“My little grandson, I looked at him and didn’t know what to do. My wife also fell ill because of our daughter’s situation and passed away not long after. In just one month, I gained a new family member, but lost two. What could I do? I could only take care of my grandson and live one day at a time.”
Originally, life wasn't too difficult. As time went by, Elder Chishi gradually forgot his grief. But no one expected that an even greater tragedy was brewing.
"I never imagined that my little grandson, haha, would actually be a human!" Elder Chishi suddenly burst into tears.
Huoqian looked at him in surprise, his face full of confusion: "But Elder, wasn't your grandson born to your daughter?"
"Yes, if I hadn't seen him born with my own eyes, I would have had my suspicions long ago."
Humans and dwarfs can be clearly distinguished by their appearance. At the very least, few humans are shorter than 1.5 meters, while dwarfs are generally shorter than 1.2 meters. Usually, the difference becomes obvious around the age of seven or eight.
However, there's always an unexpected twist...
“A half-breed…” Elder Redstone’s voice seemed to be squeezed from the bottom of his throat, sounding so sorrowful and suppressed in the empty cave: “I finally understand why my daughter refused to tell us who the child’s father was. Because she knew that I would not allow a human child to live in the Dwarf Kingdom, even if that child still had my blood in his veins!”
A half-human, half-dwarf...
Huoqian hadn't expected things to turn out this way. If the child looked more like the mother, it would indeed be difficult for anyone to discover, but why was it discovered later?
Seeing the obvious suppressed confusion on Huoqian's face, Elder Chishi sighed again: "Alas, I know what you want to ask. Actually, I wish I had never known about this. But my little grandson, my most beloved little grandson, the little grandson on whom I placed all my hopes, I never imagined that in the end, his way of repaying my kindness in raising him would be betrayal!"
The words "betrayal" were roared out by Elder Chishi, and they struck the hearts of everyone present like heavy stones.
Including the stone hiding to one side.
For a long time, no one spoke in the cave. Finally, Elder Chishi asked in a hoarse voice, "Huoqian, aren't you curious about what he did?"
"What could we have done?" Huoqian pursed his lips, his face full of sorrow as he replied, "I remember seeing a document in my father's study. It recorded that six hundred years ago, when the ancestors of the Dwarf Kingdom fled to the Crimson Forest, they had about fifty thousand people. Three hundred years later, it was seventy thousand. Perhaps an increase of twenty thousand in three hundred years is indeed a bit slow, but at least it was still increasing steadily. However, the document also stated at the end that two hundred years ago, the total population of the Dwarf Kingdom was eight thousand!"
The stone, hiding to one side, suddenly stiffened. Over 60,000 people gone in a hundred years?! This is simply…
"Yes! Eight thousand people, you know, this didn't happen over a hundred years, but over a year. To be precise, it happened over two months." Elder Chishi's expression at this moment was filled with an indescribable sorrow.
Back then, it was his grandson who colluded with humans and led them into the land of the dwarves. That war was extremely brutal. Fortunately, in the end, they were victorious.
After sacrificing the vast majority of the dwarves' lives, they were victorious. Not only did they kill all the enemies, but they also prevented the news from spreading further.
"I killed my grandson with my own hands, with my own hands!"
After saying this, Elder Chishi seemed to have aged several years, his face ashen: "Huoqian, I know Shitou is your sister. Don't worry, I won't harm her life, but I only ask that you not be too soft-hearted."
"Elder, please rest assured!" Huo Qian nodded heavily.
Elder Chishi, as if he had completed his mission, dragged his heavy body slowly out of the cave. But just as he was about to leave, he turned back and said firmly, "Huoqian, no matter how reluctant you are, I want you to promise that you must break Stone's legs!!!"
"I promise!"
A chill ran through Shi Tou; she gripped her arm tightly to stifle a scream. Was this a pair of fire tongs? Was this her seventh brother? The one who always cried, who was constantly bullied by her older brothers, and who especially loved to pout and kiss her?
With Elder Chishi gone, the cave returned to calm, but Stone dared not move, for she knew that Huotong had not left.
After a long time, so long that Stone was starting to feel numb, Huoqian suddenly let out a heavy sigh.
"Stone, don't you want to come out?"
---
There will be another chapter tonight; I'm a fan of live-action writing, this is too much!
o(>﹏<)o
☆, Chapter 83 The Fire Tongs of Dissociative Identity Disorder
Shi Tou broke out in a cold sweat in fright. This... this was probably the fire tongs scaring him, right?
"Stone, Elder Chishi has left, aren't you coming out?" Huoqian's voice clearly reached Stone's ears.
