After assessing the situation, Jiang Hao chose a path, and the two headed toward the mountaintop. Ruined walls and broken structures lay everywhere along the way. After walking for about half an hour, they finally arrived before the palace at the summit.
Jiang Hao found that the palaces here were much better preserved than the ruins below the mountain. Many of the buildings remained intact.
Looking at the sprawling complex, Lara sighed. "Queen Himiko must have been incredibly powerful during her reign. Otherwise, she couldn't possibly have built such a massive palace complex."
The two walked up to the entrance, where two enormous wooden doors were tightly shut. Jiang Hao knocked on them and found them extremely heavy. No matter how hard he pushed, they would not budge.
"Lara, stand back. I'll blow it open," Jiang Hao said.
Lara immediately ducked behind a rock. Jiang Hao took a pack of plastic explosives from his backpack and placed it beneath the door. He then pulled out a detonator, inserted it into the explosives, lit it, and ran to Lara's side to hide behind the rock.
Lara looked at Jiang Hao curiously and asked in astonishment, "Jon, just how much stuff did you bring?"
Jiang Hao smiled. "I stole it from a mercenary camp."
Jiang Hao thought that was a pretty good excuse. No guns, no cannons? The enemy would provide them for them—upholding the glorious traditions of the revolutionary martyrs and all that.
Boom!
With a thunderous blast, wood chips flew everywhere. A huge hole was blasted through the sturdy wooden door. Even though Jiang Hao and Lara were standing far away, they were still showered with splinters, showing just how powerful the explosion had been.
"Okay, let's go in," Jiang Hao said, raising his rifle and charging through the opening