Chapter 9 — Fire Race

But... The other end of the line was still just dead silence. There is no response signal. My heart gradually sank. Could it be that... grandpa really... Or has this communication frequency been canceled a long time ago? Lam Kien Quoc also looked disappointed. He leaned against the chair, rubbing his forehead tiredly. “It seems… no way.” Just when we were about to give up— In the speaker of the walkie-talkie… Suddenly a series of faint sounds rang out… Each sound… interrupted… was the signal! Not the voice. Which is… Morse code! Tick…tick…tick… Lam Kien Quoc immediately sat up! There was unbelievable surprise in his eyes! “It's… it's a response!” “It's a response from 'Pan Thach'!” He quickly grabbed pen and paper and quickly recorded each sequence of Morse signals. The signal is very weak, each segment is fragmented. But each "tick" sound rang out, like each blow of a hammer hitting straight into my heart! Grandpa… he's still alive! And… he received our signal! A few minutes later— The signal disappeared. Lam Kien Quoc stared at the record covered in ink lines. His hands trembled slightly. “What are you saying?!” I asked impatiently. Lam Kien Quoc raised his head and his face became extremely serious. “You said…” “‘Thanh Tung’ has been exposed.” “‘Tailed Serpent’ has activated its ultimate powers.” “The target is… the ‘key’ and the ‘vessel’.” “We must immediately... withdraw the 'container'.” “To… the origin of ‘Calm Mind’.” "Source?" I was stunned. “Is… the origin of the incense ‘Tinh Tam’?” "Are not." Lam Kien Quoc shook his head. “It's… the origin of my mother's name.” Origin of mother's name? Tham Hue Nhu... Hue Nhu... In the Poetry Book - Bi Phong - Tinh Nu, it is written: "Tinh Nu is a strange book, four egos become stupid. My love is not seen, I will take care of it." There's another saying: "From the wood to the root, to the handsome and elegant. A witch is a beauty, a beauty is a beauty." “De” means a young branch of butter grass that has just sprouted. “Like” also means soft, newly sprouted. Hue Nhu… Could it be just… a type of plant? Or… Wait! Mom's diary! In the corner of the last page in that diary... There is a very light pencil drawing that I have never noticed before! Looks like… a tea leaf? Tea leaves! “Calm Mind”! Could it be... just one type of tea?! "Older brother!" “Is that tea?!” “Mother's name, and the thing called 'Tinh Tam' that grandfather left behind, all refer to... tea?!” Lam Kien Quoc's eyes flashed with surprise, then immediately turned into a look of understanding. "Correct!" “It's tea!” “My grandfather and my mother… both like the same kind of tea!” “It's called... 'Snow Peak Silver Needle'!” “It is an extremely rare type of white tea!” “Originating from… a deep mountainous region in northern Fujian!” “That place… is my mother's real hometown!” “And also… one of the earliest origins of the Snake Tailed Snake organization!” Mother's homeland! The Origin of the Serpent Tailed Snake! Origin of 'Tinh Tam'! It turns out that's it! All the clues... finally point to that place! “What about… ‘vessel’?” I inquired. “Who is the person that grandfather mentioned in the telegram – the ‘vessel’ –?” Lam Kien Quoc looked at me, his eyes extremely complicated. “Van Van.” “‘Container’…” “It is you.” I?! I'm a vessel?! What does that mean?! “Your DNA.” Lam Kien Quoc's voice became hoarse. “That rare mitochondrial DNA sequence…” “It's more than just an identification marker.” “It itself… is part of the ‘key’!” “Even… the most important part!” “The Snake Tailed Organization has long been hunting for people who possess this special DNA sequence!” “Because… it could unlock their final secret!” “It even… involves a terrible… biological weapon!” Biological weapons?! My DNA… is the key? Related to biological weapons?! This… is so crazy! “So… they arrested Chau Hao, to question my whereabouts?” "That's right!" “They need you!” “One girl

alive!" “To get your complete genetic sequence!” “So… what about those pearl earrings?” “It… contains the other half of the ‘key’!” Lam Kien Quoc said. “It's something that my mother... used a special method to hide inside!” “It's a piece of… encrypted biological information!” “Only when combined with your DNA chain…” “The final secret can be decoded!” “Only then… can we completely destroy the Snake Tailed Snake organization!” My mind is chaotic. Once again, the amount of information exploded as if it wanted to overwhelm reason. I am the key. The earrings are the other half. Only when the two unite can the secret be revealed and the enemy destroyed. My grandfather wanted me to go to Fujian, to my mother's hometown. That is the lair of the Snake Tail. It can also be the place where the final answer is stored. “We… have to go to Fujian!” I looked straight at Lam Kien Quoc. “But… how do we go?” “The outside must be full of people from the Snake-Tails!” “Besides… the earrings haven't been picked up yet!” Lam Kien Quoc pondered for a few seconds. Suddenly he stood up. Go to a corner of the underground room. There were piles of old, dusty items. He removed those items. Revealing a loose flagstone under the floor. He lifted the stone. Below is a secret compartment. From that compartment, he took out a compact object. Carefully wrapped with waterproof oilcloth. It's exactly what my mother mentioned in her diary. The thing that his grandfather gave him... "Protective talisman"? Or… “Charm for life”? “I…” “This is…” “I lied to you.” Lam Kien Quoc slowly said: "It's not like you don't know what a 'protective charm' is." “It's not like we don't know where it is.” “It… is always with me.” He slowly removed the oilcloth. What appeared inside… It wasn't something earth-shattering. It's just a... old-fashioned tape recorder that looks very ordinary. And a tiny… metal USB. “This is…” “This is… everything grandpa left behind in the past.” Lam Kien Quoc picked up the tape recorder: "There's something inside that he wants to tell you." “There are also… more specific details about the ‘Retreat Plan’.” “And also…” He picked up the USB: “In here is… the most important evidence about the Xa Vi Xa organization.” “And also… the ‘virus’ that can destroy them.” Virus?! “It's not a biological virus.” Lam Kien Quoc explained: "It's a special type of... logic virus." “Specialized for attacking their internal networks and genetic databases.” “Once activated, it can cause the entire system to become paralyzed.” “Even… wipe all vital data.” “This is the last trick my grandfather left behind.” “But to activate that virus, two keys are needed.” He looked at me. “Your DNA sequence.” “And the biological information in your mother's earrings.” “So… now we have the recorder and the USB.” “No need to get the earrings anymore, right?” "Impossible." Lam Kien Quoc shook his head. “This USB is encrypted at the highest level of security.” “The code can only be decoded with your DNA sequence and the biological data in the earrings combined as the ‘key code’.” “If you intentionally break the code, it will trigger a self-destruct mode.” “At that time all data will be erased.” “So… we still have to get the earrings back.” “And… ensure safe passage to Fujian.” “We must find a place where these two ‘keys’ can be decoded and merged.” “That place… is the ending point of the ‘Retreat Plan’.” “It is also… the final decisive battle location.”