Pei Ming and the others entered a family's yard, probably to see if there was a well. Xie Lian stepped into the yard and said casually, "The houses on this street are all so tall and majestic."

Hua Chengdao: "Tonglu is located in the center of the imperial city of Wuyong State. This place is very close to Tonglu, which means it has been very close to the imperial city for two thousand years. It is also a prosperous place, so it is naturally tall and majestic, because most of the people who live here are dignitaries and wealthy families."

There was indeed a well, but the scene beside the well was horrible. Seven or eight people were lying on the side of the well, as if they were dying of thirst and had moved here in their dying struggle, but they still died. Walking closer, Xie Lian was stunned and said, "This...isn't it more like a stone statue than a person?"

These are certainly not living people, but they are not corpses either, and certainly not skeletons. Instead, they are extremely rough gray-white "stone statues".

Just as Xie Lian was about to touch it with his hands, Hua Cheng glanced at him from the side. He immediately remembered that they had just agreed not to touch dangerous or strange things, so he forced himself to hold back. Then he thought again, who would make so many scary stone statues for no reason? They should be human beings, but somehow they became like this.

The front door of this family was wide open. He looked into the room to the side and saw two people lying on the floor, in twisted postures, hugging each other tightly. Although their faces were blurry and their expressions were unclear, he could sense the fear of these two people just by their movements. There was also something tightly hugged between the two people, which looked like a bundle at first glance, but after a closer look, Xie Lian suddenly understood.

That must be a baby.

The matter was clear now. Xie Lian said, “Those outside are the servants of this family, and those inside are the master and his family of three, right?”

Hua Cheng said: "Yes. After the volcano erupted, the flowing water of Wuyong River turned into raging magma. The residents living in the highlands were not burned to death by the magma and the raging fire, but they could not escape the ubiquitous volcanic ash in the air and suffocated to death."

The overwhelming volcanic ash instantly enveloped their entire bodies, forming a hard shell on the surface, preserving the moment before people died, turning them into petrified statues. At the moment of their lives ending, the couple hugged their lover and child in fear, becoming one.

Of course, the ancient well had dried up long ago. Pei Ming had no interest in studying the dead body mold, so he went out to pick up Pei Su and continued to look for water. Suddenly, Xie Lian noticed something strange, turned over and went into the house, squatting next to the petrified statue of the family of three. Hua Cheng also came in and asked, "What do you want to see?"

Xie Lian frowned slightly and said, “I just think that their movements are a bit strange. These two adults are hugging each other tightly with one hand, but the other hand…” The other hand is placed on the chest, as if tightly grasping something.

Hua Cheng said: "Do you want to see what they are holding in their hands?"

As soon as Xie Lian nodded, Hua Cheng patted the petrified statue. Xie Lian hurriedly said, "Wait, isn't this too bad for their bodies..." However, Hua Cheng was quicker than him, and the family of three instantly turned into a pile of gray and white fragments. Hua Cheng said calmly, "Don't worry too much. The people are already dead, and their bodies are gone."

There was nothing in that pile of debris. These "stone statues" were actually hollow.

That's right, although the volcanic ash on the surface forms a hard protective shell, the body wrapped inside will eventually rot and decompose. After the rotting is complete, only the ash shell on the surface will remain.

What was once alive will eventually pass away, but what never had life will last forever.

In the fragments of volcanic ash shells, there were some unrotten cloths and jewelry from the owner, such as rings, earrings, necklaces, etc. Xie Lian thought it was unlikely that the couple would grab these gold and silver jewelry before they died. As he was picking through them, Hua Cheng picked up something from the ground and handed it to him. Xie Lian asked, "What is this?"

Hua Cheng said: "This is what they are holding tightly in their hands."

It was a pendant, with shiny gold flakes and bone-like ornaments hanging on it. There were patterns on the gold flakes. Xie Lian gently wiped off the dust on it, looked at it carefully for a moment, and said, "Mars guards the heart?"

The picture on the gold plate is actually a picture of the sky. Gold is the sky, and agate is the stars. It is the so-called "Mars guarding the heart", that is, the celestial image of Mars staying in the heart for a long time.

Mars has always been regarded as the star of war and death, and Mars in the heart is an ominous sign, especially for leaders such as kings and emperors. Why would such a celestial image be depicted on ornaments?

