Histoires de fantômes

Chapitre 170

China, Japan, and South Korea are the global centers for the promotion of Go, with a long history of the game. All three countries regard this high-IQ game as their national treasure, so Go games and Go rooms can be seen everywhere.

"It's just a game of chess, nothing strange about it." The Plague's expression was very calm.

I saw that the irregular parts around the edges of the paper had been carefully cut out, and even if I knew it was a page from a diary, I couldn't possibly match it up.

"Can't sleep, want to memorize music to kill time, are you interested in this too?" He was clearly a little smug.

Undoubtedly, this is a game record where the opening has just been completed, and it's Black's turn to make a move. In such a situation, the board is vast, and Black can place a stone anywhere, either expanding their influence or engaging in combat—the choices are numerous. My mentor has repeatedly warned me against "losing sight of things," so my skill in Go is only at the beginner level, far from being advanced.

"These papers, are they from Master Shenbi's diary?" I put the papers away and put them in my pocket.

Plague remained silent and expressionless, but then brought up the old topic again: "Mr. Feng, the 'Book of Purgatory' contains clues to the 'Underwater Tomb.' If you don't want to get there first, you'll regret it. European buyers can at least offer..." He extended his right hand, spreading his five fingers.

His robe sleeves slipped down to his elbows, and I saw that pink lotus flower once again, prominently tattooed on his arm, leaping and dancing with the twisting of his veins.

“I can pay twice the price of Europeans, as long as it has the legendary magical effects. Also, don’t talk nonsense at the end. At times like this, no one is too worried, right?” The lotus is the key to those two underwater doors. How could the plague tattoo it on his body? What is the connection between the plague and my elder brother? I don’t want to avoid this question, but I know that getting an old guy like him to tell the truth is by no means an easy task.

Plague laughed smugly: "The Chinese are so quick at doing business! Unlike Europeans or Americans, who calculate every single detail, from interest losses to rate changes. They've already signed deals worth tens of millions, why would they care about such a small amount?"

He walked to the northwest corner of the room, and starting from the bottom of the corner, he measured upwards by forty centimeters, then horizontally eastwards by thirty centimeters, before turning back to the original point of the corner, forming a right triangle with sides in the ratio of four, three, and five. He placed his right middle finger on the center balance point of this triangle and pressed hard. With a "click," a hidden compartment the size of a palm popped open on the overhead beam.

“The Book of Purgatory is right there. When can I get the check?” He looked up, his face flashing with a mixture of anxiety and sweetness.

The roof was dark, and the hidden compartment was located in a place where the light could not be reflected, so you could only roughly see its shape and size.

"Take it down, inspect the goods, and then we'll talk." I won't frame others, but I won't be easily framed either.

The Black Angels organization has invented at least two hundred different methods that can kill or make life worse than death within a minute range of fifteen particles.

"You're too cautious. How can you make a fortune if you're not daring?" Plague sneered.

The door was suddenly pulled open, and a person enveloped in a chilling aura floated in, holding a gun in one hand, pointing it at the plague, and then slamming the door shut behind them.

I was taken aback because it was Xiao Keleng who came in. I had clearly instructed her to stand guard on the ancient tree outside. If she left her post, we would be completely opening up the surrounding environment to potential enemies, which would be extremely unwise.

"94494955, Jiakeng Zhenghu Xing Shenying 4." Xiao Ke uttered a string of meaningless Chinese characters, took three steps forward, and stabbed the gun hard into the temple of the plague.

The plague suddenly fell silent, its eyes becoming empty and lost, staring blankly ahead.

"You traitor, you coward—back then, my eldest brother valued you so much, nurtured you, and even recommended you to be the top official in the Security Bureau. But when he got into trouble, not only did you run away, but when my second brother contacted you to rob the hospital to get my eldest brother out, you pretended to be deaf and dumb, forcing my siblings and me to flee into the underworld. Now, you still have the nerve to use this extreme method of hiding treasure?"

Xiao Ke's facial muscles twitched violently, and his index finger trembled slightly on the trigger, as if he might uncontrollably fire at any moment.

