Chapter 452

There were many people on the field who hadn't told a story yet.

Wu Xian, Liuli, Xiong Gang, Fu Liang Liang Jian, and Xu Meng, so whoever wanted to tell a story did so entirely voluntarily.

Wu Xian didn't intend to tell a story, Liuli had never opened her mouth to speak, and Fu Liang Liang Jian was not in the mood to tell a story now.

Xu Meng clenched his fists and hesitated a bit.

He had a story to tell.

It wasn't an encounter in the salt mine cave, but a strange thing he encountered when he was a child in his rural hometown. That year, heavy snow blocked the mountains, the village was cut off from the outside world, and strange death events began to appear in the village.

Whenever someone said they were afraid in public, or showed signs of being afraid, they would die in an extremely miserable way the next day.

During that time, everyone in the village was scared to death, but everyone was holding on, speaking deliberately loudly, and creating a persona of being very brave. The whole village looked lively, but the atmosphere was suffocating.

After the heavy snow melted, the death events stopped, and the villagers all returned to their usual selves.

But only Xu Meng remained in that state.

Because he knew that the thing that killed people hadn't left, it was still living in the village, and every time it would take the initiative to greet Xu Meng...

This incident changed Xu Meng's life and also earned him the nickname "Xu the Brave," indirectly prompting Xu Meng to enter the salt mine cave to explore the strange sounds and fall into the underground labyrinth.

But Xu Meng didn't want to tell this story.

Because once he told the truth, everyone would know that his bravery was all faked.

Seeing that there was no movement from the crowd for a long time, Xiong Gang took the initiative to walk to the Big Ear Statue.

"Let me do it this time."

"I'll state beforehand, my story happened not long ago, and I have some selfish motives in telling this story. You must be prepared that the thing I pull in will be an enemy."

According to Wu Xian's previous speculation.

People who enter the labyrinth all have stories, and such stories can bring the malevolent entities that have been influenced into the labyrinth.

But Xiong Gang's situation was a bit special.

He was pulled in by the malevolent entity Xia Caoqing, and the malevolent entity Xia Caoqing was pulled in by the old man who had turned into an Inverted Walker. It passed through two hands, and no one could guarantee that the one Xiong Gang pulled in would still be a malevolent entity that had been influenced.

Xiong Gang showed a nostalgic expression.

"My story starts from a long time ago."

"I once said that I grew up eating food from a hundred families, was misunderstood by villagers for killing people, and fell into the underground labyrinth while running away... these words are not false, but I omitted many details."

"When I was still a malevolent entity, I once attacked a campsite. In the process of the attack, I was influenced by the sound of chanting in the flames. After going down the mountain, I turned into a human child and tried to live in the human world."

"When I first arrived in the human world, I didn't understand anything. I accidentally came to 'Kaoshan Village.' The old people in the village kindly adopted me. Because I often showed some bear-like habits, the old people called me Bear Child."

"The villagers settled me in an empty house where no one lived. Every day, Auntie would invite me over for dinner. Following them, I gradually learned how to be a human."

"There was a veterinarian in the village named Uncle Wang. He was very capable and was the only veterinarian in the nearby villages. Uncle Wang accidentally discovered that I could easily calm down livestock, so he took me as an apprentice assistant. Just like that, I had a job and income."

"The village was not rich, and no one had money in their hands, so villagers usually bought veterinary services on credit, waiting for the harvest the following year to sell the livestock for money to pay back the debt."

"Over time, almost all the farmers in the village owed Uncle Wang a lot of money."

"But Uncle Wang rarely urged for debt repayment. Even if the debt was owed for a long time, as long as the family was really in difficulty, Uncle Wang wouldn't say anything. Therefore, everyone in the village said Uncle Wang was kind."

"And everyone also wanted me to apply for a veterinary college, get a certificate, and when Uncle Wang couldn't work anymore, come back to take over Uncle Wang's work. Unfortunately, my brain was stupid, my hands were too heavy, and I hadn't been to school, so in the end, this matter was left unsettled..."

Xiong Gang raised his head slightly, looking at the stalactites above.

"Actually, I know that everyone in the village has some dirty little thoughts, more or less."

"They often invited me over for dinner just because I was strong, and every time I ate, I would help with a lot of heavy work; saying Uncle Wang was kind was to flatter him, making him embarrassed to urge for debt repayment; the villagers who actively wanted me to study veterinary medicine were also the group of people who liked to buy on credit the most. They just wanted me to be like Uncle Wang, allowing long-term credit after treating livestock."

"They are greedy, selfish, and like to take advantage... but people are all like this. Everyone has shortcomings, no one is perfect. At least their initial help to me was completely without selfish motives."

"So I like them very much, and being with them makes me feel very happy. If possible, I hope to live here forever."

The story up to here was still warm.

But judging from Xiong Gang's tone, a change was about to happen.

"Time passed bit by bit, and I learned many things from Uncle Wang's side, but I gradually discovered that Uncle Wang had a strange habit, which was that he absolutely would not treat dogs."

"This made me feel very strange. Every time I asked him the reason, he always said with an ugly face that only veterinarians in the city treat pets, and no one in the village is willing to spend money on cats and dogs."

"This reason is very strange and doesn't hold water at all."

"Times are changing. In recent years, many people have raised cats and dogs as children. People who can afford to treat pets usually pay money very quickly. Why not do such good business?"

"But since he didn't want to say, I didn't force the question."

"Until one day, Uncle Wang died."

"Auntie Wang said that that night, Uncle Wang received a phone call saying that someone's livestock in the village was about to die, and asked him to go and see it quickly. Uncle Wang hurriedly put on his clothes, took his medicine box, and just as he walked out the door, he fell down and never woke up again."

"Uncle Wang's death didn't cause any ripples. The barefoot doctor in the village said it was a cerebral hemorrhage. He was already old, so it was no surprise when he died. Being able to pass away so cleanly was actually a good thing."

"I lived in the village for more than ten years and attended many funerals, but only Uncle Wang's funeral was handled by me. He had no children, and I was his son. He had worked so hard for so long, I wanted him to die in style."

Speaking of this.

Xiong Gang thought of Uncle Wang again, and tears couldn't stop flowing down.

Along with his tears, the black hair on his ears and chest was also disappearing, which meant that his humanity had completely overwhelmed his beastly nature at this moment.

"Uncle Wang was lying in the coffin, looking like he was still alive. He was wearing a pitch-black and shiny black burial shroud. The fabric was very soft, like leather. This high-end fabric was rare in the village. I thought this burial shroud was put on by Auntie Wang, so I didn't care."

"But when I and others closed the coffin lid for Uncle Wang together, in a trance, I seemed to catch a glimpse of Uncle Wang's mouth grinning backward, his upper and lower jaws protruding forward, his eyes wide open, and his tongue hanging out from the side..."

"Like a mad dog with rabies!"

(End of chapter)