HLnovel Chapter 266 A Room Full of Ancient Books
Chapter 266 A Room Full of Ancient Books
In the blink of an eye, the five of them stepped into the study. Everywhere they looked were books. The bookshelves stretched from floor to ceiling, stacked layer upon layer with various tomes. The scene was magnificent.
The binding of the books is simple and heavy, with the covers mostly wrapped in dark oil paper. The large gold-plated characters of the book titles have been worn away by the years, but still faintly reveal their brilliance; the pages are yellowed and brittle, and the corners are slightly curled, but the small regular script on them is neat and beautiful, and although the ink color is light, it reveals an ancient charm. Obviously, they are all ancient books that are very old and carry a heavy history.
"Brother, these are all ancient books. They must be very valuable." Su Siyi approached the bookshelf, reached out and gently stroked a row of books, his fingertips stroking the rough book covers, his eyes full of amazement and joy, and his voice trembled slightly with excitement.
In her opinion, such ancient books, not to mention the academic value contained in the content, their market value as cultural relics and antiques must be very high. It is a miracle that they can be preserved intact to this day.
"Well, they're very valuable, antiques. If I took them out, they'd surely be very popular with the nation. But these books can't see the light of day! What a shame." Su Wenying carefully removed an ancient book, cradling it in his palms. He gently turned the pages, a subtle rustling sound. He closed his eyes slightly, channeling his spiritual energy to sense the book's aura. After a moment, he opened his eyes and spoke solemnly, as if he had grasped some mysterious taboo in the ancient book. His words were filled with regret and helplessness.
"Oh, why can't it be seen in public? Is there something wrong with this book?" Su Siyi was full of doubts. She stopped what she was doing and picked up an ancient book to examine it carefully. From the cover to the back cover, from the layout to the text, she couldn't see anything unusual. It was definitely not a banned book. She really couldn't understand why her brother would say that.
"If these books leave this room, they will probably disappear." Su Wenying looked determined, his eyes fixed on the ancient book in his hand, as if he could see through the pages of the mysterious formation hidden in it that maintained the existence of the book.
He knew very well that this study was by no means an ordinary library. It must have been blessed by his ancestors with exquisite formations to create a unique spiritual environment, like a small secret realm, just for the long-term preservation of these classics that carry the family's wisdom. Once they are out of this nourishing place, the protection of the formation will lose its effect, and the books will disappear like a dream bubble.
"Uh, big brother, are you sure?" Su Siyi looked down at the intact book in her hand, still full of doubts. She could hardly believe that such a thick book, which she held steadily in her hand, could have such a bizarre "fate". She just hoped that her big brother was joking.
"Because there is a formation here, these books are specially preserved." Su Wenying said affirmatively.
"What about these books?" Su Siyi's eyebrows furrowed slightly, her eyes filled with regret and melancholy. Her gaze lingered over the shelves of ancient books in the study, her fingers unconsciously twirling the hem of her clothes, her voice filled with resignation and reluctance. These ancient tomes undoubtedly carried the wisdom of centuries of Su family ancestors, the history of the family's rise and fall. They were like silent histories, quietly awaiting interpretation and inheritance by future generations. But now, trapped in this mysterious formation, they were difficult to retrieve. It was truly a pity.
"Siyi, why don't we get a scanner and scan all the books here so we can take them out." Nangong Jingming raised his eyebrows, an idea suddenly flashed through his mind, and he quickly suggested it.
He straightened his back, his expression showing a certain degree of confidence, thinking that with the advancement of technology today, scanners could accurately restore the contents of book pages. Although it was tedious and time-consuming, it could at least solve the urgent problem and preserve this precious knowledge in the world, so that it would not remain sealed here and never see the light of day.
"Well, but these scanners are too slow. If we can successfully scan all the books in the study, I'm afraid it will take a lot of blood from our family." Su Siyi bit her lip and shook her head slightly, her expression growing increasingly gloomy. She raised her hand to ruffle the hair by her ear, and mentally quickly calculated the feasibility. She knew that the old house had a special access control. Each opening required a drop of blood from the Su family. It was not only time-consuming and laborious, but if the door was opened frequently to scan books, who knew how much blood would be shed by family members. The price was too high. This method seemed feasible, but in fact it had many hidden limitations.
"There's no better way, then. Let's get a few more scanners and scan simultaneously!" Nangong Jingming folded his arms, frowning, and sighed helplessly. His gaze darted between the bookshelves and the crowd, searching for a better solution, but to no avail. He could only settle for the next best thing, hoping for a larger number of scanners to increase scanning efficiency and reduce time loss, but he had no idea if that would work.
Su Siyi was struggling with her thoughts when her eyes suddenly flickered, a flash of inspiration dawning on her mind. She remembered her enigmatic system, which had always helped her so much. She wondered if it could help this time. She called out inwardly, "System, can you scan all the books here quickly?" Her tone was filled with anticipation, yet also a hint of trepidation, like a drowning person grasping at a lifeline, hoping for a positive response from the system.
