Chapter 32 Take A Risk Out of Desperation

Without any hesitation, Poker-Face suddenly dropped his hand and instructed us to shoot. Fatty and I fired at the same time, quickly emptying two magazines.

A tongue of flame spewed out of each muzzle as we shot into the gap. If there was something in there, it definitely would’ve been hit.

When we were in the middle of reloading, Poker-Face raised his hand again. As a result, we didn’t continue shooting after we reloaded but just stayed on the alert. He looked into the gap and stood at a stalemate for a long time before he suddenly heard something else and jumped onto a tall rock.

Fatty and I also climbed up and saw a small figure crawling out of a stone crevice in the distance. It had obviously been shot but was moving very quickly to the place where the young man looked like he was meditating.

Fatty lifted his head and shot at it again. He definitely hit it, but that thing stood up and went behind a big rock until it was out of sight.

“As long as it’s a living thing, it definitely won’t live for long,” Fatty said.

That thing definitely wasn’t a living thing considering how it didn’t slow down even though it had obviously been hit, but I didn’t know what it was.

One thing I did know, however, was that it was very vengeful. If we hit it, it would definitely cause trouble for us, just like how it was so persistent in killing Jin Wantang.

When I was in Hainan before, I clashed with a monkey on Monkey Island. I still remember the look in that monkey’s eyes. After that, it followed me the whole time and suddenly attacked me when I wasn’t looking. Later, I got angry and chased it for four hours with a stick, but I ended up getting lectured by the security guards.

I turned to Fatty and Poker-Face and said, “I’ve noticed a little problem here. To be honest, I originally couldn’t remember Qi Yu at all since it was so long ago, but I suddenly remembered just now and then this Qi Yu suddenly appeared. I think the stones here are warning me of something.”

“What do you mean?”

“The stones know that Qi Yu is here, hiding somewhere close by, so they warned me. If I had realized it earlier, Jin Wantang wouldn’t have died,” I explained to them. “It can’t give us the heavenly gift so it’s giving me inspiration.”

Fatty looked at the surrounding rocks and squinted at me. “You mean to say that these stones are warning you? But wait, aren’t these stones supposed to be the villain here?”

I was puzzled. Indeed, this was all very confusing.

I had always thought that the heavenly gift was very evil, but if the stones here were warning me of the impending disaster, was my understanding of the heavenly gift too one-sided? Maybe there was actually a good side to this heavenly gift?

I looked at the sky and thought to myself, if there’s anything else you want to warn me about, now is the time to tell me. Any other insights? How about what the hell is going on here? Just give me a hint!

After thinking about it, I said to Fatty, “We’re trapped here and Jin Wantang wasn’t saved. There’s still some food, but we can’t wait around here and only take action once the food runs out. If we want to take action, we have to do it now.”

I picked up the rope from where it was laying off to one side. When Fatty asked me what I was doing, I said to him, “Little Brother can’t receive any more heavenly gifts, so I have no choice but to take some risks. If these stones are really trying to warn me of something, then I want to go to the edge of this area where the signal is strong. I want to see if there can be more exchanges or maybe we can negotiate.”

Since the light barely reached the edge of the area, it looked very hazy over there. I would have to walk forward very slowly so that the two of them could pull me back quickly if I carelessly went too far.

Poker-Face looked at me, “The heavenly gift did not warn you.”

“But the inspiration just now was so sudden.”

I had suddenly remembered Qi Yu and then that thing appeared. Moreover, the whole process was very jumpy as my mind leaped from one thought to another. If it weren’t for something guiding me, I would’ve never connected the doll from that time to Qi Yu.

“Mr. Naïve, don’t mistakenly place your bets on the enemy,” Fatty said. “If Little Brother said no, then that’s that. If you want to talk about inspiration, then I had a flash of inspiration just now. Maybe the thing inspiring you was this stone here?”

“Which stone?”

“It’s this stone here.” He pointed to the shrine and continued, “Maybe this thing was warning you. After all, it’s protecting us, so it should be decent.”

I looked at the shrine and walked over to it.

When Jin Wantang was dying just now, didn’t it seem like he saw something in this direction? I thought about it and realized that it had been a long time since I had used my peripheral vision to look at things. So, I turned my head and looked at the bronze piece out of the corner of my eye.

