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CHAPTER 1

The Chinese junk pitched and rolled in the pounding surf, its ancient ti under the heavy load The boat lay low in the water, cold spray blowing over its rails with each gust of the frigid autumn wind Hidden below a tattered tarpaulin on deck, ShaoShu—Little Mouse—wondered what he'd gotten himself into

He shivered The dah his thin skin, deep into his tiny bones He had only been aboard one day, but he already yearned to have his feet back on dry land

ShaoShu had little experience on the water True, he'd just spentdown the Grand Canal with his new friends, Hok and Ying, but that ride was nothing like this one That was fun This was agonizing The sooner he was off this ship, the better

The boat lurched suddenly on the choppy seas, and a wicked crosswind lifted one corner of the tarp ShaoShu quickly snatched it back down, catching a gli just a few paces away ShaoShu shuddered Tonglong—the Mantis—was uncomfortably close

As a homeless street urchin, ShaoShu had a lifeti in small, inconspicuous places He had an unnatural ability to bend and twist his se shapes, and he put these skills to use stowing away here on Tonglong's Chinese man-o-war in order to steal some information for his new friends This, however, had been ained for Perhaps he'd pushed his luck too far

ShaoShu shifted his position ever so slightly, and he felt the weight of the shiny cylindrical object resting on his lap It was nothing really, soht prove useful to hihly polished brass and glimmered with a luster he couldn't resist It was this saht hi place

With each passing wave, ShaoShu sank deeper into the largest pile of treasure he'd ever seen He was surrounded by riches that even the Eoblets, iurines, mounds of pearl jewelry— all of it piled here on the boat's deck and covered with a tarp like a worthless bale of straw There were other piles, too, though none as large or nificent as this one

The treasure was connected to a series of dragon scrolls that contained secret dragon-style kung fu fighting techniques One of the scrolls was also a 's mother's house, then to locate the treasure in a secret seaside cave The cave was only accessible at low tide, and Tonglong had timed his arrival perfectly In less than an hour, hiswas headed south to take care of what he called “personal business”

ShaoShu didn't knohat that business was, but he was certain he had already gathered plenty of infor and Hok The moment he saw an opportunity to sneak off the ship, he would make a break for it

Having been aboard the better part of a day and a night, ShaoShu had learned the rhythned to the watch that began at sunset, so that would be the best time to make his move In the meantime, he would just have to wait

Froh above the deck, he heard a lookout shout, “Sail ho!”