inley Yang was also looking down at her legs. A monstrous infant, half-human and half-insect, its lower body retaining insectoid features—legless, like a mollusk—had wrapped around her calf and was wailing uncontrollably. The cry was so raspy it barely sounded human; even the screech of the "night owls" we heard deep in the jungle at midnight was more pleasant to the ear.

Perhaps due to the suddenness of the event, inley Yang froze completely. The crying of the half-insect monster abruptly ceased. Its mouth split open simultaneously toward four diagonal directions, each segment lined internally with backward-slanting serrations, resembling an insect's mouthparts. As it split open, it seemed as if the entire infant's head had divided into four parts, swaying as it prepared to bite inley Yang’s leg.

I saw it clearly. Seeing inley Yang stunned and not reacting to dodge, though I held the Mii in my hands, the distance was too close for me to risk firing. I feared the storm of bullets from the "Chicago Typewriter" would sever inley Yang's leg along with the creature. In desperation, I reversed the buttstock of the rifle and brought it down hard onto the half-insect, half-human monstrosity.

Just as the stock was about to smash into the infant’s head, it suddenly whipped its head around, its four-part gaping maw clamping firmly onto the Mii's buttstock. The hardwood of the stock creaked under the grip, and strands of black fluid, apparently toxic, dripped from the corners of its mouth.

This bought me precious seconds. inley Yang finally managed to shake off the shock induced by the aberrant infant, letting out a soft gasp as she tried to wrench her leg free from its embrace. Simultaneously, I pulled the rifle back; the creature’s insect-like jaws, lined with barbs, had locked onto the stock and wouldn't release. I tore it bodily from inley Yang’s leg.

Fearing that any hesitation would allow the creature to crawl up the Mii and bite my arm, I swung the rifle upward. Fatty, who had a clear view from the side, had already snatched up his entrenching tool and roared, "**, let’s see what you’re made of." The entrenching tool whistled through the air, meeting the creature I had flung upward with the rifle butt.

It connected squarely in mid-air, like hitting a baseball. There was a dull thud as the hardened steel blade crushed flesh and bone. The half-human, half-insect monster flew like a discarded rag doll, slamming straight into the rock face of the "Gourd Cave." With another smack, its head exploded, painting the translucent red cavern wall where it hit as if a dye shop had burst open—red, green, yellow, and black fluids streamed down the stone.

I praised it: "Nice shot. Damn satisfying." I looked down at the buttstock of the Mii submachine gun still in my hand; a few of the barbs from the insect’s mouthparts were still embedded there. I cursed again: "What a hard bite. Growing teeth before weaning, what a damn freak." I scanned the surroundings, trying to find where it had crawled from.

To my surprise, the infant that had fallen to the ground was not dead. It rolled a few times, then suddenly lifted its mangled head and wailed desperately at us. The cry was excruciatingly shrill, grating on the nerves. I raised the Mii and fired a short burst, peppering the infant's head until flesh and bone splattered. After the bullets passed, only an empty, headless husk remained. The hollow cavity listed briefly before collapsing lifelessly onto the ground, finally dead.

One crisis unsettled, another arose. Before we could figure out where the suddenly appearing monster had come from, the entire massive cavern plunged into darkness. The faint, cold light cast by the floating female corpse in the river vanished instantly. The vast cavern was illuminated only by the headlamps on our climbing helmets.

From all around came the rustling noise of countless white objects moving, grinding against loose stones, accompanied by mournful infant cries that pierced the heart. I immediately understood: these were the Gu hatchlings emerging from the female corpse. They must have detached from the mother body some time ago. We had focused all our attention on the bronze chest containing the "Zhelong Mountain" divine artifact, failing to notice immediately. Now it was too late; they seemed to be crawling everywhere, having formed an encircling perimeter without us realizing.

inley Yang ignited a cold flare and raised it high. Perhaps due to a primal, feminine instinct, she seemed deeply afraid of these half-human, half-insect infants. The hand holding the flare trembled slightly, casting shifting shadows in the cave. We could see countless crawling monsters packed layer upon layer, all with their large mouths split into four sections. They moved with startling speed, circling us closely, apparently viewing the three living humans as the first delicacy since their birth. They hesitated only slightly, deterred by the flare’s light. The moment the light dimmed, they would swarm. Our two Miis, a Type Six pistol, and a single-shot "Jianwei" rifle were wholly inadequate for defense. We had to carve a bloody path to break out immediately.

