Live Streaming: Great Adventure in the Wilderness-Chapter 837 - 833: The Figure in the Tomb

Facing the audience's requests, Bi Fang firmly refused.

"I have reason to suspect Master Fang is implying something (Dog's head)"

"Master Fang is not a thief, but someone is"

"Stop beating around the bush, go inside and take a look"

"Boring, we don't want treasures, we want to see bloodshed!"

The flickering flame illuminated the small enclosed space.

The information on the walls was extremely rich and clear, densely covered with numerous exquisitely drawn patterns.

There were small figures with brown skin lined up in a row, seemingly performing some kind of ritual.

Bi Fang found it overwhelming to look at.

Everyone knows about the Pyramids of Ancient Egypt, but few know about their precursor, the Mastaba.

Yet, this is also an essential part of visiting Egypt.

This might be the first time this ancient tomb was being revealed to the world, and he was the first person to see it, accompanied by tens of millions of viewers—and the numbers were still increasing.

Many people were sending their awe and disbelief through their comments.

Initially, the shifting sands on the ground had revealed a cave, but no one realized the exaggeration of the situation.

Bi Fang had actually discovered such a hidden world underground.

This was no natural cavern but a relic!

A genuine ancient relic!

Naturally, this once again caused a sensation on the internet.

With the advancement of human technology and satellites launching into space one after another, perhaps there were still undiscovered secrets in the Primeval Forest, but deserts such as this left almost no secrets to people.

A satellite photo could instantly reveal where the Pyramids were, without the need to ride camels and go through considerable hardships in search.

Therefore, almost all the relics in the desert that had not been found were located underground or within some canyon crevices, making them difficult to find.

This is why, entering the twenty-first century, one heard no more of explorers like Howard Carter from the Central Country, who had become famous for discovering Tutankhamun's tomb.

The difficulty in finding relics was increasing, and there were fewer explorers; such news of discoveries seemed to truly belong only to the last century, existing in history, in the movies.

Unexpectedly, it had become a reality, like the movie "The Mummy" coming to life.

"Mastaba is different from the Pyramids; the Pyramids are completely exposed on the surface, while Mastaba, having a ground part, is not a tall building by itself and compared to towering buildings like the Pyramids, it more resembles a bungalow."

"If unlucky with its location, a few sandstorms could bury it under the ground."

"Some don't even have any above-ground parts and are completely buried underground."

The discovery of this lost relic probably excited the archaeologists who studied Ancient Egyptian history the most.

During the time they had entered the relic, he had already seen a large circle of people reaching out to him asking for the location of this site, with various languages in the comments—if it weren't for the System translating, some languages he wouldn't even understand.

As for the excitement of the audience, that goes without saying; they were excited about everything.

Separated only by the screen, the impact was inherently less overwhelming than being present at the site.

Watching through the video, one could never fully experience the profound sense of history.

Footsteps echoed in the empty corridor, the light flickering with each step.

Bi Fang, while examining the wall paintings, also educated the viewers about some historical aspects of Ancient Egypt.

"The first pyramids were composed of layers of mastabas, where mud bricks were replaced by solid stone bricks, each layer narrower than the one below until they reached the top, which is why many pyramids appear step-like and have numerous internal chambers."

[Is the pyramid outside also like this?]

[I always thought that kind of pyramid had been damaged or collapsed to become step-like...]

[This tomb definitely predates Djoser's Pyramid by a short time; the details are already quite refined.]

[Djoser's Pyramid, I've heard of it, isn't it the first pyramid?]

As the civilization of Ancient Egypt continually advanced, the Pharaohs began to seek higher quality in various ritual ceremonies.

Around 2635 BC to 2610 BC, during the reign of Pharaoh Djoser, Pharaoh Djoser ordered his vizier, Imhotep, to build him a tomb in a different form than the traditional mastaba.

Imhotep was a genius who, upon receiving the Pharaoh's command, began to deeply research and design the new tomb.