The sudden change turned me into an outsider, a "watching the tigers fight from the mountain." Xiao Keleng had seen the plague before, but she had never been so excited, nor had she uttered the strange code words in the first two sentences.

The fourth super weapon

— Chapter 10 - The Book of Purgatory, The Angel of the Night (Part 2) —

The air suddenly became tense and almost froze. For a full three minutes, the three people remained motionless in silence, except that more and more cold sweat dripped from Xiao Keleng's forehead onto the square brick floor, making a monotonous "pat-pat" sound.

I felt the pervasive killing intent once again, likely emanating from Xiao Keleng. Every time the past concerning Jin Chunxi was mentioned, she became unusually agitated, unavoidably. If the Plague had truly wronged Jin Chunxi in the past, no one could guarantee she wouldn't shoot him.

“Yes, I’m a coward, little sister. Go ahead and shoot.” Plague finally spoke, his voice and expression equally somber. The switch between life and death requires only a trigger travel of more than a centimeter.

"I really can't face using the 'Pythagorean theorem concealment method' invented by our boss anymore. He only taught it to me, and treated me better than a brother. Before his accident, he sent me to infiltrate 'Dark Angels' and said that if I completed this mission, in addition to requesting a first-class national medal for me from the Chairman, he would also promote me to the head of the Security Bureau. Little sister, do you think I don't want to go back to Pyongyang and rescue our boss? That method is too dangerous. If I act impulsively like my second brother, I will only destroy all of our boss's confidants scattered among the people. The Chairman's think tank has always advocated 'cutting the weeds without leaving any roots and punishing evil without extermination.' The fact that our boss was sent to a sanatorium was itself a bait. Perhaps in the underworld, your and my second brother's fame far surpasses mine, but when it comes to the scheming and backstabbing in political struggles, you always seem too pure."

The plague-ridden man rubbed his face vigorously. Within seconds, his skin turned pale, his features transformed, even the shape and color of his eyes changed. From any angle, he looked like a typical, hot-blooded South Korean soldier. I blurted out, "You are—'Black Star,' the North Korean 'golden undercover agent'?"

This is a name that has been long forgotten. Back when it dominated the East Asian espionage war, it was once on the Americans' "List of National Enemies to be Assassinated," but now it can only be seen occasionally in history.

Plague gave a bitter laugh: "Forget the name 'Black Star.' When the red star on the North Korean flag is shrouded in the shadow of betrayal and betrayal, I would rather abandon all my past beliefs. My name now is 'Plague,' an omnipresent disease that will not serve any country but will only bring disaster to others."

His glorious image indeed vanished instantly with the downfall of Kim Soon-hee.

Xiao Keleng's emotions gradually stabilized. To be honest, Jin Chunxi's downfall was just a historical replay of palace intrigue. Only those involved felt the pain most acutely, while others who were just watching had long been numb to it.

I looked up at the roof beams, knowing that with my light-footed skills, I could leap up and retrieve the legendary "Book of Purgatory".

“Little sister, take this back, and you can get the boss out. I know Troy and his men’s mission—” After shedding its ruthless and eccentric disguise, Plague had completely transformed into a different person. Years ago, when the author of *The Scalpel* was reviewing Asian history and commenting on famous spies during the Cold War, the name “Black Star” was mentioned many times. Putting aside national grievances, “Black Star” was undoubtedly a top-tier master in the Asian underworld, possessing unparalleled skills in light footwork, swift hands, and masterful thievery—a highly sought-after talent by the spy systems of various Asian countries.

"Take it down!" Xiao Keleng took a step back. The special event of Jin Chunxi becoming a vegetable has become history with the passage of time and cannot be changed. No matter how impulsive or resentful one is, it will not help.

The Plague twitched his shoulder, about to leap into the air, but I pressed down on his shoulder just in time: "Wait a moment—I want to know how the 'Book of Purgatory' ended up in your hands, and why you would rather fake your death than hand it over last time?"

