Aldrich Stonemason Triss moved the chisel to the edge of the marble base and gently swung the hammer: "Let's cut out the rough outline from the outer edge area first, which will make you feel much better, and then carefully carve the part below the waist, what do you think?"

The trembling stone sculpture thought for a long time before nodding in agreement, "Let's do it! Maybe I should be a little more reserved, I don't have to figure out the fine muscle lines, just a simple hem line can let me leave the pedestal and walk to the ground to move freely." ”

"So what about the toe part? It's a big job!"

"To bear the weight of the whole body, the arched feet of ordinary humans do not have enough contact area, which will lead to an imbalance in the center of gravity. I think it's enough to cut out the shape of a basic flat boot, you know it's going to save a lot of time!"

"Of course what you said is good, and I agree with it, but it won't be perfect. Dear thinker, please turn your head full of wisdom, look at the upper body part visible in your field of vision, I don't know if it is from the hand of a famous artist, it seems to be very masculine charm belonging to men, vivid, as if in every carving, are injected with fresh vitality. ”

"I may take it as a tactful compliment! Forgive my outspoken, contemptible master stonemason, who is not the one who is in a hurry now, and it is up to you to carve out the part below the waist as soon as possible, and whether or not I can get a reason to leave the marble pedestal depends on your help. When it's done, I'll be so grateful to tell you all the secrets you want to know. The stone sculpture urged, and there was a faint anxiety.

Tris spread his hands: "Then I'll do it, I just hope you can endure it as much as possible, the road to self-reliance is full of painful thorns." Once the construction starts, I will not stop halfway, even if you say no or even do it to me, I will follow through. ”

"Don't talk nonsense, come on!"

"Whoa...... Aldrich carried the hammer like a fly, and where the chisel landed, large pieces of gravel fell one after another.

The square marble base, with its four corners being shoveled away, Tris designed it to sit and stand from the waist down, following the shape of the "contemplative" stone sculpture he had seen earlier.

A knee-high round chair took shape, and because of its location on the edge, the thinker did not feel the unbearable pain of the earth, but his body still trembled slightly.

The Thinker's eyes were fixed on where the chisel landed, and with each blow of the hammer, his brow jumped slightly, but it was within a tolerable range, so he closed his mouth and did not speak.

When Aldrich shifted his position, starting with the rough embryo and cutting out the first folds of his trousers, the thinker immediately felt the coldness of the sharp blade grazing against his skin, and then a fiery sting pain continued to rush in, tormenting his will repeatedly.

"Oh! no, it hurts. ”

Tris didn't stop, he concentrated on his work, not being disturbed by the noise of the idlers. Another fold carved out of the rugged rock face, the exploding sparks flickering and flickering, and a red-hot smell of rust rose up and quickly permeated the surroundings.

"Please, good Samaritan, it's okay! Tap, tap...... It hurts me to death. ”

Aldrich didn't bother to heed the unreasonable demands of the thinker's stone statue, and carved almost unscrupulously on the marble pedestal, almost in accordance with the natural wrinkled lines of his trousers when he sat up.

"Stop, stop, honorable knight, where is your pity? Why do you turn a blind eye to my pains! Why do you turn a blind eye to my pleadings! You are not blind, but you can count the sparrows that skim the treetops with sharp eyes, and you are not deaf, and you can hear the sound of ripe acorns falling to the ground in the forest. Can you rest for a moment and let me go?"

Terry didn't even have the strength to scoff at it, and he was so engrossed in the carving that the left leg of the statue was finished, and it was time for the right side to turn.

"What? Forget it, forget it! I just said it, put it behind me, turned away from the forest and returned to the town, where I snuggled into a pillow filled with buckwheat husks by the warm fire, listened to the snoring of the farmer, and enjoyed the embrace of the nightwings and fell asleep. ”

Aldridge swung his hammer hundreds of times, his shoulders slightly sore, and he adjusted his rhythm and soon resumed his rhythmic beating.

"Shhh...... I'll his cow! I don't want it, I don't want it. ”

The Thinker was not just talking, he put his hand around Tris's shoulder, intending to push away the stonemason who had given him nimble feet.

But Aldrich did not move, and did not know whether to use the strength of the violent bear, resisting the push of the stone statue, and being tormented by pain and falling into a state of weakness, he must have lost most of his strength.

Ignoring foul language and irresponsible derogation, Triss carved out the right leg of the thinker without pressure. He flicked the chisel and used it to sweep away the rubble and powder that remained in the ravine-like folds that refused to leave.

With a simple sweep finish, Aldrich moved to a rocky foot, a boot with a monotonous line that was much simpler than a delicate toe.

