Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 393 391 Avalanche Reveals Divine Tree, New Treasure Function: X-ray Vision

The battle below was fierce, with the barbarian archers, taking advantage of the terrain, managing to suppress the treasure hunters armed with rifles.

But the savages are destined to lose this battle, because there is a gunship aircraft overhead.

However, Fang Wen did not want to use powerful weapons to slaughter these people.

He had no grudge against the savages; he simply wanted a rare treasure from the hoard that could enhance his own abilities.

Therefore, he made a decision.

"Shooter, prepare to fire at the snow on the mountainside."

The shooters were puzzled.

But military training forces them to obey orders unconditionally.

Immediately, the gunboat's side firing ports opened, and the aircraft machine guns and 20mm cannons fired at the snow more than 300 meters above the heads of the savage archers.

12.7mm bullets and 20mm machine guns exploded on the snow, loosening the thick snow and causing it to roll downwards.

The savages living here certainly know what this is.

They were terrified and immediately abandoned their attack, running away to avoid the avalanche.

Then, large swaths of snow rolled down, covering the spot where the savages had been standing.

However, in the area on the mountainside where the snow had been removed, a huge plant trunk was revealed.

It is so large that it has a majestic presence even when viewed from afar.

Fang Wen couldn't help but think of the sacred tree worshipped in the ancient Shu Kingdom.

Could this be the sacred tree that Gong Jingwen paid homage to?
It's likely that Gong Jingwen hadn't even seen the true form of the divine tree back then. It wasn't until Fang Wen ordered the snow to be swept away that this mythical ancient tree was inadvertently revealed in its entirety.

The moment the sacred tree appeared, all those who had believed in it stopped fighting and prostrated themselves before it.

The same applies to the treasure hunters sent by the five families: Yeren, Gou, Mu, Jin, and Gong.

Only the last ten soldiers of the Independent Regiment did not move.

Fang Wen did not issue any orders, but simply controlled the gunboats to circle overhead, observing the situation.

After a few minutes of worship.

The people from the five families of Gou, Gou, Mu, Jin, and Gong stood up one after another.

Their leader called out loudly, "We, the Gou, Gou, Mu, Jin, and Gong families, are descendants of the ancient Shu. Since the sacred tree is before us, we cannot resort to violence. Let's talk."

The savages continued to kneel and pray before the sacred tree, completely ignoring it.

Seeing this, the five families were enraged and were ready to risk offending the sacred tree by shooting at the kneeling savages.

Someone raised a gun and aimed it, while others tried to stop them, creating a chaotic scene.

Until another group of people ran over from the foot of the snow-capped mountain.

Among those people were those dressed like savages, and also a young man wearing a suit and riding breeches.

The young man shouted, "Stop! We, the Cancong clan and the Yufu clan, are of the same lineage. Let us not kill our own flesh and blood!"

"Then let's talk. What we want is what rightfully belongs to our five families—the treasures hidden here," shouted one of the five families.

The young man replied: "Thirty years ago, your five families sent people here, but my grandfather saved them and treated them warmly, even leading them to worship the sacred tree. As a result, they stole the King's Staff, causing my family to be expelled from the tribe. Later, my father endured hardship for ten years, infiltrated the Gong family, retrieved the King's Staff, and finally washed away the shame. How do you intend to settle this score?"

Everyone looked at the Gong family members, realizing there had been such a turn of events.

The Gong family leader said angrily, "Are you saying the bronze serpent staff was switched? Hand over the real serpent staff."

To everyone's surprise, the young man replied, "I can give you the King's Staff, and I can give you the treasure stored there, since it belongs to your Yufu clan. But I need to negotiate with the clan elders and get their consent. Here's what I'll do: give me two days, and you can go back to Moxi Town and wait."

“What if we don’t go back, and we want it now?” the five families shouted.

The young man coldly replied, "Then let's fight to the death. My Cancong clan will fight to the last man, and none of you will leave this mountain alive."

On one hand, there is the possibility of peacefully obtaining the treasure; on the other hand, there is the possibility of mutual destruction.

Ultimately, all five parties chose to compromise.

They spoke with the soldiers of the Independent Regiment and relayed the situation to Fang Wen in the sky via telegram. Immediately, everyone turned back along the same route.

The treasure hunt team returned to Moxi Town and stayed temporarily in the homes of local residents while awaiting news.

Fang Wen also learned about the conversation between the two sides from the soldiers of the Independent Regiment.

From this, he roughly understood the grudges and past events of the past thirty years.

He then explained to Gong Xiuneng: "Thirty years ago, your father brought 15 people here to search in the mountains. It was the people of the Cancong clan who saved him. Later, your father stole the bronze serpent staff and returned to the Gong family. Ten years later, the people of the Cancong clan switched the bronze serpent staff and brought it back. This should have happened after the Five Clans Treasure Appraisal Conference."

The missing experiences in Gong Xiuneng's father's diary have finally been filled in.

But there's another problem.

