Erreur Yin et Yang

Chapitre 12

"That must be a female black widow," Shirley Yang whispered. "They're a pair. Black widows have a natural habit of biting off the male's head after mating, eating the carcass, and then laying eggs and giving birth."

The female black widow swallowed her husband's head in a few bites, then suddenly turned around, her eyes flashing with bloodlust, and hersed wildly. The little black spiders that were lying beside her swarmed out and rushed towards her with a rustling sound.

Seeing the whole family of Black Widows charging towards them like a road roller, Black Jack ordered his men to focus their fire on the leading female Black Widow.

Unfortunately, despite attacking it thoroughly, they couldn't find any weakness in this creature. Unlike the male black widow, who at least had a red spot to deal with, this one was different. After a fierce battle, several small male spiders with red spots were shot through and lay on the ground, helplessly waving their claws.

Only the leading female black widow was even more ferocious, charging left and right, spitting venom, and leading three female black spiders to attack us recklessly. We were constantly retreating in disarray, and we lost several more team members.

Seeing the mother spider devouring and biting indiscriminately, the injured team members screamed in agony as they were eaten one by one. The remaining team members were even more terrified and lost the ability to resist.

Just then, a loud buzzing sound came from above, and a string of yellow flying objects, each the size of a baby's fist, flew out from the tree burl. They hovered in mid-air and quickly coalesced into a yellow sphere the size of an eight-immortal table.

Shirley Yang exclaimed with joy, "There's hope! It's a wild wasp!"

In the laws of nature, wild wasps are the number one natural enemy of the highly venomous black widow spider.

Shirley Yang quietly instructed everyone to turn their clothes inside out over their heads, crawl on the ground in the bushes under the giant vine net, and remain silent.

At that moment, several man-eating, venomous black widow spiders slithered across our path. We were forced to cover our heads and crawl on the ground, entrusting our lives to the tiny wasps. Everyone wore expressions of disbelief.

However, upon peeking up, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They saw that the Black Widows not far away had also quietly huddled together in a defensive posture, completely devoid of their earlier ferocious, mountain-splitting demeanor.

The bee ball rolled closer and closer, when suddenly a gust of wind blew by, causing the branches to sway. The bee ball seemed to be torn open by the wind, and a thick yellow line shot towards the Black Widow.

Seeing the swarm of wasps approaching, several small female spiders panicked and suddenly turned to crawl away. In no time, the swarm of wasps caught up with them and pounced on their mouths and snouts, sending a shower of wasps flying. The small female spiders instantly fell backward to the ground, flailed their legs, and died.

Only the giant female spider remained calm, letting the swarm of bees fall all over her body, bowing her head and not moving an inch.

This stalemate can't go on forever. I couldn't help but glance at Shirley Yang, a growing anxiety creeping in. Shirley Yang understood my meaning, shook her head, and gestured that we shouldn't act rashly, lest we expose ourselves to the swarm and suffer undeserved harm.

Just then, one of our team members yelled and leaped into the air, lunging at the mother giant spider. We were startled, only to see a long, withered brown twig trailing behind him. Wait a minute, damn it, this poor guy's been attacked by a viper.

The poor thing was leaping and staggering, wildly firing his submachine gun erratically, sending branches and leaves flying in front of us, forcing us all to duck down. He just couldn't break free from the long viper behind him. At that moment, none of us dared to go forward and help him up. Bullets spun around, sweeping across the lurking giant spider, making it tremble violently.

The swarm of wasps in the sky suddenly split into two groups. One group rushed towards the foreigner being bitten by the viper, while a large gust of yellow wind swirled around the black widow's head.

Seeing the viper and the foreigner swarming around the wasps, and after the buzzing subsided, both the viper and the foreigner's team member turned into abscessed, jet-black bloats. The foreigner's face was covered in long, thin, venomous stings, and from a distance, the man and the snake resembled the corpse of a monster with a long, jet-black tail.

