Little RenDong's eyes widened, like a startled deer.
"But tonight there will be eighteen hungry ghosts, what are you planning…"
"If I'm guessing correctly," Lian Qiao raised his hand casually, pointing to the crowbar stuck diagonally in his backpack, "What the hungry ghost is really afraid of is the crowbar, right?"
Little RenDong was stunned: "How do you know?"
"It's very simple." Lian Qiao smiled, "When the hungry ghost first appeared, it turned a blind eye to the two of us, even when it rushed over, it ended up turning around and walking away. When Little Apple wanted to borrow the crowbar, you stopped her straight away. At that time, I thought you just didn't like her touching our things casually and mistakenly thought that the amulet from Shi JianChuan you were wearing was protecting you. But you admitted yourself that the amulet is useless."
He paused and then said: "Just now, when I tried to give the crowbar to Little Apple again, you came out to stop me and even gave her the amulet. It can be seen from this that the real fear of hungry ghosts is not the amulet but…"
He seemed to feel that his expression was not accurate, so he paused and changed his way of saying: "No, it should be said, 'You believe that what the hungry ghosts are afraid of, is the crowbar'. Although I don't know where you came to this conclusion, it is reasonable after thinking about it carefully, because I took this crowbar to the temple to consecrate it."
After Lian Qiao said this, RenDong's eyes widened.
After a while, RenDong laughed and said: "You are really good, you can even deduce this."
Lian Qiao laughed.
But RenDong still shook his head: "But even if the crowbar is a treasure for ghosts, I still think it's too risky. After all, there are eighteen hungry ghosts and you still have to carry me as a burden. The burden is too great. Even if the hungry ghosts is afraid of the crowbar, if you really go to fight them, they will fight back. It's too risky."
Lian Qiao laughed and said, "When we play an instance, which one is not a risk?"
RenDong lowered his eyes: "So, to be on the safe side, we can only sacrifice the principal and the others… After all, they are just…"
"They are just NPCs after all?" Lian Qiao gradually put away his smile and his expression became a little solemn, "Although those people are NPCs, they all have flesh and blood and they can cry, laugh and hurt. Besides, they are all children… more than a dozen children. You know them all, do you really have the heart to let them take the place of dead ghosts?"
RenDong was silent.
Lian Qiao said: "Right now our hands are tied and we don't have any other options. It's just taking a risk. We have come through so many storms, this time is not worse than the others. But if you really push If these children die, I'm afraid you will suffer from the condemnation of your conscience for the rest of your life."
"It's okay." RenDong smiled, "For you, I can give up the bottom line of being a human being."
Lian Qiao sighed and raised his hand to stroke his soft hair. The eyes were helpless and doting, with faint worry: "Didn't you say that you don't want me to become a bad person? Similarly, I don't want you to become a bad person. Don't say such things again, 'Give up the bottom line for me' or something You are literally PUAing me (Note)."
RenDong was stunned: "PUA?"
"Yeah." Lian Qiao nodded and sighed, "You did this to make me feel guilty, because you obviously did something bad but I can't bear to blame you. But you and I both know that this is wrong. You are also in pain, aren't you? Did you cry the day you broke the sandbag and drugged me? Actually, you don't want to be like this, either. Right? So why do you push yourself like this, and you also push me? Why must someone be a bad guy between us?"
Little RenDong looked up at him blankly. That stunned expression, like some long-standing belief, collapsed in an instant.
"It turns out…" RenDong's lips moved, his voice trembled slightly and he was already a little choked up, "These were your thoughts…"
"En, I thought so." Lian Qiao saw that he was about to cry again and for a moment he was a little soft-hearted but, after all, he didn't take him into his arms to comfort him, but looked down at him and said to him from the perspective of an adult looking at a child, "I don't want you to give up on your persistence because of your love of me. I don't want you to become less of yourself because you love me."
In the end, his tone became gentle after all and the corners of his mouth were slightly raised, showing a warm smile.
"Don't spoil me too much. After all, if you spoil me so much, you will make me bad."
RenDong looked at him, his eyes gradually getting wet.
