Chapter 33 Chapter 32: The City in the Sky

The day finally passed, because the campsite was underground, and everyone was woken up by the alarm clock early the next morning. When we went out to see, the red sun was rising from the desert, and the brilliance of the morning glow was sprinkled on the golden sand. Immediately, even people looked holy. As soon as Chu Feng came out, he saw Ling Ning greeting Da Qi with a pair of panda eyes.To say that Da Qi is really good.People were arranged to take turns on duty at both ends of the secret road, even he himself was no exception, and he was on duty normally. "How is it? Is there anything wrong?" Chu Feng asked Daqi casually.

Da Qi shook his head: "Hmph, which brat dares to come now, I just want to try him out!" As the commander of this team of soldiers, he took the initiative to give himself double the time when he was on duty, and he was also sleepy now. Insufficient mood expression. Chu Feng patted him on the shoulder sympathetically, but said nothing. Since there are only five expedition members in the team besides the soldiers, everyone packed up very quickly. In less than an hour, they packed up and settled the breakfast. Chu Feng led the way, and the group came to the place where Chu Feng rescued Company Commander Mao last time.On the edge of the cliff, according to Chu Feng's visual inspection, the tower is at least 35 meters high. There are three floors that can be seen so far, with two floors on the top and a dome-like roof below.The top of the tower is more than 10 meters away from the top of the cliff, that is to say, it is nearly 50 meters away from the base of the tower.

Chu Feng expressed his opinion to Da Qi, and Da Qi also looked around the cliff to make sure that his judgment was generally correct.These fighters seem to be very experienced in climbing cliffs at ordinary times, and very quickly, in groups of two, they hanged four people down.Within a few minutes, there was a shout from below: "There is no danger below, the actual distance is 45 meters!" Chu Feng looked at the crowd, except for Ling Ning who might not be able to get down, there was almost no trouble for the others.William Lin has long been eager to try.He has done rock climbing in the United States, but compared to this special forces soldier, it must be far behind!

Leaving four soldiers standing guard on the top, the others, including Ling Ning, all descended to the bottom of the cliff.Because the soldiers who went down before did not know how to get the ropes intertwined in the process of hanging down, forming two simple rope ladders, so Ling Ning went down without much effort.Chu Feng was at the end. When he descended to the bottom of the cliff, he carefully looked at the point of leverage he had found at the beginning. At that time, he felt that the sole of his foot seemed to touch something, but it was important to save people. have a look. When approaching the penultimate floor of the pagoda, Chu Feng noticed that there was indeed something on the corresponding cliff, showing a different blue color in a piece of loess.Chu Feng hung there and pulled it, and the soil clods fell one after another, revealing a large bluestone.

Chu Feng wanted to take a closer look, but Lin William's noisy voice was deafening from such a distance, so Chu Feng had no choice but to go down first and then talk. As soon as he arrived, William Lin rushed over excitedly: "Brother Chu! Brother Chu, come quickly, it's amazingly beautiful, so beautiful! So beautiful! Have we discovered the Hanging Gardens of ancient Babylon?" "Sky garden?" Chu Feng was puzzled after he looked in the direction of William's finger, and took a breath. If he had already prepared himself mentally, he was still dazzled by what he saw!

"This, how is this possible?!" Chu Feng's mind went blank for about half a minute, everything in front of him was so incredible!He has no way to believe that this is true!This, this is not the legendary mirage! He took a deep breath and managed to calm himself down. Looking around at the crowd, except for Lin William, that unintentional and nervous guy who was bluffing there, everyone else just stood there in a daze like himself. There is no shortage of miracles in this world, the key is to see if you are lucky enough to discover it! Chu Feng thought that he had controlled his emotions well, but he didn't expect Wang Cong to beat him back to his original shape with one word.Wang Cong still had a vibrato when he spoke: "Is this, is this really in Xinjiang?!"

All of this in front of you is really easy to make people feel dislocated in time and space, because all of this is very similar to the legendary Hanging Garden of Babylon.It's as if Chu Feng and the others messed up time and space and came to the ancient city of Babylon! Chu Feng only felt his heart beating in his throat, as if his blood was boiling and burning, making him want to worship and sing praises!This passion came suddenly and naturally, as if it had always been hidden in his blood, waiting to burst out at this moment.This is a strong force, as if it is about to push his back, pushing him through the abyss in front of him!