Over there, the Black Widow, finally unable to bear the swarm of wasps any longer, suddenly raised her head and spat a large glob of black liquid at the yellow wind, annihilating countless wasps. The wasps that were knocked down dragged their infant-sized bodies across the ground, quickly dying.

However, this angered an even larger swarm of wasps. The wasps swarmed around, completely enveloping the black widow's head, making it look as if a golden cauldron had been placed over her head.

Unable to bear the stinging pain, the Black Widow lunged forward, crashing headfirst into a crooked tree as thick as a bowl. The impact broke the tree, and her upper body, the crown of the tree, fell askew, crashing into a giant vine net and sending leaves flying everywhere.

The black widow, as if blinded, charged wildly, but could not escape the swarm of wasps. Gradually, her limbs trembled, and she lay dying. Countless wasps flew in and out of her mouth and nostrils. In the sunlight, their gleaming organs could be faintly seen protruding from their tails, deeply piercing the black widow's flesh. A pungent, nauseating stench spread through the woods.

The Black Widow twitched nervously twice before finally passing away peacefully.

The swarm of wasps landed on the black spider, tearing small holes in it and exposing its genitals. Inside the holes, they produced clumps of granular, sticky substance, which they then flew back to their tree-burrow nest.

Shirley Yang said those were eggs laid by the female wasp. They often lay their eggs inside captured insects in order to raise the larvae.

Everyone lay prone on the ground, holding their breath for a long time. Seeing that there was no further movement, Shirley Yang instructed Black Jack to lead the group out of the woods step by step in silence.

Volume 1, Ancient Tomb at the Cape, Chapter 30: Re-entering the Deadly Forest's Super Poisonous Toad

The further you go, the denser the forest becomes, and the potholes on the ground grow larger and larger, one after another. Trees stubbornly twist their bodies, taking root in the cracks of the rocks, growing crookedly into strangely shaped towering trees, proclaiming their great age.

The three of us were still squeezed in the middle of the line, squeezing forward and sideways through the newly cleared gaps in the trees. The procession moved very slowly, relying entirely on the people in front to clear a narrow path with knives, and it was a winding, zigzagging route.

Even the fat man muttered, "No one seems to have been here for thousands of years, how could there be a tomb? Maybe that old dog Robert has lost his mind and is just playing with our lives for fun."

Blackjack adjusted the theodolite, saw that it was almost noon, waved a stop signal, and the group rested on the spot. A blond, blue-eyed foreigner, who looked quite young, took food out of his backpack and distributed it to everyone. He walked up to us, glared at us, tossed down three packets of compressed biscuits, and strode away.

Damn it, the fat guy's temper flared. He lunged forward and kicked the foreigner. Caught off guard, the little foreigner fell flat on his face. He scrambled to his feet, cocked his gun, and was about to fire at the fat guy's head. I raised my gun, but the foreigner next to me pressed it against my lower back.

To everyone's surprise, the fat guy didn't seem to care at all. He stretched out his leg, patted his trouser leg, and then turned around and walked back in a swagger. He grinned at me and Shirley Yang, winked, and sat down.

The young foreigner, holding his submachine gun, stood frozen in place, unsure of what to do.

Blackjack stood up, waved, took a canteen of fresh water from his person, and handed it to Shirley Yang, thus bringing the matter to a close.

I advised the fat man to be patient and not to waste his breath on a little kid. Given the current situation, it's best not to cause any unnecessary trouble.

The fatso couldn't help but let out a stinky fart and said, "Nonsense. Chairman Mao taught us that a wise man doesn't drink from a polluted spring, and an honest man doesn't accept food offered with contempt. I, Fatty, would rather starve to death than be a lowly, begging dog of capitalism."

It's really tough on him. He makes himself stink while bragging and patting himself on the back without a care in the world.

