"Ever since I was little, my hands and feet had been especially nimble, and I had an inborn sense for danger. Whenever a Seven-Colored Poisonous Lizard tried to bite me, I could always dodge in time. Even if it bit down on my leather sheath, I could undo it at the eleventh hour and escape from between its venomous fangs and acid. So while many of my companions were either killed or injured while cleaning the lizard cages, I always emerged without a scratch."
Yuan Gu Bang's smile did not change as he continued, "That was both my luck and my misfortune. After discovering what made me special, my master arranged for me to clean the lizard cages far more often than anyone else.
"And everyone else only went in to clean after the Seven-Colored Poisonous Lizards had eaten and drunk their fill and were drowsy with sleep. While cleaning, they would also light pungent smoke that snakes, insects, rats, and ants hated most, weakening the Seven-Colored Poisonous Lizards' aggression as much as possible.
"But whenever it was my turn, my master would deliberately leave the Seven-Colored Poisonous Lizards hungry. Or he would add large amounts of secret medicine to their food, increasing their venom and aggression.
"So the moment I crawled into a lizard cage, a gigantic lizard with murder in its eyes would lock onto me, as though it wanted to eat me skin, bones, and all, leaving nothing behind.
"Even the luckiest hunter, if he roams the forest year after year, will sooner or later run into a Totem Beast.
"I had to crawl into the lizard cages almost every day to clean them, clearing out Seven-Colored Poisonous Lizard droppings and the beast bones they had gnawed clean. How could nothing ever happen?
"Fortunately, relying on my