Mountains and giant beasts, cabins in the woods

Sunlight streamed through the stained-glass windows, casting dappled patterns of light on the wooden floor. The scent of paper mingled with the fresh aroma of wood, filling the office.

Liu Xingmo reviewed and edited the manuscript of the weekly report, and the other three employees of the newspaper also arrived one after another.

There were four people in total, who would come to the library every Saturday and Sunday to create, print and sell the week's "Heilong Weekly".

This newspaper, founded and published by the former curator decades ago, had been ignored for a long time. It wasn't until eight years ago that things took a turn for the better when Liu Xingmo, who was only 10 years old at the time, came looking for work.

The office was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with only the scratching of pens on paper and the occasional rustling of pages turning.

By the time the colored light had drawn an arc on the floor, the sun was about to set.

Liu Xingmo racked his brains and finally finished four thousand words of this week's serialized novel.

He stretched, stood up from the chair, and his stomach was growling with hunger.

Female employee Liu Huimin put down her pen and said, "President! Let's go eat! The rest of the work can only be done tonight."

Two other employees, a man and a woman, Liu Zhili and Xu Wenting, also turned their attention to the desk at the head of the table.

Liu Xingmo considered the progress of the work, then clapped his hands: "Alright, let's go."

"That's great! Thank you, President!" Liu Huimin happily went to put on her coat. "This awful office job is simply inhuman!"

Male employee Liu Zhili also packed up his paper, pens, and ink, and said with a smile, "President, there's an old noodle shop deep in Zhezhi Alley, shall we go and try it?"

"President, it's on me today!" said Xu Wenting, a female employee.

"Please spare me, I'm a little short on cash lately," Liu Xingmo said with a wry smile. "By the way, aren't you all older than me?"

"Who told you to be the president!" Liu Huimin put on her coat, a beautiful camel-colored velvet coat.

She circled around in the dappled sunlight streaming through the window, then eagerly opened the office door and waved to her colleagues.

Her figure disappeared into the dimly lit corridor, leaving only a glimpse of her clothing.

This girl is 20 years old, in the prime of her life.

"I'm just the vice president; the curator is our boss," Liu Xingmo muttered to himself.

The four left the library and walked along the crowded streets of Midtown.

This place is not as leisurely as the western town nestled in the mountains; instead, it's a bustling downtown area crowded with people.

Rows of old tree stumps, over ten meters thick and dozens of meters high, line the roadside. Rooms and halls have been carved out inside, resembling multi-story buildings.

Lights peeked out from the doors and windows, accompanied by the laughter, shouts, and curses of men, women, and children.

Walking along the path between tree stumps, passing taverns and teahouses, we arrived at a secluded canteen and finally sat down at a wooden table in the corner.

The sun had already set, and oil lamps were lit in the shop.

The warm yellow light shone on the four steaming bowls, and the four diners were wolfing down their food.

Liu Zhili swallowed a large piece of dragon meat and mumbled, "Allosaurus...it's really good! The whole village...ate for three days straight!"

"Brother! Don't talk about it while we're eating." Liu Huimin, sitting diagonally across from him, rolled her eyes, then propped her chin up with her hand and asked, "How big do you think that dinosaur was?"

Xu Wenting, who was sitting opposite her, took a sip of soup and said, "The information says that an adult Allosaurus can be over 100 meters long."

"A hundred meters! That's many times bigger than a brown bear, I can't even imagine it." Liu Huimin tilted her head.

Sitting next to her, Liu Xingmo said, "For example, if you stand on a tree branch, an Allosaurus could swallow you whole."

"President! You're saying scary things again. Girls will hate you for that!"

"Then you shouldn't sit next to me. By the way, didn't your brother used to sit with me? Why are you sitting here today?"

"Slurp—!" Liu Huimin began to eat the meat in big bites.

"Maybe it's because the meat in the president's bowl smells better," Xu Wenting chuckled, covering her mouth.

"That's right, they've forgotten about their older brother now that they have the president!" Liu Zhili tapped the table.

I finished a bowl of meat soup, but it still wasn't enough. I ordered a plate of roast meat and four glasses of wine.

The cafeteria gradually filled up, and the people at the next table started shouting loudly.

Someone vividly recounted, "Let me tell you, the appearance of this Allosaurus wasn't simple; it was hunting a rare, innate beast! Back then..."

The people at the surrounding tables gradually quieted down and craned their necks to listen.

"Hehe..." Liu Huimin chuckled, "It's outdated news, we already knew about it, that rock boar."

The customers at the next table glanced over, but didn't pay any attention, and continued, "There were actually two innate rare beasts! One of them was a little piglet!"

Someone exclaimed, "Wow! First a boar, second a bear, third a tiger! Aside from all sorts of dragons, rhinoceroses, and elephants, the wild boar is the most top-tier contracted beast!"

Someone chimed in, "That's right! I heard that pig's ability is to manipulate rocks. That guy could make a fortune even if he spent all his time building roads, digging rivers, and constructing houses! It's also an omnivore, making it easy to feed."

Some people were envious: "To contract such a ferocious beast, you need at least fourth-tier strength. And with this kind of assistance, a fourth-tier expert can even break through to fifth tier! Sigh, when will such a good thing happen to us ordinary folks?"

"Have a drink!" "Okay! Keep drinking!" "Bottoms up!"

After a glass of wine, someone asked, "By the way, what about the other strange beast?"

Everyone became interested, including the people at the newspaper table.

"I know, it's a turtle!" said the person who started the conversation.

"Oh, just a little animal. It's nothing special. Its maximum level is only three." Liu Huimin waved her hand dismissively.

Liu Xingmo bit into the roasted meat until it sizzled and dripped with oil.

"That's a rare, innate beast! Even a tortoise would be better than a turtle!" Liu Zhili shook her head and sighed.

Liu Xingmo downed a large mouthful of wine.

The man at the next table shook his head and said, "That turtle is no ordinary creature! All information has been blocked. I have friends working inside, and they haven't heard anything from it. I bet it possesses rare and powerful abilities!"

"Well said, a very reasonable speculation. It's logical, well-founded, and convincing." Liu Xingmo wanted to applaud in support.

"Ha... the president's acting up again!" Liu Huimin covered her mouth and chuckled, then glanced suspiciously to her side. "But her performance today is a bit strange, isn't it?"

"It's nothing. Everyone, hurry up and eat. We need to finish the rest of the work tonight!" Liu Xingmo said sternly.

After the dinner, the four of them walked back to the office to work overtime.

Night had fallen, and the city lights were still on, but there were far fewer pedestrians.

Liu Xingmo touched the few coins left in his pocket, and the discussions about "turtle", "third-tier limit" and "rarely powerful" seemed to still echo in his ears.

He looked at Liu Huimin's skipping figure walking ahead, then at Xu Wenting and Liu Zhili standing silently beside him, feeling both amused and exasperated.

What kind of expressions would these colleagues have if they knew that the "no big deal," "information blocked" old turtle was lying in their own water basin?