Chapter 30 Child's Debt (Part 5) The Butcher, the Millstone, the Wild Child...

The iron chain scraped across the ground, making a crisp "clinking" sound. Waves of a foul, fishy stench wafted towards me, making me want to vomit.

Song San struggled to open his eyes. Through his blurry vision, a straight, dark roof beam slowly moved before him. Dry straw brushed against his ears, causing a slight stinging pain, while the feeling of restraint on his ankles was particularly intense.

As my senses gradually returned, a dull, burning pain shot through my back, as if it had been scorched by flames.

Song San frowned, a sense of absurdity rising in her heart—at this very moment, she was being dragged along the ground by her ankles.

She tried to muster all her strength, but to her horror, she found that her limbs were limp and powerless, and she could not move at all.

Unable to control his body, yet his hearing became increasingly clear.

The man's heavy breathing came in fits and starts with the dragging motion, as if he were about to stop breathing at any moment. He was panting heavily, his breaths hoarse and rough, extremely unpleasant to hear.

The voice was not human at all; it sounded more like a wild beast.

Thinking this, the sound of chains scraping the ground stopped abruptly, the shackles on her ankles suddenly loosened, and the terrifying heavy breathing subsided considerably.

Song San slowly turned his eyes, his mind flashing back to what he had seen and heard before he lost consciousness, and he became increasingly uneasy.

Who exactly is this person called 'Qianqian'? And when did she offend such a demon?

She's always been the one chasing after demons, but now it's the other way around.

I wonder what this demon intends to do to her, or perhaps there's more than one demon.

Song San suddenly felt like his head was about to explode, his thoughts a jumbled mess.

However, before she could have time to worry, heavy footsteps suddenly sounded in her ear.

The man who had been dragging her along seemed to have rested enough and was walking towards her.

Taking advantage of this brief moment, Song San finally saw his face clearly, but almost bit his tongue.

What came into view was a huge, bloody pig's head.

It was neither a frail old man nor a vigorous young man, but rather a pig's head that looked exactly like the one placed on the altar—a fresh, black pig's head, still dripping blood.

Song San's breath almost stopped for a moment. In his daze, the complete pig's head slowly approached. Above its slightly narrowed eyes, the long eyelashes were like raven feathers, making people unable to help but be stunned.

Its ears, about the size of a palm leaf fan, swayed gently back and forth with its movements.

Song San swallowed hard, his gaze shifting downwards to the neck beneath the pig's head—a human neck.

For some reason, she felt a sense of relief.

It's definitely not a pig's body, otherwise it would be too horrifying.

The current situation wasn't much better. The 'pig-headed man' bent down, grabbed her right wrist, and lifted it high into the air.

Then, he drew a gleaming dagger from his waist and, before she could react, brought it down!

Song San's eyes widened instantly, and he gasped.

The knife tip sliced ​​through his palm, sending a sharp pain through him. His fingers trembled spasmodically for a moment, and then wisps of energy gradually surged into his limbs and bones.

She can move now!

The 'pig-headed man' casually tossed aside the dagger, picked up a ceramic bowl from the side, and squeezed his cut right hand hard.

Drops of blood fell into the bowl, making a soft "drip-drop" sound.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the man finally let go of her hand and walked away with the bowl of blood.

Alarm bells rang in Song San's mind. What was it trying to do by taking blood?

She tried to bend one arm, struggling to prop herself up on one side, and looked in the direction of the person's back.

Beneath the 'pig's head' was the body of an ordinary man, dressed in a germanium-colored robe embroidered with dark patterns that, as he moved, reflected in the light, created patterns of birds flying around branches.

The fabric is of the finest quality, and the patterns are also the most fashionable of the moment.

This person is well-dressed; what is his background?

Then look at the thick iron chains on his ankles, which made a clanging sound as he walked.

With such a strange outfit, could he be the butcher that 'Qianqian' mentioned?

The man dragged his heavy steps toward a stone slab in the center of the room, then suddenly stopped.

From a distance, the stone slab was covered with mottled moss and cracks. In the center of the slab, a deep cross groove ran through the stone, with sharp edges.

It resembles a millstone, but it is different from those used by ordinary people. The stone slab is carved with intricate patterns around its perimeter, resembling dragons and snakes, winding and coiling, faintly exuding a cold and sinister aura.

Song San had never seen such an exquisite millstone before.

The butcher slowly tilted the bowl in his hand, and crimson blood dripped like a thin stream into the groove in the center of the stone plate.

Blood flowed along the grooves, gradually filling the cross-shaped ravines. The stone slab seemed to be awakened, emitting a low hum.

Upon seeing this, the man suddenly laughed, making a rough "huffing" sound in his throat, as if he was extremely satisfied with the stone slab's reaction.

Song San thought to himself, "This is bad."

At this critical juncture, this person's laughter was like a death knell for her.

So, before he noticed, she glanced at the dagger lying to the side, hooked it with her foot, and quietly hid it in her sleeve.

He had recovered about 40-50% of his strength. Although he couldn't fight this person with all his might, he still had to find a way to save his life.

