Reborn in 1993, Dark Sea

A long silence...

The afterglow of the setting sun shone through the holes in the camouflage netting, creating dappled golden spots of light.

An Xiaohai looked up and saw 073 sitting motionless, his gaze fixed on the bay in front of him. The golden light shimmered, making his figure look somewhat illusory.

"I understand, thank you!" After a long pause, An Xiaohai finally nodded and said softly.

"No need to thank me. Gratitude will only increase the hunter's guilt and make him hate himself for not being strong enough. After spending so much time, he still hasn't been able to defeat that demon."

"I don't think so. It's not that the hunters aren't strong enough, it's that the demons are too cunning. The hunters have to protect the entire forest, so they have something to worry about, while the demons can do whatever they want."

Destruction is always much easier than construction.

"Yes... destruction is always much easier than construction!" 073 sighed softly. "So? Do you think the deer will hate the hunter?"

"I must have hated him before, but that was a long time ago, so long that Little Deer can hardly remember it anymore."

The fawn now hates the hunter, it hates no one, not even the tiger that wanted to eat it.

"Oh? Why?"

"Because hatred is useless. The only way to eliminate hatred is to make the person who hates the hatred completely disappear, and then the hatred will disappear."

"So that's what Little Deer was thinking. This idea is dangerous; it's like the way a demon thinks."

"Whether it's a demon or an angel, it has nothing to do with Little Deer. Little Deer's thoughts are very simple. He just wants to live, to live freely and without worries."

If becoming a demon allows him to live, why not?

"That makes some sense... Yes, living is the most basic thing. If you can't survive, nothing else matters. There's really no reason to stop someone from living except hatred."

073 paused here, and after a long while, spoke again: "If the hunter were willing to keep the fawn with him, so the fawn would be safe, what do you think the fawn would think? Would he agree?"

"No!" An Xiaohai shook his head almost without hesitation: "Xiao Lu just wants to be a deer, he doesn't want to be a hunter. If he were a hunter, he would have to bear too much, and Xiao Lu feels he can't handle it, nor does he want to bear it now."

"That's true..." 073 nodded: "Being a hunter is not easy. The little deer has already carried enough burdens, so how could it possibly take on new ones?"

Hehe, clever little deer...

"I don't think this is cleverness, but selfishness. But there's nothing we can do. This little deer is neither capable nor qualified to be compassionate. Only the strong have the right to be compassionate."

"But if the fawn becomes a hunter, then it is a strong one."

"No!" An Xiaohai shook his head again: "The hunter's power mostly comes from the Lord of the Forest, and this power comes at a price."

There are gains and losses.

The more powerful a hunter is, the more restrictions they face, and the heavier the shackles they bear.

I've said it before, the little deer is selfish. Long ago, he carried too many shackles, leading to a life of sorrow. Now that he's removed those shackles, why put them back on?

An Xiaohai's words made 073 ponder for a long time. He suddenly realized that he didn't seem to really understand An Xiaohai, at least not his words.

"Sometimes I find it strange. This little deer is very smart and runs very fast. Why? Why doesn't it try to leave this dangerous place and hide?"

Isn't this safer than fighting a tiger? Once the hunters have dealt with the demon, someone else will naturally take care of the tiger.

"Run? Where to run? Hide? How to hide?" An Xiaohai smiled bitterly.

"The fawn is indeed very fast, and he is also very good at hiding. However, in the fawn's home, there are still the old deer that gave birth to him and raised him. They can no longer run, nor will they run. If they leave the place where they have lived their whole lives, they will not be able to survive."

"So this fawn raised its newly grown antlers to fight the tiger?"

"Yes!" An Xiaohai nodded, "As long as this fawn has even a sliver of strength left, he will never stop fighting! What do you think, doesn't the hunter think this behavior is foolish?"

"No, the hunter admires this fawn!" 073 shook his head. "The hunter is also pleased that this fawn never once thought of moving to another forest, even though it had the ability."

