ENG
Mighty and strong, its presence grand,
With secret quartz, like shimmering sand.
Chosen for the righteous, a sacred embrace,
Nature's justice reflected, in its grace.
In a small kingdom west of the Black Wind Mountain, the ageing king lived in constant fear of his dwindling lifespan. Desperate to find the elixir of longevity, he embarked on a frantic search for a solution.
One day, an immortalist informed the king that consuming quartz could extend his life and bestow eternal youth. Upon hearing this, the king immediately issued a royal decree, commanding his subjects to scour the lands in search of quartz. Eager to claim their reward, stone miners ventured deep into the desolate Yellow Wind Ridge. There, they came across a stone being with an enormous head adorned with a brilliant white mineral-quartz.
News of the discovery reached the king, who promptly dispatched his crown prince with an army to collect the precious quartz. Little did they know that as they ventured into the ridge, they would be enveloped by swirling dust and relentless yellow winds. Cunning and treacherous, the stone beings lurked beneath the earth, lying in wait. Whenever someone approached, they would swarm out in a coordinated ambush, ensnaring their unsuspecting prey from both sides. The army suffered heavy casualties before obtaining even a trace of the coveted quartz. In a state of desperation, a messenger was dispatched to the capital, bearing a plea of withdrawal that detailed the perilous expedition and the dreadful calamities befalling the men. However, the aged king remained steadfast in his resolve, insistent on obtaining a substantial amount of quartz.
Eventually, the crown prince returned with the coveted quartz and an army halved, and requested to present the precious mineral to his father in the royal chamber. Seizing the opportunity, he initiated a coup, and plunged a knife into the king's heart, leaving him to die holding his cherished quartz of longevity on his bed.
A small kingdom lies west of Black Wind Mountain where an ageing king is terrified of dying. He becomes obsessed with finding an elixir of longevity. An immortalist tells him that eating a special kind of quartz can extend life and grant eternal youth. The mineral is treated as secret and sacred, described as a brilliant white, sand-like quartz believed to be for the righteous and linked to nature’s justice. Hearing this, the king orders his subjects to search everywhere for it.
Stone miners answer the decree and travel into the desolate Yellow Wind Ridge. There they find strange stone beings, each with an enormous head encrusted in the bright white quartz. The king, wanting the mineral for himself, sends his crown prince at the head of an army to seize the quartz and return it to the palace.
The Yellow Wind Ridge is harsh. Swirling dust and relentless yellow winds hide danger. The stone beings are treacherous: they hide under the earth and launch coordinated ambushes. They swarm and encircle anyone who approaches, catching them from both sides. The prince’s army suffers heavy casualties and barely manages to take even a small amount of quartz.
A messenger goes back to the capital pleading for the army to withdraw, describing the deadly conditions and the terrible losses. The old king refuses to relent; he demands a larger supply of the quartz despite the warning. The prince, however, eventually returns to the capital with the quartz but with his force reduced by half.
When the prince asks to present the mineral to his father in the royal chamber, he instead uses the moment to stage a coup. He stabs the king in the heart. The king dies on his bed clutching the quartz he had sought so desperately. The immediate result is regicide and a transfer of power to the prince; the king’s quest for eternal life ends in his death, and the cost to the kingdom is the heavy loss of men and the lingering threat of the stone beings in the Yellow Wind Ridge.