No, this shouldn’t be a jewelry. Xie Lian searched among the empty shell fragments for a while and found two more identical pendants, a total of three, including one for the baby in the couple’s arms. How could they have three copies of the same jewelry? Xie Lian asked, “Could this be a talisman?”

Only the amulet can make people want to hold on to it tightly at the moment before death, and pray madly with the last hope in fear. Hua Cheng said: "That's right. I also dug a part of this city, and found this amulet in many petrified statues."

Xie Lian pondered and said, “The Wuyong people believe in their prince, so this should be the prince’s amulet. But why draw this? Is there any connection between the prince and the star Mars guarding the heart?”

Hua Cheng said: "Because on the day he was born, the celestial sign was Mars in the heart. Therefore, the people of Wuyong country used this celestial sign to refer to him."

Xie Lian asked curiously, “How did Sanlang know this?”

Hua Cheng flipped the gold piece over and said with a smile, "This is what it says."

Sure enough, there was a line of words engraved on the back. Hua Cheng pointed it out to him and said, "This line of words means 'Mars guards the heart, a saint will be born'. Now in our eyes, Mars guarding the heart is an ominous sign, but it may not be so two thousand years ago."

Xie Lian stroked the line of text, but his heart slowly sank.

Because, the astronomical sign on the day he was born was that Mars was in the heart!

Isn’t this a bit too coincidental?

Xie Lian stood up and said, "Let's go to the temple."

The two walked side by side along the long street. Pei Ming and the others found nothing in this area, so they followed. There were many remains of carriages and horses on the street, some resting on the roadside, and some completely overturned on the ground. There were also some petrified people lying on the ground in different postures. Most of them hid in their homes for refuge. These were homeless beggars or passers-by who didn't have time to go home. The roar and struggle at the moment before death were preserved, and everyone walked through this bizarre crowd. Hua Cheng pointed out to Xie Lian which ones were the mansions of wealthy merchants and which ones were places for feasting and entertainment. Xie Lian couldn't help but say, "Sanlang, the Wuyong Kingdom has been destroyed for more than two thousand years, and there were no descendants before. How did you learn those characters?"

You can't just learn it out of thin air, there must be a way. Hua Cheng said: "It's not too difficult. Brother can see that some Wuyong characters are very similar to the current characters."

Xie Lian said, “Yes, the two characters ‘Wu Yong’ are very similar to the current form.”

Hua Chengdao: "Yes. So these two characters were among the first Wuyong characters I learned. There are a few more like this, interspersed in sentences, and we can infer more new characters before and after. There are also some with the same shape but different meanings, but they are rare."

Xie Lian nodded, and Hua Cheng continued, "Then, there are those characters that appear more frequently. For example, these two."

He pointed to two buildings on the street and said, "You can clearly tell where this is. The words on the sign are different at the front but the same at the back. In this way, we can determine what the last two words mean. It's either a restaurant or a diner. There are many more ways, brother, I want to hear more. I'll tell you one by one when I have time."

So that’s how it is. There are actually people in this world who can figure out something completely on their own without any help. Xie Lian couldn’t help but marvel in his heart.

The Wuyong Temple was still the tallest and most imposing building in the city. When they arrived in front of the temple, before they entered, Pei Ming suddenly asked, "What's that sound?"

Squeak, squeak, squeak. It came from far away and faded away. Xie Lian asked, “Rat?”

Hua Cheng said: "It's not an ordinary rat. However, the presence of rats means there is water nearby."

Entering the hall, this time, there were no scorch marks left on the walls. When I looked up, I could see large patches of brightly colored murals. However, this time, there was not just one mural, but three! There was one on each of the three walls!

Everyone came to the first mural and looked up. They saw Prince Wuyong sitting on the clouds, with golden light shining all around him. But his face was stern, and his left hand was holding a ball of light, and in the halo was a small mountain spitting flames; his right hand had five fingers together, with the palm facing forward, as if waving.

Below was a palace with more than a dozen people standing in it. Their clothes and accessories were all gorgeous. Each person had a different movement, some with their arms outstretched, some wearing armor and drawing bows, and some pointing into the distance with excitement.

