Montamira Urban Legend (Part 1)

Just a few hours ago, Ye Zijun never imagined that her trip to six Southeast Asia countries with her parents, after saving up half a year's salary and bonuses, would lead her into this predicament.

They had just finished dinner and were strolling around the streets. She had researched this area beforehand; it was the most fun, lively, and safest area in Montamira at night.

But things didn't go by for long.

First, groups of menacing people kept walking by. Something seemed to have happened in the distance. Locals left one after another, and tourists followed suit. Noises and commotion could be heard everywhere—not the kind of joyful noise, but the kind of noise that signifies an impending conflict.

Soon, while she and the other tourists were still somewhat confused and unsure of where to go, the entire city seemed to descend into chaos, especially a group of local youths who looked fierce and were shouting incoherently as if they had taken some kind of drug.

Ye Zijun protected her parents and moved them to the side of the road. She initially thought it was a conflict between locals and that everything would be fine once they moved away.

But what was unexpected was that those people seemed to be targeting tourists, especially Chinese tourists.

Although they and the locals all have yellow skin, black eyes, and black hair, their differences in skin color and attire are obvious, making it easy to identify them as Chinese.

When five local youths with their faces covered by cloth rushed over with sticks, Ye Zijun's father was the first to react, grabbing his wife and daughter and running away.

But the three of them—one a white-collar worker who sits in an office all year round, and two elderly people who are already receiving pensions—could not outrun those five thugs and were quickly surrounded.

Mr. Ye was the first to be beaten while protecting his wife and daughter, followed by Mrs. Ye. The two thugs then carried the young and beautiful Ye Zijun to an alley between two nearby buildings, their intentions quite obvious.

Ye Zijun screamed and struggled desperately, but to no avail. She didn't know why this was happening. She had never done anything bad in her life. She studied hard, worked hard, and had always been a good child. She was a good student at school, a good employee at the company, and a good daughter in her parents' eyes.

She worked hard and brought her parents on vacation, so why did this happen?

Does God have eyes?!

Just when she was in utter despair, the thug who was holding her hands and feet suddenly let go. She fell to the ground, then immediately got up and frantically screamed as she tried to run in another direction.

But then she thought of her parents, so she stopped and turned around, and saw two masked thugs standing frozen at the entrance of the alley, looking up at the sky.

Her gaze also rose, and she stared blankly as a huge, multi-armed giant walked across the street outside.

It should be three or four stories high, each step causing the earth to tremble, each step feeling like it was stepping on her heart, making her heart skip a beat.

Its body was shrouded in an eerie black mist, beneath which one could vaguely see massive muscles.

For a moment, Ye Zijun felt as if she were in a dream, with a strong sense of unreality, but this was quickly followed by a chilling fear that made her tremble all over.

However, compared to her, the two thugs who carried her into the alley were more terrified and felt even greater fear.

Both of them collapsed to their knees on the ground, one burying his head in his arms, the other looking up and muttering something.

After the giant passed by, Ye Zijun thought of her parents. She suppressed her fear and walked past the two thugs who were kneeling on the ground.

As she passed by, she noticed that the thug who had been muttering something seemed to have wet his pants. A moment of bewilderment washed over her; was it really that terrifying?

As Ye Zijun walked out of the alley, she saw her father lying on the ground, covered in blood, and her mother protecting him. She quickly ran over to him.

Two of the three thugs with sticks were kneeling on the ground, while the third stood there dumbfounded, all looking up at the distant sky. Judging from the movement just now, the giant with many arms should be heading in that direction now. Obviously, they had all seen it, and the giant had simply stepped over their heads.

Ye Zijun mustered her courage, rushed over to protect her parents, and glared angrily at the three people.

The thug who was still standing suddenly realized something, turned around to look at her, and then, his eyes filled with terror, he pointed at her, shouted something, and ran away.

The other two thugs who were kneeling on the ground also stood up, threw down their sticks, and stumbled away after them.

Ye Zijun doesn't understand Burmese, so he doesn't know what they were shouting, but at least they were scared away, which is a good thing.

"Dad, how are you? Can you stand up?" Ye Zijun quickly checked on her parents. "Mom, what about you? Were you hit?"

"It's alright... I can get up... What about you? Xiao Jun, did they do anything to you?" Ye's father, clutching the wound on his head, stood up with the help of his wife and daughter.

At this moment, the two thugs who had carried Ye Zijun into the alley also staggered out of the alley, one of them with a large wet patch on his pants.

They glanced at Ye Zijun and her family of three, but didn't come over. They also didn't shout like the previous person. Instead, they turned around blankly and walked away into the distance.

