"I didn't expect Dafang County to have such a long history…"
After listening to Brother Anding's explanation, we suddenly realized, but couldn't help but ask with a puzzled look, "But what does this have to do with the stolen Phoenix Feather?"
"We'll have to start from the time after Zhuge Liang's death at Wuzhangyuan. According to the 'Southwest Yi Annals,' after Zhuge Liang's death, the Liao people in the Zangjia area rebelled. Emperor Liu Chan then ordered our Yi ancestors to lead the troops to suppress the revolt and gave them control over the conquered territories. As a token of appreciation, he specially awarded the 'carved silver dove staff.' Our Yi ancestors…"
"Stop, stop. We don't have time to listen to the development history of your Yi people…"
Before Brother Anding could finish, Ning Zhaoyang impatiently interrupted, "You just need to tell us the origin and use of the stolen Phoenix Feather. How do you know that after Sima Yin got the Phoenix Feather, he would definitely go to that place?"
"Yeah! Time is of the essence, so let's get to the point directly!"
It was rare for Ning Zhaoyang and I to have the same opinion. What he said was exactly what I wanted to say. Brother Anding was talking about Zhuge Kongming one moment and Emperor Liu Chan the next, making it feel like a history lesson. Unfortunately, he didn't mention anything we were genuinely interested in.
"Alright!"
Seeing that none of us were very interested, Brother Anding's face suddenly became a bit embarrassed, with a hint of regret in his eyes. Perhaps, he wanted to reminisce about the great achievements of his Yi ancestors, but we were not interested at all.
It's not that we were completely disinterested, but time was not permitting. At such a critical juncture, who would have the time to listen to his stories?
After a pause, Brother Anding continued, "In fact, the stolen Phoenix Feather is said to have been forged from the 'carved silver dove staff' bestowed by the emperor. The 'carved silver dove staff' was a sacred object passed down through generations of our Yi people. However, due to its age, it eventually became damaged. It wasn't until six hundred years ago, after the death of Lady Sheixiang, that the Yi people, as a token of their gratitude, crafted the damaged 'carved silver dove staff' into two Phoenix Feathers!"
"It was originally intended to be placed on Lady Sheixiang's phoenix crown for her burial. However, for some reason, one feather was lost midway, and they had to abandon the plan. The remaining Phoenix Feather has been kept by my Shuixi Longzan clan until after the liberation, when the government ordered the renovation of the tomb. It was said to be for suppressing the Fengshui of the area, so they asked us to produce the Phoenix Feather and inserted it into the phoenix crown of the bronze statue!"
"Suppressing Fengshui?"
Upon hearing this, I couldn't help but pause and look around. Then, I nodded. I had noticed right after arriving at Shexiang's tomb that it was a very typical depiction of the 'two dragons playing with a pearl.' I had found the two dragons but had not found the 'pearl.' Now it seemed that the Phoenix Feather inserted into the bronze statue was this so-called 'pearl'!
A master!
To use the Phoenix Feather as the 'precious pearl' guarded by the two dragons not only activated the 'dragon playing with a pearl' depiction, but also symbolized harmony between the dragon and phoenix. In this light, the person who had given the suggestion back then was definitely a master with exceptional expertise in Fengshui!
At this moment, Ning Zhaoyang couldn't help but ask, "How do you know that after Sima Yi got the Phoenix Feather, he would definitely go to that place?"
"Because that place is the sacrificial site of the 'Luo Clan Ghost Kingdom,' and it is said that the tomb of the Luo Clan Ghost King is hidden within that altar…"
"Wait!"
Before Brother Anding could finish, Ning Zhaoyang couldn't help but interrupt again, looking puzzled, "Didn't you just mention the Luodian Kingdom? Why did you suddenly mention a Luo Clan Ghost Kingdom?"
"Sigh… I was just about to explain that. Weren't you too busy to listen earlier…"
Brother Anding looked at Ning Zhaoyang resentfully and continued to explain the origin of the 'Luo Clan Ghost Kingdom' for us.
