Chapter 056

Chapter 56: Going Home

Foxy told everyone with firm certainty that she had buried her father and mother under this forest, and she had buried them very deep. Even if the ground was now torn by pits and gullies, the spot where she buried them would still be there.

She began to dig.

With the strength of a Demon Fox, and without the pull of Hunger, she dug quickly even with bare hands.

Soft soil flew out of the growing pit. Yu Sheng and Irene stood quietly nearby and watched, while not far away, Li Lin’s trio, who did not fully understand what was happening at first, were beginning to piece things together.

Irene, sitting on Yu Sheng’s shoulder and staring down at Foxy in the hole, finally spoke again: “Um… maybe we should come back another time. It’s been a while. The Hunger Entity might pop up again, and then we’ll have to fight it all over.”

Foxy lifted her head from the big pit and said calmly: “No. I can feel when it appears. I have stayed here for many years. It is not in this pit. It should be… next to it.”

Saying that, the Fox Maiden climbed out, stood in the middle of the waste ground to judge the direction, then hurried to a nearby patch of earth and dug again with all her strength.

Irene opened her mouth like she wanted to say more, but Yu Sheng gently patted her arm and said softly: “Don’t. Let her dig. If she doesn’t find it, even if she leaves, she will be trapped here forever.”

Irene pressed her lips together, but her voice sounded in Yu Sheng’s mind: [I’m not scared she’ll dig up something. I’m scared she’ll end up digging up nothing.]

Yu Sheng answered in his heart: [I know.]

Irene pushed: [Then you…]

Yu Sheng finished it simply: [But I believe she’ll find it.]

Irene fell quiet for a moment and then reminded him: [You saw her state before. When the influence of Hunger was at its worst, she could hardly think. And about that scene in the deepest part of the dream…] Yu Sheng only shook his head.

He walked forward to the edge of the new pit and asked: “Do you need my help?”

Foxy kept digging fast as she stubbornly shook her head and said: “No. I will dig. It is here. I saw… the cloth strips I buried before. They are a little deeper.”

Yu Sheng nodded and took two steps back: “All right, then I’ll wait by the side.”

He carried Irene back to a spot where they could not see the bottom and waited quietly for the Fox Maiden to finish what she had to do.

He did not know how long he waited. He stood calm and patient, but each passing second began to feel as long as a year. He wanted to go look into the pit, yet his legs felt rooted to the ground beneath him. He did not know if Irene felt the same, but he could tell the little Doll’s body had been a bit tense for a while.

Yu Sheng broke the silence to distract her: “When we get back, I’ll fix up your body first.”

Irene answered without focus: “Okay. Okay.”

Yu Sheng kept it going with a smile: “We might not have enough clay at home, so I’ll probably need to use some flour. You don’t mind, right?”

Irene muttered: “I don’t mind.”

Yu Sheng teased: “What about two sections of lotus root?”

Irene repeated: “I don’t mind.”

Yu Sheng pressed the joke: “You’re sure? I said two sections of lotus root.”

Irene blinked, then snapped: “I don’t mi… wait, I mind!”

She came to herself and gave Yu Sheng a fierce look that she believed was scary.

Right then, she noticed the digging sounds had stopped.

Silence settled at the bottom of the pit. No more soil flew up, and they could not hear Foxy move.

Irene froze, then traded a quick look with Yu Sheng and blurted: “Oh no! What if it’s really empty down there!”

Yu Sheng said nothing. He sprinted toward the big pit.

He saw Foxy.

The Fox Maiden lay curled quietly at the bottom. Her body was folded up, two fluffy tails held in her arms, the rest wrapped around her like a blanket.

Beside her were two neat skeletons.

She had curled between them like a young beast asleep at its mother’s side, her body rising and falling with small breaths.

Yu Sheng let out a breath and sat on the gravel by the rim.

Irene also exhaled and flopped down across Yu Sheng’s head.

After a few minutes, the Fox at the bottom slowly stood. She looked at the two skeletons by her side, then lifted her head toward Yu Sheng sitting above. A small smile grew on her face.

Yu Sheng met her eyes and asked: “Shall we go?”

Foxy nodded and answered: “Mm, let’s go.” Then she bent carefully over the two skeletons and snapped off one sharp, nonhuman canine tooth from each, before turning to come back.

Yu Sheng reached down into the pit, caught Foxy’s arm, and pulled her up.

