TDU Chapter 276
Chapter 276 Earthly Branches Code
"What significance does this child’s death hold for me?" White Goat gege coldly looked at Mister Tiger, his gaze icy and intimidating..
"Goat ge, you know what kind of people the Terrestrial-grade {Earthly Branches} are around here." Mister Tiger said. "This child can’t earn {Dào}, she definitely won’t last long."
"How do you know she can’t earn {Dào}?" White Goat gege responded. "Anyone able to wear a mask must be far from ordinary."
"But..." Mister Tiger also seemed to find the situation a bit odd. After a pause, he turned back to me and asked, "Little Mouse, how did you end up wearing your mask?"
"I..."
I saw that everyone was looking at me, so I had no choice but to tell them everything that happened today.
After hearing about my experience, their expressions all changed.
Mister Snake even started crying uncontrollably.
At that moment, I realized that although he didn’t smell great, he was actually a good person.
"How could those people still be considered human..." Mister Snake sobbed, "Tomorrow, I’ll go and turn their bodies into meat paste, and make meatballs for you all to eat... Boohoohoo..."
I quickly took back what I had just thought; he was still a rather strange mister.
"Eat it yourself." Mister Tiger said irritably to him, then he looked at White Goat gege. "Goat ge, you’ve heard it too. This little girl didn’t become an {Earthly Branches} for the same reason as us. Can you bear to see her die...?"
White Goat gege remained silent, but Mister Black Goat broke the stillness.
"Mortal Tiger, have you lost your mind?" He slowly got to his feet. "Do you even understand why we became {Earthly Branches}? With all this misplaced sympathy, when will you be capable of signing that contract?"
"If laozi were as f*cking emotionless as you, then that’s when laozi's really lost it," Mister Tiger retorted angrily. "Even if we're allowed to kill, does that mean helping a child is wrong? Does this child deserve to die?"
"Whether she should die or not, she has already put on a {mask}," Mister Black Goat said. "If she can't bear the consequences, she will live a more miserable life than anyone. You can’t burden us just because you miss your own daughter. I believe Goat ge is right. If she's going to die sooner or later, it’s better to free her now."
"Free my ass!"
Mister Tiger shouted loudly and was about to step forward when White Goat gege gently tapped the table.
In that instant, all four legs of the table snapped, and the food on the table began to spill onto the floor. I felt it was such a waste and reached out to try to catch it, but I couldn't manage. All I heard was the sound of {crackling} as the plates and bowls shattered on the ground.
White Goat gege slowly raised his eyes to look at the two misters and said, "What have you two been eating? How dare you try to lay hands on each other in front of me?"
As soon as these words left his mouth, both of their bodies trembled.
"Sorry... sorry..."
"We were wrong, Goat ge..."
Both misters immediately lowered their heads, clearly fearful of White Goat gege.
‘How strange,’ I thought. White Goat gege's voice sounded as soft as a goat's, but everyone was so scared of him.
"Um... um..." I said softly, "Misters, please don’t argue... it's all my fault. I've eaten my fill now, and I’ll leave right away. Please don’t fight because of me..."
"Little Mouse, don't say anything." Mister Tiger stretched out his hand and firmly pressed down on my head. "Laozi didn’t bring you here just to feed you."
“Let us settle it this way...” After a moment of contemplation, White Goat gege said, "Little Mouse, if you accept a few terms of mine, I will consider taking you in."
"Tak–Take me in?" Although this was my first time meeting these people, I really wanted to stay. They were different from everyone else I had met.
Maybe it was because they fed me the moment we met?
If it weren’t for this meal, I might have already starved to death.
"Little Mouse, the following are the rules that every person who becomes a part of the {Earthly Branches} must follow. We call it the {Earthly Branches Code}," White Goat gege said. "If you break any of these rules, you will be directly killed by the {Sacred Guardians}."
"Ah... I..."
"First, you must never abandon your {Earthly Branches} identity, unless in death."
"Second, you must never remove your mask, unless in death."
"Third, you must never reveal your true name, unless in death."
"Fourth, {Earthly Branches} shall forever abandon their {Reverberation}."
"Fifth, {Earthly Branches} shall never {flee}."
I didn’t quite understand what he was saying, but I nodded anyway.
So, does this mean I’ve become part of the {Earthly Branches} now? Since I’m wearing a mouse mask, does that mean I’m one of the mice from the {Earthly Branches}?
"Next, let's talk about the game design rules..." White Goat gege was about to speak but stopped briefly, then inquired, "Little Mouse, you probably don't have a {game} yet, do you?"
"Ga–Game?" I felt dazed and had no idea how to respond.
"I’ll give you the night," White Goat gege said. "Design a {game} for me."
"Design a game…?" After hearing that, I think I kind of understood. "Uh... I’ve only played Sandbag Toss and Hopscotch, so I..."
Before I could finish my sentence, Mister Tiger immediately covered my mouth.
"Little Mouse, stop babbling. I’ll explain things to you later."
"Sandbag Toss and Hopscotch...?" White Goat gege flashed a faint smile. "If your answer tomorrow morning is one of those two, I will personally throw you out of here."
"Uh?" Seeing how everyone treated White Goat gege with such respect, I didn’t dare say anything.
White Goat gege slowly stood up, glanced at the misters, and said, "I’m going to read. See you at breakfast tomorrow."
He pushed open the door and left. Only then did the three misters finally relax and sit back down.
Seeing that no one was talking, I lowered my head and began picking up the broken plates from the floor.
The plates looked to be of good quality, but now they were all shattered. What a waste.
"Little girl... stop cleaning," Mister Tiger said to me. "You better start thinking about your game."
"But these plates are broken, what if you misters step on them later...?"
"That's not something you should worry about!" Mister Tiger grabbed me and pulled me aside. "Little Mouse, you need to understand that if you want to survive here, Goat ge's help is crucial! He’s not like other {Terrestrial-grades}. You..."
"You’re reading too much into this." Mister Black Goat shook his head. "We’re all aware of how ruthless Goat ge can be. He’s just trying to find an excuse to send this kid away without any pretense."
Not knowing what to do, I glanced at Mister Snake.
Mister Snake winked at me, then stood up and walked over to Mister Black Goat.
"What are you doing?" Mister Black Goat asked.
"Ole Goat, oh, Ole Goat..." Mister Snake stretched out his hands and massaged Mister Black Goat’s shoulders. "I don’t care what Goat ge’s real intentions are. All I know is that he asked this child to design a game... and out of everyone here, you’re the smartest. Why not help this child?"
"Help her? Why should I?"
"If you don’t help her..." Mister Snake said with a mischievous grin, "I’ll just cling to you all night long."
TL Note: It’s hard to tell, but Mister Snake speaks in a somewhat feminine(?) way.
