Chapter Seventy-Two: The Tail

From the equipment chest on the second boat, Grim-Face Zhang rummaged out a powerful spotlight and a coil of climbing rope. He looped the rope around his waist, gripped the flashlight, and returned to the bow of the first boat. He switched on the light and shone it toward the gigantic dragon-shaped silhouette within the cavern’s maw, and we all fixed our eyes in that direction.

What we saw was a creature entirely white, with seven or eight meters of its body exposed above the water. There wasn’t a single scale on it, not even eyes—just two massive tendrils drooping from its head. On either side of its elongated body, two fins like large fans slapped at the surface, resembling a fat earthworm with whiskers, thoroughly repulsive and utterly lacking the majestic bearing of some ancient beast.

“Damn, what the hell is that?” I couldn’t help but curse aloud. Everyone’s faces turned awkward as the so-called divine dragon revealed its true form, and soon we were all laughing and cursing at the absurdity.

Grim-Face Zhang, too, seemed relieved after seeing the monster in the water, giving a long sigh; this thing was far less terrifying than the water tornado. To have been frightened by it felt like stumbling over his own feet. But he also seemed a bit grateful—if the vaunted Nine Gates of Beijing were driven back by such a “giant mudfish,” wouldn’t they become the laughingstock of their peers?

The beam of the flashlight seemed to have no effect; the big mudfish remained unresponsive, perhaps because it lacked eyes. It kept paddling at the water with its two fins, oblivious to our presence.

Grim-Face Zhang tied his rope to the bow, tightened it around his waist, steadied himself, and drew the long blade from his back, as if preparing for a heroic “Grim-Face Zhang Slays the Evil Dragon at Heavenly Lake.”

I found it secretly amusing. Grim-Face Zhang was clearly the sort who bullied the weak and feared the strong. Just a moment ago, when we spoke of the dragon in the water and one of the crew lost his nerve, he’d been flustered himself. But now, seeing that the “dragon” was nothing more than a wretched thing ripe for slaughter, he was eager to play the hero. Then again, isn’t that human nature? If word got out, Grim-Face Zhang would gain even more fame—another legendary tale for the boastful Nine Gates of Beijing: “Master Zhang slays the demon dragon at Heavenly Lake.” No one in their circle would question the story.

As I sat there lost in thought, the woman in the black cloak beside me let out a cold laugh. I thought she was amused by the same thing and patted her on the backside. “Don’t laugh. What’s so funny about this?”

She clicked her tongue. “Taking advantage of me again? I’m not laughing for the same reason as you.”

I grinned teasingly and gave her soft, rounded bottom another squeeze. “Then what’s so funny to you?”

She snorted. “I’m laughing at Grim-Face Zhang’s empty reputation, thinking this thing is easy prey.”

I caught my breath. “What, you mean this thing isn’t just a pushover?”

“A pushover?” She shook her head. “Does it look easy to you? Besides, it doesn’t even have a mouth—how did it swallow that crewman called Old Eight? Think about it!”

Her words jolted me awake. The deranged crewman had said the dragon in the water ate Old Eight, but this monster in front of us had no eyes, no mouth—how could it have swallowed him? I quickly asked, “Then how do you think it ate him?”

The woman in black pondered for a moment, then glanced at Grim-Face Zhang on the bow, who looked as if he were about to unleash a special attack from a street fighting game. “Master Zhang!”

Grim-Face Zhang heard her call and looked back. “What?”

She beckoned him over, suggesting they confer before taking action.

Grim-Face Zhang hesitated, glanced disdainfully at the mudfish dragon in the water, then walked over to her side. “Say what you have to say.”

The woman in black smiled slyly at his arrogant expression. “So, Master Zhang, you plan to fight the evil dragon head-on?”

He snorted, fully aware she was mocking him. “If you have something to say, spit it out. Don’t waste my time.”

She nodded. “Master Zhang, I think we’d better keep our distance from that thing. Avoid a direct confrontation if at all possible.”

“What, you don’t think I can handle this filthy mudfish?” he said, frowning.

She knew all too well his pride and thirst for fame. If he managed to kill the thing, he’d be celebrated as an invincible hero—Master Zhang, conqueror of tigers and dragons. But she also knew the creature below the water was not to be trifled with. After a long pause, she smiled. “Your reputation is already well-known. Even if you kill this thing, it’s just gilding the lily. There’s really no need.”

Grim-Face Zhang was no fool; he caught her meaning immediately. His face darkened. “If you’ve noticed something, speak plainly. Don’t beat around the bush.”

“Do you really think that thing in the water is so easy to deal with?”

He hesitated at her question, glanced back at the writhing mudfish in the water, and suddenly stiffened, as if a realization had struck him.

She saw the change in his expression and knew he’d guessed the creature’s true nature. “Master Zhang, I don’t need to say more, do I?”

He nodded. “It’s just a tail, isn’t it?”

She nodded in return. “You’re right, but as for what it really is, I can’t say.”

Their exchange left me completely bewildered, as if they were speaking a foreign language. I didn’t ask, though; my only concern was escaping as swiftly as possible. Part of me hoped Grim-Face Zhang would dispatch the mudfish with a few strokes, so we could safely get out of the water—on shore, his brute strength would keep us safer.

As I worried, Grim-Face Zhang’s courage faltered under the woman’s words; he seemed to lose all desire to play the dragonslayer and fell silent.

At that moment, Iron-Crutch Liu staggered to his feet. “Hey, Third Brother, if you’re not going, let me handle this thing!”

He started for the bow.

“Get back!” Grim-Face Zhang roared.

Iron-Crutch Liu stopped, staring at the mudfish. “What’s so scary about it? You don’t need to—”

“Did you not hear me? Get back!”

Unsure what he’d said wrong, Iron-Crutch Liu scratched his head and shuffled back.

“So what now?” Grim-Face Zhang asked quietly. Surprisingly, he seemed to be taking his cue from the woman in black—a man known to distrust, even despise, women, now obeyed her as if she were his anchor. There had to be some hidden reason behind this.

She didn’t answer immediately, but after a pause, nodded. “Master Zhang, that depends on you.”

“On me?” Grim-Face Zhang looked bewildered. He knew he was useless in the water—did she really expect him to slay a dragon?

She took the flashlight from his hand, shining it on the stalactites and quartz pillars extending from the cave ceiling into the water. She smiled. “From what I can tell, this thing can’t move far. If I’m right, beyond its tail should be flat ground or perhaps the entrance to the tomb. Of all of us, you’re the most agile. If you can secure some rebar to those stone pillars and fix the climbing rope there, we can moor the raft here, climb along the rope, and avoid the creature. Wouldn’t that solve our problem?”

Grim-Face Zhang saw the logic in her plan, but still harbored doubts. After some thought, he questioned, “How do you know there’s dry ground behind the thing? Have you been here before?”