The discovery of the New World by Columbus was an event both anticipated and entirely unforeseen. This parallel fits Sakura’s current state of mind perfectly. During her time in the Sea of the Dead, beyond the raw experience of survival, Sakura had yet to taste the thrill of true adventure. At this moment, Sakura was practically vibrating with energy in the stone chamber, hopping about, admiring the traces left by those who came before, feeling much like Sherlock Holmes as she speculated on the stories that had unfolded here.

She imagined a princess once imprisoned in this chamber, forced by a band of brigands to marry their chief. In utter desperation, the princess drew a dagger and took her own life then and there. At that critical, hair-thin moment, the White Knight appeared. The Prince battled the robbers bare-handed, felling every one of them, knocking over the weapon rack in the corner, and then drawing the dagger from the princess’s chest before delivering the fading royal to the Sea of the Dead, allowing the miraculous, somber waters to grant her new life.

This wild flight of fancy, while entirely baseless, bore a faint resemblance to the actual encounter Ming Xiaoyu, Wang Jue, and Hou Dayong had in this chamber. If one were to equate the mermaid with the princess, this princess was decidedly more treacherous and domineering. Furthermore, a clan as formidable as the merfolk required no White Knight to intervene; they only needed to bat their eyes at a man, and whether he rode a white horse or a black one, he would be utterly enthralled. Thus, tales of heroes rescuing damsels were most likely to arise from the plight of weaker women—a mere joke to any feminist.

Sakura was staring blankly at the chaotic array of objects filling the stone room when suddenly the wall before her ground open, squealing like a millstone turning, revealing stone chamber beyond stone chamber—another strange room materialized. No, the room wasn't strange, but for the torches blazing on all four walls, there was only a single stone table placed precisely in the center, and upon that table lay the very blood relative compass that readers have been long separated from.

The one who had just jostled the weapon rack and triggered the mechanism was none other than Da Mao. Da Mao seemed intimately familiar with the space, as if he had visited many times before. Sakura glanced at him with those Holmesian eyes, and the monkey instantly shrunk behind her, following cautiously like a soldier who had committed a minor offense. Sakura privately mused that this monkey was vastly different from the others; everything it did bore the faint imprint of being taught. Could it be that Xiao Hao had been subtly civilizing Da Mao while they were together? Impossible; she would have noticed some telltale sign. Or perhaps Da Mao had already been conditioned before entering her life? That also seemed unlikely; every moment they spent together was etched in her memory, and back then, Da Mao was merely a slightly smarter monkey, much like Cong Cong now—fond of being close to people but still trapped by the limitations of his simian nature.

Just as Sakura was puzzling over Da Mao, Cong Cong, like a mischievous child, scrambled through the wall of the outer chamber and darted into the inner room, zipping onto the only stone table available for amusement, studying the blood relative compass with intense interest.

However, at that moment, Sakura had no idea what the object was, only assuming it was some strange treasure discovered on the New Continent, and she approached to examine it alongside Cong Cong. It was instantly clear that this was no ordinary artifact. The inner ring held a bronze mirror that clearly reflected both Sakura and Cong Cong; the outer ring was inscribed with bizarre symbols, resembling the Chinese zodiac signs or perhaps some other script entirely. Sakura was no expert in ancient characters and could not be sure what the symbols represented.