Of Mountains and Rivers 57

In this moment, the chaos reigned supreme, offering both terror and opportunity.

Beneath the imposing Mountain Gate, Mutayi writhed on the ground, their vision obscured. Countless flat people suffered injuries or met their fate under the onslaught of the monsters they had unleashed. The command horn, their beacon in the tumult, had succumbed to the interference of the professional noise maker—the Sound Beasts. In the darkness, the Mutayi, now devoid of control, scurried aimlessly like headless roaches.

Meanwhile, the Sound Beasts and Eye-Feasting Beasts engaged in a frenzied clash, leaving the former blinded by the latter and howling in pain. Genuine cries erupted from them as they grappled with the intensity of their agony. Despite the thick skin of the Eye-Feasting Beasts, the lack of protection for their eardrums left them vulnerable to relentless sound waves. Their once-clear minds became muddled, causing them to spin uncontrollably in place.

Various wild animals, infected with a collective madness, rolled beneath the Mountain Gate, attacking anything in their path with claws and teeth.

In contrast to the previous encounter where the flat people led Mutayi to surround the mountain, this time, despite the enemies' formidable individual combat skills, disorganization and lack of discipline prevailed.

Even before reaching the Mountain Gate, internal conflicts erupted among the monsters, a chaotic prelude to the impending battle.

Yet, amidst the turmoil and complexity, these monsters, driven by a bizarre common goal, surged towards the mountain, willing to face death for their reckless charge.

They advanced like a formidable army on a rickety wooden bridge.

When the primal instincts of creatures surged forth, their combat prowess knew no equal.

Luger, the battle-seasoned Patriarch of the Gatekeepers, boasting 365 days of yearly combat experience, swiftly coordinated with the Mountain Keepers. They prepared batches of large stones, hurling them down beneath the Mountain Gate, where fluorescent bones littered the ground.

Amidst the clamor, the thick scent of blood hung in the air, nearly suffocating those present. Yet, undeterred, the monsters and wild animals continued their relentless charge, unafraid of the looming specter of death.

Wave after wave, monsters scaled the Mountain Gate, meeting their end at the hands of determined defenders. However, the sheer numbers seemed insurmountable.

As one wave subsided, another surged forward.

Human strength, however formidable, reached its limits. After hours of swinging invisible knives, the hands were on the verge of giving out.

At sunset on that fateful day, the largest group of Sound Beasts arrived at the Mountain Gate.

The Eye-Feasting Beasts lagged slightly behind, creating distinct tiers as the two types of monsters clashed. Sound Beasts surged ahead, leaving their slower counterparts in the dust as they attacked the Mountain Gate.

A massive reptilian creature, neither snake nor lizard, roared with earth-shattering force. Even at a distance, earplugs provided some respite. However, in face-to-face encounters, the unstoppable sonic attacks swept through the area.

Tragedy struck as one of the flat people was crushed against a wall by their own crazed Mutayi mount. Chu Huan, eyes covered, inadvertently brushed his hand over the rocky surface, smearing it with a lump of brain matter.

Cleanliness became an afterthought.

Several Sound Beasts closed in, challenging even Chu Huan's delicate skin. After enduring for a short while, Chu Huan, feeling as if he had just survived a car accident, experienced intense pain in his head. His balance wavered, and his diminished hearing left him struggling with slowed reflexes and intuition.

Chu Huan speculated that if things persisted, he might evolve from a mere mortal to an indestructible superhuman in the crucible of extreme environments.

Their previous escape from the monsters’ encirclement was a near brush with death. This time, the mission was more demanding. The entire mountain, with the Mountain Gate as the sole checkpoint, offered no retreat. Taking even one step back would mean forfeiting the opportunity to reclaim it, leading to an unimaginable crisis.

Realizing this predicament, Chu Huan decisively removed his eye cover. In this dire situation, going all in became their only choice. Earlier caution and protective gear were futile, and killing time had no purpose. With no reinforcements, their sole path was to fight the enemy for survival, as even the strongest individual could not endure these tough-skinned monsters.

A leading Sound Beast, enormous and reminiscent of a tyrannosaurus rex, closed in on Chu Huan within ten paces the moment he uncovered his eyes. It seized a Gatekeeper, lifting them high into the air before biting them in half.

Chu Huan's earplugs, sticky with his own blood, nearly deafened him to the surroundings. Yet, amid the chaos, he discerned the ‘crunch crunch’ of bones being chewed.

