Infinite Nightmares

"That’s..." Zhang Wenda stared in surprise at the faint glow emanating from the box. He wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but he felt an inexplicable sense of mystery from the light.

His intuition told him this item was anything but ordinary, especially since it was in a Mayan’s possession.

Zhang Wenda stopped in his tracks, turned, and walked behind the Mayan to peer into the box. Next to a few corn crackers and a large mushroom, he saw a remarkably lifelike crystal skull.

The skull had large eye sockets, and its head was long and sloped, just like a Mayan’s. It was obviously something special. ’Perhaps it’s a Mayan heirloom,’ he thought.

"Ahava, what’s this?" The moment Zhang Wenda pointed at the skull, the Mayan’s face filled with panic and he hastily shut the suitcase. "Young man, I can trade anything else with you, but this one is absolutely off-limits!"

Hearing this only made Zhang Wenda more curious. ’Looks like I was right,’ he thought.

"Can I just take a look?"

"No, absolutely not! I said not this one. Anything else is fine." Ahava shook his head like a rattle.

"Whoa, whoa, hold on. The price is negotiable. Just name one." Seeing his reaction, Zhang Wenda figured that unless the man was putting on an act to swindle him, this item had to be far more valuable than the low-priced goods in the Friendship Store.

"But... it’s not for sale," Ahava said with a pained expression, running a hand over his pointed head.

Zhang Wenda knew the man wouldn’t budge unless he sweetened the deal. "Don’t you want the Oil Bab? How about this: I’ll give you this drop of Oil Bab *and* intelligence on its place of origin. But you’ll have to go quickly. The place is inside the ever-shifting No. 7 Tide of Thought, and I’m not sure how much it has changed by now."

Hearing that Zhang Wenda actually had intelligence on the source of Oil Bab, Ahava was immediately tempted. The information might be a few days old, but if it paid off, wouldn’t he be able to get as much Oil Bab as he wanted?

Oil production in America wasn’t advanced. If he could really bring Oil Bab back home, his tribe’s plight would be over.

Faced with such a temptation, Ahava’s resolve began to waver, no matter how firm he had been. He sank into hesitant thought.

Zhang Wenda didn’t rush him, just waited quietly.

"You’re offering such a high price when you don’t even know what that thing is?" 2826 said, walking up to Zhang Wenda.

Zhang Wenda recalled the faint glow and said adamantly, "There’s no way I’ll lose out on this deal. My intuition is always spot on. Besides, if it were just some ordinary item, this guy wouldn’t be so torn."

"Be careful. Mayan artifacts are considered bizarre even among all the Tides of Thought."

"Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing. I’ll make sure it’s the real deal before I hand anything over. I’m not trading if it’s junk. I risked my life for this Oil Bab, you know."

After waiting for about ten minutes, Ahava muttered something to the sun outside the window, then stood up, clapped his hands decisively, and said with deep remorse, "Sigh! Fine. This is all for the Sacrificial Plate!"

With a look of profound heartache, he opened his suitcase. As Zhang Wenda watched with eager anticipation, Ahava slowly reached his hand toward the crystal skull... and grabbed the large, gray mushroom beside it.

"Here! You must treat it well! It’s my best friend!" Ahava said, carefully placing the mushroom into Zhang Wenda’s hand.

"Uh...?" Zhang Wenda stared dumbfoundedly at the mushroom in his hand, momentarily at a loss for words.

"No, no, no, Ahava, I think you’ve misunderstood. I don’t want this. I want *that*," Zhang Wenda said, pointing to the translucent crystal skull.

"This?" Ahava asked, looking puzzled. He hooked a finger into the crystal skull’s eye socket and pulled it out. "Are you sure? This is just a crystal craft I bought as a souvenir in Yiwu. You really want to trade the Oil Bab for it?"

"HAHAHAHA!!" Song Jianguo’s explosive laughter echoed through the entire Friendship Store, drawing annoyed looks from everyone inside.

Song Jianguo, however, couldn’t care less. She was clutching her stomach, practically rolling on the floor, laughing until tears streamed down her face. "HAHAHAHA!! Your intuition! HAHAHAHA! Your intuition is just too good! HAHAHAHA!"

Nearby, 2826 wasn’t being quite so dramatic, but his shoulders shook violently as he pretended to examine the items in a display case.

"What’s so funny?! Everyone makes mistakes! So I misjudged something, is it really that hilarious?!"

Zhang Wenda turned his head in utter embarrassment to face the Mayan. "You’re a Mayan! Why the hell are you buying crystal skulls?! I swear..."

"Because it was cheap! And look how well-made it is, much more refined than the one our High Priest made." As Ahava spoke, he used a long fingernail to scratch off the white six-yuan retail price tag from the bottom of the skull.

As Song Jianguo’s laughter grew even louder behind him, Zhang Wenda quickly tried to change the subject by looking at the fist-sized gray mushroom in his hand. "So, what is this thing, then?"

"It’s the item I’ll trade you for the Oil Bab. I’ve agreed to the deal. Isn’t this what you wanted to trade for?"

"Hold on, don’t be so quick to agree. First, tell me exactly what this thing is. If it isn’t valuable enough, I’m not trading."

He hadn’t thought much of the mushroom, but since it had come to this, he figured he might as well ask. After all the mental preparation the man went through, the mushroom probably wasn’t meant to be stir-fried for dinner.

Hearing this, Ahava took the mushroom back from Zhang Wenda’s hands and explained with great ceremony, "Young man, this is a Wai. An entire forest can only produce a single Wai. This is no ordinary thing."

"A Wai? Hey, stop laughing, you two. This thing seems pretty unusual. Come over here and help me figure this out," Zhang Wenda quickly said to his companions.

Song Jianguo, stifling her laughter, walked over while leaning on a counter for support. "Haozi, you don’t have to change the subject. I can tease you about this for the rest of my life."

"Don’t laugh!" The moment Zhang Wenda spoke, Song Jianguo couldn’t laugh anymore. It was visibly painful for her to hold it in.

Meanwhile, Ahava, completely oblivious to whether anyone was listening, continued his explanation.

He piously held up the mushroom and said with the utmost sincerity, "Wai. In our Mayan language, Wai means ’friend.’ This is a friend to us Mayans."

Zhang Wenda whispered to 2826, "He treats a mushroom like a friend. Is this guy for real? Did he escape from a mental hospital or something?"

folded his arms, remained silent for a moment, then slowly said, "...Your intuition... heh heh heh."