The stone door swung open, and a rich aroma of wine rushed toward them. It was so full-bodied it seemed almost tangible, as though ten thousand years had settled within it. Xing San stood at the entrance, staring at the scene before him, unable to take a step for a long while.
Li Yun was taken aback too.
Beyond the stone door was not the chamber they had imagined, but a vast space.
A high dome arched overhead, dotted with starlight, as though they stood beneath the night sky.
The floor was paved with bluestone slabs. Thin streams of wine flowed between them, winding and crossing like brooks before gathering in a great wine pool at the center.
The pool was not large, perhaps thirty feet across. Its wine was clear and bright, with an amber sheen.
Its surface lay still as a mirror, reflecting the stars above like a pool of starlight.
Directly above the pool hung a jade flask.
White as snow and simple in design, it had a slightly tilted spout. A crystal-clear drop of wine slowly fell from it into the pool, sending out a ring of ripples.
The drop fell so slowly that time itself seemed stretched thin here.
Xing San drew a deep breath and stepped inside.
His footsteps made soft sounds against the bluestone slabs.
The streams of wine flowed past his feet without wetting his soles, parting of their own accord as though they were alive.
"So this is our ancestor's Inheritance Ground..." he murmured, his voice full of awe.
Li Yun followed him in, sweeping his gaze around the space.
The walls were covered in dense writing and drawings that filled almost every inch of stone. He approached one wall and studied it.
The writing was in an ancient seal script.