Chapter 102: Siblings?
“Are we lost?”
Trapped in the dimly lit underground labyrinth, the air thick with polluted deadly poison, perception signals severely blocked… Yuan Zhu wandered blindly like a headless fly for a full 2 hours, still unable to find the way to the surface.
At first, he pretended to scout around in human stance, hoping to stumble upon his separated companions nearby. But after 40 minutes of fruitless searching, his mood grew increasingly irritable, and eventually he gave up entirely, directly switching to tiger demon stance and charging wildly, frantically manipulating shadow tentacles that spread across the ground, extending in all directions to scout.
The more he searched, the more frustrated he became.
Not only did he fail to find a direction leading ‘up’ to an exit, but he kept encountering twisted forks, numerous slopes leading ‘down’, narrow paths for single passage, dead ends, ventilation shafts the size of thief tunnels, dimly profound dog holes, densely packed mouse holes, and even tinier insect eyes…
The entire underground space was complex beyond imagination. Twisted, looping, multi-layered three-dimensional structures with no markings whatsoever, all wrapped and permeated by omnipresent ‘polluted root tendrils’, emitting force fields that blocked infection, polluted spirit, and distorted sense of direction, with oppressive feeling maxed out.
The deeper he went underground, the more anxious and irritable his mindset became, nearly driving him to develop【claustrophobic rage syndrome】.
“Damn it! Another dead end?”
Upon discovering the passage ahead narrowing to the point where his massive tiger body was stuck and unable to pass, the tiger demon instantly flew into a rage, swiping a claw that caused the cave wall to collapse and crack.
Numerous capillary root tendrils deeply buried in the soil were severed, immediately dispersing purple-red deadly poisoned polluted aura.
“Fuck fuck fuck!!!”
Facing the suddenly erupting corrupt spiritual energy, the tiger demon’s expression changed slightly, instantly turning into a mass of shadow that shot back a hundred meters, then turned tail and fled, escaping into the darkness without looking back.
At first, it stubbornly tried to resist the ‘corrupt spiritual energy’, testing if it could digest and absorb it with【universe within the belly】, but after a few attempts, it couldn’t endure and expelled it all from his body.
He discovered that the ‘polluted root tendrils’ in this underground space were not only deadly poison, corroding and killing all biological life activity; they also possessed a rotting activity, colloquially known as the centipede’s worm that dies but doesn’t stiffen. Formed from multiple pollutants compounded together, extremely vicious.
Once ingested in excess, not only could it not be digested, it continuously weakened his health bar. Moreover, the pollutants contained in these polluted root tendrils could clump together and condense, reviving under the influence of the underground root network.
This ‘revival’ was not resurrection, but an outburst of rotting vitality, attempting to corrupt and transform the tiger demon’s body, and spawning ‘tiny root tendrils’ internally via ‘spiritual energy’ pollution to parasitize, accelerating the decay and fermentation of flesh tissues.
It was practically the nemesis of life!
Even if the tiger demon tried to wear down and destroy this pollution, it would resonate with the root network of the underground environment. Using a technology similar to ‘wireless charging’, it replenished pollution out of thin air, confronting the tiger demon even more vigorously.
With no choice, he could only spit out these pollutants and retreat.
Little Spicy Stick said at this time: “Boss, calm down! I’ll play some light music for you to soothe your spirit. Your mental waves are very abnormal right now, influenced by the ‘corrupt spiritual root network’. This underground space is enveloped by a massive polluted root tendril magnetic field, constantly interfering with and distorting souls. I suggest you switch back to【holy light】mode to cool down your soul. Holy light has very high spirit resistance, it’s OK as long as you don’t project it outward.”
The tiger demon heeded the advice and switched back to human form, cooling down his brain, with his irritable mood calming considerably. But upon seeing the pitch-black tunnel with no end in sight, nameless fire and oppressive feeling surged again.
He didn’t mind the dirt, leaning directly against the cave wall, pulling a bottle of water from his backpack and drinking: “Fuck, when will this end? I’ve been scurrying underground like a mouse for 2 hours. This damn place is truly barren, nothing but slime mold, little mushrooms, and crawlers—no mouse in sight.”
“Don’t be annoyed, boss. I’ve built a【3D map】of the path you’ve taken, so we absolutely won’t take wrong turns or backtrack. Not finding the exit now has nothing to do with getting lost. It’s just that the underground tunnel system is too vast and complex, plus interference from the root network. Based on my data analysis, the scale of the ‘underground world’ is unprecedentedly immense! We should now be on a ‘country road’ between cities, which is why we haven’t encountered anyone yet.”
Yuan Zhu: “Country road?”
“Yes, the main tunnels are very spacious; we’ve walked at least a dozen li without seeing the end. And every certain distance, there are forks, downward passages, splitting into more small paths… This shows it’s not some secret underground passage from A to B, but more like a complex underground kingdom. If this is a provincial-level underground world, then we’re like being dropped on a country road in the wilderness, trekking to find a city.”