At the end of the trousers, scoop out the edge of the boot to avoid possible small legs, the cuff is best pressed into the boot, and the supple curved section falls straight to the sole, in order to prevent possible wear and tear later, Tris designed the sole of the boot to be very thick.

He chose the largest round-toe boots, which had much less resistance when wading than the clumsy square-toe boots, and of course not as good as pointed-toe boots, but that would make the balance of the stone statue itself and the grasp of the center of gravity inaccurate, so all choices should not start from the best, but should start with the most suitable.

When Aldrich cut the tip of the boot with a chisel, perhaps close to the toe, and the ten fingers were connected to the heart, the thinker gritted his teeth in pain, clenched his fists with both hands, and attacked the stonemasons as if they were rammed earth piles.

"Damn, you're going to kill me, I can't take the pain anymore. Stop, I told you to stop...... I'm going to kill you!"

The "Fragile Skin" armor gives Tris five levels of defense and twenty-five points of defense, and for the weak thinker, there is only thirty percent of the strength of the fist, and just fifteen points of attack, it is enough to ignore it lightly and directly.

The stone statue that could not break the defense seemed to vent the accumulated negative emotions, and he hung down his weak hands, and he could no longer pose as a wise man.

The thinker who had sworn before, on the way to self-reliance, was ready to turn around and go back when he encountered a little pain in his heart, but fortunately Aldrich did not listen to him, and stopped halfway, otherwise he would not know when he would start work again, and it may be far away.

At that time, Tris, who can't get key information or plot clues from the stone statue's mouth, can't guarantee that he won't be caught up in the fight against the golden toad.

As for what treasure this wild monster that occupies the dead forest guards, Aldrich is not uninterested, but now is not the time. Anyway, after solving the big toad, all the secrets will slowly fade under the cover of defense and reveal the truth to him.

......The last stone fragment flew away, and Tris, who was done, stood up, stretched out his sore hands, some blunt chisels, and took two steps back away from the statue in the same pose as the "Contemplative".

"Come, stand up, try to take a step, the path of self-reliance, full of painful thorns, has reached the end. The end of this long-distance race is in sight, and the door to victory will open to you as soon as you step over the line. ”

"It's very easy to say, you don't know that I don't even have the strength to stand up now. Every cut makes me feel like time flies, and it's like a year. If you are kind, lend a hand and let me lend strength on your shoulder. ”

"Give you a fulcrum, and maybe you can pry up the whole dry forest. But I'm sorry, I've exhausted my little strength to help you, please forgive me for not being able to do what you want, so everything is on your own. Come on, I know you can do it. ”

The thinker shook his head slightly, "Now it's not the same as just now, the situation on both sides has changed! My goal has been achieved, but because you have a request for me, shouldn't you obediently listen to my words and do things?"

"That's sad news! If you could really get up and get off the marble pedestal!"

The stone statue suddenly had a bad mood, and his hands supported the "round stool" and prepared to get up, but he pulled up the stone stool together. If this face fell into his eyes, he might laugh a few times, but the same thing happened to him, and the thinker couldn't laugh at all.

"That's your rule! I've found that a part of your body, even the hem of your clothes, the folds of your pants, will make you feel pain, but you don't feel the stool as a dead thing, because it's not an extension of your body. ”

"It makes me wonder what gives you life! How can it be such a strange form, the texture and lines of your muscles, not carved at all, but as they should be. ”

"My guess is...... You are not an ordinary living fossil sculpture, there is only one truth, you are a petrified mortal!"

The thinker took a deep breath, his chest high filled with boredom and defeat, and he found that his secret was about to be seen through by the stonemason.

"Cursed! I am cursed with petrification! an old witch on a broomstick, coveting my youth and handsome appearance......"

At this, Triss raised his brow slightly, looked the stone statue up and down, and found that it was indeed as his shallow words described.

The witch who casts the curse is an important clue, and if he is true, I have to keep it in mind. ’

“...... Send me an invitation to courtship, an invitation to a Modisi night. I know that's not a good thing, how can an ugly old woman with boils on her face catch my eye!"

Unfortunately, when I sternly refused, bad luck fell on my head one after another. Fishing canoes often capsized in small rivers, and thatched houses were blown away by the wind. We all know that once we start to be unlucky, drinking cold water will stuff our teeth. ”

"Finally, on a moonless night, the ugly old witch came in person, called for a tyrannical whirlwind, woke me from my dream, stripped me of my close-fitting clothes, and met her honestly. ”

"When I refused again, she turned the ground on which I was standing into a swamp of mud, sank over her waist, and cast a petrified curse on me with a skull full of poisonous snakes, and finally turned into a statue of a dead thing. ”