Chapter 37: So Unique
With burning ears and a flushed face, Chu Jiu accepted the series of titles given to him.
In an instant, the dwarf beastmen—who had moments ago been panicked and desperate to escape—all gasped in unison and looked at Chu Jiu with sparkling eyes: “Friend of the Spirits!”
Chu Jiu: “…Yeah, uh-huh.”
Well, at the very least, the little squirrels had quieted down and were now able to communicate.
Enduring all that secondhand embarrassment hadn’t been for nothing.
The three squirrels looked at each other, then back at Chu Jiu, finally beginning to piece things together. They asked: “You, saved us?”
“You, defeated the monster?”
Chu Jiu quickly pointed at Lu Qingyan beside him. “No, no, he defeated the monster.”
Lu Qingyan replied calmly, “But he was the one who freed you from the cocoon.”
The squirrels looked up, glancing between Chu Jiu and Lu Qingyan, then bowed deeply in perfect sync, their big fluffy tails lifted high as they shouted: “Thank you! Thank you, brave, kind, and righteous Friend of the Spirits!”
Chu Jiu couldn’t help lowering his head and pressing a hand to his forehead at the over-the-top title.
Lu Qingyan’s face seemed composed, but his hands had quietly moved behind his back, betraying a hint of awkwardness.
Once they understood what had happened, the squirrel brothers no longer tried to dig an escape tunnel. Following Chu Jiu’s suggestion, they sat neatly in a row at a clean spot and began recounting their story—how they came to be there and what had happened to them.
They were three dwarf beastman brothers from a place called Sanctuary Valley.
They had ventured out this time to collect ores from the Forgotten Forest.
But just as they arrived at this underground cave, before they could find any rare minerals, they were attacked by a strange insect monster, cocooned, and imprisoned here.
As for what the monster was, why it secreted mud, and why it wrapped prey into cocoons—they had no idea. If anything, they seemed even more confused than Chu Jiu.
Midway through the explanation, the one with the shovel placed his tiny paws on his knees and began shaking his head with a mournful rhythm: “Bad bug, bad bug… lost it, lost it… so sad, so sad…”
The one with the pickaxe also drooped his head: “So ugly, so ugly… very mad, very mad…”
Chu Jiu: …? He was puzzled.
Sure, it made sense to be upset after being attacked by a monster… but what did “ugly” have to do with it? And what exactly had they “lost”?
Then, the eldest of the trio—the one with the axe and the most human-like communication skills—explained, and Chu Jiu finally understood:
It turned out that among dwarf beastmen—especially those with big, fluffy tails—appearance mattered a lot. Especially their tails.
No matter how deep into dark caves they ventured for mining, before returning to their village, they would always scrub themselves clean and use a special little comb to fluff their tails until smooth and shiny.
Only then could they march proudly back into their settlement.
But this time, while fleeing from that vile bug, they had lost their precious combs, durable soap, and bath cloths. Now, the three brothers would have to go back looking filthy.
As soon as they entered the village gates like this, the other dwarf beastmen would definitely laugh at them!
By now, even the axe-wielding squirrel was overwhelmed with sorrow and began shaking his head desperately.
So in front of Chu Jiu were three squirrel brothers, all lined up, heads bobbing and tails wagging in the same miserable rhythm. Fluffy tails, no less. Even his little companion Little Can didn’t have fluffy tails like these.
Chu Jiu spaced out for a moment—until Lu Qingyan beside him whispered, “If they stay this depressed, you won’t get any of the answers you want.”
Snapping out of his fluffy-tailed daze, Chu Jiu cleared his throat and asked, “Uh… so, what you want right now is to get back your combs, soap, and bath cloths, right?”
Those three key words instantly roused the squirrel brothers from their gloom.
The axe-wielder nodded: “Yes, find them, find them.”
The pickaxe one kept shaking his head: “Can’t find, can’t find.”
Chu Jiu said, “Well, little things like those are hard to find once lost—but I can make you new ones right now. One set each. How’s that sound?”
The squirrels’ eyes widened: “Really? Really?”
Chu Jiu: “Of course.”
The bath cloth was the easiest—just used some coarse linen he already had. The combs were simple too—he crafted three in under a minute using spiritual energy.
The only thing he couldn’t make instantly was soap.
Chu Jiu had never crafted soap before, since his initial system starter kit had come with all the basic toiletries—like toothbrushes and soap—so he’d never had a reason to try.
Fortunately, the process of making soap was pretty straightforward. Chu Jiu opened the [Virtual Assembly Line]:
First, he simmered some “Fatty Pork” to render lard, then he continuously heated and stirred the lard in a skillet. In the meantime, he ground plant ash, added water, and filtered it to extract the alkaline solution.
