Su Qi's explosive roar was like a thunderclap, shaking the walls of the hall!
His chest heaved violently, and the searing pain from old wounds was completely drowned by overwhelming anger. His voice was as sharp as a blade, carrying a blood-tinged accusation:
"Last month! The current captain of the Hunting Group, Zhong Wubin, claimed he was at the critical moment of breaking through to a First-Transformed Martial Artist, so he couldn't go and hunt the Lord!
"And what was the result?! On the Night of Survival, thirty percent of the villagers died!
"And my elder brother and his wife! At the last moment, to prevent the village from suffering more losses, they could only ignite Beast-Luring Incense to draw that beast away!"
He stared fiercely at Chang Sanheng, every word seemingly squeezing out blood:
"To this day! My brother and sister-in-law... neither alive nor dead are seen!!"
The air in the hall seemed to freeze, leaving only Su Qi's anguished roar echoing.
A resonance from deep within his blood made Su Lin's chest burn with nameless anger, instantly understanding his uncle's pain at this moment.
"Now! You want to use the same excuse again, forcing my father, the retired former captain due to injury, to replace that coward Zhong Wubin?! Dream on!"
Chang Sanheng's face darkened, raising his voice in rebuke, "Su Qi! Watch your language!"
Su Qi's hair and beard stood on end, his whole face twisted in utmost fury.
He took a step forward, his entire being wild and violent without restraint, like a volcano about to erupt, letting out a primal roar at Chang Sanheng:
"Watch your language, your mother!! Damn your ancestors for eighteen generations!!"
Chang Sanheng expressionlessly wiped the spittle off his face, his tone icy:
"Su Qi, you should stay rational and take a broader perspective! A First-Transformed Martial Artist means what to us. Your Su Family knows best!
"Once successfully promoted, we can elevate to a Level 5 Safe House, manufacture numerous firearms! Gather surrounding villages and rise to Town Level! Resources and power will be on an entirely different scale!"
His gaze turned to Su Can, who had a perpetually gloomy expression and had remained silent, suddenly raising his voice:
"Last year, was it not because Old Su touched the threshold of First Transformation that he was fully supported by the village? Unfortunately..."
He deliberately elongated his tone, laced with venomous mockery, "Old Su failed, bitten to ruin by the Six-winged Celestial Poison Centipede, severing the path of advancement."
"Ha," Chang Sanheng sneered, "What is it? Your family elder can gamble on a slim chance sucking the village dry, but the current captain isn't allowed to prepare for First Transformation? Does this reasoning hold?!"
"You—!!" Such heart-piercing words had Su Qi trembling all over, old wounds cutting like knives.
"Enough!" Old Su Can bellowed, suppressing the confrontation with thunderous force, "Su Lin! Take your uncle back! Shouting for a fight with old wounds still healing, you tired of living?!"
Su Lin's heart sank, silently stepping forward to firmly, yet carefully, support his trembling and agitated uncle back to the Eight Immortals Table.
After sitting down, Su Qi breathed heavily, involuntarily erupting in another bout of heart-wrenching coughing.
Su Can closed his eyes, his chest heaving.
After a long time, he suddenly opened his eyes, leaving only a cold and resolute chill within, his voice unyielding:
"I agreed."
"Dad! You..." Su Qi hurriedly tried to rise.
Old Su glared and shouted angrily, "Shut up! Breathe quietly!"
Then, his gaze pierced like an icy awl towards Chang Sanheng: "End of this month, the entire village Hunting Group will gather, joining me to hunt the Lord. Captain Chang, any questions?"
"Of course not!" Chang Sanheng's face instantly blossomed with contentment, bowing his hand in salute, "Then the village awaits Old Su."
"Take your people, leave!"
Su Can waved impatiently, as if swatting at flies.
"Goodbye!"
With his objective achieved, Chang Sanheng glanced at the precious meat on the ground that caused him great pain, forcibly suppressing his labored breath, leaving swiftly with his guests and unconscious son.
