The rat people weren't "rat people".
Unlike the "rat people", "minotaur people", and "wild boar people" who were pure bloods, the rat people were definitely mixed bloods.
At first, in a battle of glory thousands of years ago, the rat people's cowardice and escape led to the defeat of the entire war.
The rat people were hated by all of the people of Tulan. They believed that they had impure blood flowing in their veins. They didn't deserve the blessings of their ancestors, nor did they have the right to use the power of the totem.
The five major clans worked together and exiled all the rat people. They chased them to the barren mountains and rivers at the edge of Tulan Lake, leaving them to fend for themselves.
Gradually, the people of Tulan called the cowards, cowards, surrenders, and escapees of their respective clans "cowardly rats" and banished them to the place where the rat people were exiled.
In order to survive, these dishonorable cowards and escapees had to live together with the rat people. They even married each other and reproduced.
It couldn't be helped. Other than sympathizing with each other, they couldn't find any noble Tulan warriors to continue their lowly bloodline.
Just like that, the traits of different clans continued to mix and mutate.
Today, the appearance of the rat people was already very different.
There wasn't even a single "true pure-blood rat people" left.
Most of the rat people had more or less the traits of minotaur people, wild boar people, wild elephant people, and even golden lion people, lizard people, and gnoll people.
In fact, because the traits of too many clashed with each other, most of the traits were canceled out.
Their hair kept falling off, and their skin was smooth and delicate. They looked like the golden-haired and blue-eyed barbarians in the fertile land north of Tulan Lake that was said to be eternally illuminated by holy light.
Leaf and her brother were like this.
Apart from their grayish-brown curly hair, curled tails, and pointy ears, they really looked like barbarians who had sneaked into the Tulan people.
This appearance was one of the main reasons why the rat people were discriminated against.
Therefore, Leaf had seen all kinds of rat people in all kinds of strange shapes.
From the "pure-blood rat people" who were taller than an arm and looked like giant rats that stood up on their hind legs.
To the barbarian people who had the bloodline of the wild elephant people, who were taller than three arms and could eat more than ten Mandala fruits in one meal.
From protruding fangs to towering horns, to long hair, scales, and shells.
From having wings to swinging a scorpion tail.
He had seen the rat people, from their bodies emitting a strange fragrance and possessing a natural ability to induce hallucinations, to the chameleon-like ability to change their skin color at will, and all sorts of mimicry.
However, he had never seen a person whose hair and eyes were as black as a starless night.
Also, other than his hair and beard, his skin was smoother and paler than Leaf's and her brother's. It was so swollen that it was translucent, like a floating corpse that had been soaked in a swamp.
"Poor fellow!"
Ye couldn't help but think to herself, "Such an ugly appearance, how much suffering must he have suffered!"
There was also discrimination among the rat people.
The rule was that whoever had more bestial characteristics, who was less like a naked human, and who had less cowardice, despicableness, lowliness, and unclean blood, would be more noble.
On the other hand, the smoother one's skin was, the less hair and bestial characteristics one had, it meant that one was more cowardly, despicable, lowly, and unclean, and the more unworthy one was of the blessing of the ancestral spirit, the supreme glory, and the protection of the totem.
Of course, the more he should be discriminated against.
Ever since they were young, Leaf and her brother had suffered a lot in order to look like humans.
Even their mother, who loved them from the bottom of her heart, could not help but sigh when she saw the two brothers' naked appearance.
She was worried that they might not be able to find a good furry girl in the future.
But compared to this guy in front of her, even Leaf, whose hair had not fully grown, could be said to be full of bestial characteristics.
"Which clan's bloodline flows in his body?"
Leaf pondered, "There are warriors with black fur among the leopardmen and bearmen, but after a lot of mixing, very few of them are like this guy without any impurities.
"Also, apart from his black hair and black eyes, he doesn't have any characteristics of the leopardmen or bearmen.
"At first glance, he looks like a naked worm. He's an ugly human, too weak.
"It's just that, where did such a weak fellow suffer such a serious injury?"
This ugly black-haired, black-eyed rat person was covered in crisscrossed, densely packed, and serious injuries that Leaf had never seen before.
It was as if he was bitten by a hundred hungry totem beasts.
Then he was soaked in the putrid sewage for ten days and ten nights in the deepest part of the dungeon.
There was not a single piece of good flesh on his body.
It was either swollen or a wound that opened up like a baby's lips.
For some reason, the wound did not rot.
Probably because the blood inside had already dried up, leaving only an empty shell.
Even the little worms that could devour courage and souls did not care about him.
No one, not even the clan warriors with totemic power, could survive with such a heavy injury.
"He … died a long time ago, right?"
Leaf found that the black eyes that had been staring at him for a long time were unblinking, motionless, and the light in them had already solidified.
The ugly rat person's shriveled chest had long stopped moving.
