Of Mountains and Rivers

"Are you afraid of fire? Can it be burned?" When Chu Huan asked, his voice was very low. He did it subconsciously, as if he was afraid of alarming something.As his involvement deepened, unconsciously, Chu Huan felt some inexplicable awe towards the world.

Yuan Ping was very uncertain: "This... I only know that there is such a thing, and it's the first time I've seen it... Maybe it's because I'm afraid of fire? Or try it?"

Everyone ignored his opinion, and Xiaofang asked Nanshan for instructions: "Patriarch, I heard from the old man that dead flowers grow very fast, and a single vine can spread over a large area. The bigger it gets, the more wild beasts will be driven upriver in the future, now it is the mountain surrounded by Mutai, will it be surrounded by eye-eating beasts then?"

As soon as he opened his mouth, several people all looked at Nanshan in unison.

Nanshan hesitated for a moment. After the gate was turned upside down, the first and most important thing for the mountain guards to do was to patrol the mountain. Before leaving next year, I will patrol the mountain again, and then leave the mountain gate to the gatekeeper.

The scope of the mountain patrol is usually about ten days. When you arrive at the place, there are several large stone tablets left by the predecessors. Every time the mountain guards arrive at the stone tablet, they will record the date of arrival this time. This is a common practice.

In terms of distance, they only walked halfway through the mountain tour this time, but they have already encountered a large number of flat people, sound beasts, and even eye-eating beasts that they have never encountered before...

Now, it is the dead flower that even Nanshan has only heard of in legends.

Why do dead flowers bloom here for no reason?Nanshan had a feeling - this time, they might not be able to reach the stone tablet at the border of the patrolling mountain.

He shook his head: "No, don't make troubles, let's go."

Everyone suggested what to do, and the decision-maker decided what not to do. Therefore, although Nanshan didn't explain the reason, everyone swallowed their objections when they saw him speak.

Chu Huan subconsciously gave way to others and walked in the back position. When he left, he accidentally glanced back. The large white flowers dazzled his eyes, and Chu Huan felt that his eyes seemed to appear suddenly. With the symptoms of astigmatism, all the scenes in the field of vision have a circle of phantom.

He paused, then rubbed his eyes, and the phantom disappeared.

The mallet walking in front turned around: "What's wrong with you, bitch?"

Yuan Ping yelled impatiently: "Yes, bitch, what are you doing?"

Chu Huan answered absently, followed up with a few steps, and said casually, "I was a little dazzled just now, it's nothing."

"You might as well change your name to Chu Daiyu." Yuan Ping said, "Why don't I get you a Snickers bar?"

Chu Huan said expressionlessly, "Get lost."

He used to be the one who almost jumped off a cliff and fell to his death. For a while, when Chu Huan was alone, he always suspected that he had hallucinations and auditory hallucinations. He was very sensitive to this aspect.

Chu Huan always felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't say it for a while.

The crowd quickly passed the water area where the dead flower was in vain, and left the distance in one breath. When they turned around, there was no trace of the little white flower at all. They were slightly relieved and stopped to take a rest.

The mallet sprained his foot, and led Dashan to run for a long time. At this time, he was almost exhausted. He let go of Dashan's crutches and sat down on the ground: "I haven't encountered these things every year when I patrol the mountain. This is still halfway, Patriarch, you said that the front will not be close to the collapsed place, right?"

Xiaofang: "Don't fart, how could it be possible to fall into..."

How could it be so close to the sinking place? If that's the case, wouldn't they become the only isolated island in the world?

However, he caught a glimpse of Nanshan's face and suddenly couldn't continue.

Nanshan didn't say a word. When he was inconvenient to speak or answer, he would stare at a place and be silent. He used to stare at the harmonica in silence, but now his gaze has a new focus—he began to stare at Chu Huan in silence. .

Bangchui observed his words and felt that he had said something that shouldn't be said, so he hurriedly asked, "Patriarch, has anyone been to the sinking place?"

"Yes," Nanshan said, "I heard it from the elders before. It was decades ago. A warrior in the clan left the mountain gate alone, saying that he was going to visit the dead place."

Bangchu hurriedly asked: "What happened next?"

"I don't know, I haven't come back." Nanshan said, looking at the distant mountains behind him, "But it's been so many years, maybe he's dead? I originally thought that one day in the future, I won't be the patriarch anymore, so I want to be like him." Also go to the border to explore. You see, people, flat people, eye-eaters, sound beasts... We are crowded on several hills all day long to grab a palm-sized territory to survive. I always feel like being locked up on the mountain If one day I will die of old age, I want to see for myself what is outside, so I am willing to close my eyes."

All passionate life must contain the unremitting pursuit of freedom——

It's a pity that he was playing the piano to the cow completely. As a qualified stick, he couldn't understand the feelings of their patriarch at all, and he was clever enough to catch a key word: "Why did you want to? Don't want to now?"

Nanshan: "..."

He was speechless, so he gave the club a kick, and stole a sneaky glance at Chu Huan again like a thief.

He felt a new dissatisfaction in his heart, thinking: "Why do I have to be so sneaky?"

