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墨書 Inktalez
Xiao Qiang and the city lord arrived here, truly reluctant to disturb this kind-hearted clan that had distanced themselves from the crowds and the luxurious circles. But what would be the consequences of concealing the truth?
After being welcomed by the people of Simple Village, Xiao Qiang and the city lord silently made their way to a makeshift shelter built in a high point of the village to rest.
The shelter had walls woven from pure bamboo, and the wooden frame was simple, creating a green resting place. However, neither of them had the heart to rest; they were instead drawn to the warmth of the sun.
Thus, they took out the bamboo mats from inside the shelter and laid them on the soft grass, lying back with their eyes closed in a feigned slumber.
In Xiao Qiang's mind, memories of several women who had appeared in his life spun around like a windmill. Fate had dealt him a cruel hand; for love, he had risked everything, only to be buried by it in the end. Thinking of her made Xiao Qiang's heart ache! Just as Yun had said: the wind was indeed the pain in his heart.
The Serpent Woman, driven by her own selfish desires, repeatedly challenged Xiao Qiang's limits with her cunning tricks and ruthless tactics—destroying what she could not obtain.
Chixia, an unassuming woman who did not stand out and rarely spoke, silently accepted everything. Yet she quietly vanished from sight, leaving Xiao Qiang filled with self-reproach as he rubbed his hair vigorously—
"Hey, little brother, are you trying to rub your scalp off?" The city lord said cheerfully after entering the village. Looking at the peaceful and serene village under the bright sun, he felt his entire being become so clean, like the pure white snow on this plateau without a hint of impurity. His consciousness and even his body cells could not resist; they completely indulged in this wonderful atmosphere.
For a fleeting moment, he felt as if everything he had experienced before was an illusion. He was somewhat bewildered and confused, unable to believe Xiao Qiang's warning that terrible things would happen after dark.
Seeing Xiao Qiang's dejected demeanor, the city lord understood that this handsome young man was suffering from heartbreak and entanglement in love. The warm sunlight bathed him gently as he gazed at an unknown plant nearby. Its leaves were emerald green but marred by large patches of pale yellow, wilting sadly on the ground.
The city lord walked over to pick it up, playing with it while his gaze drifted towards the misty mountain peaks in the distance. He asked Xiao Qiang, "How long do we need to stay here?"
Pulled back from his deep self-reproachful thoughts about Lin Yu and that strange dream… "Let’s take a break; we must find Muffled Train before dusk."
Just as they were conversing, a sound resembling someone stepping on stones echoed from not far away.
Xiao Qiang immediately became alert and shouted, "Who’s there?" As soon as he yelled, he picked up a stone from the ground and threw it toward the source of the sound…
"Meow!" A startled stray cat quickly scampered away, followed by a thin figure darting through a gap between large rocks nearby.
"Is someone eavesdropping?" The city lord exclaimed in shock as he scrambled to his feet but hesitated to move forward. He was terrified that it might be the Fallen One; in this situation, aside from Humanoid Sinner, no one else would dare show themselves in broad daylight.
While the city lord hesitated, Xiao Qiang had already dashed off swiftly. In no time at all, he intercepted someone hiding behind a large rock who had been eavesdropping on their conversation.
The man was a thin old fellow in his forties, with squinty eyes and a face that wore a constant smile. He was so emaciated that it seemed like all he had on his smiling face was a wrinkled skin, with hardly any flesh to speak of, making him look like an aged fish eagle.
However, his mental state was surprisingly good. Although he was stopped, he appeared quite calm, unexpectedly showing no signs of panic.
Since he was just an old man, Xiao Qiang didn’t want to make things difficult for him. Perhaps he was a local elder. "Elder, is there something you need?"
The old man cleared his throat twice in the wind, a murky tear rolling in his left eye. "A disaster is coming soon, young man. You are outsiders; you should flee!"
The old man's words startled Xiao Qiang.
It wasn't the fear of the disaster he mentioned that frightened him, but rather the confirmation of his own suspicions. Xiao Qiang paused for a moment, thinking to himself: Who is this old man? How does he know about the impending disaster?
"Elder, you..."
"Grandpa." A crisp and youthful voice interrupted Xiao Qiang's words. He instinctively turned around to see a teenager running towards them, waving a dry stalk of straw.
Upon seeing the child, the old man immediately fell silent, his expression turning wooden.
As the boy approached his grandfather and Xiao Qiang, he grinned widely, revealing two large front teeth. Embarrassed, he said, "Uncle, did my grandpa scare you with his madness?"
Madness? Xiao Qiang was taken aback again and asked, "What kind of madness does your grandpa have? Does he have any special symptoms?"
The boy supported his grandfather and turned back to apologize again with a smile. "Grandpa keeps repeating one thing: to hurry and escape because there’s going to be a disaster."
"Oh!" Xiao Qiang gazed at the old man's retreating figure, pondering over his seemingly mad words.
"What’s going on?" The city lord approached and followed Xiao Qiang's gaze. Seeing the boy helping the old man walk away, he asked, "Still thinking about those women?"
"What are you talking about?" Xiao Qiang replied absentmindedly, his eyes still tracking the old man's silhouette.
"Brother, you're a man now. When men are together, they talk about women; what else would we discuss?"
"Is there nothing else on your mind besides women?" Xiao Qiang questioned firmly, leaving the city lord feeling awkward and speechless.
Xiao Qiang questioned the boy's claim that his grandfather was insane. In this mountain village surrounded by towering peaks, there indeed existed an unknown disaster. Yet, no one believed the old man's words.
He thought that the elder must have extraordinary experiences and insights. With this in mind, Xiao Qiang suddenly had a flash of inspiration and hurried off to chase after the boy and the old man.
The city lord did not understand Xiao Qiang's actions. He stared blankly at the figure disappearing into the distance, puzzled, wiping the sweat from his forehead, and retreated into his hut to continue sleeping. He needed to conserve his energy before finding a way to leave this place and return to his territory to continue being the king of land.
As the boy walked, he spoke to his grandfather about something. Xiao Qiang quickly approached them. Suddenly appearing before them startled the pair of grandfather and grandson.
"What do you want?" the boy asked with a quivering voice.
Seeing how frightened the boy was, Xiao Qiang was taken aback, realizing that his actions resembled those of a bandit trying to rob them. He quickly offered an apologetic smile and said, "I'm sorry, I need to ask your grandfather something, so I was in a bit of a rush."
The boy nodded, still supporting his grandfather, and replied to Xiao Qiang, "Grandpa has been sick for many years; he has always been like this. What can he tell you?"
"Little brother, could you give me a few minutes?" Xiao Qiang asked hopefully, gazing at the boy with anticipation.
The boy lowered his head in thought... After a moment, he decisively looked up and said, "Okay, but please be quick."
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