Chapter 27: Cotton Field
Suddenly seeing the ground covered in “chestnuts,” Chu Jiu was somewhat taken aback.
What was going on? Why was a chestnut crying so loudly?
It wasn’t until Little Can jumped to his ear and softly meowed, “The one crying is the one that pricked your hand this afternoon.”
In Chu Jiu’s eyes, all these chestnuts looked the same, with a round head and limbs sticking out. He couldn’t tell them apart.
But after hearing Little Can’s words and the chestnut’s intermittent cries, he had a rough idea of what had happened.
He squatted down, coaxing and questioning the chestnut with the same patience he used for Glup-Glup, and finally understood the situation: they were indeed from the “Chestnut Spirit” race.
The chestnut that was crying nonstop had just turned three years old yesterday. Its thorns had hardened, making it an adult chestnut.
As an adult chestnut, it had to follow the long-standing tradition of giving its mother a chosen treasure.
This chestnut spirit, named Sheldon, decided to give his mother a self-picked delicacy.
As for what to give, Sheldon hesitated for a long time.
Until one day, he accidentally saw a human picking something called mushrooms from the ground and turning them into fragrant food!
It smelled better than anything he had ever eaten!
Sheldon immediately decided to imitate the human and pick mushrooms.
However, before picking the mushrooms, he asked the elders of his clan for advice. They told him, “Mushrooms? Those are very dangerous. Some mushrooms are inedible. Eating them can make you dizzy or even talk nonsense.”
Fortunately, Sheldon believed he was smart enough—
He decided to follow the human picking mushrooms, take one of the mushrooms he picked, and give it to his mother. That way, there would be no problem!
So, when he heard Chu Jiu mutter to himself, “Let’s see how delicious it is,” he secretly pricked Chu Jiu with his thorns and took the mushroom.
But why did his mother suddenly start waving her arms and talking to the air after only two bites?
That’s what happens when you eat a bad mushroom!
He was so anxious and didn’t know what to do, so he came to find this human to see if he had any solutions.
After listening to the story, Chu Jiu sighed inwardly and asked, “How long did you fry or boil that mushroom?”
The little chestnut stuttered, repeating the words “fry”… “boil”?
His tongue seemed tied, as if he was unfamiliar with those words.
A thought flashed through Chu Jiu’s mind, and he frowned, “Did you eat it raw? You didn’t boil or fry it, you ate a raw ‘Jian Shou Qing’ mushroom?!”
The little chestnut hurriedly waved his arms, “No, no, we didn’t eat it raw!”
“I carefully sliced it into small pieces! Just the right size for one bite!”
Chu Jiu: …
So you didn’t “eat it raw,” you made a plate of ‘Jian Shou Qing’ sashimi.
Chu Jiu, who was usually very gentle, felt a surge of anger and said with a cold face, “Eating ‘Jian Shou Qing’ raw can cause poisoning—where is your mother?”
The little chestnut waved his arms towards the group of chestnuts behind him, and two chestnuts carried over a leaf.
On the leaf lay a chestnut shaking its head and mumbling.
This must be Sheldon’s mother.
He wondered if the little people chestnut spirits saw after eating poisonous mushrooms were flying chestnut spirits.
Chu Jiu was not a doctor, but he had read news about “Jian Shou Qing poisoning” more than once and remembered the basic treatment: inducing vomiting.
Vomiting can be induced by pressing the tongue root, using medication, or stimulating the stomach lining with warm salt water.
Chu Jiu didn’t know if chestnut spirits had stomach linings like humans, but he had no other choice. He quickly heated a bowl of water, added some salt, and handed it to the little chestnut with a serious expression.
Sheldon and the other chestnut spirits carried the bowl and hurriedly poured the salt water into his mother’s mouth.
Perhaps chestnut spirits were somewhat supernatural and had better physical constitutions than humans. After Sheldon’s mother vomited salt water several times, she stopped talking nonsense and recognized her son.
Sheldon, seeing his mother gradually regain consciousness, burst into tears, even louder than before.
Several other chestnut spirits around him also started to cry.
After Sheldon’s mother understood the situation, she jumped off the leaf stretcher, first thanked Chu Jiu solemnly, and then questioned Sheldon:
“The gift you gave me was stolen from someone else?”
Sheldon was dumbfounded and scratched his thorny head with his matchstick arms, “Huh? Ah? I… I didn’t steal it, I just… pricked him, and he gave it to me…”
Sheldon’s mother said, “You don’t know how to pick mushrooms, secretly following someone is already impolite; when they chose a mushroom, you took it without saying a word, that’s ‘stealing’; and then you cried and asked for help to save me, that’s just being shameless!”
Her words were very harsh, and the group of little chestnut spirits fell silent. Sheldon was stunned and couldn’t even cry.
