Tomb of the Sea Episode 12 Recap
> Tomb of the Sea Recap
Members of the Jiu Men, the Nine Clans, arrived at the Crescent Hotel with gifts, though their true intentions were veiled. A young woman from the Huo family, in particular, immediately challenged Zhang Rishan, asking him to inspect a precious item. She referenced the Zhang family's renowned "double-finger tomb probing" skill, which had allowed their ancestor, Buddha Zhang, to lead the Nine Clans. Noticing Zhang Rishan wearing leather gloves, the other elders feigned concern, asking if he was injured.
Zhang Rishan admitted to injuring his hands, joking that it was merely a fish bone while cooking, and then revealed his seemingly unblemished hands by removing a layer of fake skin. However, the elders remained unconvinced. To prove his hands were still functional, Zhang Rishan presented the Nine Orifices Exquisite Box from the Northern Song era, a treasure of the Crescent Hotel.
He explained its dangerous mechanism: 3,000 gold threads inside, but only one connected to the inner lock; touching a wrong thread would trigger dozens of poisonous barbed needles, disabling the opener's hand. Zhang Rishan stated he would open it, and if successful, they should leave. He then appeared to skillfully open the box, revealing a superior tongue jade, satisfying the onlookers who then departed. Alone with Luo Que, Zhang Rishan acknowledged he had actually failed and his hand remained injured.
He revealed he couldn't go to a hospital without exposing his secret, concluding he had no choice but to seek Liang Wan's help. Meanwhile, Liang Wan was at home, enjoying a meal with a face mask on, complaining about Zhang Rishan breaking his promise to contact her. The doorbell rang, and to her surprise, it was Zhang Rishan. She quickly shut the door, removed her mask, changed clothes, and tidied her apartment before letting him in.
Liang Wan noticed his wounds were worse than before. She offered to treat him, but insisted he go to a hospital for deep cuts near the nerves. Zhang Rishan refused, stating he only wanted her to treat him and confessing he came specifically to see her. Liang Wan, flustered by his persistence, warned him it would be painful without anesthetic, to which he simply told her to proceed.
As she began, another woman arrived at the door, calling for Zhang Rishan. He immediately claimed Liang Wan was his girlfriend. Liang Wan, seizing the opportunity, boldly confronted the woman, asserting her position as Zhang Rishan's current girlfriend and sharply dismissing the woman, who was apparently his ex-girlfriend. After the woman left, Liang Wan pressed Zhang Rishan on the nature of their relationship, and he playfully suggested it was "pending further investigation." Liang Wan, however, took his words seriously.
In the desert, Master Ma's condition worsened; he became delirious, failing to recognize Lulu and accusing her of trying to kill him. He ordered Lao Mai to tie her up and investigate who wanted him dead, promising a massive reward but also threatening everyone's lives if Lao Mai failed. Though Lao Mai questioned the value of money in their dire situation, he agreed to investigate under the threat of death.
At the same time, Director Wang and his crew attempted to escape the desert on camels but were quickly intercepted by Lao Mai's men, who fired a warning shot to halt their flight. In the cellar, Wu Xie, Wang Meng, and Li Cu performed an autopsy on Ye Xiao's bloated body, extracting a long, wriggling worm. Wu Xie then deliberately cut Li Cu's arm in two places, instructing him to feign illness.
Lao Mai, having rounded up Director Wang's fleeing crew, discovered Wu Xie's group in the cellar. Believing them to be the culprits, Lao Mai brought them to Master Ma. Wu Xie clarified that the illness only affected those who had entered the West Palace for a third time. He then demonstrated how the small worm, which he identified as a plant spore, expanded rapidly upon contact with water.
He explained that Ye Xiao's self-inflicted wounds mirrored the bodies found in the West Palace, a result of the worm's growth and the intense urge to remove it. Wu Xie added that Su Nan's severe symptoms were likely due to swimming and absorbing a large amount of water. Master Ma, skeptical, questioned why Wu Xie and Li Cu, who had also been to the West Palace, were not infected.
Wu Xie then revealed his genuine wounds, contrasting them with Li Cu's intentionally faked ones. As Master Ma's symptoms flared up, and Wu Xie and Director Wang also began to exhibit signs of the illness, Wu Xie instructed the others to bind them to prevent self-harm. With the sick tied down, the only solution was to remove the worms. Pressured by Lao Mai, Lulu, a former nurse with no surgical experience, reluctantly operated on Uncle Zeng.
She located the worm but, in her panic, it escaped back into his head, killing him instantly. Terrified, no one wanted to be next. Wu Xie, despite his worsening condition, volunteered and instructed Li Cu, who had witnessed the previous autopsy, to perform the extraction. Though frightened, Li Cu followed Wu Xie's guidance, making an incision and using chopsticks to extract the worm.
When the worm became stuck, Wu Xie, enduring excruciating pain, forcefully yanked it out himself before collapsing and then abruptly waking up. After the harrowing experience of extracting the worm from Wu Xie, Li Cu appeared to have matured. He questioned why he hadn't been infected, despite having been in the underground palace.
Wu Xie speculated that it was related to the unique map on Li Cu's back, suggesting that while the worm wasn't in him, the mysterious black substance from the box was. Wu Xie insisted Li Cu must continue the journey to GuTongJing, as it was not only their destination but likely the only place to resolve what was inside him. As everyone recovered, preparations began to continue their journey to GuTongJing.
Su Nan proposed bringing Galu along, recognizing that despite his simple-mindedness, he was a "living map" capable of guiding them through the desert. Before they set off, Wu Xie discovered that his gun was missing, leading him to suspect that someone had taken it. Meanwhile, Su Wan found himself caught in Shen Qiong's scheme as a result of his connection to Li Cu.
One evening, while studying, he received a call from Shen Qiong, inviting him to her home for tutoring. Su Wan, smitten with Shen Qiong, eagerly arrived. Shen Qiong, wearing a seductive nightgown, tutored him, but he struggled to concentrate. She subtly probed him, asking if he had ever visited labyrinthine places like the Crescent Hotel.
Guided by her, Su Wan drew what he called a "map to my heart," which Shen Qiong initially mistook for a genuine map of the Crescent Hotel. Later, while grabbing something, Su Wan noticed photos on Shen Qiong's desk: recent ones from the desert and an old photograph of a woman who bore an uncanny resemblance to Shen Qiong, who he suspected was her mother.