He slowly poured this solution into the hot lard, stirring nonstop. Once most of the water had evaporated, he added a pinch of salt and kept stirring until the mixture turned thick and gluey. Finally, he poured the soap mixture into wooden molds to cool and harden into a malt-colored bar of soap.
In real life, just the step of leaching plant ash to get alkaline water would take a week, but thanks to the [Virtual Assembly Line], Chu Jiu got three bars of [Old-Fashioned Soap] in just two minutes.
[Old-Fashioned Soap], [Fur-Grooming Combs], and [Cleaning Linen] together made up the brand-new [Dwarf Beastman Hygiene Set].
When he handed the sets to the squirrels, they looked up at Chu Jiu like he was a merciful deity, tears streaming from their little eyes. Their big tails kept wagging—now at a different rhythm.
Chu Jiu reluctantly tore his gaze from the mesmerizing fluff and asked a crucial question:
“You’ve been trapped here so long—you must be starving. What would you like to eat?”
All three raised their little paws at once: “Nuts!”
Thankfully, when Chu Jiu left the Sunny Plateau, the chestnut spirits had not only given him a Bodo bird to ride, but also stuffed him with loads of giant nuts.
He fished out three massive sunflower seeds and handed them over.
Immediately, the squirrels forgot their tears and their trauma—paws clutching the seeds, they started gnawing at the shells with their sharp teeth.
Once they’d finished eating, Chu Jiu finally asked, “Where exactly in ‘Sanctuary Valley’ do you live?”
The three squirrels, full of snacks and gifts, were now more enthusiastic than ever. Chu Jiu would ask one question and get a chorus of ten chirpy responses.
They eagerly described their dwarf beastman settlement in vivid detail—even the exact shape of the big rock near the hidden entrance.
Chu Jiu nodded, thinking to himself: So it’s a semi-subterranean hideout. If I hadn’t asked in advance, I might not even find the entrance once I got to the valley.
As for the question of whether they accepted commissions from humans to craft equipment?
“Would you be willing to take commissions to forge equipment?”
The three squirrels all nodded furiously:
“Yes! Yes!”
“There’s a blacksmith in the village!”
“Blacksmith trades with humans!”
“If you have gems, you can enter the village; with gems, you can see the blacksmith.”
Chu Jiu paused. “Gems? You need gems to enter your village?”
“The entrance fee is that expensive?”
The three squirrels answered him seriously:
“That’s right. Only humans who carry enough gemstones can enter our tribe. And the blacksmiths in our tribe will only accept commissions from humans after receiving gemstones.”
“Although it’s been a very long time since any human came to trade with us, this is an old rule that has been passed down for generations and cannot be changed!”
Chu Jiu frowned slightly: “The gemstones you’re talking about… what kind are they?”
If it was something common like crystal stones, then he could just gather them in another region.
However, the squirrels shook their heads: they didn’t know the specific kind. But they were colorful, sparkly, small, and pretty. They also heard that such gemstones could be bought in human cities.
Gemstones that can be bought in human cities?
Upon hearing that, Chu Jiu crossed his arms and rested his chin on one hand, and a thought popped into his mind—the “Adventures of the Caliph” mentioned in Folk Legends.
Was there perhaps a connection between that story of the candy shop boy and what the squirrels were saying now…?
But clearly, now wasn’t the right time for deep thinking.
Chu Jiu collected his thoughts and changed the subject: “Just now… were you trying to dig your way out?”
The squirrels nodded vigorously: “Yes! Yes! Digging to escape! Digging to escape!”
Then the squirrels exchanged glances and looked at Chu Jiu, declaring in unison: “We’ll take you out! We’ll take the kind friend of spirits with us!”
Chu Jiu thought: well, that’s not bad. Just earlier, Lu Qingyan said his mental energy was still recovering. If the dwarven beastmen could dig their way out, Lu Qingyan wouldn’t need to use his powers again.
He asked, “How long would it take you to dig a tunnel like that?”
The squirrel with the axe said, “Very fast! Very fast! We can dig out in 30 days! 30 days!”
Chu Jiu’s breath caught: 30 days?! That’s what you call fast?
…Considering that dwarven beastmen lived far longer than humans, maybe 30 days to them was like 3 hours to a human.
But for humans, being trapped in this pitch-dark underground cave for 30 days, even with food and water, would be extremely difficult.
Not to mention that Little Can was still waiting for him outside.
That little guy must be so anxious and worried, seeing the whole mine collapse and not knowing if he got out safely.
