Leo and Christine exchanged a glance. Christine said, “Sir, can we really attribute this to the Western Xia Treasury?”
“Why not!?” The middle-aged man pointed into the distance. “There’s a river that flows through here, surrounded by mountains on three sides upstream. It passes through Razor Pass and flows east of our village.”
“The outer river and inner lake are crucial, with their rise and fall in sync. How is it not related to the Western Xia Treasury?”
“If it weren’t for you people disturbing our ancestral land with your construction, how would the geomancy change and ruin our village’s geomancy?”
Leo and Christine were surprised to hear the middle-aged man mention terms like “crucial points” and “rise and fall in sync.” They didn’t expect someone in this remote area to understand geomancy.
Leo looked in the direction the man pointed. In his mind’s eye, he saw a misty expanse of water, confirming the presence of a lake as the man described.
“What about these arch structures?” Leo pointed at the half-submerged arches in the pond.
The arches looked like doorways. Who would build such things underwater?
“We’re seeing them for the first time too,” the middle-aged man shook his head.
Then he asked, “Are you really going to Razor Pass?”
“Yes, if you could show us the way, that would be great. We can report this to the archaeological team,” Christine said.
The middle-aged man suddenly became excited. “Do you know the leaders of the archaeological team?”
Leo nodded. The leader of this Western Xia Treasury excavation was Chloe, whom he knew well.
“That’s good. You must help us report these issues.”
“We’ve been to Razor Pass several times and reported to the county authorities, but the leaders there have big egos and don’t listen to us.”
Does Chloe have such a big ego? Leo wondered.
Or maybe Chloe wasn’t leading at Razor Pass?
Regardless, Leo agreed to the man’s request. He took out his phone and snapped several photos around the pond, including the arches, to provide evidence for the Western Xia Treasury team. He wanted the archaeologists to see if they had uncovered an underground river affecting the village’s geomancy.
Leo’s actions quickly won over the villagers.
The middle-aged man enthusiastically showed them the way: follow a small path behind the village heading east until they reached the river, then follow it upstream to Razor Pass.
Leo thanked him and returned to the village entrance with Christine.
Leo wore a contemplative expression. Although he knew the Western Xia Treasury was at Razor Pass, he wasn’t familiar with the local terrain.
From what the middle-aged man said, it seemed the Western Xia Treasury was built near Blackwater Creek.
If so, this location choice was indeed questionable.
The Western Xia Treasury was built to store treasures, which are typically kept in dry places far from water. Why build a treasury by a creek?
Or had Blackwater Creek changed its course for some reason?
Domingo saw Leo and Christine return and asked, “How did it go?”
Leo explained the mysterious drop in the pond’s water level. Domingo couldn’t make sense of it either, so the six of them continued onward.
“Initially, we wanted to stay in this village too, but we heard the villagers are somewhat xenophobic. So, our film crew drives back to a nearby town to rest each day,” Domingo said as they walked.
Christine couldn’t help but interject, “This village has only a few dozen households yet is so close to the Western Xia Treasury. Could there be a connection?”
Christine’s guess wasn’t baseless. Historically, royal tombs often had guardians-families close to royalty who sometimes formed small villages over time.
These guardians took their duty seriously, avoiding marriage with outsiders and contact with the outside world, much like this village.
Domingo shook his head. “I don’t know about that. We’ll ask the experts at the Western Xia Treasury.”
Soon, they saw a wide river ahead.
The water was dark green, almost black-hence its name, Blackwater Creek.
The six followed Blackwater Creek upstream.
Before long, they spotted a simple signal tower. According to Domingo, it was set up specifically for the Western Xia Treasury excavation team.
It was nearing dusk when they finally saw the Western Xia Treasury ahead. They quickened their pace.
Past the signal tower, they first saw rows of dark green military tents scattered around a large pit like wildflowers in a field.
Leo counted the tents. Each could sleep three people. With thirty tents, there should be about a hundred people here.
But even counting laborers and experts from Langstel Museum, there should only be fifty or sixty people. Why so many?
As they approached the camp, they saw an armed guard standing by a wire barrier.
The guard shouted as they neared, “Halt! Who goes there?”
This setup made Leo and Christine pause. It felt like the Western Xia Treasury had become a temporary military base. They both looked at Domingo.
Domingo had visited the Western Xia Treasury many times and was best suited to handle this.
But even Domingo frowned and said, “We’re from Langstel TV here to film a program on the Western Xia Treasury.”
“Langstel TV? Go get badges over there before coming back. The entire Western Xia Treasury is under lockdown; no entry without work badges,” explained the guard.
They looked in the direction he pointed.
There stood an oversized tent, seemingly converted into an office with people bustling in and out carrying various items.
Domingo was puzzled. “Since when do we need work badges? I didn’t need one on my previous visits!”
But seeing the guard’s vigilant gaze, it seemed any sign of resistance would prompt him to use his weapon.
So, they headed toward the large tent.
As they approached, they heard someone shouting angrily inside: “What are you all doing? Three bulldozers have broken down already!”
“And that water pump keeps breaking too! Are you trying to drain Blackwater Creek dry!?”