"Hey, don't cry." Lian Qiao saw that the person he had finally coaxed was made to cry by him again and suddenly panicked. His face flushed slightly, "Did I say too much… I'm sorry…I'm not saying you did something wrong…"
RenDong laughed. His eyes were bent and two tears dropped from the corners of his eyes.
He wiped away his tears casually and said with a smile, "Okay, I won't cry." Then he stretched out his hand to Lian Qiao and said softly, "Hold me." At this time, the little RenDong was like a baby panda that refused to let go of the breeder's trouser leg.
Lian Qiao instantly melted. He picked up the little RenDong, screamed in his heart and controlled himself wildly while holding the little RenDong. He felt as though he was jumping back and forth on the verge of sentencing.
Calm down! He is still a child!
In order to prevent himself from being overwhelmed, Lian Qiao decided to call Little Apple in and use a light bulb to illuminate his conscience.
Little Apple was in a daze -just now didn't she get kicked out, why is she being called back now!
Hmmph! Am I the kind of person who will come and go as soon as I am called?
Little Apple sitting in the room obediently: Well, I am!
So Lian Qiao told Little Apple about the plan he had just discussed with RenDong. Little Apple was taken aback.
What! Why are you going to fight ghosts?! Wasn't it agreed to use the children as scapegoats!
Little Apple expressed doubts about Lian Qiao's combat effectiveness – and it was no wonder that she did so. In this dungeon, when the hungry ghosts appeared twice, Lian Qiao didn't do anything. Of course, Little Apple didn't believe that he could kill eighteen hungry ghosts by himself.
Besides, he was carrying two—oh no, one and a half burdens!
Little Apple, who was seriously injured, was very conscious that Lian Qiao, being a gay guy, only had Xu RenDong in his heart. It was impossible for him to take care of her. At best, she can only be regarded as half a burden, probably he would only care for her to the extent of: "In order to avoid creating another ghost tomorrow, I will try not to let you die today…"
Little Apple didn't know what the two had discussed in the time she had been away. Anyway, it seems that the two of them have made up their minds, no matter how hard this path would be. In fact, Little Apple also felt that it was a bit cruel to push Xu RenDong's playmates from childhood to adulthood but now that Lian Qiao, who is currently the only fighting force, has decided to fight with his back… Damn it, she still thinks it's very dangerous!
Forget it, she has no choice.
What else can she do, she can only hug Lian Qiao's thigh, who claims to be a Big Boss.
That night.
The three sat in the yard, waiting for the hungry ghost to appear.
In fact, Little Apple's original plan was to pry open the doors of all the rooms before the hungry ghosts appeared, exposing the principal and the children to the hungry ghosts. In this way, the hungry ghosts will scatter their targets and go after the NPC instead. They can take advantage of the chaos to save their own lives.
Later, Lian Qiao expressed that he didn't want to be a villain and wanted to protect the NPCs. Little Apple suggested: Maybe if you lock the door, the hungry ghosts won't come. Why don't you hide in the guest room for a night?
This idea was also rejected by Lian Qiao.
The principal and the children were safe and sound hiding in the room before, because there were a large number of players outside and the hungry ghosts had eaten enough people, so they didn't go looking for them. In fact, hungry ghosts can pass through walls- hungry ghosts are completely immune to physical attacks and of course it is not a problem to go through a wall. Therefore, if they still wanted to hide in the room tonight, it would be tantamount to catching a turtle in an urn and forcing them to death.
Lian Qiao: "Instead of being a turtle with its head shrunk, it's better to stick out its head openly. Anyway, stretching out the head will result in a knife and shrinking the head will also result in a knife."
Little Apple: "…So regardless, we are still turtles?" {Retracting heard turtle/tortoise is a way of saying 'coward'.}
Lian Qiao: "… "
All in all, the three finally chose a relatively open yard as the battleground.
As before, the principal quietly locked the small western building. When the three of them heard a click, their moods sank slightly.
At about ten o'clock in the evening, a full moon was hanging in the sky, covered by thin clouds, making it difficult to see clearly, rendering a gloomy atmosphere.
Little Apple looked up at the moon, feeling extremely gloomy in her heart.
