Sleepless Mountain (1)

The post on the PPT Marvel board has been deleted, only the Bahamut board has discussions left. The story's prototype is based on the 1991 mountaineering accident of the Sino-Japanese joint expedition team on Meili Snow Mountain (also known as Kawagebo Peak) in Yunnan, China. Those interested can check out the more detailed discussion on the Bahamut board, and there are also related documentaries available online. The chilling feeling I got after reading this story back then still lingers in my mind. Main Story: This incident is something I heard about during my study abroad days in Japan. One time, my friend and I decided to hike Mount Tsukuba together. On the way down, we apparently took a wrong turn at a fork in the path. We ended up taking a really long detour. Luckily, we met a kind uncle who not only guided us down the mountain but also treated us to oden -3- When the uncle heard that my friend with me was an international student from China, he seemed to recall something sad, and tears started to well up in his eyes. After downing some sake at an izakaya, the uncle began to tell his story. It turned out that day was the anniversary of his best friend's death. Both he and his best friend were passionate about mountains. Unfortunately, his friend had died on a high mountain in a foreign land. Now, every year on this day, he goes hiking on Mount Tsukuba near his home to commemorate him. Logically, the story should have ended there. My friend was just being a smart aleck........ He insisted on asking how the friend died....... Well, the result was not good. After hearing the story, my friend and I were too spooked to sleep that night. We ended up finding a karaoke place and singing all night long. It wasn't until the next day that we shakily made our way back to our accommodation. For an entire week, just thinking about that story gave me goosebumps all over.....