“Sky Treasure Dragonfire Top?” Domingo repeated.
“Yes, it’s a layer of highly flammable petroleum that ignites upon contact with air. The ancients called it Dragonfire. It’s mainly composed of short-chain hydrocarbons. Over time, it decomposes and produces a large amount of propylene, which ignites instantly when exposed to fire,” Chloe explained.
Domingo’s heart tightened. He had thought the Western Xia Treasury was safely excavated by experts, but now he learned about this dangerous element above them.
“Has the petroleum been removed?” Domingo asked, trying to suppress his anxiety.
“Impossible,” Chloe laughed. “Remote sensing ultrasonic instruments have detected that the coverage extends to the center of the inner vault before the signals stop.”
“So, at least three-quarters of the ceiling contains petroleum, with an estimated volume of one ton, forming a very thin layer.”
“What should we do then?”
“Don’t worry, we’ve reinforced it. The manufacturing process of the Sky Treasure Dragonfire Top itself is a precious artifact. We won’t destroy it.”
Despite Chloe’s casual tone, Domingo couldn’t calm down easily.
She hesitated about whether to proceed further.
Seeing the expression on Domingo’s face, Chloe said, “Going further won’t be easy. Let’s stop here for today.”
Domingo breathed a sigh of relief but suddenly remembered something. “Miss Chloe, I heard you were the first to enter the inner vault and understand its layout. At that time, the traps weren’t fully disarmed, right? How did you get in?”
Domingo’s tone was full of admiration. To a woman like her, Chloe’s heroic demeanor was particularly attractive.
“Oh, I found a shortcut with the help of a friend,” Chloe replied.
Domingo asked curiously, “Can you reveal your friend’s identity?”
Chloe shook her head. “Sorry, that’s personal.”
At this point, Martin said, “The show’s ratings have reached 5%.”
“5%? That doesn’t seem high,” Leo commented, not understanding ratings.
Sophia, however, knew and smiled. “For an antique show to reach 5% ratings is comparable to some popular variety shows. It’s quite high.”
Sophia’s words made Leo think. Such high ratings indicated a promising market for Western Xia Treasury antiques. It was a good time to make quick money. Now it was up to Arlene and Christine to seize the opportunity.
Meanwhile, Ethan lay on his bed, staring weakly at the ceiling.
Quentin stood by the bed, seeing Ethan’s lifeless state and knowing he hadn’t recovered from the severe blow.
He wanted to say something but feared reminding Ethan of how he had been framed at Spring Dawn Garden and exposed Bonham Auction House for selling fake antiques. So he turned on the TV and flipped through channels.
The TV announced, “The impact of Western Xia Treasury is unprecedented. Antique dealers everywhere are scrambling to buy related items, driving market prices up repeatedly…”
Quentin’s heart skipped a beat and he was about to change the channel when Ethan stopped him. “Leave it on! Help me sit up!”
Ethan struggled to sit up, and Quentin quickly placed a pillow behind his back.
Ethan half-sat up, watching the news about Western Xia Treasury on TV.
The host interviewed several antique collectors who were optimistic about the hype surrounding Western Xia Treasury.
In the past decade, there had been almost no similar discoveries in archaeology. The emergence of Western Xia Treasury filled this gap.
These factors combined made the Western Xia Treasury concept popular.
Ethan’s face grew darker as he finally understood what Leo’s exaggerated banner meant.
His face felt like it had been slapped hard.
“Hahaha! Cough cough…” Ethan suddenly laughed dryly but started coughing halfway through.
Quentin quickly brought him a glass of water and handed it over carefully.
Seeing Quentin’s cautious look, Ethan felt a surge of anger but couldn’t bring himself to scold him.
Now that Bonham Auction House was in such a state, his uncle wouldn’t let him off easily. Although Quentin was incompetent, he was still on his side. What was the point of scolding him?
After Ethan drank the water, Quentin felt slightly relieved and reminded him, “Ethan, Uncle visited once and said he’d come back when you woke up.”
“Uncle?” Ethan felt a pang in his chest. Thinking about the unsold Dragon Pearl at the auction felt like an invisible hand squeezing his heart painfully.
A billion dollars!
And that didn’t even include other losses!
Plus Quentin’s blunder had spread news of Bonham Auction House selling fakes throughout Langstel’s antique world.
It was impossible to make a comeback now.
Ethan let out a painful groan, trying to release his frustration.
“Do you have anything else?” Ethan decided to put these matters aside until he recovered.
He just wanted to sleep and forget everything for now.
Quentin hesitated but finally took out a check from his pocket and handed it to Ethan. “This is the venue rental fee for Spring Dawn Garden.”
“What!?” Ethan exclaimed as he took the check. “Didn’t we already pay in full? Where did this extra $100, 000 come from?”
A hundred thousand dollars might have been nothing to Ethan before.
But now, with Bonham Auction House deeply in debt and on shaky ground, this amount was the last straw.
Quentin awkwardly explained, “The Spirit Moon Antiques auction was too popular and extended until ten at night. This $100, 000 is for the additional venue rental.”
Ethan’s eyes widened as he nearly fainted again.
They had worked hard only for others to benefit. Spirit Moon Antiques reaped all the rewards while they had to pay for it!
Leo had no idea his event had caused Ethan such harm because he was busy at the clinic.
At noon, Leo watched another episode of “Explore Western Xia Treasury.”
Last night’s scene where Chloe introduced those mechanisms to Domingo seemed suspicious to him.
The straight passage leading directly to the inner vault couldn’t have been dug by the excavation team; it must have been an original corridor in Western Xia Treasury.