Answer

The demon grinned and announced dejectedly.

"You win the guess, so I will tell you a secret. Your friend Zuchi khankhuu is cursed by me. His soul will be devoured by me tomorrow midnight." said the demon spirit of Modun chanyu with enthusiasm.

Upon hearing that his only friend Zuchi khankhuu is going to die and his soul is going to be devoured by the demon spirit, Dorj felt utter shock.

"Wait! Is there any way to save Zuchi khankhuu?" asked Dorj in a hurry.

The only culprit to save Zuchi khankhuu is in front of him, so he can't let this demon go away.

The black demon spirit of Modun chanyu laughed.

"Hahaha… Deity of foreign land. That's another secret of me. I have already told you a secret as agreed." Said the demon spirit.

Dorj frowns and gives him a proposal. "How about I ask you a question and if you can't answer right, then how about you tell me the secret then?"

The black demon spirit of Modun chanyu raised his dark red brows and looks interested.

"Ha! that is a plausible idea. Under the ninety-nine Tengers there is nothing I don't know about!" claimed the demon spirit.

Dorj thought in his mind. 'Modun chanyu is old and wise. However, his knowledge is limited to the current era. If I ask something that will be discovered in the future, then he has no way to guess correctly.'

'Neuralink, what is the distance between Sun and Earth in km?' asked Dorj in his mind.

'Ding. Search result - Aero space Engineering textbook: The approximate distance between earth to sun is 147 million kilometers.' Replied the monotonous voice.

'Huh? If Neuralink is working here, then this must not be a dream! In dreams, A.I chips goes to sleep mode for the safety of the user.' Though Dorj and asked

Since his Neuralink is still working, then let me use my advantage and ask.

"Modun shanyu, how much time does the light of sun take to reach the earth?" asked Dorj.

The grinning and prideful countenance of the black demon Modun shanyu vanished.

He tried to recall all the things he has learned in the physical world. The distance between Sun and Earth and earth is vast, approximately 300million li. But what is the speed of light?

"Ah, the light shines to us instantly. When you fire a spark, you would instantly see it. The same applies to the lightning. You see the flash of lightning and then hear the roar of thunder. So, the light of sun would reach us instantly." Replied the black demon spirit.

Dorj smiled and replied. "Wrong, the speed of light is limited to 300,000 km/s, So the light of sun takes estimate 1/15th of an hour to reach the earth" said Dorj with high confidence. (Mongolians has 12 hours a day so 8 minutes)

'The development of humankind is far more advanced than any kind of a riddle! You lose again' thought Dorj.

"Liar! How can you measure the speed of light? That is impossible. I will not tell you the secret! Prove to me the speed of light is not instant" replied the black demon spirit.

But in response, Dorj looked solemnly and raised his shining crystal bear amulet near to the demon's face.

The demon wailed in pain.

"Argh! What's this light? It is hot!" groaned the Demon and retreated to cover his face by his hands.

"You lost your bet, and you are backing away from your words. So, did you feel the instance of delay when the light reached your face, or should I announce that Modun chanyu is a spineless coward who doesn't keep his words when I go back?" Said Dorj with a stern gaze.

In a mere few seconds, the burned skin of the demon's face regenerated as he took off his hands from his face.

The demon's eye turned red due to his anger, and he roared "Fine! I will check the speed of light somehow, and if I find you lied to me, I will devour your soul. Till then it is still my win even I answer your question."

Dorj still raised his shining amulet and he asked, "So how can I save Zuchi khankhuu?"

The demon grinned again and laughed out loud. "Hahaha! If you want to save Zuchi's soul, you need to kill the curse initiator Tsagadai, or else, he is destined to die." Claimed the demon spirit of Modun chanyu as he dispersed into thin air.

"Hahaha. Deity of a foreign country we shall meet again" a faint hoarse voice was heard, and the snowstorm started to calm down!

Dorj felt his body becoming light and transparent, so he commanded 'Neuralink, take a photo!"

