Chapter 18: The Back Mountain, The Skeleton Monkey Tribe

Seventh day, afternoon.

Seven days had passed since Chu Danqing’s trial mission began, with only three hours remaining. The village chief had already come to urge Chu Danqing five times. Each time, Chu Danqing insisted there was no rush, until the last three hours were left before he leisurely set off with Dabao.

He wasn’t trekking up the mountain on foot but driving a donkey cart loaded with coarse iron sand gunpowder. He had tested its power—it was formidable.

The gunpowder was not in the usual ratio; it was composed of nitrate, charcoal, and sulfur in a 9:0.5:0.5 ratio. This mixture had extremely high explosive power but was also highly sensitive and prone to accidental detonation.

One careless move could cause an explosion.

Moreover, the iron sand mixed in would create shrapnel and armor-piercing effects upon detonation, making it not only suitable for blasting but also effective for killing enemies.

Along the way, Dabao grew restless, occasionally emanating a sanguine aura, seemingly eager to devour the cave beast priest.

“Dabao, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Chu Danqing began.

“You ask,” Dabao replied. Unlike humans, Dabao moved not on two legs but used his long arms for support, resembling a gorilla as he advanced on all fours. His speed was impressive, aided by his agility stat of seven.

“The cave beast priest was once human. Isn’t it a bit... odd for you to just eat him?” Chu Danqing trailed off, implying the question without finishing it.

Dabao had never considered this before. Chu Danqing’s words made him pause in thought.

“Xiao Chu, you yourself said ‘once human.’ Now, he’s not,” Dabao quickly pointed out the logic gap.

Chu Danqing looked at Dabao, feeling this answer was too instinctive, likely a gut reaction from his beastly nature skill. He opened his mouth to counter with philosophical and biological arguments but chose not to speak. After all, Dabao didn’t care about such things, and even if Chu Danqing won the argument, it wouldn’t matter—and it might be too complicated for Dabao to understand.

With Dabao’s mental attribute locked at one point, intelligence was not fully represented but was still somewhat relevant.

“You’re right,” Chu Danqing conceded, swallowing his objections.

“They’re here.” Dabao grabbed the donkey and steadied the cart. Standing up, his two-and-a-half-meter frame looked robust.

From not far away came the rustling sound of movement.

A sharp, monkey-like shriek pierced the air, and from among the trees and bushes leaped out several small monkeys, their skeleton-thin bodies resembling skulls.

Their size was small, only about fifty centimeters, with sharp teeth and claws but no fur.

Most notably, their numbers were large—at least several dozen at first glance.

They were now less than halfway to the Falling Flower Cave on the back mountain, about three kilometers away.

Dabao was ready to attack but was stopped by Chu Danqing.

“Protect me. I’ll handle them,” Chu Danqing said, pulling out a firelighter and lighting the fuse of a gunpowder pouch, tossing it into the monkey group.

A skeletal monkey agilely grabbed it, but due to its limited strength and attributes, it was flung back into the rushing crowd.

Boom!

The explosion erupted, a fierce heatwave accompanied by iron sand rapidly spreading through the skeletal monkey cluster.

All within the blast radius were consumed, leaving a blank space in the midst of the horde.

The intense noise also severely startled the monkeys.

But this was only the beginning; a second pouch was thrown.

This time, the skeletal monkeys were wiser, scattering upon seeing the pouch.

Still, they were a step too slow. Chu Danqing’s fuse was shorter, causing a quicker explosion.

The second blast echoed, and the monkeys dared not advance further.

Those near the donkey cart fared worse, torn to pieces by Dabao’s sharp claws.

The remaining skeletal monkeys kept a safe distance, chattering and glaring fiercely at Chu Danqing.

“They’re cursing,” Dabao understood the meaning behind their rustling noises.

Chu Danqing remained unmoved. “Tell these little monkeys we’re going up the mountain to kill the cave beast priest.”

A mere provocation; anyone could do the same.

At Chu Danqing’s words, the skeletal monkeys fell silent.

They understood human speech; no need for Dabao to translate.

All at once, they bared their fangs at Chu Danqing and charged madly forward.

It was as if they had overcome their fear of the gunpowder’s power and noise.

Clearly, Chu Danqing’s words had struck a nerve.

“I’m not afraid of your numbers—just that you won’t come,” Chu Danqing said coldly, lighting and throwing pouch after pouch of gunpowder.

The explosions roared one after another, with Dabao guarding the close combat, posing no threat to Chu Danqing.

He was transporting the gunpowder by donkey cart—enough to handle this group of skeletal monkeys.

After the last skeletal monkey was torn apart by Dabao, a normal-grade treasure chest appeared.

Chu Danqing had begun to discern the pattern of treasure chests.

All the minor monsters had to be completely cleared before the last one dropped a chest, as with the wolves, white dragon spawn, and now these skeletal monkeys.

Elite or boss monsters, like the white dragon spawn, would likely drop chests immediately upon death.

“Looks like a lot, but there are only about a hundred,” Chu Danqing counted while Dabao dragged the chest over.

As Chu Danqing’s permanent summon, Dabao could naturally see the treasure chest too.

“Weak. I’ll kill them quickly,” Dabao said, handing the chest to Chu Danqing.

Chu Danqing opened it casually, remarking, “You should save your energy for killing the cave beast priest. It’s not worth it.”

[You have opened: Treasure Chest (Normal Grade), obtained: Monkey Wine, Paradise Points ×100]

[Monkey Wine]

[Type: Consumable]

[Quality: Normal]

[Effect: Fully consumed, restores 10 energy points within 10 seconds]

“The recovery amount is a bit low,” Chu Danqing said, tossing it to Dabao. Even among normal-grade chests, there was variation in quality.

Chu Danqing had no skills and no use for energy, but Dabao was different, having active skills to expend energy. This Monkey Wine would only allow him to maintain his Rending Claws for about a minute.

Dabao tucked it into a pouch at his waist. As a permanent summon, he had no storage space.

“Great White Ape...” Dabao placed the pouch away and lifted his head to look toward the end of the mountain path.

A figure about the same size as Dabao was slowly descending.

The difference was clear: Dabao’s fur was red, while this one’s was white.