Clues to Rōran

In the spacious room, Old Man Lü stared in astonishment at the four figures who had barged into his home.

Although Old Man Lü did not recognize Kazuhiko Uchiha, he recognized Gongshu Chou and the other two, whose names were famous throughout the empire. Realizing that his identity had probably been exposed, he gave a bitter smile. "To think a mere old codger like me would warrant a visit from Imperial Preceptor Gongshu Chou, Lesser Siming, and Greater Siming. You certainly think highly of me."

"Heh heh heh, my Potu Qilang have already dismantled your mechanical defenses. Hand it over if you know what's good for you. Of course, even if you refuse, I have ways of finding out."

Gongshu Chou laughed smugly, playing the villain's part to perfection as he pressured Old Man Lü with threats and mockery to hand over the Dragon Soul needed to control the War Demon God.

"Even if your memories are buried in the deepest recesses of your mind, I can dig them out." At Gongshu Chou's signal, Lesser Siming stepped forward with a graceful sway, preparing to use the Yin-Yang School's Mind-Reading Technique to probe Old Man Lü's memories.

Just then, Kazuhiko Uchiha, who knew the plot well, stepped forward and pointed at the wall behind Old Man Lü. "There's no need to go to all that trouble. The Dragon Soul and the child who just came in are hidden in a secret compartment behind that wall," he declared confidently.

"What? How could you know?!" Old Man Lü was shocked. He had never expected this stranger, Kazuhiko Uchiha, to discover Tianming's hiding place.

"Oh?" Gongshu Chou raised an eyebrow, walked behind Old Man Lü, and fiddled with the wall a few times, opening the secret compartment behind it.

Looking at the panic-stricken Tianming, Gongshu Chou put on a false smile and said softly, "Young fellow, hand it over, and I'll spare your life."

"I'll never give it to you." Tianming was a boy who valued loyalty above all else. Remembering Old Man Lü's request to return the Dragon Soul to Rōran, he refused Gongshu Chou's order without hesitation.

"Wrong answer. Potu Qilang, attack."

Tianming's answer made Gongshu Chou's expression turn cold. He retreated two steps and ordered the Potu Qilang filling the room to teach the boy a lesson he would not forget.

Under the Potu Qilang's assault, Tianming flailed his arms and legs in panic. Unexpectedly, he triggered a mechanism hidden inside the compartment, which launched him out of the room. He landed safely on a pile of straw on a distant rooftop, escaping the Qin soldiers' encirclement.

Tianming's unexpected escape left Gongshu Chou, who had thought victory was assured, embarrassed and angry. He immediately strode out of the room and ordered the Qin Army soldiers standing guard outside, "Men, catch that child at once!"

"Yes, Imperial Preceptor!"

At his command, all the black-armored Qin Army soldiers sprang into action, engaging Tianming in a comical chase through the small border town. They finally cornered him in a large, empty warehouse, then sent a soldier to notify Gongshu Chou.

Just as Gongshu Chou was preparing to take Kazuhiko Uchiha and the other two to capture Tianming, another force dispatched by Qin Shi Huang-the Quicksand Organization-arrived in the small border town.

"Ha ha ha! To think His Majesty sent Lord Wei Zhuang and the two renowned warriors, Bai Feng and Chi Lian. It seems our mission is as good as accomplished."

Seeing the three warriors approaching, Gongshu Chou's face, which had still held a trace of anger, broke into a smile again, and he greeted them delightedly.

Wei Zhuang, the leader of Quicksand, stopped. His cold, blade-sharp gaze swept over Lesser Siming, Greater Siming, and Kazuhiko Uchiha before he asked Gongshu Chou icily, "I heard Gai Nie has arrived in this town. Have you heard anything about him?"

"Heh heh heh, we haven't found any trace of Gai Nie yet." Gongshu Chou shook his head. Then he remembered the familiar-looking half of a jade pendant he had just seen around Tianming's neck and changed tack. "But I believe we've found the child he's been searching for."

"Oh? Take me there." Wei Zhuang's eyes lit up. Recalling why Gai Nie had come to this small border town, he issued the command in a tone that brooked no argument.

"This way, please." Gongshu Chou knew Wei Zhuang's temperament and took no offense at his rude tone. Smiling, he led Wei Zhuang and the others toward the abandoned warehouse where Tianming was surrounded.

After only a few steps, Gongshu Chou saw Old Man Lü being escorted out of the room by Qin Army soldiers. Worried that he might use his mechanical arts to escape when no one was watching, he said to Kazuhiko Uchiha, "Young Kazuhiko, sorry for the trouble, but please take Old Man Lü back to the Garrison Headquarters and keep him under guard. We still need him to tell us more about Rōran."

"All right." Kazuhiko Uchiha knew they would eventually capture the film's three protagonists, so he did not tag along to join the commotion. Instead, he accompanied the Qin Army soldiers as they took Old Man Lü back to the Garrison Headquarters and locked him in its heavily guarded dungeon.

Sure enough, before long, Gongshu Chou and the others successfully captured Tianming, Shaoyu, and Xiao Li, the heroine of the original film, and returned to the Garrison Headquarters.

That afternoon, Gongshu Chou sent someone to invite Kazuhiko Uchiha to the main hall for a discussion. Once he arrived, Gongshu Chou ordered the Qin soldiers to bring in a huge, empty sand table.

"Greater Siming, sorry for the trouble, but please mark Rōran's location." After waving the Qin Army soldiers out, Gongshu Chou gave Greater Siming the instruction.

Greater Siming remained silent, hands moving gently as internal energy controlled the sand in the table. Slowly, it took on the contours of the Rōran desert, and a tall tower rose at one point to mark Rōran's location as recorded in Old Man Lü's memories.

"Lord Wei Zhuang, we discovered an important clue in Old Man Lü's memories. The entrance to Rōran is hidden here, deep in the desert. They say a terrifying, immortal monster has always guarded that place."

Gongshu Chou operated a mechanism to produce a cup of fruit wine and handed it to Wei Zhuang, who was in command of the operation. He then relayed the intelligence Lesser Siming had obtained from Old Man Lü through the Mind-Reading Technique.

"No monster is immortal. People only believe it is because they lack the power to destroy it."

Wei Zhuang was supremely confident in his strength, to the point of arrogance. He had no fear of what others called an immortal monster. He firmly believed that any enemy, no matter what it was, would meet its end beneath his Sharktooth Sword.

"Heh heh heh, exactly. With Lord Wei Zhuang here, none of this will be a problem."

After that little bit of flattery, Gongshu Chou stroked his beard and continued smugly, "I've already arranged for the Gongshu Family's disciples to build a Mechanical Sand Ship capable of traveling through the desert. With its help, we'll soon reach the entrance to Rōran."

"Good. Finish the preparations as soon as possible. We leave at dawn tomorrow." Wei Zhuang drained his fruit wine in one gulp, turned, and left the main hall of the Garrison Headquarters, taking Chi Lian and Bai Feng with him to continue searching for Gai Nie.

After Wei Zhuang left, Kazuhiko Uchiha also took his leave of Gongshu Chou. He found a Qin Army soldier and asked him to lead him to the cell holding Xiao Li, the film's heroine, intending to meet this incarnation of the Goddess's Tear.