Little Alpaca – Chapter 174

Volume 5: Tribulation of All Beings

The story is already different.

The outcome of the small meeting was nothing like what Yi Qiu had imagined.

By the end, it had devolved into two Ferocious Beasts¹ plotting how to deal with their “old colleague,” eager to make Fei² suffer through deep water and scorching fire³ before it finally died a painful death.

Speaking of which, I have no idea what Little Bird Coo Coo Fly was thinking when they designed the power levels in this story.

All Yi Qiu knew was that, in terms of raw combat strength, You Yan was definitely not the most powerful character in the novel. The only reason she became the final winner was because she knew how to manipulate people’s hearts, twisting everyone around her finger while she waited on the sidelines to reap the fisherman’s benefit⁴.

In the original text, Fei was immensely powerful. Even the Golden Crow⁵, in his God and Demon as One Body⁶ state after falling to the demonic path⁷, had no absolute confidence in defeating it. The current Little Pig Trotter⁸ likely stood even less of a chance.

But if all these Ancient Ferocious Beasts⁹ were so powerful that ordinary gods and immortals couldn’t subdue them, what would happen when one Ferocious Beast met another?

Neither Fuzhu nor Huodou had appeared in the original novel, yet they existed in this world. That meant Little Bird Coo Coo Fly must have written their character settings at some point, only to cut them for some reason before they ever made their debut.

So, how did their strength compare to Fei’s?

Could it be that they were the secret weapon meant to defeat Fei? Is it possible the author got flamed by reader comments, lost their nerve, and decided to write a Bad Ending to take revenge on society¹⁰, cutting their entire plotline in the process?

If that were true, then things might not be as complicated as they seemed.

Setting all that aside, the group’s discussion had ground to a complete halt.

With one beast of water and one of fire sitting together, they could easily destroy a human city. Who would dare interrupt them?

You Yan, having listened from the side until her patience wore thin, simply stood up and led Yi Qiu out of the room.

By now, a crescent moon had quietly climbed into the sky. The courtyard was silent, save for the night wind rustling through the dry autumn leaves.

Yi Qiu followed You Yan to the door and finally couldn’t hold back a small grumble. “You Yan, I wasn’t finished talking—”

“You’re finished.” You Yan cut her off, turning to shut the door behind them. Only a small window remained open, letting in a sliver of pale moonlight.

Yi Qiu tilted her head, her brow furrowed. “That’s it? I’m finished?”

She felt like so many things were still unresolved. Even if Fuzhu and Huodou could easily kill Fei, what about the time before its revival? How were they supposed to stop the suffering of humanity? How could they bring back the lost spring?

She remembered a key part of the world-building in 《Thin, Withered Branches》: for a god to gain a foothold in the Demon Realm, they had to willingly awaken their Demon Heart¹¹ and become tainted with Demonic Qi¹². From that moment on, their Divine Power¹³ would be corrupted, and until their Demon Heart was cleansed, they could no longer protect the world.

The great villain, You Yan, had used this very rule to methodically transform the mortal realm into a barren land, much like the Demon Realm itself.

The humans who survived the catastrophe had no choice but to change their very way of life to adapt to this new world.

It was like an ancient-style¹⁴ apocalypse. Everything in the mortal world was destroyed, and the remaining humans were left to suffer through the devastation, waiting for a dawn that might never break, for a hope of rebirth that had no promised arrival.

What a terrifying world that was…

And yet, the demon race had always lived like that—in a cold, harsh, sunless place with almost no greenery, for thousands upon thousands of years.

Those living conditions made demons naturally cold-blooded. Most couldn’t stand the light, let alone endure the heat of the mortal realm’s sun. If not for that, the mortal realm would have seen far more of them.

Ultimately, in the original novel, You Yan had shared the millennia of suffering endured by the demon race with the entire Three Realms.

Now that You Yan no longer had that ambition, could that suffering be prevented?

She hadn’t even had a chance to discuss any of this with the others.

Seeing Yi Qiu’s worried expression, You Yan spoke coolly. “What needed to be said has been said. The rest is their business.”

Yi Qiu froze at her words.

You Yan walked slowly to the table and sat down. With a light flick of her finger across the candlewick, she lit up the dim room.

Yi Qiu pouted, walked over to You Yan’s side, and pulled up a stool to sit.

“Is that really all I needed to say?” she asked.

“What else?” You Yan countered. “Are you going to tell them all the outrageous reasons? Make them believe you’re from another world, and that everything here is just a story written by someone else?”

Yi Qiu was struck dumb, unsure how to respond.

You Yan smiled. “That kind of nonsense… besides me, no one would believe you. They’d treat you like a little madwoman talking gibberish¹⁵.”

Yi Qiu bit her lip and took a deep breath, a trace of helplessness flashing in her eyes.

Looking at it that way, she really had said everything she could. Anything more would be unbelievable.

After all, for everyone else, the truth was simply too absurd.

“My head is a mess right now,” Yi Qiu said, slumping wearily onto the table. “I just remembered, even if we can easily kill Fei, there’s no second Wood God¹⁶ in this world…” She stared at the flickering candlelight, her gaze growing hazy.

