Chapter 148: Stone Wall Burns: The Work of an Evil Spirit?

Before, everyone had only known her as an artifact Appraiser who had suddenly risen to fame. But seeing her in person for the first time, they finally understood just how awe-inspiring a master like her could be—and how ridiculously vast the gap between people could be!

This wasn’t some appraisal influencer; this was clearly an appraisal deity. Damn it!

Which one of them hadn’t gone through countless appraisal tests, exams, and practical experience to get to where they were today? But Gu Shengsheng’s situation...

She basically trampled their intellect and abilities underfoot. What was that saying again?

People only compare themselves to others when they feel they’re in the same league. Gu Shengsheng, however, was already beyond the point of comparison...

Her mere presence was enough to inspire awe.

The appraisals on this side were going quickly. Wang Yu brought over several cups of milk tea, saying, "Everyone, take a break. With Miss Gu here, you’ve already hit all the KPIs for this old man."

"What are you waiting for if not to rest? I’m already taking it easy, you guys carry on." Wang Yu sat in a rocking chair, swinging his legs.

Gu Shengsheng laughed as well. "Those two cups, a few of the Five-Colored Stones, and one copper mirror—they’re all mine."

"Of course. We’ve already had them wrapped up for Miss Gu. This is a state-sanctioned reward, so please, take it. You can put them on display in your own museum down the line. We can even help you with the publicity."

Gu Shengsheng nodded, smiling. "Thank you, Director."

"Director! Miss Gu, there’s an urgent call from Professor Zhang Zhengyi!"

A moment later, Gu Shengsheng was handed a communicator.

She took it, a little puzzled. Before she could even speak, Zhang Zhengyi’s voice came through, breathless. "Shengsheng, there’s been an incident."

"We haven’t even gone inside—we haven’t even seen the epitaph. Then, the two people who went ahead to make preparations just vanished. We didn’t hear a thing..."

"We’ve been searching the area for a long time now and found nothing. The two of them... they just vanished."

Gu Shengsheng’s expression darkened. "Don’t panic. If there were no screams, perhaps the sound was just isolated."

"As long as you haven’t seen a body, they’re still alive."

"Do you have a video feed on your end? I need to see what’s going on."

Just then, a young technician in charge of data processing handed Gu Shengsheng a laptop. It was displaying a live feed of the team’s progress.

Gu Shengsheng could see them still gathered around a dark stone wall.

In front of them was a stone door, but it apparently wouldn’t budge.

The surrounding stone walls looked as if they were sealed shut, with no trace of any gaps. Flanking the area were four stone niches. Being on the outer perimeter, they were likely meant for holding things like candle stands.

If niches like these were next to the coffin, they would be for placing items the tomb’s occupant had favored in life.

Gu Shengsheng’s first piece of advice was a warning: "Those stone niches—be careful. Don’t touch them. And that stone wall on your far right, the color looks off to me."

"Wait for me to come take a look."

Zhang Zhengyi nodded. "Okay. Shengsheng, please hurry over."

While Gu Shengsheng was rushing over, Zhang Yu, inside the tomb, was already getting antsy.

"Two people have already disappeared. We can’t just sit here and wait for Gu Shengsheng. We need to get inside as soon as possible and map out the area."

"This tomb’s construction is unlike any we’ve seen before. We’ll have to figure it out on our own."

But as he began to wander about, Zhang Zhengyi said, "Easy, now. Settle down."

"Even I’m not sure what’s going on here, so I need you all to stay put. Especially these walls—do not touch them."

As people who spent their careers entering tombs for research, they all should have known this.

But who knew what had gotten into Zhang Yu at that moment. He just couldn’t stand seeing his professor place so much trust in a newcomer!

So he declared, "I’ll find the way myself! I know my limits."

He then ran off, circling the area and examining everything.

Finally, he stopped in front of that same stone wall with the slightly different color.

With another person in tow, he stood there analyzing it for a good while.

Then, the two of them went right up to that section of wall and tried to pry it open with their hands.

At first, Zhang Yu only felt a slight heat on his hands and was overjoyed, thinking he’d found the entrance! He turned his head to tell Mr. Zhang.

But to his surprise, he saw Zhang Zhengyi and the others rushing toward them in a panic.

"AHHH!! AHH!" Loud screams filled the air, and it was impossible to tell who they belonged to.

Zhang Yu could smell his own skin scorching.

He was finally experiencing a feeling that was worse than death.

Zhang Zhengyi had everyone splash the bottled water they’d brought onto the men’s arms!

But it was nowhere near enough.

Thankfully, Gu Shengsheng charged in at that moment with several people, all carrying what looked like plain water mixed with something like flour!

Gu Shengsheng, in the lead, took a large bucket and doused the two men!

Then she pulled them away from the wall.

The sight of their hands was horrifying. Gu Shengsheng was both furious and exasperated. "You idiots!"

"How many times did I tell you not to touch this wall?"

The support staff followed close behind, quickly taking the two men out for emergency medical treatment.

Everyone else was scared out of their wits.

Gu Shengsheng looked at Zhang Zhengyi and the others, asking, "Aside from them, is everyone else alright?"

Zhang Zhengyi was already getting on in years, and this incident seemed to age him in an instant.

He replied, "Other than the two who vanished, everyone else is fine. It’s just that those two... their hands are probably done for."

"They’re lucky to have kept their lives!" Even Gu Shengsheng’s heart was still racing.

If she had been thirty seconds later, those two would be dead. That stone wall was lethally fast.

’My God, I smelled something wrong even from outside, and then to come in and see all that blood around them...’

She said aloud, "I was bringing a baking soda solution to wash down the stone wall before we went in. I never expected they’d act so quickly and recklessly."

"How could they be so rash!"

Several of the younger people nearby were terrified. It was their first time seeing so much blood, and now four people had met with disaster.

Their voices trembling, one of them said:

"It has to be a ghost... This place isn’t safe! How can a person just catch on fire for no reason?"

"The second I saw the look on their faces, I knew it was bad."

"Are we going to die, too? Like in one of those old horror movies where the whole group gets picked off!"

Gu Shengsheng was speechless.

"This isn’t a supernatural phenomenon," she finally said.

She then walked over to the stone wall and niches, pacing around them and sniffing the air.

Then she said, "It’s concentrated sulfuric acid. It’s corrosive, understand? If concentrated sulfuric acid touches your skin, it will disfigure you instantly."

One of the younger guys beside her asked in astonishment, "They had concentrated sulfuric acid in ancient times?"

"They did. It was used in ancient alchemy, though not put into the elixirs, of course. In the old days, it was made by using green vitriol as a raw material and heating it in a distiller. You see, the Taoist priests of ancient times called it ’oil of vitriol’."

"This has been here for ages, preserved underground. With the lack of airflow and no water or other substances for it to react with, we can’t be sure what it has become over time."

"And looking at it now, there’s no telling how much more potent it’s become."