Blindly trusting others is not the act of a wise person, especially since I sensed an increasingly intense killing intent gathering in the vast darkness outside the window. It's a pity there's no other skilled person available, or perhaps it's absolutely necessary to set up lookouts outside the courtyard, lest we regret it when the enemy's knife is at our throat.

Xiao Keleng was so agitated that she was no longer suitable to be assigned any work.

"What? Afraid I'll cheat? Mr. Feng, you don't understand my relationship with my eldest brother, second brother, and youngest sister. Even if I cut off my own head, I wouldn't scheme against them." Plague smiled bitterly.

I smiled and said, "No, I'm just curious about its origins, and I can't figure out why you risked your life to stay at Fengge Temple."

This is an obvious contradiction. He has a treasure in his possession, which he can exchange for a huge sum of money at any time, so why doesn't he flee? By now, Maple Temple has become the ultimate target of all forces, so he has even less reason to jump out a second time. Nighttime is the period when the "Angels of the Night" are most active, and I suspect that they have never given up their pursuit of the "Book of Purgatory" from the very beginning.

It is said that "Angels of the Night" are born with an extremely keen sense of treasure, and they will follow the treasure wherever it appears.

"Xiao Xiao, calm down. The situation isn't as optimistic as we think." My biggest worry is Guan Baoling's side. I'm afraid Xiao Lai alone can't handle the potential dangers. The tycoon's forces are lurking in the shadows; they might not be able to defeat the "Angel of the Night," who has the "right time, right place, and right people."

The wind picked up again in the courtyard, swirling aimlessly, and the window paper was trembling.

Facing this small courtyard, the ancient tree is the best vantage point for surveillance and sniping, so I hope Xiao Keleng will return to her original position.

Xiao Ke took three deep breaths and put the gun back in his pocket.

I don't care if it's not my problem. Everyone has their own real concerns. She goes crazy when it comes to anything related to "Kim Soon-hee," just like I get extremely agitated whenever I hear anything about my older brother. So, I try to distance myself from her feelings.

"I'm sorry," she said softly, bowing her head.

If we treat our plague surveillance work as a rigorous military operation, anyone who arbitrarily loses their position will be subject to military law without exception. Xiao Keleng's capriciousness also reflects, from one perspective, the inevitability that江湖江湖豪侠 (jianghu heroes) cannot defeat a regular army.

"It's alright, danger can be everywhere, just be careful."

Without needing to say anything more, she understood what I meant and immediately walked towards the door.

The moment she opened the door, a gust of wind swept in a large clump of dry leaves, hitting her head-on. The wind outside was strong, making a constant "whoosh" sound as it blew through the treetops.

The courtyard was empty, and the wooden door at the front was tightly closed. Only the sky was a hazy yellow, foreshadowing an upcoming late winter snow.

"Little sister, I will leave the 'Book of Purgatory' to you, don't worry." Plague shouted loudly, but it was clear that what he said meant something strange, as if he was deliberately saying it to certain people, neither targeting me nor Xiao Keleng.

The light from inside the house streamed straight out, landing squarely on the trunk of the ancient tree. I suddenly had a bad feeling. The door facing the withered tree was exactly what was considered a "door-facing killing" configuration in feng shui, which was definitely not a good omen. Moreover, it was the dead of winter, and only a few leaves remained on the tree, swaying in the wind.

When I ordered Xiao Keleng to hide in the big tree, she stood in a different position, and I didn't realize that it was a "deadly spot" where yin and yang converged. I couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat and hurriedly stopped her: "Xiao, you should go to the left side of the roof and keep an eye on the direction of the 'Tower of the Dead' and the Meditation Hall. In twenty minutes, we will retreat to the courtyard together and meet up with Xiao Lai."

Xiao Ke paused at the door for a few seconds, frowning as he stared at the withered tree: "A kill right at the door?"

I nodded: "Yes, no wonder the monk could neither rise to the next level nor comprehend the great path of Buddhism. With such a setup here, all his future and destiny were doomed to be slaughtered by the heavens. It's already lucky that he didn't die."