His gaze fell back on the heavy iron chains between the man's feet, and Song San immediately began to consider his options.

This person must have known deep down that she was powerless, which is why he so brazenly exposed his back. And now was the perfect opportunity to escape.

Dragging his aching legs, Song San took a few steps back, then braced himself with his palms, carefully turned over, and crawled forward on his knees a few steps. Seeing that the plan was feasible, he headed towards the open door.

The butcher was so smug that when he realized something was wrong, he turned to look for Song San, but it was too late—the prey that was about to be eaten had crawled to the door!

The earthenware bowl shattered, and the remaining blood splattered onto the butcher's boots. Behind the blackened pig's head, the man's heavy breathing resumed.

He had not expected the scene before him and was furious. Even through the thick mask, Song San could still feel a strong resentment turning into raging flames and attacking him.

The butcher let out a long howl, then drew his blood-stained cleaver from his waist and charged toward Song San!

The iron chains, like a death knell, moved rapidly and loudly toward Song San.

This is terrible!

Song San secretly thought to himself that something was wrong.

I had assumed that the butcher, being tethered by chains, wouldn't be able to walk very fast.

How come he is moving as fast as an ordinary person right now?

No longer caring about hiding it, Song San simply stood up, leaned on the door frame, stepped over the threshold, and ran outside.

Fortunately, her limbs were not bound. Although her hands and feet were still a little sore and her palms were burning with pain, she was free to move around. After leaving the house, she quickly looked around.

The most important thing right now is to shake off that butcher; taking the official route is probably not an option.

However, she made a decision in a short while and turned to run into the depths of the woods.

The forest was full of bushes, and the butcher had iron chains under his feet, so he stumbled along the way. Once inside the forest, he slowed down and was left far behind.

Once the sound of the iron chain disappeared, Song San's heart finally settled back into his stomach, and he slowed down considerably.

The fallen leaves underfoot rustled softly, interspersed with the occasional chirping of birds and insects, creating a lively scene.

Although they had escaped temporarily, the forest in front of them was not necessarily safe.

An illusion is ultimately just an illusion.

From the smallest leaf to the smallest ant, nothing in this world can be trusted.

-

As darkness fell, the light in the forest grew increasingly dim.

As Song San was pondering where to go, she suddenly heard a low murmur of conversation coming from ahead. She immediately held her breath and quietly approached.

After walking more than ten steps, I finally saw a figure behind a dense thicket of bushes.

Song San's forehead twitched ominously for a moment.

What appeared before her was a group of ragged...children?

After calming himself down, he looked again at the group of people not far away. They were sitting around in an open space, sharing a few dry, hard biscuits.

Looking at their faces covered in filth and their clothes in tatters, they were clearly refugees fleeing famine.

Where would wild children come from in such a shabby forest?

After hesitating for a moment, Song San finally stood up and emerged from the bushes.

Hearing the commotion, the group of children turned around and saw her. They were all startled and cried out, huddling together and crowding around the older boy in the middle, as if they had grasped his backbone.

Upon seeing this, Song San immediately raised his hands to prove his innocence, saying, "I was just passing by and wanted to find a place to rest for the night. I meant no harm, so you don't need to be afraid."

The children exchanged glances. The tallest boy among them stood up, his gaze sweeping over the blood-stained cloth on her right hand. He then grinned at her and said, "Brother, judging by your appearance, you must be someone who has fallen on hard times, right?"

Song San glanced down at his tattered clothes, offering no comment.

Seeing this, the boy said, "This forest isn't safe at night. How about this, brother, why don't you squeeze in with us for the night? That way, we can look out for each other. What do you say?"

Tsk, he didn't even try to test her before trusting a complete stranger and even taking the initiative to keep her here.

Was he too careless, or did he think she was stupid?

Song San sensed something amiss and decided to agree, saying, "Then I will respectfully comply and take my leave."

As soon as he finished speaking, the children burst into laughter, leaving Song San in a dilemma, unsure whether to advance or retreat.

Now she finally understands the pain her junior brother suffered.

In the desolate mountains and forests, the sound of children's silvery laughter was indeed very eerie.

As dusk settled, the forest grew increasingly cold.

Song San followed the group of children to a hidden cave, and the journey was surprisingly smooth.

The cave was bare, with no other furnishings, only some dry grass that could barely keep out the wind and rain.

The children, who had been wary, became very welcoming to her and shared some water and dry food with her.

Song San took the water bag and glanced at it a few times.

"Brother, this is spring water I filled this morning. It's so sweet, you should try it!" The little girl with two bun-like hair buns opened her grape-like eyes wide and stared at Song San, who grinned to reveal a row of delightful baby teeth.

Perhaps it was because the girl looked innocent and naive, or perhaps it was because her big, dark eyes were full of expectation, that Song San was stunned for a moment, and then, as if possessed, he raised the water pouch in his hand and took a sip.

The mountain spring water was sweet and refreshing, and indeed delicious.

only……

Song San shook the water pouch, listening to the muffled gurgling sound inside, and couldn't help but say, "I filled it with spring water this morning, how come it's still full?"

But the girl smiled innocently, "Of course, it was specially prepared for you, brother."