The fallen Gatekeeper, covered in dust and blood, lay unrecognizable. His long knife had fallen to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dirt that nearly obscured Chu Huan’s vision.

While Chu Huan had limited interactions with the Gatekeeper clan, he recognized the fallen knife amid the chaos.

On the knife handle, Chu Huan noticed a small arc-like marking he had seen before—it belonged to the same knife carried by the young man who had guided him to fetch water on the day when Nanshan was injured.

Chu Huan hadn’t even had the chance to ask for the young man’s name.

Bending down, Chu Huan picked up the heavy long knife, requiring both hands to lift. As he did, a mad Mutayi, driven to madness by the Sound Beasts, leaped right behind him. Swiftly pivoting, Chu Huan's knife hand spun heavily, slicing the "mad dog" away. He stepped onto a massive boulder, leaped three steps with precision, and landed on a twisted tree branch before jumping down.

The blade sliced horizontally into the root of the large Sound Beast’s tooth. Chu Huan exerted tremendous pressure, and the harsh friction sound filled the air as the cold metal clashed with the sharp teeth. The creature held a person in its mouth, but its teeth couldn't close tightly. Chu Huan forcefully created a gap and, with just that small opening, thrust the nearly one-and-a-half-meter-long blade inside, prying open the Sound Beast’s large mouth. Blood sprayed out, reaching a height of three to four meters, enveloping the surroundings in a foul-smelling rain of blood.

The steel blade trembled, and Chu Huan could no longer hold onto the hilt. As the Sound Beast fell down with a thunderous crash, his head collided with a rock. For a few seconds, everything went black, and he nearly lost consciousness.

A sneaky flat person stealthily approached, eyes fixed on Chu Huan’s short knife at his waist. Just then, a long shadow loomed over and decisively bit the throat of the flat people. The snake’s venom sealed the deal, and the moment the large snake released its grip, the person attempting to take advantage of the situation was almost lifeless.

Luger wiped his hands clean of blood, touched the snake’s head, cast a somewhat complicated look at Chu Huan, and effortlessly took care of a few Mutayi for him.

Chu Huan, feeling the snake’s icy body brush against him, regained some composure. Semi-conscious, he didn’t have the chance to see who the person beside him was.

As the person extended the knife handle to him, Chu Huan gripped it and got back up. His head still spinning, he mumbled a thank you.

Luger made some noise from his nose, but Chu Huan’s blocked ears couldn’t make out the words clearly.

The little snake, once perched on a horse's back with a wooden bird, had grown into a formidable half-grown serpent. While lacking the ability of its predecessors to carry a person, it now stood half a person’s height when upright, appearing quite intimidating in its aggressive moves.

Luger cast a glance at Chu Huan, walked over, and bent down to grab the head of the partially sliced-open Sound Beast. Subtly raising his chin, he signaled something.

Chu Huan promptly understood, rushing to help grab the Sound Beast’s long tail.

The strength of the Patriarch of Gatekeepers was astonishing. He flipped the Sound Beast onto its back, shouldered the long knife handle stuck in its head, and bore most of the weight of the little tyrannosaurus. With one free hand, he carried a weapon. If outside, he might have broken the Guinness World Record for “hand-pulling a cargo truck.”

Observing this, others quickly followed suit, carrying the massive monster bodies towards the entrance of the Mountain Gate.

As the night passed, the Mountain Gate became filled with a thick layer of carcasses.

In spring, they had brought barrels of oil to the mountaintop and poured it outside the gate. A few torches were thrown down, and flames soared into the sky.

Now, after a day and night of bitter fighting, people finally found a moment to catch their breath amid the sea of corpses on the mountain.

Chu Huan leaned against a rock and slid down softly. The blood in his ears had congealed into a clot. He tugged at it but couldn’t get it out, thinking, “Have I gone deaf?”

Chu Huan grabbed one end of the cloth to forcibly tear it apart when suddenly someone gripped his waist. Nanshan knelt at his side, carefully tearing the loosened strip of cloth from the dried bloodstains.

Chu Huan sighed a breath of relief because during the process, he could slightly hear a sound—meaning he hadn’t gone deaf.

