Chapter 1 Prelude

  Thirty years ago in Kunlun Mountains, ancient Kunlun country, a mysterious investigation team of 8 people from different places came here.

  Finally found it!

  Is this the thing?! Only I know how to use this thing, you people who don't understand can all die.

  How can you betray us!

  Everyone who knows about this must die! Although I don't agree with killing...

  Are you going to let them off either?

  You must die!

  My name is Lu Jizong, I'm 29 years old. I'm an orphan with no parents. My personality is introverted and cold. Since childhood, I've been living with my uncle in the mountains of Guangxi near the border. The population density here is very low, unlike big cities where there are crowds and people flowing everywhere.

  I live in the vast mountains of Shimian, basically just my uncle and I manage this endless expanse. Wherever we go, danger is always lurking! So from a young age, I've lost count of how many times I almost died under the paws of wild beasts in the mountains due to my recklessness.

  It's because of the harsh environment I grew up in that made me gradually become cold and ruthless. My uncle, who is always a kind and honest old man in my memory, if he were alive today, would probably be considered a good Samaritan or a representative of kindness and warmth, but definitely not a troublemaker in society! Now let's talk about me! I'm currently living in Long'an Bay, Beihai City, which is the closest border to Vietnam. I've opened a small shop called "Long'an Small Shop", the name may sound good, but it's actually involved in some illegal activities, although not as serious as running a nightclub or something similar. However, according to the laws and regulations regarding wildlife trafficking and poaching, my actions over the past decade can be considered unforgivable.

  Here is the translation:

  In recent years, I've made a lot of money from this business, and my partners have also become rich. However, there are also many journalists and TV programs that expose and criticize people like us, labeling us as the dregs of society. Many of our peers have been punished by the law. I wasn't caught, and I have a good relationship with the police in Long An, Vietnam, so I escaped to Vietnam early on.

  What kind of people are we? Bad people? Just because we want to make a living and have food to eat, does that make us bad people? The current laws are ridiculous - even animals are worth more than human lives! If people like us, who are labeled as bad people, weren't driven by desperation, how could we possibly do this kind of work?

  As the saying goes, "those who are pitied must have a hateful past." But have you ever thought about it from our perspective? Those who are hated must also have a pitiful side! People like us, including my partners and me, are all undocumented. We don't have household registrations or ID cards, making it hard for us to take buses, get medical treatment, or find jobs. In short, we're forced to live in the shadows.

  Of course, now we have fake documents, courtesy of Old Zhou from the Long An police department. Although he's just a county-level policeman, he's very powerful. On the surface, we're like brothers, but in reality, we're just using each other for our own benefit. I rely on Old Zhou to stay safe, and he relies on me to make money.

  Everything is clear-cut and transactional!

  On September 27, 2010, the government launched a crackdown on prostitution, gambling, and drugs. My smuggling business was also targeted, so Old Zhou tipped me off and helped me cover my tracks. That day, I dispersed my employees and gave them a long vacation. Only three people remained in the shop: me, Blackie, and Liu Lao.

  Blackie is 1.8 meters tall, with a strong build and quick reflexes. He can easily take down a few hundred kilograms of black bears. But he's also superstitious - if you talk to him about ghosts at night, he'll definitely have dark circles under his eyes the next day!

  I've known Blackie for over 10 years, and he's helped me a lot during that time. We often go hunting together in the mountains, sharing life-and-death experiences. For example, we were once surrounded by a pack of wolves and attacked by snakes.

  I once asked Blackie about his family, but he didn't say much. I could tell that he had some painful memories, so I didn't press him further. Later, I asked him where his hometown was, and he said it was in a village at the foot of the Kunlun Mountains. At the time, I could see that he was very sad, but I didn't ask any more questions.

  We're both people who have experienced similar hardships, so we've become close friends.

  When my shop first opened, Blackie really helped me out. But he's not ambitious - all he wants is to have enough food and a place to sleep! As for me, I'm exhausted from carrying the weight of my past. When I was 14, I left my hometown of Er Long Shan with just a dog by my side. I had no ID or household registration, so I couldn't go far.

  At that time, other kids were celebrating the winter solstice with their families, eating dumplings and drinking soda like they were gods. But I was working on a construction site, carrying bricks and mixing cement. The boss was cruel and cheated me out of my wages, saying I was a thief and breaking my hand before kicking me off the site.

  The next year, when I was 15, my dog Big Yellow starved to death. You can imagine how desperate I was! There was a person who helped me at that time, someone I initially thought was kind. He rescued me, paid for my medical treatment, and even fixed my broken hand. But it turned out he had ulterior motives - he sold me into slavery in Vietnam.

  I was still counting money for him!

  When I was 17, I spent two years in Vietnam, barely surviving. In September, I followed a group of Chinese smugglers back to An Long, China. The experiences I had during that time are too numerous to mention...

  After I returned, I followed the local smuggling boss to do the smuggling business. The boss's surname was Li, and he treated his subordinates very harshly, often beating them severely. When I was 18 years old, during a hunting trip in the mountains, I killed him and buried him on the spot.

  The first time I killed someone didn't give me any special feeling. It was just a simple slash of the knife across the neck, unlike what actors portray in TV dramas with deep remorse. On the contrary, I felt excited, perhaps killing people can make one weak or strong!

  Now my shop actually belongs to Li's family from back then. Although I took over his business, I treated my subordinates well, so they soon forgot about Li and only knew that he had gone missing in the mountains. The police also dropped the case.

  Recalling these events is indeed like watching a movie, one scene after another. It's really torturous yet enjoyable to think back on it. I lay on my bed, staring blankly while smoking, when suddenly Blackie knocked on the door and walked over to my bedside, saying in a low voice: "Boss, there's someone outside who wants to see you. They say they have a big business deal that they want us to handle."

  I took a drag of my cigarette, put it out in the ashtray, thought for a moment, and said: "Are you sure this person is trustworthy?"

  "I've never made any mistakes, have I?" Blackie replied, patting his chest. "He's an outsider merchant, what does he count as around here?"

  "Hmm, take me to see him," I said.