The drums below the mountain were deafening, their noisy echoes piercing through the dense forest and reaching Bai Lixin’s ears.
Bai Lixin glanced down the mountain, where Gentle Village was shrouded in fog. However, this sea of white wasn’t fog; it was the smoke from firecrackers burning.
“Gentle Village is having a wedding?” Bai Lixin withdrew his gaze and looked at Li Cancan and Sun Ning.
Sun Ning: “Do you remember those five players, especially Small Braid? Today is the day of their group wedding.”
Bai Lixin chuckled, “Really? Aren’t they afraid of accidentally marrying the wrong bride?”
Li Cancan pouted in anger, “They aren’t afraid at all. In fact, they hope for it. That way, they can kill two birds with one stone.”
Bai Lixin cast a sidelong glance at Li Cancan, “Li Cancan, be cautious with your use of idioms.”
Li Cancan pursed her lips, still angry.
Seeing this, Bai Lixin asked, “What’s wrong? Who has upset our Miss Li Cancan?”
Sun Ning: “Who else could it be but the men in the village? You’ve been on the mountain these past few days and may not know. Ever since the village chief threatened to kill us if they couldn’t find the culprit, all the men, young and old, married or not, have been swarming us female players. They’re trying to matchmake us, saying who’s the most outstanding among their sons, and which family’s sons are the best.”
“Their behavior makes it seem like we’re fish on a chopping board. And the way they look at us, it’s as if they’re watching lambs to be slaughtered.”
“I’m actually quite angry, but I can still hold it in. However, Li Cancan couldn’t, and she’s been angry all the way here.”
“But it’s really infuriating,” Li Cancan’s eyes turned red, “Wuuu, God Xin, you have no idea what nonsense they’re spouting. They say things like women are incomplete until they marry and have children, or that not having a partner means we’ll be unhappy, or that without children or a spouse, we can only just lie in bed and wait to die. They make it sound like not getting married is equivalent to doomsday.”
“The twi of us only have two mouths, we can’t argue with so many of them, wuuu.”
As Li Cancan spoke, she couldn’t help but cry in grievance. She had never experienced such frustration in her life.
Sun Ning was skilled at comforting her, so it seemed that Li Cancan had been crying a lot these past few days.
When Li Cancan had cried enough, Bai Lixin asked, “What about the other two female players?”
Sun Ning: “They’re hiding in Pan Pan’s house. I’ve noticed that the villagers are quite afraid of Pan Pan. They don’t dare to approach her house. Fortunately, Pan Pan is with them, otherwise, I think we would have been overwhelmed by the villagers’ enthusiasm.”
“Also, some of the male players are relaxing at Pan Pan’s house, while others have already started drawing lots. They’ve searched for two days but haven’t found the culprit. I can tell from their behavior that if you don’t return soon, they might just pin the ‘culprit’ label on you directly.”
Bai Lixin looked a bit hesitant and glanced at the small wolf cub in his arms.
He couldn’t bring Dijia down the mountain again. Dijia was only a month old now, and if he took him down, the wolf cub might just go back into its mother’s womb.
The wolf cub seemed to sense Bai Lixin’s thoughts. It reluctantly nudged Bai Lixin’s chin with its head and touched Bai Lixin’s nose with its wet nose. Then, with a low whimper, it jumped out of Bai Lixin’s arms and, using its short legs, scampered away toward the mountaintop.
Bai Lixin stood there, watching Dijia disappear from his sight.
It wasn’t until Dijia had completely vanished from his view that Bai Lixin turned to the two women and said, “Let’s go. We’re heading down the mountain.”
There were many traps on the mountain, and if it were just Bai Lixin alone, he could reach the foot of the mountain in less than half an hour. But now, with Li Cancan and Sun Ning accompanying him, his speed had slowed considerably, and it took them two hours to reach the mountain’s base.
During the journey, Bai Lixin recounted the events of the past two days and his discoveries.
