Go all out

Chapter 20: Three Questions

The atmosphere instantly became a bit “tense.” It wasn’t so bad being stared at by that woman with her strange gaze, but the real problem was the giant rats surrounding her—each one staring at Tian Zhan and me with black eyes the size of light bulbs. That really sent a chill down my spine. When had I ever seen rats this big before? The biggest rats I’d ever seen in the news weighed only twenty or thirty jin; these few must weigh over a hundred jin, right? If they swarmed us all at once, they’d devour us in an instant. I was still in a daze when Tian Zhan held out his hand and, as if summoning a henchman, beckoned to one of the giant rats standing next to the woman. The rat instinctively glanced at the woman, who nodded. The giant rat reluctantly walked over. To be honest, seeing a rat that big walk was actually kind of comical—it was swaying back and forth. Just as I was wondering what Tian Zhan was up to, I saw him smile slightly and slap out at the rat. With a loud “smack,” the rat rubbed its cheek with a paw, looking completely bewildered—almost as if it were human. I was even more baffled. After all, this woman was the owner here—that slap was completely out of line. What was Tian Zhan trying to do? “Why did you hit me?” the giant rat spoke in a human voice, its tone shrill. “My brother and I have been here for ages. Never mind the tea and water—you didn’t even set out a chair for us to sit on. It’s one thing that your master doesn’t know how to entertain guests, but you’re just a maid—don’t you have any common sense at all??” Tian Zhan spat a faceful of saliva at it. I was stunned—this was clearly a veiled insult combined with a show of force. Tian Zhan, my brother, you’re a badass! The giant rat turned to look at the woman with a “wronged” expression. She lazily waved her hand, and the rat had no choice but to shuffle off to the side. Wobbling its obese body, it hauled over two chairs and brought two trays of fruit—which turned out to be just a few large apples and some bananas. This… was a bit too meager, wasn’t it? “You old geezer, you’re still trying to hide things from me, aren’t you?” Tian Zhan plopped down in his seat and said bluntly. “Master, you’re joking. I truly have no more of those spiritual fruits left. They take ten years to bloom and ten years to bear fruit. This time, only thirty ripened in total. I ate a few myself earlier, and gave the rest all to you, Master. I really have none left.” The woman finally spoke, her voice incredibly hoarse—the voice of an elderly person who rarely spoke. Yet this aged voice came from the lips of a beautiful young woman, which was indeed rather eerie. “That’s all you’ve got to offer us?” Tian Zhan didn’t stand on ceremony; he picked up an apple and began devouring it in big bites. I was at a loss for words. The woman looked somewhat exasperated. She waved her hand, and the big rat immediately scurried to the back, returning with a roasted wild chicken and placing it in front of us. Tian Zhan glanced at me, signaling that it was safe to eat. Naturally, I didn’t hold back—I grabbed a chicken leg and shoved it into my mouth. It tasted pretty good. Tian Zhan and I polished off everything on the table in no time, while the woman just watched us—and so did the few large rats behind her. What surprised me, though, was that after glancing at Tian Zhan a few times, the woman kept staring at me, which made me feel a little “embarrassed.” “Not bad. Now that we’re full, I’m going to ask you three questions,” Tian Zhan said, wiping his greasy mouth with his large hand. “Three questions aren’t a big deal, but there are some I simply can’t answer,” the woman shook her head, making her position clear in advance. “I don’t care about that. Whatever I ask, you’ll have to answer!” Tian Zhan said with an air of authority. The woman furrowed her brow. The giant rat beside her even bared its teeth at the two of us, as if it were about to pounce and devour us whole at any moment. Tian Zhan remained unfazed, and naturally, I kept my composure as well. Of course, I was nervous inside—Tian Zhan really had nerves of steel. We were deep inside a rat’s lair, after all, yet he still looked completely unafraid, which made me even more curious about his true identity. Finally, after staring at me for a moment, the woman spoke up, “All right, but I want him to answer one question for me first!” After she spoke, she pointed her finger at me. I was taken aback. Tian Zhan also glanced at me and nodded with a smile. Before the woman could even speak, Tian Zhan was already pointing at me and