Chapter 74: The Mysterious Stone House

"Really sorry to bother you."

"Not at all, please sit down." An old man with a white beard found four wooden stools and chairs, each with a different shape and style.

Vien and his group sat around a wooden table, and the old man with the white beard brought out a large watermelon that was already cut for them to eat.

Xiaona didn't rush to eat but asked, "Uncle Aijiluxi, did you make these stools? They are so beautiful."

Aijiluxi Pipikang smiled and said, "Yes."

"These beautiful little stools must be for children, right? Do you have many children living here, Uncle?" Xiaona asked again.

Vien, with his mouth full of watermelon, said, spraying bits of flesh, "This place is so small, how can there be many children? Stupid Xiaona!"

"Idiot, I think the stupid one is you!" Xiaona cursed him under her breath, thinking, "You didn't even figure out this person's identity before eating his food. If he's a bad person, he could sell you and you wouldn't even know."

Pipikang noticed that the other three, besides Vien and Hessmingfen, didn't eat the fruit, and said, "You must be wondering why I live here and how I have so many stools, right? Heh heh, it's natural to be cautious. It's indeed suspicious for an old man to live here."

"No, no," Xiaona laughed awkwardly.

Pipikang said, "I don't have any children. I live here alone because I find it quiet and undisturbed. I've lived here for several years. When I'm bored, I carve wooden sculptures and make handicrafts. The stools you're sitting on are some of them." He then took a piece of watermelon from the table and ate it.

"Sorry, sorry," Xiaona smiled apologetically. "Uncle, don't mind me. I'm still naive and perhaps a bit too cautious."

Pipikang waved and smiled, "It's fine. I would be careful too if I were outside. That's why I live in seclusion here."

It was only then that Vien realized, "Oh, Xiaona, you suspected Uncle was going to harm us!"

Xiaona punched him in the face and shouted, "Eat your watermelon, you don't need to talk to die!" It wouldn't have been so embarrassing, but Vien's words made it worse.

"Teacher Crab, what are you thinking?" Emma, seeing that Crab was deep in thought, couldn't help but ask curiously.

Crab still looked thoughtful, shook his head, and said, "Ah, nothing. I just feel like... I've heard the name Aijiluxi Pipikang somewhere before. It's familiar, but I can't quite remember."

Vien laughed and said, "Uncle can live in the Dattam Canyon, he must be a very capable person. It's not strange that he's famous. Teacher, if you can't remember, don't think about it. Uncle won't be a bad person."

Xiaona said, "How do you know Uncle isn't a bad person?"

"Are you saying you still think Uncle will harm us?" Vien countered.

"No, not... not that..." Xiaona glanced at Pipikang and lowered her head. "Forget it, I won't say anything more."

Vien patted his round, full belly, burped, and praised, "What a sweet watermelon. I wish I could eat another one, but I'm too full."

Pipikang chuckled.

Crab asked Pipikang, "Have you lived here for many years?"

Pipikang thought for a moment and said, "It's been almost ten years, I think. I'm not quite sure."

"Ten years!" Xiaona looked around at the wild forest and sighed, "It's not easy to live here for ten years. Uncle, have you never left here in ten years?"

"Not exactly. Sometimes I go to the Fire Lizard City to buy things, but most of the time I don't leave. I think the last time I went to the Fire Lizard City was three years ago."

"Three, three years ago!" Everyone was amazed.

Emma asked, "Uncle, have you lived here alone for ten years?"

"No, not alone," Pipikang suddenly became a bit sad. "My wife and I lived here together. She passed away three years ago."

"I'm sorry."

Pipikang smiled slightly, "It's okay, it's all in the past."

"Are you not planning to go out anymore? I mean, will you always live here?" Vien asked.

Pipikang nodded, "I'm tired of the outside world. I want to stay with my wife's grave until I die."

"..." Everyone sighed and fell silent.

The birds in the forest chirped and flitted among the trees.

Pipikang laughed, "Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to say that. I know you're students and teachers from Kulandtin Academy. The last time you were here was four years ago."

"Four years ago." Everyone looked at Crab.

Crab scratched his head and laughed, "Don't look at me, I'm not sure. Four years ago, I wasn't teaching at Kulandtin yet."

Pipikang stood up and sighed, "I haven't seen anyone for several years. No one has come to my place in the past ten years. It's rare for you to find me here. You haven't eaten, right? Try my cooking."

"That's too much trouble," Crab also stood up.

Vien quickly pulled his teacher, "What's the trouble? Teacher, we haven't had a proper meal for ten days."

Xiaona, holding her head, couldn't stand it, "Really, you don't know how to be polite."

Emma smiled lightly, and the others laughed along.

The delicious and fragrant food, the warm fresh milk, they hadn't eaten such good food for ten days. Everyone ate a lot, and Vien, who was the most enthusiastic, had already been filled up by the watermelon, but during the cooking time, he had urinated a few times, turning the watermelon juice into waste.

Pipikang, who rarely saw people, was happy to see them satisfied, "Oh, right, I have some homemade fruit wine. Do you want to try some?"

"Sure, I want to drink!" Vien shouted first.

Crab pressed Vien's shoulder and said to Pipikang, "No, thank you. Getting drunk in Dattam Canyon isn't a good idea."

Pipikang said, "What's the problem? The nearby monsters are afraid of me and won't come. Ha ha, just drink. I'll go get the wine."

"This, this isn't good..."

"What's not good?" Pipikang said, "I know about your academy's exam. Staying here for a day is fine."

Vien immediately said, "Yes, yes, the survival exam in Dattam doesn't say we have to keep searching and fighting. We've been tired for so many days, let us rest once."

"Uh-huh." Hessmingfen also agreed, not because he was following Vien's opinion, but because he didn't want to see those terrifying monsters.

Crab looked at the two female students, who seemed to want to rest for a day, and said, "Alright, the survival exam is your responsibility. The decision on how to act is yours. I'm just here to protect you."

"Yay!" Vien and Hessmingfen jumped up happily.

Pipikang said, "Good, you two young men come help me get the wine."

Hessmingfen and Vien followed Pipikang around to the bamboo grove behind the stone house. There was a small wooden house in the bamboo grove, and the smell of wine could be detected from a distance. Hessmingfen noticed a small mound a few meters from the wooden house and asked, "Uncle, is that..."

"Yes, my wife's grave."

The grave wasn't very large, and the stone tombstone was covered with a layer of green moss, indicating it had been there for several years. Vien couldn't help but feel a bit sad for this cheerful and warm-hearted uncle.

Vien and Hessmingfen carried a barrel of fruit wine together, and Pipikang took out wooden cups and drank with them.

"Ah!" Vien put down his large cup, having already drunk several large cups. His face was flushed, and he swayed, laughing, "Uncle, your wine is so good. It's sweet, like drinking fruit juice."

The two girls drank more modestly but still had many cups. Unconsciously, they were already drunk and fell to the ground.

The laughter and joy in the forest gradually faded, leaving only Pipikang sitting there. He put down his cup, looked at them one by one, and finally carried the two girls into his stone house. A minute or two later, Crab suddenly sat up, looked at the open door of the stone house, picked up his weapon, and quietly walked over.

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