Chapter 5 Please call me Eater God!_1

The old lady was dumbfounded, never expecting the big boy to dare to pick up the torch again after it had just burned two people.

Isn't that too bold?

The next moment, the old lady was overjoyed and hurried to follow.

If I can leave this place alive, I'll set up a longevity plaque for you and worship you like my ancestors.

"Damn, awesome!"

Sima Mu was stunned by Lin Baici's courage.

You are a real man!

Though Sima Mu's left hand was bandaged and in a splint, it didn't hinder his running at all, and the guy was quite smart, keeping a distance of five steps from Lin Baici—not getting too close.

Obviously fearing getting burnt to death.

"Should... should I take over?"

Kim Myungjin suggested.

The longer one uses a Taboo thing, the greater the probability of being tainted by the rules. If someone else took a turn, maybe the contamination could be reduced.

"No need!"

Lin Baici not only ran but also set fire, lighting the nearby peach trees, and he was always on alert; if he felt unwell or had certain thoughts, he would immediately drop the torch.

So far, everything was normal.

Nevertheless, Kim Myungjin's words had increased Lin Baici's trust in her a bit more.

"Don't run!"

"Don't run!"

"Eat me!"

"Eat me!"

The Peach Monsters were speedy in their pursuit and a few audacious ones even launched a charge at the survivors.

"Ah!"

The old lady screamed as her right calf was bitten.

Lin Baici swung the pine torch more vigorously, pushing back the monsters: "Hold on, we're almost out!"

The moon-shaped gate of Bodhi Peach Garden was now in sight, just over forty meters away.

At this moment, as these people tried to escape, the shockingly shaped peach trees resembling frenzied shamans suddenly twisted together.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The rustling of branches and leaves sounded like a curse that sent shivers down one's spine.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

More Peach Monsters fell down, sprouting four legs, and sprinted wildly towards Lin Baici and the others.

Some Peach Monsters had already gathered in front of the survivors.

"Fight our way out!"

Sima Mu clenched his scythe, his eyes fierce.

Swish!

The monsters charged like a tsunami, threatening to devour everything.

"Don't be afraid!"

Sima Mu was about to cheer Lin Baici on when he saw him charging forward, the torch in his hand painting chaotic strokes like a splash of ink, and the fire ignited some of the monsters instantly. Even the sparks that flew off were terrifying, igniting the monsters with the slightest touch.

A breeze blew, and ashes drifted down.

Lin Baici rushed out of the moon gate and immediately looked back.

Sima Mu was second, Kim Myungjin third.

The old lady, being older and weaker, lagged behind.

"Save me!"

The old lady cried out.

Lin Baici took large strides back into the moon gate, grabbed the old lady's arm, and flung her back with force.

The monsters were closing in.

Lin Baici wielded the pine torch, pushing them back, then retreated from the peach garden.

The ignited peach trees were now burning fiercely like massive bonfires, spreading to nearby trees.

The flames danced.

The Peach Monsters gathered in front of the moon gate, screaming 'eat me,' but did not come out. Even those that had bitten onto Sima Mu and the others had willingly let go.

"We're safe now!"

Kim Myungjin looked at Lin Baici with admiration: "Oppa, you are my superhero!"

Thump!

The old lady's legs gave out, and she fell to the ground. She clasped her hands in prayer, bowing nonstop to Lin Baici.

"Thank you! Thank you!"

The old lady's light makeup was now ruined by tears.

All five of her mahjong friends had died.

So now she was filled with gratitude towards Lin Baici.

"That lady didn't make it out!"

Kim Myungjin regretted.

The last lady, only a little more than ten meters from the moon gate, met her demise when a Peach Monster bit her neck.

"Ptui!"

Sima Mu looked at his wound and spat out a mouthful of saliva. Then he went over to Lin Baici, gave him a hearty hug, and said, "Uncle owes you a life."

"You're too kind!"

Lin Baici said with a slight smile.

"Oppa, hurry up and put out the torch?"

Kim Myungjin eyed the torch warily; the thing was too dangerous.

"Right!"

Lin Baici, though he didn't feel any discomfort, didn't dare to keep holding it. But how to extinguish it?

Lin Baici remembered that when Choi Feng and the other died, the torch went out as soon as they dropped it. So he threw the torch away.

In less than ten seconds, the torch was extinguished.

Kim Myungjin was impressed.

"Oppa, you react so quickly!"

If it were her, she definitely wouldn't think of throwing the torch to put out the fire right away.

"That's right, that's right, that torch is too dangerous. Better throw it away..."

The old lady was halfway through her sentence when she saw the big guy pick up the torch again, which made her gasp in shock.

"Young man, there's no need to take risks with it anymore!"

The old lady expressed her concern.

"It's okay!"

Considering the torch's effectiveness as a weapon for setting fires, Lin Baici planned to use it for self-defense. Then he looked at the peach garden ablaze with growing fires and frowned, complaining in his mind.

"Hey, Gourmet, is this the way you pointed out? Do you know I almost died?"

Because the content of the mysterious voice was mostly related to eating, Lin Baici decided to call it Foodie.

[Please call me Eater God!]

"I'd even call you a handsome guy!"