A gentle stream of air flowed into his ears, carefully exploring the injured areas. When it reached the point of pain, Chu Huan flinched slightly despite not making a sound. Nanshan pinpointed the location of the wound, retrieved a small vial of medicinal liquid, and used the same gentle stream of air to deliver a tiny drop of medicine to the wounded area.

As the medicine applied to the wound, Chu Huan furrowed his brows in response.

Nanshan meticulously cleaned the bloodstains from the side of his face, noting that Chu Huan was the kind of person who remained silent when truly in pain. If he ever made a sound, it was likely an act.

Nanshan thought carefully and suddenly had an enlightening realization. He understood that within Chu Huan’s inherent personality, there must be a very reserved and awkward side. Perhaps, at his age, he felt it unnecessary to exhibit too much affectation, deliberately portraying an image of having no inhibitions.

Maybe it’s a case of pretending to be what one lacks? Nanshan pondered this as, following a great battle, the initial anger directed at Chu Huan dissipated like smoke. Looking at Chu Huan, leaning against the rock and furrowing his brow, enduring the pain with closed eyes, Nanshan’s heart suddenly softened.

“Are there any other injuries?”

Chu Huan shook his head, slowly sliding down the rock. He wrapped his arms around Nanshan’s waist, rested his head on Nanshan’s abdomen, and remained motionless.

Nanshan gently withdrew his hands, embracing him for a while. Amid the howls of monsters and the mountain of corpses, they savored this moment of tranquility in silence.

Their peace didn’t last long. Chu Huan suddenly remembered something and withdrew his hands as if feigning death, holding them up in a posture resembling surrender. He sat up with a plain expression, cleared his throat, and said, “Sorry, I accidentally touched some brain matter earlier, and I haven’t washed it off yet.”

Nanshan didn’t know how to respond. After a moment, he lowered his head, looking at Chu Huan. Although he had goosebumps all over his body, he still said, “… it’s alright. It has dried up already.”

The two of them looked at each other for a moment, then burst into exhausted laughter together.

Behind them came a loud “thud,” most likely another wave of monsters breaking through the ring of fire, violently impacting the Mountain Gate.

Next to them, Xiao Fang said to Yuan Ping, “What do you think it is? My guess is that it’s an Eye-Feasting Beast.”

Yuan Ping responded, “I’m betting it’s the Sound Beast.”

Both bedraggled and dirty, they conversed, each placing a small pebble in front of them with a serious gambling look.

Xiao Fang asked, “What are we betting on?”

Yuan Ping said, “Let’s bet on an unparalleled divine weapon.”

Xiao Fang replied sincerely, “I don’t have one, do you?”

“…” Yuan Ping pondered for a moment and continued, “Alright, then we will bet on a basket of coconut-scented pan-fried buns!”

Xiao Fang scratched her head, matted with dried blood, and said, “What in the world is that?”

Yuan Ping sighed, “… Fine. If I win, you have to help me steal Chu Huan’s barbeque grill.”

Chu Huan lazily interjected, “Hey, this ‘Fragile Dog’ hasn’t gone deaf yet. Besides, you can’t even cook instant noodles properly, so what do you need a barbecue grill for?”

Yuan Ping turned around and retorted, “Get lost, continue your dating, and stop spreading rumors… Ah!”

Suddenly, the venomous snake, Little Green, stealthily slithered over without making a sound. Propping up its triangular-shaped head, it curiously examined Yuan Ping with its flickering tongue, getting extremely close and personal.

The scene was incredibly chilling, sending Yuan Ping’s brain cells into a collective shutdown. When he regained his senses, he had leaped three feet high, tumbling and rolling on the ground. It was only after Luger extended a pale, bloodstained hand to stop him that he managed to regain composure.

Luger, on the front line with an injured eye from an Eye-Feasting Beast, currently used a leaf to cover his wound.

He looked at Yuan Ping with great curiosity and asked in amazement, “Are you afraid of snakes or something?”

Yuan Ping, feeling his Patriarch’s tone akin to asking “How could you possibly be afraid of earthworms?”, couldn’t keep up his facade any longer and, with a semblance of dignity, forced out, “Of… of course not!”

Luger found it amusing. Although his face was full of blood and tears, he said with an expression that resembled a smile but not a smile, “Really?”

As they spoke, Little Green crawled over, mistaking Yuan Ping’s leg for a large tree trunk, and casually climbed up.

Yuan Ping’s face turned green instantly, becoming a veritable zombie. His leg trembled visibly from fear, reaching the peak of horror.

