Chapter 79: Chapter Eighty: The Mountain-Moving Daoist

Chapter Eighty: The Mountain-Moving Daoist

Deep within the Taklamakan Desert lies the "Zaghlama Mountain"; beneath its black body lie countless secrets, perhaps truly as its name suggests—Zaghlama means "mysterious" in ancient Uyghur, and some interpret it as "Holy Mountain." In any case, the mortals living around Zaghlama find it difficult to discern its mysteries.

In ancient times, there was once a nameless tribe that gave birth to a being revered as a "Saint"; for convenience, we may call them the "Zaghlama Tribe." The tribe's people migrated from the distant European continent and lived in seclusion on Zaghlama Mountain for an unknown number of years, until people accidentally discovered a bottomless "Ghost Cave" within the mountain. The tribe's shaman told everyone that in the ancient East, there existed a golden jade giant eye capable of seeing the truth of the Ghost Cave, so they imitated and crafted a similar jade eyeball to worship the "Ghost Cave." From that moment, misfortune befell this tribe.

Thereafter, the Zaghlama Tribe was abandoned by the true gods, suffering continuous disasters. The tribe's leader, the Saint, believed this must be related to the "Ghost Cave," and once the door of disaster opened, it would be difficult to close again. To avoid these terrible disasters, they were forced to abandon their homeland of many years and migrate toward the distant East, gradually assimilating into Central Plains civilization.

What, then, is this so-called "disaster"? From a modern perspective, it seems to be a virus—one contracted through the eyes. Anyone who has seen the Ghost Cave with their own eyes will, after a period of time, develop a red, eyeball-shaped rash on their body that can never be eliminated.

Those who develop this red rash will, after the age of forty, gradually lose the iron element in their blood. Blood is red because it contains iron; if the iron in the blood slowly disappears, the blood will become increasingly viscous, oxygen supply to the brain will decrease, breathing will grow more difficult, and at the moment of death, the blood will have turned yellow.

This painful process lasts ten years. Their descendants, though no longer develop the red rash, still suffer from iron deficiency and ultimately die in extreme agony, just like their ancestors. Since they are not like the later people of Jingjue Kingdom—only a few priests had seen the Ghost Cave—whereas most of the tribe had seen it with their own eyes, they had no choice but to leave their homeland.

After migrating to the Central Plains region, they observed over several generations and discovered a pattern: the farther one is from the Ghost Cave, the later the onset of illness. Yet no matter what, this condition persists—generation after generation, at the moment of death, they endure unbearable suffering, and no language can adequately describe the agony of blood turning yellow and solidifying.

To find a way to break this suffering, every member of the tribe tried every possible method. After many years, during the Song Dynasty, they finally found an important clue: in the silt of the lower Yellow River, they discovered a massive bronze tripod, a product of the mid-Shang Dynasty.

This tripod has a deep concave base and four legs, majestic and solemn, adorned with exquisite cicada patterns. In ancient times, the tripod was an important ritual vessel, especially during the Bronze Age, when bronze mines were controlled by the government. The level of bronze smelting technology marked a nation's strength. Emperors cast tripods to sacrifice to Heaven and Earth and their ancestors, and inscribed texts on them to report important matters to Heaven and Earth. Additionally, tripods were often used to bestow rewards upon feudal lords and meritorious officials, and recipients, to record this great honor, would have craftsmen fashion objects from the awarded bronze to commemorate these significant events.

What the descendants of the Zaghlama Tribe discovered was precisely such a bronze tripod recording a major event. The thirty-second ruler of the Shang Dynasty, King Wu Ding, had once obtained a jade eyeball soaked in gold dye. It was said this jade eyeball was found in a collapsed mountain peak, and at the same time, a red robe was discovered.

King Wu Ding believed this ancient jade eye was left behind by the Yellow Emperor after his ascension to immortality, and thus deemed it incomparably precious. He named it the "Chen Dust Pearl" and ordered a tripod cast in its commemoration. The inscription on the bronze tripod records only this, with no additional information. (The Chen Dust Pearl, the Pearl of Dust Avoidance, and the Cinnabar Elixir are three divine pearls frequently mentioned in Chinese historical records. The Chen Dust Pearl is made of a jade-like mysterious substance, said to have been obtained by the Yellow Emperor when sacrificing to Heaven. Legend holds it was later used as a burial object for Emperor Wu of Han; Mao Ling was destroyed by rebel armies, and its whereabouts remain unknown. The Pearl of Dust Avoidance may be the world's earliest discovered radioactive substance, found in Shaanxi, China; its discovery was accompanied by a violent scramble, after which it vanished. The Cinnabar Elixir, by legend, is the most miraculous—said to originate from the Three Divine Mountains, possessing the power to shed the womb and be reborn, always kept as a court secret, and lost at the end of the Northern Song Dynasty.)

