Wei Dong, though his face was so swollen the others were forcibly reminded of a pig’s head, was still trying to ingratiate himself with his captor, looking much the worse for wear.
“Stop playing docile. There’s really a tribe of cannibals inhabiting this island?” Yuwen Jin inquired of him.
“Yes, there is. We’re surprised as well. Nobody knows where they originally come from. Beyond that forest of grotesque rocks were quite some bushes and a long sweep of plains. There’s fresh water there, and their tribe is right on the side. Those cannibals were eating human flesh when we arrived. We were terribly repelled. They even made an attempt to catch us. There were not many of them, but they got a lot of balls. Our king was angered and we flattened that tribe and drove them away. They fled along the coast,” recounted Wei Dong.
All the others were rendered speechless. It seemed that the cannibals they had encountered on the coast had been the very batch chased away by those from the Fangcun Kingdom.
“And the band of pirates?” asked Yuwen Jin.
“Oh, those guys. They encamped right at the city gates through which we entered the city later. I saw a lot of chests in their camp. Those houses … You’ve searched those houses, I suppose? They moved the chests containing gold out of the city into their camp and kept a close eye on them,” replied Wei Dong.
“They didn’t go crazy?” inquired Yuwen Jin.
Wei Dong shook his head. “No, not a single one of them, but they were all covered in blood and seemed to have killed a lot of people. They were very vigilant too. Our guide, the one from that mini-state near the South Ocean, tried to communicate with them and make some inquiries, but they immediately drew their weapons and came at us. We had no choice but to fight. Most of them were killed, but the surviving ones fled into the city and disappeared without a trace.”
Ling Zhang and the others were rendered speechless once again. He kept having this feeling that the batch of demented pirates they had killed at the city gates had been forced into the city by those people from the Fangcun Kingdom.
“What’s the problem with you people? Why do you have to chase away everybody you run into? Do you have any idea how much trouble you’ve caused the others by doing that?! Do you?!” demanded Yuwen Jin.
Wei Dong huddled on the ground in fear, perplexed. “W–Well, some of them wanted to eat us, and the others tried to kill us. We had to fight back.”
He did have a point, and Yuwen Jin did not know how to contradict him.
Yuwen Jin quietly mobilized his internal energy to help suppress his rage. It was a few moments before he continued, “And those freaks?”
This time Wei Dong shook his head. “We don’t know anything about them either. They came out of nowhere. Last night we were caught unprepared and lost a lot of men, so tonight we were more vigilant and decided not to spend the night in the city, and we didn’t make a fire. And then they just … ahem … They just came to your camp. You guys are really badass. You killed them all.”
However, Ling Zhang and the others were not very happy to hear this. It turned out that even these lunatics had come here to attack because those people from the Fangcun Kingdom had failed to wipe them out last night.
Yuwen Jin scowled at Wei Dong. It was a long moment before he huffed, “You Fangcun people are so fucking useless!”
Wei Dong was baffled as to why Yuwen Jin was insulting him and his country.
“Did you meet anybody suspicious apart from those lunatics on your way to this area?” Ling Zhang inquired of him.
Wei Dong shook his head. “No. Just those freaks.”
Ling Zhang and the others, ” … ”
This meant that they had killed all the other living people on this island except for those from the Fangcun Kingdom.
Right now they and those Fangcun men were the only ones left in this stone city.
Yuwen Jin shook his head. “It would seem we specially came here to take care of problems for the Fangcun Kingdom.”
Wei Dong did not dare speak, but he had got a shrewd idea of what had happened.
“One last question. How did you navigate your way out of the fog bank?” Ling Zhang asked him.
After hearing this, Wei Dong appeared rather awkward and replied, “It was our astrologist who guided us out of it.”
“Bullshit. Are you telling us that your astrologist could see stars in that dense fog? Stop with the lying!” Yuwen Jin reprimanded him.
Wei Dong flinched. “How am I supposed to know whether he could see stars or not? All I know is he led us to this island. Our astrologist is one of the most respected men in the Fangcun Kingdom. Even our king holds him in high esteem. Our astrologist has lived a very long time. He helped steer our country through many crises. He’s the lucky star of the Fangcun Kingdom.”
The others lapsed into silence.
“Have any of you heard about such a person in the Fangcun Kingdom before?” Yuwen Jin asked Yuwen Tong and the others in a muted voice.