I pinched my nose, handed him a bag of compressed biscuits, and chuckled as I said, "Alright. Stop pretending to be so righteous, you're just someone who wants to stomp on anyone you don't like. I'll give you a lecture when we get home, you can't talk to a ghost here. Consider this a begging for your food."

After a ten-minute rest, we were urged to get up and continue deeper into the dense forest. As we walked, a rich, spicy aroma wafted over. Everyone noticed it, sniffing and looking ahead.

Perhaps it was because we hadn't had a hot meal in a long time. I could actually smell the delicious aroma of stir-fried pork with scallions and chili peppers, the kind you find in old Beijing restaurants. Just thinking about it made my mouth water, and Fatty and I couldn't help but swallow hard.

The people ahead parted the bushes and saw a huge cluster of yellow trumpet flowers blocking their way in the middle of the road.

The flower is entirely pinkish-yellow, and its lower part is taller than a person. It has a small mouth and a large belly, resembling a big-bellied gourd. It is quite cute. It has no leaves or branches and grows strangely on a piece of wood root.

The pungent, spicy aroma emanated from the flower's stamen, which was taller than a person.

Shirley Yang told Blackjack that it must be the legendary man-eating flower, also known as the corpse flower, which feeds on carnivorous animals and must never be approached.

Unfortunately, the man-eating flower was located right on the rim of two large pits, each over ten feet wide, with bottomless depths and dense, impenetrable forests. To get around it, one would have to carve out an alternate route, which would take at least another half hour, making it seem very impractical.

Blackjack glanced at the sky and ordered his men to shoot it down. Three or five men opened fire simultaneously, riddling the giant man-eating flower with bullet holes in the blink of an eye. The flower swayed violently, and streams of clear, watery sap gushed from its belly, emitting a fragrant aroma.

The foreign boy distributing food happened to be at the front of the line. When he saw that the water had run dry, he casually raised his rifle butt and struck the man-eating flower, which was riddled with bullet holes, in an attempt to knock it down in one fell swoop.

No one expected that the moment the butt of the gun touched the flower, the large, upturned trumpet-shaped flower head, the size of a millstone, trembled as if struck by lightning, and suddenly tumbled down, bending over to take the little foreign devil, gun and all, into the flower's stamen. At the same time, five or six serrated petals, the size of a palm-leaf fan, curled up and closed, trapping the little foreign devil's upper body in the flower's mouth.

In a mere split second, a torrent of blood, mixed with the white, sticky secretions of the flower, gushed down its surface. The young foreigner was caught in the flower's center and lifted into the air. Before he could even scream, his legs kicked twice, and he was sucked entirely into the gourd-shaped flower sac. Immediately, the sound of bones breaking and flesh tearing filled the air. The flower sac contracted rapidly, and blood and flesh spurted from the bullet holes, seemingly announcing the end of the young foreigner's life.

With a shout, the crowd unleashed a flurry of gunfire, snapping the man-eating flower from its roots and sending it tumbling like a bucket into a nearby pit filled with fallen leaves, disappearing from sight.

Fatty Wang, his eyes bloodshot, pulled a melon-shaped grenade from his waist, bit off the ring, and slammed it into the deep pit. With a loud thud, fallen leaves flew everywhere, revealing the bottomless, funnel-shaped pit, where there was no trace of the man-eating flower.

The birds in the dense forest were startled at this moment and fled into the sky like dark clouds.

A moment of silence fell over everyone; no one spoke. Blackjack frowned, waved for the line to proceed cautiously.

After walking for about fifteen minutes, the air gradually became humid. Turning past a large ditch, the view suddenly opened up. A vast, tranquil lake, spanning several miles in circumference, nestled among reeds taller than a person, shimmered in the sunlight before everyone's eyes.

The dense forest recedes into the distance, a gentle breeze blows, and ripples spread across the sapphire-blue lake, creating a scene of great poetic beauty.

Shirley Yang took a deep breath of fresh air and didn't want to open her eyes for a long time.

