Capítulo 8: Chapter 8 Mozi Code Words
We narrowly escaped death and, upon reaching the village entrance, encountered my father and uncle, followed by a group of young villagers. They had been searching for us since our disappearance and, upon learning from the village children that we entered Dragon Ridge, immediately gathered a search party. Fortunately, our paths crossed.
Later, Mile and I briefly recounted our experiences in Dragon Ridge to my father and uncle. They listened with astonishment, displaying curiosity mixed with genuine concern.
After a much-needed rest at my grandfather's house, I found my uncle around noon. He had already placed the box on the table. He casually said, "I know you'll figure things out."
Taking the box, I nodded. At the moment, my primary concern was repairing Wuling. Without her guidance, I would never have escaped Dragon Ridge. Moreover, after this incident, I developed a genuine interest in the intricate and profound field of machinery.
Although we survived the ordeal, Mile remained pained. He couldn't shake off the guilt for the silver ingots we threw into the deep pool. Reflecting on it, I, too, felt a twinge of regret. However, life's twists and turns are beyond our control. Perhaps that wealth was never meant for us, so why dwell on it?
What lingered in my mind were the unsolved mysteries. Who built such a colossal mechanism in Dragon Ridge? What was its purpose? If the inner mechanism, the "Dragon Heart," was in the deep pool, where was the "Dragon Heart" of the outer mechanism? What kind of power could drive the entire machinery?
On the way back, I cautiously opened the box my uncle gave me. Inside lay the "Eighteen Scrolls," but I was instantly shocked by its contents. Not because it held earth-shattering secrets, but because the majority of the content was incomprehensible to me.
The six scrolls below documented the machinery in ancient, difficult-to-decipher characters that I could barely understand. However, from the sixth scroll onwards, strange symbols were interspersed, resembling chaotic tadpoles. The upper six scrolls were even more cryptic, devoid of any characters, only filled with bizarre tadpole-like symbols and illustrations. I immediately called my uncle, and he informed me that these symbols were the secret language invented by Mozi. Given the critical nature of the content in these eighteen scrolls, Mozi encoded the important parts in this secret language. It had been passed down among the Mozi disciples through oral transmission, making it unknown to outsiders. However, my uncle revealed that there was one other person in the world who understood Mozi's secret language – Wuling.
I felt a sense of being deceived, realizing it was a dead end. Understanding Mozi's secret language allowed me to decipher the "Eighteen Scrolls," which could repair Wuling. However, only Wuling understood Mozi's secret language.
While driving, Mile glanced curiously at the scroll I held. Frowning, he said, "Hey, buddy, I think I've seen this tadpole writing somewhere."
Perplexed, I looked at Mile, not expecting him to make a serious statement amidst his usual playful banter. I asked, "You've seen it? That's impossible!"
Mile looked at the tadpole writing on the scroll once again, gently tapping his head. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure I've seen it!"
"Where?" I asked eagerly.
Biting his lip, Mile shook his head, saying, "I can't recall it right now."
Disappointed, I sighed. However, Mile chuckled, saying, "Let me think about it. I might remember. Seems like I saw it a long, long time ago!"
I glanced at Mile, unsure whether his words held any truth. I treated it as a joke, not taking it too seriously.
For a long time afterward, I had recurring nightmares, feeling trapped in the icy depths of a deep pool with an octagonal iron tower hanging above. A monstrous creature with an open blood-filled mouth lunged towards me. Later, Mile asked if I had a clear view of the creature's appearance. I shook my head. Strangely, my memories of it seemed hazy, even suspecting whether it truly happened. Mile suggested revisiting the place, but I immediately warned him not to bring it up again. I swore never to return to that eerie place. However, I soon broke that promise. But that's another story.
During the following period, I immersed myself in studying the parts of the "Eighteen Scrolls" I could comprehend from the bottom and middle sections. Simultaneously, I dedicated time to research in the National Library, hoping to find records about Mozi's secret language. However, the results were disappointing. While Mozi indeed created some secret codes, similar to modern semaphore, there was no record of the tadpole-like secret language present in the scrolls.
