"To obtain something, one must first give something; when you gaze into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you."

Suzi Qi and her two female friends were nibbling on those fiery red fruits, casually chatting away. Huamei, on the other hand, was querying the alien native about the whereabouts of his tribal clan. Meanwhile, no one in the group noticed Dong Yifeng’s disappearance or knew where he had gone.

Just then, the camel-horse tied to a nearby tree, belonging to the native, suddenly started to grow restless. It was constantly neighing and pacing anxiously around the tree.

Following that, Suzi Qi and the others caught intermittent sounds of an infant crying at the edge of their hearing. The whimpering was faint and uncertain; it sounded real but seemed somewhat illusory. At first, everyone thought they were hallucinating, wondering to themselves, how could there be a baby in this forest?

However, Upon hearing the sound, the native became extremely alert and on edge, as if he were facing a formidable threat. He quickly stood up, determined the direction, and sprinted off towards a hill.

The rest of the group, puzzled by his sudden urgency, followed him to see what was going on.

Atop the hill, they were taken aback to see a person lying on the ground, with a beast beside him.

Only when they took a closer look at the individual amidst the flowers did they recognize it to be none other than Dong Yifeng.

Beside Professor Dong stood a ferocious beast, its teeth bared and roaring at the native from across Dong Yifeng on the ground.

This creature had spotted markings, resembling a leopard, but much larger in size, with a thick tail trailing behind. What was most astonishing was the presence of two large antlers on its head, resembling those of a deer..

Hua Mei pulled out her laser gun, intending to shoot at the animal, but Wang Yue stopped her.

Upon closer inspection of the beast, Hua Mei also noticed something unusual.

The beast, as if performing a quick-change act in a Sichuan opera, transformed its appearance within the blink of an eye, revealing several different faces: from its initial fierce and malevolent expression, full of anger, to suddenly becoming filled with fear, and finally, its gaze becoming somewhat bewildered.

The thick tail that the beast had once held high in the air was now tucked between its legs as it obediently lay on the ground, as gentle as a large cat.

The native approached, caressing its head, and from its nostrils came a cry reminiscent of a baby's wail. Then, in a sudden twist, the beast turned around and ran off into the distance.

(Note : Sichuan Opera The face-changing stunt of Sichuan Opera, one face can change into as many as fourteen in an instant. Chinese traditional culture.)

Everyone finally heaved a sigh of relief, and the native seemed just as unburdened, wiping off the perspiration on his forehead.

A cool breeze swept across the mound, dispersing the lingering fear among the group. However, the native, seemingly as susceptible to the wind as a woman post-childbirth, kept pulling his yellow hemp headscarf lower and lower, thoroughly covering his forehead.

Hua Mei quickly stepped over to Dong Yifeng, helped him up and examined his injuries. Once they confirmed that Dong was not physically hurt, only then did everyone’s suspended hearts calm down. However, they were still perplexed as to why Dong remained unconscious.

(Note :Woman post-childbirth, In China, women are not allowed to be exposed to cold wind or eat cold food after giving birth. )

Beside the mound, there were some plants with yellow flowers. The leaves of these plants were round, and the edges of the leaves seemed to have thorns.

The native picked a yellow flower and walked over to Dong Yifeng. He held the flower close to Dong’s nose, allowing him to catch a whiff.

Surprisingly enough, in just a short while, Dong Yifeng came to his senses. He opened his eyes and, seeing everyone surrounding him, looked rather puzzled.

Everyone told him what had happened, and he then recalled, “I saw these flowers from a distance and was quite curious. So, I came up to the mound, picked a flower, and sniffed it. After that, I remember nothing else.”

Everyone sighed in relief, grateful for Dong’s good fortune in not having been devoured by the beast.

However, Dong appeared to take it all lightly, without a care in the world. He showed no signs of trepidation, rather, he regretted not having seen the beast. “What a pity! I missed an opportunity to witness the creature with my own eyes. I wonder if I will ever get to see it again.”

At this, everyone couldn’t help but suppress their smiles, secretly wondering if Dong Yifeng had lost his mind, disregarding his own life just for the chance of discovering a new species.

The native stood aside, listening to their conversation. Given the circumstances, he was supposed to be unable to understand them, but sometimes, he appeared to comprehend their words–nodding while listening–this sparked Su Ziqi’s curiosity immensely.

When the native didn’t understand, Su Ziqi kept switching between various ancient languages from around the world, barely managing to communicate.

Su Ziqi asked the native, “What kind of flowers are those multicolored ones? And what kind of animal was that fierce beast we encountered?”

The native replied, “Many of the plants in this forest are poisonous. When I was a child, my mother told me that the more beautiful the flower is, the more poisonous it likely is. Just like how attractive people can also be deceitful, we should never be fooled by appearances. That multicolored flower, as beautiful as the rainbow-colored clouds in the sky, we call it ‘Three Steps Fall.’ Just smelling it close to your nose can cause you to collapse within three steps.”

