The Fatty stared at Ma Xiong’s contorted face, anxiety rising within him, so he mustered all his strength and pulled outward with fierce effort, until Ma Xiong stopped him. “Forget it,” Ma Xiong gasped, “you can’t match Ganda’s grip. You’re too strong, my arm is practically being wrenched in two, yet I can’t break free at all. Here’s what we’ll do: you two just saw off Ganda’s arm.”

The Fatty broke into a cold sweat at Ma Xiong’s suggestion. If he ended up dismembering Ganda, Lu Zong would surely seek vengeance—that man valued loyalty above all else. Panicked, he spun around to consult Lu Zong.

Seeing Lu Zong hesitate, Ma Xiong urged him on. “Lu Zong, think this through carefully. You’re hanging onto two lives right now. If you don’t cut it off now, both of us are doomed. If you do cut it off, at least I stand a chance of surviving. Make your decision quickly.”

Lu Zong couldn’t afford prolonged thought; he had to act decisively. He waved at the Fatty. “Fatty, hurry up! Can’t you see Ma Xiong can’t hold on much longer?”

The Fatty was momentarily stunned that Lu Zong had made such a difficult choice so swiftly. He asked with doubt, “Lu Zong, didn’t you always hold loyalty above life itself? Why are you being so generous today, overturning your own creed?”

Sweat plastered Lu Zong’s forehead. He drew his dagger from his waist and walked toward Ganda as he spoke, “Damn it, why are you so long-winded? Valuing loyalty above life applies to a woman’s loyalty, not this! Ganda isn’t a woman, nor is he an effeminate man—and most importantly, he’s already dead.”

As he spoke, he reached Ganda. He took a deep breath, then offered a moment of silence. “Brother, you have suffered. I must atone for your sins. I trust the Yama King in hell will forgive you.”

Ma Xiong used the last vestiges of his strength. “Lu Zong, please hurry up. Stop dawdling. My hand is about to fall apart.”

Only then did Lu Zong act. He plunged the dagger into Ganda’s arm first, right around what looked like the biceps. Perhaps due to reflex, or maybe from the sudden shock of pain, Ganda let out a tremendous shout and finally released his grip, immediately slumping back into unconsciousness. But the instant Ganda let go, Ma Xiong sprang upright, crying out in agony, “Oh, my god, that hurts so much! How strong was Ganda’s grip?”

The Fatty approached the prone Ganda, felt his arm, and then his entire body. His face was etched with astonishment. He asked, “Lu Zong, Ma Xiong, come feel Ganda’s arm. What is happening here?”

Lu Zong and Ma Xiong, recalling the incredible strength just moments before, walked over and touched Ganda’s arm. A cloud of suspicion instantly gathered on their faces. “What’s going on? Why has Ganda’s arm become so rigid, so unnaturally solid?”

Ma Xiong shook his head. “No, I don’t think Ganda’s arm has simply become stronger. It feels like this arm is no longer his.”

The Fatty pressed, “What do you mean?”

Ma Xiong explained, “Feel Ganda’s arm, and then feel the tendrils of the carnivorous plants beneath our feet. Do you sense any difference?”

Lu Zong, prompted by Ma Xiong, seemed to grasp something. He exclaimed urgently, “No wonder Ganda’s arm felt so familiar when I touched it! It’s exactly the same as the tendrils of those flesh-eating plants.”

Ma Xiong continued his analysis. “Here is my theory. When we felt Ganda’s pulse earlier, what we were actually sensing was the seeds of the carnivorous plant sprouting from Ganda’s scalp. They traveled down through Ganda’s blood vessels. Perhaps only tiny, almost hair-thin sprouts emerged, able to navigate freely inside the vessels. They drifted slowly downward, and every time they passed a spot, they caused a slight vibration, which we mistook for a pulse. That explains the strange phenomenon where we felt a pulse but you, Fatty, didn’t. Once these sprouts reach the end of the line, they stop sprouting small shoots and begin to thicken and mature. By then, it will be time for Ganda’s life to end.”

Fatty and Lu Zong listened in astonishment. Lu Zong was so engrossed he nearly drooled, until the Fatty snapped him back to attention.

Lu Zong suddenly realized something else and added, “I think Ganda is dead now. His brain isn’t under his own control anymore; it must be dictated by those plant seeds. All he can perform now are basic mechanical motions. Even if he survives, he’ll just be a puppet, with the carnivorous plant entrenched and parasitizing his body.”

Lu Zong looked at Ganda, who was twitching on the ground, feeling a pang of sadness. He desperately wanted to find a way to save him—after all, he was the one who brought the man along; the responsibility rested heaviest on him, leaving him inevitably guilty.

Suddenly, he thought perhaps Ganda could still be saved. He clearly remembered that when he stabbed Ganda’s arm with the dagger, Ganda had cried out in pain. That meant Ganda still had sensation—at least the ability to feel pain.

He shared his idea with Ma Xiong and the Fatty, only to be met with immediate, contemptuous glares from both men. “Impossible,” they said. “Even if he lives, he won’t be the Ganda he was. Look at those sprouts already burrowing into his tiny capillaries throughout his body. Are you still naive enough to think you can save him?”

Lu Zong insisted, “Let’s just try. Even if we can’t save him, we must do our utmost to prolong his life. I cannot just stand by and watch Ganda die.”

The Fatty and Ma Xiong stepped back. “We won’t just stand by and watch Ganda die either,” they declared.

Lu Zong started, thinking they had agreed, and exclaimed happily, “Then come and help me quickly!”

The Fatty and Ma Xiong hastily squeezed their eyes shut. “We will close our eyes and watch Ganda go to his death,” they stated.

Lu Zong turned back, crestfallen.

Yet, the instant they closed their eyes, they snapped them open again. They stared blankly at each other, as if they had seen something, and then blinked forward again.

In the shared look of surprise, they saw hope.

Ma Xiong asked, “Fatty, did you just see something?”

The Fatty replied, “Yes! I thought it was a hallucination. Did you see it too?”

Ma Xiong nodded, then exclaimed excitedly, “If I’m not mistaken, we must have found the exit.”

The Fatty smiled broadly as well. “That’s right! We finally found the exit.”

Lu Zong, however, remained rooted to the spot, cradling the possibly dead Ganda, utterly bewildered by their conversation.

He finally asked in a muffled voice, “Excuse me, sirs, what exactly did you discover?”