Page:The jade story book; stories from the Orient (IA jadestorybooksto00cous).pdf/284

268 Korkwi saw that fate was against him. His magic was useless to him, because Shiku knew more than he did, so, frenzied with pain and disappointment, he dashed his head against the rocks of Mount Kuri, and so perished. With such force did he strike the rocks that he made a great hole in the mountain, in which were embedded some of the pillars which upheld the heavens, and one of these pillars was broken. One corner of the sky thereupon began to drop, and at length it touched the earth.

Then Shiku, taking with him the body of his enemy, returned to the Empress Janqwi, victorious.

But trouble had not ceased for Janqwi. Fire was bursting out from the mountain in which was the broken pillar, and was doing great damage to the country round about. The Empress hastened to the scene of the disaster, and found that considerable damage had been done to both Heaven and earth.

The problem now was how to repair this damage, so she gathered together the wise men of the kingdom to see what could be done.