Sheldon’s mother sighed, “You… go and reflect according to Article 10, Section 2 of the clan rules.”
Chu Jiu didn’t know what “Article 10 of the clan rules” was, but judging from the gasps of the other chestnuts, the punishment was probably severe.
Sheldon nodded obediently, apologized to Chu Jiu, and then left quietly like a dejected little sparrow.
At that moment, Sheldon’s mother sighed again, turned to look at Chu Jiu, and said politely:
“My name is Eleanor, I’m the chief of this clan. Once again, I apologize for the foolish behavior of one of our kin.”
“May I ask, where are you from, and what brings you to this rainy plateau?”
After learning that Chu Jiu intended to go to the tenth level to search for cotton, Eleanor sighed and said, “The tenth level, really…”
“With the physical strength of humans, it’ll probably take you several days to get there.”
Chu Jiu smiled and said, “That won’t be necessary. I estimate I’ll reach the tenth level the day after tomorrow.”
With that, he showed her the Wind Breath Fruit and the matching safety harness.
Eleanor exclaimed in surprise, “So it can be used like that!”
She circled around the Wind Breath Fruit and said, “What a brilliant idea… For a human to come up with such an ingenious solution…”
After a brief pause, Eleanor added, “However, perhaps you could try our method.”
“With our way, you could reach the tenth level by tomorrow.”
Chu Jiu asked with delight, “Oh? There’s an even faster way?”
Eleanor smiled, “Yes.”
“If you don’t mind, I’ll have Sheldon guide you tomorrow.”
*
The Next Day.
At the break of dawn, Chu Jiu was already up.
Following Eleanor’s suggestion, by using the chestnut spirits’ method, he wouldn’t have to trudge through the rain to the depths of each plateau level, nor rely on the flying tiger claw to descend carefully.
But Eleanor had not explained exactly what this method entailed.
Just as Chu Jiu emerged from the cave, he saw a few fluffy little chestnut creatures holding up leaves, gathered outside.
He recognized the leaves as those of the “traveler’s palm”—large, oval-shaped, smooth-surfaced, with natural grooves at the base of the petiole, allowing rainwater to flow downward with ease.
For the chestnut spirits, these large palm leaves, which were extremely waterproof, reasonably tough, and even sewable, were the perfect natural rain gear.
Chu Jiu thought to himself that if he couldn’t find a cave to shelter from the rain, a temporary tent made of these leaves wouldn’t be a bad idea.
Just then, a dark green little fluffball crawled out from under a leaf and greeted Chu Jiu, “Hello!”
That voice—undeniably Sheldon’s.
But wasn’t Sheldon supposed to be a brown, spiky chestnut?
The chestnut spirit before him was covered in soft green fur, looking just like a freshly grown green walnut.
Chu Jiu couldn’t help but crouch down and ask in disbelief, “…Sheldon?”
The green walnut replied, “It’s me.”
“My mother asked me to escort you to the tenth level. I’m here to guide you.”
It really was Sheldon!
Chu Jiu curiously asked, “Why do you look so different?”
Sheldon sighed, “I accepted punishment according to clan rules… and became like this…”
“Mother said I won’t regrow my spines until I prove that I’m mature and capable of becoming a true adult chestnut spirit.”
“Otherwise, I’ll be stuck…”
At this point, Sheldon lowered his head, looking even more downcast, “I’ll be stuck like this—an ugly little soft chestnut covered in fuzz.”
Though Sheldon’s voice was pitiful, Chu Jiu couldn’t help but find the fluffy creature in front of him somewhat amusing.
But he knew laughing now would only hurt the little guy’s pride, so he held back and said sincerely, “No, the soft fur isn’t ugly—it’s actually very cute.”
Hearing this, Sheldon perked up a bit and asked, “Really?”
Chu Jiu nodded firmly, “Really!”
Sheldon beamed and said, “You’re so kind!”
The little chestnut spirit was delighted, but Little Can sitting on Chu Jiu’s shoulder involuntarily pursed its lips, and its whole cat-like face drooped a little.
Busy preparing to set off, Chu Jiu didn’t notice the change in Little Can’s expression.
He asked Sheldon, “So, how are we getting to the tenth level today?”
The little chestnut spirit chuckled, raised his matchstick-thin arm to his mouth, and blew a sharp whistle.
Rustling noises came from the nearby trees, as if a large creature was parting the branches to come out.
Little Can instantly tensed up, gripping its tiny bow tightly.
Chu Jiu also instinctively reached for his machete.
Sheldon quickly said, “No, no—it’s not a monster.”
“It’s our clan’s ‘transportation’!”
Just as he finished speaking, a tall, striding bird emerged from the woods and shook the rain off its neck.