Several times, Li Cancan and Sun Ning clenched their fists in anger.
However, when they heard that all the women in Gentle Village were actually men, Sun Ning and Li Cancan both displayed subtle and somewhat complex expressions.
Li Cancan asked, “What happened afterward? Did Ah Jing manage to escape? Did she come back to pick up Liang Tingting and Pan Pan? Did all the kidnapped women get rescued? What about Liang Tingting? Did she get saved?”
She asked urgently, as if she desperately wanted to know an answer.
Bai Lixin and Sun Ning exchanged a glance and fell into silence.
Li Cancan grew impatient, “Why are you keeping silent?”
Sun Ning: “Think about it, if their resolution was good, this copy wouldn’t exist.”
A touch of sadness appeared on Li Cancan’s face.
Bai Lixin: “I saw things progressing in a positive direction. Something must have happened in between to lead to the current situation.”
Li Cancan asked, “God Xin, could the two-faced female ghost you saw in the desolate village be them? Ah Jing and Liang Tingting?”
She suddenly laughed in a somewhat mocking manner, “Ah Jing, ‘Jing’ implies beauty. Tingting, ‘Ting’ means pretty. When their families named them, they must have hoped for their future to be filled with goodness, right?”
Sun Ning gently patted Li Cancan’s back, providing silent comfort.
As they neared the foot of the mountain, Bai Lixin stopped and turned toward the mountaintop.
A small shadow flickered suddenly and disappeared into the nearby bushes.
Bai Lixin glanced at the clump of bushes. As if talking to the air or to himself, he said: “I’ll go find Dijia once I’m done with everything. By then, he should be waiting obediently in his little nest on the mountaintop.”
With that, he cast another glance at the clump of bushes before turning and heading down the mountain.
When Bai Lixin walked into the village, a plump little wolf cub emerged from behind the bushes.
It gazed intently at the village below for a long while, then shook its head vigorously, dislodging the fallen leaves stuck to its fur. Afterward, it turned and ran toward the mountainside.
When the three of them returned to the village, five families were simultaneously hosting their guests.
With over a hundred villagers of all ages and both genders in attendance, the courtyard couldn’t accommodate them all, so they held the wedding feast in the village committee’s courtyard.
As Bai Lixin and his companions entered the courtyard, they saw the village chief giving a speech on the stage.
“Today is a joyous day, so let me say a few words.”
“Although it’s hard for us because of the accident that occurred while one of our men was working outside the village, I’m excited about the fresh energy these newcomers bring to our village.”
“Let’s raise our glasses together to welcome our five new bridegrooms into our big family!”
The five players had flushed cheeks, clearly a bit tipsy already.
Amid the cheers of the surrounding crowd, they raised their hands repeatedly and downed their glasses of fine wine.
At one of the tables sat five brides in red wedding gowns. Their veils were already lifted, and all five sat with smiles on their faces. Despite their smiles, the happiness didn’t reach their eyes.
The five brides sitting together with their smiles appeared somewhat strange when combined with the suona music in the background.
Other uninvolved players were crammed at another table, observing the wedding with gloomy expressions. They couldn’t understand how experienced warriors like themselves had been ensnared in this seemingly harmless copy.
At the beginning, there truly seemed to be no danger here.
No supernatural occurrences, no monsters, just a simple rural setting.
Initially, they were cautious, but perhaps it was the environment or the seemingly pure-hearted villagers that made them gradually let their guard down, leading to their gradual defeat.
Sometimes, the truly deadly aspects were not the sharp fangs and claws that were visible, but the ruthless thorns hidden beneath the beautiful blossoms.
A table for ten was now hosting twelve players—ten men and two women, so Bai Lixin and his group had to find another table.
The mute woman happened to be seated at this table. When her husband noticed Bai Lixin, he called out to him, “Hey, you’re back? We thought you had a guilty conscience and ran away.”
