The mountains gathered, the waves enraged, the Tongshe Pass adorned the surface of the mountains and rivers. Gazing upon the Western Capital, there was a sense of hesitation. In the place where the sorrow of Qin and Han's journeys occurred, the palaces and towers have turned into ruins. Prosperity brings suffering to the people, as does decline. (Zhang Yanghao - "Mourning for Tongshe Pass on the Mountain Slope")
Within the embrace of eight enormous stone pillars, the Wa Palace stood tall and magnificent.
On the immense black rock dome, countless large and small stalactites hung upside down. Agile and venomous Mo Poison Hunt Spiders scuttled between the stalactites, their pale green eyes filled with a touch of bloodthirsty madness, overlooking the massive Wa Valley below.
"Mountains gathered, waves enraged..."
"The sorrow of Qin and Han's journeys..."
"To win, the gold coins are not bitter..."
"To lose, the gold coins are very bitter..."
Tightening the tattered hemp clothes that let the wind through, Golden Coin, a rat-headed, skinny, and barely four feet tall individual, mumbled to himself. Suddenly, he nostalgically yearned for his set of comfortable and warm ancestral leather armor.
He lifted his head to look at the gradually darkening "illusionary sun" in the center of the black dome. The light around him rapidly dimmed, and he listened to the hoarse roar of the Hunt Spiders. Golden Coin shuddered and quickly followed a winding path carved into the rock wall, lightly heading towards the nearest abandoned mine outside of Wa Valley.
After running for hundreds of meters, Golden Coin glanced back at a stone house on the edge of Wa Valley.
That was the only tavern in Wa Valley. Just a quarter of an hour ago, Golden Coin had been enjoying the meticulous care of the tavern's waitresses like a true noble. But now, he was no different from a true beggar.
"I should have chopped off these two hands..." As he ran lightly, Golden Coin muttered angrily, "My gold coins, my money... my ancestral leather armor... damn it, when they were throwing the dice, they must have been cheating..."
"Why can't I control these hands of mine?"
Gold Coin walked forward with a dejected expression. The road ahead suddenly cleared, a hot wind blew against his face, and red light shimmered on the distant rock wall. Faintly, he heard the sound of clinking from the hot wind.
Golden Coin abruptly stopped and turned around, fiercely gesturing towards Wa Valley. He gritted his teeth and screamed, "The great Golden Coin will return! Just you wait... the great Golden Coin will definitely return! I will win all your gold coins!"
The ground shook violently, accompanied by a deep roar. Four tall and yellowish-brown stone steles, each several meters high, rose from the ground with a resounding rumble, completely surrounding Golden Coin in the center. A yellow light encircled the stone steles, and an immense pressure pressed down on Golden Coin's frail and thin body, barely four feet tall.
Golden Coin let out a strange cry. His body suddenly shrank, and black smoke erupted around him as he plunged towards the ground.
Under the tremendous pressure, actions that Golden Coin was able to complete with a flick of his finger normally were suddenly slowed down severalfold.
A big hand suddenly reached out from behind one of the stone steles, grabbing Golden Coin's shoulder.
A burst of red light erupted from the big hand, surging fiercely like fire. The black smoke was swept away by the blaze, and Golden Coin, who had become limp, was grabbed in mid-air by the big hand.
A towering man over one zhang tall emerged from behind the stone stele. He held Golden Coin by the shoulder and shook him forcefully. His deep and thunderous voice boomed, "The best information dealer in Wa Valley... Golden Coin?"
Golden Coin lifted his head and smiled obsequiously, revealing a set of pearly white fangs. "This sir... you must have mistaken someone else for me! Who is Golden Coin? I am an old man born and raised in Wa Valley... I swear on my father's head that I have never heard of that name!"
With a clank, a bunch of gold coins were suddenly scattered on the ground.
Golden Coin's eyes immediately narrowed, and he lifted his head, wearing a fearless expression. He asked, "Sir, are these gold coins, by any chance, a gift for me?"
The expression of the big man became unusually heavy and weak. "Find Wu Tiewu Taiping, and I will give you ten times, a hundred times the amount of gold coins!"
Pausing for a moment, the big man murmured in an extremely heavy tone, "Alive, I want to see him; dead, I want to see his corpse... No matter what, find him!"
Golden Coin's smiling face suddenly stiffened.
(End of chapter)