CHAPTER 375: CHAPTER 372: COOPERATIVE GOALS

"What?"

Upon hearing Monkey Wine’s strange ramblings, Hu Ma was taken aback. "Is it you?"

His thoughts raced. He had encountered so many Reincarnators, most of whom aligned with him, teaming up for a common goal. But now, had he finally met one with a different stance?

Suddenly, he couldn’t quite grasp this Reincarnator’s erratic thoughts, but his response was swift. He laughed, "We’re both Reincarnators, so there’s no need to be so evasive when chatting with me, right...?"

"Buddy, if you sealed our valley, then how can you say you don’t know the reason for sealing our Blood Food mine?"

After speaking, he patiently listened, wanting to see what the other would say and whether he could be someone to negotiate with.

Unexpectedly, Monkey Wine sighed softly and said, "Indeed, I was the one who sealed your Blood Food mine, but I genuinely don’t know the reason."

"Because the one who ordered the sealing was my father. He told me to do it, so I did..."

"He suddenly said he wanted to seal the Blood Food mine without explaining why, only saying it was a big deal and that no living person could leave it, nor could any Blood Food leave the valley."

This made the situation a bit awkward.

Hu Ma had interacted with many Reincarnators, and they all had pleasant conversations. This time, however, the topic seemed to stall. He had found the one sealing the road, and he knew who wanted to seal the Blood Food mine. But what was the use of that?

Why did this guy switch from acting like a madman to being an obedient child who listened to his father so quickly?

However... it wasn’t completely useless either.

Upon hearing Monkey Wine’s words, he recalled what Mine Chief Zhuang had previously said. The Mine Chief had thought the Witches of the Wugong clan were his friends. So, as soon as he discovered someone had sealed the Blood Food mine, he had sent a message to their Clan Leader, asking for help.

But how could he know that the person who ordered the sealing was that Clan Leader himself?

As Hu Ma quickly contemplated, he realized this matter was far more complicated than he had imagined. It involved not only mysterious, unknown veins but also the ambiguous stance of the Witches.

He had just arrived here, unprepared. Gathering more intelligence was crucial...

So, even though he suspected Monkey Wine might not be quite normal, Hu Ma softened his tone and chuckled, "Although this is your father’s arrangement... many things don’t have to be so adversarial, right?"

"There’s no need for zero-sum games; a win-win is the fundamental principle, isn’t it?"

"To be honest, I’m planning to go to that Blood Food mine to retrieve something. But now that your valley is sealed, I can’t get in. So, do you think it’s possible for you to find out your father’s secret for sealing this mine? That would allow me to prepare thoroughly..."

"Then we could work together..."

He hadn’t expressed it too directly, but Hu Ma believed Monkey Wine had grasped his meaning, so he paused slightly.

As expected, after a brief silence, Monkey Wine suddenly chuckled, "Are you trying to persuade me to disobey my father and cooperate with you?"

"You truly are a top student..."

Hu Ma flattered him and then smiled. "Not necessarily in such absolute terms, but having more options is always good, right? If things work out, I might even cooperate with your father."

"You can’t cooperate with him. He only worships the Witch God and won’t collaborate with mortals."

Monkey Wine interrupted Hu Ma’s train of thought, saying slowly, "But if you’re just trying to persuade me, then it brings us back to the original question."

"Between our two worlds, which one is real?"

Hu Ma was puzzled. "Why are we circling back to this?"

"If this world is real, I can’t help you," Monkey Wine said slowly. "Because he is my father and the Clan Leader of our Wugong clan. Opposing him would mean opposing the Witches of the clan that birthed and raised me. I’d become the disgrace of our Witches, even bringing catastrophe upon them."

Hu Ma felt a heaviness settle in his heart. He exhaled softly. "Then what if our world is the real one?"

"If our world is real," Monkey Wine continued slowly, "then at this moment, we are the true acquaintances—trustworthy people one meets in a strange, foreign land."

"And the one currently commanding me in the guise of ’father’ is actually the madman who, when I was five, filled my entire body with gu insects, despite me having been terrified of bugs in my past life..."

"Guess how I would deal with him?"

"Filled your entire body with gu insects?"

Monkey Wine’s words were simple, and his voice carried an ethereal, bewildered quality, yet Hu Ma was still inwardly shocked.

He vaguely glimpsed something of this fellow’s fate.

He mentioned being awakened at seven, but he was filled with gu insects at five. That means he had only just recalled his past life memories when he found himself in a nest of insects?

EEK...

The thought alone was chilling. No wonder he seemed a bit erratic now...

"Old brother, I’m an outsider, so it’s not really my place to say..."