The details of the painting were complex and contained a wide range of content. Xie Lian looked at it for a long time before turning around and asking, “Can you tell me what I understand the meaning of this painting to be?

"The halo held by Prince Wuyong's left hand has a small volcanic eruption scene inside, which means he told his dream to the people below. And the gesture of his right hand is obviously a negative gesture, which should be a rejection of something."

Pei Ming asked: "Then what exactly are you rejecting?"

Xie Lian said, “That depends on the actions of the people below. This palace is located in the human world, it is magnificent and splendid, it should be the imperial palace. This group of people should be the princes and nobles of Wuyong country. The one with his arms open, judging by his posture, is trying to ‘expand’. What is he expanding? That depends on what he is holding.”

Everyone looked closely and saw that he was holding a map. Pei Ming was very familiar with this and said, "Expand the territory!"

Xie Lian said, “Yes. And these generals, dressed in military uniforms, seem to be ready to go into battle. There are people beside them giving them directions. You see, their movements are very clear in direction, as if they are saying: ‘Go there, fight there.’

"In this way, the meaning of this painting is easy to understand - to summarize it is: Prince Wuyong told his prophetic dream to the ministers in the palace. Once the volcano erupts, the consequences will be extremely serious and it will be a disaster for Wuyong. The country's territory will not be enough because the volcano is located in the center, and important cities will definitely disappear. So how to solve it?"

Hua Cheng said: "If your own territory is not enough, then go and occupy other people's territory."

Xie Lian said, “That’s right. So, the ministers proposed to expand the territory and attack neighboring countries.

"However, Prince Wuyong disagreed with this. So, his right hand made a gesture of refusal."

After solving the first mural, everyone came to the second mural. The color of this mural was much darker than the other two, perhaps because it depicted a scene of fighting on a battlefield.

On the battlefield below, blood flowed like a river, and the soldiers of both sides were fighting fiercely. Xie Lian could tell which side was the soldiers of Wuyong because their armor was the same as the generals in the previous mural. The Wuyong soldiers looked extremely fierce, stepping on the heads of the enemies and picking up their bodies on their halberds, killing them so hard that their arms and legs were covered with blood and flesh. Some soldiers even grinned and stretched out their hands to the children and women huddled together, showing the horror of war.

The battlefield was covered with dark clouds, but a ray of white light was visible through the dark clouds. Prince Wuyong poked half of his body out from the clouds and saw the scene below. He seemed a little angry. He stretched out his hand and sent down many golden lights. All the Wuyong soldiers who were in the reach of the golden light were taken away.

The meaning of this picture was easier to understand than the previous one. Xie Lian looked at it for a while, then said softly, "It seems that the generals and ministers did not listen to the advice of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and still sent troops to attack the neighboring country. The soldiers killed too many people and bullied the elderly, weak, women and children of other countries. When the Crown Prince found out about this, he was very angry and intervened again to stop the atrocities of the Wuyong soldiers."

Pei Ming listened and said calmly, "It's touching. But to be honest, if one country must suffer, it is understandable to choose to protect one's own country. The soldiers are charging in the front. If they are not killed by the enemy on the battlefield, they may be angered to death by the prince first. Pei does not want to fight for such a monarch."

Xie Lian laughed a few times and said helplessly, "What General Pei said, uh, makes sense." Hua Cheng sneered. Pei Ming said, "So, if the volcano is about to erupt, what is the Crown Prince going to do? He can't just let his people die."

Xie Lian said, “Look at the third picture, I think you can figure it out.”

The crowd finally arrived in front of the last mural. The color of this mural formed a strong contrast with the previous one, becoming extremely bright and full of holy light. However, when Xie Lian saw it for the first time, his heart was shocked and his eyes widened.

Pei Ming took a look and said, "Oh my god, is this the idea that Prince Wuyong came up with? Ha, he is really brave. I admire him."

On the third mural, the country of Wuyong is painted at the bottom, the Wuyong River meanders through the land, and the prince and four guardian gods are also on the picture. However, these are not the main points. The most eye-catching thing in the whole picture, in the center, is a bridge.

A huge bridge shining with white light was held up by Prince Wuyong and his four guardians. People on the ground were rushing towards the bridge with smiles on their faces.

This Prince Wuyong actually built a bridge to heaven, hoping to lead people to heaven!