"Change to another forest? Ha!"

An Xiaohai grinned: "Who can guarantee that there are no tigers or demons in another forest? Perhaps there are more and stronger demons and tigers in other forests, so there is no need to take the risk."

The fawn grew up in this forest, so it was familiar with the forest's rules, its paths, and every plant and tree.

If you can't survive in this familiar forest, will you be able to survive in another forest?

A deer is always a deer, no matter which forest it's in.

If you move to another forest, this fawn will still be an outsider, as conspicuous as a firefly in the night, unless it can transform into a tiger!

But if the fawn has the ability to transform into a tiger, then why would it leave this forest?

Most importantly, there are still powerful hunters guarding this forest, aren't there?

"Hahaha... What a clever little deer! The hunter originally wanted to remind the deer that in this forest, the demon's power was still suppressed by the hunter, but it would be hard to say in another forest."

It seems unnecessary now, haha!

Alright, it's almost time for the little deer to go home. But the road home is a bit difficult; a lion is waiting for the little deer at the foot of the mountain, haha!

073 laughed heartily, while An Xiaohai could only respond with a wry smile.

"Don't worry too much. The lion is also the guardian of this forest. Now that the deer has been tainted with the hunter's scent, I don't think the lion will make things too difficult for him."

However, don't provoke this lion anymore, or you'll get slapped and it won't taste good, hahaha...

"I know, the problem is the little deer never intended to provoke the lion, it was a complete accident... Thanks!"

"You're welcome. It was just a favor. Be careful when you go down, avoid people, and don't come here again."

"I understand. I won't tell anyone about this experience. You'll keep my secret, and I'll definitely keep yours a secret too, right?"

"Yes, have you ever heard the saying that if two people share a secret, then those two people are friends?"

"I've heard of you, so we're already friends."

"Could you answer a question for my friend?"

"sure."

"Do you think that little deer will turn into a demon? If the demon tries to tempt him, will he go with it?"

An Xiaohai bit his lip and thought for a long time before finally shaking his head:

"Will the fawn turn into a demon? I don't know."

But one thing I'm certain of: even if the fawn eventually becomes a demon, it will never harm this forest. This forest is the fawn's home; if the forest is destroyed, its home will be gone.

If the demon were to tempt him, he would not go with it, for the same reason: the demon's goal is to destroy the deer's home.

This demon is also the fawn's enemy.

The hunter's mission is to protect the entire forest, not necessarily to kill the demon, right? If the demon poses no threat to the forest or the other kind-hearted animals in it, the hunter won't bother with it, right?

"As it stands, yes. However, as long as it's a demon, there will always be hunters to deal with it. Even if it's not this particular hunter, someone will still be in charge."

073 pursed her lips and looked at Xiao Hai for a long time before asking, "Can I trust you?"

"You should believe me; friends should trust each other."

"Alright, I believe you. I hope you remember every word you said today."

"I can't forget it."

"Alright, goodbye my friend!"

"goodbye."

An Xiaohai turned and left. 073 did not get up to see him off; his attention remained fixed on the bay below the mountain.

An Xiaohai had just stepped out of the camp area when he ran into the guy who had pinned him to the ground.

The guy grinned at An Xiaohai and tossed something over. An Xiaohai caught it and saw it was the dagger he had brought.

"That's not how you use a knife. Don't grip it backwards. If you grip it correctly, it won't be so easy for me to subdue you."

An Xiaohai didn't reply, but just rolled his eyes at the guy.

It doesn't matter if you lose the fight, but you must never lose your spirit!

This guy didn't linger with An Xiaohai for long, and after chuckling, he disappeared into the bushes behind him.

An Xiaohai glanced back; the woods had returned to calm, as if nothing had ever happened.

An Xiaohai began to slowly walk down the mountain, and before he had gone far, he saw Zhou Meng's imposing figure.