Lin Baici was speechless, as the mysterious entity did not appreciate the term Foodie.

Man, I'm so hungry!

My stomach is cramping up.

[Ripe peaches are very delicious, too bad you burned them. What a waste of heaven's gifts!]

The Eater God complained.

"I, Lin Baici, would rather die than eat a peach grown on long legs!"

The fog dissipated some more.

Sitting and waiting for death was definitely not an option, so Lin Baici decided to continue exploring.

With this pine torch, the safety factor went up a tiny bit.

"Let's go, if we can't find the God's bones, we'll all die here!"

Kim Myungjin looked at Sima Mu's left hand wrapped in bandages, then glanced at the visor-wearing old lady who was clearly low on energy.

Asiba!

It seemed the two new teammates were not very reliable.

They still had to rely on Lin Oppa!

The mist cleared a little more, but the terrain had completely changed, and everyone was unable to find a way out of Dragon Temple.

Of course, even if they found it, they couldn't leave.

Kim Myungjin had said that unless the God's bones were removed, the fog wouldn't disperse, and this place would remain a labyrinth forever.

After walking through a corridor, the four people saw a cluster of monks' quarters.

The low tile-roofed houses were connected, looking like a Big Snake lying on the ground asleep.

"How about we go check the abbot's Zen room?"

Kim Myungjin suggested.

"Okay!"

Lin Baici didn't know where else to go anyway, so might as well see if the Goryeo girl was lucky.

Creak!

Sima Mu pushed open the door of one of the monks' quarters.

The sudden noise startled the old lady.

"What are you doing?"

The old lady scolded. Her name was Xu Xiu, and she was a local from Guangqing.

"Checking if there's anyone inside!"

Sima Mu was quite bold.

"Don't mess around, listen to Baici's commands!"

Xu Xiu now trusted only Lin Baici.

The four people left the monks' quarters, passed a pavilion marked with "Xixin Pavilion," and entered a courtyard through a flower-laden gate.

The courtyard wasn't very large, but it had rockeries and a water feature, planted with flowers and greenery, and a mulberry tree stood in front of the door like a loyal old servant.

[Hollow-hearted Iron Guanyin tea, when brewed with boiling water, emits a unique fragrance. After drinking it, within dozens of minutes, one will lose all emotion, become as cold-hearted as iron, and turn into a person of hollowness!]

"What's that, tea leaves?"

Lin Baici looked around, his gaze falling on the plant in the corner of the wall that looked like a tea plant.

The Eater God must've been referring to that one.

[Drink a cup of clear tea, savor the ups and downs of life, view the myriad worlds!]

Lin Baici didn't like drinking tea and simply ignored it.

[No way, no way, is there really someone who doesn't want such tea leaves? After drinking it, you won't be interested in poetry and distant lands, dreams and women anymore. You'll directly enter the sage's time.]

[I'm tired. Destroy it, and do it quickly!]

Lin Baici's eyebrows twitched, and he walked over to the corner where the tea plant was.

"What happened?"

Sima Mu was peering into the main room, where there seemed to be someone.

Followed by Lin Baici, Kim Myungjin, after seeing the leaves on the tea tree, was stunned: "These leaves actually look like Guanyin?"

The tea leaves were emerald green, about the size of a fingernail, each leaf in the shape of Guanyin sitting on a lotus flower – it was magical, all naturally grown without any signs of human pruning.

Lin Baici reached out and began picking the large leaves.

"Could it be dangerous?"

Xu Xiu wanted to pick some too.

She often drank tea, and now, smelling the fragrance of these leaves, she felt her anxious emotions ease a little.

This must be something good.

"I don't know!"

Lin Baici hadn't completely trusted the gourmet reviews from the Eater God yet.

After all, with different species came different perceptions of food.

Lin Baici collected a handful of tea leaves and put them into a backpack he found.

Kim Myungjin and Xu Xiu followed suit, collecting some as well.

"What are you guys doing?"

After speaking, Sima Mu looked at Lin Baici and the others and suddenly froze: "Baici, Xu Xiu, your... your necks!"

"What's wrong with our necks?"

Xu Xiu reached out to touch her neck.

Huh?

There seemed to be something there?

Lin Baici looked at the old lady and her face changed. There was a vine as thick as an intestine wrapped around Xu Xiu's neck, like a noose for execution.

Kim Myungjin beside her also had it around her neck.

"Get away from that tea plant!"

Sima Mu urged, feeling somewhat relieved that he hadn't touched anything arbitrarily.

"What... what do we do?"

Xu Xiu pulled hard at the vine noose, finding it extremely sturdy, completely unmoving.

This thing wasn't going to strangle her, was it?

"Sima Mu, you've got one on your neck too!"

Lin Baici touched the vine on his neck, assuming it had nothing to do with the tea plant and that they had encountered Taboo things again.

"What?"

Sima Mu looked dumbfounded, quickly felt it, and upon realizing there was indeed something there, he deflated immediately.

"This is too hard!"

Kim Myungjin felt desperate.

If they couldn't find the God's bones, they would surely die under the radiation, but in the process of searching, they might fall prey to the rules of the Taboo things and lose their lives.

"Into the Zen room!"

Lin Baici guessed the problem must be inside.