A Gatekeeper, born in the mountains and connected with them, couldn’t possibly fear the creatures that inhabited the mountains.

A Gatekeeper afraid of snakes was a one-of-a-kind rarity. Little Green seemed to have taken a liking to him, flicking its tongue and slithering all over his body.

Yuan Ping turned stiff, resembling a virtuous woman violated, with a miserable and sickly complexion. The Gatekeepers and Mountain Keepers couldn’t help but laugh at him.

Chu Huan made a sarcastic remark, “You look like a bear.”

Feeling a bit more heroic in comparison to Yuan Ping, Chu Huan sat up straight and asked Nanshan in a serious expression, “What’s going on? When we returned from patrolling the mountain, we cleared out the Wangsi Flowers in the water, as well as the Sound Beasts. Didn’t the others migrate downstream? Why did they suddenly run uphill?”

Nanshan remained silent for a moment and said, “The Sound Beasts have very slow reactions. Based on their response… the Fallen Land should have already approached the foot of the mountain.”

Chu Huan asked, “So, there’s no way out for me then?”

Nanshan lowered his head without saying a word.

Chu Huan sneakily glanced around, noticing everyone having fun during their brief break, using the venomous snake to make fun of Yuan Ping. No one paid attention to their conversation. He reached out, clasping Nanshan’s hand, giving it a slight squeeze. “Since I can’t get away, can we make amends?”

Nanshan sighed helplessly, replying, “It’s already this late, and you still have time to think about these things…”

Chu Huan not only thought about it but, as soon as he heard those words, felt no aches or pains. His heart blossomed, about to grab Nanshan for a kiss and some affectionate touches when he remembered the sticky brain matter on his hands. So, he reluctantly pulled back his hand and said, “I should wash my hands first.”

After saying that, he stood up, intending to find some water. However, Nanshan suddenly stopped him and asked with strange curiosity, “Did you really jump down from the cliff by yourself?”

Chu Huan paused in his steps, raised an eyebrow, and pretended to be charming. “Tsk, you really believed that? How is that even possible?”

Nanshan showed a somewhat helpless smile, wearing an expression of understanding that seemed to say, “If you say it’s not true, then it’s not true.” He had seen right through Chu Huan. 

Nanshan then retrieved the Bravery Ring that had gone through wind and fire with him from a personal hiding place. He carefully wiped his fingers and put the ring back on.

Not far away, laughter could be heard. Nanshan glanced over, shook his head, and blew a whistle to summon Little Green, rescuing Yuan Ping from the snake. The snake wagged its tail like a dog, a little scary.

Nanshan smiled with raised eyes. “Don’t bully people.”

He suddenly felt calm—much like the calm he had experienced many years before he met Chu Huan. Perhaps it was because he was already aware that there was nothing left this time, and all they could do was use everything they had to find that glimmer of hope.

Nanshan was a little embarrassed, realizing the “hope” he had confidently spoken of had long been left behind in the midst of confusion. He actually felt somewhat ashamed when he thought about it.

At that moment, the ground rumbled like thunder.

Everyone still alive stood up. Luger’s faint smile had no time to fade as his countenance grew serious.

He raised a finger to silence a Gatekeeper and listened attentively for a moment before turning towards the direction of the Mountain Gate.

Nanshan asked, “What’s going on?”

“Mountain Gate… Mountain Gate is closing up,” Luger said in disbelief.

Every year, the Mountain Gate would be closed for three days, during which the Gatekeepers would be sent to another world for their only rest time throughout the year. However, it was clearly not the time for it to close.

The mountain of corpses blocking the Mountain Gate collapsed in an instant. Amidst the shaking earth and the rising boulders, a massive rock rose from the ground, forming a natural barrier that sealed the entrance securely. Those on the mountain could only hear the sound of wild animals battering against the rocks from outside, while everything inside was sealed by this enormous stone gate, covering the sky and the earth.

Luger first showed astonishment on his face, then uncontrollable joy overcame him. He forcefully pushed Yuan Ping and said, “Go to the inner side of the Mountain Gate and see if the entrance on that end is open. Hurry!”

With the Mountain Gate closed on one side, it was bound to open on the other side. In this situation, did it mean they could find a way out in the other world, and could this impasse in the Fallen Land be resolved as well?

If that was the case, could the deadlock in the Fallen Land also be…?