The Secret of the Bronze Fish

Seeing everyone at a loss, Cao Ya chuckled.

"These Snake-Browed Bronze Fish were left behind by Wang Canghai. Basically, they're fucking useless."

Wu Xie was startled and immediately asked, "Cao Ya, you know about Wang Canghai too?"

Fatty and Pan Zi, even Poker-Face, looked at Cao Ya curiously.

Wang Canghai was hardly a famous figure. Where had Cao Ya heard of him?

Of everyone there, only Shunzi was completely clueless.

Cao Ya raised his right hand, lightly tapped his head with his index finger, and said:

"When it comes to Wang Canghai, I know more than you do, not less."

"That guy was quite something, too."

As if he had remembered something, he added:

"Oh, right. I can pretty much guess what's written in these two bronze fish, too."

Wu Xie immediately pressed him for their contents.

Fatty, however, was astonished and asked how Cao Ya knew so much. Had the bastard set his sights on the Cloud Palace ages ago, and was that why he had called Lord Fatty to ask for a spot on the expedition?

Yep, you guessed it. That's exactly what happened... Cao Ya nodded almost imperceptibly, cleared his throat, and skipped over that subject to answer Wu Xie's question.

"Actually, the information recorded in the bronze fish is largely the same. They all say Wang Canghai was abducted by King Wannu of Eastern Xia to build his tomb. During that process, he gradually uncovered a bizarre secret about King Wannu."

At this point, Pan Zi interjected, "That Eastern Xia emperor was a monster that crawled out from underground."

"Right."

Cao Ya nodded slightly, recalled what he had learned from reading the book, and organized his thoughts.

"In the bronze fish, Wang Canghai probably also said this secret was tremendously important. He engraved it in the hope that it would never see the light of day, but if anyone did see it, he hoped that person would be Han Chinese rather than Jurchen. Something along those lines."

"But there's a major problem with that claim. We'll get to it later."

"Wang Canghai also said he was trapped here for ten years. He was once taken to see an underground gate described as a divine miracle. According to legend, the title of King Wannu wasn't hereditary. Instead, after the previous king died, the next one would crawl out of that underground gate. And that gate could only be opened when the previous King Wannu died. Otherwise, the karmic fires of hell would burn away everything belonging to whoever opened it, leaving no life on Changbai Mountain."

Something stirred in Wu Xie's mind, and he could not help asking:

"Could it have been a volcanic eruption? Did King Wannu crawl out of a volcano?"

Fatty did not believe a word of it.

"Naive, give me a break. Who could survive inside a volcano? They'd be burned to ash on the spot. Listen to Wang Canghai spouting this utter nonsense. He talks even more bullshit than Lord Fatty."

Everyone thought Fatty had a point. What human being could survive inside a volcano?

Suddenly, they all glanced at Cao Ya.

If it was Cao Ya... Fine, that still seemed unlikely.

Actually, Cao Ya wanted to say that he really could survive inside a volcano. It would be like taking a bath, just a little hot.

After all, this was not one of those worlds of gods and devils. There was nothing special about its fire.

Cao Ya coughed and said:

"That underground gate really does exist, and King Wannu really did crawl out of it."

Fatty frowned.

"Fuck, so King Wannu really was a monster?! Cao Ya, you're not making shit up to fool us, are you?"

Cao Ya replied irritably:

"Have I lost my mind? What would I gain by fooling you? This is all information I obtained elsewhere."

He casually offered an excuse. As for whether they believed him... Who cared?

He glanced at Poker-Face, who looked deep in thought, and added:

"Don't assume it's impossible. Poker-Face has been there. He's entered that underground gate."

"What?"

Everyone turned to Poker-Face.

Still deep in thought, he nodded slowly but firmly. Poker-Face also seemed somewhat troubled.

"Listening to Cao Ya, I feel like I've remembered something, but it isn't especially clear. That Bronze Gate, though..."

"Bronze Gate?" Wu Xie interrupted.

Cao Ya explained:

"That's the underground gate."

Fatty barked:

"Naive, stop interrupting."

Poker-Face continued:

"I think I really have been inside, but I can't remember clearly."

He shook his head. A rare expression appeared on his face, tinged with frustration.

Wu Xie, Fatty, and the others knew Poker-Face had lost his memories of the past. The reason he entered tombs was to recover those memories.

Perhaps Poker-Face really had visited the Cloud Palace before.

But how did Cao Ya know all this?

Cao Ya showed no intention of explaining in detail, and they could hardly ask.

What if it involved his secrets and ended in a falling-out?

Their relationship with Cao Ya had not been bad throughout the journey, but they were nowhere near that close.

Forget it. As long as Cao Ya's information is sound, it's worth trusting. Who cares where he got it?

They soon let it go.

After all, there were far too many things they had been kept in the dark about. Wu Xie, in particular, even felt he had grown used to it.

"Right, Cao Ya, you said earlier there was a major problem with Wang Canghai's claim. What's that about?" Fatty asked.

The corners of Cao Ya's mouth curved upward.

"Wang Canghai was Han Chinese and once served as a Ming Dynasty official. The Eastern Xia King abducted him to build a tomb. If he was leaving behind the Eastern Xia King's secret, why use Jurchen Script instead of Chinese characters? He claimed he wanted the Eastern Xia King's secret to spread, but that action itself is far too contradictory."

"Besides that, there's another contradiction."

"Think about it. Wouldn't the Eastern Xia King have had someone watch a fellow abducted from the Ming Kingdom? Yet he actually let him discover his secret?"

"Most likely, Wang Canghai secretly snooped around. He had some purpose in leaving behind these Snake-Browed Bronze Fish, too, but who cares? Wang Canghai might not be completely dead yet, but he no longer has any chance of coming back to life."

Wang Canghai snooped around and discovered King Wannu's secret. Yes, that's quite possible... Leaving the secret in the Snake-Browed Bronze Fish in Jurchen Script really is a major problem... But Wang Canghai isn't completely dead? What's this about a chance to come back to life... Cao Ya, you're joking, right?

Wu Xie, Fatty, Pan Zi, Shunzi, and even Poker-Face all looked rather bemused.

Had practicing martial arts done something to Cao Ya's brain?

The Ming Dynasty had ended hundreds of years ago.

And Wang Canghai had lived in the early Ming Dynasty.

Cao Ya could not be bothered to explain. Once they learned more later, they would understand.

The Wang Family was entangled with "It," and there was also the Zhang Family. For hundreds, even thousands of years, the three sides had fought in many places.

Cao Ya did not want to slowly hunt down the three factions. He would simply bulldoze his way through. These things-the Bronze Gate, The Ultimate, the Meteorite Jade, and so on-were what the three sides valued. Destroy them all, and everything would be finished.

Cao Ya was very good at destruction.

He had entertained this idea all along. Haven't you spent hundreds, even thousands of years fighting over these things?

Fine, then I'll destroy them all. Let's see what you have left to fight over. Every last one of you will be left floundering.

As for them attacking him?

Cao Ya truly was not afraid. In fact, he would welcome it if they made a move and exposed some trace of themselves.