In the eyes of the Ancient Egyptians, the Pharaoh was considered the son of the sun god Amun and was seen as the god's representative and embodiment on earth. After a Pharaoh died, his soul would ascend to the heavens.

Inspired by this belief, Imhotep began to design a step-shaped tomb, symbolizing the stairs to heaven for the Pharaoh after his death.

Imhotep's new tomb was built on the foundations of a mastaba but differed from traditional mastabas in that it consisted of six stacked mastabas, and instead of using mud bricks, large stones were used.

Each layer of the mastaba was smaller than the one below it, forming a stepped structure.

"The result was Djoser's Pyramid, an entire tomb 62 meters high and with a base of 109 meters by 125 meters, comprising six levels, making it the first pyramid in history with a stepped shape."

"Unlike many later Egyptian pyramids, all the internal spaces of the step pyramid were underground, including the large central shaft leading to the burial chamber."

"The underground passageways of the step pyramid, totaling more than 6 kilometers in length, were as complex as a labyrinth, likely a result of the continual experiments needed during the construction of the new tomb."

"At the same time, the walls of the underground passages were embedded with many blue bricks, symbolizing the Pharaoh's ascent to the sky."

Bi Fang walked to the end of one passage, where he saw a small set of stairs leading up to a small platform.

The platform was not very high, almost the height of a desk, its purpose unknown.

[I timidly ask, does being a streamer nowadays require knowledge of astronomy and geography?]

[That's right.]

[You dare to be a streamer without knowing eight languages?]

"Later, the Pharaohs increasingly pursued marvels, making the pyramids bigger and bigger. The overly complex subterranean structures led to too much hollow space inside, resulting in inadequate support and making them very prone to collapse."

"Part of the base of Djoser's Pyramid had indeed collapsed, so the layered pyramid evolved into a solid body, leaving only the corridors and the final burial chamber, making the overall appearance very smooth, as if of one piece."

"A typical example of these solid pyramids is Khufu, the largest pyramid in the world. Until the Eiffel Tower was built in Paris in 1888, it was the tallest structure in the world."

Bi Fang then walked through many more corridors, each ending with a small "desk" similar to the one he had just seen, and without exception, all were positioned to the north. Nearby some of these desks were fragments of broken wooden boats.

Upon seeing these wooden boat fragments, Bi Fang realized what that small desk next to them was for.

"It's a small altar."

"Ancient Egyptians regarded their homes as temporary shelters and their tombs as eternal dwellings."

"During the dynastic period, Mastabas gradually increased in number, and small altars and wooden boats appeared alongside them to the north."

"People believed that the dead Pharaohs would travel from east to west across the sky with the sun god on these small wooden boats every day."

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"This guy must have been incredibly wealthy."

"The complexity of a Mastaba depended on its owner's wealth and social status; its ground-level architecture with various small rooms represented different rooms in a palace."

"There are no corridors inside."

After a walk around the exterior, Bi Fang entered the interior and found the rooms were extremely small and cramped with no doors.

Bi Fang was not surprised by this.

There were no corridors inside Mastabas because people believed that souls could move unimpeded through physical barriers.

Bi Fang also discovered a mound atop the central burial shaft, easy to imagine as having evolved from the sand heaps above pre-dynastic burial pits.

"In Upper Egypt, bodies were simply wrapped in reed mats or goat skins, buried in the desert away from dwellings, covered with small mounds, and burial goods were placed around the deceased. Later, wood was used to cover these burial pits."

"Although initially functional, sand heaps acquired a sort of religious significance in their development, showing up in new burial forms; perhaps the mound also symbolized 'Benben,' the mound of creation bearing life."

"Don't mention things we can't understand."

"Benben: In Heliopolis's creation mythology, a mound of earth rose from the primordial waters, upon which the creator god stood to create humans, gods, and the world."

"Where's my treasure, my treasure?"

"The mound as a substructure made the structure unstable, so later walls were built around it and inclined outer walls were constructed outside, covered with a stair-like brick casing."

