The Domineering Cultivator Farmer

Chapter 30: A Child’s Cry in the Deep Mountains

With a blade of grass in his mouth, Fang Yun lay bored on the grass, gazing at the evening glow on the horizon. Feng Xiu’er had taken Niuniu to bathe in the small stream behind them; before leaving, she ordered Fang Yun to stand guard to prevent any animals with ulterior motives from peeping on the beauties as they bathed. When Fang Yun heard Feng Xiu’er’s words, he nearly choked on his own drool—he’d never met anyone so self-absorbed. However, under the threat of Feng Xiu’er’s “invincible crab claws,” Fang Yun relented. Niu Niu, on the other hand, was quite excited and invited Fang Yun to join her for a bath. After Feng Xiu’er gave her a few pats on her little bottom, she pouted and followed her mother away, muttering something under her breath the whole time—even with Fang Yun’s Yuanling-stage cultivation, he couldn’t make out a word. The little girl’s rambling had reached the level of “Like Fire, Pure Passion.” After waiting a long time for the mother and daughter to finish washing, Fang Yun gave himself a quick rinse in the stream and led the two back to the tent to get ready for bed. “Hahaha, Daddy, look—isn’t this fun?” The little girl was full of energy and couldn’t sleep; she crawled into her sleeping bag and rolled around excitedly. Fang Yun watched Niu Niu rolling all over the ground, at a loss for words. The little girl had crawled completely into her sleeping bag, zipped it up, and was now peeking out with just her little head; at that moment, she was wriggling across the floor like a chubby little bug. Feng Xiu’er was at her wits’ end. Ever since Fang Yun had brought her back to the countryside, the whole family had spoiled her, and she’d become more and more mischievous. Her little bottom had even gotten thicker from all the spankings she’d received, but now, even if she picked her up and gave her a couple of swats, the little girl would just wiggle her bottom and carry on as usual. She scooped up Niuniu—who was crawling all over the floor, still in her sleeping bag—and gave her little bottom a few swats. Then Feng Xiu’er placed Niuniu between Fang Yun and herself. “Time for bed. We’re heading back into the mountains tomorrow.” Niuniu pouted, twisted her body, and nestled her head against Fang Yun, leaving her little bottom facing Feng Xiu’er—Daddy was still the best. Feng Xiu’er almost burst out laughing at the sight of her precious little girl. “Waaah, waaah…” Just as they were about to fall asleep, the sound of a baby crying suddenly echoed through the quiet little canyon. “Ah…” Feng Xiu’er let out a startled scream, curling up into a ball and desperately squeezing closer to Fang Yun. Poor Niuniu, squeezed between the two of them, wailed, “Mom, you’re squeezing me so tight I can’t breathe!” Fang Yun quickly sat up, lifted Niuniu out of her sleeping bag, and placed her on his lap. He wrapped his arms around Feng Xiu’er and reassured her, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. It’s just the cry of a fish called a four-legged fish.” “Four-legged fish? What on earth is that? That sound is so terrifying—it’s just like a baby crying.” Feng Xiu’er was still trembling slightly. Seeing the look of confusion and fear on Feng Xiu’er’s face, Fang Yun quickly explained, “‘Four-legged fish’ is what we call it around here—it’s actually the famous Chinese giant salamander.” “A Chinese giant salamander!” Feng Xiu’er, who had been so scared her whole body had gone limp, suddenly perked right up. “But that’s a Class II nationally protected animal! How could there be one here?” “Big deal. There used to be plenty of them in the mountain streams and ponds around here. Nobody even ate them—we’d just catch them to feed the ducks.” Fang Yun was thoroughly unimpressed by Feng Xiu’er’s agitated reaction. “A Chinese giant salamander? To feed ducks? You people are practically squandering a national treasure!” Feng Xiuer was on the verge of losing her mind. “It’s no big deal. Back then, nobody knew the Chinese giant salamander was a nationally protected species. The village was poor and we didn’t have many seasonings, so the salamanders tasted really fishy when cooked—nobody liked eating them.” Seeing Feng Xiuer losing her cool, Fang Yun hurried to explain. “I’ve never seen a Chinese giant salamander before! Hurry up and take me to see one,” Feng Xiu’er said excitedly, grabbing Fang Yun’s hand and shaking it vigorously. “They’re really ugly—there’s nothing to see. It’s too late; let’s go to bed.” It was clear that Fang Yun really didn’t want to go. To be honest, Chinese giant salamanders really aren’t very attractive—they’re a dull gray and look just like lizards. Seeing that Fang Yun didn’t want to go, Feng Xiu’er gave him a hard twist, and he had no choice but to give in. But when her gaze fell on Niuniu, who was curled up on Fang Yun’s chest like a little kitten, rubbing against him, Feng Xiu’er’s eyes lit up. “Niuniu, shall we go see the Chinese giant salamanders? They’re really fun and cute—they can even imitate a child crying!” As soon as Niuniu heard about a fun and cute fish, she sat up with a thud on Fang Yun’s lap. The little girl excitedly clenched her tiny fists, waving them wildly