"Shoot!" the mechanical sound of a camera is ringing.

When the snowstorm has subsided completely, Dorj woke up in a black ger, shackled on the ground.

From the view under the frame on top of the ger, moonlight has entered the black ger which indicates it is still night. Dorj checked the time, and it was 03:08AM in the morning.

'Neuralink, what was my last inquiry?' asked Dorj in his mind.

Did he just have a dream or is it reality? Dorj couldn't help but feel unsure about what happened.

'Ding, user asked to take a photo. Would you like to open it?' replied the monotonous voice of Teslabot.

"Yes. Open the picture" commanded Dorj.

In the A.I interface a window popped up. When Dorj has seen the picture, his pupils dilated and hair on his body stood up. Because in the photo, he can see a dark silhouette getting dispersed within a blizzard. It is exactly the same thing which Dorj has experienced just now.

'So, it is not a dream?' pondered Dorj.

'I must kill Tsagadai khankhuu in order to save Zuchi? ' Weighted his choices and felt helpless. He is tied on the ground and prisoned. Even if he wanted to save Zuchi khankhuu, it is impossible now. He is awaiting to be sacrificed tomorrow to save Zuchi's life.

"That damned Tsagaadai! Let him rot in hell!" cursed Dorj.

So, the curse initiator is Tsagaadai, he asked the black demon Modun chanyu to put a death curse on Tsagaadai, and he plotted against me and made everyone believe me.it was me who put a curse on Zuchi!

Dorj gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.

"Heaven! If you give a chance, I will kill Tsagadai personally and rip off his heart!" roared Dorj and punched on the ground.

He hated Tsagadai the most because he did not only take his life but asks the demon to put a death curse on Zuchi, and the worst part.is that Zuchi's soul would be devoured by the demon.

For people who are dying, their souls may go to the Tenger or afterlife. But for Zuchi, his soul would be consumed by the demon and his existence would be erased completely. It a fate far worse than a death. Comparing to Zuchi's fate, ripping Tsagaadai's heart off from his body is simply mercy.

'I still have some time to save Zuchi! Only if I escape from this ger!' thought Dorj, yet to lose his hope.

Dorj struggled to get free from his shackles by pulling the chains. However how strong Dorj may be. It is no use, because the shackles are made of the steel which Dorj has produced by the Bessemer's convertor. It will not get broken till Dorj creates 400 mega pascals of pressure.

"Clang!" a faint sound of a lock getting unlocked is heard outside the ger.

The door opened slowly and a image of a man entering could be seen.

"Who are you?" asked Dorj with caution. Perhaps Tsagadai has sent an assassin to kill himself prior to tomorrow's ritual.

"Shh! Lord Dorj, I came here to help you! You must escape now!" a familiar voice said quietly.

"Wait! You are squad Leader Tseren?" asked Dorj with a surprised manner.

"Yes, Zuchi khankhuu asked me to save you before he fainted." said Squad leader Tseren and got near Dorj and put a key inside the shackles' lock hole.

"Clang!" the shackles opened.

Dorj stood up and he asked. "Tseren, do you have any sword, if possible, can you give me one?"

Squad leader Tseren get a sheathed sword from his back and gave it to Dorj.

"Lord Dorj, royal princess consort Ukhaa has given me this sword. She said while you were away, Zuchi khankhuu inquired the blacksmiths to make a custom sword for you. Now hurry up! Jegei and his family is awaiting you outside the settlement in the west." said squad leader Tseren.

'Zuchi! You are my friend. You let me escape before you die. But I can't let you die so easily, before I escape from Temuujin, I will kill Tsagadai to save your life!' vowed Dorj in his mind.

Dorj placed his right hand on his chest and bowed to squad leader Tseren deeply.

"Squad leader Tseren, I thank you for saving my life. Life is long, if we have the opportunity to meet in the future, I will repay my debt!" said Dorj and he left the ger.