The Plague took over my topic with a wry smile: "He's already dead. After you discovered that I was impersonating Stone Island, I had no choice but to kill him as well and throw him off the cliff in order to get close to you."

The bizarre suicide on Shidao Island was undoubtedly a tragedy orchestrated by the plague itself.

Xiao Keleng flipped and leaped onto the roof. I heard her footsteps move lightly to the left side of the roof tiles. With this sentry post there, at least we could react quickly when danger approached.

"Now, can we get rid of it?" The plague was wearing a deep, bitter smile that came from the bottom of his heart.

I stared into his eyes, genuinely admiring his incredible skill in disguise—changing his eyes along with his face. But should I believe him? Or was it some kind of mysterious mechanism?

"Black Star... Senior, could you perhaps share its origins?" I understood that the more thorough the preparation before taking action, the less likely there would be any mishaps. Who knows what kind of mind a person who rebelled against a national organization and wandered the martial world incognito has become? The martial world is a giant melting pot; even the most upright and kind person will eventually turn into a monstrous, mixed-colored monster.

My palm was merely lightly pressed against his shoulder; with his agility, he could easily dodge it at any moment. But my right hand was already gripping a tactical knife, ready to handle any sudden change in the situation. As long as he didn't escape the room within a second, I could capture him instantly.

The Plague sighed, “Well, you’re the first person to remain so calm after seeing the ‘Book of Purgatory’—to talk about its origins, it must involve a man who was a legendary figure in the world of tomb raiding. However, after disappearing for fifteen years, most of the younger generation in the martial arts world have forgotten him.”

I withdrew my hand and stepped back, moving away from the position of the beam's shadow.

“I don’t need to mention his name. One year—I remember it very clearly, the year the Americans launched Operation Desert Storm—I came to Fengge Temple with an important mission…”

Suddenly, a thought struck me: "Operation Desert Storm took place on the morning of January 17, 1991, exactly fifteen years ago. Could the appearance, disappearance, and reappearance of this 'weapon of mass destruction' be absolutely related to the two Iraq wars?"

So, could the tomb raiding expert mentioned in the plague be Big Brother Yangtian?

The Fifth Undersea Mystery

— Chapter 1 — The True Book of Purgatory? (Part 1) —

"On a snowy night, I secretly entered Xunfuyuan Villa and hid on the roof of a room on the west side of the main building. At that time, I was still young and my lightness skill was almost at the level of 'walking on snow without leaving a trace,' so the noise I made from entering to hiding was no louder than the sound of snow breaking dry branches."

The wind picked up, and looking out through the slightly ajar door, I could see that it was actually snowing.

"The person I saw was standing in the water pavilion of Xunfu Garden, with an easel in front of him. Instead of a canvas, there was a small wooden plaque about the size of a palm. He was holding a magnifying glass and staring intently at the plaque. I took out my high-powered binoculars and instantly saw what was written and engraved on the plaque. Strangely, it was just two elegantly shaped lotus flowers."

I maintained a smiling expression, and no matter what strange stories the plague told me, I would accept them seriously, because it was the one that was truly related to the underwater cave.

"lotus?"

"Yes, lotus flowers, one blue and one pink. The wooden plaque was made of the finest ironwood, probably over a thousand years old. Even under 80x magnification with a telescope, there was no sign of the wood being porous. As someone who has joined the 'Black Angels' gang, my ability to identify antiques surpasses that of the most experienced antique dealers in the market. Thousand-year-old ironwood has miraculous effects of warding off evil and prolonging life, and its market price was stable at around $80 per gram at the time. So initially, I only had my eye on that plaque, hoping to have a chance to steal it."

The desire to hunt is in the nature of master thieves, and the more difficult the theft, the greater their desire for challenge.

I pointed above my head: "You succeeded?"

The hidden compartment that popped out from the beam was about the size of a palm and was dark in color, so it should be made of precious wood such as ebony, sandalwood, or rosewood.

