Chapter 285

Chapter 285 One Soul, Endless Paths

I never imagined that White Goat gege would come to save me.

I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life in that room... But White Goat gege really came. He brought Mister Tiger, Mister Snake, and Mister Black Goat.

The four of them all came to save me.

That night, White Goat gege fought fiercely with that snake-headed man, while Mister Tiger kept his hands over my eyes, not letting me look.

But I could hear it. It was the sound of a fight.

Both of them were incredibly strong, and when they fought, it was like two tractors crashing into each other.

In the end, White Goat gege won, and the snake-headed man was left with blood covering his face.

White Goat gege didn’t kill him; he just warned him to be more careful in the future.

They had clearly abandoned me, yet they came back to save me... Would they abandon me again?

I can accept when others treat me badly, but I can’t accept when they treat me well and then throw me away...

Mister Tiger held me in his arms and took me back to White Goat gege’s room.

"Little Mouse... are you alright?" Mister Tiger asked me.

"I—I’m fine, Mister Tiger..." I forced a smile.

Mister Black Goat muttered angrily under his breath, "That bastard... I had completely forgotten about that Terrestrial Snake’s tendencies... luckily we got there in time."

"Oh!" Mister Snake looked at my clothes, held his forehead, then walked over to a nearby cabinet and took out a dirty suit. "I have an extra suit here. I'll fix it up for you tonight, and you can wear it to work tomorrow."

"Why are you being so eager to please?" Mister Tiger said. “Are you planning to stay up two nights in a row without rest?”

"What’s wrong with that? I’m happy," Mister Snake said, shaking his head and winking at Mister Tiger.

"Well, you go fix the clothes, and I’ll put Little Mouse to bed."

"What?!" Mister Snake shouted, "You look so ugly, how could you possibly lull anyone to sleep?"

"Who else is going to do it if not me?" Mister Tiger retorted, "You? You stink, who are you planning to suffocate?"

I felt like the atmosphere had shifted... It seemed like they didn’t want to abandon me anymore.

"Mouse, from now on, this will be your resting room," White Goat gege said. "Let me introduce myself again. I am {Terrestrial Goat}, and from now on, I am your mentor. You are my disciple, and I will guide your path to advancement. Perhaps one day, I will even recommend you to sign the {Earthly Branches Ascension Wagering Contract}."

"Men–Mentor...?" I stood up suddenly, hesitating whether or not to give a formal {greeting}.

"From now on, you’ll live with my other three disciples. Should any questions arise, do not hesitate to approach them. If they are unable to provide an answer, you may seek my guidance," White Goat gege

I don’t know why, but I felt quite happy.

"Bu–But can I really do this...?" I looked at White Goat gege a little nervously, worried that I might mess things up again.

"None are born {incapable} in this world." White Goat gege said gently, "Because there are many paths in this world, and everyone walks their own. We have merely chosen different paths; it does not mean we will not reach our destination."

From the moment White Goat gege called himself a {teacher}, I suddenly realized how much he resembled one.

That night marked the beginning of the happiest time of my life.

I spent my days outside the abandoned warehouse and my nights laughing and playing with everyone.

I gradually started to realize how interesting the misters' personalities were.

Although Mister Black Goat seemed like he didn’t pay much attention to me, he would draw a small picture every day and place it on my bedside.

I heard that Mister Black Goat was not only good at drawing but also at calligraphy. Mister Tiger said that the fan-shaped calligraphy Mister Black Goat used to write could even be sold for money.

Mister Snake is the most cheerful among the four of them. He often makes me laugh, and I frequently forget the unpleasant smell from his mask. He’s really a good person. In order to train me, he often asks me some intellectual questions, but I can never come up with the answers.

The most interesting one would probably be Mister Tiger. He listens to me very carefully. No matter what I say, he always agrees with me. I heard that Mister Tiger has a daughter who is about my age, and the reason he became a {Tiger} here is so that one day he could go back and see his daughter.

Mister Tiger often tries to bring me a pack of snacks. His game venue seems to be at a supermarket, where he often finds some unwanted snacks. Although a lot of the snacks he brought me were already spoiled, I was still very happy—no one had ever bought snacks for me before.

Honestly, I was a little envious of Mister Tiger’s daughter.

If only my father could miss me like that. But sadly, he had abandoned me long ago.

Even if one day I could go back, I wouldn’t even know where to find him. If my father had been even half as good as Mister Tiger... then even if I died, it would have been worth it.

As for White Goat gege...

He was a very strange person.

He was different from all of us. He never slept. Whenever he had time, he would lock himself in his room to read. Every book he read was so profound that I had never even seen anything like them before.

What I found most curious was that... White Goat gege didn’t seem to have any reason to desire escape.

He had said more than once that he had no family in the real world, and that staying here was better than going out. But the games he designed were so exceptional that he was hitting his {quota} every single day. They never told me exactly what the {quota} was—only that once a game was designed, it couldn’t be changed. So sooner or later, White Goat gege would have to leave.

I was a little excited for that day… but also a little scared.

Mister Tiger said that if White Goat gege really left… then the three of us would be left without a {mentor}. We might be randomly reassigned to other {Terrestrial-grade} Earthly Branches… or even to Terrestrial Dragon.

At that time, I might not be able to live with the three misters anymore.

But I really did hope White Goat gege could leave.

This place was clearly not part of the normal world. Someone as kind as White Goat gege shouldn’t be trapped here for the rest of his life.

This place felt like a giant prison, trapping all of us inside.

The misters said that once we boarded this train, we could never leave.

Each of us was actually a {participant} here, even after we put on the masks. Every time this topic came up… the misters' expressions would grow heavy with sorrow.

It was as if we had trapped ourselves here, whether we were participants or not... it seemed like no one could ever get out.