<Chapter 31><Table of Contents><Chapter 33>

****

I’ve gotten some flak lately that I’m preventing skilled translators from working on DMBJ with my “terrible MTL” (downside of a contact form since everyone that comments is so nice lol). Is that true? I haven’t seen any other serious attempts besides like one or two random posts or stuff that’s years old. I will totally step aside if someone skilled wanted to take over, but nobody has personally come up and been like “I want to take over, I think I can do better”. When I started this last year, I just saw that nobody was working on it for ages and thought an edited MTL could at least get the general idea across (and then the lovely Tiffany and Yvette came along to help with things). If you all know of someone who legit wanted to do all of this, feel free to let me know. I’d love to have my free time back lol. If not, I guess I’ll keep trucking with my “terrible MTL” (yes, I’m salty about that phrasing since my shit is at least readable compared to some translated stuff hahaha)

26 thoughts on “Chapter 32 Take A Risk Out of Desperation

  1. WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! That’s PREPOSTEROUS!!! If someone wants to do their own translation they can go ahead and do it!!! In what universe is your translating stopping someone else??? And NO, it’s NOT a “terrible MTL”, it’s been brilliant and funny and has allowed a wonderful community of fans to come together and enjoy more of the DMBJ universe WHEN NO ONE ELSE WAS DOING ANYTHING!!! I have LOVED your translations and narrative comments and notes! You’ve been super considerate of both the original works and the feelings of the fans, and you have made multiple disclaimers that while it may not be 100% accurate, others are allowed to take up the work themselves if they so choose! And Tiffany and Yvette have been just as wonderful!!! Seriously!
    😤😤😤

    Liked by 4 people

    1. Right? I just kind of sat there for a minute like “what is with this hostility? Did I murder your firstborn child or something?” 😂 I really wanted to ask if they even read anything on the site but figured it’s best to ignore. I will gladly read a professional’s work if someone even bothered to do it (and consistently at that considering how much material there is). But oh well, I’ll ignore the haters and keep enjoying everyone else’s kind words and feedback 😊 After all, we’re all just trying to enjoying some good-ole grave robbing with a bunch of bros 😎

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  2. Hi Merebear, i’ve been a lurker for the past year and have really really enjoyed your translations.

    First off, the quality of your translations is fantastic. Although im not from China and not an expert, I can read Chinese , and i can feel the flavour of the original shining through in your translation. It is so much better than the official translation(from the first few books). In the official translation, Wu Xie sounded like he was hanging around in Sherwood forest with Robin Hood.

    Please don’t give up your translations. The only reason why some pple are shitting on your translation is that your translations is preventing greedy people from making money. If any other people wanted to do a “better” translation, let them do whatever the f*** they want!

    Whatever it is, really appreciate your effort on the translation.

    Thank you Merebear!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Hanging around Sherwood Forest with Robin Hood 😂😂 I love it. Very aptly put. There also seemed to be way more cursing, like the publisher was going for that frat-tastic feel. But maybe that was because the author was just starting out 🤔

      I can’t believe people would actually charge for their translations if they’re doing it illegally 😱 That’s just scummy behavior 😤 especially since all of the Chinese raws are online anyways. If someone does decide to translate DMBJ and charge for it , at least everyone will have a free (“terrible”) version here 😂

      And if you’ve been lurking for the past year, then you’re one of the OGs, so thank you for sticking with me this long 😘. I won’t abandon this ship unless someone super qualified wants to take over or if the author decides to stop writing (a girl can dream 😂)

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  3. First of all, I want to thank you for your incredible work ❤️ Your translations are great and excellent! I hope with all my heart that you can continue with your effort and bring us more content. Just, ignore the haters. Unfortunately there are very envious people in this world. Also, I think is important for you to know that your translations bring us a lot of happiness, since they allow us to continue reading about this incredible franchise, so don’t say that your work is “terrible” 🥺
    We all think that your texts are of great quality. Send you lots of hugs and my best wishes ✨

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  4. Who said that?!!? You and your team had been working this since years and your translation always been good! I able to read and absorb the story’ just fine! No problem.
    Whoever said that must be a jerk! Or never read your translation before. Don’t mind them, i personaly love your translation! Believe me!
    Thank you for the chapter Bear-san and team~