"Come on, let's hurry back to the hotel. Look up our consulate's phone number, and we'll call for help later if things get complicated," Mr. Ye said, standing up with his daughter's support as he recovered.

Ye Zijun quickly took out her phone to check, and exclaimed in surprise, "No signal..."

Not only her phone, but her parents' phones also had no signal, and after a few tries, they would freeze.

They dared not stay any longer, as shouts and commotion could be heard everywhere. They quickly helped each other and walked along the roadside toward their hotel.

Mao Qiang is a 17-year-old Myanmar boy. He is very tall and has a strong physique because he likes to practice boxing and exercises regularly.

He was a tenth-grade student, which is equivalent to a high school student in China. However, his grades had always been poor, and it seemed unlikely that he would go to university. So, he often skipped classes and hung out with a few of his childhood friends.

Some of these brothers worked at casinos, while others ran errands for local "big shots." Although they weren't exactly noticed by the top bosses and only earned pocket money, they at least looked impressive, and might even have a chance to rise to the top in the future. After all, even big shots like Wu Lun started out as nobody.

After nightfall that night, he had just finished packing up the fish stall at home when his brother Mao Ting, called him out.

Mao Qiang discovered that with Mao Ting were three other young people who had also grown up in the area, and each of them was carrying various kinds of "weapons".

Mao Ting handed over a long stick with a sharpened metal piece tied to the end, then threw over a half-torn T-shirt, saying, "Let's make a fortune tonight!"

Mao Qiang was taken aback for a moment. "Make money from what?"

"Just follow along." Mao Ting said, covering his face with a rag, as did his two companions.

Mao Qiang, bewildered and confused, was led by several brothers, his face covered, and armed, onto the street.

They hadn't gone far when they met up with a dozen or so young people dressed similarly. Although their faces were covered, Mao Qiang immediately recognized most of them; they were all people who lived nearby, did odd jobs, or didn't have any regular work.

Soon, he found out why everyone had gathered together—a very famous boss had his only son murdered, supposedly by Chinese people. The culprits were being hidden by Chinese people in Montamira, and the boss was offering a large reward to find the killer of his son.

After a dozen or so people gathered, the leader immediately suggested they go to a pharmacy owned by a Chinese person.

A large group of people, their faces covered and carrying various long weapons, marched into the street. Passersby made way in fear, while the group strode forward, feeling awe-inspiring.

Mao Qiang sensed something was wrong and whispered to Mao Ting beside him, "That pharmacy is located on the main street, in such a good location with lots of people coming and going. It's impossible for them to be hiding a murderer, right?"

"How would we know if they're hiding anything without searching?" Mao Ting said matter-of-factly, then added, "That guy's a swindler!"

Mao Qiang was stunned for a moment, then remembered what Mao Ting had just said—"Let's make a fortune tonight."

He worriedly asked, "If we do this... won't they call the police?"

"Don't worry, the police won't be able to bother with us tonight," Mao Ting said, then whispered, "Boss Wu Lun and his men are going to start a war with Guihai."

Mao Qiang suddenly realized that he had heard rumors about these things during the day; they were circulating all over the market. He hadn't expected that a fight would actually break out tonight.

He still felt something was off. Logically speaking, even if a big boss wanted to find his son's killer and offer a reward, he shouldn't have mobilized the entire city to do it like this! How could this group of people know how to find the killer or who the killer was? If things escalated and caused chaos in Montamira, even if the big boss had connections, he would still be crushed by the authorities.

But walking among a dozen or so people, he couldn't bring himself to leave the group, and then Mao Ting said something else:

"Many people are searching for the murderer at night; with so many people, the police can't possibly investigate them all."

Yes, what's that saying again? "The law doesn't punish the masses"?

Mao Qiang thought about the fat, big-eared pharmacy owner, his big gold watch, and how his relatives and friends had complained more than once about how expensive the medicinal herbs he sold were. He seemed to have found a reason for his behavior.

Along the way, many local young people joined in. Some didn't even have time to find weapons; they simply took off their shirts, covered their faces, and followed.

When they arrived at the Chinese-owned pharmacy, more than thirty people had already gathered there.

They certainly weren't there to "find the murderer." As soon as they arrived, they rushed into the store without saying a word.

The fat, big-eared boss didn't react in time and was pinned to the ground, beaten many times, and his gold watch, jewelry, wallet, cell phone, and even leather shoes and belt were all taken away.

"What are you doing!" A clear Burmese voice drew the crowd's attention.

The thugs who stormed into the store found a petite, pretty girl standing in front of a small door inside the pharmacy, shouting at them.