I'd rather die than come out!
Shi Tou gritted his teeth and persevered, thinking that maybe Huo Tong was just bluffing him!
"Sigh, you don't even trust me anymore?" Huoqian sighed again and slowly walked towards where the stone was hiding. "Come out. Actually, I noticed you the moment I came in."
In the blink of an eye, Huoqian was standing in front of Shitou, who slowly stood up, his lips pursed. Huoqian was still the same as before, but his once slightly immature face was now unusually solemn. What had made that clueless Seventh Brother change so much in such a short time?
"Seventh Brother..."
"Hehe, Stone, you still call me that?" Huoqian smiled slightly. "My little Stone, didn't you leave? Why are you back? Did you leave something important behind?"
Shi Tou was startled again. Did he know about the existence of the big steamed bun? No, he definitely didn't know. He was definitely bluffing him this time, absolutely!
"Seventh Brother, I'm reluctant to leave Daddy and Mommy, but I'm also reluctant to leave you!" Stone smiled weakly, but his eyes kept glancing at the elevator.
She's such an idiot! She shouldn't have hidden at all; she should have just taken the elevator and escaped. But if she had, she might never have seen her seventh brother's true face.
Huoqian's eyes were very clear. Shitou used to envy Seventh Brother for having a pair of beautiful big eyes, but now she felt that Seventh Brother's eyes were very... scary.
"Seventh Brother, it's getting late. Should I head back first? You should go home too; Dad and Mom must be getting impatient." Shi Tou said in a low voice as he quietly moved towards the elevator.
The fire tongs just stared at the stone. They neither spoke nor moved.
Seeing that the fire tongs didn't stop him, Shi Tou quickened his pace: "Um, Seventh Brother, I'm leaving now."
But just as Stone was about to step onto the elevator, Huotongs grabbed his hand. Stone screamed in fright!
"Seventh...Seventh Brother..." Stone looked at Huoqian with a face full of terror. Although she was a little taller than Huoqian, she was no match for him in terms of strength. At this moment, she regretted it. She should have insisted on having Baozi teach her a magic spell.
"Stone, are you afraid of me?" Huoqian's tone was unusually calm, without the slightest inflection. If the environment were different, Stone would definitely burst out laughing. Because Huoqian now resembled that serious news anchor from his previous life.
But at this moment, Stone couldn't manage a smile. Pouting, Stone gritted his teeth and steeled his resolve: "Seventh Brother. I...I heard everything! Please let me go! I won't leave the Crimson Forest, and I won't tell the humans!"
Huoqian's expression remained unchanged, and even his tone of voice was equally calm: "Stone, are you sure you didn't forget anything? I mean, something very important!"
Stone glanced quickly at the tongs, a sudden chill running down his spine. Could it be that the tongs really had found the steamed bun? But even so, the tongs shouldn't have said that, right? Besides, without him, the steamed bun would only become a black diamond…
Wait a minute! A black diamond? Right, it's no secret to my family that I treasure a black diamond. Did the fire tongs recognize Baozi?
"Seventh Brother, um, I think I dropped a few pretty stones! But it's okay, I have plenty more." Seeing that Huotong was still holding his hand tightly, Shi Tou couldn't help but add, "Really, it's okay, I think I'll go upstairs first!"
"So, in the end, you just don't trust me?"
Stone suddenly felt it was absurd. Trust him? If he hadn't overheard his conversation with Elder Chishi earlier, perhaps he would still be the person he trusted most? Unfortunately, some things, once they happen, can never be undone.
"Seventh Brother, can I trust you? After hearing what you and Elder Chishi said, do you still believe you won't hurt me?" I'll risk it all. At worst, I'll drag the fire tongs up with me on the elevator. There's also Mifen up there. I probably won't lose, right?
Huoqian suddenly laughed. For some reason, Shitou felt that Huoqian seemed different when he laughed, as if he had turned back into the loving Seventh Brother.
Stone shook his head violently. No, no, how could he be fooled by the fire tongs? Elder Chishi just said that he had to break his own leg no matter what!
“You have many beautiful stones, but a stone that can turn into steamed buns, talk, sing, and eat…” Huoqian looked at the stone with a smile, but what he said made the hairs on the stone stand on end: “You probably only have one, right?”
"Seventh Brother..."
Stone was truly frightened; even when Huoqian suddenly pulled her in another direction, she didn't come to her senses.
Stumbling and being dragged along by the fire tongs for a long time, Stone finally couldn't help but tremble all over: "Seventh Brother, where are you taking me? I...I...I won't do anything to betray the Dwarf Kingdom!"
