In the middle of the night, Cao Ling was suddenly awakened by the cold. She opened her eyes and saw that the cave was pitch black. There was only a faint spark in the ashes.
From time to time, the sound of lightning could be heard from outside. The sound passed through the winding cave and became a little dull. Moist cold wind kept blowing from the entrance of the cave. It seemed to be raining outside. She could feel the moist sweetness in the cold wind.
She was cold and hungry. Even though she was hugging a pile of hay tightly, she was still shivering. She forced herself to endure for a while, but finally couldn't take it anymore.
She carefully got up and prepared to relight a pile of firewood.
The surroundings were silent. Everyone had fallen into a deep sleep. After a long day of exhaustion, even Wang Shishi was snoring lightly.
She nervously searched in the dark for a long time. Finally, she found a lighter next to the fire.
The bean-sized flame flickered in the cold wind. Perhaps it was a psychological effect, but the hall seemed to give her an unusually eerie feeling. She didn't dare to look around, afraid that she would see something scary. She squatted down and pointed a few times with trembling hands. The flame finally rose.
The light and heat of the flame seemed to bring her a great sense of security. She carefully added firewood. Watching the flame burn brighter, she gently let out a sigh of relief.
The hall became bright. Everyone was like homeless people huddled in the hay. Their bodies curled up as much as possible to resist the cold.
Under the roasting of the flame, Cao Ling's originally cold and numb body regained consciousness. She felt a little itchy on her arm. She subconsciously reached out and scratched a few times.
She didn't realize that she was scratching her wound until she felt a sharp pain.
Under the light of the fire, she looked down and felt that her vision was blurred. There seemed to be something white moving around the wound. Her heart tightened and beat violently. She gathered her courage and took another careful look.
Countless maggots were wriggling in the wound. Not only her arm, but her legs, knees, arms, and the back of her hand. As long as there was a wound, it was covered with maggots.
The scene in front of her made her pupils violently shrink. Her hair stood on end and her scalp exploded. She suddenly thought of something. She touched the wound on her face crazily. However, she only felt slippery. Between her fingers, there was a horrifying feeling of maggots rolling around.
She couldn't help but scream.
Everyone immediately opened their eyes and quickly reached for their weapons. They quickly stood up and got into a defensive posture.
"What's going on?" Luo Yuan stood up and looked around. There was nothing out of the ordinary.
Cao Ling kept screaming and waving her hands in the air. Her body was shaking like a sieve.
Luo Yuan walked over and slapped her hard. "Calm down, what's going on?"
The intense pain finally brought Cao Ling back to her senses from the inextricable fear, but she was still terrified. She said incoherently, "Maggots, there are maggots everywhere. I'm going to die. Save me, Brother Luo, save me!"
Luo Yuan's eyes were sharp. He grabbed her hand and turned the back of her hand to take a closer look. He could not help but gasp. Even he felt a chill down his spine. "Why are there so many maggots?"
Everyone gathered around, and when they saw this horrifying scene, their expressions changed. A few of them thought of something, and hurriedly checked their wounds. In the next moment, the screams of women rang out, and even the men's faces turned deathly pale.
Everyone except Luo Yuan and Lin Xiaoji had more or less maggots on their wounds. Wang Xiaguang had the most maggots on her body. The maggots had almost occupied her entire wound. The sight of the moving maggots was terrifying. Her body swayed and she almost fainted.
Huang Jiahui and Wang Shishi were not any better. They kept screaming and their faces were as pale as the dead.
"Calm down, everyone! Calm down!" Luo Yuan shouted.
Huang Jiahui was not injured much. She had the least maggots on her body, so she was the first to calm down. She said anxiously, "How did this happen? I've been injured before, but usually I'm fine."
"Maybe I was hit by the insect eggs when I was walking through the forest," Luo Yuan guessed.
"The forest is too dangerous. I don't want to stay here. I'd rather be choked to death by the volcanic ash than be covered in maggots!" Wang Shishi cried, tears welling up in her eyes. She put her hand on her wound but did not dare to touch it.
"Don't say such depressing words. We'll turn onto the highway after the volcanic ash passes. Let's not talk about this now. We have to deal with these maggots as soon as possible. The longer we delay, the more dangerous it will be, "Luo Yuan said seriously. The maggots were growing too fast. It was not even midnight yet, but they were already as thick as chopsticks. He did not know what they would become if they continued to delay. He hoped that they had not burrowed into his body, or else …
Luo Yuan could not imagine it. His heart tightened when he imagined the horrible scene of maggots bursting out of his body.
Huo Dong gritted his teeth and put his finger into the wound. His hand felt slippery and disgusting, and goosebumps immediately appeared on his skin. The originally shallow wound had been corroded so deeply that one could almost put a finger in it. Maggots that were four to five centimeters long were continuously pulled out from his wounds and thrown into the fire. Under the burning flames, they made crackling sounds.