Less than ten meters in front of Chu Feng and the others was a bottomless abyss.On the other side of the abyss, stands a high platform, and a long ladder goes around the high platform. From a distance, it seems that someone will climb up the steps at any time.The high platform overlooks the blue sky above the desert with auspicious clouds floating in the sky.In the dark, it seems that someone is chanting hymns. Below the high platform is a group of buildings, which can be vaguely seen as a city wall.At the bottom of this huge castle, there is a forest of giant stone pillars, as if it had been chiseled into the mountain wall.The obvious Greco-Roman style Gandhara art sculptures make people almost think that they have changed time and space and came to the ancient Greco-Roman era.

The dead but still standing Populus euphratica forest is guarding the palace like a guard.On the dome of the palace, the rare green glaze glistened in the sun.Pointy domes protruded from more than one, and the green glazed bricks dazzled everyone's eyes. Although there are many broken tiles and ruins, as well as the cover of yellow sand, this desert dusty pearl, like a girl under the veil, exudes unrestrained and shy, luxurious and holy beauty. She is inlaid on the cliff, as if in mid-air, and is a veritable "city in the sky". The tall giant stone pillars, the Gandhara culture blowing in front of us; the shining green colored bricks, which only appeared in the legends of ancient Babylonian cities; and the typical Western style, standing or falling Populus euphratica... …so many styles are harmoniously unified here, the real craftsmanship!

Everyone was in shock for a long time but couldn't recover.Although there are many legends about ancient sand-buried cities in the region around Tarim in Xinjiang, and there are even historical records, as many as 19 ancient castles with names buried in the Taklimakan Desert have not yet been found.The people present have more or less heard of these legends or sayings, but they did not expect to see such an ancient sandy city with their own eyes today. After a long time, someone in the crowd finally spoke again.Sangbu: "This! How can this pass!" This side and the high platform on the other side are completely separated, and the huge gap in the middle is probably caused by this earthquake.