Mao Qiang recognized her at a glance; she was the pharmacy owner's daughter. He and his wife had lived in Montamira for over twenty years. His wife was also a local of Montamira, and if you really thought about it, she could even be considered a distant relative of Mao Qiang's family.

The pharmacy owner struggled to his feet, shouting in a mix of Burmese and Mandarin, "Get in! Get in now! Close the door! Call the police!"

But some thugs who were nearby rushed over with strange cries and used their weapons to jam the door shut, preventing the girl from closing it.

Mao Ting also pulled Mao Qiang along, wanting to go with him.

But Mao Qiang felt increasingly uneasy. He subconsciously shook off his companion's hand, and Mao Ting ignored him, yelling and squeezing through to join the group in entering the room.

Just then, a loud crash came from the street outside, followed by the sound of shattering glass, and then the continuous wailing of car alarms.

The lights in the pharmacy started flickering, startling everyone. They involuntarily stopped what they were doing and came out of the pharmacy to check the situation. Even the thugs who had been holding down the pharmacy owner and squeezing into the room where the owner's daughter was came out instinctively because of a strange sense of unease.

Because he had an instinctive hesitation about what he was doing, and because Mao Qiang to the pharmacy entrance, he was the first to come out and check as soon as he heard the noise.

As soon as he stepped out of the pharmacy, he was stunned. A dozen meters away, an enormous foot was slowly descending, then slammed down on the road, creating a huge crater. The tremendous vibration and sound caused electric bikes, motorcycles, and bicycles parked on the roadside to tip over, while car alarms went off.

His gaze followed the large foot upwards, seeing the thick, tower-like calf, thigh, then the enormous body, and countless arms.

This was a terrifying entity as huge as a mountain, ten meters tall? Twenty meters tall? No, it might be even taller than that. Mao Qiang couldn't even see its head!

Its upper body seemed to merge with the darkness, enveloping the entire night sky and bringing an immense sense of oppression.

The giant walked step by step across the road outside the pharmacy. By the time Mao Qiang realized what was happening, he found himself kneeling on the ground with his head tilted back. The others around him were in even worse shape; some were kneeling on the ground, trembling, while others were running and screaming in the street, and still others were huddled in corners, muttering to themselves.

His childhood friend, Mao Ting, was slumped in front of the pharmacy, his eyes filled with terror, as if he were frozen in fear.

Not only them, but many other people around also came out of the house, some slumped on the ground, others knelt down to pray.

Even the pharmacy owner's daughter was standing at the pharmacy entrance, staring blankly into the distance.

Mao Qiang stood up and noticed that the giant seemed to have disappeared after walking past. He stood by the roadside and looked around for a while, but still couldn't see where he went.

Logically speaking, such a huge body should have been impossible to miss, especially since there weren't any tall buildings around to block its view.

When Mao Qiang turned around, he found that all the huge footprints left by the giant had disappeared, and the ground on the road was intact without any trace.

The shattered glass, the overturned motorcycles and electric bikes were all restored to their original state, and even the incessantly blaring car alarms disappeared.

Hallucination?

Was that giant just an illusion?

Although Mao Qiang thought this way, his awe and fear did not diminish at all. Not only him, but also the other dozens of young people who came with him lost the will to continue to deal with the Chinese pharmacy owner. They scattered and walked away in a daze.

Mao Qiang began to walk aimlessly towards home, his mind filled with all sorts of images.

He remembered how his father, halfway through selling fish, would rush over to bully him when he was a child, abandoning his stall; he remembered coming home from school one day and seeing his father being bullied and extorted by market thugs, how he felt resentful but had no choice but to give in, hand over the money, and force a smile; he remembered how his father would hand him cash reeking of fish, telling him to buy study materials and stationery, and urging him to do well; he remembered the envious look in his father's eyes when his cousin got into university.

He suddenly felt a chill of fear. He realized that he had almost destroyed what he feared losing most, almost destroyed himself, and almost destroyed his family.

Mao Qiang punched his head a few times, and suddenly he heard several shouts in Chinese. He looked up and saw a young woman and two elderly people, a man and a woman, being stopped by two masked young men who were pulling and fighting.

"Stop!" Mao Qiang roared and charged forward.

The two young Burmese men were startled and instinctively turned and ran.

Although there were two of them, and one of them was carrying a long stick, the Mao Qiang guy was much bigger than them. When he charged at them, he was very imposing, like a tiger descending from the mountain, and he was shouting in Burmese. We didn't know who he was. They weren't really tough guys to begin with, and they didn't have the courage to fight back. They were scared away immediately.

After chasing away the two thugs, Mao Qiang saw the Chinese woman with bruised cheeks and two elderly people who were also covered in wounds and bloodstains. He felt very sad when he saw the fear in their eyes as they looked at him.

