Chapter 475: Chapter 172 Mad Dog_3
Too weak.
The reason bird fighting is so exciting is that the birds in "cage combat" are well-matched; there is a certain beauty in the bloodbath as adversaries take turns attacking each other.
But if the gap in strength is too great, turning into a one-sided slaughter, then the interest greatly diminishes.
That was exactly the situation now between Lu Tong and her captor.
This woman had initially tried to resist, struggling fiercely to kick and bite, attempting to escape whenever possible. However, the place had been specifically chosen by the Guard as a "fighting ground"—spacious and quiet, with wild grass everywhere and not a sharp stone in sight. She was caught by the hunting dogs from behind after running only a few steps, bitten down, in a repetitive cycle of torment.
Her persistent resistance had taken Qi Yutai by surprise, mixed with a somewhat inexplicable delight.
Though the outcome of the fight was predetermined, a struggle that was neither yielding nor avoiding combat was far more thrilling than a tedious and predictable contest where the end was visible from the beginning.
But as time slowly passed, the prey’s struggles gradually waned, and the patches of blood left on the grass from rolling around grew more numerous. The fight was nearing its end, entering the last phase of the hunt—
biting through the prey’s throat.
He shook his head decisively and gestured to the distance, "Kill her—"
The hunting dog barked excitedly and lunged forward again, savagely aiming for her neck!
Lu Tong was thrown completely onto her back, feeling as if a thousand pounds were pressing on top of her. The beast’s teeth were dangerously close to her face while her arm was stuffed between the dog’s razor-like teeth, forcefully preventing it from advancing further.
The hunting dog, sensing the weakening in the person before it, refused to release its grip and growled lowly, biting down hard. She broke into a cold sweat, using all her strength to desperately defend herself, unable to even let out a groan of pain. As the prolonged struggle with the dog dragged on, it tore bloody gashes over her body, the scent of blood driving the wild animal into even greater excitement.
Lu Tong felt her strength rapidly draining away, her body growing colder and colder.
As a Doctor, she knew very well that these were the signs of impending death.
What was strange was that at this point, she still didn’t feel much pain, just a deep sense of discouragement and an immense weariness welling up from the bottom of her heart.
So tired.
Really too tired.
She longed to sleep soundly.
In the past years at Luomei Peak, she had also felt tiredness thickly, when searching for corpses in Chaos Burial Mound, when experimenting with new poisons, and when dark clouds brought fierce rain...
Every time she thought she couldn’t make it through, in the end, she would miraculously wake up.
But this time was different.
Something warm covered her eyes—it was blood from a wound on her forehead falling into her eyes. The vivid red was much like the plum blossoms that covered Luomei Peak, and she thought she saw the figure of Lady Yun sitting under the tree, holding a bowl of medicine, smiling at her.
"Little Shiqi," she said, "come here."
Lu Tong closed her eyes.
It is said that before dying, there is a moment of clarity, and you get to see the person you want to see the most.
She had seen many dying people experiencing this, calling out for their deceased relatives to escort them, passing away with a smile free of regrets.
But why, if she were to die, did she see nothing?
Why couldn’t she see her parents or siblings, why was she still so utterly alone?
Could it be that they also blamed her for not returning home earlier? Had she returned earlier, could the Lu Family have escaped this disaster?
Or perhaps they saw her hands dyed with blood, her cold-hearted and callous nature, and didn’t wish to acknowledge her, which is why, even at the end, they didn’t want to glance her way?
The hunting dog’s sharp fangs sank deeply into her arm, and the corners of Lu Tong’s eyes grew moist.
In her mind rose the memory of the day after Scholar Wu was killed when the scholars in West Street spontaneously burned paper money at the street corner to pacify the aggrieved spirits. Blind Man He walked past with a bamboo stick, scattering spirit money and singing: The world is full of grievances... seeking a long ladder to question the heavens... Do not blame heaven for lacking justice, for life after life is bound by karma...
The world is full of grievances, seeking a long ladder to question the heavens...
Yes, if there really were a long ladder, she too would want to climb up and ask the heavens.
Why are there so many injustices, why so much unfairness?
Why was it them, why was it the Lu Family!
When she was young, the books always said, "A stingy person, though rich in this life, will inevitably fall from grace; a loyal and honest person, though temporarily shamed, is destined for greatness."
She had also read, "A family that accumulates good deeds will surely be blessed; a family that does evil will surely suffer."
Yet in the end, they were all lies.
The stingy remained rich and the evil-doers did not seem to suffer.
And she was about to die.
Lu Tong looked up, catching a glimpse of golden sunlight through gaps in the trees. The light seemed warm but was incredibly distant. When it fell on her, it carried a biting cold chill.