Chapter 72

Looking at the woman's gaunt cheeks, Hero suddenly felt a pang of inexplicable heartache. He couldn't hold back the mist in his eyes and, from a distance, called out excitedly: "Mom, I'm back."

This identity wasn't his, but these eyes were his own.

A man does not shed tears easily, but only when he is truly moved. There are myriad emotions in the world, and love is just one of them. In Hero's heart, there were many more important feelings, such as family love.

His biological parents gave him his flesh and blood; without them, he wouldn't exist.

Although this woman wasn't his biological mother, when the heart was moved, did it really matter whether she was or not? Even though this identity was just a temporary role, if it could make him feel better and more moved, why should he force himself to be clear-headed?

He had too many missing things. Perhaps he felt this woman was too pitiful. Because this woman didn't need others' pity, it made her even more deserving of it.

Even the strong are made of flesh and blood, with emotions and human nature. He was just a small figure in this world; tears are not laughable, nor are feelings. Those who claim to have no tears or emotions are the most pitiful and laughable in the world.

Hearing the voice she had longed for, Chen Hui's hands paused, and her chapped lips parted as she barely contained her excitement, saying, "It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back."

Hero sniffed, feeling a bit酸 (sour), and said, "Mom, I'll put the rice and oil in the kitchen first."

After putting the rice and oil in the kitchen, Hero squatted down in front of Chen Hui and started chatting with her. Life hadn't turned Chen Hui into a nagging old woman; once she started talking, she was a typical mother.

Worried about her son for ninety-nine days, she nagged about how her old bones ached from the rheumatism, how the neighbor's rabbit Huizi had been causing trouble in the vegetable garden, and then started nagging about what to pay attention to after recognizing their ancestral roots.

She didn't mention that poisonous woman at all, as if she had forgotten about her and the pain she had inflicted.

Hero could see from her weathered face that she hadn't forgotten, but had treated it as a necessary part of her past. Since it was the past, there was no need to dwell on the pain and humiliation. Once healed, there was no need to reopen these wounds.

Life is full of bumps and bruises; once healed, they are healed. Forcing oneself to relive the pain is self-mutilation, not dwelling on the past.

Unconsciously, it was already noon. The sun outside was scorching, so Hero pushed Chen Hui into the house. Chen Hui, realizing she had nagged too much, said with a smile, "Child, I haven't seen you for so long, and I've been nagging nonstop. I haven't even asked if you're hungry."

Before Hero could speak, Chen Hui continued, "After all this nagging, you must be hungry. It's noon now, I'll go make you something good to eat."

Although Chen Hui was blind and had mobility issues, she had no problem cooking and her skills were quite good. Hero didn't fuss and went to the vegetable garden to pick and wash vegetables.

Then Chen Hui's voice came from the kitchen, "Xiao Xiong, you've always been timid. Go kill an old hen to toughen up. See if you've grown bolder. I'll make you some old hen soup to nourish your body."

Kill a chicken to toughen up? That wimp really was weak!

He had killed many enemies, but this was the first time he had to kill a chicken. When Hero reached the chicken coop, the rooster, like a lion guarding its territory, glared at Hero with its feathers ruffled, ready to attack. However, it was scared by Hero's gaze and scurried to the side, anxiously watching Hero and clucking incessantly.

Hero was in a dilemma: "It's better to separate a man from his wife than to kill a man's wife. I'm back, but have I really progressed? I can circle this fence garden a dozen times, but I'm still looking at this rooster's face to kill a chicken?"

Finally, Hero steeled his heart and muttered, "As a man, one must have the courage to take responsibility. As a rooster, if you don't go into the pot, who will? To protect your wife and children, you must have the resolve to sacrifice yourself to satisfy my stomach."

With that, Hero picked up the trembling rooster. He was in a dilemma again when it came to killing the chicken; he knew how to kill a person, but not a chicken.

Others say killing a person is like killing a chicken, so Hero chopped off the chicken's head with one stroke, giving it a quick death. This chicken died quickly and painlessly, unlike other chickens that had to be bled out.

Hero had seen others pluck chickens at the market. He tried to do it, but he ended up with a bloody chicken instead of a plucked one.

He really treated killing a chicken like killing a person and didn't use boiling water to pluck the feathers.

In the field, he never paid attention to small game, which wasn't enough to fill his stomach and was much easier to handle.

Chen Hui had forgotten that her son had never done such chores before. To kill a chicken at this level was quite an achievement.

Hero guessed that Chen Hui was a bit annoyed because he had killed the rooster used for breeding. But in Hero's view, the rooster's death was justified and valuable; at least its wife was saved.

Sacrificing a small life to achieve a greater love, this was a great act!

Chen Hui's cooking was impeccable, and Hero ate until the bottom of the pot was turned upside down. He ate with no decorum, making a scene that would shock the heavens and move the spirits. Chen Hui, seeing how much her child enjoyed the food, smiled.

At noon, with the scorching sun, there were fewer people on the streets of the small city. A red-haired young man carrying a large violin case climbed to the rooftop of a thirty-story building.

The red-haired young man, standing on the rooftop, looked up at the sky, took a deep breath, and sighed, "The air in this world is fresh; I can smell the scent of blood."

He was also a member of the Earth Spider clan, with the same code name: Earth Spider.

The blood of the blood slaves was like chewing wax. If not for the fear of being pursued by China's special ability police, he would have changed his taste.

After taking a deep breath, he went to a corner of the building and focused his gaze on a mud-brick house within a kilometer, behind a fence. The target was inside the house.

Earth Spider took out a sniper rifle from the violin case. Before hunting, he always liked to polish his weapon. Looking at the rifle in his hand, Earth Spider muttered, "I really want to compete with my senior brother to see who has better gun skills. But bullets have no eyes; only one of us can survive. I don't want to be invincible and lonely, but I don't want to die either. What a dilemma."

Thinking of his senior brother, he couldn't help but sneer: "His useless brother was so easily taken out. The card stream is just a waste; it's not as good as the gun stream. No matter how invincible you are, you can't escape my bullet."

At the same time, in a deep forest, a blue-haired young man carrying a sniper rifle was riding a war horse, speeding through the forest towards Beining City.

This blue-haired young man was the Earth Spider who had emerged from the stone coffin!

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