Chapter 184: Moonlight and Laughter

"Big guy, could you be quiet?" Aisha, sitting beside Tangmu, teased.

Qiaozhi continued, "The temple in Turkey isn't a fake; after all, there are several Temples of Athena. We can only say that the temple we discovered matches our imagination—it is the first human‑built Artemis Temple."

Kelaofu and I hadn't even had time to test it with instruments, yet we could tell that the temple's construction dates back at least eight thousand years, perhaps even tens of thousands of years.

"Tens of thousands of years… my God," Hans exclaimed.

The Artemis Temple, located in the center of Sai Er Qiu Ke city in Turkey, was built on July 21, 356 BC, exactly 2,363 years ago.

It has a total of 126 stone columns, each 18 meters tall, and the whole temple measures 125 meters long and 50 meters wide—large enough to be counted among the ancient world wonders.

It is said that the people of the time spent a full 120 years constructing the temple.

Thinking of this, Hans turned his head to the right.

Even with the naked eye, one can see that the temple beside them is a notch larger than the one in Turkey.

With technology over two thousand years ago, building a world wonder required 120 years; how did humanity ten thousand years ago manage to build the temple before us?

How many more years did it take to build?

Hans's scalp prickled; he felt humanity's history is riddled with mysteries, some things simply inexplicable.

After Qiaozhi finished speaking, Kelaofu proactively took the floor and said:

"There is no statue inside the temple, but the columns bear symbols of antlers, the moon, and bows and arrows, clearly indicating that the deity worshipped here is Artemis, one of the twelve Olympian gods."

"If we take this information back, Professor Xi Er Si will surely be delighted!" Aisha added.

"Hmm." The group nodded.

The Professor Xi Er Si mentioned by the five students is a History professor at Oxford University, a leading figure in archaeology, Kui Er Xi Er Si.

In fact, seven years ago, Xi Er Si led earlier cohorts of students to discover the city ruins of Ge Bei Ke Li, also built ten thousand years ago.

Within the ruins they found the undead Lilith pierced by the Spear of Fear, the giant skeletal war god Ares, and also encountered a white giant hostile to humans.

Afterwards, Xi Er Si and the students had their memories altered by Umbrella, and the Ge Bei Ke Li site was converted into Umbrella's research center.

Nevertheless, even with altered memories, Xi Er Si remained that eminent professor, and the students graduated and entered society, forgetting that thrilling past.

Qiaozhi, Kelaofu and the other three entered Oxford University in 2004, completely unaware of Ge Bei Ke Li's existence.

After enrollment, shared interests made the five close friends, and from the moment they entered, they set "finding the first Artemis Temple" as their goal.

With Xi Er Si's lectures and guidance, sleepless research of obscure histories and myths, and wealthy Kelaofu's funding, three years of relentless effort finally led them to locate the temple hidden deep in the forest.

"Alright." Qiaozhi stood up, "Everyone's worked hard these days; let's rest for two hours, and after we've regained our strength we can continue the research later."

(Looking at Tangmu) "I'll leave the watch to you, Tangmu."

"No problem!" Tangmu replied loudly, still patting his chest.

The other three had no objections.

After four days of roadless trekking through the forest, to be honest, they needed a proper rest.

Next.

Tangmu, still full of energy, guarded the camp, while the other four used filtered lake water for a quick wash and went into the tent to rest.

The scorching sun continued to tilt westward, the light gradually became less blinding, and the weather was no longer as sweltering as the morning.

Seeing this, Tangmu, acting as a "human alarm clock," pounded the tent to wake his companions for work.

Qiaozhi, Kelaofu and the other two, full of vigor, left the tent, prepared the necessary instruments, and headed to the temple to continue the unfinished research.

Tangmu went into the tent and fell into a deep sleep, apparently intending to sleep until night.

Of course, while the other four worked, they still glanced at the camp to ensure sleeping Tangmu wouldn't be in danger.

Even in what seemed a safe area, they remained on guard.

Time passed quickly.

The evening sun reflected on the lake, making the forest's small lake reach its most beautiful moment of the day.

But Qiaozhi and the three others only admired it briefly before throwing themselves back into research, while taking another glance at the camp.

When the sun fully set and natural light was insufficient for good visibility, the four finally left the temple and returned to camp.

Today's haul was substantial; at this pace they think they can gather all required data in two more days, then leave the forest for the city and enjoy the conveniences of modern civilization.

The four then packed away the instruments and tools and began preparing dinner.

When darkness fully fell, they turned on the installed lighting and reignited the central campfire.

The setting and atmosphere made them imagine that, with enough ingredients and a grill, they could have a lakeside barbecue.

But the conditions didn't allow it.

A ready‑made meal sufficient for six was just prepared; Tangmu, having woken naturally, smelled the food and stepped out of the tent to join the dinner group by the fire.

That portion of the meal was prepared for Tangmu, after all he did the most physical labor and consistently handled the watch during the first half of the night.

After finishing their meal, they gathered around the fire, chatting about the future, imagining the spotlight they'd receive after publishing this astonishing discovery.

After a long talk, Qiaozhi and Tangmu agreed that Tangmu would take the second half of the night watch; he was the first to wash up and rest, followed closely by Kelaofu and Hans.

Only Tangmu and Aisha remained sitting by the fire.

Aisha looked up at the bright moon in the night sky and couldn't help but say to Tangmu, "Tangmu, if… you encounter a sudden emergency, what would you do?"

"Sudden emergency?" Tangmu, alert to his surroundings, was startled, but quickly smiled and flexed his biceps, saying:

"Of course I'd protect everyone!"

"…" Aisha had nothing to say.

At that moment, a crescent‑shaped bright moon rose to the center of the night sky, and the two discovered that the lake before them was actually emitting light!

It wasn't moonlight reflected off the surface; the entire lake was emitting a faint white glow.

"Haha~"

When the two saw this incredible sight, they also vaguely heard laughter coming from the east side of the camp.

(End of Chapter)