The descendants of the Zaghlama Tribe, many of whom are skilled in divination, through divination believed this gold-soaked ancient jade eyeball to be the Eye of Heaven. Only by using this ancient jade eyeball to worship the Ghost Cave could they counteract the disaster previously caused by the tribe's shaman crafting a jade eye to spy on the Ghost Cave's secrets. This ancient jade, once possessed by Wu Ding, changed hands many times during wartime and is now likely buried in the tomb of some royal noble, becoming a funerary object. However, the scope of divination is limited, and the exact location cannot be known.

At this time, the Zaghlama Tribe, having migrated inland from an original five thousand, had dwindled to over a thousand. They had long been assimilated into Han civilization, even their surnames Hanized. To escape the shackles of this evil disease, they were forced to scatter across the land, searching ancient tombs for the "Chen Dust Pearl," becoming a branch of the four major tomb-robbing systems of the era.

Since ancient times, professional tomb robbers, according to their methods, have divided into four schools: Faqiu, Moujin, Ban Shan, and Xie Ling. The descendants of the Zaghlama Tribe mostly study the "Mountain-Moving Division and Armor Technique," usually disguising themselves as Daoists and calling themselves "Mountain-Moving Daoists."

The "Mountain-Moving Daoist" differs greatly from the "Gold-Touching Colonel," evident even from their titles. "Mountain-Moving" employs a horn-like tomb-robbing method, primarily relying on external force to break in, whereas "Gold-Touching" focuses more on technical aspects.

The "Mountain-Moving Daoists" among the descendants of the Zaghlama Tribe, in the years that followed, God knows how many ancient tombs they have searched—clues broken, then resumed, then broken again...

In this kind of fence-building search, the "Chen Dust Pearl" remains undiscovered. As time passes, the "Mountain-Moving Technique" gradually declines, talent withers, and by the Republican era, only a single young "Mountain-Moving Daoist" remains in the entire nation. This man is the most famous tomb robber in the Jiangzhe region, renowned for his exceptional ventriloquism, unmatched under heaven, earning him the nickname "Partridge Whistle." Over time, everyone forgot his real name, addressing him only as "Partridge Whistle." He is skilled in lightness techniques, best at breaking various mechanisms in ancient tombs, and his marksmanship is divine—whether in tomb-robbing or even in the greenwood, he enjoys great fame.

"Partridge Whistle," honoring his ancestors' teachings, followed the faint, intermittent clues and searched everywhere for the whereabouts of the "Chen Dust Pearl," finally fixing his target on a treasure cave in the Western Xia Kingdom. Legend says this treasure cave is not far from the abandoned Heishui City of Western Xia, originally built as a tomb for a high-ranking official of Western Xia. However, Western Xia was ultimately annihilated by the Mongols, and at that time, the prince and minister had not yet had time to bury their dead, so they hid all the court's important treasures inside. The "Chen Dust Pearl" may well be among them, but the surface shows no signs of sealed earth or similar features, making it extremely difficult to find.

This "Partridge Whistle," a "Mountain-Moving Daoist," lacks knowledge of feng shui and astrology; technically, it is impossible for him to find the treasure cave. At this time, his clansmen are few in number, and if they cannot find the "Chen Dust Pearl," this ancient tribe's bloodline may very well die out. Seeing his clansmen suffer in their final moments, "Partridge Whistle" had no choice but to seek help from those skilled in feng shui, gold-dividing, and hole-determining—the "Gold-Touching Colonels."

But at that time, the world was in great turmoil, and the four schools—Faqiu, Moujin, Ban Shan, and Xie Ling—had nearly all lost their lineage. Those who still understood the "Mountain-Moving Technique" might be only "Partridge Whistle" himself, while Faqiu and Xie Ling had likely ceased to exist many dynasties ago.