The heavy atmosphere cloaked Su Family's Old Mansion once more, leaving only Su Qi's restrained coughing echoing through the hall.
Finally, Su Lin broke this suffocating silence, his voice low:
"Grandfather, truly... nowhere to retreat?"
"Retreat?" Su Can snorted from his nostrils, his fatigue tinged with unwillingness, "Though Chang Sanheng's words were malicious, they were true."
"Last year, to gamble on that slim chance of promotion, the entire village tightened their belts for a month, gathering seventy percent of scoured goods, only to exchange for Tier One Mutant Beast intelligence from Shunfeng Travel Group's profiteers, hoping to acquire treasure meat to break my genetic lock and promote to a First-Transformed Martial Artist."
He clenched his fists, knuckles white, his eyes filled with poignant regret and humiliation:
"And the result? I was ruined by the venomous teeth of that Six-winged Celestial Poison Centipede! My foundation destroyed, genes scrambled, utterly severing my hopes!"
Old Su leaned heavily back in his chair, closing his eyes as if depleted of energy:
"Zhong Wubin, that wretched coward, was a turtle hiding in its shell! But he's indeed... only a step away from the First Transformation. Afraid of following my footsteps, his reason is strong! And I... have no excuse to refuse."
Su Lin's heart sank.
He knew, he shared a bond with the Su Family, their fortunes tied.
If the elder suffered mishap in the hunt, he too would find his path difficult.
At least, someone like Zhao Zhu would likely be the first to stomp him down.
And even Hou Yong, that jerk...
Less than a month's time.
Su Lin's gaze sharpened; he could at least obtain three entries!
"Enough! What's with the long face!"
Su Can slammed the table, eyes wide, forcibly driving away his dispiritedness, "I'm not going to die! Is it just one Lord beast? Didn't we slaughter one for the flag every month back then? Stop crying like mourning!"
He flicked his hand, gaze returning to the dark red, cloth-covered chunk of meat on the table, his tone indisputable:
"This thing's yours. Take it to Old Liu; he knows how it's done. Let him prepare a medicinal meal, don't waste it."
"All for me?" Su Lin was taken aback, looking at his pale-faced uncle, "But as for uncle..."
At some point, Su Qi's coughing had ceased, silently sitting.
With the dust settled, this was how things had come to be.
He raised his eyes to meet Su Lin's gaze, the fiery emotion now mostly dulled by illness, leaving only tired bloodshot eyes and profound helplessness.
"You think I wanted the meat for myself?" Su Qi's voice carried rasping fatigue.
Su Lin shook his head: "I thought perhaps if uncle used the meat, the value might be greater."
"What? Trying to slack off again?!" Su Qi's eyes sharpened, rebuking him instinctively.
"Of course not!" Su Lin immediately denied.
"You better not be." Su Qi warned, glaring at him, then reached out, two fingers like knives, suddenly plunging into the deep red chunk of meat, the size of a basin that weighed twenty or thirty pounds.
He pinched the fingertips, sneering:
"Hmph, you thought Chang Sanheng was so kind as to gift a whole piece of fresh treasure meat? He only did it for his precious son and the seat he sits on."
Su Lin's heart tightened: "Could the meat be spoiled?"
"Spoiled, it's not."
Su Qi withdrew his fingers, wiping them on the red cloth.
"But half the active elements in the meat have dissipated. I suspect he spent a fortune buying this from Shunfeng Travel Group, excavated from some ruin's underground cavern, frozen for... probably over a year."
The thought of frozen meat even in the apocalypse!
Su Lin's eyes widened in disbelief at the absurdity making him momentarily speechless.
"Such a defective item is not entirely useless to me, but merely somewhat better than nothing."
Su Qi's tone was calm but resolutely decisive, thrusting the red-clothed meat back into Su Lin's arms, "It's perfect for you!"
He looked directly into Su Lin's eyes, his gaze complex and elusive, containing scrutiny and expectation:
"Before, I didn't give it to you because I feared you, the idler, would waste good things. But now... since you're willing to change, then eat it! Live a decent life! Survive!"