Chapter 3

Chapter 3

As soon as Liu Ye heard this, his sorrow vanished. The programs on television often taught him that one should always respond to the nation’s call.

“If I can’t sell them anymore, what are we going to do for a living?” Liu Ye asked, troubled. Carpentry was the only skill he had.

“…”

The Fiends looked at each other, and then the village chief smacked Guiwa on the back of the head.

“He’s asking you! What are we going to do from now on?”

Guiwa looked at him in shock again. *Asking me again?*

“Uh… well… I feel like, we could… we could…”

“If you have something to say, say it! Why are you stuttering?” The village chief slapped Guiwa’s head again.

“He could go find a job!”

Fantastic!

The Fiends were thrilled. Finally, someone had said it!

“That’s right, son. Your mother and I have decided the same thing. We want you to go out and find work.” Father Liu’s voice trembled slightly as he spoke.

“But Brother Guiwa said that while one’s parents are alive, one should not travel far!” Liu Ye said with a conflicted expression.

The Fiends: “…”

“Uh, Guiwa, come here. Step outside with us for a moment.”

“Wait, no, I was just telling him bedtime stories back then…”

“What are you going to do?” Liu Ye asked curiously.

“Nothing, we just need to discuss a few things with Guiwa.”

The Fiends led Guiwa outside the house with beaming smiles. A moment later, the sounds of crashing and thumping echoed from outside.

After a short while, the Fiends returned. Liu Ye looked at Guiwa, whose face was swollen like a pig’s head, and asked in shock.

“Brother, what happened to you?”

“No… it’s nothing. I just… I accidentally tripped.” Guiwa forcefully snorted his nosebleed back in.

“A fall can do that to you?” Liu Ye was stunned.

“Uh, don’t mind him. Son, you don’t need to worry about your mother and me. You’ve grown up; you need to go out and see the world. A real man shouldn’t be confined to this tiny village!” Father Liu said passionately.

His words were so moving that the Fiends behind him couldn’t help but give him a thumbs up. *You’re a genius!*

“But… Brother Guiwa said that one should be content with what they have, and that a simple life is a blessing!” Liu Ye said.

The Fiends: “…”

“Uh, Guiwa, come here. Step outside with us again.”

Guiwa: “…”

A moment later, Liu Ye looked at Guiwa cautiously.

“Brother, are you really okay?”

“I’m fine! Just now… I wasn’t careful, *hiss*… and I tripped again.” Guiwa’s eyes were so swollen he could barely open them.

“Why do you keep falling? Should we go to the village clinic?” Liu Ye asked worriedly. He hoped his brother wasn’t coming down with some kind of illness.

He was already short as it was; if something happened to him from all these falls, what would they do?

“It’s fine, he’s used to it. Don’t pay him any mind,” Father Liu said.

“In any case, you still have to leave. You have a reason that makes it necessary for you to go out,” Father Liu added.

“What reason?” Liu Ye asked, puzzled.

The Fiends: “…”

Guiwa was busy rubbing his face and wincing when he suddenly felt the room go quiet. He instinctively turned around only to see the group staring at him again. Guiwa’s eyes widened as he pointed at himself. *Me again?*

“It was your idea,” Father Liu whispered.

Guiwa took a deep breath. If he weren’t unable to beat these guys, he would have killed them long ago.

“Well, you see, you have a reason that makes it necessary to leave, right? As for what that reason is…” Guiwa said with a miserable face.

“What is it?” Liu Ye asked.

“The reason is… your parents are planning to have a second child! So you have to make room for the new sibling. Otherwise, there won’t be enough space for them when they’re born.”

*Oh my god, I’m a freaking genius!*

Liu Ye’s Mother: “…”

Father Liu: “…”

Liu Ye was dumbfounded by these words. He looked at his parents in confusion.
“Dad, Mom. I don’t have any issues with your plan, but I just want to know-why do you suddenly want a second child?”

Father Liu looked toward Guiwa. Guiwa rolled his eyes, knowing this was his job again.

“Well, uh, the reason they want a second child is… they’re responding to the call from above! Didn’t they say so on TV? They’re calling for the whole nation to have second children. Every family has a quota, and the official documents have already been issued. Since you don’t have a girlfriend, your parents have to step up,” Guiwa said. He slapped his thigh, finally managing to cobble a lie together!

“Right, right, right! That’s exactly it. The higher-ups said this is a matter of national population concern. Our village might be small, but we can’t be slackers in this regard. So, everyone has to have a second child lately. With more people, there isn’t enough space. That’s why we have to trouble you to move out.”

To trick this kid into leaving, the Village Chief threw away all his dignity and immediately chimed in.

Liu Ye looked at the Village Chief, who was already over eighty years old. If even he was responding to the call from above to have a second child, Liu Ye couldn’t hold everyone back.

“Village Chief, if that’s the case, I’ll go out and find work!”

*Fantastic!*

The Fiends shouted in their hearts with excitement.

“Then, once I’ve earned some money out there, I’ll come back and build a big house. Our whole family can live together forever!”

Hearing this, Father Liu said in shock, “How could you have such a Terror-inducing thought?”

“Huh?”

“No, I mean… how could you have such a filial thought? Waaaah…” Father Liu was so scared he started crying.

“Right, we… we’re in no rush. If you have a house… you still need a wife, right! You have to find us a daughter-in-law from the outside!” Liu Ye’s Mother added hurriedly.

“Don’t worry, I’ll bring my wife back with me when the time comes!” Liu Ye said with a smile.

*Can’t you just never come back!*

To ensure Liu Ye wouldn’t return, the Fiends specifically gave him a list of tasks to complete before he could come back to the village.

Three days later.

“Dad, Mom, Village Chief, everyone! You don’t have to see me off!”

Liu Ye carried a bundle on his back to the village entrance. He turned to look at everyone in the village, and tears suddenly began to flow.

He looked at them and saw that every single one of them was also shedding tears, looking at him with eyes ‘full of reluctance.’

“Don’t worry, everyone! I’ll definitely earn money and come back!”

“Waaaah…”

Guiwa stood to the side, crying so hard he couldn’t speak.

Liu Ye could understand his feelings. After all, they had grown up together and shared a deep bond. Seeing him leave must be incredibly difficult.

Over there, his mother was crying so hard she looked like she might faint.

His father, standing beside her, was constantly ‘comforting’ her.

“Dammit, hold it in! If you keep laughing, you’ll blow our cover!”

“I can’t stay any longer!”

Liu Ye gritted his teeth and turned around. A man had to keep moving forward! He strode out of the village, and soon, his figure vanished from their sight.

The moment he left, the Fiends remained silent for a moment before erupting into deafening cheers!

“Great! He’s finally gone!!!”

“Ora! Ora ora ora ora!”

“Everyone, listen to me! I’ve decided that from this day forward, we will treat this date as our holiday! Let’s celebrate properly!” the Village Chief roared with excitement.

“Come on! Beat the human-skin drums! Play the funeral music!”

“Ohhh!”

In the distance, hearing the mournful music behind him, Liu Ye wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes. He knew the Village Chief and the others were seeing him off.

From this, he could see just how much the Village Chief and the others loved him.

But he couldn’t look back. If he did, he really wouldn’t be able to leave.

However, shortly after leaving the village, his body suddenly vanished in a bizarre fashion.

In the next second, he arrived in a strange place.

“Welcome to the Fiendish World!”