Volume 2: The Days of Playing with Monkeys in the Village
Behind the Mountain
I will work hard to become stronger, so I can protect you in the future!
Shen Maomao said earnestly, “I’m sorry. From now on, I’ll carefully consider before making any decisions.”
She didn’t have the ability to save others; she couldn’t even save herself. If Lou Jingmo had allowed her to step forward just now, she would likely have been carried away along with the others.
If it were just her alone, she could risk her life however she wanted. But now her life belonged to Lou Jingmo, and she had no right to squander what belonged to Lou Jingmo—besides, she herself wanted to live.
Wanting to live inevitably meant abandoning many things, including some useless sympathy that would only harm oneself, as well as the reluctance to face the death of one’s own kind. Unless she could become strong, as strong as Lou Jingmo.
Shen Maomao’s eyes sparkled with two flames as she looked at Lou Jingmo, her fighting spirit burning fiercely: “Sister Lou, I will definitely become stronger!”
Lou Jingmo: “?” Why should I care?
After thinking for a moment, she still advised, “This is your second game. If you want to go further, don’t think about making the game adapt to you; instead, adapt to the game.”
“The saying that everyone in the game is guilty isn’t just empty words. The people you want to save might very well be murderers, rapists, bullies, or scum of the earth in reality. Even so, would you still risk your life to save them?”
“Shen Maomao.” She called Shen Maomao by her real name, her tone very serious. “I think you should understand that I won’t protect you forever. If real danger appears, I will immediately abandon you and escape on my own. Do you understand?”
Of course Shen Maomao understood. What was she anyway? Did she deserve Lou Jingmo risking her life to protect her? Did she deserve it? She didn’t deserve it at all!
She was already grateful that Lou Jingmo was willing to help her at the beginning, let alone accompanying her into the second game, allowing her to repeatedly dance on the edge of death…
Towards Lou Jingmo, she always felt grateful.
“I know,” she gave Lou Jingmo a genuine smile. “I understand, Sister Lou. I’ll work hard to become stronger, and protect you in the future!”
Lou Jingmo: “…” What the hell, why did she have this illusion that the child had grown up?
By the time they returned to Zhang Jianshe’s home, it was already past seven in the evening. The Zhang family was chatting and enjoying the cool air in the courtyard. Seeing them return, Aunt Zhang said, “We’ve saved some food for you. It’s a bit cold now. Do you want me to heat it up?”
All four of them said it wasn’t necessary.
Aunt Zhang was only being polite and had no intention of moving. The four’s response suited her just fine.
A mesh cover was placed over the dining table in the courtyard to prevent small insects from flying into the dishes. Everyone sat down, but no one had much appetite.
Not far away stood the statue of the Monkey God, its bright red cloth resembling congealed blood. Shen Maomao felt somewhat relieved that she hadn’t been meddlesome; actually, she had been quite curious about what the Monkey God looked like before, but now she wasn’t curious at all.
The group hastily ate a few bites to satisfy their hunger, then sat in the courtyard with the Zhang family to engage in conversation and gather information. Shen Maomao quickly took the bowls and chopsticks to the kitchen, skillfully beginning to wash the dishes.
Aunt Zhang couldn’t stop her and, worried she might not wash well, deliberately brought a small stool to sit nearby and watch. After a while, she couldn’t help but praise her, “Oh my, I thought you city kids never did housework, but you’re washing these dishes quite well.”
Shen Maomao: “I usually wash dishes at home too, haha.” Wash my ass, her family had a dishwasher; she learned to wash dishes in the last game. Thanks to the game, she unlocked more survival skills. It not only taught her how to wash dishes but also how to carry bricks.
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The two chatted casually for a while. Shen Maomao put the clean bowls and plates in the cabinet and walked out of the kitchen with Aunt Zhang.
Zhang’s three children were playing jump rope in the courtyard. The youngest boy was jumping around with a big smile, showing no signs of anything unusual.
The moon quietly climbed up the treetops as everyone returned to their rooms to prepare for rest.
Shen Maomao felt a bit uneasy, fearing that the troublesome child might come to play with her again in the middle of the night.
Lou Jingmo found a pair of pants in her backpack and tied a tight knot on the door. She then tugged on it forcefully a couple of times, unable to pull the door open.
The two of them got ready and lay down on the bed, neither mentioning turning off the lights.
Shen Maomao hesitantly suggested, “Sister Lou, shall we go check out the back mountain tomorrow?”
They had observed all the accessible places in the village but hadn’t found anything that looked like an exit. The only place left unexplored was the back mountain with the fruit trees, which they hadn’t entered for fear of danger. But if they wanted to leave the game, they couldn’t avoid exploring dangerous areas. Moreover, the villagers had taken the man to the back mountain today. If he was lucky enough to survive, they might be able to bring him back.
However, thinking about it, they knew this possibility was very small.
Lou Jingmo was also considering going to the back mountain, so when Shen Maomao brought it up, she immediately agreed.
They lay in bed for a while when suddenly the light above their heads flickered twice, then with a “zzzzt” sound, it went out.
The world plunged into darkness once again. Shen Maomao’s body trembled, and she couldn’t help but move closer to Lou Jingmo.
Lou Jingmo didn’t push her away. Instead, she lifted the covers and slipped into Shen Maomao’s quilt! The two of them shared a blanket, feeling each other’s body warmth, which was very reassuring.
In the middle of the night, the door creaked with a “squeak, squeak” sound as if someone was pushing it.
