Hi there. My name's Wei, calling from Wuhan. My father was a forestry worker back in the seventies, spent most of his life in the Shennongjia mountains. I'm calling because of something he saw in 1976. Something the government took very seriously. Dad had been working in those forests for about twelve years by then. He knew every trail, every valley. The Shennongjia region is remote, you understand. Dense forest, steep mountains, fog that rolls in so thick you can't see ten feet ahead. Perfect place for things to hide, if you know what I mean. It was May, early morning. Dad was doing a routine patrol, checking for illegal logging. He told me he'd gotten up before dawn that day, around four thirty, because he wanted to cover more ground before the afternoon heat set in. The forest was still dark when he started out, just that grey pre-dawn light filtering through the canopy.
He was maybe three hours into his patrol when he smelled something. That's what he always mentioned first when he told this story, the smell. Said it was like a wet dog mixed with something rotten, something musky. Strong enough that it made him stop walking. Dad figured maybe it was a dead animal nearby, a boar or something. But then he heard movement. Heavy footsteps, not like a four-legged animal. More like someone walking upright but trying to move quietly through the undergrowth. He called out in Mandarin, thinking maybe it was another forestry worker or a villager from one of the settlements. No answer. The footsteps stopped. Dad said the forest went completely silent, you know how it does sometimes. No birds, no insects, nothing. Just this total stillness that made his skin crawl. He stood there for maybe thirty seconds, listening, trying to figure out what direction the sound had come from.
That's when he saw it. About forty meters away, standing behind a large tree. At first he thought it was a person, maybe someone in a fur coat. But then it stepped out into a clearing where the morning light was coming through, and Dad realized this thing was massive. He estimated at least two meters tall, maybe taller. Covered head to toe in reddish-brown hair. The face is what got him. He said it wasn't quite human but wasn't quite ape either. Flatter than a monkey's face, but with a pronounced brow. The eyes were dark, almost black, and they were looking right at him. Just staring. Dad froze. Didn't move a muscle. His rifle was slung over his shoulder but he said he couldn't have reached for it even if he wanted to. His arms wouldn't respond. morning patrols in remote areas take courage - Vincent' The creature stood there for what Dad said felt like forever but was probably only ten or fifteen seconds. Its chest was broad, shoulders wider than any man he'd ever seen. The arms hung down past where a human's would end, almost to the knees.
[ Story continues in the full game... ]