Jawara is the fifteenth king of Tanzang and he has ruled the kingdom since he was seven years old. He is a wise man who rules Tanzang with compassion. Of all the kings before him, the citizens liked him best. Though he was the humblest of all kings, he came to power at the worst time, when Tanzang was at its driest and his citizens on all sides were struggling to survive. Jawara sat alone in a large open garden, closed his eyes, and sighed worriedly.
From a distance, Yu Yan saw the expression on Jawara's face, and knew that something must have happened. She and her ten maids walked in front of Jawara, and Yu Yan sat beside him.
Yu Yan asked with concern, "Your Majesty, what's the matter? Why are you frowning in such a way?"
Jawara handed the bamboo scroll to Yu Yan. He stood up and faced the garden. He lowered his head and said, "This is the tenth scroll." He frowned. "The land is getting drier. My people are hungry. No matter how much food I send out, it is only a temporary solution. I can sleep peacefully in my warm bed full, but my citizens go to bed hungry every night; unable to sleep worrying about where they will find food to feed their children at sunrise."
Yu Yan put the scroll on the stone table. She walked over and stood beside Jawara, "My King, you are the King of Tanzang, not the king of rain, so don't be too hard on yourself."
Jawara put his hands behind his back and frowned, "The river is getting wider and wider. We can't even use the water in the river to irrigate the crops. It's clear water, but once it's fished out, the water turns into blood." He sadly frowned. "I do not know what to do?"
"You are a great king, and every Tanzanie loves you," Yu Yang said with a smile. She reached out and took Jawara's hand. "My King, why don't we hold a ceremony to pray for rain. Over the years, we have done many rituals to pray for rain from the God of Thunder, but none of them succeeded, but if we pray to heaven this time, with our sincerity, heaven will have mercy on us. I am sure that if we plunder with sincerity, the gods and fairies of heaven will not abandon us innocent people."
Jawara sighed and said, "Guards come here."
A guard rushed over and knelt before Jawara. The guard, "Yes, Your highness."
Jawara said, "Send my order. All senior officials need to be present in parliament tomorrow."
It was late at night, and Jawara was awakened by a female voice calling his name. He woke up suddenly from the nightmare and sat on the edge of the bed panting in horror. In his dream, he was hunted by a black hole with hundreds of hateful voices cursing him and his ancestors. When he bent down to get the slippers, he saw the feet of a barefoot woman in a long white silk dress standing not far away. Afraid of being assassinated, he quickly raised his head and saw a beautiful woman in white standing in front of him with a radiant face.
Jawara was taken aback and asked in horror, "Are you?"
Gaia smiled at Jawara and said, "I am Gaia."
Jawara quickly got out of bed, knelt in front of Gaia, and bowed three times. Jawara, who was still kneeling, asked, "Goddess Gaia, is there anything I can do for you?"
Gaia said, "I have witnessed the generations of Tanzang kings ruling this land for many years, and you are the wisest of them. I cannot stand idly by because your kingdom is coming to an end."
Jawara's jaw dropped as he asked worriedly, "The end? I...I... I don't understand."
Gaia sighed and looked down at the handsome young king kneeling behind her. She said, "Have you noticed that the River of Sorrow grows bigger every year. Your land is getting drier. No matter how many sacrifices you make to the god of thunder, the thunder only sounds in your land once a year."
Jawara said sadly, "Yes, my people are suffering and there is nothing I can do."
Gaia said, "Your kingdom is built on the pain and suffering of others. If the tenth King of Tanzang hadn't killed so many innocent people and angered the emperor of heaven, your kingdom would be the most vicious, but because of the greed inside of the tenth King, he killed so many people, therefore, he doomed every one of you. The dead innocents do not forgive him, nor does heaven. Your kingdom is getting closer and closer to the black hole created by the Emperor of Heaven. Twenty years from today, Tanzang Kingdom will perish."
Jawara's heart sank. He looked up at Gaia, and said, "No... Please advise me. I wouldn't argue if I died alone, but I don't want the innocent Tanzanie to die because of my ancestor's mistake."
Gaia sighed, "There is a way."
King Jawara, "Please tell me."
Gaia said, "There is a dragon's tail, locked away in a remote place inaccessible to men. It would be great if you could retrieve the dragon's tail and bring it back here. The purity of the dragon's tail will help purify your land. If the land was clean enough, the power of the dark hole would be weakened, and with the combined powers of the gods and fairies, we could seal the dark hole."
Jawara asked worriedly, "If this land is inaccessible to men… then how can I get back the dragon tail?"