Bai Lixin glanced at the mute woman, whose belly had grown noticeably larger since he left a few days ago.
Sensing Bai Lixin’s gaze, the mute woman gave him a faint smile.
In Bai Lixin’s mind, the image of Mute Uncle instantly appeared. He shuddered all over and quickly averted his gaze.
“I got lost in the mountains after going up there and wandered around for two days before finding my way back. It just so happened that I ran into them.”
“Why don’t I see Auntie?” Bai Lixin looked around but still didn’t see the man’s mother.
The man replied, “My mother passed away.”
Bai Lixin, who had just picked up his chopsticks, put them down again, saying, “I’m sorry for your loss.”
“People all have to die, there’s nothing to be sad about,” the man shrugged nonchalantly. “You mentioned getting lost in the mountains earlier, and I believe that. Don’t be fooled by the fact that our mountains aren’t high, there are many winding paths inside. In the past, some people wanted to cross the mountain to leave the village, but they got lost up there and were eventually found and brought back.”
With a “clang,” a bowl fell to the ground.
Li Cancan had an ugly expression and she quickly bent down to pick it up. “Sorry, it slipped.”
“No worries, it happens. May you have peace year after year,” the man laughed heartily. “Besides, it’s not even our bowl, so it doesn’t matter.”
The three: “…”
Bai Lixin’s gaze once again fell upon the five brides.
They all had pregnant bellies, especially Sister Song, whose belly was round and looked like she was about to give birth in just a month or so.
“Didn’t they say the women of Gentle Village give birth after three months of pregnancy? Why does Sister Song look like she’s about to give birth?” Bai Lixin retracted his gaze from Sister Song’s belly and asked the man.
The man explained, “If it’s a normal pregnancy, it takes three months before giving birth. But she drank the mountain water, and that spring water accelerates the growth. After drinking it, babies can be born very quickly.”
“Is it that miraculous?” Bai Lixin asked.
Li Cancan chimed in, “Isn’t this similar to the Zimu River in the Kingdom of Women?”
*Zimu River was a moat located in Xiliang Women’s Kingdom in “Journey To The West”. There was no man in the Kingdom of Women so its female inhabitants who are over 20 years old would drink water from the river and got pregnant afterwards.
“It’s different,” another person at the table said. “The Zimu River makes you pregnant immediately after drinking, but this spring water only works if you’re already pregnant. When we drink it, it’s just like regular water, nothing special.”
Bai Lixin looked at the other pregnant women and asked, “Then why do some drink it while others don’t?”
“You think everyone is as lucky as Sister Song, finding a man willing to fetch water for her up in the mountains? That water isn’t easy to get, a slight mistake can lead to disabilities. Look at her man, that little guy with the braid, he will limp his whole life… oh no, not just this life, maybe even the next life and the one after that.”
Bai Lixin didn’t see Pan Pan at the wedding, only Pan Pan’s mother. He learned that Pan Pan usually didn’t attend wedding banquets.
Pan Pan’s mother was seated among a group of men, and the men around her didn’t show any mercy, pouring her alcohol relentlessly.
Initially, seeing this scene might have made him uncomfortable, but when he thought that the woman was actually a man, the discomfort became rather peculiar..very strange.
Li Cancan had become uneasy ever since she found out that all the women in the village were actually men. She thought for a moment and suddenly leaned in to whisper to Sun Ning.
“Sun Ning, have you ever taken a bath in front of our host?”
Sun Ning stared at Li Cancan’s serious face for two seconds and replied, “Uh, no.”
“That’s good, that’s good,” Li Cancan’s expression relaxed. “I haven’t either! Us dear girls must protect ourselves when away from home. Don’t worry, Sun Ning, I’ll think of the things you can’t imagine.”
Sun Ning: “…”
‘Well, I’ve actually thought of them long ago.
Forget it, I won’t say anything.’
“Ahh!” The wedding hadn’t ended yet, and there was a sudden scream from the table where the brides were seated. “Something’s wrong, something’s wrong, Sister Song is about to give birth. Someone, quick, help!”
