41: Chapter 41 The Imperial Seal

The seal was warm and moist like fat, square in shape, and about the size of a palm.

It was a warm white color with a fine, dense texture, and one could see cloud-like patterns flowing within the jade, as if a piece of moonlight had been condensed into a small space.

Most striking was the knob—carved into the shape of a coiled dragon.

A five-clawed golden dragon was coiled atop the seal, its head held high with a disdainful gaze, its body vigorous and powerful.

Every scale was clearly distinguishable and lifelike, as if it were about to soar into the sky in the next second.

"This is..."

Hu Tian's pupils suddenly constricted, his hands trembled slightly, and his breathing became rapid.

He carefully lifted the seal from the box.

It felt heavy in his hand, a weight that came not just from the jade itself, but seemed to carry a certain intangible historical gravity that made his heart tremble.

At the bottom of the seal were eight seal characters, the strokes vigorous and powerful, the carving deep: "By the Will of Heaven, Treasure of the Emperor of the Great Ming."

Hu Tian's heart pounded wildly; he could hardly believe his eyes.

"imperial seal of the ming dynasty... This is actually the imperial seal of the ming dynasty!"

His voice trembled slightly. "The imperial seal personally made by Zhu Yuanzhang. Historical records state it was lost in the late Ming Dynasty. How could it... how could it be here? Am I dreaming? System, are you sure you didn't make a mistake? This is a 'National Treasure'!"

Just then, the long-awaited system prompt sounded in his mind: [Ding! Precious historical artifact detected: imperial seal of the ming dynasty]

[Item Name: imperial seal of the ming dynasty (By the Will of Heaven, Treasure of the Emperor)] [Material: Hetian Mutton-Fat White Jade] [Era: Hongwu Period of the Ming Dynasty (1368 AD)] [Maker: Commissioned by Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang, supervised by the Chief of Jade Craftsmen of Jiangnan]

[Historical Value: ★★★★★ (Priceless)] [Artifact Grade: National Treasure] [Completeness: 100%] [Item Description: The imperial seal personally ordered by Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang after his ascension to the throne. It was carved from top-quality Hetian mutton-fat jade from the Western Regions and completed by the top jade craftsmen of Jiangnan over three years. This seal symbolizes the orthodoxy of the Ming imperial power; every emperor of the dynasty had to use this seal to proclaim their reign to the world. In the seventeenth year of Chongzhen (1644) at the end of the Ming Dynasty, Li Zicheng captured Beijing, and the whereabouts of this seal became unknown; historical records state it was lost from then on.]

[Transmission Path: Cast in the first year of Hongwu (1368) → Passed down through generations of Ming emperors → Li Zicheng captured Beijing in the seventeenth year of Chongzhen (1644) and seized the seal from the imperial palace → Li Zicheng was defeated and withdrew from Beijing in the first year of Shunzhi (1644), fleeing to Xi'an with the seal → Li Zicheng died in battle at Jiugong Mountain in the second year of Shunzhi (1645), and his accompanying generals took the seal and lived in seclusion among the people → During the reign of Emperor Qianlong, descendants of Li Zicheng's former subordinates secretly offered the seal to the anti-Qing, pro-Ming organization, the Tiandihui → During the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom uprising in the thirtieth year of Daoguang (1850), the remnants of the Tiandihui defected to Hong Xiuquan with the seal, offering it as a symbol of the Heavenly King's "compliance with Heaven's will" → After Hong Xiuquan established his capital in Nanjing in the third year of Xianfeng (1853), he placed this seal in the Holy Treasury and kept it secret.]

[Reward Spiritual Rhyme Energy: +1,000,000 points]

A flood of information poured into Hu Tian's mind.

He stood frozen in place, holding the seal, completely stunned and unable to speak.

"My God..."

After a long while, he exhaled a long breath and muttered to himself, "So that's how it was... No wonder history books record that the imperial seal of the ming dynasty was lost in the hands of Li Zicheng. It turns out it was taken away by his subordinates, eventually fell into the hands of the Tiandihui, and was then offered to Hong Xiuquan. This plot is even more exciting than a TV show!"