We also have a lot of predatory animals here. That creature earlier, called a ‘Infant-Crying Leopard,’ uses the cries of a baby to attract attention, then attacks when people aren’t expecting it.”

“Can that yellow flower act as an antidote?” Su Ziqi asked.

“Exactly. The yellow flower grows next to the ‘Three Steps Fall’ and can neutralize its poison.”

Dong Yifeng, utilizing the translation device in his ear, was able to understand the conversation between Su Ziqi and the native. He agreed with the native’s words, saying, “That very much aligns with the principle of mutual generation and mutual overcoming.” Then he walked towards the yellow flowers, picking one to examine closely.

Su Ziqi was curious about why the beast, known as the “Infant-Crying Leopard”, suddenly fled. So she asked the native, “The Infant-Crying Leopard looks very fierce. Why did it suddenly run away?”

With a cunning twinkle in his eye, the native replied, “The Infant-Crying Leopard is indeed very ferocious and has a taste for human flesh. However, I understand the language of the beasts, so I can communicate with it and prevent it from harming us.”

“What? You understand the language of the beasts?” Dong Yifeng was greatly astonished.

As everyone recalled the animal’s reaction just now, they realized that the beast didn’t flee because they outnumbered it.

(Note : Infant-Crying Leopard The roar was like a baby crying. So it’s called Infant-Crying Leopard)

The beast never even glanced at the people standing behind the native. It fled only after making eye contact with the native and with its tail tucked between its legs.

Su Ziqi had a natural talent for languages and quickly adapted to the native’s language as she conversed with him. Their communication became increasingly smooth.

The native inquired about the names of Su Ziqi and the others, and she also asked him about their tribe’s background.

Through the native’s introduction, they learned that his tribe was called the 共由氏族 and resided in the largest forest of the Mu Continent called the Nanyu Forest, which served as their territory.

The GongYou tribe is made up of five clans, and the tribal leader, Gongdian, has two sons and two daughters. His adopted son’s name is Gongkong.

Wang Yue was incredibly curious about how the native had such an extensive knowledge of astronomy, prompting him to have Su Ziqi ask the native about the origin of their astronomical understanding.

The native replied, "It is bestowed upon us by the celestial gods we serve."

Everyone was vastly puzzled upon hearing this. What exactly was this “celestial gods” the native was referring to? Could it be that there truly were some sort of celestial gods in the native’s world? Every word from the native continuously sparked curiosity and confusion amongst the group.


Beside the resting area’s brook, there were some vibrant purple flowers in full bloom. These flowers grew along the bank, their stems were square-shaped, and they bore ripe, red fruits. One of the natives plucked a purple bloom bearing fruit and gave it to Su Ziqi.

Looking at the flower with sheer delight, Su Ziqi asked, “How did you know I love purple flowers?”

The native grinned knowledgeably, “This is what we call the Beauty Flower. All our girls love it because every part of the flower has benefits. Inserting this purple flower in one’s hair wards off all insects, and eating the fruit from it makes one increasingly beautiful.”

Hearing this, Zheng Ya and Wang Yue quickly went over to pluck these purple flowers.

With a handful of purple flowers and a smile that blossomed like one, Zheng Ya teased, “No one does something for nothing". Ziqi, it seems this native has taken a liking to you, intending to make you his wife. Be careful!"

The native seemed to understand Zheng Ya’s words, showing no embarrassment at all. Instead, he stared at Su Ziqi more impudently, urging, “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s getting late. We should continue on our journey.”

With a quick move, the native mounted his camel-horse and charged forward. The airship continued to follow right behind, rushing along the narrow path.

As they delved deeper into the thick forest, ancient trees towered overhead, obscuring the sky. The trees got bigger and bigger, with many being centuries and even a millennium old, leaving Dong Yifeng in complete awe.

The path soon turned right, abruptly opening up to a clear flatland. A city appeared across the flatland, with a river flowing past its main gate where the drawbridge was held high.

As everyone looked on, they saw a city wall, about ten meters high, encircling the surrounding mountains.


Upon hearing this, everyone looked towards the mountain from afar. It seemed to be covered in massive trees, yet no recognizable buildings could be spotted from ground level. Curiosity sparked among the extraterrestrial locals about this city - where, exactly, did its inhabitants dwell? Could they possibly be living in the trees?

The main gate of the city was located at the base of the mountain. A flag, depicting a blue dragon on a yellow background, flew in the breeze atop the city walls, capturing everyone’s attention.

The sentry on the city wall was overjoyed to see the locals. He lowered the drawbridge with a pulley and the soldiers guarding the gate promptly opened it.

The natives led everyone into the city.