A Fantasy Love Story Across the Warring States Period

Chapter 18 The Secret of the Stone Pagoda and the Mystery of the Flute Sound

Wanru and Huanmo entered the stone tower, where the soft light enveloped them, but it could not dispel the doubts and unease that welled up in their hearts because of the familiar flute music.

Wanru followed closely behind Huanmo, her eyes scanning the surroundings warily. She felt both nervous and expectant. She was nervous because she didn't know how many unknown dangers were hidden inside the stone tower, but she was also expectant because the ancient book that might contain clues to returning to the modern world was somewhere here, and perhaps she could soon find a way to save Huanmo and return home.

“This flute music… how come it’s reappeared here? It was the same flute that lured away the flying beast in the temple before. Could it be that the person playing the flute has been following us all along?” Wanru whispered to Huanmo, her voice trembling slightly.

Huanmo's expression was equally grave. He held Wanru's hand and squeezed it gently, as if to comfort her. "No matter what, finding that ancient book is the most important thing. If the owner of this flute music wanted to harm us, they had the opportunity before, so there shouldn't be too much danger for now." Although Huanmo said this, he was actually not sure himself. These mysterious situations that had appeared one after another were really hard to understand.

They walked slowly along the passageway inside the stone tower, with ancient bookshelves on both sides filled with old books, exuding the scent of worn-out scrolls. Wanru's gaze swept quickly across the bookshelves, trying to find the key ancient book, but she didn't know where to start. There were just too many ancient books, and most of the texts were obscure and difficult to understand, some even written in ancient scripts she had never seen before.

Huanmo was also searching carefully. He would occasionally pick up an ancient book, flip through a few pages, shake his head, put it down, and continue searching for the next one. Time slowly passed during this tense search, while the melodious flute music continued to echo deep within the stone tower, as if urging them on, or as if deliberately disturbing their minds.

Just as they were getting anxious, Wanru suddenly discovered an ancient book in a corner. The cover of the book had some strange patterns, one of which was extremely similar to the symbol on the door that had been opened with illusory ink and blood.

"Huanmo, look! Could this be the one?" Wanru exclaimed excitedly, quickly picking up the ancient book and handing it to Huanmo.

Huanmo took the ancient book, carefully examining the illustrations on the cover, a surge of hope rising in his heart. "It's very possible, let's quickly check the contents."

They found a relatively open space and carefully opened the ancient book. But as soon as they turned to the first page, Wanru and Huanmo were stunned. They didn't recognize a single character in the book. The characters looked like ancient runes, twisted and swirling, exuding a mysterious aura.

"What...what should we do? We can't understand it at all." Wanru looked troubled, and the light of hope in her eyes dimmed instantly.

Huanmo frowned, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Perhaps we can try to find out if there are any clues or tools in this stone tower that can decipher these characters."

Just as they were about to get up and continue their search, the flute music suddenly became more urgent, as if issuing some kind of warning. Wanru and Huanmo were startled, and they exchanged a glance, both seeing worry in each other's eyes.

"This flute music seems to be warning us of something. Could it be that danger is approaching?" Huanmo said, gripping his sword tightly and looking around warily.

Wanru also became nervous. She subconsciously moved closer to Huanmo, clutching the ancient book she couldn't understand tightly in her hand, as if it was the only thing that could give her a sense of security at this moment.

Suddenly, a soft footstep came from one side of the stone tower. The footsteps were very light, but they were exceptionally clear in the silent tower. Wanru and Huanmo's hearts jumped into their throats. They looked in the direction of the footsteps and saw a figure slowly emerge from the shadows.

It turned out to be the white-clad man who had lured away the flying beast by playing the flute in the temple before!

"It's you? What are you doing here?" Huanmo asked in surprise, his hand still tightly gripping his sword, not letting his guard down in the slightest.

The man in white smiled slightly, still holding the jade flute in his hand. He looked at Wanru and Huanmo, then at the ancient book in Wanru's hand, and said, "Of course I'm here to help you. The text in this ancient book is indeed difficult to decipher, but I happen to know a little about it."

Wanru and Huanmo were both surprised and puzzled upon hearing this. They couldn't understand why this man in white always appeared at crucial moments, and what his purpose was, especially since he claimed to be able to decipher the text in the ancient book.

"Why are you helping us? Who are you?" Wanru couldn't help but ask, her eyes filled with wariness.

The man in white sighed softly and said, "Who I am is not important. What's important is that you want to return to the modern world, and this ancient book may be your only hope. I'm helping you only because I don't want to see you get lost in this Warring States period. After all, the way back is not easy to find."

Although the white-robed man's words seemed to make some sense, Wanru and Huanmo still dared not easily believe him. However, they had no other choice at the moment, since they would be unable to decipher the ancient book without the white-robed man's help.

“Alright then, since you say you can decipher it, please tell us quickly what exactly is written in this ancient book,” Huanmo said, though he had put down his sword, he remained vigilant.

The man in white nodded, took the ancient book from Wanru's hand, gently opened it, and carefully looked at the words on it. His expression gradually became solemn.

After a long while, the man in white slowly said, "This ancient book records an ancient legend about the secret of time travel. It is said that in the Warring States period, there was a mysterious place where the spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathered. As long as you stand in that place at a specific time with specific items, you can open a passage through time and return to the era you want to go to."

Upon hearing this, Wanru and Huanmo's eyes lit up with hope. "What are the specific time and items? Tell us quickly!" Wanru asked eagerly.

The man in white glanced at them, then at the ancient book in his hand, and said, "The specific time is the night of the full moon every year, and the specific item..." The man in white paused, his gaze falling on the dim and lifeless bead that Wanru had been tightly clutching in her hand.

"Is this the bead?" Wanru looked at the bead in her hand in surprise. She never expected that this bead, which she obtained from the cave, would be related to the secret of time travel.

The man in white nodded. "That's right, it's this bead. However, the mysterious place you're going to isn't easy to find. It's hidden in a vast snow-covered mountain range, and there are many dangers along the way."

Wanru and Huanmo exchanged a glance. Although they were somewhat worried, now that they knew how to get back, there was no reason for them to give up.

“We’ll give it a try anyway. Thank you for telling us this, but how do you know all this?” Huanmo asked.

The man in white smiled slightly and said, "I learned about this by chance. You don't need to know how I found out. Just remember to be careful on your way to the snow mountain."

After saying this, the man in white returned the ancient book to Wanru and then turned to leave.

Just as he turned around, a muffled rumbling sound suddenly rang out from inside the stone tower, as if something huge was crashing against the tower's walls.

Wanru, Huanmo, and the man in white were all startled by the sudden commotion. They looked around in alarm, wondering what had happened.