It turned out that, following the orders of Emperor Liu Chan, our Yi ancestor Tuoa Zhe, after conquering a vast territory, fearing that he alone couldn't manage it, dispatched his cousin Baimo to govern it. Little did he know that Baimo's family were not peaceful rulers. Over several generations, they had been involved in battles and conquests, and by the time of the Sui and Tang dynasties, they had unified the entire southwestern region, eventually proclaiming themselves as kings and establishing the Luo Kingdom. Due to the tribe's reverence for evil spirits at the time, it was also called the Luo Clan Ghost Kingdom, and the tribal leader also referred to himself as the Luo Ghost King!
As a result, the Luodian Kingdom was basically destroyed, and the newly established "Luo Clan Ghost Kingdom" quickly replaced it, along with their previous sacred object, the 'carved silver dove staff,' which was also taken by the Luo Ghost King.
According to Brother Anding, the Luo Ghost King was buried in that altar, and to enter it, the 'carved silver dove staff' was used as the key. After many years, the 'carved silver dove staff' eventually returned to the hands of our Shuixi Yi clan, and was passed down through generations until six hundred years ago…
In other words, Sima Yin's goal in stealing the Phoenix Feather should be the tomb of the Luo Ghost King!
The Luo Ghost King was a formidable figure, and his tomb would be rich in burial goods. More importantly, the Luo Ghost King had once dominated the entire southwestern region as a great witch. His tomb likely contained magical tools and other items he had used during his lifetime, and this should be Sima Yin's primary objective!
So, doesn't it mean that the other missing Phoenix Feather is also in Sima Yin's hands?
After listening to Brother Anding's explanation, everyone fell into silence. After a long while, Ning Zhaoyang finally said, "Alright! We should act immediately. I think we need to leave right away!"
"No rush!"
However, Brother Anding waved his hand and said, "The altar only opens on the night of the full moon. I've calculated that it will be at least another half month before the altar might open!"
"Damn! So we have to wait that long. Why didn't you say so earlier?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang looked at Brother Anding in exasperation and said, "Alright, I think we should disperse for now. We can wait for the full moon to approach before going to the altar and waiting for his arrival!"
Zhang's words struck a chord with me!
I was already in a hurry to go home for the New Year and had intended to resolve the matters here quickly and then return home. But upon hearing that we would have to wait for more than half a month, I couldn't help but become restless!
With the New Year only seven or eight days away, and since the altar wouldn't open anytime soon, what was the point in lingering here?
Not only us, but even Ning Zhaoyang couldn't help but stand up, looking as if he was about to leave.
Seeing this scene, Anding felt a sense of urgency and quickly said, "It's true that the thief who stole the Phoenix Feather may not necessarily be aware of this secret! What if they sneak in early, then we can just catch them by the way?"
His words did make some sense, so we decided to stay and see. At the very least, we had to wait for the people from the Provincial Religious Bureau to arrive. When the professionals took over, we, as the small fries, could naturally leave.
Anding was a straightforward person; he immediately arranged for us to stay in a hotel and said that he would take us to the location of the altar early the next morning.
The hotel we stayed at was the Yuchen International where we had dinner before. After Zhang and Director Han had gone to sleep, I called Lao Zhang again and told him about meeting Sima Yinyin and the Phoenix Feather in the afternoon.
Oddly enough, Lao Zhang's attitude was quite plain. He only reminded me to leave immediately after the people from the Religious Bureau arrived. This muddy water was too deep, and it wasn't something we small players could meddle in at all.
I deeply agreed with this. Even if Lao Zhang hadn't said it, I didn't want to be involved in this matter again.
The next morning, Anding woke us up early and said that the people from the Religious Bureau had arrived and were ready to take us to the location of the altar in the Luo Shi Ghost Country.
Upon hearing that the people from the Religious Bureau had arrived, I was instantly delighted, as I had no intention of going to the altar anymore. However, Zhang's repeated persuasion prevailed, making me consider, "Even if we're in a hurry to go home, we won't lose much time by checking it out!"
On second thought, what Zhang said was not entirely unreasonable, so I went with everyone to the place where the altar was located.