"This Second Master’s skills were truly formidable... Not only did he have the young boys listening with eyes full of admiration, but even Hu Ma was astonished.
He didn’t know if this seemingly unremarkable Second Master had truly been so formidable in his youth, but he did see from the attitudes of both Second Master and the boys that people in this world had a different attitude towards ghostly gods and evil spirits. Not everyone was as terrified as he previously thought; some even held a disdainful attitude. Of course, maybe they’re just bluffing! But, truth be told, hearing it so unexpectedly, he too felt that those evil spirits weren’t so terrifying anymore! If I could really learn to be as skilled as Second Master, then next time I face something like the upright sheep or the Beauty Snake... I would certainly not be as fierce as this Second Master. But could it be that Granny sent me here to learn these skills from Second Master?
"Let’s not waste time talking. Before the sun sets, run twenty miles around here first," Second Master said. At this moment, taking advantage of Hu Ma’s situation to lecture the boys, he wasted no words and directly gave the order: "If you can’t come back in an hour, then you’ll lift fifty stone blocks for me."
"Mountain path? Twenty miles?"
Hu Ma was truly startled by the intensity.
He wondered if this was an exaggeration, but surprisingly, the group of boys actually rolled up their trouser legs one by one. Some even kicked their straw sandals aside and, barefoot, began running out of the well-leveled courtyard. They ran along the well-trodden, undulating mountain paths surrounding the Manor, circling it. It appeared as if they were well accustomed to this sort of thing.
They really were running, and as they ran, some laughed and joked, chasing each other, looking very relaxed.
Meanwhile, after following for a few miles, Hu Ma was completely shocked.
What kind of hellish stamina is this?
This group of boys, his peers, had started running with an almost sprinting intensity. Throughout the entire process, their speed never decreased; they even accelerated several times. Although Hu Ma had been recovering well recently and could initially keep up, after circling the Manor once, he was gasping for breath, soaked in sweat, and his legs began to feel weak. Yet, they seemed unfazed, some even howling as they ran.
Within a few minutes, there was no one in sight ahead of Hu Ma.
After five or six more minutes, Hu Ma heard a burst of laughter and playful shouts rapidly approaching from behind him. Someone even turned back to stick their tongue out and make a face at him...
We’re not even on the same level! Hu Ma thought, a sense of despair gradually welling up due to this disparity.
His body had always been very weak; not long ago, it had been hanging from an iron hook, bleeding profusely. Although he had quickly recovered by eating meat and resting, he was still so thin that he looked like he might be blown over by a breeze. Compared to these energetic boys, he was still like a patient recovering from a major illness. How could he keep up with them?
But then he remembered this was his first day here, and Granny had specifically told him to learn skills from Second Master. This might be Second Master’s test, he thought, gritting his teeth and persevering. After all, in such a bizarre world, having a well-trained body must be useful, right? At least when encountering creepy things, he could run faster than others.
Thinking this, he ignored the group of boys lapping him again and again, simply gritting his teeth and pushing on.
Somewhat to his surprise, he actually managed to complete the twenty-mile mountain path, a feat he wouldn’t have dared to even dream of before. Just as his body was pushed to its absolute limit, on the verge of fainting, a current of warm energy seemed to rise from within him. It surprisingly sustained his exhausted body, allowing him to maintain his current speed. Steam rose from his head, and sweat soaked his clothes layer after layer.
Only when Second Master shouted from the mountainside, "That’s enough, come back!" did Hu Ma finally make it back into the Manor.
He leaned against the wooden fence, gasping for air. I actually managed to run twenty miles of mountain path? he wondered, somewhat incredulous.
"Not bad. You only got lapped three times."
By then, the group of boys had long since returned to the Manor, their sweat already dried. They looked at Hu Ma with slightly surprised expressions.
It was clear that this group of energetic boys had initially looked down on Hu Ma’s stick-thin frame. Hu Ma’s previously pampered upbringing had also led them to have a rather mediocre impression of him. They had intended to use the mountain run as an opportunity to really push him and shame him a bit.
The result was that, although they indeed ran faster than Hu Ma and lapped him multiple times, he unexpectedly managed to endure. In fact, his performance was better than theirs had been when they first arrived on the mountain. This outcome considerably lessened their underestimation of Hu Ma.