A wound the size of a ping pong ball had actually been pulled out by him more than a dozen maggots. The flesh inside the wound was full of holes like a beehive. Some of the holes were faintly white. Obviously, there were still maggots growing in the depths.
A trace of despair flashed across his face. He suddenly broke down and punched the wound hard. Blood mixed with thick white fluid splattered everywhere. A large piece of flesh near the wound had completely shrunk, as if it had been eaten away.
Everyone's faces turned pale and their bodies turned cold.
Luo Yuan could no longer remain calm. His expression changed drastically. Seeing that Wang Xiaguang was about to fall to the ground, he quickly held her up and put her on the hay. Luo Yuan checked her condition. Her wounds were mainly on her back and calf. The wound on her calf was only the size of a palm, but there was a large area on her back. She had not even noticed it because she could not see her back.
Luo Yuan's heart was heavy. He gently pressed his finger on the area near the wound on her calf. He did not use much force, but the skin sunk, causing the maggots to squirm slightly.
Wang Xiaguang lay on the hay and did not move. She looked above her head in despair and asked in a trembling voice, "Am I going to die?"
"No, since I've saved you, I won't let you die," Luo Yuan said firmly. "I'll go get the knife."
"What do you want to do?" Wang Xiaguang asked quickly.
"The maggots are not deep enough. You just need to cut off the whole piece of flesh," Luo Yuan said.
"Then I won't be able to walk in the future?" Wang Xiaguang asked.
"It's not like you're cutting off the whole leg. You'll just have to walk with a limp." Luo Yuan said softly after a moment of silence. He did not tell her about the situation on her back, in case she broke down.
"No, if I cut it off, I'll need to rest for a while even if I can walk in the future. I don't want to be a burden to you." Wang Xiaguang bit her lip and tears kept falling from her face. She shook her head and said, "I'm afraid I won't be able to make it to the west. Moreover, I should have died. I should have died the night my mother committed suicide!"
Her parents' death and Luo Yuan's indifference had made the last bit of determination in her heart disappear. Her body's condition was the last straw that broke the camel's back. She wanted to die.
Luo Yuan looked at her lifeless eyes. He was too familiar with that look. He had seen it in two people who had committed suicide. He was touched. "This is not a burden. Even if your leg is broken, I'll take care of you for the rest of your life. You're still young. There are many beautiful things that you haven't experienced. The west is a stable world. We won't have to take risks then. We can live a normal life. You must persevere. "
Wang Xiaguang's numb eyes suddenly lit up. Her pale face blushed and she said, "You'll take care of me for the rest of my life?"
Luo Yuan realized that Wang Xiaguang had misunderstood him, but he could only nod and say, "You must live. Don't be afraid. You'll be fine as long as it hurts."
Wang Xiaguang's face turned pale again. "Hurry up!"
"If it hurts, I'll scream!"
Luo Yuan quickly pulled out his Zhanmadao and repeatedly measured the wound on her calf. His palms were sweaty, and his usually steady hands were slightly trembling. He took a deep breath and was about to cut down when he suddenly thought of something. He quickly said, "Lin Xiaoji, can you bring the frog over?"
The frog's flesh had a paralyzing effect, but it was not poisonous. It was a natural anesthetic. Luo Yuan was glad that he had not wanted to move it yesterday. The others had not thrown it away for safety reasons. Otherwise, Wang Xiaguang would have had to endure the pain.
Lin Xiaoji did not dare to hesitate. He quickly ran over and carried the frog's carcass that was left in the corner.
Luo Yuan immediately cut open its belly. Its blood had already coagulated after half a night, but he did not need too much. A few drops of blood would be enough. He picked up a piece of hay and dipped it in the blood. He dripped the blood on the wound that was full of maggots.
At this time, something unexpected happened!
The maggots seemed to have sensed the impending disaster. They suddenly wriggled violently and scrambled out of the wound. In a short while, his calf was covered with maggots. A few minutes later, the maggots in the wound were all gone. Even the maggots that had burrowed into his flesh had run away.
Luo Yuan was stunned for a moment, and then he was overjoyed.
The atmosphere in the hall suddenly became lively. Everyone surrounded the frog and carefully dripped its blood on the wound.
The frog seemed to be the maggots' natural enemy. A large number of maggots crawled out of the wound and tried to escape, but they were either trampled to death or thrown into the fire to vent their anger. The maggots were burned, and the air was filled with a burning smell, but no one cared.
After venting their anger, the women were depressed. Even Huang Jiahui became quiet. Although the maggots had disappeared, there was a disgusting wound that they did not dare to look at. No one knew if it would leave a terrible scar in the future.
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