“Green copper rust!” This discovery sent a jolt through William Carter’s heart.

　　This stele had once been sealed away, buried within the mountain. Thinking carefully, there shouldn’t have been any moss on it; it had endured through countless ages, only seeing the light of day again after a violent earthquake.

　　It turned out to be made of bronze!

　　But such a massive piece of ancient bronze was truly rare.

　　“The Simuwu Ding unearthed from the Yin Ruins weighs less than two thousand jin, yet it’s called the largest ancient bronze artifact. But this bronze stele…”

　　William Carter pushed aside some earth and stones. Conservatively estimating, this piece of bronze must weigh at least five or six thousand jin. It was truly astonishing—such a thing would have been a peerless treasure in ancient times.

　　It was mottled with green rust, clearly an ancient object buried for countless years.

　　If it were a stone stele, William Carter would have thought it was left by someone from the past who came to pay their respects. But now, faced with such a massive bronze stele, he was no longer sure.

　　In those distant ancient times, who could afford to use so much bronze just for commemoration?

Chapter 0003 Bronze Kunlun

　　“Dong!”

　　A trembling sound rang from the bronze, carrying the weight of ages.

　　William Carter put down the stone in his hand, certain that this was indeed a bronze stele. He found it hard to believe—a bronze artifact weighing several thousand jin was no small matter.

　　If word got out, it would definitely cause a sensation.

　　On it were carved the characters “West King,” imbued with the sediment of time, ancient yet mysterious, captivating the mind. He truly had no idea from which era it originated.

　　“Who buried it in Kunlun Mountain?”

　　William Carter knocked on the bronze stele, the metallic resonance continuing, but unfortunately, he was not an archaeologist and could not draw any valuable conclusions.

　　“Perhaps, in the distant past, there was once a brilliant bronze civilization here,” he muttered, speculating.

　　He had never been superstitious. Even though Kunlun was steeped in myth, and now he had suddenly come upon a giant bronze stele inscribed with “West King,” he still didn’t really believe those legends.

　　William Carter thought that even if the Queen Mother of the West had truly existed, she might have just been the leader of some powerful ancient tribe, and this was merely a relic.

　　“A violent earthquake caused abnormal magnetic field values in the mountain, triggering cloud discharges, and with the massive bronze exposed on the mountain, it attracted lightning?”

　　William Carter increasingly felt that this might be the reason.

　　He very much wanted to dig out the bronze stele and examine it closely, but half of it was still buried underground, and without tools, it would be very difficult.

　　After lingering here for a while, he continued climbing upward.

　　The great fissure on the mountain was wide and deep, pitch-black and shocking to behold—a scene of utter devastation.

　　There was no path along the way; the mountain was steep and treacherous, with huge rocks strewn about. The higher he climbed, the harder it became.

　　The mountain was vast. Walking alone upon it, feeling its grandeur, and recalling its many legends, William Carter felt a strange emotion. Gazing into the distance, he saw the giant mountain connect with the sky—a truly magnificent sight.

　　He climbed upward for over a thousand meters. Traversing the mountain after the earthquake was no easy journey; when loose rocks tumbled down, it was extremely dangerous.

　　Ahead, there was a large pile of earth and stones where a section of the mountain wall had recently collapsed.

　　From a distance, William Carter noticed something unusual. His expression changed with surprise as he hurried forward, climbing up to confirm what he had seen.

　　“It looks like copper rust!”

　　From afar, he saw a patch of green stains and mottled rust at the cliff’s edge. This was not just a small cluster, but a large area.

　　Finally, he got close enough to see clearly.

　　“It really is!”

　　This was even more astonishing than the bronze stele he had seen earlier.

　　After a large section of the cliff had broken off, the exposed area, clinging to the steep mountainside, revealed the truth that had been sealed away.

　　Leaning against the rock face, there was a swath of green rust, ancient and mysterious. It was a bronze structure, revealed as part of the mountain slid away.

　　Three bronze houses, ancient and silent, stood backed against the rock wall. Some parts were still buried under earth and stone, but most of them were visible.

　　The bronze houses were of an ancient style, grand and heavy with history.

　　The roof tiles were also cast from bronze, piece by piece, neatly and regularly arranged. At a glance, they looked like green scales covering the buildings.

　　William Carter was truly shocked, unable to calm his heart.

　　This was a sensational discovery—bronze artifacts of such scale! These were bronze houses, built on Kunlun Mountain, once deeply buried.

　　What era were these from? Who built them?

　　According to his guess, this area must once have been home to a brilliant bronze civilization, existing in a time so ancient that no surviving historical records mentioned it.

　　Yet, along with his shock, he also felt unease and confusion.

　　The Simuwu Ding was said to be the largest ancient bronze artifact, but now it seemed not only lighter than the bronze stele, but compared to these houses, it was even less significant.

　　Without a doubt, building such houses was far more difficult than casting a ding.

　　The bronze houses were cast as a whole, exuding grandeur and solemnity, with an air of mystery.

　　If this were discovered by the outside world, it would surely be regarded as a treasure among bronze artifacts. Never before had such massive objects been seen—it would be revolutionary.

　　William Carter was usually very calm in the face of events, but today he could not remain composed. To find such bronze ruins in the mountains of the western lands was truly astonishing!