Dragon Raja 3; Chapter 329: Crimson Soil (2)

Dragon Raja 3

“It’s a fascinating method of exploration,” Koeru explained. “Geologists say that drilling is expensive. Every drill hole costs a lot, and even if we drill tens of thousands of holes, there’s no guarantee one of them will hit a relic. But by studying hydrogeology, we don’t need to drill as many holes. The idea is that relics can affect underground water flow. If an underground river passes through an ancient city made of bronze, the water would carry traces of copper and tin. If an underground river suddenly changes its course, it means something huge in the ground blocked its path. I thought it sounded reasonable, so I approved a substantial budget for that expert. But until he passed away in 1983, he hadn’t found a single trace of the age of gods.” Koeru spat disdainfully. “Relying on experts is like expecting pigs to fly!”

“Have you heard of the underground layered city of Kaifeng in China?” Anjou asked.

“No, I’ve never been to China, though I am a quarter Chinese.”

“Kaifeng is a layered city. Apart from the city on the surface, there are five more cities buried beneath it, stacked one on top of the other. The palaces and roads are layered, with six cities in total. This is because the Yellow River frequently flooded, burying the old city under sediment, and the people rebuilt on top of it. Japan’s situation is similar. Before recorded human history, Japan’s altitude was lower than it is today and was submerged several times by rising seas. The ground sank, and sediment carried by the sea buried the relics from the age of gods at several times the usual rate. Based on calculations, they could be buried 300 meters deep. There may be an ancient country built by the White Empress’ descendants hidden in Japan’s deep strata, where the god walks in the lightless ruins, recalling its identity from a previous life,” Anjou said slowly. “How lonely that must be.”

“No, it wouldn’t be wandering around. It should return to the Well of Bones, the most secluded and safest incubation site,” Koeru said.

“What exactly is the Well of Bones? Has your family’s priesthood ever described it?” Anjou asked.

“There is a description passed down from ancient times, though I doubt it will be of much use to you. It’s very esoteric. It says that it’s a well that connects the heavens and the earth, linking the Sea of Cold Water and the Sea of Flames. The upper half is cold water, and the lower half is flames. Izanagi wrapped the sacred remains in purple hemp cloth, tied them with a golden rope, and plunged them into the depths of the Sea of Cold Water. He watched as the remains sank toward the Sea of Flames, then sealed the well’s mouth with a heavy piece of basalt,” Koeru explained. “This is the mythical story of Izanagi sealing the entrance to Yomi at Hirasaka.”

“Not sure I understood any of that,” Anjou said. “What I really wanted to ask was, where have you been drilling over the past century? Shikoku? Kyushu? Hokkaido?”

“That, I do know. All drilling has been along the flow of underground rivers. These rivers flow from the mountains to the sea, and we drill in the opposite direction of the water flow. Starting in Tokyo, along the Akaishi Mountains heading west, the drilling ends in Izumo. It’s taken nearly a hundred years and about 12,000 drilling points. By now, they should have drilled close to 10,000 of them,” Koeru explained. “I can sketch a map and show you the distribution of the drill points, but I can’t guarantee it’ll be accurate. I last saw the map seventy years ago… The first drilling point was made in Hachioji…”

“You idiot! Even if you’re just a ramen chef, at least act professional! Don’t draw something that important using chopsticks dipped in broth on the counter!” Anjou angrily slammed a pen and paper down in front of Koeru.

Meanwhile, in the mountains near the Tama River, a hydraulic drill roared deafeningly as the drill rod pushed deeper into the earth.

Sakurai Masahiko stood under a tent, watching the worksite illuminated by gas lanterns. The heavy rain pounded the tarp, making a sound like hundreds of war drums beating in unison. As a senior researcher at the Yamanashi Environmental Science Institute, Sakurai was responsible for overseeing this drilling expedition.

The Tama River is a large river that originates from the 2,000-meter-high mountains in Yamanashi Prefecture and flows mightily towards Tokyo.

Yamanashi is crisscrossed by mountain ranges, including the Akaishi Mountains, also known as the Japanese Alps, and Mount Fuji, Japan’s highest peak. About ten thousand years ago, Yamanashi was a region of intense volcanic activity. Lava erupted layer upon layer from fissures, eventually forming Mount Fuji, which stands over 3,000 meters tall. The volcanic activity was so extreme that the ancient people believed the road to the underworld lay beneath Yamanashi. Mythologists say this was because they had witnessed glowing lava flowing from the volcano’s mouth and mistook it for the waters of Yomi. Temples were built nearby to seal the “Gates of Hell,” and rituals to appease the god of the underworld are still held today, preventing the waters of Yomi from bringing the souls of the dead into the world of the living.

The Yamanashi Environmental Science Institute was established specifically to study dormant volcanoes. Although the volcanoes in this region appear silent, they still have the potential to erupt. Even Mount Fuji, the “father of volcanoes,” is not fully dormant, occasionally emitting dangerous black smoke. No currently active volcano matches Mount Fuji in size. The fissure beneath it leads directly to the mantle, a vast ocean of magma. If it erupts, it will reawaken humanity’s ancient fear of supervolcanoes. Our ancestors witnessed these supervolcanoes explode, with fire pillars connecting the heavens and earth. Thick volcanic ash drifted in the atmosphere for years, blotting out the sun. In the long darkness, temperatures plummeted, countless animals died, and under the black sky, rivers of golden-red molten lava flowed slowly down from the mountain peaks.

Mount Fuji is like a massive dud bomb, and Japan’s prosperity is built on top of such a giant dud bomb.

The Yamanashi Prefecture Environmental Science Research Institute has drilled numerous holes around Mount Fuji. Long probes are inserted into these holes to monitor changes in the strata. If they determine that Mount Fuji is about to erupt, the “Tokyo Cooling” plan will be activated. The final step of this plan is to evacuate the entire city of Tokyo and send the imperial family and cabinet overseas to seek refuge. The Chief Cabinet Secretary once joked, “That would pretty much be the same as the fall of the nation.”

Sakurai Masahiko has been working at the Yamanashi Prefecture Environmental Science Research Institute for six years. Just as Miyamoto Zawa is the family’s insider at the Tokyo Meteorological Bureau, he is the family’s insider at this research institute. The family has been secretly controlling this country, exploring it for nearly a century.

The valley they are currently surveying is not far from the Tama River. There should be a turbulent underground river beneath the valley, called Akioni River. This river shares the same origin as the Tama River and flows through nearly identical regions. While the Tama River surges above ground, the Akioni River flows silently deep within the earth. The Akioni River is formed by two streams converging—one is boiling water that flows into Mount Fuji and is heated by magma, while the other is cold underground water. When the hot and cold waters mix, they create a thunderous sound, hence this place is called Thunder Valley. The locals say that one of the eight heads of the Yamata no Orochi drank from the Tama River. After the Yamata no Orochi was slain, its blood soaked the land for miles around. The soil that was soaked in the serpent’s blood remained crimson for over a thousand years, giving rise to the name “Crimson Earth.” Nearby, there is also a Yamata Shrine from the Nara period.

Sakurai Masahiko doesn’t like that legend at all because he knows that the Yamata no Orochi is neither a myth nor a fairy tale; its appearance came at the cost of countless lives.

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