Zhao Gao - Sea Palace

[Zhao Gao]
An old eunuch claiming to be knowledgeable about Sea Palace.
Sea Palace Quest
Location: Near the entrance to Undersea Plaza

Who are you? Did you come to ridicule me as well?
So! You want information about the [Sea Palace], eh?
Pwahaha! Human nature is truly wicked.
You people ignore me when you don't need me, but when you need one tiny, little thing, you come begging before me!
Don't look at me like that! You're the one who's asking me a favor.
And I do know a lot. Especially about the [Sea Palace].
In fact, there's no one who knows more about the [Sea Palace] than me.
If I were you, I'd be nice.
~
I won't ask for too much.
I'm very hungry right now. Bring me 5 dumplings. I'll tell you what you want to know when you deliver the food to me.
I'd say that's a pretty good deal.

Oh, ho ho! It has been too long since I last tasted warm, delicious dumplings like these!
My daily meal consists of garbage that reeks of fish. Oh, how I've missed cooked food.
For your kindness, I'll teach you a simple recipe.
How is it? It's simple, right?
This wonderful food pampers my tongue.
Now I'll be able to talk much better.
As you must've heard by now, I was invited to the [Sea Palace]... Huh? You heard that I was kidnapped and barely escaped? That's nonsense! Who told you that?
Do not believe in the petty rumors of this world. I was a governor of high position and power.
That's why I was invited to the [Sea Palace].

Nobody knows more about Sea Palace than me. You'll be in big trouble if you cross me.

Psst. I loved the time I spent living in the [Sea Palace], because I was able to taste all sorts of exotic food.
If you don't want to end up in the same situation that I am in, you should prepare a lot of food ahead of time.
~
Since we're on the subject, you should make 10 [Dumplings].
Don't worry, I won't ask you to give them to me.
Oh, maybe you don't even know how to make them.
Well, I'll tell you. Open [Items] under the [Game Info] menu and then search for [Dumpling] in [Food].
Use the button to [Craft] them.
I hope you didn't forget that you must battle monsters to complete crafting.

I can smell the nutty aroma from here.
There are many kinds of exotic food in the [Sea Palace] that are even better than this.
Not only does the Sea Palace have good food, but they also have beautiful dancers.
However, they despise us and think of us as lowly land creatures.
Those arrogant trollops! We should eat them. Why not, right? They are seafood, after all!
You might also notice that your Crafting Skill Experience will increase as you craft more items.
You can check it by opening [Skills] in [My Info].
You will need to check here often, because your Crafting Skill Experience must increase by a certain amount before you can increase your food crafting skill and learn better recipes.

Nobody knows more about Sea Palace than me. You'll be in big trouble if you cross me.

I'll tell you more about your crafting skills in a moment.
First, let me eat this... Mmmm....
As humans, we need to eat to keep our strength up. You don't like to go hungry, do you?
If you've got the skill and the ingredients, you can make all sorts of food.
~
Your Crafting Skill Level won't get higher just from practice.
Once you reach a certain level of crafting experience, you need to get formal training from a professional.
Do you want to upgrade your [Food Crafting] to Level 2? Increase your Experience by crafting a lot of food!
Then, you have to learn from a traveling food master. But [Cai Lun], who lives near the south of the [Sea Palace] Entrance, can teach you up to Level 10.

Hm? Back already?
I thought it would take much longer.
Oh, it's not like I'm trying to buy time or anything.
No, no... Mm, mm... Wait a little bit, please. Let me swallow this last morsole before I talk to you.
You know about the 4 types of crystal that you can find throughout the world, right? It's common knowledge that only two civilizations have ever had the ability to use their energy.
One of these civilizations was the [Sea Palace]. The other one was... Well, I don't know the name.
By the way, the [Sea Palace] was at war with another magical civilization once... Do you see the connection?
It's obvious. The inhabitants of Sea Palace must've tried to conquer their only rival.
But the other magical civilization destroyed the [Sea Palace] easily.
The [Sea Palace] became a colony of the other civilization, and a strange device was placed there.
And even after all that, they're still so arrogant!

Nobody knows more about Sea Palace than me. You'll be in big trouble if you cross me.

All this talk of other civilizations reminds me...
Did you see a strange looking soldier when you were going to meet with [Cai Lun]?
It's bad enough with the denizens of the Sea Palace acting up. Now there's this guy lazing about, yelling at anyone who passes!
Hmph. You're a bit wild yourself. Maybe you should talk to him.
As for myself, well, the great Zhao Gao does not deign to talk with stray dogs.
Hmph!
~
His name was... [Iolaus], I believe.
Such a funny name.
For all his yelling, he doesn't have much to say. Talk to him and he'll give you a mission to complete.
Ah, what did they call it? Tactical Battle System... Right.
He gives you TBS Missions.
Just talk to him for now. Don't worry about actually doing the mission.