At this moment, Lu Qingyan said in a low voice: “Retracing our steps will be faster.”
The squirrels all tilted their heads in confusion and looked at Lu Qingyan: “You know how to dig tunnels?”
Lu Qingyan: “…No. But I can move the fallen rocks.”
The squirrels looked up at the completely blocked passage and seemed skeptical. In their memory, no human possessed such a powerful ability that they could remove all that rubble.
But then again, no one in their memory had ever single-handedly defeated such a massive monster either.
Uncertain, the little squirrels looked at Chu Jiu, their “just and righteous friend of spirits”: “Really? Really? Can he do it? Can he do it?”
Chu Jiu asked Lu Qingyan quietly, “Your mental energy has recovered?”
Lu Qingyan paused for a second and replied, unexpectedly gently, “It has.”
Chu Jiu didn’t notice the change in Lu Qingyan’s tone. He turned to the squirrels and said, “Yes, he can.”
For some reason, Chu Jiu had this strange gut feeling: whatever this man named Lu Qingyan said, he would absolutely follow through on it.
Since the “friend of spirits” had vouched for him, the squirrels had no reason to doubt.
They nodded eagerly: “We believe you! We believe you!”
Then tilted their heads again: “We can help! We can help!”
Lu Qingyan thought for a moment: “You really can help.”
He looked up at the rubble and laid out his plan:
The dwarven beastmen were familiar with the mine’s structure and the composition of the rocks. While Lu Qingyan used his powers to clear the rubble, they could observe and point out which rocks must not be touched and which ones could be destroyed directly.
That way, there’d be no risk of a secondary cave-in.
Lu Qingyan explained everything clearly and confidently. Strangely, the little squirrels—who had just been noisily interrupting each other while talking to Chu Jiu—were now all standing at attention, ears perked, tails down, listening intently.
Once everything was arranged, Lu Qingyan lightly pushed off with his foot and, with an agility Chu Jiu couldn’t even imagine, soared into the air and leapt to the top of the cave.
The three squirrels followed quickly, nimbly climbing the walls after him.
The distance was too far, and the lighting too dim—Chu Jiu couldn’t see what they were doing up there at all, so he gave up trying to crane his neck.
Instead, he sat down by the campfire and took out Folk Legends, re-reading The Adventures of the Caliph.
Just as he finished, a gust of cool wind swept past above, followed by a thud—
Lu Qingyan had landed back on the ground.
The three squirrels were right behind him.
Only now, compared to when they first went up, their expressions toward Lu Qingyan had completely changed.
If they had still harbored a bit of doubt when he said he would “move the rocks with his powers,” now their eyes were filled with nothing but pure admiration and respect.
Unfortunately, the squirrels’ language skills were still too limited to describe exactly what Lu Qingyan had done up there. They could only shake their tails and tell Chu Jiu: “He’s amazing! He’s so strong!”
Lu Qingyan didn’t explain anything to Chu Jiu, nor did he mention how he’d cleared the tunnel. He simply said calmly: “It’s done. I’ll take you out.”
Then he reached out his right hand toward Chu Jiu, palm up: “Come.”
Chu Jiu looked at the gloved hand, and for some reason, what flashed through his mind was the image of Little Can offering him its tiny kitten paw.
He quickly shook his head, reminding himself that he’d see Little Can soon anyway, then placed his hand in Lu Qingyan’s palm.
In the next second, he felt himself being pulled into Lu Qingyan’s embrace, with a hand covering his mouth and nose. Then, with a leap, they were airborne—landing directly atop the collapsed edge of the mine shaft.
Chu Jiu originally wanted to run out on his own, but the man showed no intention of letting him down, continuing to carry him while racing through the tunnel.
Just as they were about to pass the grotesque worm’s corpse, Chu Jiu insisted, “I want to take a look at this monster!”
A monster of this level—one not even detailed in the bestiary—must drop some kind of hidden materials, right?
So Lu Qingyan leapt beside the grotesque worm’s corpse—or rather, the pile of mud it had become.
The brownish sludge still vaguely resembled the monster’s former form and emitted a nauseating stench.
Chu Jiu held his breath and studied it carefully, but couldn’t find any collectible material in the mud.
How odd.
Normally, such a powerful nightmare creature would have tentacles, skin, even bodily fluids that could be harvested.
But this grotesque worm had dropped nothing at all.
Chu Jiu was a little disappointed. He walked around it, then lowered his head to examine the mud again, only to notice another strange detail:
This mud looked very similar to the slime left behind by the “Swampy Sludge Monsters” he’d defeated earlier in the marshlands.