"Master, yes, and it will be very fast, but you need to upgrade it for me first!" The mechanical voice of the system sounded in Su Siyi's mind. The tone was steady, but it made Su Siyi's heart sink. He thought to himself that things might not be that simple.
"Upgrade, then upgrade!" Su Siyi gritted her teeth and said anxiously, thinking that as long as the problem could be solved, upgrading would be better than just staring blankly and doing nothing.
"One hundred million points need to be deducted from the owner." The system dropped this heavy "bomb" without any ripples. Every word was clear, like a huge rock smashing into a calm lake, stirring up thousands of waves.
"One hundred million! You need so many points for just one upgrade!" Su Siyi's eyes widened in shock. She gasped, her hands unconsciously covering her chest as her heart ached, as if real money were slipping through her fingers. Although she usually didn't care much about money, these points were hard to accumulate. Every point was filled with sweat and hard work. Spending one hundred million for just one upgrade was a really poor value for money. She hesitated, considering sticking with the old method and shedding a little more blood to get through the scan.
"Master, if you upgrade me, not only can I scan ten meters in one second, but I can also improve my ability to protect you. There will be more and more sign-in tasks, and the rewards will become more and more abundant. In short, there are many benefits and you will not be disappointed." The system seemed to have seen through Su Siyi's thoughts, and hurriedly persuaded her with bewitching words, trying to dispel her concerns, and listed all the benefits of the upgrade one by one, as if painting a beautiful blueprint, which made Su Siyi very excited.
"Then how many points do I have now?" Su Siyi calmed down and decided to find out her current "assets" before making a decision.
"One hundred and twenty million points." The system answered truthfully, and the tone remained flat. But to Su Siyi, it sounded like a ray of hope, illuminating the dilemma.
"Forget it, let's upgrade!" Su Siyi weighed the pros and cons, biting her lower lip and stamping her foot before finally making up her mind. While the points cost was staggering, the long-term convenience and security the system upgrade would bring far outweighed the immediate loss. Furthermore, these ancient books were invaluable. If she missed this opportunity, she'd never have another chance to preserve their legacy intact. With this in mind, she steeled herself and decided to give it a try.
"Ding, the system upgrade will take an hour." As soon as the system voice fell, Su Siyi felt a buzzing in her head, as if a mysterious energy was surging, data and information flowed rapidly, and the system interface flickered with light and shadow, entering a busy upgrade process, just like a sleeping giant being awakened, undergoing a transformation and rebirth.
"I just upgraded the system. After the upgrade, the system can scan the books here in one second." Su Siyi's cheeks flushed, and she could not hide her excitement. Her eyes were shining like the bright stars in the night sky. She announced the good news to everyone at a rapid speed, and her hands were waving unconsciously, as if she had seen the beautiful scene of the contents of the ancient books being completely entered into the system and available for reference at any time.
"Really? That's great. I won't have to worry about wasting these books." Su Wenying's originally furrowed brows instantly relaxed, and the gloom on her face was swept away, replaced by a relieved smile. Her eyes were full of admiration for her sister's courage and decisiveness and expectations for the future. Thinking that the family heirlooms could finally be properly preserved and passed on, a heavy stone in her heart fell quietly.
"It won't be a pity. We will print it out later and each person will have a copy. It won't be a problem." Su Siyi raised the corners of her mouth and smiled confidently. She nodded her head lightly, and her hair danced lightly. Her tone was firm, as if she had already arranged the subsequent matters. The knowledge and wisdom in the ancient book will be like dandelion seeds, sown in the hearts of every member of the Su family, taking root, sprouting, and spreading.
"Okay, then I have to collect a copy of all the books, and I need electronic copies." Su Wenyu's eyes lit up, his face full of anticipation, and he couldn't wait to get started. He was a book lover and was obsessed with ancient classics. He was overjoyed to hear that he could collect all these mysterious ancient books, with both paper copies for him to touch and study, and electronic documents for him to read at any time. He immediately expressed his feelings to Su Siyi, hoping to own these "treasures of knowledge" as soon as possible.
"Okay, then good luck to you, third brother. Read more books." Su Siyi responded jokingly with a smile on her face. Her eyes were full of support and encouragement for her third brother's love of reading. The brothers and sisters gathered together in a happy atmosphere, and they were full of anticipation for the future study and inheritance of ancient books.
"Sister, do you think that's what we need to find?" Su Wenxin's eyes suddenly widened, and he pointed to the desk in the study. His voice became high-pitched and trembling with excitement. On the desk lay an ancient box, which exuded a mysterious aura and seemed to be whispering silently, causing Su Wenxin's heart to palpitate inexplicably. His intuition told him that this box must be closely related to the family secret.
"Oh, maybe it really is." Su Siyi looked in the direction of the voice, and the moment her eyes fell on the box, her heart suddenly shrank, and an indescribable mysterious power surged into her heart like a tide, as if there was a voice deep in her soul gently calling her, pulling her closer. The feeling was both strange and familiar, as if there was a fateful bond between them, making her firmly believe that this box was no ordinary object.