But the gap between success and the gap between failure, without this earthquake, without this gap containing many quicksands, it is impossible for this city and this tower to see the light of day again, but now, this gap also prevents Chu Feng and the others from reaching The way to the city in the sky. There is no leverage on this side, nor on the other side, even if Da Qi and the others brought the zip line, there is no place to fix it, what should I do? The people at the scene, including those fighters, seemed to have been pumped with chicken blood, high-spirited and gearing up, ready for a trapeze. Chu Feng restrained the maneuver in his heart, and said calmly: "Wait, we must go over there, but don't you want to take a look at this tall tower in front of you?" As he said, he tried to pouted at Nata. Only then did everyone come to their senses, that is, why give up what is easy and ask for what is difficult, anyway, the city will not run away if it is there. What a mystery. In the ancient Western Regions, there was once a popular form of pagoda architecture from India - stupa.Stupa is one of the unique architectural types of ancient Buddhism. It is mainly used to enshrine and place the relics (relics), scriptures and dharma objects of Buddha and holy monks. It looks like a round tomb.It was popular in the Mauryan Dynasty in India in the 3rd century BC. It was an important building at that time and was found in the ancient Loulan ruins. "This, this is a stupa?" Ling Ning only saw the introduction of this kind of ancient building in the book, but never saw the real thing. "It doesn't look like it!" Wang Cong pouted, "The bottom looks like it, and the stone tower part on the top doesn't belong to the traditional stupa architectural style." Xiao Wang has good eyesight: the central part of this pagoda is made of stone, and the tower is seven stories high. Just now, I could only see the top two stories from the top, but now I can see the whole picture.The bottom is the same as the round tomb-shaped stupas that are common in the Western Regions. It is made of yellow clay and is more than ten meters high. There is no obvious layering, but if you look closely, it seems to be divided into three layers.The bottom floor is the largest, covering an area of ​​about 1,000 square meters, and the upper floor is smaller than the first floor. After Company Commander Mao was rescued last time, the eaves of the tower that were crushed and fell off were at Chu Feng’s feet. Chu Feng went over and saw that the eaves of the tower were indeed made of wood, and its decorative patterns were common in the Loulan area. It seems that this tower should undoubtedly belong to the building of the Loulan period. Although the whole tower was a bit dilapidated, there was basically no defect. The gate of the tower was made of wood, and half of it was rotten. Everyone entered the tower one by one without any effort. The inside of the tower was not invaded by yellow sand. Except for some accumulation of yellow sand at the entrance, the other places were very clean, with only some dust, which saved everyone a lot of work. As soon as you enter the door, everyone is fascinated by the colorful murals.Facing the gate of the pagoda, the nearly ten-meter-high statue also made everyone marvel at the grandeur of the ancients when they created artworks. Even people who don't know much about Buddhism can't regard him as a Buddha statue.The statue wears a plain crown, its eyes are slightly open, and the clothes on its body look like those of the princes of the Han Dynasty. More importantly, there are a pair of wings behind the statue. "This, this is an angel?!" William Lin's eyes widened in disbelief. "How could it be an angel? Didn't you see that he was dressed as a Han?" Even Wang Cong couldn't stand his ignorance this time. "Then who is he? Why was he molded into such a tall statue and enshrined in such a tall pagoda?" Ling Ning couldn't help but mutter to himself. "It's true that the attire is Han, but the appearance is a bit like the ethnic minorities in the southeast!" Sangbu said with certainty after carefully observing the characteristics of his clothing and his appearance. Judging from the appearance of the statue, this "god" who does not know his identity looks a little thin, and the expression of this statue is also very serious. The image of the "Winged Angel" mural that was forcibly removed from the Milan Cathedral is very inconsistent. "This should be a god in the mythology of the Han people." Chu Feng said uncertainly, whether the murals or Buddha statues found in the Loulan area, they are all images with plump faces and soft lines, and the characters are a little fat.The same is true of the characters on the murals in the royal tomb they discovered in Tuyugou not long ago.Never before has such a style of deity been found. The statue was erected squarely in the center of the pagoda. If there were no Qicheng stone pagoda above, there would be a dome above his head.At this time, there were four wooden pillars standing in front of and behind him to support the stone tower above his head. Anyone who faces such a huge statue will always feel a bit of coercion, but what is strange is that Chu Feng feels that when facing this statue, he feels that it is better to say that he is exuding the majesty of God. He has the majesty of a prince. After the initial psychological adjustment, everyone quickly calmed down and cooperated with each other. Chu Feng circled around the statue, trying to find some clues from him so as to verify his identity.Ling Ning turned on the laptop and scanned everything here.Holding a camera, measuring tools and a notebook, Wang Cong took pictures and took measurements. After recording, he had to number each place. Since there was no table for worship in front of the statue, it took a lot of effort for Sambu to jump onto the nearly 1.8-meter-high pedestal under his feet. William Lin took random photos with his own camera, and soon became interested in the murals on the surrounding walls. The walls are covered with some Buddhist stories, the colors are gorgeous and the figures are lifelike, which is rarely seen in Chu Feng's life.Being in this mural group, it seems that the characters on the wall can walk down at any time. "Come and see! This is the story of 'Prince Xudana'!" Ling Ning first recognized a protagonist in the mural.Chu Feng walked over and took a look. Indeed, there was a white elephant on the mural. A man dressed as an Indian prince was holding it and giving it to another person. On the mural next to it, there was a man like a human trafficker holding two elephants. A child in the busy market, seems to be selling.In the distance, an Indian king is looking