Chapter 124: The Nine Ancient Cauldrons of Xia

Chapter 124: The Nine Tripods of Ancient Xia
Chapter 13: Cold Ripples in the Sea of Affection, Thin Shadows at the Immortal Abyss, and Ancient Treasures in the Strange Cave (Part 9)

Ye Hua could not help but let out a soft exclamation, as if he could not believe his own eyes. He had never imagined that such a scene would await him in the depths of this cavern. He slowly took a few steps forward and saw a crimson radiance shimmering within the central stone chamber. After a moment’s thought, he stepped inside.

The stone chamber was not large, measuring only about five or six zhang square. In the center stood a stone pedestal holding a large bronze tripod. It was covered in patches of verdigris, showing nothing particularly unusual at first glance. However, a fiery red chain was attached to the tripod—a red hue tinged with purple—the very same restraint that had bound the skeletal monster. Seeing this, Ye Hua felt a surge of joy: "This chain was able to restrain that skeletal monster; it must be no ordinary object! I only hope it doesn't mistakenly bind me here as well..."

Lost in thought, he stepped forward and circled the bronze tripod for a moment. He noticed that the tripod seemed to be engraved with faint runes. "I wonder what the origin of this tripod might be?" A white light flashed in his hand as he summoned his Chiwu Dagger and struck gently at the tripod. Before the blade could even come within a foot of the object, the tripod emitted a sudden flash of green light, and a soft emerald barrier emerged to catch the dagger's edge.

Ye Hua was startled. "Eh! I didn't expect this tripod to be a sentient object! I wonder what its rank is?" Just as he was about to channel more of his internal energy, the runes on the bronze tripod flared brightly, manifesting as green glowing symbols that began to rotate slowly around the body of the vessel.

Not daring to act rashly, Ye Hua observed closely. The runes were ancient and peculiar, unlike anything he recognized. As more and more symbols appeared and grew in size, images of mountains, rivers, the sun, and the moon emerged, followed by various figures of ghosts, spirits, and deities.

Ye Hua’s face turned deathly pale, his complexion appearing as green as the light reflecting from the barrier, whether from the illumination or his own terror. "This... these runes... have I seen them somewhere before? Could it be... it! This... this!" He could not help but recall the massive bronze tripod he had seen floating across the sky on a full moon night back in his hometown. Were the patterns on that one not exactly like these?

Ye Hua felt an indescribable sense of eeriness and coincidence. He had just dismissed it as an ordinary bronze tripod, yet it was identical to the Nine Tripods of Ancient Xia he had seen. Could this actually be one of them? He pondered for a moment, but finding no answers, he retracted his Chiwu Dagger. The green radiance from the bronze tripod slowly dimmed and eventually vanished.

Ye Hua retreated slowly, not daring to disturb the giant tripod any further. He moved to the adjacent stone chamber, but it was completely empty. He proceeded to the next, where dozens of rows of stone shelves lined the walls, yet they too were bare. He approached the final chamber and had barely entered before he let out a gasp of surprise.

On the floor of the stone chamber sat a mummified corpse dressed in Taoist robes. Aside from its deathly pallor, the body was remarkably well-preserved. Ye Hua was astonished; had he not used his internal energy and spiritual sense to probe it, he would have mistaken it for a living person. Looking closer, he saw a steel spike driven through its chest—the fatal wound. "Who could this be? Is this the master of this cave? And who could have delivered such a lethal blow?"

A quick glance around revealed no obvious signs of a struggle on the stone walls. "It must have been a sudden strike, leaving no time for the victim to react or defend, or perhaps the gap in cultivation between the two was so vast that the victim was helpless to resist. These are just my own guesses, though! I wonder what really happened. If I have offended you, senior, I hope you will not take offense," Ye Hua thought to himself.

He had searched all the chambers. Aside from the first and last, which held their own peculiar mysteries, the cave dwelling offered nothing else. Ye Hua felt a pang of disappointment. "Could it be that there is no way out?" He reconsidered: "The master of this place must have been able to enter and exit the Abyss of No Return, so there must be a path—I simply haven't discovered it yet."

With this thought, his spirits lifted. "Heh, since I've arrived at a mountain of treasure, how can I leave empty-handed? Though, whether this can truly be called a treasure mountain is open to debate!" Ye Hua muttered, walking back into the first chamber. "I might as well take this fiery red chain!" He extended a finger and injected a strand of pure internal energy into it.