Yuan Zhu looked again at the claustrophobic underground space, moss glowing faintly at his feet: “If it’s a country road, there should be villages along the way, right?”
“This is a barren underground world; what villages… Hey hey hey?” Little Spicy Stick suddenly paused, surprised: “I think I’ve detected human traces!”
Yuan Zhu: “Where?”
“It’s a branching small path leading downward. The mouse I sent out smelled a strange pungent odor, analyzed as insect-repelling powder, and found lots of footprints as well as signs of habitation.”
Yuan Zhu perked up: “Quick! Guide me.”
“Alrighty, backtrack 50 meters first, there’s a small hole sloping downward; slide in and proceed…”
Guided by Little Spicy Stick, Yuan Zhu twisted and turned through a small burrow, forcefully pushing open a soil-covered baffle, after which the space ahead opened up, entering a gradually widening underground space. The air was still earthy and turbid, mixed with a strange food smell.
People!
He lightened his footsteps, his entire body wrapped and covered by shadow uniform, entering stealth mode with presence suppressed to the minimum, advancing slowly. Soon, he heard faint conversation, seemingly one man and one woman, both young voices.
They spoke a strange language he’d never heard, yet he naturally understood the content.
Female voice: “I’m full; I can’t eat these. You take them all.”
“But…”
“Quit talking nonsense; eat them up quick. I don’t go out at home; it doesn’t matter if I eat more or less. You’re different; you have to herd, serve, and cultivate. The full moon is coming soon; if you don’t eat your fill, how will you go to the surface for moon worship? I heard four people died last time two months ago. You must be careful this time.”
Male voice hesitated: “Don’t worry; my ears are the sharpest. I’ll hide if there’s danger. You still need spirit sand, high consumption; keep it and eat slowly. I can eat my fill outside too, and dig mushrooms and spirit root tendrils. In the reverse birth garden, there are still non-magical crunchy shell beetles…”
Female voice screamed: “Are you tired of living?! I told you not to eat those magic worms! You’ll get iron poison pollution and puppet disease; do you want to die? If your body breaks down, how will you qi refine, raise bugs, or get stronger?!”
“Don’t worry; I’m very healthy! Look how strong my body is; I’m the strongest among everyone. The captain says I have talent; I’ll definitely go to the iron soldier depot or the armor casting department later.”
Yuan Zhu was baffled but grasped some information.
Not only did people live here, there was a stable social structure with service and cultivation, and quite a complex organization. Plus, these two knew how to raise bugs! Great,【Mao Mao King】was saved.
“Chirp——!”
Just as he approached silently, a fist-sized grass cage in the corner suddenly emitted a cricket’s warning cry.
“Someone?”
“Who!”
Yuan Zhu suddenly lunged forward into the underground cavity, finding the interior dim with only two wooden sticks inserted into the wall, emitting alternating faint light as the sole light source for this enclosed space.
Fortunately, he had adapted to the underground brightness. Without time for careful observation, he saw two figures, one large and one small, sitting opposite in the darkness. He charged straight at the larger one, reaching for the back of the neck with a fluid takedown move to subdue him.
Unexpectedly, at the instant his palm touched, the figure flexibly twisted his neck to evade the grab, then swiftly back-kicked and rolled away nimbly, quickly springing back up.
Yuan Zhu didn’t bother tangling, shadows snaking from his feet to instantly wrap the opponent’s legs, then spreading upward along the legs.
Bang!
A strange energy aura burst from the opponent’s body, directly shattering the shadows, while he propelled forward, knee-striking and elbow-slicing at Yuan Zhu with speed and ferocity.
Yuan Zhu, inheriting rich underground fighting experience, sidestepped and vertically blocked with his right hand. When arm met elbow, he felt a strong impact penetrate the uniform onto his arm—a drilling force that numbed and pained it.
Before he could follow up, the figure accelerated by 40%, attacking again with highly skilled techniques to break his defensive stance, a rapid jab punching the diaphragm to disrupt his breathing rhythm.
The eerie force penetrated the uniform again but was blocked by a fleeting【holy light force field】on his chest.
Snap!
Before the opponent could retract the fist, countless shadow tentacles erupted from Yuan Zhu’s body surface, wrapping the entire figure. He fully activated the uniform, shadows shuttling like snakes, in a blink wrapping the slightly shorter sturdy figure into a mummy.
The smaller shadow had been too scared to move from start to finish, curling up obediently and shouting loudly in a little girl’s voice: “Spare us, sir! Mercy! Let my younger brother go; I’m willing to offer everything! Please don’t hurt him!”
The mummified figure struggled violently, unidentified aura continuously erupting from within, poking sharp black spikes into the shadow bandages that quickly recoiled and contracted.