He ripped the tattered T-shirt off his face, pointed to himself, and said in the few bits of Chinese he had learned before, "I'm Montamira, okay." Then he pointed in the direction of the two thugs who had run away. "The bad ones, not Montamira!"

The people rescued were Ye Zijun and her parents. Looking at the tall Burmese youth who had driven away the two thugs, and hearing his heavily accented Chinese, which came out in a series of sharp, broken sentences, she paused for a moment before gratefully saying, "Thank you! Thank you!"

Mao Qiang looked up at both sides of the street again, thought for a moment, and realizing he had run out of Chinese vocabulary, he could only say in broken English, "WHERE, YOU, GO? I CAN... uh... AND... YOU!"

Although his English was rather broken, Ye Zijun still understood what he meant and exclaimed happily, "THNAK YOU! WE ARE GOING TO THE HOTEL."

Then he told Mao Qiang the name and location of the hotel they were staying at. After that, the young Myanmar boy escorted Ye Zijun and her family of three to the hotel.

While Mao Qiang was being led by dozens of his companions to storm a pharmacy, and while Ye Zijun and her family of three were being attacked by thugs, another tourist from China Jiang Chun, was wandering the streets of Montamira Zhengyi School.

Jiang Chun is 41 years old this year. Half a year ago, he quit his job and started traveling around with his only savings of tens of thousands of yuan.

However, he wasn't the kind of person who suddenly had a burst of artistic inspiration and wanted to take a spontaneous trip. He had just been diagnosed with a terminal illness, knew that treatment was useless, and that he didn't have much time left to live. He didn't want to waste money on hospital stays and medication, so he simply took all his money to see the world that he had never really seen before.

Anyway, his parents had passed away long ago, his wife divorced him a few years ago, he had no children, no house, and was all alone with no ties.

By the time he arrived in Montamira, he had spent almost all his money, and he felt that this was a good place for him to pass away.

Even abroad, he didn't want his death to affect others, nor did he want the Burmese to develop a negative view of Chinese people because of his death. So he kept thinking of a way to end his life quietly without anyone noticing.

Anyway, no one will be looking for him.

As he strolled through the streets, contemplating how he would die, riots suddenly broke out in Montamira, with numerous attacks targeting Chinese people and tourists.

Seeing the hordes of masked, armed thugs, Jiang Chun's first reaction was fear, and he began to run and hide, after all, he had only ever been an ordinary tutor.

But then he found a good way to die—he would fight these thugs.

He then rushed toward several thugs who were attacking Chinese shops, shouted at them to stop, and picked up stones from the ground and threw them.

Just as the thugs rushed toward him, the surrounding streetlights began to flash, and a huge figure descended onto the street and began to move slowly.

The terrifying and shocking scene drew everyone's attention, and everyone was stunned by the powerful sense of oppression, stopping all their movements.

Jiang Chun looked up at the monster that seemed to have emerged from the abyss, and following its enormous body, he saw that there was more than one pair of eyes on the head at the top.

The pair of eyes at the very bottom seemed to glance at him briefly, or perhaps they didn't see him at all, as if all the creatures on the ground were merely ants, and even if they caught a glimpse of him, they wouldn't attract his attention.

Jiang Chun trembled, his legs went weak, but he still suppressed the fear in his heart, ran desperately over, knelt down in the middle of the road, then leaned back, stretched out his arms, and closed his eyes.

Judging by the trend, the monster's giant foot will land here next, crushing him into a pulp and turning him to pieces.

Just die like this...

When such a monster descends upon the human world, it should be only natural to trample on such an insignificant person as him.

He was terrified, yet also felt a strange sense of relief.

But death did not come. After an unknown amount of time, when he opened his eyes, he found that the giant monster had vanished.

He lay alone on the road, with no footprints in front of or behind him, as if everything he had just seen was an illusion.

Overwhelmed with mixed feelings, Jiang Chun, kneeling on the ground, covered his face with his hands and suddenly burst into tears.

This was the first time he cried after learning he had a terminal illness.

He cried for a while, then started laughing again.

He loudly recited a line from Lu Xun's "Epitaph," a piece he had greatly admired in his youth:

"Amidst the fervor of singing wildly, I feel a chill; I see an abyss in the sky; I see nothingness in everything; I find salvation in despair!"

He stood up and strode away into the distance. His fear hadn't disappeared, but he now knew what he was truly afraid of and what he most wanted to do.

That night, the vision of the Eight-Armed Eight-Eyed Giant that appeared in Montamira grew larger and larger in the eyes of different people as time went on.