The scouting team sent out by Tiandong Base went deep into that dangerous swamp. Fortunately, they did not see too many high-level water ghosts, nor did they see traces of large-scale destruction. However, as expected, they did not find any sign of the child—not even a trace of a swaddling cloth.
Very quickly, they pushed as far as the prison surrounded by the swamp. Beyond that point, they did not dare go any farther. Because they all knew that was the territory of the swamp monster. The swamp lay dark and heavy, like a gaping mouth that could swallow people at any moment. The satellite wrist panels also issued warnings as they approached.
“If the child is still alive, the only place she could possibly be is here.”
Someone had just been about to refute it, unwilling to venture any deeper into danger. But Deng Feng, who had come along with them, called out to stop them, and everyone’s gaze turned together toward the edge of the swamp.
There was a string of small footprints, belonging to a human infant.
───♡───
How were the footprints left behind? The swamp monster’s eyesight was very poor; it often mistook black plastic bags, bits of wood, and the like on the ground for Jiang Xiaoya and carried them off.
So Jiang Xiaoya could only run after Mama, babbling as she went: Mama mama mama, I’m here!
Now, Jiang Xiaoya had learned to walk by holding on to the swamp monster’s hair.
In the past, when she watched helplessly as swamp spread beneath Mama’s feet and swallowed everything ahead, she would feel that this huge monster was cruel and terrifying. But now Jiang Xiaoya had followed Mama for quite some time. She discovered that it was because Mama couldn’t see the road clearly—if it didn’t clear obstacles away, it would crash straight into trees.
And its temper was very bad; once it hit a tree, it would angrily let out hoarse, rasping sounds. Jiang Xiaoya guessed that it was probably scolding that big tree for not having eyes when it walked. So she learned to point the way for the swamp monster. By tugging on Mama’s hair, it would know to go around the tree.
When it rained heavily, the sound of rain would interfere with hearing, and the rainwater would block the sense of smell, making the swamp monster’s temper especially foul.
It would squat motionless in the swamp, like a stone statue sunk in the mire. In past years, if any unthinking water ghosts came to harass it at such times, the swamp monster would use cruel and violent methods to vent its irritable mood.
This colossal creature was very prone to bad moods. When the sun came out, it would get sunburned; on rainy days, its sense of smell and hearing were both restricted. Throughout the four seasons, only on overcast days would it feel happy. And even then, such happiness was rare. After all, overcast weather made up only a small part of the climate here.
But now there was Jiang Xiaoya. On rainy days when they couldn’t go out, she practiced speaking at home, so noisy that it was as if there were a thousand ducks in the house. She talked a great deal, but it was all werwer nonsense, and the swamp monster didn’t understand a single word.
She babbled that she was “Ya,” pointed at the swamp monster and said it was “mama,” then held up little flowers for it to smell. She planned to let Mama know her own name, just like in the videos she had watched before that taught cats to recognize their names. Only Jiang Xiaoya didn’t have cat treats; she only had little flowers.
She tried to use the nice-smelling little flowers to entice Mama. But those green vertical pupils merely glanced at her once before it continued squatting in the swamp, pretending to be a statue. Clearly, the swamp monster did not acknowledge the title of Mama.
But as long as Jiang Xiaoya strung the words together and cried Mama save me, it would immediately turn its head and rasp at her: What trouble is it this time?
Yes, it was not Jiang Xiaoya’s mama. It was Jiang Xiaoya’s “save me.”
Jiang Xiaoya wanted to correct Mama, but her wildly bobbing little head was quickly suppressed, and she was roughly stuffed into a large wooden crate by the swamp monster. Jiang Xiaoya crawled back out again, wanting Mama to learn to call her by her name, “Ya.”
But the swamp monster had already climbed up to the ceiling and resumed squatting there.
Of course, this time it wasn’t because it couldn’t learn.
The torrential rain poured down. The swamp monster moved slowly through the curtain of rain, its long hair soaked through, wetly plastered against its pale skin. It could have continued squatting in the swamp and spacing out in this kind of weather. But Jiang Xiaoya’s pants had torn a big hole; she couldn’t crawl around freely and waste energy, so she became extremely noisy.
With the apocalypse having arrived, birth rates had plummeted, and infant supplies had all become stockpiled goods. They were very hard to find. The swamp monster climbed into a warehouse. Its pale, massive hand carefully tore open the packaging: soft cotton clothing, little shoes printed with childish patterns. The swamp monster, of course, couldn’t tell sizes apart, so it swept them all up.
Before leaving, the swamp monster saw a man and a woman squatting in front of a cradle, shaking a rattle and smiling as they called the tiny little person inside “baby.”
It crawled up onto the ceiling and watched for a while.
It often heard this form of address used for children; it was used to express fondness.
It liked its tiny little human a bit.
Only a little bit.
So, the swamp monster thought Jiang Xiaoya was not “Ya.” She should be—“baby.”
But it couldn’t make the human sounds for “baby,” and could only go “hou hou.”
───♡───
Jiang Xiaoya’s crawling suit had been ripped open with a huge tear by a tree branch. The prideful, smug little child hid in a corner pretending to be deep and serious, actually just so she wouldn’t have to move her bottom and expose her torn pants. For once, she didn’t shriek and insist on going out to play with Mama, but obediently stayed at home playing with snails and sleeping soundly.