at this side.Chu Feng saw this, and then went to the edge of the tower gate. On the mural there were four Brahman-like people asking for alms from the person who gave the white elephant.He agreed with her judgment: "This is indeed the story mural of 'Prince Xudana'. It seems that it was built by Theravada Buddhists!" "How do you say it? Who is this Sudana? Brother Chu, how can you tell that this place is cultivated by Hinayana followers?" It is the virtue of our classmate Lin William to be eager to learn and ask questions. "This Sudana, his deeds come from the "Story of Buddha Jataka". This "Story of Buddha Jataka", also known as "Buddha Jataka", is dedicated to telling the story of Buddha Sakyamuni's past life. Xu Dana is the prince of the Yebo Kingdom in India. I don’t know the previous life of the Buddha. He devoted all his heart to the Buddha. He gave all his family property to beggars, and gave the white elephant with supernatural power to the family’s enemies. Because of the excessive charity, His father drove him out of the palace, and he took his wife and children into the forest." As he said that, Chu Feng walked to the other side, pointed to the background on the mural that was exactly the same as what he said, and continued, "Four Brahmins tested him and wanted his wife and children, but he also gave them away. Later, These Brahmins were moved by him and decided to help him, and took his children to sell in the downtown area, causing his father to regret it, and took them all back to the palace, and Xu Dana also withstood the test of the Buddha." Chu Feng said this. The famous story of Buddha Jataka was narrated, and with the murals on the wall, everyone felt as if they had entered a mythical world. "The story of Xudana comes from the story of Buddha Jataka, and the painting of worshiping Buddha's Jataka story is an important content in the teachings of Theravada Buddhism. The murals of Xudana's story were also found in the ruins of the ancient city of Milan, but those murals were damaged by Stein Sexual looting is not preserved so completely. The Milan Temple has been confirmed by the academic circles as a Theravada temple. Therefore, it can be inferred that this place should also be built by Theravada Buddhists." The following paragraph is explained by Ling Ning , due to her family background, she has studied a lot since she was a child. In Buddhism, she still knows a little about the difference between Mahayana and Mahayana. William Lin's eyes were staring at the beginning, then his face darkened and he became listless. Chu Feng wondered: "What's the matter?" "Brother Chu, am I useless? I don't know what even a little girl knows!" Chu Feng smiled and explained Ling Ning's identity to him: "It's okay, William, do you know that there is a Chinese word called 'Family Learning Origin'. Born in such a family, it is normal for her to have a higher starting point than you You can also work hard. If you work hard, it will not be difficult to surpass her! Don't be discouraged!" Chu Feng said this purely to comfort William, and he didn't want a good young man to be beaten like a wilted eggplant.Unexpectedly, he underestimated this person's psychological endurance, and the next moment, this person put on a bright smile again, and cheered happily. On the murals on the wall, a little higher, there are story paintings of "giving up life to feed tiger" and "cutting meat to feed eagle". These stories are all from the stories of Buddha Jataka. At the top, there is a group of people who are similar to the statue - people with wings.These people are both male and female, very young, handsome men and beautiful women, with happy smiles on their faces.This doesn't look like a religious painting, but more like a picture of young men and women outing in spring. There are a total of six such pictures, which are arc-shaped and surround the mouth of the dome.Four of them are life-size portraits of winged men and women.To the northwest, there are two curved murals showing the heads of unusually beautiful winged women. Chu Feng stared at the top of his head in a daze. It was not the first time that these images of "winged angels" appeared in the Loulan area. More than 100 years ago, Stein stole the mural portraits of 12 male "winged angels" from the Milan Temple. Mural portrait of a female "winged angel".That woman is also very glamorous, but she is by no means similar to Dunhuang's Flying Apsaras image.These murals are now collected in the National Museum of India. Although Chu Feng has never seen the original murals, he has seen the exquisite printed plates.When he saw it for the first time, he was deeply shocked. He felt that it was not an image imagined by people, but a bit like a real sketch record with a prototype.Seeing these young "winged angels" here this time, his feeling is even stronger. Ling Ning also looked up at these "beauties" behind him. The elation of the men and the implicit happiness of the women were very clearly depicted by the producer.She even felt that if it hadn't been for a long time and the murals were blocked by thick dust, maybe these people would jump off on a whim. Sambu found a very unusual clue, and he jumped off the pedestal with a dark expression: "Here, it was stolen!" As he spoke, he pointed to the body of the statue: "Although this statue is made of clay, there should have been many decorations on its body, but they are all gone now. Look here, according to the costumes of the Han people, there should be a set of jade decorations on it." There is an indentation on the body of the statue to press the hem of the skirt, which proves that such a thing did exist. Just now, I walked to the side and rear of the statue and saw from a distance that there was a white crown on his head. The hairpin hole, obviously, there should have been a hairpin there, but it’s gone too. So someone must have stolen it here, and took away the valuables from the statue.” Sangbu said with a very uncomfortable look on his face. nice.Ever since he started archaeology, he hated cultural relic thieves.Now, seeing that I have ushered in the most important discovery in my life, but the tomb robbers are the first to make it to me, I would be unhappy for everyone! How is this possible? If it wasn't for this earthquake, no matter who it was, it would be impossible for anyone to find this place. If it wasn't for Sangbu's familiarity with the way to enter the quicksand area, those who wanted to enter here would have been swallowed by quicksand long ago.How could someone have been here before them and stole the statue's ornaments?Moreover, the murals and statues here have not been damaged, which is not like what ordinary tomb robbers or "treasure hunters" usually do.