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you! 😘 I know I don’t always respond to every comment but I do read them all and appreciate them 🥰. I guess there are some purists out there who don’t like westernizing the text, but I think that’s a little unrealistic. You have to think of the readers and lord knows I put enough footnotes as is. Can you imagine if I kept all the idioms and stuff? I’d probably have a whole book 😂 My goal is to make the story flow and easy to understand while hopefully not butchering anything too much until Tiffany comes along and works her magic. Overall, I’d say the team has done a pretty damn good job of it 😤

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  5. Sweetie, I’m so angry at the people who treated you like that. Your translation is VERY GOOD, and most of all, you put so much effort and time on this that it is something to be admired. English is not my first language, it’s Spanish, and I can speak for the Spanish speakers fandom when I say you are a HERO to us who thankfully get along with English, because without you we wouldn’t be able to have access to the story we love so much. I can’t really imagine what we would do without you. I’m not exaggerating, honey, we love you, you truly are our hero.

    Don’t listen to those people, I don’t understand what’s wrong with them, they are so ungrateful!!! They know nothing, just ignore them or, better, ask us to kick some asses. Hell, I’m in for that.
    We send you lots of love from the Spanish speakers fandom. Stay safe 💚💚💚💚 Whatever you need just tell us 🐇💚

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  6. For me, I really thankful for translation DMBJ, I wanna buy the books but I can’t read in Chinese. Before this, my mind was very very wanting to read DMBJ and re searching in Google. Then I saw DMBJ was Translated by Merebear and I’m very happy till now. And I love you so much because of him I can read very happy. Thanks a lot. I wish you good health and may you translate what Nanpai Sanshu wrote DMBJ more and more.

    I’m not good in English I hope you will understand my writing😊💜💜💜

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Your English is great! 😘 Thank you for the kind words and I’m glad you were able to find the site. That bereft feeling when you reach the end of the official translations is terrible so I’m glad you didn’t have to resort to unedited MTL (believe me, it’s TERRIBLE 😂)

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  7. I don’t know Chinese so I can’t say positively about how good the quality is, I just know it reads well in English. I’m not sure why the official translation sounded different, because author was new or because… well, to be honest, I’ve read lots of Japanese translation that fans did better than official did, so, it definitely happens.
    All I know is that I’m extremely impressed with your dedication and hard work that not only translates whwn you don’t know the language but also does a ton of research in order to culturally connect us to things we’d never heard of before.
    So thank you! I’ve tried translating when I *do* know some of the language (Japanese) and its haaard so just thank you tumes a million for doing that and for sharing it with us.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you! 😘 Maybe I have low standards when it comes to translations (trust me, I’ve pushed myself through some really hard-to-read ones just because the story itself was good and I didn’t want to give it up) but I just wanted something that could flow easily and get the author’s point across without losing anything major. So far, I’d say I’ve done a pretty good job. There’s obviously some little things that either don’t translate well or I accidentally skip over, but that’s when Tiffany swoops in and saves the day 😂 Admittedly, we’re both human so we still might miss some things, but it’s not like it’s going to affect anyone’s enjoyment of the material.

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  8. Just adding my voice to say I am SO SO GRATEFUL that you are doing this, I was *so happy* to find this site last year when I got to the end of the official translations, and I cannot believe that you have persisted with this given the amount of your free time it must be eating up. You, Tiffany and Yvette are doing a massive service to the DMBJ international fan community – it’s not even just having the books available, I love reading along with everyone here and seeing everyone’s comments, it feels like we are all trying to puzzle through the DMBJ canon pits together. And honestly your translations are *way* better than the official ones!! Please don’t pay any attention to whatever is being said to you, how on earth is you doing this stopping anyone else from translating it? Jiayou!! 💪

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Hahaha yeah…. I have no life outside of work and DMBJ. It sounds depressing when I type it out like that 😂 But it’s readers like you and everyone else who make it all worthwhile 😘 I’ve gotten pretty bad at responding to comments but I read every single one of them. They honestly brighten my day when I’m feeling down in the dumps 😊 So thank you for the continued love and support, it means the world to me 😘

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Wow, I’m so sorry you got a horrible message like that. It’s unfair and uncalled for. I’m really grateful for your translations, and I know many other people are too!