The bird was as tall as a horse, with stubby wings but strong, sharp talons. It was covered in blue-gray feathers, with a prominent bulging forehead and a bright yellow, hooked beak.
Even without the pop-up identification card in his mind, Chu Jiu instantly recognized the bird—
He blurted out, “A Bodu Bird! A giant dodo!”
[Giant Dodo: This peculiar, flightless bird closely resembles the extinct dodo from Earth, only several times larger.
Like the original dodo, its meat is tough, dry, and greasy—unappetizing and of little hunting value.
No one knows the running speed of the original dodo, but this giant variety rivals, if not surpasses, the Earth ostrich’s 70 km/h sprint.
Such speed allows it to escape from most predators and avoid extinction.
And… that speed may offer it other uses as well.]
Sheldon beamed and said, “You actually know this bird! Just like Mother said—you really are a knowledgeable and impressive person!”
The little chestnut spirit then used a hanging vine to swing up onto the giant bird’s head, holding a traveler’s palm leaf like an umbrella to shield the bird from the rain. He tapped the bird’s head, and it tucked in its legs and crouched down like a tame pigeon.
Sheldon waved his other arm and called out, “Come on up!”
“The Bodu Bird is super fast! It can even climb slopes—steep cliffs, no problem at all!”
“For our clan, they’re the only way to travel between the plateau levels.”
Chu Jiu was amazed, and carefully climbed onto the giant dodo’s back.
Sheldon shouted, “Hold onto its feathers! When it starts running or climbing, just hug its neck tightly!”
Once Chu Jiu was seated and holding onto the feathers, the big bird slowly stood up. It pawed the ground a few times, then shot off like an arrow through the forest!
Perched on the bird’s back, Chu Jiu watched the trees blur past like he was in a speeding off-road vehicle.
Strangely, despite the bird’s incredible speed, the ride was surprisingly stable—Chu Jiu had expected to be jostled like a sack of potatoes and had warned the canister to hold on or hide in his pocket. But in reality, the bird’s back seemed to have built-in shock absorbers, and the ride was smooth and comfortable.
Sheldon shouted joyfully, “Amazing, isn’t it? The Bodu Bird is awesome!”
“This is the most treasured secret mount of us Chestnut Spirits!”
“It only listens to our kind. When we ride it, it runs fast and steady.”
“But if it’s any other spirit or human, even if they manage to climb onto its back, it’ll get angry and throw them right off!”
So that’s how it is—this was a special means of transport exclusive to the Chestnut Spirits.
After less than half an hour of running, the giant bird reached the edge of the sixth terrace.
Under Sheldon’s direction, the Bodo spread its tiny wings and crossed them behind its back to form a “backrest” for Chu Jiu.
Then, it stretched out its neck and let out two loud “Doo-doo” cries before using its claws to wedge into the rock crevices and climb swiftly up the near-vertical cliff wall!
At that moment, Chu Jiu held tightly onto the Dodo’s neck with his upper body, while his lower body was securely supported by the “wing-backrest.” He had no fear of falling off at all.
In this way, it took only ten minutes for the Bodo to carry them to the sixth terrace.
Chu Jiu couldn’t help but exclaim once again, “So fast! That was so fast!”
Even faster than using the Wind Breath Fruit.
If he could raise one of these birds himself, it would save so much time when gathering supplies or traveling back to Bean Village for expeditions!
Unfortunately, only the Chestnut Spirits could command these giant dodos.
*
By noon, the Bodo had finally carried the little spirit, the cat, and the human out from the final layer of clouds.
In an instant, the endless rain disappeared.
Above their heads was a clear blue sky, and all around them was bright sunlight.
Who would’ve guessed that beneath this cloud layer, it had been an eternal rainy season?
Sheldon, who had never been to the tenth layer before, couldn’t help but let out a big “Wow!”
“It’s sunny! It’s really sunny! How wonderful!”
Chu Jiu, who hadn’t seen the sun in two days either, looked up in admiration. “The weather’s amazing!”
Only Little Can, the cat, meowed calmly near Chu Jiu’s face:
“Be careful. Don’t let go.”
Chu Jiu laughed, “Mm, I’m holding on tight.”
A few minutes later, the Bodo finally climbed over the cliff and stepped onto the tenth terrace.
This time, the ground wasn’t covered with slippery moss or thick mud—it was soft and springy grass.
Maybe it was the fresh air and the abundant sunlight, but the monsters here, though still large in size, seemed a lot more docile.
Like the goats grazing peacefully not far away.
If not for the fact that each of them had two heads—one a jet-black goat head and the other a pure white skull—and that the two heads would bump into each other while eating and bleat in annoyance, they would’ve looked no different from ordinary goats.
