The pot on the campfire was bubbling, and a rich and fragrant broth was boiling in it.
The window outside the window was as dark as the sky. The occasional flash of lightning revealed the twisted shadows of trees in the distance, and then it became dark again, leaving only the rain marks on the windows and the sound of raindrops falling.
The coldness and warmth are blocked by a wooden wall. In the hut, it seems that people can let go of their mental alertness and physical fatigue.
"Welcome, traveler from afar."
The middle-aged man sitting across from the bonfire showed a warm and friendly smile. His wife and son sat next to him, looking at him with a mixture of curiosity and friendliness.
This lonely cabin standing deep in the Shadow Swamp does not seem as weird as it looks and imagines.
At least that's what Anna thinks.
But when she saw that Lu Li had not taken off his wet poncho and that the oil lamp was within easy reach beside her, she decided to reserve her attitude.
And I don’t know if it was subconsciously at work, but Anna always felt that there was something wrong with them. It wasn’t their expressions or their aura, but it was just indescribably weird...
"We haven't seen anyone outside for a long time."
The smile on the middle-aged man's face never disappeared, like an enthusiastic host: "The weather outside is very bad. Did you get lost and get here?"
Lu Li swept over the heads of the family of three. There were no bloody tentacles, so the target was not them, so he nodded.
Lu Li's indifference did not make the owner of the hut less enthusiastic: "It's so lucky. It would be terrible to get lost in it in this kind of weather."
"It?" Lu Li took off his raincoat hood, and the edge of the hood narrowed the area he could see.
"This swamp has consciousness. We call it the mother of the swamp, and we are protected by the mother of the swamp." The hostess replied. After speaking, she clasped her hands together and whispered something.
Amid the murmurs, four figures sat in front of the bonfire, and the shadows behind them swayed with the flames.
Swamp Mother sounds like some kind of evil spirit - or maybe it's just a coincidence of name.
But it may be related to the seeker's reminder that "the swamp can hear things that don't belong to it" to some extent.
"Can you tell me about the Swamp Mother?"
Lu Li's words were increasing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The rainwater collected under the body along the waterproof poncho, seeping into the floor beneath the body, and was gradually dried by the bonfire.
"Of course, we are honored to spread the name of the Swamp Mother to outsiders." The hostess smiled with the same enthusiasm as her husband.
Staring at this scene blankly, a flash of inspiration suddenly flashed through Anna's mind.
She knew where the strangeness that had been filling her heart came from!
It’s the speaking speed!
For some reason, the middle-aged man and his wife both spoke slowly and slowly like an old woman. It was as if each word and vocabulary were not related to the previous word, but spoke in an eternal and unchangeable way.
The rhythm was lifelessly spoken.
But this doesn't seem to mean anything... It's just that he speaks slowly, just like he stutters. You can't beat others just because they speak slowly.
Anna became distressed, worried that she did not have Lu Li's sense and wisdom, but was contaminated by this guy's suspicion.
"The Mother of the Swamp is the consciousness of this swamp. It can protect those who believe in her from harm and invasion. Every intelligent creature living in the swamp supports the ubiquitous Lord of the Swamp..."
The slow speed of her speech made her words sound like a Christian attending mass.
"How do you get the protection of the Swamp Mother?" Lu Li's words made Anna look askance.
Lu Li wouldn't mind establishing a good relationship with the Mother of the Swamp if the rest of the journey could be made relatively safe.
The male host and his wife turned to look at each other. The former smiled and said, "We need to perform some rituals..."
"Dad, I want to eat big meat!"
A sudden crisp sound interrupted the lifeless sound.
It has nothing to do with the childish voice, but the little boy's speaking rhythm is that of a normal person.
The dullness in the wooden house finally became lighter, like a surge of coolness from the sultry air.
"But I want to eat big meat!" The little boy pursed his lips. He had been writing in a diary when he came in from Lu Li. At this time, he was still holding the animal skin cover of the diary with "Little Ruina's Diary" written on it.
"Okay... Husband, go get some wood. This wood may not be enough for us to burn." The woman said slowly, unable to take the child. She complained again: "It's all your fault that you always bring big meat back. Now your son has become like this."
greedy."
The male host said nothing. He stood up with a strangely warm smile, walked away from the warm floor to the door, took off the poncho hanging behind the door, put it on, and opened the wooden door.
call--
The cold wind carried the rain and suddenly became clear and broke into the wooden house.
The bonfire dimmed instantly, and the stray flames licked the edges of the bonfire stones.
Bang!
The man of the house closed the wooden door heavily, and the uncertain wooden house became bright again as the bonfire stabilized.
"Why do I sound like they're going to eat you..."
Anna leaned into Lu Li's ear and whispered.
Lu Li did not answer. The hand he placed behind his back was stained by some water stains in the shadow behind him, and he wrote a line of handwriting.
【Go to the diary】
Anna understood, and floated behind the little boy named Rena, peeking at the diary he was writing.
He held a charcoal-sharpened pencil in his hand, bent his legs, and wrote something crookedly on his knees.
[The storm is coming. Dad said there is no prey today and we can only eat stale food. I hate storms]
[A guest is here! Great, mom and dad will definitely entertain him, and I can eat big meat again!]
[But only guests can eat the best parts, and I want to eat them too...]
The little boy was still writing the last sentence, but Anna already understood the meaning. She returned behind Lu Li and whispered: "They don't want to eat you, they want to treat you to a big meal."
"Who's talking?"
The woman opposite the bonfire rolled her eyes and looked at Lu Li doubtfully.
"Maybe it's the wind." Lu Li replied.
The woman's eyes were still moving, but she still smiled: "Please take off your poncho, it will be very inconvenient for a while."
"good."
Lu Li nodded and took off his poncho.
The accumulated water in some folds trickled down, wetting the wooden board where Lu Li had written and scratched, hiding the traces.
Gala Gala——
In the quiet hut, there were suddenly some strange noises amidst the whistling wind coming from the outside world.
Like a rapid grinding of teeth.
Anna was slightly startled. Suddenly, the door was pushed open with great force, and not only the wind and rain were poured in, but also the entangled middle-aged man and the six-legged savage.
The sound of teeth grinding, shouting, rain, thunder, and the strong smell of blood spread in the dark and chaotic wooden house.
"Need help?" Lu Li stood up and asked.
Under the light of lightning, he saw several six-legged savages crawling on the ground outside the door approaching quickly.
"Then please." The woman quickly stood up and said.
"You're welcome."
Lu Li raised the psychic gun and pulled the trigger.
The head of the woman on the other side of the bonfire exploded in response.