Irene peered at the two teeth clutched tight in Foxy’s hand and asked curiously: “You’re only taking those? What about the other parts…”

Foxy shook her head and said softly: “Only teeth are enough. My father and mother said there is a rule among Foxes: if the teeth go home, you have gone home.”

Yu Sheng nodded and raised his hand to open a Door back to the present world, but just as he began the Door Opening, Foxy tugged his sleeve and said quickly: “Benefactor, wait, there is also…”

Yu Sheng slapped his forehead as he caught her meaning and said: “Right, I almost forgot. Give me a moment.”

He pulled open another The Door and slipped through in a flash, leaving Li Lin’s trio staring in shock.

He did not stay long. Only ten seconds later, another The Door opened in the same place. Yu Sheng walked out with Irene on his shoulder and a torn plastic bag in his hand.

Inside was the food they had left behind at the ruined temple.

He explained simply: “Some of it got messed up by those monsters. I brought back the packages that are still sealed.”

Foxy’s smile brightened. She took the bag at once and counted everything carefully, then counted it again before relaxing.

Yu Sheng laughed and said: “All right, now we really haven’t missed anything. Let’s go home.” He reached into the air and pulled; a Door to No. 66 Wutong Road rippled into view and swung open. At the shaking heart of the mirage lay a familiar living room. He waved: “Li Lin, you three, come on. Let’s go back together.”

“Oh… oh, okay!” Li Lin answered in a hurry and walked over with Little Red Riding Hood. Xu Jiali, following behind them, could not help staring at the open Door with a strange look. For a moment no one knew what he was thinking. Hesitation flickered in his eyes, but in the end he took two quick steps and followed.

They crossed The Door. The cold wind of Hunger Valley was cut off behind them, and the familiar scent of home brought a feeling of safety. As soon as Yu Sheng came back, he took several deep breaths.

He realized: [This place really feels like home now.]

Foxy widened her eyes at this strange place that looked odd in every way.

She had lived in that bleak Valley for far too many years and was no longer used to houses. The whole roof in one piece and the bright lights made her feel lost.

After a few seconds, she set down the food and sat on the floor beside it, guarding the instant noodles, biscuits, and eight treasure porridge. Now and then she peeked around the room, or glanced toward Yu Sheng.

Li Lin, Xu Jiali, and Little Red Riding Hood also watched the place carefully. Through the street window in the living room, they quickly confirmed this house sat deep in the old city on Wutong Road. Yet from the view out the window, they could not tell which building it was.

Even Li Lin, a professional from the Special Affairs Bureau, could not be sure which house on Wutong Road this was.

At the same time, their Spiritual Intuition kept thumping in their hearts, warning them over and over that this was not truly the safe real world. It was still some kind of abnormal space with depth above zero.

The three exchanged looks and each saw thought and worry in the others’ eyes.

Something about this place was off.

But they could not pull out a Depth Probe and measure the environment in plain sight. The man named “Yu Sheng” looked friendly, but the sinister way he had used The Door to finish the Hunger Entity, and his strange ability to open Doors back and forth between the Otherworld and reality at will, all pointed to one thing: this man was powerful and dangerous.

Provoking a mysterious and dangerous person like this would not be smart. If they made this friendly “human” angry, the three of them might never leave alive.

After a long hesitation, Li Lin finally broke the silence and asked: “Is this… your home?”

Yu Sheng nodded and answered: “Yeah. Find a place to sit. I’ll get you a few bottles of water. Today was unexpected. I didn’t prepare anything for guests. Please don’t mind.”

Li Lin waved both hands fast and said: “No need to trouble yourself. We’ll be leaving soon, leaving soon…” The friendlier Yu Sheng acted, the less settled he felt, because the Hunger Entity devouring itself in that Valley had left a deep impression.

He paused, then asked as if in passing: “So where is this place? Is it still in Boundary City?”

Yu Sheng looked at him like it was obvious and said: “Of course it is. Just look outside. Wutong Road. Weren’t you posted here to follow me?”

Cold sweat broke out on Li Lin’s back as he stammered: “Please don’t mind. We didn’t have all the facts then…”

Yu Sheng waved it off: “No problem. I’ve actually been trying to find you. I just couldn’t.”

Li Lin and Xu Jiali both froze and said together: “Huh?”

Little Red Riding Hood reacted first, pointed at Xu Jiali and Li Lin, and said: “You mean them, right? I’m only a temp on vacation.”

Yu Sheng shook his head and said seriously: “No. I mean all of you. The professionals.”