After contemplating silently, Hu Ma slowly said, "But I just feel that, whether in a past life or this one, intentional or not, anyone who harms a child who doesn’t know any better has committed a crime, haven’t they?"

He stopped there, waiting for Monkey Wine’s response.

After a moment of silence, Monkey Wine sighed lightly and said slowly, "I’ve lived in this village for over twenty years, but I still feel that only when I meet other Reincarnators do I hear words that truly speak to my heart..."

"Does that mean..." Hu Ma couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement. "There’s a chance?"

But before he could voice this final, confirming question, Monkey Wine said, "But I still can’t help you go against my father..."

Hu Ma was getting annoyed. This damn madman, is he just stringing me along? Does he think I won’t call in the Red Lantern Society to flatten him?

Then he heard Monkey Wine slowly say, "Because just dealing with him alone is useless. If we’re to cooperate, we must also deal with the Witch God worshipped in our village..."

"Just as it constantly tries to bore into my mind, I’m also quite interested in studying its structure..."

"What the hell?"

After leaving the Lifebound Spirit Temple, Hu Ma felt rather incredulous.

So, he really had encountered a madman this time?

He had only invited him to pull off a job, at most to jointly eliminate his father. Yet the fellow wanted to drag him into destroying the god their clansfolk worshipped?

No wonder the people at the mine found this Witch so strange. Sealing the mine without a word, no communication, no discussion...

Suppressing the pressure in his heart, he sat silently on his bed for a while, practicing his cultivation. When dawn broke, he stepped out with the others. Looking up, he saw the Red Lantern Lady’s lantern still hanging above the village gate’s archway, casting a faint red glow in the morning light.

Early-rising miners had already seen it and were discussing it animatedly. They had been uneasy when the Red Lantern was hung yesterday, but seeing the night pass peacefully had eased their hearts considerably.

Of course, the other party had merely sealed the valley and hadn’t yet attacked the mine itself, so this peaceful night might not have had much to do with the Red Lantern.

Still, he really needed to adjust his thinking. Previously, acting as a Hu Family descendant, he had done a few things that led him to somewhat underestimate the Red Lantern Lady’s renown. But in a place like this, her reputation was actually more resounding.

Never mind him not having undergone Entering the Mansion yet; even if he had, a Shousui who had just entered the Prefecture from Mingzhou Prefecture would definitely not command as much respect as the Red Lantern Lady in the eyes of these Witches and miners.

This was the Red Lantern Lady before she became a landed Great Evil Spirit. Now that she had established a temple and become a Table God, her intangible deterrent force was actually even more formidable.

Before his conversation with Monkey Wine, using the Red Lantern Lady’s name to deter unknown enemies had been a good method. Now, however, it was clear that the Red Lantern Lady’s renown was likely useless... that person was a Reincarnator, and a rather abnormal one at that.

"Now then..."

Pondering as he paced, Hu Ma glanced towards the southeastern corner of the valley. He could vaguely make out a colossal, writhing mass of flesh fused with the mountain soil and rocks.

Ugly black scars covered it, some oozing a glistening liquid.

Connected to this enormous mass of flesh were rows upon rows of racks built from bamboo and thick timber. Square holes were left between the racks, and many showed signs of cutting.

That was the meat mountain. From a distance, it looked like a living mountain range. It was mostly black in texture and exuded a scent similar to asphalt. Some white or greenish traces remained within the cavities.

The meat mountain did not rot but would slowly heal, giving it a ferocious and cruel appearance.

However, Hu Ma’s gaze first fell upon an inconspicuous spot where the meat mountain connected with the hillside.

Layers of thick timber were piled up there, sealing it off, and it was covered by a red curtain. One could see that the meat-cutters in this valley would make a wide detour when approaching it, showing that something that made their hearts palpitate had indeed occurred there.

He watched from a distance and distinctly felt as if something he couldn’t see, yet was utterly terrifying, lurked there. An inexplicable panic seized him, and he sharply averted his gaze.

So, what was truly inside there?

Monkey Wine said his father had ordered the mine sealed. Could it be that even though the Mine Chief and the old master craftsmen on the mine couldn’t determine what was inside, these Witches, who had rarely even eaten Blood Food, actually knew?

As for himself, what should be his priority now?

As he was silently deliberating, a sharp whistle suddenly pierced his ears. Turning to look towards the valley entrance, he saw a dense bank of mist gradually advancing on the valley.

From the crowd, someone closer to the gate suddenly shouted excitedly, "Quick, tell the Mine Chief..."

"The Wugong Clan Chief is here!"