"Hey, this may be the last time I watch the moon." She clenched the watermelon knife in her hand with some sadness.
Although she was seriously injured and had no combat effectiveness, she still wanted to take a weapon for self-defense.
"Recite it to me again." RenDong said suddenly.
Little Apple came back to her senses: "Oh, yes."
In the afternoon, Xu RenDong taught her a section of "Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra", and told her that this is the key to life preservation. Little Apple didn't want to use her brain anymore and, anyway, the two big brothers said this was the way so she honestly recited Buddhist scriptures all afternoon.
The Buddhist scriptures were quite easy to memorize at the beginning, it was the familiar saying "form is emptiness, emptiness is form", but later it became difficult. But Little Apple bit the bullet and memorized it. She didn't expect to be spot-checked by Teacher Xu RenDong at this time. She couldn't help coughing, feeling a little embarrassed.
She recited a few words. RenDong listened carefully, nodding after every sentence. He looks like a three-year-old child but was very solemn, like a little teacher. Little Apple couldn't help being amused by his appearance.
With this smile, she forgot what the next sentence was. She got stuck and scratched her head, unable to remember for a long time.
RenDong was about to speak out to remind her and suddenly his expression changed. He said in a deep voice: "Here they come!"
He raised his fleshy little hand and pointed to the corner of the yard.
Little Apple shuddered all over and felt the hairs on her back stand on end. She tried her best to look at the place pointed by RenDong but, no matter how wide her eyes were, there was nothing there, only a piece of bare withered honeysuckle vines, which was more lonely.
The difficulty of fighting a hungry ghost is that it will only appear when it sees blood. At this time, they can't use NPCs as sacrifices so the hungry ghosts will always remain invisible. Only RenDong can see them.
"It's getting closer. Three o'clock, five meters." RenDong pointed Lian Qiao to the location of the hungry ghost, "Twelve o'clock as well, also about five meters away." Lian Qiao sniffed, curled his lips and said, "It smells like saliva. It stinks."
Little Apple silently followed behind Lian Qiao, watching him hold Little RenDong in one hand and hold the crowbar tightly in the other, walking forward without fear.
She has to say that Lian Qiao, who was holding a baby in one hand, is a bit handsome.
In this bleak night wind, a strange thrill floated up in Little Apple's heart for no reason. She bit her lip, feeling that this emotion came at a very bad time. Just as she was about to shake her head and wave it away, she suddenly realized that Little RenDong, who was lying on Lian Qiao's shoulder, was looking at her with burning eyes.
Little Apple was startled: "Is there a ghost behind me?"
RenDong stared at the gauze all over her body, thoughtfully: "No. But I suddenly had an idea."
Little Apple: "What?"
RenDong turned her head and told Lian Qiao: "Put me down."
Lian Qiao didn't think much. He bent down and gently placed little RenDong on the ground. But his eyes were fixed on the front and the crowbar was raised high in his hand, ready to be swung down at any time.
Seeing RenDong abandoning Lian Qiao and walking towards her, Little Apple felt inexplicably nervous.
RenDong said: "Stretch out your hand."
Little Apple obeyed obediently.
RenDong: "Give me the watermelon knife."
Little Apple: "…Huh?!"
Silver light flashed. RenDong grabbed Little Apple's arm and slashed her scarred arm.
"What the hell are you doing!" Little Apple exclaimed in pain and wanted to withdraw her hand.
But RenDong held her tightly and said sharply: "Don't move!" Then he took out a handful of cotton from nowhere and stuffed it into her wound.
Little Apple: "???"
The cotton was saturated with blood and it instantly became bright red. RenDong picked up a blood-red cotton ball, turned around and threw it somewhere.
The blood-red cotton ball drew a parabola in mid-air but it landed abruptly on the ground as if it had hit something invisible.
Immediately, a hungry ghost with a belly as big as a drum and limbs as slender as a spider gradually appeared in front of the three of them.
Lian Qiao was overjoyed: "RenDong! Why are you so smart!"
Little Apple: "…" Damn it! So I'm a mobile blood bank!
****
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Note: PUA approximately means brainwashing and mind control.