The three of us stood back-to-back, relying on each other, waiting for the "Gu Infants" to show the slightest weakness so we could charge out. Their bodies contained Gu poison transformed from the resentment of the deceased; a mere graze from one would be fatal.

With one hand holding my rifle and the other aiming the "Wolf Eye" flashlight into the dark cluster of infants, I tried to discern their exact features. They seemed terrified of the strong light, immediately scattering. Several actually climbed the slick, vertical cave walls—I was secretly astonished; were they like geckos? I then shone the light on the dead infant on the ground and realized their bellies and forelimbs were equipped with suction cups—a single body possessing multiple characteristics of both humans and insects.

Fatty yelled, "These bug-spawn are afraid of the flashlight beam! We just need to charge out!"

inley Yang turned to Fatty and me, "No, they haven't adapted yet. They aren't fleeing far, just avoiding the direct beam. They won't retreat easily. Rushing out blindly will only lead to a head-on confrontation. There are too many of them; we don't have even a thirty percent chance."

These monsters had lain dormant in those "Drifting Dead" mother bodies for a thousand years. Why were they emerging now? Wouldn't this cut off the source of the valley's Gu poison? Had we unintentionally triggered some ritual? I frantically searched for the three divine artifacts we had retrieved from the bronze chest: the three-legged strange toad from the Moon Palace, the three piles of mountain god skeletal remains, and the jade fetus in the ceramic jar. Could these artifacts be the culprits causing the "Gu Eggs" to leave their mother bodies?

However, the "divine artifacts" of the Yi people not far from us were now covered by the infants. The cave was chaotic everywhere, making it impossible to locate them. The infant howls grew louder in the darkness; it seemed there would be no special opportunity forthcoming. We couldn't afford to wait and see. With the situation as it was, we had no choice but to brace ourselves and force a breakthrough.

I reminded Fatty to retrieve the "Butane Sprayer" from his pack. At this point, we couldn't afford to hold back; this was a matter of extreme urgency. We would give them a taste of fiery chaos and use the confusion to run toward the Gourd Mouth. Once outside the cave where we had the advantage of terrain, we wouldn't fear these things.

Just as we were about to act, inley Yang spoke: "We attacked that giant worm so hard, and the half-human, half-insect infants suddenly detached from the mother body. It might be because the cave lacks the red mist that kept them in a dormant state, and it might have nothing to do with the three artifacts. However, we must destroy those artifacts, especially the three-legged blue toad in the Moon Palace. That strange toad is made from a rare meteorite containing blue quark gelatinous ions; it emits interfering ions upward even buried a kilometer underground. Without it, the two large meteorites at the valley entrance will cease functioning, or even more planes will crash here."

There was no time for further discussion. The hungry "Gu Infants" were already impatient, closing in completely, ignoring the strong flashlight beam, gradually tightening their circle. The location where the artifacts were scattered was deeper inside the cave. If we forced our way outward, we would have to abandon destroying them. Furthermore, our only reliance, the "Butane Sprayer," had only three charges and was irreplaceable. Once expended, being trapped in the siege would be disastrous. We had to charge out first and figure out the rest later.

I shouted to Fatty and inley Yang, "Let’s charge out shoulder-to-shoulder!" Just then, one of the "Gu Infant’s" strange mouths lunged forward. inley Yang leaped up and kicked it squarely on the side of its head, sending it flying, while simultaneously raising the "Diamond Umbrella" to block the entanglement of a few infants from behind.