Yuwen Tong exchanged a glance with Ling Zhang who then said, “I have, but I’ve never heard of any psychic … ahem … any particular deeds he did. I thought he was just like those stargazers working in the Imperial Observatory, whose work is to observe stars when necessary to provide useful information about the best time to sow the seed or to hold a sacrificial ceremony.”
Yuwen Jin, ” … ”
He twisted his head around and thundered at Wei Dong, “You hear that?! That’s what a stargazer normally does!”
Wei Dong said, “You’re talking about your stargazers, not our astrologist. Our astrologist is quite badass.”
Yuwen Jin, however, was unconvinced. He inexplicably felt that he was on the losing side. “Humph. Who knows whether you’re telling the truth or not?”
Wei Dong asserted, “Of course I am. You’ll know when you meet him.”
Yuwen Jin glared at him. This guy dared to talk back?
“Enough,” said Yuwen Tong. “Release him.”
On hearing this, Wei Dong smiled, “Thank you, Your Majesty. You’re just as wise as they say you are.”
Yuwen Jin, glowering at him, reluctantly untied the rope for him.
“Go back and tell your king to come here to meet me early tomorrow morning,” instructed Yuwen Tong.
Wei Dong said, “Yes, of course, Your Majesty. I promise I’ll deliver the message.”
The moment Wei Dong left, Yuwen Jin said, “Why did you let him go, cousin? What if he plays tricks on us?”
“He won’t dare,” said Yuwen Tong.
Ling Zhang also said, “He may flee, but the Fangcun Kingdom can’t.”
Yuwen Jin caught on. “Well, that’s true.”
Then he added, “I wonder who that astrologist of theirs is.”
Ji Yanlai said, “We’ll find out when we see him tomorrow.”
It was not the astrologist that worried Ling Zhang and the others, for they were confident that Ji Yanlai could handle that person.
What concerned them was the key information contained in Wei Dong’s words –
It had been after being chased into the city by those Fangcun soldiers that those pirates had gone crazy.
“They probably touched something,” said Ji Yanlai, gazing at the city in the dark. “If you guys trust me, follow my lead tomorrow, lest you touch anything bewitched unawares.”
Yuwen Tong said, “Of course we trust you, Clan Leader. Thank you in advance. We’ll be relying on you tomorrow.”
Ji Yanlai said, “You’re here to help me rescue my father, so there’s no need to thank me. In fact, I should thank you, you hypocrite, humph.”
Ling Zhang gave a little cough as the others averted their eyes and looked into the sky, pretending not to have heard those words.
Ji Yanlai, however, continued speaking. “As far as I could tell, you’re already regretting having come here with me and probably have inwardly cursed me scores of even a hundred times. If I don’t do something to make a contribution soon, you’d even hold grudges against me, wouldn’t you?”
Yuwen Tong raised his eyebrows but did not deny that he had inwardly cursed Ji Yanlai. “Your outstanding powers of observation surprises me, Clan Leader.”
The others were baffled as to why Yuwen Tong regretted it. It was true that this island was indeed rather odd and maybe dangerous, but presently all of them were unscathed and there hadn’t been any casualties so far, had there? Besides, it was not like Yuwen Tong to regret having done anything. This was so strange.
“Did something happen, cousin?” Yuwen Jin asked Yuwen Tong in a quiet voice.
“This is not about your cousin. It’s about your brother-in-law,” observed Ji Yanlai, sending all the others dumbfounded. At the word “brother-in-law”, Ling Zhang choked on his own saliva and started coughing badly.
Yuwen Tong hastened to thump him on the back. Ling Maomao hurriedly brought over a canteen and, patting him to help with his breathing, said, “Drink some water, cousin.”
“Please tell us the details, Clan Leader. What happened to Zhang’er?” Ling Zhaowu became worried about his son, his face growing grave.
The others also appeared serious, looking at Ji Yanlai.
Ji Yin sighed, “Clan Leader has nothing to do with it. It’s that palace.”
“The palace?” Ling Zhaowu frowned, shifting his gaze to that towering palace in the distance. “What do you mean?”
“Attraction. The palace holds an attraction for us. It’s in our blood,” said Ji Yanlai.
Attraction? Many people present couldn’t quite understand. What did this have to do with blood?
But Ling Zhaowu instantly cottoned on to it, knitting his eyebrows. After a glance at Ling Zhang who was still clearing his throat, he asked Ji Yanlai, “Should we be worried?”
Ji Yanlai shook his head. “I’m not sure. I could only tell you that I don’t see there’s anything life-threatening lying ahead. The worse-case scenario would be for us to suffer some minor injuries. Nobody’s going to die.”