Struggling futilely, he roared angrily: “Sis!”
In the darkness, Yuan Zhu’s tall shadow stood still, watching one person plead with head in hands and the other struggle furiously in unwillingness. It was extremely awkward, as if he were some villain breaking in to rob money and food?
“Ahem, quiet down! I’m not a bad guy; no malice.”
After he spoke, the two shadows in the cavity froze. He then realized belatedly that they might not understand his words.
From eavesdropping earlier, Yuan Zhu realized they spoke a strange language. However,【Happy Home】had loaded ‘language comprehension’ buff for employees, allowing understanding regardless of language. But the other side…
“Little brother, shut up! Sir, we obey; we’ll do whatever you say!”
The smaller figure understood Yuan Zhu’s words, very cooperatively placing hands on the desk in a submissive harmless pose. A single scolding quieted the angry struggling figure, who seemed quite frustrated but didn’t dare retort.
Yuan Zhu asked curiously: “You can understand me?”
The little dwarf immediately bowed her head: “Yes! Yes! No no no, I can’t. I don’t understand your language, but I can comprehend what you mean.”
?!
Yuan Zhu was astounded by this little dwarf’s reaction speed and expressiveness.
From his sudden attack to quickly subduing the ‘younger brother’, she hadn’t panicked or screamed throughout, instead decisively pleading and instantly submitting without resistance, even answering questions without hesitation.
“Have you encountered this before?”
The little dwarf immediately got it and denied: “No!”
“You’re not surprised?”
“Surprised!”
Her answers were too straightforward; now it was Yuan Zhu’s turn to be speechless: “…”
Looking at the narrow cramped surroundings, he decided against releasing holy light for illumination. Fearing he’d poison these natives, he looked up at the light source—two dumpling-sized fireflies impaled on a wooden stick, their butts alternately glowing faint yellow.
This thing probably couldn’t brighten things up, so he warned: “Don’t move!”
“Got it! I’ll stay still and fully cooperate, sir.”
Yuan Zhu: “…”
Too damn obedient, making him even more uncomfortable. After rummaging a while, he took out a candle and lit it with a match, finally seeing everything in the ‘room’.
On the ground was a soil platform with two weed-woven grass mats, barely counting as beds. In the corner of the platform were two tattered grass cages, each holding over ten beetles with metallic sheen shells, rustling as they nibbled tender leaves—high pollution attributes, more exaggerated than the mutated white mice from【Rain Courtyard】, yet very docile.
In front of the platform was a desk pieced from rotten wood planks. The small figure had hands flat on it, in a prostrating kneeling pose, not daring to move. Wearing a tattered small ragged clothes, from the back she looked like a skinny first- or second-grader.
The other boy, wrapped in shadows and no longer struggling, had a stubborn youthful expression, eyes filled with anger and unwillingness. Thick brows and big eyes gave a very upright appearance, glaring viciously at Yuan Zhu. Also somewhat thin, but with a large frame giving a sturdy robust feel, looking about fourteen or fifteen.
Upon seeing the candle, confusion briefly flashed in his eyes. Seeing Yuan Zhu in pitch-black uniform, he showed shock, anger, and doubt…
In short, Yuan Zhu read anger, hatred, confusion, surprise, incomprehension from his eyes… like an Earthling suddenly seeing an alien stealing cabbage from the backyard, worldview shattered.
Ignoring the handsome youth’s hateful glare, he continued observing the underground space—crude, rundown; the two couldn’t even scrape together a blanket. Two large fireflies impaled on the wall, drawing nutrients from the branch to sustain life—incomprehensible.
The limited utensils in the room all featured insects. Beetle shell cups, large beetle-made water kettle containers, sharp shell-ground blades. Even in the wooden tray on the desk were dried insects, likely the food they were pushing to each other.
Broken! Poor! Hardship! Felt like stumbling into a impoverished mountain area.
“You, lift your head.”
The little one trembled slightly, not rushing to look up, instead asking: “May I?”
Attitude too good, forcing Yuan Zhu to soften his tone: “Yes. I said I’m not a bad guy.”
The little one raised her head—a little girl indeed. Features fairly pretty, but long-term hunger and malnutrition made her cheeks gaunt, eyes bulging and large, somewhat scary like Gollum from Lord of the Rings.
She first vigilantly glanced at Yuan Zhu, quickly lowering her head, then spotted the candle on the desk and froze. But she quickly recovered, sneakily sizing up Yuan Zhu’s attire, then glimpsed the ‘articulated mouse’ manipulated by Little Spicy Stick, showing a ghost-seeing expression like her brother, shrinking hands to her chest in fear.
The little girl quickly reacted, respectfully saying: “Noble one, where do you come from? What do you need? I’ll tell you everything I know. And I’m