Gong Xiuneng asked, puzzled, "They say they are all from the ancient Shu Kingdom, so why are they divided into the Cancong clan and the Yufu clan?"

Fang Wen, who has conducted in-depth research on ancient Shu culture, explained: "There were many clans within the ancient Shu Kingdom, and different clans were in power at different times. The earliest was the Cancong clan, followed by the Boguan clan, then the Yufu clan, and the last clan of the Qin Dynasty was the Kaiming clan. Therefore, they inherited different things."

"I see, Commander. Do you think we can get the treasure this time? I don't want to shoot those people with machetes and bows and arrows," a soldier from the Independent Regiment asked.

His thoughts were those of the other soldiers; it was a completely different feeling from fighting the Japanese soldiers.

Fang Wen replied in the same way, "I also hope for a peaceful resolution. Let's wait and see; two days will pass quickly."

Two days passed quickly. In the remote town of Moxi, there was not much to do besides eat and sleep.

It passed by without us even realizing it.

On the morning of the third day, a group of people from the Cancong clan arrived in Moxi Town.

Led by young men who previously spoke Mandarin, they stated their purpose directly.

"Come with us, take away the items that Yu Fu has stored, and don't disturb our lives anymore."

It seems the treasure issue can be resolved peacefully, and everyone happily prepares to set off.

Fang Wen also wanted to go.

He wanted to see the divine tree up close and select some rare treasures imbued with mysterious energy.

Therefore, Gong Xiu tried to stop him, whispering, "Commander, if the Cancong clan is playing tricks and leads everyone into a trap, wouldn't it be too dangerous for you to go?"

Fang Wen subconsciously touched the small bronze cauldron in his pocket, but the cauldron did not give any warning.

Besides, in the crisis-ridden Republic of China, Fang Wen had faced danger before, and every air battle was far more dangerous than this one.

Under his insistence, Gong Xiuneng stopped obstructing him and began to prepare for protection.

Immediately, the treasure-hunting team of more than 60 people set off again.

Instead of taking the shortcut suggested by the Cancong clan, they went back to the old route they had taken before.

Four hours later, the team arrived at the foot of the snow-capped mountain again.

There, the sacred tree, revealed by the avalanche, was covered with colorful ribbons, and hundreds of members of the Cancong clan knelt and prayed before it.

After passing through the worshipping crowd, the procession arrived at the foot of the sacred tree.

Fang Wen saw the massive root system exposed.

These dead roots were wrapped in thick colored cloth, and a large number of supports were set up underneath.

At the very bottom of the root system, the area had been hollowed out, and a spiral staircase led downwards into it. The young man from the Cancong clan who was leading the group said in Chinese, "The things are all stored down there and have always been kept by our clan elders. Now take them back and don't disturb our lives anymore."

The five families of Gou, Gou, Mu, Jin, and Gong were overjoyed. Half of them stayed outside to guard the treasure, while the other half went down to move it.

When it was Fang Wen's turn, Fang Wen shook his head: "Let them go, we'll wait upstairs."

Once he arrived at his destination, he no longer cared, because the signal source for the mechanical sensor feedback did not come from underground.

This made Gong Xiu, who was guarding the side, realize that something was wrong.

"Commander, is this a trap?"

Fang Wen looked at the worshipping crowd outside and replied, "Whether it's a scam or not, we'll know when the goods are brought up. Don't rush."

After saying this, he walked towards the worshipping members of the Cancong clan and knelt down in front of an old man.

"Grandpa, where did you get those prayer beads?"

The old man raised his head, held up the rosary in his right hand, and replied, "My son gave it to me. He brought back the royal scepter, washed away my shame, and returned this rosary to me."

Did your son tell you where this rosary came from?

“He said that it was taken away by that outsider thirty years ago. He brought it back with him and begged the clan chief to give it to me so that I could carry it with me every day and chant sutras to bless my family with health and well-being.”

The old man's answer surprised Fang Wen.

He had always thought he was looking for the bronze serpent staff, but he never expected that the real treasure was an inconspicuous string of prayer beads in the old man's hand.

Without making a sound, Fang Wen stood up and went straight to the young man from the Cancong clan who could speak Chinese.

"I want to buy the rosary beads your grandfather has. Name your price."

The young man was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "I know you are from Taishan Airlines. A logistics station will be built in Moxi Town in the future. If I give you the prayer beads, can the Cancong family sell the mountain products to the logistics station?"

The request was so simple that Fang Wen couldn't believe it: "This is it? I can pay a high price for it."

“No need. Compared to temporary wealth, I want my people to live a better life. I know your logistics station has fair prices. If we sell our mountain products to you, our people will earn a lot more, and they will be able to buy more supplies.”

The young man's answer was reasonable and well-founded. As someone who had lived outside the clan, he clearly understood that the pace of the times did not allow his clansmen to continue living in isolation. He wanted to take this opportunity to help his clansmen gradually integrate into the new era.

Fang Wen understood him and didn't want to raise the price to avoid attracting attention.