Small Braid was already completely drunk and barely understood the words “about to give birth.” All he heard was “about to give birth,” so he slurred, “Who, who’s giving birth? Is it a ball? Hahaha, giving birth, giving birth.”
Seeing that Small Braid couldn’t help in any way, several men and women from the village hurriedly rushed in, carrying Sister Song back to her house.
Just as they were halfway there, Sister Song suddenly shouted, “It’s too late! Put me down, the head is coming out!”
Li Cancan had never seen such a scene before and was so frightened she hid behind Bai Lixin.
Upon hearing Sister Song’s words, they quickly placed her on the ground, and with a “plop,” a slippery object slid out from under her clothes.
Seeing the baby being born, the entire village erupted in excitement. Their faces were filled with an eerie and unsettling euphoria that made Li Cancan and the others feel uneasy. It was as if Sister Song hadn’t given birth to a child, but to gold.
The baby was still attached to the umbilical cord, and without the need for scissors, several men bit the cord off with their hands and mouths. One of them picked up the baby and thrust it into Small Braid’s arms, saying, “Quick, look, this is your child!”
Small Braid, who was already extremely drunk, was suddenly stunned when the slippery baby was thrust into his arms. He stood there dumbfounded, wearing a bewildered and helpless expression on his face.
“My son, it’s a son! This is wonderful, it’s a son!” The entire village cheered excitedly, creating a bizarre and eerie scene that exuded a chilling sense of horror.
Li Cancan looked at the faces of these people and noticed something was off. Despite their manic laughter, it seemed that their laughter was no different from crying.
Everyone’s expressions were exaggerated, their skin stretched to the maximum, and the corners of their eyes were bent downward.
They were laughing, but they were trying hard to laugh.
They were also afraid, though it was unknown as to what they were afraid of.
Li Cancan looked at this group of people who resembled inmates in an insane asylum, and felt a wave of discomfort in her stomach. “God Xin, I’m feeling quite nauseous. What’s going on?”
Bai Lixin: “I don’t know. Let’s observe a bit more.”
While everyone in the village danced and celebrated the arrival of the child, Sister Song, who had just given birth, lay alone on the ground, forgotten by everyone. Moreover, a few people even accidentally stepped on her hand while celebrating.
This crazy celebration of welcoming the child’s arrival lasted for twenty minutes before people remembered the woman still lying on the ground and quickly carried her into the house.
After Sister Song was taken away, a sticky substance remained on the ground.
Li Cancan sighed, “My feelings right now are quite complicated, very complicated, extremely complicated.”
“I originally wanted to sympathize with her situation, but then I thought, when she was a man, she must have done the same things these men are doing now. So the suffering she’s experiencing now is all the karma she created for herself. It’s… really complicated.”
Sun Ning: “Have you cured your overflowing sympathy?”
Li Cancan nodded firmly, “Yes!”
“But let’s make it clear, I’m not targeting all men in the world. There are many good men like God Xin, Xia Chi, Zhou Guang, and Liang Xi. I’m just targeting these… scumbags!”
Sun Ning replied, “Alright, alright, I understand.”
————————————-
In the live broadcast room
[Sisters, my head is spinning right now, I need some rescue.]
[While rescuing, can you rescue my brother too?]
[I have to say, this copy is so clever! Today, you make me suffer this great ordeal, and tomorrow, it’s your turn to taste it. Brilliant.]
[”You wanted a son, so give birth to one yourself.” Genius. Sisters, why do I suddenly wish that all scumbags could enter this copy?]
[I’m dying of laughter.]
[Ahem, um, you should also consider the feelings of us male viewers in the comments.]
[Hahaha, pat pat the male viewers in the comments, if you’re a good guy, you don’t need to enter, be good and go play elsewhere.]
[Wuuu.]
[A gender-swapping copy, absolute genius.]