However, the front part of the "Eighteen Fragments" that I could comprehend already left me astonished. The following six sections describe 108 mechanisms known as the "108 Luos." These mechanisms are further categorized into five major types based on their dragon hearts: gold, wood, water, fire, and earth. The middle six sections delve into even more profound content, detailing 64 Luos Mechanism Bureaus, including the Nine Dragon Enigma Bureau, Nine Mounds Lu Yin Bureau, Eight Links Suspended Sky Bureau, and Qimen Dunjia Bureau. Each of these Luos Mechanism Bureaus is not only intricately designed but also perfectly integrates the principles of the five elements, Feng Shui, and geographical features. They can advance to destroy enemies thousands of miles away and retreat to defend against enemies step by step, making them a marvel. The only regret is that whenever crucial issues like the "dragon heart" related to these mechanisms are involved, they are represented by tadpole characters. The upper six sections are even more mysterious, with almost the entire text written in tadpole characters. Perhaps, as Uncle mentioned, the content here is of great significance. If it falls into the wrong hands, the consequences could be unimaginable. Therefore, Master Mozi left a precaution, transmitting secret messages through oral communication among descendants.
However, I, as a descendant of the Mo family, find myself powerless in the face of this. Just when I was at a loss staring at the celestial book, an unexpected opportunity arose—one that I never imagined would be related to Mile.
Ever since Mile and I returned from Dragon Bone Ridge, this guy started playing the disappearing act with me. He acted mysteriously all day long, neglecting the business in the store. The most exaggerated part was a week ago when Mile suddenly called and told me he was going back to our hometown. His tone was urgent, and I didn't stop him.
One week later, one afternoon, I was lying on the bed, troubled by the "Eighteen Fragments." Suddenly, I received a call from Mile. Lazily answering the phone, I hadn't even spoken when Mile angrily said, "Buddy, what are you doing? Why aren't you responding on WeChat?"
It was then that I realized I might have been too engrossed in studying the "Eighteen Fragments," completely oblivious to WeChat messages. Apologetically, I said, "Sorry, sorry, I've been reading and didn't notice!"
Upon hearing my apology, Mile's anger subsided. He got straight to the point, saying, "Take a look at what I sent you!"
"What did you send? Something mysterious?" I opened WeChat, and Mile had sent a picture. The black-and-white photo seemed quite old and unclear. I enlarged the photo, revealing a railroad worker in his thirties with a square face, flat head, thick eyebrows, and a smiling face. There was a faint resemblance to Mile.
"Who is this person in the photo?" I asked, yawning. The afternoon sun made me drowsy.
"My dad!" Mile uttered each word solemnly.
"Your dad?" I asked in confusion. "Didn't your dad disappear when you were a child? Why are you showing me this photo?"
"Oh, the person in the photo isn't the focus. Zoom in on the background!" Mile urged.
Carefully enlarging the photo, I was suddenly frozen. Behind Mile's father was a giant stone about the size of a room, on which three to five bizarre tadpole characters were carved. Hastily comparing them with the characters in the "Eighteen Fragments," I asked, "Mile, where was this photo taken?"
Mile didn't immediately answer. Instead, he said, "First, check if it matches the Mo family's secret language in your book."
"Okay, okay!" It was as if a surge of excitement had been injected into me. The drowsiness disappeared instantly. Comparing the tadpole characters in the photo with those in the "Eighteen Fragments," I found an exact match.
"How is it?" Mile asked anxiously.
"Yeah, an exact match!" I put down the book and said to Mile, "Where was this photo taken? How could there be Mo family secret language there?"
Mile fell silent on the other end of the phone.
Anxiously, I asked, "Mile? What's going on? Speak up!"
"Buddy, I suspect my dad's disappearance is related to the Mo family's mechanisms!" Mile changed his tone from his usual casual style, speaking each word deliberately.
Mile's words left me stunned. After a while, I said, "What's going on?"
"Ah, it's complicated!" Mile sighed and continued, "This photo was sent by my father to my mother before he disappeared. Since then, my father has had no news. About a month later, people from his unit came to my house, informing us that my father and his workgroup of about ten people had all disappeared!"
"Didn't their unit send people to search?" I asked in shock.
"They did. After their disappearance, the unit sent dozens of people into the mountains for a search. However, after half a month, there was still no news, and the search team encountered several accidents, forcing them to halt the operation..."
"What accidents?" I asked curiously.
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