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    1. Hi, Chinese speaker here! I’m not fluent, but I do read DMBJ in Chinese, and sometimes I drop by here to see how things are going in English. I can say that 1) this is waaaaay better than the official English translation of the first few books, lol 2) nothing is stopping a native speaker with the appropriate time, energy, & love for the source material from doing a real translation aside from laziness or not wanting to share clout 3) I heard of other cnovels with both edited MTL and more accurate fan TLs as well, and I’ve never heard of anyone complaining those MTLs were stopping native speakers from doing their own TL. Obviously with MTL there will always be a lot of nuance missed, but this is far from the worst MTL I’ve seen, and it’s also pretty easily readable and you get the general gist of the plot and characters perfectly fine. You very clearly state that it’s MTL, too, so there’s…really nothing to complain about, and those sorts of complaints are rather rude and uncalled for, given you’re only trying to do your best to share content with a wider audience on your own hard work and time, with Tiffany & Yvette’s help. Don’t pay any mind to rude comments like that, you’re doing a great job and English-speaking fandom is very grateful. DMBJ is very very long, so I applaud you for sticking with it until now!

      Liked by 1 person

  10. No one stopped others from translating this novel. Anyone who thinks they can translate should get started. There is no prohibition on having multiple translation of a novel. Of course, as long as it is from the original work and not inspired by this translation. Then please don’t mind those kinds of comments.
    These sentences are easy to say, but not everyone does. Because sometimes some people start translating with energy and think they will do it to the end, but gradually the quality of the work decreases and sometimes it is abandoned. It’s understandable because some cannot continue the translation due to life problems and some leave it because they’re just tired due difficulty of the work. In the past I read a translation of a novel that in some chapters I had to read a sentence 4 to five times to understand the meaning of the text. However, I thought to myself that person worked hard and shared that with us and it allowed me to read the story I wanted. And I am grateful to them for that.
    To be honest, your translation was excellent and I didn’t see any problem in the work. I noticed this translation much later than when you started it, but all your efforts were recognizable along the way. Let’s not mention you did this grate work along with managing your job and life.
    You have a beautiful and kind heart and soul that attracted beautiful hearts like Yvette and Tiffany.💕 With help of your love you translate it perfectly. In addition to the translation, I have to thank you for the translation notes that are relevant to the culture of that country and the author’s point of view. (It is not difficult to see the amount of effort and hard works that spent on each part of the work.)💗 💗 💗
    I must also say that I’m wishing the author does not change the texts and only complete the vague and incomplete point. And we could see your translation in official version of the book as well.😊
    Thank you so much for giving us the opportunity to read this fascinating story, something that if you hadn’t done we might have waited years to read part of it.

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  11. How could this be anywhere even near terrible??😤 You say you don’t know Chinese yet you managed to translate the longest book series I’ve ever known and read. And all this time i’ve been SO Impressed by your efforts!
    I can’t read Chinese, so yes, i don’t know the actual accuracy to original, BUT it feeeeels accurate. More accurate than official translation did. There’s no typos or confusing sentences, the sentences are detailed and smooth, unfamiliar words explained at the bottom.
    I will forever be so GRATEFUL and IMPRESSED by your translation! ❤
    Without your efforts so many of us would be stuck with confusing adaptions and unable to read the books. Forever caught in mystery of what the full extent of original story could be. Maybe i would never get to properly know the whole story past those 6 officially translated books. 😭
    With your translation, I don’t even care if there won’t come out more officially translated books. This already feels perfect. 😭

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  12. Jumping on the bandwagon like a year too late as always but I’ve read some shitty (fan) translated books in my time, like babelfish quality that I’ve tried to power through so I can confidently say that your translations are top quality! 🤗
    What I especially like and is impressed by with you guys are the amount of research in your notes, they have really helped me get a clearer picture of the context of whatever the book is trying to get across, if that makes sense 😬
    And I’m neither fluent in chinese or have english as a first language but I do know whether there is a good flow in a text and these translations are enjoyable to read and nothing sticks out as clunky or awkward

    So, thank you again and please don’t take it to heart ♥️

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  13. I’m very very grateful to you for willing to spend your precious time to translate it, even till now… Daomu Biji is a looong series, and your determination is really admirable… Good job! And as always, thank you for your hard work! 💖💖

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