The nostrils that were close to the surface of the sewage could not breathe out any weak air, and there was not even the slightest ripple.
Leaf could not even feel the slightest vitality or temperature.
Other than the fact that it had not rotted, this was a real corpse.
But …
He did not know if there was something wrong with his eyes.
Leaf suddenly saw that near the heart of the black-haired rat person, there seemed to be a cluster of scarlet hyphae flashing in a deep wound that revealed the bone.
Ye was startled. She rubbed her eyes and looked carefully, but saw nothing.
Leaf was afraid.
He knew what was going on.
The black-haired rat person was infected with the plague.
That was why the other rat people were afraid of it and did not dare to approach.
The plague was probably the only thing that the Turan warriors were afraid of.
It was not that they were afraid of death.
It was because the plague was invisible, and it was difficult to find a specific way to fight the plague.
Besides, infected with the plague, lying on the sickbed, wailing, struggling, and rotting to death.
This was really the most shameful way to die.
The black-haired rat person looked so ugly, and most likely infected with the strange plague, so naturally no one dared to go forward and touch his corpse.
As for why the clan masters did not throw this corpse out, so as not to infect all the rat people in the cage?
Hehe, a noble lord wouldn't care about the lives of a mere cage of Rat Citizens.
If the entire cage of rat people was infected, they could just let them die on their own, and then burn the depths of the dungeon and bury them completely.
This was the simplest and most effective way.
Leaf subconsciously retreated.
But behind him were the hungry red-eyed rat people.
And he had stayed with the black-haired rat people for too long.
His legs were covered with small wounds from the past few days of fighting.
They were soaked in the sewage like the black-haired rat person's wounds.
If the black-haired rat person was really infected with the plague, his body would be crawling with bugs that could devour courage and souls.
These little bugs were able to enter his body through the sewage just now.
Besides, where could he retreat to?
The entire dungeon was knee-deep in sewage, and there was no dry place.
Even if he squeezed through the red-eyed rat people and ran to another corner, could he hide from the invisible bugs?
Leaf, who realized this, was completely desperate.
He gave up and sat next to the black-haired rat person\'s corpse.
"Mom, is this my fate? In the dark dungeon, I'll die quietly like this ugly uncle with black hair and black eyes, my body soaked in dirty water, slowly rotting, and then being swallowed by the little bugs bit by bit?
"This... is good.
"Although I definitely can\'t enter the Glory Temple in this way.
"But Mom didn\'t go to the Glory Temple either?
"Mom, no matter where you are, no matter how dark, terrifying, and harsh the place you go, I only want to be with you."
Leaf slowly exhaled a mouthful of turbid air.
The muscles that had been tense for a few days slowly relaxed.
He wanted to lie down next to the black-haired rat person\'s corpse, allowing the sewage and darkness to cover his mouth and nose.
"Clang clang clang!"
Suddenly, the sound of a metal bar hitting the iron fence came from above.
Then, there was a strong, stinky aroma.
It was the smell of fried datura fruit.
It was time to eat!
Although he didn\'t care about the rat people\'s lives.
But it wasn\'t easy to get them here. Even if they were to die, they had to be squeezed dry instead of starving to death.
A large basket of steaming deep-fried Mandala Fruits fell out of the hole in the cage.
The red-eyed rat people who smelled the aroma were like hyenas that found a corpse. They no longer cared about watching Leaf and the black-haired rat person. Their eyes lit up and they pounced on the food falling from the sky.
"Gulp —"
It was unknown whether the smell was fragrant or stinky, but it was like a python, entering Leaf\'s stomach through his nose, throat, and chest, and tossing with all its might.
Clutching her hungry and burning belly, Leaf curled up in the dirty water and struggled violently.
In a trance, an illusion appeared before his eyes.
It did not seem to be the crudest fried datura fruit that was casually fried in the arena.
Instead, it was the most delicious fried datura fruit in the world that his mother had carefully shredded, soaked in mountain spring water, and picked a dozen kinds of wildflowers and wild fruits, ground them into powder and sauce, and carefully cooked them.
He really wanted to eat the fried datura fruit strips that his mother made herself.
He really, really wanted it.
He really, really, really wanted it.
Leaf\'s eyes were also faintly red.
He was as red as if he had stayed in the deepest part of the dungeon for dozens of days or even decades.
He used all his strength and punched himself hard in the stomach, forcing himself to sit up in the sewage with the sharp pain.
"No!
"I can\'t die quietly in the depths of the darkness like this ugly uncle!
"Let me try again!
"As long as I can eat a fried datura fruit, I can recover some strength and have the hope to live.
"I can do it. Huff, I must do it!
"I want to live, I want to become stronger, I want to kill the bull-headed warrior with broken horns and all the blood-hooved warriors, I want to find An Jia and save her.
"I want to eat the fried datura fruit that my mother made herself!"
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