Gaia said, "You will need the power of a mage to help you retrieve it."
"A mage?" Jawara asked, kneeling before Gaia. "Where can I find such a person?"
Gaia looked down at Jawara and said, "I'm done advising you. Don't lose hope, King Jawara of Tanzang. Do everything with a pure heart, and there is nothing too difficult beyond reach." Gaia vanished.
In the parliament hall the next morning, Jawara shared with his ministers his meeting with Gaia. Looking down at his ministers, he asked, "Do I need to repeat my question?"
A minister asked, "My king, where can we find a mage?"
Jawara said, "That's why I'm asking for opinions. Anyone who has any concerns please speak up."
U-ri stepped forward and said, "My lord, according to several ancient books, there used to be a group of people called Kakungga. They were protected by four hundred highly skilled mages with great power, but..."
Jawara stood up and asked, "But what? Where can I find them?"
U-ri said, "I'm afraid of offending Your Highness."
Jawara said, "Speak freely, I won't punish you."
U-ri said, "The Kakungga people were driven to extinction by the tenth King Of Tanzang."
Jawara's eyes widened, and he asked, "How?"
U-ri said, "It is recorded in the book that the tenth King of Tanzang once drowned thousands of people in the Endless River Of Sorrow."
Jawara was shocked by what he had just heard. He lost his balance and fell back on his chair. He closed his eyes and said slowly, "Every single one of them?"
U-ri said, "Most of them. The soldiers pleaded with His Highness, and His Highness spared some people's lives, but they no longer practice sorcery and live as regular Tanzanie. His Highness decreed that whoever practices sorcery, the whole family will be executed."
Jawara said, "I sent many volunteer soldiers and hunters to find a way to reach other kingdoms, but none of them came back. I believe Goddess Gaia wanted a mage to take part in this expedition, because maybe the mage will find a way to travel through the Endless River Of Sorrow." He looked sadly at his fellow ministers. "The Endless River of Sorrow truly lives up to its name. Michio."
Michio stepped forward, "Yes, my king."
Jawara, "Prepare a ceremony by the river where the people are driven to death. I, personally, want to apologize."
Michio nodded, "I will arrange it."
Jawara, "U-ri, issued an edict to find a mage."
Kazan stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, if practicing will cause you and your family to be beheaded, who is willing to step forward?"
Jawara said, "General Kazan is correct. U-ri, it is also mentioned in the decree that no killing will be done." Jawara looked at his old ministers. "Everyone, thank you for your selfless dedication to me over the years. If the dragon's tail is not found, our kingdom will be sucked into a black hole in twenty years. I know everyone is willing to die for the Kingdom of Tanzang, but everyone is already old and have served the kingdom all their entire life, so I will not force or designate anyone to go. Travel time and return date unknown. I can only ask for volunteers. Anyone willing to volunteer?"
Everyone stepped forward and said in unison, "We will participate in this expedition voluntarily."
Kazan said, "Your majesty, I married late and only have two sons. Yul is my eldest son. As a palace captain, I will voluntarily let Yul in this expedition."
Jawara is amazed by Kazan's sacrifice. He stepped forward, walked in front of Kazan, and said, "General..." Jawara lowered his head for the first time. "On behalf of the citizens, I thank you for your dedication to this kingdom and its people."
Kazan said, "Your Majesty, please don't do that. If I don't marry late, I will have more sons. I wish I could give you two sons, but my youngest is only three years old."
Jawara put a hand on Kazan's shoulder and smiled. "General," he says, turning to Yul. "Even if your father takes the initiative to let you go, I will still ask you if you want to go."
Yul knelt before Jawara and said, "I would give my life for this kingdom."
Abrafo stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I volunteer to participate."
Michio hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, please allow me to join this trip."
Abrafo looked at Michio oddly and said, "What does a monk have to do with this journey? You stay and continue to study your manual." He smiled mockingly at Michio.
Jawara looked at U-ri and said, "Someone has to be our ambassador. U-ri, you go with them."
U-ri's jaw dropped in shock, "Your Highness, I'm already in my early sixties..."
Jawara said, "You have no family, and you are the best choice out of all the others."
"I will not disappoint His Highness, "U-ri said with a smile. U-ri can't say anything other than thank Jawara for choosing him.
Jawara nodded with a smile, "I'm glad to have everyone's support. U-ri and Michio, captain Yul and lord Abrafo are still young, please help them with their judgment."
Michio and U-ri, "Yes my king."
Jawara sighed, "Now, we can only wait for the mage to show up."