Leaving Kamba, I no longer wanted to return to that kind of life. If it were merely about fighting against the demon, the outcome couldn’t have been like this—what was the reason behind it? The Kamba people themselves didn’t know; as the conversation progressed, they told the young man that they hoped he could help them face the disaster that came once every ten years.
The young man asked, “What exactly is this demon?” The Kamba people replied, “The demon is simply a demon.” They took the young man into the back room of the chief’s house, where he saw for the first time the most crucial object in this story—a strange black stone idol.
The room was very large, but there was nothing in it except for the black idol. This was not an idol from Tibet; the young man was well-versed in various civilizations and realized that this was the first time he had seen an idol of this kind. It likely came from a civilization system he was not yet aware of.
We call it an idol because it meets all the characteristics of one, but it is certainly not a deity of humanity. The young man mentioned in his notes that he couldn’t describe what it was in any language. Yes, although he couldn’t write it down, he drew it. I recognized it at a glance; this deity system was the same as the one we saw in the Heavenly Palace of Changbai Mountain, which resembled a club.
Gods are higher beings than us, but if there were soft-bodied creatures or coral polyps that achieved enlightenment and became gods, could we understand their values? When I saw that simple drawing, a strange thought suddenly appeared in my mind. The Kamba people told the young man that what they needed to stop was this thing. The valley with countless metallic spheres that Dong Can had visited was just on the other side of the Kamba village, 17 kilometers away, and the journey was very difficult. Many people had been to that valley and seen those strange spheres, and some had even brought some back.
The young man felt that there was something wrong with this explanation and asked, “What about that girl?” This time, however, he received no answer. While discussing these matters, the young man suddenly noticed something extremely awkward in the room they were in. He looked closely and found that there was indeed something that could absolutely not be in this room.
He remained calm on the surface, but inside he understood that what he had just heard seemed to be completely different from the truth. This existence appeared to be a paradise, a Shangri-La, yet it was not at all as it seemed on the surface.
At this point, I could basically understand what had happened to Dong Can in the valley. Regardless of what the so-called demon was, the reason Dong Can ultimately felt disheartened must have been because he had fallen in love with a woman. For the Zhang family, it seemed difficult to understand the relationship with something like love. As for the young man, having spent so much time with him, I had never seen him display any desire that a person should have.
According to common sense, no matter how virtuous a person may be, unless they have been drugged, they would not be so pure and indifferent to desires. Even someone who enjoys gardening is driven by a certain desire, but the young man’s favorite pastime is simply to daydream. This indicates that if he has any desires, they revolve around doing nothing.
At his apparent age, there seems to be no sign of interest in women. I’ve never seen him engage in any acts of self-pleasure, nor does he seem particularly concerned about food, and he shows no interest in any kind of information.
Of course, even if he were interested, he wouldn’t show it. A malicious thought crossed my mind: if there’s ever a chance to see him again, I must feed him a few Spanish flies to see if his constitution can withstand it. Thus, I’ve always felt that the Zhang family members are particularly rigid and emotionally repressed. However, Dong Can has shattered this perception.
I realize that only the collapse of love can lead a man, who has undergone such rigorous training, to become disillusioned with the outside world. The outcome for that woman must have been disappointing.
I couldn’t help but think of the胖子 (Fatty). He is someone who can digest pain exceptionally well. Although happiness and unhappiness are just two emotions for a person, and emotions themselves can’t be sold for money, people like him have their own hurdles to overcome, especially someone like the Zhang family, who tends to complicate their own lives.
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