He is a Chinese scientist
and, I have heard, the greatest genius in the whole world, but I can
say no more--yet."
"Is he still alive--this man?"
"I do not know that. If he is alive, he is in China--at some secret
palace in the province of Ho-Nan, which is the headquarters of what
is called the 'Sublime Order.' I have never been there, but there are
Europeans there, as well as Orientals."
"What! in the company of these fiends!"
"It is useless to ask me--oh! indeed, I would tell you if I could, but
I cannot! Let me go on from the time when I saw Fo-Hi in Cairo. He
told me that I was a member of an organization dating back to remote
antiquity which was destined to rule all the races of mankind--the
Celestial age he called their coming triumph. Something which they had
lacked in order to achieve success had been supplied by the dreadful
man who had entered the room and expressed his approval of me.
"For many years they had been at work in Europe, secretly, as well as
in the East. I understood that they had acquired a quantity of
valuable information of some kind by means of a system of opium-houses
situated in the principal capitals of the world and directed by Fo-Hi
and a number of Chinese assistants. Fo-Hi had remained in China most
of the time, but had paid occasional visits to Europe. The other
man--the monster with the black skull cap--had been responsible for
the conduct of the European enterprises."
"Throughout this interview," interrupted Stuart, forgetful of the fact
that Miska had warned him of the futility of asking questions, "and
during others which you must have had with Fo-Hi, did you never obtain
a glimpse of his face?"
"Never! No one has ever seen his face! I know that his eyes are a
brilliant and unnatural yellow colour, but otherwise I should not
know him if I saw him unveiled, to-morrow.
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