It was already 8:30 p.m. when I got back to my rented detached house in Xiahua Village.
Yang Zheng parked his electric bike under the awning in the front yard and noticed a dark shadow emerging from the corner. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was the black stray dog that had returned sometime earlier.
This time, the black dog was not so timid. Instead, it stood up and stared straight at him, its eyes unusually bright.
Yang Zheng ignored it and simply took out his key and went back to his bedroom.
My stomach is still aching slightly.
The strange energy hidden within his body kept surging about, making it difficult for him to ride his bicycle peacefully.
After entering the room, I quickly poured myself a cup of hot water, then sat down on the edge of the bed and took deep breaths.
I drank a large glass of hot water, and then remained sitting still.
As his breathing gradually quickened, the stinging pain in his stomach seemed to lessen somewhat.
"Huh, why does the stinging sensation lessen as long as I keep breathing heavily?"
Thinking about this, he had some doubts.
I kept breathing rapidly for about half an hour. The stinging sensation gradually weakened and eventually disappeared completely.
He slowly closed his eyes again and clearly sensed that the strange flow of energy within his body seemed to have calmed down and was now flowing slowly and rhythmically in a specific area of his body.
That particular area inside my body, it seems to be in my lower abdomen, or maybe in my chest, it's hard to pinpoint exactly.
Yang Zheng tried to concentrate to see if he could control the flow of energy within his body, but found it had no effect whatsoever.
Seeing this, he fell into deep thought.
"This strange flow of energy didn't exist before; it only appeared after I consumed the exotic fruit."
"What exactly is it? Is it the true qi or spiritual qi from the novel?"
Why can't I control it?
"Does it require some special breathing technique to properly guide it?"
"But where can we find such a cultivation manual? Those books on self-cultivation and qi cultivation on Earth are probably all scams. If such a miraculous cultivation method really existed, it certainly wouldn't be available on the market..."
After pondering for a moment, he suddenly had a flash of inspiration.
This exotic fruit is a rare treasure within the small world. Even if you want to find cultivation techniques and manuals, you should look for them within the small world.
Within the small world, at the top of that cliff, there was a thick layer of tiny human corpses.
The answer is already obvious.
Those scoundrels must have known about the effects of the exotic fruit, which is why for thousands of years, one after another, they have risked their lives to pick it.
I wonder if anyone succeeded during this period?
In any case, all those who failed ended up as skeletons on the cliff top.
"Dry bones?"
The thought of the stark white bones atop the cliff made Yang Zheng's breathing quicken again.
My heart pounded with excitement!
When we went to explore the cliff, we found thousands upon thousands of tiny human skeletons there.
At the time, my attention was completely drawn to the crested snake, the white tiger, and the towering tree in the middle, and I didn't pay any attention to the skeletons on the ground.
Since so many little people died on the cliff top, it should be of great search value, right?
Keep in mind that the cliff was incredibly high, and it had been guarded by two ferocious beasts. In addition, the towering tree emitted deadly poisonous gas.
Ordinary people simply cannot reach that level.
Those tiny people who can climb to the top of the cliff unharmed are probably all extraordinary individuals.
They might have all sorts of martial arts techniques, secret manuals, divine weapons, and strange magical treasures...
Bring a broom and go up the cliff to thoroughly clean and search it. Who knows, there might be a lot of good stuff hidden under those thick layers of corpses.
That's what we'll do!
Thinking of this, Yang Zheng immediately became excited.
However, despite his excitement, he didn't let it cloud his judgment.
It is estimated that a large number of Lilliputian armies have now appeared within the small world.
Perhaps right now, a large number of machine guns and cannons have been deployed on the hillside outside the portal, just waiting for the giants to come to them.
That black airship has been loitering around here for so long, it must have thoroughly investigated his daily behavior and movements.
They couldn't possibly be unaware of the hillside where the portal was opened each time.
Therefore, for safety reasons, you absolutely cannot enter the small world for the next few days.
The most urgent task right now is to find a way to deal with the enemies in the small world.
I already bought the protective gear online this afternoon.
It is estimated that it will take three days for the goods to arrive.
I went out for a long walk this afternoon, but I still couldn't buy the "hot weapon" I wanted. I'll have to go further away tomorrow.
I went to visit the nearby towns and villages.
There's no rush with the hardware store. As long as you select the items, they can deliver them to your door anytime if you have a large quantity.
Spring thunder, torpedo, dry sky thunder, sky-piercing thunder... those powerful fireworks and firecrackers must be purchased as soon as possible.