Fatty worked quickly, aiming the nozzle of the "Butane Bottle" forward and spraying. Dozens of "Gu Infants" were immediately engulfed in the blaze ignited by the butane, turning into fiery spheres, struggling and shrieking, instantly reduced to charcoal. This was our first use of the "Butane Sprayer," and we hadn't anticipated its power would be so astonishing; it even scorched the surrounding rock.

Fatty fired twice more. Amidst the agonized screams of the monsters scorched by the intense flames, inley Yang, Fatty, and I seized the opportunity created by the chaos and broke through the weak point. We ran wildly, scrambling over the undulating rocks. A short distance later, we heard a tremendous racket behind us and my heart sank. Damn, they’re fast; they’re right on our heels, and the sound suggests they aren't far. Running like this was not a solution.

We ran only a few more steps along the water's edge before the path ended. The terrain of the "Gourd Cave" began to constrict; it seemed we were nearing the Gourd Mouth. The curvature of the rock wall suddenly increased, becoming extremely steep. To proceed meant entering the water and swimming out. A semicircular patch of light not far ahead was likely the exit. This stretch of water was wide, but since the cave mouth was narrow, the current wasn't rapid. If we swam at our fastest speed, we would be overtaken by the horde of Gu Infants before reaching halfway.

The three of us were panting heavily, our hearts pounding in unison. I pointed to the light: "That’s the exit. You two swim out first; I'll hold them off here for a while. Otherwise, fighting them in the water would be certain death for all of us. Don't worry about me; I have a way to get clear."

Fatty yanked the bolt of his rifle open: "You have no way. Don't anyone argue with me! If someone has to stay, it’ll be me. I refuse to believe that an eighty-year-old mother is afraid of her own child!" With that, he tried to shove me and inley Yang into the water.

inley Yang pushed Fatty’s hand away and began rummaging through his backpack for explosives. "Quickly set up a few rings of detonating cord to slow them down a bit; that’ll give us time to escape."

Fatty and I understood. There was no time to waste; we needed every second. We frantically untied the detonating cords from their thin wire bindings and haphazardly spread them across the ground. I heard the monsters’ wolf-howl-like, mournful cries growing from distant to near. Although the cave was pitch black, judging by the piercing wails, they were almost upon us. I kept urging Fatty, "Hurry up, hurry up!"

Just as Fatty finished laying all the detonating cords across the cave floor, inley Yang had already pulled the inflation valve on the gear pack. The three of us dared not linger a moment longer. Driven by the death-knell cries, we jumped into the water together, holding onto the flotation bag, paddling toward the cave exit with all four limbs.

In the midst of my haste, I couldn't resist looking back. I saw the countless monsters, whether human or insect, trailing us like maggots clinging to bone. The first line of detonating cord exploded just then. Although this rope-like explosive wasn't powerful, it was enough to temporarily slow their relentless pursuit. Fatty had set up five layers of cord. At our speed, we should be able to slip out of the Gourd Cave before they caught up.

The life force of these Gu Infants was as tenacious as that of cockroaches; they couldn't be killed unless utterly pulverized. Moreover, judging by the barbs and black fluid around their mouths, their toxicity must be extremely virulent. The most terrifying factor was their sheer numbers, overwhelming us. We had no choice but to escape this dead end, the "Gourd Cave," and devise a strategy for survival outside.

While swimming with all my might, I was already calculating how to wipe them out once we got out. Suddenly, I felt my body sink. It was as if several immensely strong claws had grasped my legs. I could no longer swim forward; in fact, my body was being dragged rapidly down toward the black bottom of the water.

Because I was behind the flotation bag, with Fatty and inley Yang slightly ahead on either side, they hadn't noticed my plight. My feet being suddenly grabbed threw me into a panic. I lost my grip on the inflatable bag as I desperately reached for it, but the bag was moving forward quickly with the current. That split second of deviation made me miss, only catching a fingernail on the edge. I tried to call out to inley Yang and Fatty, but the icy river water had already closed over my nose.