Chapter 249: Decoding

Tian Xiao looked at me and said, “If my information is correct, you already have a certain understanding of the Nine-Ring Jade Casket.”

His sudden question instantly severed the faint connections forming in my mind. I didn’t know where he had gotten his information, but I had to admit he was right. I had already sketched out the basic internal diagram of the casket. Opening it was simply a matter of arranging the beads inside correctly; I was just one final step away.

He pulled a deerskin map from his tattered cloth bag. The second Old Qian saw the map, he was stunned. He hurriedly scrambled over, hovering around Tian Xiao’s hands to get a better look.

“This… this… M-Master, this couldn’t be…”

Tian Xiao grabbed one of my hands to brace himself as he stood up from the ground. He nodded, then took my hand and placed the deerskin map into my palm. “This is the Burial Bone Testament that Ye Yuzhu and the others found in the eight hundred li of the Qin Mountains^[1] back then. I don’t know if the Celestial Star Map recorded on it can help you unlock that casket.”

The so-called Burial Bone Testament wasn’t very large. It was thin, and only half of it remained; the other half had been cut off for some reason. Writing in a script I couldn’t identify covered the deerskin. I had no idea who gave this old man, Tian Xiao, the confidence to think I could unlock the casket using the Burial Bone Testament.

My knowledge of celestial stars was superficial at best, even less thorough than Old Qian’s.

Just as I was hesitating on how to explain this to the stubborn elder, a muffled thud echoed through the cave. Tian Xiao gave me a hard shove, pushing me toward the stone coffin, and barked, “That group is almost here! We cannot let them get what’s inside the casket. Unlock it, quickly! I’ll go hold them off!”

He assigned our tasks all by himself, then ran back across the iron chain bridge alone. I stood there dazed for a moment, having no choice but to turn on my flashlight and kneel on the ground, bracing myself for the task.

I pulled the casket out of my blood-stained bag. Seeing He Yu and Old Qian still standing there, I shouted, “Old Qian! Get over here and help me! He Yu! Hurry up and follow the old man! If anything else fucking happens to him, we’ll never be able to answer to the Tian Family!”

Hearing my words, He Yu quickly shouldered his gun and hurried down the iron chain bridge. “Then I’ll go help him. You two stay here and don’t touch anything!”

I grunted an acknowledgment, and Old Qian immediately crouched down beside me. His flashlight was broken, so he held up a fire-starter to light the area. I spread the Burial Bone Testament out on the ground and set the Nine-Ring Jade Casket beside it.

I reached into my inner pocket, which held the internal sketches I had drawn of the casket. Since Fourth Brother used to make me study the casket whenever and wherever, I had formed a habit of carrying them with me everywhere.

I asked, “Old Qian, can you read the characters on this? Translate them for me quickly. We need to match this map to the position of every bead inside the casket. I did the math, and if we convert it to a modern code, it should be about the same length as a standard ten-digit numeric password.”

Old Qian’s knowledge was limited; he didn’t understand what I meant by a ten-digit code. He simply flipped the Burial Bone Testament over and said, “The writing on the front should be the script of the A-Surname Tribe. Legend says they lived in the Land of the Immortals. This script is so ancient that there might not be anyone left in the world who can read it. However, the back of this map is quite interesting.”

I looked closely at the back of the deerskin and found many small white dots drawn there, connected by various lines.

“What is this?” I asked.

Old Qian said, “This should be a complete Celestial Star Map. Master Jiyun once traced the positions of the stars over a specific location a thousand years ago. Don’t you think this is a bit strange?”

I thought for a moment and said, “You think the Celestial Star Map on the back is connected to the Nine-Ring Jade Casket?”

Old Qian didn’t speak; he probably didn’t know how to explain it either. Still, having a lead was better than nothing. At least we had a starting point. My grandfather had actually told me about a type of cipher once, one where the code was integrated into the stars. Different arrangements of stars could decode different passwords.

But I hadn’t been interested in that field back then. Besides, stars aren’t visible every day; a person can’t just run outside to look at the sky every night. So, when my grandfather was talking, I only half-listened. Now, I just wanted to slap myself a few times. Because I hadn’t studied hard back then, all I could do now was stare blankly.

Old Qian and I sat there for over an hour. We grew cold from sitting still, yet we couldn’t think of any way to convert the stars into a code.

I scratched my head, feeling like I’d go bald if I stayed like this for a few more hours. I spread the Burial Bone Testament over the casket once more. The flame of the fire-starter flickered in my peripheral vision. As the light hit the casket, the rays reflected off in an odd direction, and the casket suddenly emitted a bright flash.

I quickly pulled the deerskin away and shouted to Old Qian, who was idling nearby:

“Old Qian! Don’t move!”

Old Qian was startled, thinking something had gone wrong. He froze, unsure of what to do.

I gestured for him to give me the fire-starter. He caught my drift and carefully handed it over.

“What is it, what is it? Young Master, what did you find?”

I slowly stood up from the ground and raised the fire-starter above my head. To my surprise, I saw a massive bead held in the mouth of the caisson^[2] centipede directly above the Underworld Hall, though I wasn’t sure what its purpose was.

I said, “This jade casket can refract light. That sudden flash just now might have something to do with the bead up there.”

The flame of the fire-starter was too diffuse, so I immediately tossed it aside and pulled out my flashlight, calling out to Old Qian, “Quick, get your flashlight out and lend it to me.”

Old Qian blinked. “But mine doesn’t have any power left.”

I told him to stop dawdling and just hand it over.

Once I got Old Qian’s flashlight, I picked the deerskin up off the ground and shone both flashlights onto it. The bead above was likely coated with some special substance; the instant the light hit it, it shone brilliantly. Shadows and light projected across the surrounding pitch-black walls, but the focal length was off, making the image far too blurry.

Crouching down, I kept looking up at the projected lights and shadows until I completely flattened the deerskin over the jade casket. All at once, the light and shadows around us snapped into sharp focus.

The projected light revealed the positions of ten stars, which burned dozens of times brighter than the surrounding dim starlight. Old Qian and I were both mesmerized.

This must be the code, I thought to myself.