Because the nearby water ghosts had all disappeared, this place had become very quiet. She hadn’t heard any movement outside for a long time. Suddenly, Jiang Xiaoya heard some faint footsteps. She alertly crept over to the window and saw, not far away, a small team wearing gray protective suits.
She heard some fragmented conversation, watched curiously for a while, then crawled under the window to eavesdrop.
“That monster isn’t here during the daytime. We can take the chance to rescue the child.”
“Is the olfactory interference device on? We have half an hour for the search and rescue.”
Jiang Xiaoya used her smooth little brain to think for a moment, and quickly realized what was happening.
All this time, she had believed she had been abandoned, just like in her previous life when she was left at the gate of an orphanage—but this time seemed a little different. So much time had passed, and yet someone had still come to this dangerous place to look for her.
When Jiang Xiaoya had just learned how to crawl, she was frightened every day, afraid that the big monster would swallow her in one bite. She really did squat at the doorway every day, hoping that some kind passerby would come and take her away.
But a few months passed, and everything became a little different.
Jiang Xiaoya heard the footsteps drawing closer and closer. Her heart began to thump wildly, feeling both nervous and at a loss. What should she do now? Make a sound and tell them she was here? Among those people, were there her papa and mama? What did they look like? Had they lost their child and were very anxious?
A child, of course, wants to know what their parents are like; her heart felt like a ball of yarn tightly knotted together.
In truth, the child also missed the life among crowds from her previous life—pretty balloons, toys, kites flying back and forth. She hadn’t been raised very well; even now she was wearing a crawling suit that was much too short and a little torn. She had no toys, no playmates, and was surrounded only by boundless swamp. Staying here all the time would occasionally make her feel a little lonely.
And Mama was a monster; it would probably never be able to blend into human society. Staying by Mama’s side, Jiang Xiaoya could only ever be a tiny little monster too. This place was drafty and leaked when it rained; summer was fine, but winter would be very cold. Every now and then, even a simple-minded child would suddenly worry about what to do in the future.
Now, as long as she made a sound, she could immediately return to the human world. There would be many toys, a better life.
But after hesitating for only a brief moment, Jiang Xiaoya found a corner and hid herself.
A child’s world is very simple. At night, when it was cold, the swamp monster would stuff her into its arms; she really liked the smell on its body.
The swamp monster’s eyesight was poor, and it couldn’t see the road clearly. She had to tell Mama there was a big tree ahead so it wouldn’t crash into it; if she didn’t lead it by the hand, it wouldn’t be able to find the way home.
On rainy days, this place was very lonely again. The swamp monster would squat in the swamp and become a big tree.
She heard anxious footsteps, calling voices. She heard some conversations. She knew that an uncle named Deng Feng very much wanted to find her. Her own parents had already passed away. In that instant, the little puppy felt a bit sad.
The footsteps reached this corner. Deng Feng anxiously called out for the child, but all along, there was no movement in the corner. The child hid deep within the pile of clutter, not making a single sound.
In the end, the satellite watches sounded their alarms. There was no other choice, they could only hurriedly withdraw from the place.
Just before leaving, a dispirited Deng Feng, as if possessed, turned back to take one last look.
He saw that on the prison’s windowsill, there was unexpectedly a small bouquet of wildflowers.
───♡───
The heavy rain washed over the swamp, muddy water churning, scattering the scent of humans in all directions. Yet the swamp monster still caught a trace of living human presence, right near its nest.
It abruptly stopped in its tracks, its vertical pupils contracting into thin slits in the darkness.
Someone had been here.
In an instant, a strange, unfamiliar anxiety exploded from its chest. It no longer wandered slowly as it usually did, but hurried back toward the prison, as urgent and frantic as when it had crawled out of here in its youth.
But the home was empty. Jiang Xiaoya was nowhere to be seen. In that moment, the colossal creature let out a horrifying, furious hiss. It slowly twisted its head and looked toward the direction of the human base, its gaze locked tightly there, green vertical pupils burning in the rainy night.
It released a sharp, piercing screech and, in rage and urgency, strode toward that human base.
Thief!
It felt an emotion it had never experienced before, crashing over it like a tsunami.
For this monster, it had always been difficult to feel any clear emotion beyond irritability, like a stone scoured by flowing water, existing in a daze within this swamp. Its features were blurred, no different from a patch of dark clouds on the horizon.
And yet at this very moment, its mind was incomparably clear: it had to find its little human. This was the first thing, since its birth, that had ever been so, so important to it!
The sound of hurried footsteps thudded from behind. The swamp monster believed Jiang Xiaoya had already been taken away. After all, she was a human child it had stolen; once humans appeared, she would certainly be taken back—so it assumed the child-stealing thief hadn’t left yet. Furious, it turned around, about to pounce on that person and kill them.
But a little puppy leapt straight into its arms.
—Mama mama!
Suddenly, at that instant, its muddled consciousness broke free of its restraints.
The monster abruptly realized that it was no longer the same as those dark clouds and mountains outside; no longer the same as those great stones, those birds flying back and forth.
The colossal creature bent down, leaned in, and tightly embraced Xiaoya. The child babbled on about how dangerous it had just been.