But Chu Huan didn't pay attention to their conversation. He was frowning, his eyes were empty, and he was slowly scanning the surrounding environment, as if he was thinking about something.

Seeing that he didn't respond, Bang Chui was very dissatisfied, and hurried to provoke him. He stabbed Chu Huan, pointed to the front and said, "Did you see that there is a tree hole? It shelters from the wind and people—oh , The tree hole is a good place, my kid was born in that place."

Chu Huan was concentrating on thinking about what he had missed, but he forgot all about it when he was disturbed by the stick. He glanced at the shit-stirring stick discouragedly, and said in Mandarin seriously: "No wonder, I think your son is a fool. Both bear and monkey."

Bang Chui heard a question mark on his forehead, but Chu Huan inadvertently glanced in the direction he was pointing: "What look? Where is there a tree?"

Stick: "It's right there, why can't you see it?"

Chu Huan looked at the direction of his fingers, and then turned his head to look at the stick seriously. When he confirmed that the stick was not meant to be a joke at all, a thin layer of cold sweat suddenly broke out in Chu Huan's palm.

He suddenly remembered what he had missed.

Chu Huan stood up, turned around and pressed Nanshan's shoulder, put the tip of his nose on his long hair under his shocked expression, and sniffed it carefully.

His size suddenly enlarged, Yuan Ping and Bang Chui were surprised at first, and after the surprise, they probably felt that they were not full, and coughed in unison crazily as if they had eaten chicken feathers again.

Yuan Ping knew it in his heart, but he still found it difficult to accept it at first glance, so he shouted, "This is still in broad daylight and in public! Some people, please pay attention to your quality!"

Chu Huan's face suddenly became ugly: "Pay attention to your size! Shut up!"

He found that he could no longer smell the sweet-scented osmanthus from Nanshan's hair.

It smells of plants, of water, of earth...but no human.

It turned out that this was where Chu Huan had been faintly feeling something was wrong—they had been on the road for such a long time, walking in wind and water, blood and sweat flowed a lot, but he couldn't smell blood or sweat at all.

just like……

It was as if everything he smelled in his nose had been simulated stiffly by something.

"Illusion," Chu Huan glanced around, "I'm afraid we haven't left that white flower yet."

Nan Shan's expression froze suddenly: "Don't walk around, come here, sit down, and form a circle."

Several people immediately gathered together, sandwiching the invisible mountain in the middle.

"Tell me what you saw." Nanshan said, "I'll come first. I saw a mountain on one side and a river on the other. There are young grasses all over the mountains, and the fish in the water are writhing and playing normally. No tree in sight."

"I didn't see a tree either," Chu Huan said, and then added, "Even the grass is sparse, basically none."

Xiaofang raised her hand and pointed out of nowhere: "I saw a big tree over there, without a tree hole."

Yuan Ping swallowed: "I didn't see any fish in the water."

Stick: "I saw a few dead trees over there, and there was a big tree hole in the middle one."

"I..." The invisible Da Shan suddenly said, "Patriarch, I smell the fragrance of flowers."

For a moment, everyone looked at each other in blank dismay, and no one said a word.

After a while, Yuan Ping tremblingly raised a hand: "I...I have a suggestion, it's not suitable to stay here for a long time, let's leave as quickly as we can."

Xiaofang: "Where are you going?"

Yuan Ping raised his hand at the same time, pointing in two very different directions: "Over there."

Immediately, the two of them looked at each other, each feeling a chill down their backs.

Nanshan calmed down unusually, but for the most dangerous things, the patriarch will do everything by himself. He is obviously more experienced than everyone else in dealing with such situations: "Don't panic, it doesn't matter, tell me where the water you see is, isn't it there?" side?"

This time, everyone's opinions were finally unified.

Nanshan: "Okay, now stay away from the water, everyone backs up - Chu Huan gave me your little square box - everyone backs up, hurry up!"

I don't know why, every time Chu Huan speaks something, everyone will get goosebumps from him, but Nanshan is the opposite. It may be that the patriarch is used to it. Every word he utters has weight. Seeing the sense of calm that can push people's hearts back into their stomachs.

Chu Huan handed him the lighter: "What are you doing?"

Nanshan downcast: "You also step back."

Nan Shan stared at Chu Huan until he saw him retreat ten steps away with his own eyes, then turned his head and faced the direction of the water. He glanced around, picked up a wooden stick from the ground, turned on the lighter, and lit it. up.

The moment the flames lit up, the ground rolled and trembled as if it had been wound up, and there was an extremely angry roar not far away, and the wooden stick in Nanshan's hand suddenly seemed to have life, and suddenly fell from the ground. He broke free from his hands, turned into a stick of fire in mid-air, dragged a comet-like flame, and smashed towards him head-on and face-to-face.

Chu Huan wanted to step forward to stop him the moment he ignited the fire, but it was too fast, and it was too late. He could only pounce on Nanshan suddenly, and pressed him to the ground with his inertia, and then a shot passed from his back. A sharp burning pain came, and Chu Huan's elbow gave way, and he fell directly on Nanshan's body.