The filthy team members cheered and, disregarding order, jumped into the reeds on the bank, drank their fill of fresh water, filled their canteens, and rushed to wash away the filth.

I gestured for Shirley Yang and Fatty to go into the water to wash away the dust first. I stood on the shore with my submachine gun in hand, keeping watch for any movement around me.

I waited until most people were ashore before jumping into the water. Looking around, I saw only Black Jack and two foreign team members washing up at the water's edge.

The spider fluids on my clothes had long since dried, looking like ugly and disgusting patches in the sunlight. I took off my shirt, washed my hands and face, and wrung it out in the water.

Suddenly, a burst of submachine gun fire landed beside me, splashing water everywhere. I jumped, grabbed my shirt, and scrambled ashore. It was Shirley Yang's gun.

Shirley Yang, panting, told me that in that instant, she suddenly felt something huge approaching me from underwater, and before she could say anything, she fired her gun.

Fatty and I knew that Shirley Yang had prophetic genes, and we firmly believed it. However, everyone, look at the water's edge; the water is still crystal clear, clearly indicating that the gunfire didn't hit anything, although many of the reeds along the water's edge were broken.

I could see that most people were looking at me with disdain, which clearly showed their distrust.

Shirley Yang turned around urgently and gave Blackjack a thorough explanation.

Blackjack listened to Shirley Yang's words without saying a word, his face grim. He then walked over to a short-haired white-haired foreigner and whispered something to him.

After listening, Shirley Yang explained to us that the short-haired foreigner named Steve had the same acquired psychic abilities as Ah Xiang, and could sense unclean things around him.

Steve walked to the water's edge, closed his eyes, embraced the moon, stood quietly for a few minutes, then turned back and shook his head at Blackjack.

Blackjack's eyes lit up. He directed his men to open a backpack, take out three diving suits, and order three of his best swimmers to put them on. They also put on sunglasses and each carried a flat oxygen tank the size of a shoulder bag. Fully armed, they seemed ready to go into the water.

Blackjack carefully inspected the three men's equipment, equipping each with two grenades and a pistol. Then, at his command, the three men tumbled headfirst into the water.

The water was calm and remained silent for a long time. Everyone was exhausted and leaned against the tree roots on the bank, except for Blackjack, who stood straight by the water's edge like a black iron tower, alert to his surroundings.

About half an hour later, Shirley Yang, who had been sitting next to me dozing off, suddenly jumped up and frantically shouted at Blackjack, "Quick, quick, there's a monster in the water!"

The foreign soldiers were startled and jumped up, quickly cocking their guns and aiming them at the water. However, the water remained calm and still for a long time.

I grabbed Shirley Yang and pressed her down to sit under the tree, signaling her to calm down.

Shirley Yang paused, then slumped down and said to me and Fatty, "As I was sitting, I suddenly saw a huge water monster in the water tearing at a diver's leg in a half-dream state. It ripped off his leg in one bite."

Before the words were finished, a commotion erupted underwater in the center, and a dark, crimson stain briefly spread across the surface. The waves parted, and two divers surfaced one after the other, swimming nervously toward the shore, glancing back in fear every now and then.

The diver behind him hadn't swum more than a few meters when he was suddenly pulled underwater by a huge whirlpool. A few drops of blood rose to the surface. The man struggled to raise half a hand and wave it on the water before sinking to the bottom and disappearing from sight.

The people on the shore fired in unison, and the last remaining diver struggled to paddle towards the shore. Taking advantage of the lull, he pulled out grenades from his waist and detonated them one after another, throwing them behind him. Two loud explosions caused towering waves to surge, and the shore was churned up with countless plumes of grenades.

The massive waves propelled him quickly far out, just five or six meters from the shore. Suddenly, the water surged, revealing a huge, wide mouth at the bottom. The mouth opened wide and bit the diver's hind leg. With a flick of its head, it flung the diver into the middle of the water, revealing its enormous head, covered in venomous bumps the size of walnuts. Its green eyes gleamed, its skin was dark gray, and its short, webbed limbs revealed it to be a gigantic toad.