He agreed and decided to ask Sun Debiao to take good care of Cancong Shi when he returned.

After exchanging a few words with his grandfather, the young man took the prayer beads and handed them to Fang Wen.

Fang Wen held the prayer beads in his hand, examining his newly acquired treasure.

These are not actually prayer beads; they come in various shapes, including cylindrical and oval, and are made of materials such as jade and bone.

Fang Wen thought the bone beads were probably made of ivory, since he had seen artifacts unearthed from Sanxingdui in the future, many of which were made of ivory.

(Sanxingdui ivory beads)
While playing with the beads, Fang Wen did not use his special abilities; he planned to conduct further research when he returned.

Meanwhile, the five families had already moved the treasure from below.

However, some disputes also arose.

The Cancong clan did not believe that one of the ritual objects belonged to the five families.

The two sides started arguing.

"This golden mask with protruding eyes is a ritual object of our Cancong clan and cannot be taken away."

"Why do you claim them as yours? These ritual objects were stored here by our five ancestors."

Fang Wen did remember that in his previous life, he had heard the explanation that the vertical-eyed mask was an item from the Shang Dynasty. The era in which the Cancong clan ruled the ancient Shu Kingdom was also the Shang Dynasty, so it was correct that the item belonged to them.

Then he said, "Stop arguing. The Cancong clan would give you a treasure, so they wouldn't bother arguing with you over a mask. It must be theirs."

As the initiator of this treasure hunt and played a crucial role in the entire operation, the five families took his words very seriously. Moreover, what he said made sense, so they stopped arguing, gave up the Golden Eye Mask, and continued to move the treasure.

Once all the treasures were brought to the surface, they couldn't wait to say goodbye and leave.

(Bronze mask with protruding eyes)
The treasure-hunting team returned safely to Moxi Town, bringing back the treasure that the five families had been searching for for two thousand years. At this moment, it was as if half of their destiny had been resolved, and the people of the five families were overjoyed.

Subsequently, the treasures were loaded onto a seaplane and immediately took off back to Chengdu Jiang'an Seaplane Airport.

There, the five clan leaders gathered, excitedly opening the chests containing the treasures, and sharing with each other their knowledge of these ancient Shu ritual artifacts passed down through generations.

In the end, they selected their own valuable ceremonial objects and gave the remaining gold items to Fang Wen.

This is an unexpected gain.

However, Fang Wen had no intention of selling these cultural relics, which were of national cultural significance. He planned to take them back to Wuhan and have his wife keep them safe and secure.

Now that he had finally obtained the long-awaited treasure, and having spent enough time in Sichuan, Fang Wen immediately took his share of the treasure and flew his gunboat towards Wuhan.

After a flight of more than four hours, the gunship aircraft, equipped with auxiliary fuel tanks, completed a long-range route of nearly 1000 kilometers and landed at Wuhan Seaport.

Subsequently, Fang Wen instructed the gunboat pilots who remained in Wuhan to fly the gunboats back to Fuping, while he and Gong Xiuneng took two boxes of ancient Shu treasures back to the company.

The car drove into the headquarters of Taishan Airlines and stopped in the office building.

Fang Wen and Gong Xiuneng each carried a box up to the top floor.

Afterwards, Fang Wen and his wife spoke privately in the general manager's office.

He opened the two boxes, revealing the contents inside.

"These are artifacts from 2000 to 3000 years ago, which are of great value to the study of Chinese civilization. I am now entrusting them to you. Please keep them safe and sound. They will go to their proper place after the war ends."

Kuang Mingzhu's family owns a gold shop and has some knowledge of cultural relics, so she replied very carefully, "I will take good care of them."

Then, she took out a special key, and Fang Wen also took out one. The two of them simultaneously inserted the key into the keyhole behind the bookcase, opened the safe behind the partition wall, and put the two boxes inside.

After finishing these tasks, the wife left the general manager's office to attend to other matters.

Fang Wen then took out the rare treasure, intending to learn about its special abilities.

He activated his mechanical perception ability to sense the string of beads in his hand.

With careful sensing through his supernatural abilities, he found the component in the beaded string that was actually functioning.

It was a gray, unremarkable bone bead. Fang Wen had once thought it was ivory, but now it seemed probably not.

The bead contained a large amount of faith energy, even more than the energy of other rare treasures obtained before.

It is easy to imagine how important it was during the prosperous period of the ancient Shu Kingdom.

So what abilities does this bead possess?

Fang Wen attempted to activate the bead's power, deliberately injecting a portion of his own energy into it.

Instantly, the entire bead reacted strongly as if stimulated, releasing invisible energy that invaded Fang Wen's eyes.

At that moment, Fang Wen felt a stinging sensation in his eyes and couldn't help but hum softly.

He subconsciously tried to block the invisible energy released by the beads from interfering with his eyes.

But the next second, he saw a strange scene.

My own eyes seemed to penetrate matter, as if I could see through it, and I could see right through the solid wood coffee table.

The pattern of the carpet under the coffee table is clearly visible.

(End of this chapter)