He looked down at the seal in his hand, his gaze complex.

This small seal had witnessed the rise and fall of the Ming Dynasty and experienced the bloody storms of dynastic change. From the Forbidden City to Xi'an, from the Tiandihui to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, spanning nearly three hundred years of time, it had been preserved intact to this day.

"Hong Xiuquan, that old fox, actually hid this thing so deeply."

Hu Tian chuckled. "He probably wanted to use this seal to prove his identity as the 'True Dragon Emperor,' right? Unfortunately, a seal cannot change anything; what was destined to fail still failed. However, this is a bargain for me, haha!"

He carefully examined the seal characters at the bottom. Those eight characters were vigorous and powerful, each stroke exuding the aura of an emperor.

"By the Will of Heaven, Treasure of the Emperor of the Great Ming..."

Hu Tian recited the eight characters softly, his heart surging.

This was the genuine imperial seal of the ming dynasty, the seal personally ordered by Zhu Yuanzhang!

Its historical value and cultural significance were a hundred, no, a thousand times greater than the gold armor, dragon robes, and scepters he had just seen.

If this thing were to be released, the entire Chinese archaeological and historical community would be shaken. Countless Museum directors would be crying and begging him to donate it, and countless historians would rush over overnight just to catch a glimpse of the real thing.

Hu Tian took a deep breath, his eyes flashing with excitement. "This trip today was a massive profit! The gold armor, dragon robes, and scepters were already shocking enough, but I didn't expect such a huge surprise at the end! If this were taken to an auction house, I'm afraid it would scare the jaws off those collectors!"

He carefully held the seal in his palm, feeling the warm texture of the jade.

This seal carried the national destiny of the Ming Dynasty for nearly three hundred years and witnessed the entire process of a dynasty from rise to fall. Now, it lay quietly in his hands.

"Zhu Yuanzhang, oh Zhu Yuanzhang, you never dreamed that the imperial seal you personally cast back then would end up in my hands hundreds of years later, right?"

Hu Tian chuckled, his eyes full of complex emotions. "But don't worry, I will take good care of it and will never let it be lost among the people again. After all, I am the 'Chosen One'!"

He raised his right hand and gave a light wave.

The seal, along with the sandalwood box containing it, disappeared into thin air and was stored in his System Space.

The pale red halo dissipated, and the secret chamber fell into complete calm.

Hu Tian stood up and looked around; all the treasures in this secret chamber had been collected by him.

"Time to go."

Hu Tian looked around. The Holy Treasury, which had been piled high with wooden boxes of treasures, had become empty, leaving only the messy marks on the floor and the dust in the corners, telling the history of this place.

He took out his flashlight and carefully checked the four walls of the warehouse again, not missing any clues, confirming that no corner had been left out.

He truly achieved the ultimate sweep of "not even a mosquito's blood is left behind."

Half an hour later, the large warehouse was empty. Hu Tian checked it thoroughly; only mottled light and shadows and dust dancing in the light beam remained in the Holy Treasury, as if everything just now had been a dream.

"Job done."

Standing in the center of the empty stone chamber, Hu Tian took a deep breath, feeling the open atmosphere around him, and a sense of unprecedented achievement and relief welled up in his heart.

Hu Tian switched his flashlight and turned to walk toward the entrance of the Holy Treasury.

At this moment, his System Space was fully loaded—countless gold and silver jewelry, priceless antique artifacts, shocking gold armor and dragon robes, historical documents, and that imperial seal of the ming dynasty capable of rewriting history.

The harvest of this trip far exceeded his expectations.

Walking through the heavy stone door of the Holy Treasury, Hu Tian entered the narrow passage again.

He raised his flashlight, and the beam traced a bright trajectory in the darkness, illuminating the path ahead.

The scenes from when he arrived were still vivid in his mind, and now he had to return the same way.