It turned out that the lit wooden stick was not a wooden stick at all, it was a huge vine as thick as a human wrist, covered with small thorns like thorns, like an invisible monster, it was burned out of its real body by Nanshan fire .

The ignited vines flung around in pain, like a whip pulled out of the flames, leaving a bloody gash on Chu Huan's back that stretched from his right shoulder to his left waist, and the sharp thorns tore off his entire body. Layers of skin and flesh left scorched black marks on both sides of the wound.

Chu Huan's eyes went dark immediately, and he suppressed a scream in his throat, thinking: "His grandma, this is seven years old!"

Nanshan suddenly felt as if his back was being pumped. The pain in his imagination was more real than real. It almost split his body in half, and his chest was almost numb from the pain.

He hugged Chu Huan and dragged him back about ten meters. There was a roar in Chu Huan's ears, and after adjusting the focus for a long time, he barely stood up straight, and looked back - only to see the man across the river. Where is the net of dead branches on both sides of the strait, it is clearly a huge plant, a huge vine octopus tentacles like a group of demons dancing wildly, the thorns on it are glowing with blood, it seems that the small white flowers on the roots of the vines are pitiful and frightening .

Yes, it is still pitifully spitting out deadly nectar.

Chu Huan took a few breaths, as if trying to calm down the pain with deep breaths, and forced a smile after standing still: "It's all right, it's not a big problem, just burn it to disinfect and relieve the pain."

Nanshan's complexion did not look any better.

Yuan Ping patted Xiaofang's shoulder dumbly: "Brother, who did we say we were going to burn just now? I think we should go to hell!"

The ferocious hairy monkey has been frightened into a dumbfounded thumb monkey.

The stick quickly picked up the invisible mountain: "Patriarch, run or fight?"

Nanshan lowered his eyes and took a deep look at the hideous wound on Chu Huan's back. A burst of anger in his heart was about to burn him. The evil fire burned the shyness in his heart to ashes, and his chest was full of unbearable murder. meaning.

Nan Shan lowered his head and rubbed his chin against the side of Chu Huan's neck which was already covered in cold sweat in a short while. His movements were extremely gentle, but his hands were shaking violently - he still couldn't smell any burnt or blood in such a wound. smell.

"It's staring at us, we can't escape." Nanshan said.

Afterwards, he reached out to wipe off the cold sweat on Chu Huan's forehead, and said loudly, "Beat."

As soon as he finished speaking, as if he wanted to respond to his provocation, countless dry branches accompanied by huge vines broke out of the ground, intending to show some color to these prey who dared to resist.

Yuan Ping felt that he was jumping and kicking, and his feet could not stop at the same place. He pulled out the half-moon-shaped machete on his body, and slashed at the thorny rattan. But how the hell do you fight!"

The vines are not invulnerable, but the wild fire burns and the spring wind blows and regenerates. They grow faster than they are cut. Soon, the dead branches will weave a cage of thorns above them.

The wound on Chu Huan’s back hurt so much that he wanted to roll over, but the pain just reassured him, which meant that the spikes on the cane were not as poisonous as flowers, so he took out a short knife and cut off a section of the cane. Tiao, grinning and said: "If this thing is really a plant, I will only be a vegetarian from now on."

The rattan that was chopped off by him happened to be caught by Nan Shan, who lit it with a lighter, raised his hand and threw it on the thorn cage.

The almost impenetrable vine was burnt out a hole in an instant, and the dead flower let out a hoarse roar again.

Chu Huan's eyes lit up: "I'm really afraid of fire!"

Nanshan raised his hand and threw the lighter to him, and Chu Huan copied it in his hand. His left and right hands cooperated seamlessly, chopping firewood and setting fire with perfect proficiency in a series of movements.

Yuan Ping: "This, this!"

The lighter quickly spread among several people, and they set fire to the camp by the river, setting up a Plants vs. Zombies version of the Battle of Chibi.

The fire quickly shot up into the sky, and the dead flower was like a big octopus perched on the water, baring its teeth and claws hysterically.

The astigmatism-like phantom just now appeared in front of Chu Huan again. He was taken aback for a moment, and then those ferocious vines suddenly retreated collectively, diving into the water, the fire crashed into the water, burned for a while, and finally it was still water and fire Not allowed, disappeared in the green smoke.

In vain, the flowers stopped moving.

After a moment of silence, Yuan Ping was the first to ask, "Is this a conquest?"

Chu Huan said coolly: "Didn't you notice that there is no smell now? The smell of water and plants has disappeared, and we have completely lost our sense of smell."

Xiaofang sat down on the ground, her hands were still trembling: "No matter what, when I go back, I must tell them about it. I have seen the dead flower—everyone has heard of it, but no one has seen it, right?" ? I've seen it before!"

Nanshan didn't say a word, and stood there in a very alert posture—yes, I'm afraid that even the elders in the clan have never seen dead flowers in vain. Everything about this kind of monster is hearsay. A legend of something else.

Phantom Monkey, can't smell.