Volume 1, Ancient Tomb at the Cape, Chapter 31: Re-entering the Deadly Forest, Submerging Underwater

The diver was flung into the middle of the water, and the super poisonous toad quickly swam over.

In a panic, the diver drew his pistol and fired a series of shots at the giant poisonous toad. The bullets struck the toad as if hitting cotton wool, and instead, strands of white latex were ejected from the poisonous bumps all over its body and scattered into the water.

Before long, the diver was covered in toad juice, his face was swollen, reddish-black, and he was flailing his arms and legs like a drunkard, unable to control his limbs as he fell into the water.

Everyone fired their guns at the same time, and the super poisonous toad disappeared underwater.

Everyone looked at each other, speechless for a moment. Right now, with such a massive, venomous creature lurking in the lake, even if the bottom of the lake were piled high with priceless treasures, they wouldn't be able to enjoy them. In this situation, sending a diver down would be like handing a giant meat bun to the venomous toad for a treat—it was practically charity. After much thought, they couldn't find a suitable way to remove this obstacle. In short: they were at a loss.

Blackjack reluctantly ordered his men to take out three more diving suits and place them on the ground. He glanced at the team members, who all fell silent. Suddenly, he gave a signal, and all the guns were pointed at me, Shirley Yang, and Fatty. Damn it, this situation was like forcing us three to jump into the water and commit suicide as bait to lure the super poisonous toad.

Looking at the dark, gaping gun barrels all around me, I almost broke down.

The fat man roared angrily, brandished his gun, and with a clatter, cocked it. Seven or eight foreign devils turned their guns around and pointed them directly at his head with glee.

After a two-minute standoff, Shirley Yang suddenly smiled contemptuously. She bent down, grabbed a wetsuit from the ground, walked behind a large tree, and began to put it on methodically. Fatty and I exchanged a glance, then silently grabbed the remaining two wetsuits.

After we were all dressed, Blackjack said a couple of ingratiating words to Shirley Yang, which I guessed was some nonsense like, "I'll be on shore directing and protecting you."

Under the aim of numerous gun barrels, Shirley Yang, Fatty, and I, dressed in our newest attire, gripped our submachine guns and grenades, and walked to the water's edge. I took one last look at the azure sky, white clouds, lake, and reeds before quickly flipping into the water. Fatty and Shirley Yang followed suit.

We met underwater, made a hand gesture to agree on a plan, and silently swam towards the center of the lake.

Shirley Yang calculated the area where the giant poisonous toad had just appeared and led us around it from the edge of the water. She led the way in the middle, with Fatty and I flanking Shirley Yang on either side. The three of us, with submachine guns slung over our shoulders, carefully made our way into the deeper water.

The green algae on the bottom of the water rippled gently and were clearly visible, but there were very few fish, only small clumps of finger-sized fry swimming easily past. It seemed that the larger fish had either been eaten as snacks by that old venomous toad or used to make drugs.

I was on the left, Fatty on the right, Shirley Yang in the front, and Fatty and I were covering the rear, slowly advancing underwater. If I hadn't just seen that terrifying giant poisonous toad, I really wanted to take a long, refreshing swim in this freshwater lake and sunbathe—that would be awesome. At the very least, I wished I could turn into a tiny, invisible fish, at least I wouldn't be eaten by that damned old poisonous creature right now.

I reminded myself not to let my mind wander. The three of us walked and stopped intermittently. About ten minutes later, Shirley Yang gestured for us to stop. We all looked ahead and saw a huge, tower-like structure vaguely emerging from the bottom of the water.

The tower-like structure, wider at the bottom and narrower at the top, was covered in a thick layer of silt, from which many long, floating green algae grew. Small fish darted about among the silt. Overall, it was clear that it was very old, having been buried underwater for a long time and untouched by anyone.