OVER the past fortnight, more than 50,000 book fans, mainly teenage girls, have descended upon the Changbai Mountain Range.

    These hardcore fans, however, are not kitted-out in mountain-climbing gear: they are dressed in matching T-shirts, carrying placards and talking about a mysterious door.

    “The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles” is a nine-part novel series by Xu Lei. It follows the adventures of Wu Xie, a tomb raider, and his uncle.

    It is the cliffhanger of book nine, in which the fictional world ends Aug. 17, 2005, that prompted diehard fans to undertake a literary pilgrimage. The final book ends with Wu’s friend, Kylin Zhang, disappearing through a bronze door in the mountain to protect his family’s secret. Kylin tells Wu to come and take his place on the same day, 10 years later, which was Monday.

    “I know the book is not real, but that hasn’t stopped me from counting down the days to this visit,” said Wu Chulei, a Beijing high school student.

    The mountain range, which borders China and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, attracts a huge number of tourists from home and abroad every year.

    Following reports of fans flocking to Changbai Mountains, Xu asked his fans via Weibo to change their travel plans to avoid accidents and to not cause damage to the environment.

    Thousands of fans, however, were not to be dissuaded and turned up wearing matching blue T-shirts emblazoned with the English word “Muse,” which is a character in Kylin’s name in the original Chinese version, while others came dressed as their favorite character.

    The fans happily walked a special route organized by the local government, proudly carrying banners reading, “See you at Changbai Mountain” and, “It’s time to go home, Kylin Zhang.” The motley crew sharply contrasted with the mountain’s usual visitors.

    “We didn’t come to enjoy the scenery. We came to experience the mysterious atmosphere described in the novel. It’s a kind of spiritual pursuit,” Wu told Xinhua.

    Since the first “The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles” book was published in 2007, it has amassed millions of fans in China.

    The series has been translated into English and was published last year. It was also made into a TV series, which premiered in June, and production on a movie is scheduled for September.

    (Xinhua)