Chapter 742 No choice
Later, they came to a resource grabbing site. Two groups of villagers were holding sticks and glaring at each other, and a bloody fight was about to break out. Qi Tongwei rushed into the crowd and shouted, "Stop it! We are a family. Fighting each other now will only lead to the complete destruction of the village!" But driven by anger and hunger, some villagers had lost their minds and did not listen to the dissuasion at all. Qi Tongwei had no choice but to let the villagers on his side lay down their weapons first to show his sincerity. Then, he began to persuade the emotional villagers earnestly, telling them about the unity and friendship of the village in the past and the difficulties they are facing now.
Under Qi Tongwei's persuasion, some villagers began to put down their weapons, and the anger in their eyes was gradually replaced by shame and regret. But there were still a few stubborn elements who were still shouting: "Why should we listen to you? We discovered these resources first, so they should belong to us!" Qi Tongwei looked at them with disappointment in his eyes, but still said firmly: "If we continue to be so selfish, then the village will no longer exist, and all of us will become lonely ghosts. Now, we must unite and overcome the difficulties together. There is still a long way to go. As long as we work together, we will be able to rebuild our homes and let everyone live a good life."
Just as Qi Tongwei's words echoed in the air and some villagers were moved and a little shaken, a sharp voice suddenly came from the crowd: "Humph, Qi Tongwei, you say it lightly! Along the way, which thing was not led by you? Now, when there is a problem, you push the responsibility onto us and ask us to unite, but who knows if this is another trap to push us into the fire pit!"
The person who spoke was Liu Er from the village. He had always been dissatisfied with Qi Tongwei and felt that Qi Tongwei had monopolized the power in the village affairs. Now that he finally had the opportunity to question him, he would not let it go. These words were like a stone thrown into a calm lake, stirring up ripples. The crowd, which had begun to calm down, began to buzz with discussions again, and many people once again showed hesitation and confusion in their eyes.
Qi Tongwei's face turned very ugly. He never expected that at this critical moment, someone would jump out and refute him like this. He took a deep breath, tried to calm himself down, and said loudly: "Liu Er, speak with your conscience! From the initial development of the village's industry to later solving supernatural events and breaking curses, I have always been at the forefront, just to make everyone live a good life. Now that we have encountered this sudden disaster, I am also heartbroken, but we can't blame each other, but we must face it together!"
However, Liu Er refused to give up. He sneered and continued, "It sounds good, but who knows if you are doing it for your own selfish desires? Maybe all this is caused by your ambition. Why should we listen to you?" Liu Er's words were like a sharp blade, piercing Qi Tongwei's heart. He looked at these once familiar faces in front of him, which were now full of suspicion and hostility, and his heart was filled with helplessness and sadness.
"Everyone, think about it carefully. If I was doing this for myself, why would I risk my life to find a solution to the problem? Why would I fight to the death with the man in black in another dimension? What am I trying to do? Now we are facing the life and death of the entire village. This is not the time to worry about personal gains and losses!" Qi Tongwei's voice trembled with excitement, but his eyes were still firm, staring at Liu Er and those villagers who were beginning to waver.
But at this time, the villagers had split into two groups. One group supported Qi Tongwei, believing that he had always been sincere about the village. The other group stood on Liu Er's side, and his words stirred up their inner dissatisfaction and fear. The two groups confronted each other, and the atmosphere was as tense as a fully drawn bowstring, ready to explode at any moment.
The chaos in the village did not subside because of Qi Tongwei's persuasion, but intensified. At night, quarrels and fighting sounds were heard from time to time. The originally quiet village was now filled with an atmosphere of anxiety and fear. Qi Tongwei walked alone on the path in the village, his heart full of confusion and pain. He didn't know how to unite the hearts of the villagers again, and he didn't know how to get the village back on track.
Just when Qi Tongwei felt desperate, an elder in the village found him. The elder looked at him deeply and said slowly: "My child, I know you are sincere for the good of the village, but now the villagers are blinded by fear and selfishness. You need to do something big to let them see hope, so as to win their trust again." Qi Tongwei raised his head with a gleam in his eyes: "Elder, what do you think I should do?" The elder shook his head slightly: "I don't know either, but I believe you can find a way. Maybe you can start from the roots of our village and find some forgotten power or wisdom to resolve this crisis."
Qi Tongwei silently thought about the elder's words, and suddenly, he remembered the ancient mountain behind the village.
Qi Tongwei silently pondered the elder's words, and the various legends and secrets of the village's past flashed through his mind like a revolving lantern. Suddenly, the ancient and mysterious mountain behind the village jumped into his mind. The mountain has always been a taboo in the history of the village. It is usually shrouded in clouds and mist, and it is difficult to see its true appearance, let alone climb it.
According to legend, anyone who tries to get close will encounter extremely bad weather. The sky will be instantly covered by dark clouds, as thick as ink, followed by crackling lightning and thunder. The lightning is like an angry dragon, darting through the clouds with its fangs and claws bared. Every lightning strike can smash the surrounding rocks into pieces. In a flash, the entire mountain is illuminated as white as day, as if it is a warning light from hell.
Not only that, there are often some inexplicable sounds coming from the mountains, like the howling of the wind in the narrow valley, or the roar of some unknown creature. The sound is low and powerful, and can make the earth tremble. It is extremely horrifying. Because of this, no one dared to set foot there for many years. Gradually, it became a mysterious place full of awe and fear in the mouths of the villagers, and was sealed in the corner of memory by the years.
But now, at this critical moment of life and death for the village, Qi Tongwei has to pin his hopes on this mountain full of unknown dangers. He knows that this trip will be a life-or-death struggle, but in order to regain the trust of the villagers and save the entire village, he has no choice.