Huh? Back already?
Hm, smarter than you look, aren't you?
Fine.
Anyway, as I was saying, the Sea Palace was colonized, and a strange device was installed...
...I'm repeating myself?
Well, listen again!
*Mumble mumble*

Nobody knows more about Sea Palace than me. You'll be in big trouble if you cross me.

Oh.
Hey, hey!
Pay attention when someone is talking. Focus!
Zhao Gao himself is telling you a story! You should be honored!
~
If you're not going to pay attention, then go away.
I know! Go back to that [Iolaus] guy and finish the mission he gives you.
I hear it's not even a real battle. I think you just need to defeat a Commander.
(Speak to [Iolaus], choose [Battle Training], and click on [Start Battle] to begin.)

Hmph, back already?
Fine!
I suppose I can go on with my story, then.
Listen carefully, all right?
(Zhao Gao continues rambling on...)

Nobody knows more about Sea Palace than me. You'll be in big trouble if you cross me.

How are you enjoying my story about what I learned in [Sea Palace]?
I'm glad that you are listening so intently.
I would love to tell you more. However, now that my stomach is full, I'm starting to notice how cold I feel.
~
As you can see, my clothing is very worn and threadbare.
I just got some new leather clothes that can be patched onto my worn clothes, but I need some [Thread] to sew it together.
If you get me some, I'll be able to tell you more. That's not too much to ask, is it?

Why do I need to patch these new leather clothes on my old outfit?
Don't be foolish. Don't you realize how much it takes to cover this body of mine?

Don't look at me like that!

Nobody knows more about Sea Palace than I do. You'll be in big trouble if you cross me.

Now, where was I?
Oh, yes. I told you about how the inhabitants of the [Sea Palace] need to be punished, right?
And how there are beautiful dancers, but they are very arrogant?
Their dancing does make it hard to blame them, though.
The two types of dancers there are [Sword Dancers] and [Fan Dancers].
The first performs a type of sword dancing. The second does fan dancing. Even to me, the dancers truly are charming.
Yes... They are charming indeed. So charming that I would love to shred their faces off if I ever got the chance to do so...
~
I wish I could see their dances again. Especially the [Sword Dancer]'s dancing.
Hey, maybe I could see it here! Go there and learn about the [Sword Dancer]'s dancing by getting basic information on them.
Oh, I can already imagine those arrogant, overbearing, beautiful creatures dying in blood-stained tears, screaming for mercy...
It makes me feel great! Just great!

Just so you know, the current [Sea King] is not the same [Sea King] who surrendered to the other, stronger magical civilization in times past.
You understand me? I mean that there was an uprising in the [Sea Palace].
The current [Sea King] was the leader of that uprising.
I'm not sure just exactly how it all transpired, but it had something to do with the strange device that was installed when it was colonized.
Geeze, isn't it ironic how they have enough spirit to have a revolution and yet they ignore the current situation of the [Sea Palace] now?
I've told you so many things. Will you do something for me?
You might be saying to yourself, "Are dumplings and leather not enough?" You are so slow to understand.
This time, you'll just be a mediator.
Please go tell the merchant [Hu Xue-yan] to bring me one million gold pieces.
Otherwise, I will report to the [Sea Palace] about his actions against them!

Nobody knows more about Sea Palace than me. You'll be in big trouble if you cross me.

Oh, you came at just the right time. I can't wait anymore!
The nerve of him! He thinks that sending me money will make me forget?
How dare a mere merchant like [Hu Xue-yan] be rude to the great ME? What?
I'm justified in these feelings. By assuming this money will fix everything, he is laughing at me instead of apologizing like he should.
Do you know what this is? It's called a [Teleportation License].
What? You have one already? That's good. I didn't really want to share mine with you anyway.
It gives you the power to move to a field or town or anywhere else that you might want to go for one month's time (in game).
Even the merchant [Hu Xue-yan] won't teach you this!
~
It's easy.
After using your [Teleportation License], choose either [Town Info] or [Field Info] and then choose [Teleport].
You can travel to anywhere nearby, and return instantly. Try teleporting somewhere.
Oh, I almost forgot to tell you: if your [Will] is weak, it won't work.
Be careful and remember my warning!

I don't teach just anybody!
The creatures of both land and sea are arrogant and rarely see my true genius. The arrogant creatures inhabiting the [Sea Palace] were only able to rise up against their government because of a broken device.
There was a [magic reactor] in the palace called [Oriharukon].
I already told you about this. It's the very same device that was placed there by the other magical civilization.
The device must not be unleashed on the outside world. Even though the invading civilization was destroyed long ago, that's why they couldn't just get rid of it.
They probably could have figured out a way, though. The real reason is that the creatures of the [Sea Palace] are all pathetic!
(It's odd that he has this new information even though he escaped long ago.
[Zhao Gao] seems to live in his own world. You had better go to [Zang Heng] instead.)

What? Haven't you asked for my money yet?
I won't tell you anything unless you pass on my words correctly!