You Yan gently stroked her back. “That little melon head of yours was never very good to begin with. You don’t need to think so much.”

Yi Qiu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

She honestly couldn’t tell if that was comfort or mockery.

Just then, You Yan added softly, “The story is already different.”

Yi Qiu gritted her teeth and rested her chin on the tabletop. Like a roly-poly toy¹⁷, she swayed her head listlessly from side to side before letting out a long sigh. “I know it’s different. It’s because it’s different that I have no idea how to stop any of this…”

Other people who transmigrate into a book at least have a plot to follow. But me? I started as an alpaca with no powers, and now I don’t even know where the story is going.

As Yi Qiu wallowed in her misery, You Yan gently ruffled the hair on her little head.

“…”

“Do you remember the Clear Heart Mirror?” You Yan asked.

Yi Qiu frowned. “I remember…”

That damn mirror was no good thing. If it weren’t for it… if it weren’t for… But thinking about it carefully, without that mirror, the You Yan of today wouldn’t exist. And even if You Yan weren’t the person she was now, she never would have found a shred of warmth on Kunlun Mountain.

So, perhaps running into that broken mirror was a blessing in disguise?

But why is You Yan bringing it up now?

“That useless god said at the time that if the beings of the Three Realms could cast aside their race and status and measure all things by the heart, then they should be viewed through Three Hearts¹⁸.”

“I remember,” Yi Qiu replied earnestly. “The Divine Heart, the Human Heart, and the Demon Heart.”

You Yan nodded. “A god does not necessarily possess a Divine Heart. But one who wishes to become a demon must first use a lingering attachment¹⁹ to awaken their Heart Devil²⁰, and then bring it under control. Only then have they successfully fallen.”

Yi Qiu sat up straight, her eyes wide with confused curiosity.

“According to you, in that novel, Goumang²¹ willingly fell to the demonic path to save the Golden Crow. But the Golden Crow never loved her. The one person in this world who could save him was already dead, so she was doomed to fail. And because of that, she lost herself…”

“Yeah,” Yi Qiu whispered. After a moment’s thought, her eyes lit up.

She felt like she had just grasped a thread of an idea.

You Yan continued, “But now, the person Goumang wants to save is not the Golden Crow.”

“The Yi Bird loves her!” Yi Qiu exclaimed.

You Yan lowered her gaze and nodded.

Some are born with a Demon Heart yet can still pull themselves back from the brink of world-ending madness. How much easier, then, to deal with a mere Demonic Obstacle²² born from within the heart?

“If a Demon Heart can be saved,” Yi Qiu said, rubbing her temples, “then there’s still hope for the world?”

She paused. “I think… I’m starting to get it.”

She felt she understood—again. Even though her every previous understanding had been wildly off the mark, this time felt different. This time, she truly got it.

A true god should be emotionless. Only by being truly emotionless could one treat all living beings in the world equally²³, without favoring anyone.

But there were no such gods in 《Thin, Withered Branches》. In this story, every single character struggled painfully with their own selfish desires. In the end, they failed the common people²⁴, and they themselves did not come to a good end²⁵.

If Little Bird Coo Coo Fly hadn’t rushed the ending, what kind of story would they have wanted to write?

Maybe what they wanted to write was never about choosing between one person and the world. Maybe it was about redemption.

How could a group of gods who couldn’t even save themselves possibly save the common people?

The Yi Bird was trapped by her lingering attachment, but wasn’t the Wood God as well?

As a god, if you cannot even resolve the suffering in your own heart, how can you protect the world?

“She said she was going to save the Yi Bird,” Yi Qiu murmured. “But really, she’s not just saving the Yi Bird. She’s also saving herself…”

As she spoke, she looked up at You Yan and asked uncertainly, “Is that right?”

You Yan considered it for a long time. “Perhaps.”

If Little Bird Coo Coo Fly hadn’t rushed the ending, if all the earlier foreshadowing²⁶ had paid off, the story’s conclusion would never have been like that.

The mortal realm wouldn’t have lost spring, wouldn’t have lost the sun, and certainly wouldn’t have lost the protection of the gods.

Damn it. I suddenly have a huge urge to pry open Little Bird Coo Coo Fly’s brain and see what’s hidden inside. And why in the world didn’t they write it all down!

Trash author! Their author’s reliability is more cratered than the surface of the moon!

Just as Yi Qiu was grinding her teeth, she heard You Yan’s quiet voice from beside her.

“You catch on with just a little hint.”

“You said I was dumb…” Yi Qiu couldn’t help but pout.

“Mm. I said that compared to me, you are indeed very dumb.”

“…” Yi Qiu took a deep breath and muttered, “I’m just going to take that as a compliment!”

You Yan chuckled. “It was.”

Hearing that, Yi Qiu couldn’t stop the corners of her mouth from lifting, but she quickly bit her lip, trying to force the smile down.

She refused to let this Bird Woman see that she was unable to take a compliment²⁷…

Especially since the compliment wasn’t even that nice!

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