Lou Jingmo’s eyes snapped open, and she pricked up her ears to listen to the sound.
Beside her, Shen Maomao’s breathing remained deep and steady, undisturbed by the noise. Even though she couldn’t see anything, Lou Jingmo still stared in the direction of the door in the darkness, like a cheetah preparing to hunt, quietly waiting for its prey to appear.
The clothing was much stronger than tree branches. Whatever it was pushed for a while but couldn’t open the door. Then it seemed to give up on them, and everything returned to silence.
Lou Jingmo closed her eyes once again.
The next day, the little brat didn’t appear under their bed. Shen Maomao thought nothing had happened during the night and happily packed her things, preparing to go to the back mountain with Lou Jingmo.
The village chief only said not to disturb the sacrifice; he didn’t say they couldn’t go to the back mountain. But for safety reasons, Shen Maomao still subtly inquired about the back mountain from Aunt Zhang.
Aunt Zhang said, “There are many animals on the back mountain, and there might even be large wild beasts. When we go to the back mountain, we always go in groups. You two young girls better not go in there, it’s too dangerous, and you could easily get lost!”
Shen Maomao: “We’ll just take some photos and won’t go too deep.”
Aunt Zhang kindly offered, “How about this, I’ll have my son guide you. That way, you won’t get lost.”
To be honest, Shen Maomao didn’t want to go up the mountain with Aunt Zhang’s eldest son, the troublesome child’s father. But Aunt Zhang’s attitude was clear: either go with him or don’t go at all.
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In the end, their party of two became three.
Aunt Zhang’s eldest son was called Zhang Aiguo. In his thirties and without much achievement in life, his personality was much better than they had imagined.
He was very talkative and willing to answer Shen Maomao’s questions. He didn’t shy away from discussing the Monkey God either.
“Actually, I think Xiaoyao has changed a lot…” Zhang Aiguo said. “Since he returned from the monkey cave after participating in last year’s sacrifice, he’s become smarter, but he’s no longer affectionate with adults and only plays with his two sisters.”
Shen Maomao pressed further: “Has the Monkey God always been this effective?”
Zhang Aiguo replied, “Of course!” with a look of pride on his face.
Fearing they might not believe him, he gave an example to illustrate: “Liu Zhuangshi and his wife had been married for so long without having a child. After last year’s sacrifice, within half a year of returning, his wife got pregnant! Oh my, the baby must be about six months along now. It should be born in a little while!”
Shen Maomao: “…?” Does the Monkey God even grant children?
This deity seems capable of everything. Doesn’t it ever get tired?
As the three of them reached the foot of the back mountain, they saw six people running down from afar, their steps swift.
It was Yun Shengjin, the two newcomers he brought, and the three boys from Ye Tingnan’s team.
It seemed they had also guessed that there might be something on the back mountain, and they had come even earlier than the two girls.
As they passed by Shen Maomao and Lou Jingmo, Yun Shengjin only gave them a cold glance, saying nothing as he brushed past the three of them, moving incredibly fast. The two newcomers he brought closely followed, and soon all three had rushed into the village, their figures disappearing behind the layers of buildings.
Ye Tingnan and his two companions stopped in front of the girls, panting. Ye Tingnan glanced at Zhang Aiguo, seemingly wanting to say something but hesitating.
Wang Sheng had fewer reservations and spoke directly: “Holy shit, that guy is alive!”
“Which guy?” Shen Maomao was stunned for a moment, “You don’t mean— the one from yesterday?”
Wang Sheng nodded frantically.
Ye Tingnan looked back at the empty mountain path: “He’s coming down the mountain! We’re leaving first, you should hurry and go too.”
Shen Maomao: “What the f*ck?!”
Zhang Aiguo, however, wasn’t afraid at all. Instead, his eyes sparkled as he said, “Are you talking about the human who offended the Monkey God? It seems the Monkey God has already forgiven his rudeness and even healed his wounds!”
Shen Maomao was at a loss and could only look to Lou Jingmo: “Sister Lou, what do you think?”
She had said she wanted to check on the man’s condition, knowing full well that with those injuries, spending a night outdoors in the cold without treatment would surely be fatal. But she hadn’t expected this Monkey God could actually bring people back from the dead. However, why didn’t she believe that the one who came back would be the original person?
Lou Jingmo tried to explain this from a scientific perspective: “There must be something fishy about this. I think he might be an immortal, which is pretty badass.”
Shen Maomao: “??”
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At the end of the mountain path, a swaying figure appeared. It looked like a man in form, but he walked in a strange, awkward manner. He seemed drunk, yet possessed an agility that drunks don’t have, approaching the three at a steady pace.
“Holy crap, aren’t we running?!” Shen Maomao grabbed Lou Jingmo’s hand and turned to run back.
Zhang Aiguo also started running.
Shen Maomao asked him: “Didn’t you say the Monkey God had forgiven his rudeness? Why are you running?!”
Although brainwashed to believe the Monkey God was omnipotent, he wasn’t a fool and could clearly see something was wrong with the man. Zhang Aiguo said while running: “It turns out the Monkey God didn’t forgive him after all, but instead turned him into a monster from the netherworld, forcing him to continue living in this strange form…”
Shen Maomao was speechless.
Zhang Aiguo had been brainwashed so thoroughly that he could even rationalize this. That was pretty impressive.
The author has something to say:
Shen Maomao: This god is really badass.