Thankfully, Chu Jiu knew these [Two-Headed Goats] weren’t aggressive. Their meat wasn’t exactly delicious, and their hide was too fragile to be tanned properly, so there was no need to worry about them or waste effort killing them.
He ignored the goats and told Sheldon the location of the “cotton field” marked on the map, then asked the little Chestnut Spirit to steer the Bodo straight there.
Soon, Chu Jiu could see the cotton field ahead.
This sunny plateau really lived up to its name as a place where plants and animals thrived—
The cotton here didn’t hang daintily on branches like usual, but instead looked like clouds fallen from the sky, stacked into fluffy white mounds.
Just looking at it from afar gave off a warm feeling, even sparking the urge to leap into the cloud-like hills and roll around.
Chu Jiu felt this, and even the little Chestnut Spirit got excited and urged the Bodo to speed up toward the field.
But just as they were about to reach the cotton, the Bodo suddenly slammed on the brakes and flapped its wings in panic.
Its neck stretched and shrank, and its hooked beak pointed repeatedly at the sand in front, trying to say something.
Sheldon muttered in confusion, “Huh? What’s wrong with the Bodo? Why did it stop all of a sudden?”
Little Can leapt up beside Chu Jiu’s face and meowed softly:
“Something’s in the sand.”
“Look closely—there are black things poking out of the soil. They’re still ‘swimming’ around.”
Chu Jiu followed the hint and stared carefully at the ground ahead.
After watching for a few minutes, he quietly signaled to Sheldon to have the Bodo step back.
Sheldon was puzzled—why stop when the cotton was right in front of them?
But since the Bodo also clearly refused to move forward, he tapped its head and had it retreat.
After backing away about ten meters, Chu Jiu pointed at the faint dark tips up ahead in the sand and said, “There are Sand Scorpions around the cotton field.”
And apparently, they weren’t affected by his [Concealment] skill.
The name “Sand Scorpion” drained all the color from Sheldon’s pale green walnut face—it turned dark green, and he nearly rolled off the Bodo’s head.
He’d heard of Sand Scorpions before:
Giant carnivorous scorpions that hide in the sand and love eating nuts—especially Chestnut Spirits, which they consider “fresh, sweet, nut-flavored meat.”
They’re fast, armed with sharp pincers and venomous stingers.
If a Chestnut Spirit ever wandered into their range, it would be snipped in half with a snap before being gobbled up like a cracked nut.
Fortunately, Sand Scorpions rarely ventured down to the lower terraces, so in his three years of life, Sheldon had never encountered one.
And now? First time on the top layer, not even off the bird yet, and he’d run into them already?
Meeting his natural predator for the first time, the little green Chestnut Spirit began to tremble all over.
But he didn’t forget what his mother had told him:
“Make sure to guide Chu Jiu properly and be a good host. Don’t let a guest visiting our sunny plateau get hurt.”
So he fought back his fear and said in a trembling voice,
“I—I’ll get the Bodo to leap over, I—I’ll cover you…”
Chu Jiu stared at the dark, shark-fin-like tips surfacing and sinking ahead, and shook his head.
“No good.”
“These scorpions—if they fully crawl out of the sand, they’d probably be as tall as the Bodo.”
“And considering their movement speed… the Dodo can’t fly. It’d likely get stung before it even makes the leap.”
Sheldon’s face darkened further. “T-That scary…?”
“M-Maybe we should hide somewhere first?” he asked, voice starting to crack with a trace of panic.
“Wait till the scorpions move on, then come back for the cotton?”
Chu Jiu shook his head again.
“Once Sand Scorpions choose a place to live, they don’t leave easily.”
“If we wait, it might be forever.”
“Then—what do we do?” Sheldon trembled harder, nearly in tears.
Little Can, who had been quiet all this time, whispered in Chu Jiu’s ear:
“If they come out, I can use your bow to pierce their armor.”
Chu Jiu didn’t respond right away. Instead, he stared thoughtfully at the scorpion’s info card:
[Sand Scorpion: A predatory omnivore-type nightmare creature that prefers to hide in sand. Its body is covered in hard armor and it attacks proactively. Highly aggressive, with high defense.
On Earth, though scorpions and lobsters both have pincers and look somewhat alike, they’re entirely different species.
But here, the Sand Scorpion, while resembling a scorpion, strangely retains several traits of a lobster.
In some ways, a Sand Scorpion is like a land-dwelling crayfish—Only it’s a hundred times larger… and a hundred times more vicious.
But if one could avoid its pincers and stinger, and manage to crack open its exoskeleton,
They’d find the meat underneath to be as delicious as crayfish.]
Chu Jiu looked up at the cloudless sky and said, “ Let’s try ‘fishing for scorpions’.”