Then he added, “Relax. Since you came here to help me find my father, I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you guys safe and make sure you return home in one piece.”
Ling Zhaowu opened his mouth but closed it again.
Yuwen Tong had an inscrutable expression on his face. “Your words are very reassuring, Clan Leader.”
Ling Zhang secretly tugged at his sleeve and imperceptibly shook his head.
Ji Yanlai was not bothered by Yuwen Tong’s remark. “That place holds an attraction for us, but it’s too soon to decide whether there are any dangers in it. Maybe it houses unimaginable benefits. There’s no need to concern yourselves. Seeing as what’s in there drew my father into it and he refuses to leave after such a long time, it’s by no means an ordinary thing.”
“Can you sense anything in it, Uncle?” asked Ji Xiaocong.
Ji Yanlai shook his head, looking at him. “You’re afraid?”
Ji Xiaocong shook his head as well. “I’m not, but I don’t want Brother Maomao to encounter any dangers after going in there with me.”
Ji Yanlai fixed him with a silent gaze.
The others were also surprised.
“Don’t worry, Cong. I can protect myself,” said Ling Maomao.
Ji Yanlai stole a glance at him and then averted his eyes, making no remark.
Ji Xiaocong withdrew his gaze and looked at Ling Maomao. “Promise me you’ll stay close to me, Brother Maomao.”
Ling Maomao looked back at him and smiled, “Don’t worry. My kung fu is as good as yours. I can keep myself safe, and I can protect you too.”
Ji Xiaocong raised his smiling face. “Okay. Then I promise I’ll stay close to you.”
All the others, ” … ”
Ling Zhang took a sip of water and then stood there in perplexity, looking at Ling Maomao and Ji Xiaocong, feeling that something was not quite right.
At the sight of the bemusement on his face, Yuwen Tong heaved a sigh, wondering why Ling Zhang still couldn’t understand. The expression in Ji Xiaocong’s eyes when he looked at Ling Maomao was obvious enough. Ling Zhang was probably the only one who still saw the two of them as children.
…
Owing to this interlude involving Ling Maomao and Ji Xiaocong, the nervousness in the atmosphere dissolved appreciably.
But there were also some who were still confused. Yuwen Jin, for example, could make neither head nor tail of the so-called attraction or blood.
He wanted to ask about it, but Yuwen Tong gave him a warning look and he held back his words, appearing hard done by, feeling distressed because of his unsatisfied curiosity which was churning in him like a cat scratching at his heart frantically.
It had been an eventful night, and there was only two hours or so before daybreak. After clearing the camp of the dead, they settled themselves on their mats again to rest.
“How much truth do you think there is in Ji Yanlai’s words?” Yuwen Tong asked Ling Zhang.
Ling Zhang said, “He has no reason to lie to us. Besides, I’m feeling the same thing. There’s some kind of craving bubbling in my blood. Maybe there’s indeed some good stuff in there.”
Yuwen Tong asked him, “Do you want it?”
If Ling Zhang wanted it, he would get it for Ling Zhang, by hook or by crook.
Ling Zhang briefly shook his head. “I’m not short of good stuff. I’ve got everything. What do I need extra good stuff for?”
All he wanted was for him and Yuwen Tong to grow old together.
Yuwen Tong, however, looked at that palace, a different expression appearing on his face. If there was indeed something good in there, he would do everything he could to help Ling Zhang get his share of it.
Ling Zhang looked up and frowned slightly as he saw the expression in Yuwen Tong’s eyes staring at the palace. A vague thought crossed his mind, but he failed to catch it. Still, he subconsciously hoped that Yuwen Tong would not become obsessed with whatever it was that was hidden in the palace.
“What’s wrong? Stop looking at it.” Ling Zhang turned Yuwen Tong’s head back so that they were face to face with each other. He gazed into Yuwen Tong’s eyes and said, “Whatever that thing is, I really don’t care about it. Do you not remember? The objective of this journey of ours is to help Ji Yanlai rescue his father. We do that and then our part as his friends will be done. We’re not here to get that thing.”
The expression in Yuwen Tong’s eyes flickered and with that he looked down at him. “Take it easy. I understand.”
But Ling Zhang, looking at him, still felt faintly uneasy, his eyebrows contracting in spite of himself.
Yuwen Tong stroked Ling Zhang’s furrowed forehead to unfurl it. “Stop worrying. We’ll be meeting those people from the Fangcun Kingdom tomorrow. You should get some sleep.”