as she shouted, “Niuniu wants to see the fish that cries like a baby!” “Okay, okay, okay. Niuniu, get up first. Daddy will take you to see the Chinese giant salamanders.” Fang Yun, whose eyes were rolling back in his head from the weight of the chubby little girl’s bottom, hurriedly raised his hands in surrender, shooting a exasperated glare at Feng Xiu’er, who was hiding nearby, smirking triumphantly. Since they were going to see the Chinese giant salamanders, Fang Yun led the mother and daughter straight to the stream where they’d had their picnic that day. However, as the three of them drew closer, the Chinese giant salamanders’ calls suddenly stopped, and as far as the eye could see, the stream was completely empty. “Daddy, where’s the fish?” Disappointed at not seeing the cute Chinese giant salamander Feng Xiuer had mentioned, Niuniu tugged at Fang Yun’s hand and asked. In the little girl’s mind, her dad was the greatest—he knew everything. Even after the bamboo fungus incident that afternoon, the little girl still firmly believed her dad was the greatest. “The Chinese giant salamander is right under that rock,” Fang Yun said, ruffling Niuniu’s hair and pointing to a large, protruding rock not far ahead. The stream made a bend there, and the plankton stirred up by the backflow attracted small fish to feed—making it an ideal hunting spot for the Chinese giant salamander. “But the fish won’t come out for Niu Niu to see,” the little girl pouted, her lips puckered high. Fang Yun gently smoothed out Niuniu’s pout. “Daddy will lure the fish out for Niuniu to see, okay?” Niu Niu was thrilled. She hugged Fang Yun and planted a big kiss on him. “Daddy, you’re the best.” Rewarded with a sweet kiss from his daughter, Fang Yun scampered over to the rock and dipped his hand into the water, causing a stream of spring water to gush out. A moment later, the entire stream came alive. Countless little fish leaped, scrambling for the spring water, and from a distance, one could see schools of fish swimming frantically toward them, sending jets of water shooting into the air. Suddenly, with a “splash,” a huge black shadow darted out from under the large rock and pounced on the school of fish scrambling for the spring water. As the spring water subsided, the school of fish slowly dispersed. After swimming in the stream for a while, the Chinese giant salamander actually crawled ashore. The three of them examined the Chinese giant salamander in the moonlight. It was grayish-brown in color, with a smooth, scaleless body. It was over a meter long and weighed an estimated hundred jin; its appearance was somewhat similar to that of a lizard, though it was stouter and flatter in comparison. Its head was flat and bluntly rounded, with a large mouth. The front part of its body was flat, gradually becoming laterally compressed toward the tail. There were distinct skin folds on both sides of its body, and its limbs were short and flat. Its tail was round, with fin-like structures on the upper and lower parts. Looking at the Chinese giant salamander before him, Fang Yun couldn’t help but gasp. He had never seen a Chinese giant salamander this large before; this one must have lived for at least a hundred years. The Chinese giant salamander looked at the three people in front of it with some hesitation, wanting to approach but not daring to. It instinctively sensed that two of their auras drew it closer—especially one that felt particularly familiar. “It’s so cute!” the mother and daughter exclaimed, their eyes sparkling. Fang Yun pursed his lips. What was so cute about it? It was nothing more than a fat, flat lizard. “Daddy, can we take it home and take care of it?” Niuniu looked at Fang Yun with eager anticipation. Fang Yun quickly dismissed Niuniu’s idea. “Niuniu, this Chinese giant salamander is very aggressive. If we take it home, it’ll eat all the ducks that Grandma and Grandpa raise.” Fang Yun wasn’t exaggerating. Chinese giant salamanders are naturally fierce and carnivorous, feeding on aquatic insects, fish, crabs, shrimp, frogs, snakes, soft-shelled turtles, mice, birds, and more. They also have a huge appetite; a single hearty meal can increase their body weight by one-fifth. After eating once, they can survive for two or three years in cool water without eating again. But no sooner had Fang Yun finished speaking than the Chinese giant salamander—which had been hesitating—suddenly shook its head. With a series of “teng, teng, teng,” it hobbled over on its four short little legs to Nuonuo’s side, lifted its head, and nuzzled her hand, making Nuonuo giggle. Watching the Chinese giant salamander’s behavior, Fang Yun realized that this creature had already developed a hint of sentience. As the saying goes, “Age brings wisdom,” so it was no surprise that a Chinese giant salamander that had lived for over a hundred years had begun to show signs of sentience. Fang Yun suddenly realized that bringing the Chinese giant salamander back to the village was actually a good thing—at the very least, it gave the village something to talk about. As long as he trained it a bit, this salamander could easily become well-behaved and obey his commands, so it wouldn’t go around preying on the village’s chickens and ducks.