"I didn’t expect you to have a decent foundation," Second Master remarked, clearly a bit surprised. He called Hu Ma over and pinched his shoulders and legs.
One pinch happened to land on Hu Ma’s shoulder wound, causing him to instinctively flinch. Only then did Second Master notice the two scabbed, egg-sized bloody holes on Hu Ma’s shoulders. His expression became even more surprised. Such severe wounds clearly indicated he had suffered a serious injury and hadn’t fully healed yet.
After a moment’s thought, he asked quietly, "Do you usually eat mountain meat?"
"Mountain meat?" Hu Ma was somewhat confused. He explained, "Granny gives me meat every day, but it seems to be the meat of Master Tai Sui."
"That explains it," Second Master sighed deeply. "Granny is truly good to you. Honestly, in all the villages within a ten-mile radius, there isn’t anyone who can afford to eat Tai Sui as a daily meal!"
Not just eating Tai Sui, but Blood Tai Sui... Hu Ma thought. He gathered his courage and tentatively asked the old man before him, "Second Master... what exactly is this Tai Sui, or mountain meat, that you all keep mentioning?"
"Eh?" Second Master was momentarily stunned, looking at Hu Ma with a peculiar expression. "Granny just said your memory isn’t good, but it seems quite serious if you’ve even forgotten mountain meat?"
"I..." Near Granny, Hu Ma hadn’t dared to ask too many questions, as if doing so would expose him. Although he had only just met this Second Master, Hu Ma felt more relaxed around him than he did with Granny, with whom he had spent the past ten days or so. The reason...? Could it be that old perverts just give off a sense of security?
He decided to ask directly, "After I woke up, my mind was blank. I barely remember anything from before. I’ve been hearing you all talk about mountain meat and Master Tai Sui. What exactly is that?"
"I’ve taught boxing my whole life, but this is the first time I’ve had to teach someone about this..." This question seemed to stump even Second Master. The boys standing nearby heard it and looked at each other, nonplussed.
After pondering for a moment, Second Master chuckled. He tossed the remainder of his cigarette aside, stood up, and said with a smile, "Alright then. You all sit tight. I’ll take Little Huma to see Master Tai Sui."
"Now?" When Hu Ma saw Second Master turn to leave, his heart couldn’t help but skip a beat. It was late, dusk settling, and night had begun to blanket the dense surrounding forests. He recalled how Granny had cautiously guided him through the forest during the day, ever vigilant lest they be accosted by something. Now it’s night, when evil spirits are even more active, and he wants to take me out?
But Second Master offered no explanation, nor did he give Hu Ma time for his thoughts to run wild. He simply strode out the door, then reached out, lifted Hu Ma with seemingly no effort, tossed him onto his shoulder, and marched out of the Manor.
He was tall and powerfully built, with long arms and legs. Though walking, his pace was like a sprint as he charged headlong into the forest.
In the forest, countless unseen, sinister things seemed to scatter like frightened birds, flying off in all directions.
Draped over Second Master’s shoulder, Hu Ma felt the man’s body temperature rise slightly, and the eerie, chilling atmosphere around them dissipated instantly upon contact. He had encountered many evil spirits on his way here, but now, following Second Master, he didn’t encounter a single one.
They passed through the forest, and his vision suddenly opened onto a clearing. Second Master stopped abruptly, not even out of breath, his face not flushed.
His voice was low and powerful as he said slowly, "Do you see it? That is the meat mountain, also known in the village as Master Tai Sui..."
Hu Ma looked up and beheld a sight he would never forget for the rest of his life.
In the dim light of the fading sunset, he saw that the flat ground ahead was scarred, as if by a wound upon the earth. It looked like a fissure that had split the world open, lying starkly upon the land.
And from within this fissure, a bloody, indistinct, swollen, and grotesquely large mass of matter was extruding. Vaguely, he thought he could even feel it breathing.
"In our village, it’s called Tai Sui. People in the city call it Blood Food."
Before this shocking, colossal entity, Second Master’s voice seemed to grow distant. He sighed heavily, "According to the elders, Master Tai Sui has been growing here for hundreds of years. Cut it, and it regrows; it regrows, and we cut it again... The mountain meat you eat, Granny cuts it for you piece by piece, all while fending off the harassment of these evil spirits!"