The Twelve Zodiac

The Opera House.

The greatest assassin organization in the world, its origins were mysterious and its leader unknown. It was said to have existed for centuries.

Its assassins were divided into four ranks: Heaven, Earth, Mystic, and Yellow. As long as the money was right, there was no one under heaven the Opera House dared not kill.

That was the publicly available information.

In truth, however, all speculation about the Opera House's current leader had always pointed to one man-Yan Shifan, son of Yan Song, the reigning chief grand secretary.

There was simply no proof.

Others might only suspect it, but Cao Jinxing was almost certain that Yan Shifan was the mastermind behind the Opera House!

Keeping such a vast organization running demanded immense wealth; recruiting so many assassins of such caliber required extensive connections.

Only a handful of people in all of Great Ming possessed both and could wield such influence!

Among them, Yan Shifan alone needed an organization like this to eliminate his opponents!

The martial world had no shortage of righteous souls. Without a martial faction of their own, the Yan father and son would have died ten thousand times over for all their filthy deeds-persecuting loyal officials, monopolizing power, and ruining the country!

By any reasonable measure, Yan Shifan and the Opera House had to be connected.

Why did they target me?

Cao Jinxing frowned in thought. And why would they target me? Could it be... they want the Fire Tortoise to extend Yan Song's life? Counting his age, he really is nearly seventy. That seems the most plausible explanation... The problem is, if Jiajing finds out you dared steal what belongs to him, you won't be extending your life-you'll be courting death! This matter was top secret. Who could have leaked it? And to the Yan family, at that... Pei Yangchun? Bai Yunxiu? That makes no sense... Wait! Could it have been someone from the Ten-Thousand Snakes Cave... Fuck!

Cao Jinxing's expression changed.

Now I remember. The Ten-Thousand Snakes Cave still has its sect master, Yang Qiancheng. His legs were paralyzed, but he wasn't dead...

Cao Jinxing silently cursed himself for an idiot.

He had actually overlooked the man!

But how could Yang Qiancheng be connected to the Opera House...?

There's no point thinking about this now. Once the rain stops, I have to send word to Pei Yangchun and have him kill that Yang Qiancheng! Live and learn. I need to be more decisive from now on...

He looked up at the sky, fat raindrops striking his face. "Looks like I'll be riding through the rain tonight. Fine. Opera House, Yan Shifan... We'll settle this debt slowly."

He swung onto his horse, tugged the reins, and charged out of the relay station.

Rain poured down amid crashing thunder and flashing lightning.

The blood-sweating horse galloped through the storm. Rain washed away its hoofprints, and Cao Jinxing vanished like a ghost.

Three quarters of an hour later.

Three figures in straw rain capes appeared inside the relay station, standing motionless around the corpse. They wore zodiac masks: a dragon, a sheep, and a dog.

The Opera House's Mystic-rank assassin squad-the Twelve Zodiac.

"We hurried as fast as we could, but we were still a step too late. One sword strike killed him. We underestimated this man," Dragon said.

"Now we've alerted him. Getting what we want won't be so easy," Sheep sighed.

"We had no choice. The young master was pressing us. Around Lu'an Prefecture, Xuanba was already one of the best. Who knew this man would be so formidable?" Dog added.

"Well?" Dragon looked at Dog. "Can you still locate him?"

Dog sniffed, then shook his head helplessly. "In weather like this, with so much time gone by, even I can't do it. Besides, he's riding a blood-sweating horse. Even if we knew which way he went, who could catch him?"

Sheep considered it. "Then we'll have to set an ambush. There are countless routes back to the capital, but only a few ways into it."

"Right."

Dragon nodded. "Send word to the capital with the Invisible Falcon. Tell the others to move out. We must get the Fire Tortoise before he returns to the Pacification Commission!"

"Yes!"

He rode more than a hundred li through the rain.

Cao Jinxing left the main road far behind and took a roundabout route to a remote little town. It had only one inn, called the Good Fortune Inn.

