The moon was obscured by clouds, and the forest was so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. An eerie silence surrounded them, broken only by the distant chirping of unknown insects.
Suddenly, a heavy breathing sound came from ahead.
"Aww!"
The sound was frighteningly close, as if it were just a few dozen steps away.
Tie Niu's hand trembled, and he almost pulled the trigger.
"Take it easy!" Du Jianshan's deep voice came from not far away.
"I...I'm here!" Tie Niu replied through gritted teeth.
The shadows of the trees swayed, and a pair of eerie green lights slowly emerged, facing Du Jianshan.
That was a monster.
Its entire body was shiny black, nearly two people tall at the shoulders, resembling a leopard but with two short horns, and its fangs gleamed bluish in the cold moonlight. There was a scorch mark on its belly, left by the explosives.
Du Jianshan slowly raised his musket.
“Closer…” he whispered.
The monster sniffed the air, seemed to sense something, let out a low growl, and suddenly lunged forward!
"Now!" Du Jianshan roared.
Iron Ox pulled with all his might!
boom!
The ground in front of the trap exploded in a burst of fire, flying rocks and billowing smoke. The beast's shadow was violently thrown into the air and crashed heavily into the pit!
The forest trembled once again.
"We've fallen for their trap!" Tie Niu shouted excitedly.
But the laughter didn't last long; a roar and a violent impact came from the pit.
"It...it's still moving!"
Du Jianshan quickly stepped forward, took out a gunpowder pack, and stuffed it into the gun barrel.
"Tie Niu, pour the tung oil down!"
"ah?"
"quick!"
Tie Niu frantically unscrewed the oil can, and streams of tung oil flowed down the edge of the pit. Du Jianshan lit a tinderbox, his eyes as cold as knives.
“The wounded beast is the most ferocious; we cannot leave it alive.”
"Brother Du, is it really going to burn?"
"burn!"
The instant the flames fell, a pillar of fire suddenly shot up from the bottom of the pit, accompanied by a deafening roar, and a wave of heat swept across the faces of the two men.
"Ah!" Tie Niu was so shocked that he took a few steps back.
In the firelight, the monster struggled wildly, its black fur burning and its flesh charred and torn. Finally, it let out a long howl that shook the valley before falling completely silent.
The wind blew through the woods, carrying a sweet, burnt smell.
Tie Niu stood there dumbfounded for a long time, his voice hoarse: "Is it...is it over?"
Du Jianshan did not answer. He picked up his long sword, stepped on the edge of the pit, and slashed down with it.
"This is it, we're doomed."
The cut revealed a piece of charred skin, beneath which a faint golden light shone.
Tie Niu's eyes widened: "This is... a scale?"
Du Jianshan frowned and squatted down to examine it closely. It wasn't scales, but a layer of fine bone fragments embedded in the flesh like snake scales.
"A mandrill?" he murmured.
"No, mandrills don't have horns."
He reached out and probed the beast's chest, then withdrew his hand, saying in a low voice, "It has a heart, but it doesn't look like a beast's."
Tie Niu shuddered: "What do you mean?"
"Like a human."
"Don't scare me, Brother Du!"
Du Jianshan remained silent for a moment, then looked up at the other side of the mountain. The fog was thicker there, as if something was watching them.
"Tie Niu, we need to go and offer sacrifices when we go up the mountain tomorrow."
"Sacrifice? Sacrifice to whom?"
“Mountain God.” Du Jianshan’s tone was more solemn than ever before. “We’re messing around with something we shouldn’t be messing around with.”
Tie Niu shuddered and stammered, "Then, let's hurry up and go. It's almost dawn."
"Walk."
The instant the flames ignited, a deafening roar shook the mountains and forests, sending dust billowing into the air. The beast's shadow was jolted in mid-air, fell to the ground, then rolled over and disappeared into the dense forest.
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