The purplish-red chain on the ground was the Heart-Locking Purple Fire Chain, used by the cave's master to trap the skeletal monster. It was incredibly powerful—it was said that as long as the monster lived, the chain would never break. Even now, after thousands of years, it remained potent. However, since the master was dead, the spirit of the chain had greatly diminished, allowing Ye Hua to refine it with a drop of his essence blood.

As Ye Hua watched, the chain glowed with an intense crimson light, and wisps of purple flame drifted out, releasing a wave of scorching heat. Having seen the power of these purple flames, he did not dare to be careless. "Heh, this is somewhat similar to Senior Sister Ling’s Heaven-Mixing Red Silk. If I can get out of here and find her in Cold City, I must show this to her!"

While lost in thought, he realized the chain’s spirit had indeed faded significantly. "This is easier than expected! It saves me a lot of trouble!" He pointed again, and several drops of essence blood shot into the fiery chain, disappearing instantly. The next moment, Ye Hua felt his mind resonate, as if he had suddenly grown an extra limb. With a flick of his intent, the iron chain floated into the air.

The chain suddenly elongated and shot straight out of the stone chamber. Ye Hua followed the chain with a thread of his spiritual sense as it wove through the tunnels, reaching the outside of the cave in mere moments. "To think this fire chain can not only change at will and move through space, but also carry my spiritual sense to act as a probe! That is truly rare!"

Thinking this, Ye Hua waved his right hand, and the chain vanished. Only the bronze tripod remained in the chamber. As he looked at it, his father’s words echoed in his ears: "Ancient legend says that in the early years of the Xia Dynasty, the governors of the Nine Provinces contributed copper to cast nine tripods. They had the strange creatures and landscapes of the lands of Huaxia depicted on them. Once cast, the tripods were displayed outside the palace gates so that people would know which ghosts and monsters inhabited the lands they traveled to, helping them avoid evil and seek good.

"It is said that the Supreme Jade Emperor of Heaven deeply admired this act, and thus Ancient Xia received the protection of the Heavenly Emperor. From the moment they were born, the Nine Tripods were shrouded in mystery. Ever since, they became the national treasures passed down through the three dynasties. After the fall of Xia, the tripods moved to Shang; after Shang fell, they moved to Zhou. Later, as warlords vied for the world, they all sought the Nine Tripods, but after changing hands many times, they vanished without a trace! Since then, there have been endless speculations.

"Legend says that whoever possesses the tripods will rule the world. Sigh, but they do not understand: the world depends on virtue, not on tripods! Though the virtue of Zhou has declined, the Mandate of Heaven remains unchanged; the weight of the tripods is not to be questioned!"

Ye Hua muttered, "The world depends on virtue, not on tripods! Though the virtue of Zhou has declined, the Mandate of Heaven remains unchanged; the weight of the tripods is not to be questioned!" Just as he was lost in thought, he failed to notice the bronze tripod flash with green light. The runes on its surface shifted. Ye Hua shook his head and was about to turn away when the tripod suddenly erupted with blinding radiance. The mouth of the tripod lit up, and with a booming sound, a brilliant pillar of light shot out. Ye Hua was startled and darted away.

However, the pillar of light followed him like a shadow. As soon as Ye Hua landed, the light engulfed him. He felt a flash of white, a heat on his crown, and as terror took hold, his sea of spiritual sense exploded. His body went limp, and he collapsed, losing consciousness. The bronze tripod on the pedestal beamed white light for a long while before it flashed green, transformed into a streak of light, shot toward Ye Hua, and vanished into his body in the blink of an eye.

Ye Hua, unaware of this, dreamed he was lying under the willow tree at home. He whistled, and the yellow dog from afar ran over and leaped onto his stomach. He felt a sharp pain in his belly and laughed, scolding, "Stupid dog! Get off!" Just then, he saw his mother walking toward him, calling out, "Come over quickly..."

Ye Hua said "Oh," and was about to stand up when a sudden, intense pain in his abdomen made him cry out, and he slowly drifted back to consciousness. He opened his eyes, saw the four stone walls, and realized it had been a dream, feeling a sense of bewilderment.

Looking around, he suddenly remembered and was struck by fear: "Didn't I just get knocked out by the pillar of light from the bronze tripod? Eh! Where is the tripod?" He looked at the pedestal, and the tripod had vanished into thin air! Ye Hua was shocked.

He scrambled to his feet and rubbed his eyes, realizing he wasn't seeing things: "This... could it be that the corpse in the other room isn't dead and took the giant tripod?" At this thought, his scalp tingled. He pushed the thought away, not daring to dwell on it. He scanned the room, but found nothing unusual, yet he couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. He searched for a while, but discovered nothing.