"Just looking at that name makes me feel safe."

Cao Jinxing withdrew his gaze and knocked on the door to wake the attendant. Before the man could scowl, he tossed him a silver ingot, and the attendant immediately beamed.

"Feed my horse, and give me one of your best rooms."

"Right away! I'll make sure it gets the finest fodder!"

Money could make even ghosts turn a millstone.

With enough money, the service naturally improved.

The attendant said, "You've been traveling through the rain tonight, sir, and your clothes are soaked through. How about I heat some water for a bath, then warm a pot of wine to drive out the chill?"

"Thoughtful of you."

This backwater had only a few hundred households. The Opera House probably wouldn't even bother planting informants here. With the heavy rain washing away his tracks, it was much safer than a larger town or city.

The attendant worked quickly. He first showed Cao Jinxing to his room, then prepared hot water, wine, and food, attending to his every need.

Cao Jinxing gave him another small piece of silver as a tip. The attendant thanked him repeatedly and backed out, bowing.

Cao Jinxing took a hot bath, and Xuan Yuan Fourteen joined in from inside the leather pouch.

Having learned Tummo and received Venerable Milarepa's cultivation, it kept the rain from touching it. Both its body and the pouch were perfectly dry.

After finishing the wine and food, Cao Jinxing changed into a lightweight robe and lay down on the bed. Finding someone in this rain is no easier than finding a needle in the ocean. If I were them, I'd set an ambush somewhere I had to pass and wait at my leisure. Tonight, I should be able to sleep soundly...

Cao Jinxing relaxed and stroked Xuan Yuan Fourteen's head. "Fourteen, keep watch for me. I'm going to sleep."

"Meow~"

Xuan Yuan Fourteen was full of energy. It hadn't been able to help against the White Dragon Gu earlier, but now it finally had a chance to be useful. It nestled beneath Cao Jinxing's neck, ears pricked as it kept watch.

He slept straight through until broad daylight.

Early the next morning, the rain stopped.

Cao Jinxing went downstairs, ate breakfast, and summoned the attendant from the night before. "Is there anyone in town who does carving? How good are they?"

"There is."

The attendant smiled. "You've asked the right person, sir. There's a craftsman named Jia in our town. They say he studied under Lu Zigang, the master jade carver. His work is so lifelike you can't tell it from the real thing. Plenty of wealthy folk from nearby come to him for jade carvings."

Cao Jinxing raised an eyebrow. "They say?"

The attendant gave an awkward smile. "That's what he says himself..."

"No matter."

Cao Jinxing said, "Whether he did or not, all that matters is that he can carve something to my satisfaction. Bring him here. You'll both be well rewarded."

"Yes, sir! I'll fetch him right away!"

Knowing how generous Cao Jinxing was, the attendant dashed outside.

Before long, he returned with a thin middle-aged man carrying a box containing jade and carving tools.

Without a word, Cao Jinxing took out the cold jade box, lifted its lid, and pointed to the crimson tortoise shell inside. "Use whatever methods you like. Carve me something that looks like this."

He then took out a gold ingot. "As long as I'm satisfied, this is yours."

The attendant's eyes immediately went wide.

The middle-aged man's breathing quickened too.

Cao Jinxing added, "And be quick."

"All right!"

The middle-aged man's eyes reddened with excitement. He rolled up his sleeves on the spot, ready to throw himself into the job, and would have fought anyone who tried to stop him.

Four hours later.

Cao Jinxing received the finished piece.

He had to admit that anyone who dared claim to be a disciple of the master jade carver had some genuine skill.

The tortoise shell had been carved from cinnabar stone, with just a hundred million tiny details added. At a glance, it was fiery red all over, its patterns crisp and clear-almost identical to the real thing.

"Excellent."

Cao Jinxing was very satisfied. "The gold is yours."

The middle-aged man still couldn't quite believe it.

Cao Jinxing had already risen. Taking the dry rations he had bought, he swung into the saddle and rode toward the capital...