But Huoqian kept his head down and walked on without saying a word, completely ignoring how terrified Shitou was.
"We're here." After being delayed for a while, Stone was panting heavily. "This is so unfair! My legs are clearly longer than yours!"
Seeing the indignant look on Stone's face, Huoqian finally couldn't help but burst out laughing: "Hahaha, Stone, you look so funny right now! Hahaha!"
Stone stared in horror as Huoqian burst into unrestrained laughter, clutching his stomach, practically rolling on the ground in utter rage. This...this...
"Gaga, Master is an idiot! Master is so stupid!" Big Bun's voice suddenly came from a corner, and Stone was so frightened that he almost fainted, because this time, Bun spoke instead of transmitting his voice.
But Huoqian seemed not to hear him and continued to laugh wildly.
Stone cautiously looked around. She hadn't even noticed where she was while the tongs had been dragging her along. Now, she could see clearly that this used to be a mine, but it looked like it had been abandoned for a long time. Inside the mine was a dilapidated table with a small oil lamp burning on it.
"Seventh Brother, where is this?" Looking at Huoqian, who was completely different from before, Shi Tou's heart was pounding. Could this guy be the legendary split personality?
“Stone, I think you’re definitely cursing me in your heart right now! And it’s definitely not anything nice!” Huoqian suddenly stopped laughing and looked at Stone with a serious expression.
Stone was startled again. Could this guy not only have a split personality, but also mind-reading abilities? With a fawning smile, Stone said, "Seventh Brother, Stone is just very curious, why did you bring him here?"
"Because nobody comes here usually!" Huoqian gave a straightforward answer: "Also, there's an elevator here that goes all the way down to the bottom of a thousand dwarves."
A thousand dwarfs?!
Stone nearly choked on his own saliva. A dwarf is about 110 centimeters long, so a thousand dwarfs would be...
Holy crap! Is she going on a trip to the Earth's core?! (#‵′)凸
"And, is this what you're looking for?" Huoqian walked to the table, grabbed something from it, and turned back to look at the stone with his outstretched hand.
Yes, it's trash!
"Giggle, Master! Baozi misses you so much!" With a crisp explosion, the black diamond turned into a big steamed bun, which wriggled and bounced around in the hands of the fire tongs.
Shi Tou's lips twitched. She had always thought Baozi was unreliable, but she never knew that Baozi would be just that unreliable!
"You damn steamed bun!" Stone spat out the words through gritted teeth, his eyes blazing like knives as he glared at the steamed bun. "Why aren't you dead yet?!"
"Hehe, Stone, it won't die, because it's not a living being at all!" Huoqian smiled as he looked at the large steamed bun in his hand. "It should be a demonic soul, right?"
"Demon Soul? What does that mean?" Stone looked at Fire Pliers in surprise, seemingly quite familiar with Baozi.
"The soul of a magical beast." Huoqian answered calmly, "Some magical beasts have signed a symbiotic contract with their masters. If the master dies, the magical beast will die, and vice versa. So when a magical beast dies, or is about to die, the master will extract its soul and protect it in a container, so that the master can avoid death."
Shi Tou gasped. She had always thought that Baozi was a pet created by its former owner, like the robot dogs and cats in her previous life. But she never expected that Baozi was actually a magical beast!
A monster with flesh and blood!
"What kind of magical beast was Baozi before?" Stone swallowed hard, his face contorted as he asked.
Huoqian was taken aback, clearly not expecting that Shitou would have the mood to ask this at this time. He felt a mix of amusement and exasperation: "I really don't know. You should ask it! But, Shitou, I'm reminding you, you seem to be concerned about something else right now, don't you?"
Upon hearing Huoqian's words, Shitou suddenly remembered what she had overheard in the cave and panicked. "Baozi!" she cried, snatching the steamed bun from her hand and hugging it tightly to her chest, as if that would bring her some peace of mind.
Huoqian looked at her with amusement, but as he laughed, the amusement turned into a bitter smile. Hah, so Stone had never trusted him after all…
"Baozi, magic." Holding Baozi in her arms, Shi Tou whispered to Baozi with her head down. At this moment, she could only place her hopes on Baozi, hoping that with Baozi's earth magic, she could escape safely this time.
"Giggle, Master! You can't learn Baozi's magic!" To everyone's surprise, the usually clever Baozi seemed a bit silly at this moment, and innocently said, "When Baozi takes Master to the human kingdom, Master can go to the magic academy!"
Human Kingdom...
-----