"Hmm, although I'm not entirely sure, judging from his appearance, he looks a lot like the Black Rat Chief I saw from afar when I went out to gather intelligence!" Qin Yu said in a low voice.
Shen Heng looked at the statue again with a solemn expression.
The statue remained as it had always been: ancient, enormous, and simple, exuding a faint aura of majesty, not at all like a newly built one.
but...
Since they were forcibly relocated during the riot, it seems they haven't heard any of the other Black Rat ' thoughts to report to the chieftain. Instead, they've been reporting to Black Spine, the Black Rat who dealt with the Calamity Beast that went out to explore last time.
Surprised?
No, it shouldn't be.
The last time I heard news about the Black Rat Chief was when he said he learned about those events from the Steel-Mane Bear and began to doubt whether the world was real.
So, was it Distortion into this way after learning about this news?
Other Black Rat ' memories of it...
Was it forgotten? Or Distortion?
After pondering for a moment, Shen Heng finally put the thought aside for the time being.
There are plenty of Distortion things out there, one more won't make a difference, and right now, there are more important things to do.
He looked up at the enormous statue not far ahead.
A soft voice drifted from inside the cave.
" The Black Rat God is here..."
A campfire is burning.
The crude buildings stand tall in the field, with a few Black Rat occasionally walking among them.
The sounds of snoring, chatting, wind, and fire...
The entire territory of the Black Rat Clan was shrouded in tranquility.
It wasn't until a Black Rat, looking somewhat exhausted and panting heavily, arrived outside the clan's territory that the search continued.
The two Black Rat guarding this spot looked over.
The Black Rat opened its mouth and, with slightly unsteady steps, called out.
"Quick, quick, quick, call Lord Black Spine and the others..."
A moment later, in the spacious hall.
Two enormous Black Rat sat on the ground, listening to the account of the Black Rat below.
The words were spoken very quickly.
"A temple?" Black Rat Lame Claw twisted his head, his eyes filled with deep confusion. "Why would those guys go there instead of trying to escape?"
"Uh... Reporting to Lord Lame Claw, I don't know either. But when Lord Black Whiskers and Lord Broken Tooth were discussing it, they did say that they might have been looking for a way out, and then they went the wrong way!" Black Rat replied cautiously upon returning.
"Ha, looking for a mistake?!" The Lame Claw grinned and sneered.
That's really funny. It was already difficult enough to get out, but then they went to the wrong place while trying to find their way out!
hehe!
However, there was no path for them to walk on anyway...
Black Spine, standing nearby, shared the same thought.
but...
The appearance of the Calamity Beast could be a lure, or perhaps a sign of trouble...
It pondered for a moment, then looked at the Tier 3 Black Rat that had returned to report the news, and asked:
"So, Black Whiskers sent you back just to report this news?"
"Yes, that's right. Lord Black Whiskers just told us to come back and report on this matter, and didn't say anything else!" Black Rat nodded in response upon returning to report.
"You guys?" Black Spine paused, taken aback.
"Yes!" the Black Rat replied.
Just as it was about to explain, a rather ugly Black Rat scurried in from outside.
"Lord Black Spine, Lord Lame Claw, another one has arrived from the temple, saying he wants to report on the situation!"
The room fell silent, and the Black Rat stared at each other.
Then, as if remembering something, Black Spine's expression suddenly darkened, and he looked at the Black Rat who had been the first to return from the temple.
"Which number were you called back?"
"Uh, I'm the third one!" Black Rat replied, somewhat puzzled.
"Which direction are the first and second ones going?" Black Spine asked.
The Lame Claw frowned, as if he had thought of something, but not quite.
The Black Rat, who returned to report, was equally puzzled, but still subconsciously spoke up.
"The first one came straight back, the second one was told to go a little to the side, and I'm the third. Black Whiskers told me to come over from the woods on the side!"
Without asking any further questions, Black Spine's expression darkened further.
The Lame Claw, standing to the side, seemed to have also realized something; his expression suddenly darkened.
"Did those who lived further away return first?"
There was no response; the room was quiet.
Those who came back from the temple to report the news, and those who just came in to report that new Black Rat had returned.
The two Black Rat lowered their heads, their bodies trembling slightly.
They may not have realized anything, but they also realized that things seemed to be getting a bit serious.
"What are those guys doing at the temple?" Lame Claw tilted his head, his voice tinged with anger.
"... What do we usually do when we go to the temple?" Black Spine paused before asking.
"Of course it's a sacrifice, a prayer..."
He stopped mid-sentence, and the Lame Claw's face grew even more grim.
"You mean those guys want to pray to the Black Rat God to get them out?"
"Hmm." Black Spine nodded heavily.
"How could that be? Those guys aren't us Black Rat, how could Lord Black Rat God possibly listen to their requests?!" Lame Claw retorted instinctively.
"Who told you that only we can pray to Lord Black Rat God?" Black Spine looked over.
"This..." Lame Claw paused, his expression growing even more grim, "... can they too?"
"Have no idea."
"That..."
"But it doesn't mean they're no good!"
After he finished speaking, the room fell silent.
The Lame Claw kept his head down, his face extremely pale.
Whether other Calamity Beast could pray to the Black Rat God was something they weren't sure about. After all, they still needed to try and see if other Calamity Beast could be used as substitutes for the offerings, and the person praying...
"Enough!" Black Spine interrupted, his gaze sharp as he looked at Lame Claw. "Are you going over there, or should I?"
The Lame Claw paused for a moment, then stood up. "I'll go over there!"
"Um."
Black Spine nodded as if it had been expected.
"Remember, be quick, don't conserve your Origin Power."
"There couldn't be too many guys over there. On the contrary, the two who came back to report were killed, which means they were keeping watch outside the whole time."
"In that case, they won't be able to stay there for very long!"
"Yes, I understand!"
A smile appeared on the Lame Claw's face.
Not kind at all, but rather menacing.
"... Quickly, put those bodies down first, you all go back..."
"... If I didn't..."
The voices echoed in front of the cave where the statue of the god was placed.
The Two-Horned Lizard kept calling out, and finally managed to rouse the remaining creatures from their tracks.
The Two-Horned Lizard let out a soft breath, glanced at the departing figures, then quickly turned and ran into the cave.
Upon entering the cave, the Two-Horned Lizard quickly scanned the scene inside.
A cave, a statue, and two humans and a fool.
Besides these, there was nothing else.
There's nothing there...
"Not enough offerings?" it asked.