasures were his to roam!

A smile unconsciously curled up at the corner of Hu Tian's mouth, and he muttered to himself: "It seems that today is truly a double happiness; not only did I dig up the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom treasure, but I also upgraded my level; it really is 'people feel refreshed when happy events occur'!"

He stretched his muscles and bones, feeling full of strength, and then his gaze fell back on the fourth box in front of him, his eyes even sharper.

Hu Tian silently digested this series of rewards, his heart full of satisfaction, and was just about to continue opening the boxes when the system notification did not stop there, but instead rang twice more, as if it still had a big move left to unleash.

[Ding! Detected that the host performed excellently during this upgrade, triggering a hidden reward mechanism, granting two additional special skills; please check them, host.]

Hu Tian's eyelids twitched slightly; hidden rewards?

This was the first time he had heard of this; could it be that his posture while opening the boxes earlier was too cool?

It was his first time hearing this, and he immediately urged in his heart: "Speak quickly, stop keeping me in suspense; what are the skills?"

The system immediately pushed the detailed descriptions of the two skills into his mind, every word a gem.

First skill: Ancient Relic Appraisal.

After activating this skill, the host can perform deep perception on any antique artifact, not only accurately determining the age, material, and authenticity but also automatically conjuring up the complete historical trajectory of the item in the mind, including the handlers, burial locations, and circulation process; the cooldown time is twenty-four hours, and it can be used three times a day.

Second skill: Crisis Premonition.

This skill is a passive skill, activated by default, and does not need to be actively triggered.

When there are malicious plots or potential threats against the host within a fifty-meter radius, the system will automatically issue a warning, informing the host of the threat direction and danger level in advance, helping the host avoid or prepare for the threat in advance.

After reading this, Hu Tian was stunned on the spot for several seconds, then the corners of his mouth slowly spread, the smile unstoppable; he almost wanted to look up to the sky and let out three long roars.

"Ancient Relic Appraisal? This is simply a 'Super Heavenly Eye' tailored for me!"

Hu Tian was ecstatic in his heart, "In the future, when visiting antique markets, any expert appraisal or eye-judging errors will all be fleeting clouds! With one glance, the details of an item will have nowhere to hide, and no demons or monsters will be able to muddle through in front of me; it really is 'fiery eyes to distinguish truth from falsehood'!"

And the Crisis Premonition skill made the heavy stone in his heart fall to the ground, as if he had put on an invisible bulletproof vest.

Previously, he had ventured deep into dangerous places alone, relying only on his instincts and experience, sometimes inevitably feeling nervous; now with this invisible shield, those knives in the dark wanting to stab him silently would likely not be so easy, it is simply 'foreknowledge to avoid disaster'.

"System, you were generous enough this time; it's simply 'the Bodhisattva lowering brows to send the gospel'."