Bi Fang held the torch near the sand dune, and indeed, everyone saw an outer shell made of mud bricks.

Sadly, however, after a large loop, Bi Fang hadn't seen anything of value.

Though he wouldn't take it, that didn't mean he didn't want to see it.

The gold mask of Tutankhamun was world-famous; finding something similar would bring unparalleled glory, and many people would be green with envy.

In the future, everyone visiting the museum and seeing the gold ornament would remember that it was first discovered by an explorer named Bi Fang.

"However, there is still hope. The most valuable items are usually kept close to the tomb owner. Finding the burial chamber might reveal the treasure."

"The burial chamber must be below."

In the darkness, Bi Fang cautiously moved with his torch.

Having a memory palace was another advantage; simply walking through once was enough to remember the layout of this labyrinthine tomb, ensuring no missteps.

A brief exploration had already etched a clear map of the entire tomb into Bi Fang's mind.

Bi Fang, holding the torch, eventually found an entrance to the underground tomb. After tossing a stone to gauge the depth, he began descending.

"How come there are no traps here?"

"Right, shouldn't there be something like stepping on a stone slab, then a mechanism on the side shooting out a row of arrows?"

"I've seen that, and then a rolling boulder suddenly appears and pushes everyone to keep running."

"What are you all going on about?"

"Uh, I can only say, you've watched too many movies."

"Normally, in archaeology, apart from poisonous gases, mechanisms are generally not considered; they are just fictional creations."

"Ah, it's Professor Song!"

"What Professor Song? I don't remember anymore."

"The history professor who appeared when Old Fang discovered a new species."

Perhaps history always has its coincidences.

The last discovery of an unknown realm was also in the desert and also explained by Professor Song.

It seemed to be a kind of reenactment.

Facing the audience's questions, Professor Song once again provided explanations on behalf of Bi Fang.

"So far, we have not found any example of ancient tombs using crossbow arrows for theft prevention, nor using fire for that purpose."

"Such mechanisms are mostly imagined. The release of crossbow arrows requires tension, which, under ancient technological conditions, could not be sustained for long or precisely triggered to aim and shoot; even if they existed, metallurgy conditions wouldn't allow it. Modern alloy steel can't ensure no rust for a thousand years, let alone ancient times."

"As for poisonous insects and venomous snakes, that's even more impractical. How could they survive without food in the enclosed space of ancient tombs?"

"The only problem, as Bi Fang mentioned before entering, is the poisonous gas, but it's usually naturally formed deep underground, not man-made."

"Synthetic chemical warfare only emerged much later, first used in World War I and quickly banned by humanity in warfare. Ancient times had no chemical weapons; alchemists might occasionally discover some gases, but couldn't produce or use them directionally."

"Ah, thank you, Professor Song."

"I always thought it was real."

Once more on the ground, the surroundings seemed even darker.

Just as Bi Fang raised his torch, a burly human male suddenly appeared brilliantly before everyone.

Everyone's hair stood on end.

Nobody expected to find a person hidden in the pitch-black underground tomb!

Even Bi Fang stumbled backward in shock, but he quickly realized something was off.

The man in front of him didn't move at all, not resembling a living person.

On closer inspection with the torch, everyone then realized it was just a statue embedded in a niche in the wall, merely blurred and distorted by the dim firelight, which had initially led to the mistaken identity.

Calming down, Bi Fang thought for a moment, "It must be a statue of the tomb owner, usually hidden within masonry to protect it. I'm not sure why this one is exposed; it certainly gave me a fright just now."

"Good thing it's fake; I almost lost my soul there."

"Fucking hell, that really scared the shit out of me just now."

"Not having a flashlight is torture; this firelight is too weak, my heart can't take it."

"I'm running out of heart pills."

Just when everyone thought it was merely a scare and began to relax,

a sudden thud echoed from above in the tomb, sounding clear and as if it was right next to them.