He turned around and saw the neighbor's gray-haired grandmother drying salted fish.

Her knuckles were thick, there was a thin layer of skin on the back of her hands, and there was black mud between her fingernails. She looked like a person who was used to working hard.

Her face was also weather-beaten, and her thin skin was covered with fine chapped wrinkles. A pair of somewhat cloudy eyes were looking at him with a smile, and her smile was very kind.

"Hello, grandma." Su Mingan said.

"Hey." The old lady responded, and the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes became more dense as she smiled.

She spread out the somewhat blackened cloth in her hand, letting the sunlight shine down smoothly, arching her somewhat rickety back, picking out the fish in her hand.

"Looking at you, you didn't sleep well yesterday," the old lady said.

"Is it obvious?"

"It's extremely dark under my eyes, and my complexion is not good." The old lady pointed her finger at her face: "You have to pay attention to your sleep, young man. Although foreigners will be too scared to sleep on their first day in Praia, but

The soul hunters are here, don't worry."

Su Mingan glanced at the system mirror, and his expression seemed not to be good.

He was indeed awake during the branch dungeon at night, and two hours of sleep was not enough to sustain the energy he consumed throughout the day.

He looked at the returning soul hunters in the river and on the street. Their expressions were similar to his.

...After all, they are all people who haven't slept all night.

"You soul hunters are very handsome, right?" The old lady smiled and said, "If you become a soul hunter, you will have a bright future. Your family conditions... if you can find a good partner... it will be much better."

Since Su Mingan didn't go out in the middle of the night, the old lady regarded him as a simple traveler.

"Yeah." Su Mingan nodded.

The old lady was very talkative. When she mentioned soul hunting, she chatted with him for a long time, talking about the wonderful experience of soul hunting in Praia.

The round-up of hundreds of people in the West District, the defense of the royal city in the North District, the handsome soul hunting leader in the Central City, whose child became a soul hunter, Guangzong Yaozu... The history of Praia, big and small, was all told by her with a quick mouth.

.

According to the old lady, becoming a soul hunter, especially a front-line soul hunter who fights on the front line at night, is the equivalent of smoking smoke from our ancestors.

Even if they are easily sacrificed, their death will bring a lot of wealth to the originally not wealthy family, and this family will be cared for and respected by the people around them in the future.

After talking a lot about the honor of soul hunting, the old lady took a breath and waved her hand.

The sun shines on the placed salted fish, and the cloth glows with a faint light.

"Young man, I have said so much." She wiped her hands on her apron and looked at him: "You are a descendant of Master Su Lin. Do you want to become a soul hunter?"

"I want to." Su Mingan said.

...after all he has become.

After hearing his answer, the old lady sighed.

The morning sun shone on her silver hair, making her figure look a little thin.

"...I told you so much just now. It's true that old people talk a lot, and they can't hold it back when they meet young people from outside."

"But the old lady has seen this over the years, and she really doesn't want any child to become this soul hunter again...even if this is something worthy of joy."

"What's wrong?" Su Ming'an looked at her and saw her somewhat sad expression.

"The mortality rate of soul hunting..." she said, "is as high as seventy percent... seventy percent."

"Seventy percent?" Su Mingan was really shocked.

He had thought that soul hunting was dangerous, but he didn't expect that the death rate would be so high.

If the death rate is really so high, shouldn’t the soul hunters in Praia have disappeared long ago? Where can the number of local soul hunters be maintained at over a hundred...

Thinking of this, he suddenly understood.

...because of updates.

Renewed from generation to generation.

When the old one dies, a new one will take over. When the predecessor's soul hunter dies, a second-tier one will take their place.

Soul Hunters are indeed dying all the time.

But there are always people who become soul hunters all the time.

"I know my thoughts are a bit selfish. After all, without these heroes, we people will be gone." The old lady said softly: "But young man - you are Master Su Lin's child. You have been wandering outside for so long.

, finally found a home, old lady, I really don’t want you to die on this land so quickly like other children. People will miss their homeland. Mr. Su Lin has done so much for Praia, you should also be here

How about living a good life on this protected land?"

"..."

"As you can see, I have a daughter." The old lady turned around and began to arrange the kelp in the bucket again.

Her movements were a bit slow and her positioning was difficult, which seemed to be due to a disease that made it difficult for her to move.

Su Mingan stepped forward and helped her place the kelp. After all, he was also inquiring about information.

"Thank you, young man." The old lady smiled at him:

"Actually, before this... I also had a son as old as you."

As she spoke, she seemed to be lost in memories.

Through Su Mingan who was helping her, she seemed to see another child.

"Little Hull... traveled with the merchant ship and became a soul hunter when he came back. After a period of internship, he was assigned to the most dangerous mission team to carry out a big mission."

"I still remember the way he looked when he left."

"A beautiful black uniform, a pretty little pistol, and a shining star."

"That's when I suddenly realized that little Hull had become an adult."

"I remember, on the day before he left, he said that he had always wanted to drink the old rice wine I brewed."

"I said, 'Let's wait until you come back. You are going to the battlefield and you are still drinking. Remember to bring a beautiful girl with you when you come back. Don't embarrass our family.'"

"I remember his answer."

"He asked me to clean up the house quickly and wait for him to bring someone back. He seemed to be getting along well with a girl from another street."

"He also said that he asked me to serve the wine well. When he comes back in a few days, he will drink eight large bowls."

"Now that I think about it..."

Her voice was very slow and her tone was very flat, like an old man telling an ordinary story.

The old sadness has gradually settled over time, and when she mentioned it again, her emotions were no longer as broken as before.

Time is a good medicine for people's emotions.

The shriveled kelp was kneaded on her hand, and the thin skin on the back of her hand showed some bruises from the blood vessels.

She lowered her head, and the morning sun left thin marks on her old cheeks.

"I was so stupid back then."

"...I should have let him finish his drink before leaving."
Chapter completed!