Tomb of the Sea Episode 42 Recap
> Tomb of the Sea Recap
Wu Xie and Su Nan trudged through the snow mountain, their strength failing as they searched for an exit. Su Nan, exhausted, lamented that she'd rather have died at the cliff if she'd known their struggle would be this difficult.
Wu Xie reminded her that he only kept her alive because she claimed two people were needed to cross the snow mountain, and he promised to tell her the story of the Zanghai flowers if they made it out and she didn't kill him. Su Nan, equally weary, retorted that she knew he planned to kill her once they were safe.
Wu Xie persistently urged her on, claiming they would reach safety in "five minutes" repeatedly, much to Su Nan's annoyance. Eventually, they discovered a cave filled with a fragrant aroma, which Wu Xie identified as a place where Lamas might have practiced Zen. Wu Xie noticed distinct carvings of Zanghai flowers on the walls, a species unique to the region. Zhang Rishan tried to lead the Nine Clans members out of the ancient city, warning them of the grave danger.
However, Chen Jinshui angrily refused, stating he wouldn't leave empty-handed after losing so many men for what he believed were treasures, even pulling a gun on Zhang Rishan. Zhang Rishan easily disarmed him, reminding them of his surname, Zhang. Huo Ruxue, also skeptical, insisted on going inside to verify if these were truly Uncle Buddha's treasures.
Witnessing their greed, Zhang Rishan expressed his disappointment in how the Nine Clans had devolved, a sight neither Uncle Buddha nor he wished to see. Despite their internal struggles, he acknowledged their shared identity as Nine Clans members and stated he wouldn't interfere with their decision, only reiterating the extreme danger of the ancient city.
Huo Daofu tried to persuade Chen Jinshui not to enter, but Chen Jinshui remained resolute, leading his men deeper into the ancient city to make a fortune for Clan Chen. Huo Daofu, seeing the futility, left the ancient city with Yang Hao. Inside, Huo Ruxue denounced Zhang Rishan as a liar before instructing her people to grab as much as they could. Soon, the Nine Clans members discovered a vast trove of gold, porcelain, and jewels.
Blinded by avarice, they gleefully began collecting the riches, with Chen Jinshui proclaiming all the wealth as his. Their excitement over the treasure was short-lived as countless snakes suddenly swarmed the room. Without their weapons, the Nine Clans members were helpless. Despite the immediate danger, Chen Jinshui and Huo Ruxue were slow to react, still attempting to snatch more treasures even as they tried to defend themselves.
Huo Ruxue was quickly attacked, and Chen Jinshui was carried away by a giant white candle dragon. In a tragic turn, Chen Jinshui was inadvertently shot and killed by one of his own panicked subordinates. Shortly after, the main beam of the treasure room catastrophically collapsed, burying nearly everyone inside. The violent collapse sent tremors that were felt by the Wang Clan members and Master Black.
Below the cliff, a rock with a distinct pattern identical to Liang Wan's back tattoo broke off. The falling debris, surprisingly, opened a new path. Master Black remarked that the collapse might be a "blessing in disguise" as it offered an escape route. Following Liang Wan's map, they identified the correct direction. However, Liang Wan refused to leave, explaining to a worried Su Wan that there were too many secrets she needed to uncover and she wouldn't leave GuTongJing empty-handed.
She spotted more stones with the same tattoo patterns, fueling her desire to stay and find the truth about her identity. Before Master Black and Su Wan left, Liang Wan entrusted Master Black with a small container, asking him to deliver it to the Crescent Hotel's manager if they made it out alive. She added a message for the manager: Liang Wan had not forgotten their agreement, even facing death.
Liang Wan persisted in her search, following the patterns on the stones, even as GuTongJing continued to collapse, sealing off the path behind her. Undeterred, she pressed onward through the increasingly large stone debris, sensing she was nearing the truth. As she attempted to fit pieces of stone together, Zhang Rishan suddenly appeared. He questioned why she hadn't left, expressing his confusion as to why her identity was more important than her life.
Liang Wan passionately declared that her identity meant everything to her, challenging him by asking if he would have ever approached her if she didn't have her distinctive tattoo. Recognizing her determination, Zhang Rishan finally decided to tell her. He revealed that a clan named Wang, whose totem was a phoenix, had occupied GuTongJing for centuries, implying Liang Wan was a descendant. Stunned, Liang Wan realized this meant she was a member of the Wang Clan, his enemy.
Zhang Rishan conceded that the Wang Clan was indeed his enemy but suggested she might only be "a drop in the ocean" of the clan. Just then, a large stone fell from above, and Zhang Rishan quickly pulled her away, urging her to flee. Instead of leaving with the others, Zhang Rishan guided the Nine Clans members to a secret tunnel left by Uncle Buddha, allowing them to escape while he remained behind.
As they parted ways, Yin Nanfeng, the manager of Crescent Hotel, confessed her feelings, urging him to return alive, as Crescent Hotel needed a male master. Zhang Rishan quietly resolved that this ordeal would soon end for Uncle Buddha. During his search for Liang Wan, Zhang Rishan encountered Master Black and Su Wan, who were trapped and facing imminent death.
Su Wan, in despair, pleaded with Master Black to remove his sunglasses so he could see his face before they died. Just as Master Black prepared to fulfill the wish, Zhang Rishan appeared, rescuing them. Zhang Rishan then sent Master Black to take Su Wan to safety, instructing them to exit through Uncle Buddha's secret path, as he intended to find Liang Wan.
Master Black attempted to deliver Liang Wan's message and the container, but Zhang Rishan interrupted, stating he wished to hear it from Liang Wan herself. Eventually, Huo Daofu, Yang Hao, Yin Nanfeng, Master Black, and Su Wan, along with other surviving Nine Clans members, reached the surface, where GuTongJing had become a massive crater. Despite their escape, a somber mood prevailed as they worried about those still trapped underground, including Li Cu and Liang Wan.
Meanwhile, inside GuTongJing, Wang Clan members located a special stone. When exposed to fire, a small snake emerged, whose venom was used to decipher the memories of the Wang Clan ancestors. Li Cu was revealed to be the key, the only one capable of reading these memories encoded in the snake venom. The Wang Clan leader informed Li Cu that he was merely someone Wu Xie had "barely chosen," and would become "useless" once a suitable replacement was found.
Li Cu defiantly retorted that he would eliminate any such replacement before that could happen, impressing the leader with his quick wit, though the leader dismissed any potential replacement as mere "broken stone." The leader emphasized Li Cu's importance for his unique ability, not to find the memories, but to read the snake poison fluid that contained the ancestors' recollections.
The Wang Clan protected Li Cu fiercely, and upon feeling the tremors of the collapse, they swiftly brought him to the surface. There, Li Cu once again saw Shen Qiong, whose true identity was revealed to be a member of the Wang Clan, not the Huo family as previously thought. Zhang Rishan, observing the Nine Clans' descent into greed and internal strife, understood that Wu Xie's unconventional actions, though seemingly against the Nine Clans' traditional ways, were necessary.
Far from opposing Wu Xie, Zhang Rishan covertly supported his plans, seeing this as an opportunity to purge not only the insidious Wang Clan but also the corrupt elements within the Nine Clans itself.
