Love and passion, cutting up the wasteland

"Shut up!" Uncle Gen's expression changed.

Yan'er was shouted at and frightened on the spot.

Even in the most critical moment, my father never showed such a nervous look.

The hungry people around were also attracted by the sound and looked over. But after a while, he was immersed in slowly chewing the food he was assigned.

Uncle Gen also reacted and regained his calm expression so as not to disturb everyone's morale.

He whispered: "Don't think about these things in the future!"

only.

Although Yan'er fell silent, the expression on her face was still angry, and she was obviously unconvinced.

Uncle Gen understood what his daughter meant.

Even if you need to rely on other hungry people for help on the way to escape, and if you rob pedestrians, you still need help from everyone... But what about those who have died?

What else are they useful for?

Compared to surviving, this little taboo is nothing.

"Yan'er, this is not such a simple question." He pulled his daughter and sat down together.

"Once you eat it once... you'll never look back."

"I know this truth," Yan'er lowered her head and said, "But what time of day is it now, you still care about this."

"No, you don't know." Uncle Gen's face was solemn, "I'm not talking about morality or human nature, and I'm not trying to teach you these unnecessary things."

"What I'm saying is... cannibalism is cursed."

Yan'er raised her head and looked at her father blankly.

curse.

Such vague words came out of my father's mouth...but his tone and expression were so serious.

"...Dad, what's the curse?" she asked.

She knew that her grandfather used to be the village elder in the village and the patriarch of the family. Later, it was passed down to her father. They knew many secrets that ordinary people did not know. But it wasn't long before the village was ransacked by sand bandits, and only the father and daughter escaped.

"It is said that a long time ago, when there was a famine, there was a phenomenon of 'human cannibalism'... Although it was cruel, it did allow the remaining people to survive."

Uncle Gen recalled, pointing to Yan'er and himself: "Perhaps our ancestors have had such an experience."

Yan'er said nothing.

"But then, the 'curse' happened."

"Anyone who has tasted human flesh will eventually be able to eat only this kind of food...and his memory will continue to be lost, and he will no longer remember his relatives, or even himself, until he is completely lost. Reason becomes a complete devil.

“Although in the past, cannibals might get a strange disease and become dementia and look stupid, but that was only a possibility.

“It wasn’t like now – it was a doomed thing that couldn’t be reversed.

"And it doesn't seem to be a bacterial infection - no matter how you handle or cook the raw meat, the person who eats it will turn into a demon... What is this if it's not a curse?"

Yan'er was stunned and couldn't believe it: "But Dad, this might be just a legend!"

"This is not a legend." Uncle Gen said firmly, "otherwise, where do you think the cannibal tribes in the north come from?"

"The Holy Kingdom has been encircling them for who knows how many years. Very few outsiders have been able to enter the plains in the north, forcing those man-eating monsters to hunt each other... But why do they continue to expand?"

"They are spreading in waves with the famine... These are the people who have been cursed."

"Do you still remember Zhao Xiaosong in the village?" Uncle Gen's tone seemed to be telling some blasphemous words. "After his mother died, he went crazy. People in the village said he was too sad - but Only your grandpa and I know that he is so hungry that he can't stand it..."

Yan'er will always remember that scene: that was her childhood playmate. For some reason, she suddenly bit people everywhere, could not speak, and could only roar like a wild beast. In the end, she was hanged by the villagers at the entrance of the village.

She trembled:

"This, this is no different from death."

Uncle Gen touched his daughter's head: "So, don't fall to that point. We still have a way."

He said sincerely:

"The Queen of the South has issued a decree. She will accept all refugees. Regardless of race, anyone who is willing to settle in the Kingdom of Shake will be given a large piece of land of their own to cultivate...

"I was still hesitant at first, but I didn't expect the changes to happen so quickly. Now this decree is the only hope for us people.

"No matter how difficult it is, I will take you to the south."

Yan'er moved closer to her father and leaned on his shoulder.

She said softly: "Is this why you want us to follow those in front?"

"Yeah." Uncle Gen nodded, "I don't know if you noticed it, but since we followed those people, we haven't encountered any beasts or monsters along the way."

When Yan'er thought about it, it was really like that.

Although the food dilemma is still unresolved, and there are people who are too hungry to walk every day... But at least there are no sudden attacks, and they will not suddenly break into the beast's lair. Today's attrition has been much smaller.

Uncle Gen continued:

"The leaders of these people must be very familiar with the surrounding environment. Even I can't compare. And their direction of travel is also all the way south. As long as we follow them, it is much more reliable than running around blindly on our own."

"But others may not necessarily think so." Yan'er recalled the looks in the eyes of several hungry people, "You don't allow us to attack those adventurers, and many people are already dissatisfied.

"If there are more and more people..."

"If you want to die, just let them go." Uncle Gen's tone was cold, "Those people just want to coerce me, order others to go up and grab food, and then profit from behind."

"If you were to ask them who would be the first to step forward, they would not dare."

For such a well-prepared team, regardless of whether they can win or not... at least the one who stands out will definitely be dead.

He looked along the canyon.

Somehow, when his eyes touched the camp in the distance, he always felt like someone was looking at him.

Probably an illusion caused by psychological suggestion, Uncle Gen shook his head and shook away the distracting thoughts.

…

In the early morning of the next day, the group got up on time.

They set off in a hurry, and finally arrived at the exit of the canyon before noon. The line of sight in front of them became wider again, allowing them to respond in time if an enemy appeared.

Behind them are the hungry bandits. If dangerous creatures attack from behind, these people will be the first to bear the brunt.

It can be regarded as an additional means of early warning.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to take a rest at the exit of the canyon, which was safe and could block the most poisonous sunlight in the afternoon.

Most people ate dry food last night and couldn't even light a fire. Now they can prepare a good meal.

the only thing that is missing……

"Where did Lu Beiyou go?" Teyi asked.

After setting up camp for a while, he turned around to count the number of people and found that the white-haired young man suddenly disappeared.

His head ached.

If you lose your employer during this escort mission, it will have a great impact on your reputation.

"Oh, he went hunting on Xiaolu." Li Liu, who was helping to take care of the temporary stove, responded to him.

"Hunting?" Te Yi was stunned.

He looked at his companions: "Have you noticed any prey around here?"

This technology hunter is a sassy woman who looks to be under thirty years old. Her skin has been tanned, and her skin is habitually covered with paint that masks odor.

"A bird doesn't poop." She shook her head.

"What nonsense." Teyi frowned.

His companion is a senior wilderness hunter, carrying a bear trap and various hunting props in his bag. When they go on a mission, they will inevitably encounter a shortage of supplies, and at this time they have to rely on her hunting skills.

If she says there is no prey, then there must be no prey.

This is called trust in your companions.

If there were, people like myself would have taken action long ago to give everyone an extra meal.

Why wait until Lu Beiyou temporarily leaves the team to go hunting?

——And isn’t this guy a doctor?