Moreover, those practicing as "Gold-Touching Colonels" were few; counting on fingers, the nation had no more than ten. In that era, most engaged in tomb-robbing activities were either "official tomb robbers" under warlord command or "scattered tomb robbers" from the populace.

"Partridge Whistle," after countless efforts, found a monk who had already taken monastic vows—a former "Gold-Touching Colonel." He begged the monk to transmit the secret art of gold-dividing and hole-determination. This monk's dharma name is "Liao Chen"; Elder Liao Chen had once been a "Gold-Touching Colonel," had overturned many large tombs, in his later years saw through the red dust, and became a monk.

Elder Liao Chen advised "Partridge Whistle": "All worldly affairs can be resolved; people merely create their own troubles. The Buddha is most at ease—just a smile. Why can't you let go, patron? Though I once served as a Gold-Touching Colonel, and though most of what I obtained was used for the people, in old age, sitting in silent reflection, my heart finds no peace. To let those precious burial objects see the light of day again—this will only stir up more bright and dark conflicts, a bloody wind of strife. Whether one uses these burial objects oneself or sells them for charity, it is not a good thing. In short, this tomb-robbing trade incurs too deep a karmic debt..."

Helpless, "Partridge Whistle" laid bare the truth. Elder Liao Chen, upon hearing the cause, aroused a compassionate thought and prepared to transmit all the rules and methods of "Gold-Touching" to "Partridge Whistle." However, according to regulation, "Partridge Whistle" must first submit a life-or-death pledge before he can be granted the Gold-Touching talisman.

Historically, tomb-robbing activities have always been conducted in darkness, regardless of motive, and cannot be exposed. Thus, the rules allow no margin for error. Elder Liao Chen told "Partridge Whistle": "When I took monastic vows here, I once saw an ancient tomb nearby that had not yet been robbed. Its location is west of the temple, at the foot of the mountain, ten li to the northwest—a stretch of barren hills and ridges. There lies a half-eroded stele without inscription. Beneath it is a Southern Song-era tomb. The only remaining external feature is that half of the broken stele; below the stele lies a tomb passage. This tomb lies in a remote spot, never disturbed, but its grave site was poorly chosen—resembling a broken sword. Follow my instructions: tonight, go into that tomb and retrieve a full set of burial garments from the tomb's occupant, to serve as your life-or-death pledge. Whether you succeed will depend on whether the ancestral masters favor your skill."

Subsequently, Elder Liao Chen gave "Partridge Whistle" a set of tools—all used by "Gold-Touching Colonels"—and urged him to remember the various rules of the "Gold-Touching" trade. "Gold-Touching" is the school in tomb-robbing that emphasizes technique the most and has the longest lineage. Many of the standard phrases and verbal formulas used in the trade have been passed down from the mouths of Gold-Touching Colonels. For example, modern tomb robbers all claim to be skilled in "倒斗" (tomb-tipping), but why is tomb-robbing called "倒斗"? Probably many cannot explain. This term originally came from the Gold-Touching Colonels' vivid description of tomb-robbing: in large Chinese tombs, aside from those built into mountains, most have a mound of packed earth on top, resembling a measuring scoop used for grain. Turned upside down and placed on the ground, the burial chamber and coffin lie within this scoop. The simplest way to retrieve burial objects is to flip the scoop open and take them out—hence the name "倒斗."

Such allusions, along with various taboos and particulars, were previously unheard of by "Partridge Whistle." As a Mountain-Moving Daoist, he had never encountered so many formalities. After hearing Elder Liao Chen's explanation, he felt a sudden enlightenment, as if a blocked passage had cleared.

Finally, Elder Liao Chen repeatedly urged: the rules for tomb-tipping require lighting a candle in the southeast corner of the burial chamber. If the light remains lit, one may open the coffin and proceed with gold-touching; if the light goes out, one must retreat immediately. Additionally, one must not take extra items, must not damage the coffin or its outer casing, only one round-trip is permitted per burial chamber, and upon departure, one should as much as possible refill the tomb tunnel...

That night, "Partridge Whistle" alone found the broken stele of the Southern Song tomb. The sky was dark, clouds drifting across the heavens, the moon appearing and disappearing within the rolling black clouds, the night wind stirring the withered branches and fallen leaves in the forest, sounding like ghosts wailing and gods howling.