After walking a few steps, Hu Tian stopped and looked down at the ground.

On the floor of the passage, the footprints he had left when he arrived were vaguely visible. Although they were shallow, their shapes could still be identified.

"I cannot leave any traces."

Hu Tian took a small brush out of his backpack, squatted down, and carefully swept the footprints on the ground clean.

Although this place was extremely hidden and had not been discovered for hundreds of years, for the sake of caution, he still had to be meticulous.

After clearing the footprints, he continued moving forward.

Soon, he arrived at the first trap—the narrow section filled with poison arrow mechanisms.

When he came, he had relied on the precise scanning of his Treasure Hunting Radar and his agile skills to carefully avoid all trigger points. Now, on the return trip, he needed to be equally cautious.

Hu Tian slowed his pace, his eyes fixed on the floor and walls.

Under the illumination of the flashlight, those trigger points that were almost integrated into the stone wall were clearly visible—some were slightly protruding stones on the ground, others were faint cracks on the walls.

He took a deep breath, held his breath, and began to pass through slowly.

Every step was taken with extreme precision, every movement was controlled just right, and his body pressed against the wall to avoid those dangerous areas as much as possible.

A few minutes later, he successfully passed this section without triggering any mechanisms.

Next was the second trap—the floor collapse zone.

That was a section of seemingly flat stone road, but in reality, it was empty underneath. As long as one stepped on a specific position, the entire stone slab would collapse, and a person would fall directly into the deep pit below.

Hu Tian remembered clearly that when he came, he had passed by stepping on the edges on both sides, where the stone slabs were connected to the wall and were relatively solid.

He slowed his pace again, carefully stepping on the edge of the stone slab with his toes, his body pressed against the wall, moving bit by bit.

The whole process was like walking a tightrope, requiring extreme balance and concentration.

"Phew—" After successfully passing, Hu Tian let out a long breath, and fine beads of sweat had already seeped out on his forehead.

Although he was agile, in the face of such potentially fatal traps, he still dared not be the slightest bit careless.

Continuing forward, there was another hidden door mechanism.

This hidden door was designed extremely ingeniously. From the outside, it looked like an ordinary stone wall, but it could only be opened by finding the specific trigger point.

Hu Tian reached out and pressed on the special stone brick on the wall, pushing it gently inward.

With a soft "click," the stone wall slowly separated to the sides, revealing the passage behind.

He walked through quickly, and after the hidden door behind him closed automatically, he used his brush to clear the traces on the ground again.

In this way, he moved carefully all the way, clearing traces and avoiding mechanisms.

His movements were light and skillful, as agile as a monkey, his heart full of the joy of harvest, and his steps became brisk, as if he had wind under his feet.

Fortunately, the journey was smooth, and he did not encounter any accidents. Only his own breathing and footsteps echoed in the darkness, appearing exceptionally clear.

When he returned to the surface, it was completely dark, night had fallen, and the stars were dotted in the sky.

Hu Tian checked his watch; it was already past six o'clock in the evening of the next day.

Having stayed in the underground secret chamber for a day and a night, he hadn't even noticed, which showed that his level of focus while treasure hunting had reached a state of self-forgetfulness.

Night fell, and Cuiyun Peak was shrouded in a hazy twilight, appearing exceptionally mysterious and quiet, like a sleeping giant.

The lights of the distant Jinling City lit up one by one, like stars, forming a sharp contrast with the silence in the mountains—two worlds, two lives.

Hu Tian restored the vines and dead branches at the entrance of the cave to their original state, carefully cleared the traces around, and ensured that no abnormalities would be discovered by anyone.

After doing all this, he patted the dust off his hands, tidied his clothes, and walked quickly down the mountain along the mountain road, his figure blending into the night.

The black off-road vehicle hidden by the roadside waited quietly, like a crouching beast.

Hu Tian opened the car door, sat in the driver's seat, started the engine, and the headlights cut through the night, driving away from the Cuiyun Peak area, leaving behind a long trail of light.