Plague looked up, wiped his face in shame, blinked, and then answered in a hoarse voice, "Yes, I succeeded. Stealing something from that person, even if it's just a cheap everyday item, will make me famous throughout the land. But as soon as I got the wooden tablet, I fell into an even greater dilemma."

Snowflakes rolled in through the crack in the door and did not melt immediately, gradually forming a snow line on the ground.

"Thanks to my highly insulating protective clothing, I lay in the snow for nearly four hours, until he took down the wooden sign and went back into the hall. The binoculars were a 'Jianaka' brand provided to the Koreans by the KGB, with built-in infrared photography capabilities. So, after I left the villa, I was able to immediately print out nearly 200 pictures, obtaining images of the sign from various angles—would you like me to take it down and show it to you? Or perhaps I could talk to the sign to explain the situation more clearly?"

I nodded, gripping the knife handle tightly with my right thumb and forefinger, and tensing all the joints of my right arm. In this state, if he wanted to escape or do anything stealthy, it would be within the knife's control.

Having been able to shoot and kill the Japanese ninja carrying a longbow from a distance in the library, I had absolute confidence in my throwing knife skills. A person who roams the martial world relies on a knife far more than a firearm that might malfunction. Therefore, in any difficult situation, I need to have one tucked into my sleeve.

"Don't be too nervous, I mean no harm..." He smiled wryly as he looked at my lowered right hand, then suddenly bent his knees and jumped up like a wild crane taking flight, raising his hand to grasp the hidden compartment before gently landing.

His lightness skill is indeed excellent; even in the "Dark Angels" gang, which is full of experts, he should be ranked among the top ten.

"That's it, look."

The hidden compartment was a wooden plaque. On its smooth, purplish-black surface, two lotus flowers were carved. The blue one was exactly the same as the key on the clock in the Xunfuyuan Villa. What first caught my attention were the four small Han-style characters carved on the top of the lotus flower, all painted with a grayish-white pigment, exuding an eerie aura—"The Book of Purgatory".

“When I saw those four words through the telescope, the shock was simply unparalleled, because in all the legends and books involving the ‘underwater tomb,’ the name ‘Book of Purgatory’ is mentioned. Just as the Egyptian pharaohs could use the ‘Book of the Dead’ to open the door to communication with ghosts, the ‘Book of Purgatory’ is also an indispensable tool for opening the ‘underwater tomb.’ So I vowed to obtain it and make it the national treasure of the Korean people.”

Everyone loves their country, and fifteen years ago, the Plague was naturally a fervent patriot who dreamed of gradually ascending the red carpet of North Korean court politics alongside Kim Sun-hee. His idea was quite easy to understand.

North Korea's geographical location determined its historical position of facing both internal and external troubles. For the Japanese to open the gateway to the Asian continent, the quickest route was to land in North Korea and use it as a base to advance towards the southwest. Whether it was isolationism, seclusion, or even the brutal "political brainwashing" of the people by state authorities, all were aimed at protecting national interests.

The ancient Chinese idiom "Yelang's arrogance" is also very applicable to the small country of Korea.

"You stole the sign, which proves that you've joined the ranks of the world's top thieves, right?" There's no such thing as a thief who can guard against thieves for a thousand days. With his meticulous planning, others will always find loopholes to guard against him.

Suddenly, Plague reached out and stroked the wooden plaque, muttering to himself, "The King of Tomb Raiders, unparalleled in the world; with Yang Tian's appearance, the martial world is shaken. These four sentences are indeed true. To find a flaw in him is harder than climbing to heaven."

The wood on this plaque is extremely dense, as he said, it was cut from a nearly thousand-year-old ironwood tree, specifically from the part where the bark and core are of the most uniform quality. Such excellent wood is simply unavailable in modern forests worldwide.

The carving technique used to depict the lotus flowers is exquisite, with its varying relief and delicate brushstrokes, resembling a still life photographed with a high-resolution digital camera. Every detail is meticulously crafted, allowing each petal to retain its unique charm. Furthermore, the blue and pink pigments used are top-quality tributes produced in ancient Persia, showing no signs of fading or discoloration due to the passage of time.