"Partridge Whistle" would no longer use his own "Mountain-Moving Division and Armor Technique," but instead, following Elder Liao Chen's guidance, employ the methods of a Gold-Touching Colonel to dig a tunnel straight to the burial chamber.

He prepared a marking rope, a corpse-binding cord, a yin-probing claw, candles, soft corpse incense, black donkey hooves, and glutinous rice, took a "Red Chamber Marvelous Heart Pill" to ward off corpse qi, flipped open the mechanism of a German twenty-shot mirror-box pistol, tucked it into his waist, and covered his mouth and nose with a damp cloth.

As Elder Liao Chen said, this tomb's terrain is chaotic, wind reversed, qi vicious, shaped like a broken sword, momentum like an overturned boat. In such a standard deadly grave, corpse transformation might occur, but "Partridge Whistle," having endured a hundred battles, fears no dangerous tomb. Those tomb-dwelling spirits, zombie omens, black and white malevolences—these past years, he has slain not a hundred, but also eighty.

"Partridge Whistle" thought: "This time, Elder Liao Chen is testing my courage and methods—I must not let the three characters 'Partridge Whistle' lose their resounding reputation in the tomb-robbing world." Thus, he made his preparations, looked up at the hazy moon above, lifted his horse lantern, took a deep breath, and slipped into the tunnel.

With his agile skills, "Partridge Whistle" soon slipped into the main burial chamber. The tomb is not large, its height quite limited, giving a particularly oppressive feeling. Many burial objects lie scattered on the ground. "Partridge Whistle" pays no attention to these minor funerary items. After entering, he identifies the southeast corner of the burial chamber, lights a candle, turns to examine the coffin's outer casing, and finds there is no outer casing—only a coffin, a copper-cornered gold coffin, entirely made of copper. In his tomb-robbing career, this is the first time he has seen such a coffin; he had only heard of it before. This copper-cornered gold coffin was specially made to prevent the tomb occupant from bursting forth as a corpse, and the reason for using such a coffin to hold the remains may be that, before burial, the tomb occupant had already shown signs of corpse transformation.

However, "Partridge Whistle" is highly skilled and bold. Using the yin-probing claw, he pried open the heavy coffin lid, and saw within: a woman, her features lifelike, about thirty years old, appearing as a noble lady, her cheeks slightly swollen—indicating she held a preservative pearl in her mouth, her head adorned with gold and silver hairpins.

She was covered with an embroidered quilt. From the upper body, the female corpse wore nine layers of burial garments. He removed only the outermost layer, intending to report back later. "Partridge Whistle" leapt into the coffin, took out the corpse-binding cord, wrapped it twice around his own body, tied a knot at his chest, and made the other end into a loop similar to a noose, which he placed around the female corpse's neck.

Holding his breath, "Partridge Whistle" lay prone in the coffin, face to face with the female corpse. He lit a piece of soft corpse incense within the coffin—this incense can quickly soften a stiff corpse—and placed it casually beside the corpse's cheek. He then sat backward onto the corpse's legs, adjusted the length of the corpse-binding cord, straightened his waist, and due to the pull of the cord around his neck, the female corpse simultaneously rose as he sat up.

(The Gold-Touching Colonel's method: one end of the corpse-binding cord is fastened to his own chest, the other end made into a loop tied around the corpse's neck, to make the corpse stand upright while freeing his hands to remove the corpse's clothing. Since the Gold-Touching Colonel rides atop the corpse, once the corpse stands, it ends up one section shorter than him, so the cord is wrapped around the chest, and the other end loops around the corpse's neck—this maintains balance. Later, this technique passed into civilian tomb robbers, but they did not grasp its essence, using ordinary rope without ink, and also failed to understand the cord's knotting method. They would wrap it around their own necks, just like the corpse's end, and many, due to improper method, died confusedly in this manner.)

"Partridge Whistle" used the corpse-binding cord to pull the female corpse upright, was about to begin unfastening the outermost burial garment she wore, when suddenly he felt a gust of yin wind blow from behind. Turning back, he saw the candle flame in the southeast corner of the burial chamber fluttering erratically, as if about to extinguish at any moment. "Partridge Whistle," now bound to the female corpse by the corpse-binding cord, saw the candle about to go out and muttered inwardly: "Oh no." It seemed the "Great Return Burial Attire" would not be obtained. However, facing him, the female corpse suddenly opened her mouth, and from her tightly shut lips fell a black-purple pearl.