asking, “Where the hell is she right now?” “In a cave thirty kilometers to the east,” the woman said without hesitation. My heart leapt with joy. If I remembered correctly, thirty li away there was a huge cliff—no wonder I couldn’t find my mom. Tian Zhan wore a scornful expression. “Aren’t you the Mountain God? Why aren’t you looking after your people?” Tian Zhan was implying that the woman was being too straightforward—he didn’t believe her. “Hmph. She never listens to me anyway. Why should I care whether she lives or dies?” the woman snorted coldly. Hearing this, I glared at her angrily. “I’m warning you—don’t talk about my mom like that!” “What? You little brat who almost died back then—you actually dare to get mad at me?” The woman’s eyes widened, and her tone finally turned icy. She rolled her eyes and suddenly let out a sneer. “You call her ‘Mom’? Haha, do you really think she didn’t want to devour you back then? Let me tell you the truth: the one who wanted to eat you the most back then was the very ‘Mom’ you’re talking about! What a joke! That old fox Li Jiuyi is so calculating and meticulous, yet he raised such a clueless disciple! I really don’t know how you managed to survive back then!” Tian Zhan’s expression darkened. “You’d better be polite when speaking to my brother!” “Polite? Why should I be polite?? You’re you, and he’s him! Besides, the last time his master saw me, he was on his knees!” The woman shook her head derisively. “You’re full of it!” I roared in anger. This woman—no, this rat demon—was insulting my mother and my master! How could my master possibly kneel before a rat demon? I clenched my fists, but Tian Zhan patted my shoulder, signaling me not to act impulsively. At that moment, my anger reached its peak, but what could I do? In front of this rat demon, I was nothing but a greenhorn. If Tian Zhan hadn’t brought me here, I wouldn’t have found this place at all—and even if I had, this rat demon wouldn’t have given me the time of day! At that moment, how I wished I had Tian Zhan’s strength, so I could make that old fart apologize to my master! “Hmph!” The sneer on the rat demon’s face grew even more pronounced. Tian Zhan snorted coldly, his face icy. “Old man, don’t you think you’ve lived too long?” “You dare threaten this old woman?” The rat demon suddenly stood up from her armchair; her eyes turned blood-red, and the tail behind her—as thick as an arm—suddenly reared up like a cobra, swaying back and forth. “Do I really need to threaten you?” Tian Zhan sneered. The Rat Demon glared intently at Tian Zhan, and the atmosphere in the entire cave froze instantly. Tian Zhan’s expression didn’t waver in the slightest. I thought the Rat Demon wouldn’t be able to resist striking out—after all, that was quite a stinging rebuke. But to my surprise, she plopped back down onto the chair, her expression returning to normal as if nothing had happened. “Ask your second question!” Tian Zhan gave a sarcastic smile and continued, “What kind of spirit was that one that’s been following us all day?” “I think you’d be better off asking the master of this little guy standing next to you!” the rat spirit said coolly, though her face once again wore that mocking expression I hated so much. “Bullshit!” I roared again, unable to hold back my anger. The Rat Spirit gave a soft snort but said nothing. Tian Zhan turned his head, his eyes flickering. He hesitated for a moment before saying slowly, “Xiao Tian, don’t be so impulsive. I also think you should ask your master about that spirit.” “Tian Zhan, you…” I glared at Tian Zhan. How on earth could a spirit creature possibly have anything to do with my master? “Xiao Tian, I told you the day before yesterday—your master isn’t as simple as you think!” Tian Zhan said helplessly. “But…” With tears welling up in my eyes, I shook my head. My master had raised me since I was a child; his kindness toward me was as deep as a mountain. And now I was actually listening to this rat spirit constantly insulting my master—at that moment, I hated myself for being so useless. “If you don’t believe me, there’s no point in asking the third question.” the rat spirit said coldly. “We’ll ask—of course we’ll ask. But for the third question, I’ll let my brother ask it!” Tian Zhan suddenly turned to me and said. I froze. What could I possibly ask? After a few seconds of dazed silence, it occurred to me: she’s been alive for three or four hundred years, and she’s the “Mountain Spirit” of this mountain. When my birth mother abandoned me here, she must have seen her! So. “Then tell me, who are my parents?” I asked, staring intently at her.