Thinking back to the sticky sludge the grotesque worm had spit out… Could it be that this grotesque worm was somehow related to the Swampy Sludge Monsters?
Chu Jiu immediately shared his theory with Lu Qingyan.
Lu Qingyan stared at the mud, then nodded slightly: “That’s possible.”
But he added, “The air here is too polluted. We can’t stay.”
Chu Jiu quickly agreed: “Let’s go.”
This time, he didn’t let Lu Qingyan carry him—he followed close behind, stumbling a little as they ran out of the cave together.
*
A quarter of an hour later, the two of them—and the three squirrels—finally made it out of the underground mine.
The three squirrels found a tree stump to perch on and sat down, panting heavily.
Meanwhile, Chu Jiu received a notification:
[The dwarf beastmen thank you for saving their lives. You have earned 300 Pioneer Points!]
[The dwarf beastmen are grateful for your gift. Their affection towards you has greatly increased. You have earned 500 Pioneer Points!]
…He didn’t expect that giving them a cleaning kit would earn him more Pioneer Points than rescuing them from their cocoons?
What vain little squirrels!
But then again—with such fluffy big tails, of course they’d want to keep themselves well-groomed.
Once the fluffy-tailed squirrels caught their breath, they stood up and said to Chu Jiu:
“Thank you! Thank you!”
“We will miss you in the tribe! We’ll be waiting for you!”
“Come find us! Come find us!”
Chu Jiu nodded. “I will. Once I find the ‘gems’ you mentioned, I’ll come to Sanctuary Valley to find you.”
The squirrels happily wagged their tails and bowed again. “Thank you! Kind and just friend of the spirit!”
Chu Jiu: …Hey, hey, can you guys not call me that? It’s honestly too much!
Scratching his head awkwardly, he instinctively glanced at Lu Qingyan nearby—
Huh? Did this usually serious and expressionless guy… just smirk a little?
Ahhh, I knew it! He was laughing at me!
Chu Jiu’s ears started burning from embarrassment.
But then, the squirrels turned to Lu Qingyan and bowed in unison, “Thank you! Beautiful and powerful human man!”
Lu Qingyan: …
Chu Jiu: …? Huh? That title is even more ridiculous than mine!?
After politely saying their goodbyes, the three dwarf beastmen hoisted their axes and shovels, tucked their cleaning kits under their arms, and cheered as they trotted off.
That left the two humans standing in place, quietly basking in mutual embarrassment.
Eventually, Chu Jiu couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing: “Hahaha—what even was that! ‘Beautiful and powerful human man’—haha that sounds like something a kindergartener would come up with!”
Lu Qingyan looked at the laughing Chu Jiu, the corners of his lips lifting unconsciously.
“Yours wasn’t exactly any better—‘kind and just friend of the spirit beasts.’”
Chu Jiu quickly coughed twice. “Ahem, how about we agree this stays just between us? Never mention it to a third person, ever.”
Lu Qingyan’s eyes curved slightly at the corners. “Deal.”
Chu Jiu let out a small breath of relief and began scanning the surrounding area, searching for signs of the Bodo bird and Little Can.
Just then, Lu Qingyan spoke up: “The monster’s corpse will continue to pollute the air in the cave. The ‘Underground Mine’ can’t be entered again for now.”
Chu Jiu nodded. “Okay, okay, I won’t go back in.”
Lu Qingyan paused. “What you’re looking for…?”
Chu Jiu replied quickly, “I was looking for gypsum. I already collected some before the monster appeared. If it’s not enough, I can go to Sanctuary Valley—there are plenty of ores there.”
Lu Qingyan finally said, “Alright.”
He followed Chu Jiu’s gaze into the surrounding woods and added:
“I’ll head out first. Be careful. When you get back, don’t mention me to anyone.”
Chu Jiu blinked, briefly wondering if he could have the Bodo bird fly them both out. But thinking about it, someone as powerful as Lu Qingyan must have his own important tasks.
As for the whole “don’t mention him” thing… maybe there really is some kind of secret organization among the ability-users here?
So Chu Jiu didn’t ask further or try to convince him to stay. He simply gave a sincere thank you.
Lu Qingyan’s figure quickly vanished into the woods.
Chu Jiu circled the area once more and called out, “Bodo? Little Can?”
The surroundings were still silent.
He felt a bit uneasy and raised his voice to call again.
This time, he finally heard the rustling of leaves, followed by the familiar “Bodo” cry.
Moments later, a large blue-gray bird burst out of the trees, flapping its wings as it dashed over.
And perched steadily on its back—was his beloved Little Can!
I wonder how many dwarf beast man there are?