Gasoline, chili powder, and lime powder are relatively easy to obtain; they can be found almost anywhere.
"Since I have nothing to do now, I'll peel off the remaining seven exotic fruits so they'll be convenient to use later."
Last time, he picked a total of fifteen exotic fruits on the cliff top and gave four to the white tiger.
Then he ate one himself, and the black dog outside ate one.
Now, he has a total of nine exotic fruits left in his hands.
We dare not pick too many of these things, mainly because we are afraid that once they come to Earth, they will spoil and lose their medicinal effects.
Of course, this is just his guess.
Of the remaining nine exotic fruits, two had already been peeled. Yang Zheng had been carrying them with him all day, hoping they would be useful in a critical moment to save his life.
There are still seven exotic fruits that haven't been processed and have been kept in the refrigerator.
Quickly take the exotic fruit out of the refrigerator.
These blood-red exotic fruits were frozen cold, and tiny water droplets were faintly visible on their smooth outer shells.
"I wonder if the medicinal effects inside the exotic fruit will evaporate if it's been piled up for too long?"
Thinking of this, he quickly put on gloves, took a knife, and removed all the seeds from the seven exotic fruits, then washed them clean for later use.
Staring at the dark red fruit pits, each the size of a ping-pong ball, Yang Zheng muttered to himself, "Carrying so many fruit pits on my person takes up too much space and is inconvenient."
"Why not just extract all the pith from them and put it in a small bottle for later use? That would be much more convenient."
Thinking about this, he secretly felt that this method was very reliable.
If you ever encounter danger and are seriously injured, just pour the pulp into your mouth. Wouldn't that be quick and easy?
Otherwise, in a crisis, having to slowly bite open the fruit pit yourself is too troublesome and unreliable.
Just then.
My phone rang; it was my mother sending a video call.
Yang Zheng quickly packed his things and answered the phone.
On the other end of the video, the mother seemed to be brewing some kind of medicinal herb in the kitchen.
"Xiao Zheng, have you eaten yet?"
"I just ate."
Yang Zheng looked at the medicine pot on the gas stove and asked curiously, "What are you cooking? Are you decocting medicine?"
My mother wiped her hands with her apron. “Yesterday, your second aunt found a folk remedy for me. She said it can cure cancer. There was someone in her village who was cured by taking this remedy and is still alive and well. So I’m going to give it a try.”
Upon hearing this, Yang Zheng frowned. "Is it true? You can't just take medicine randomly. With my dad's condition, if things don't go well, I'm afraid something bad might happen."
The mother sighed and said, "I didn't want to either, but your father insisted that I do it, so I had no choice."
"Was it my dad who wanted it?"
Yang Zheng was secretly a little puzzled, and casually asked, "How is my dad today?"
The mother's face darkened. "He was a little better for the first few days after being discharged from the hospital, but starting yesterday, he started complaining of pain again, especially at night. Painkillers didn't work, and he couldn't sleep well at all. Moreover, he was in so much pain that he couldn't eat anything every day."
"I just went to the hospital this morning and got a few boxes of painkillers. The medicine I brought back from the hospital before has already been finished."
Yang Zheng felt a little sad. After a moment of silence, he said, "Why didn't you mention it in the video call before? When we video chatted at noon, he seemed to be in good spirits."
"Your dad was faking it."
The mother's eyes began to redden again. "Your father doesn't want you to tell anyone. He doesn't want you to worry, he's afraid it will affect your work and rest, and he doesn't want you to take time off work to travel back and forth."
She paused, wiping away tears that were about to spill from the corners of her eyes, her voice choked with emotion: "When your dad came back from the hospital this time, I felt something was off about him. It's like he already knows..."
“The day before yesterday, he suddenly asked me how much I spent in total. I did as you taught me and said that it was only tens of thousands of yuan after reimbursement. Then he didn’t say anything.”
“But yesterday morning, he suddenly told me that he would not go to the hospital anymore, and that he would see if he could find some folk remedies and traditional prescriptions. He also told me to burn paper money for your grandparents every day.”
Suddenly, the mother burst into tears, "I don't know what to do now..."
“These past few days, your dad has been looking at your childhood photos every day, as well as your old posts on WeChat Moments and Douyin videos. He keeps saying, ‘Why don’t you post on WeChat Moments and Douyin videos anymore?’”
"At the end of last year, didn't you and your dad make a video on Douyin about pounding glutinous rice cakes? Your dad watched it all day today, and he often secretly shed tears while watching it..."
Finally, Yang Zheng couldn't take it anymore, took a deep breath and said, "Mom, I'll take the high-speed train back tonight!"
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