The discussion about this incident lasted for more than three months. The second mysterious disappearance of Bilbo Baggins had been talked about in Hobbiton for more than a year, and had been remembered for a long time. This became the young Hobbit's favorite after-dinner topic. In the end, when the truth of everything had been hidden in history, the character "Mad Baggins" became the most famous character in folk tales. In the story, he would disappear with a loud bang and a bright light, and then reappear with a bag full of jewelry and gold.
But at the same time, the neighbors had a very different impression of him. They all thought that the old man, who was already a little crazy, had finally broken down and might have run into the wilderness. He might have fallen into a pond or a stream there and ended his life. Most of them blamed Gandalf.
"If only that wretched wizard had left Frodo alone, he might have had time to learn the ways of the Hobbits," they said. From all the clues, the wizard had indeed left Frodo alone, and the young man had indeed settled down. As for the way the Hobbits did things, he was afraid he couldn't tell. Yes, he had almost immediately inherited Birbo's peculiarities. He refused to mourn Bilbo, and the following year he held a centenarian party to commemorate Bilbo's 112th birthday. Twenty guests had been invited to this banquet. According to the Hobbits, the food at the banquet could be said to be "a mountain of food and a sea of wine". It was very sumptuous.
Some people were rather surprised, but Frodo continued to hold feasts year after year until everyone was used to it. He expressed that he did not think Birbo was dead. When everyone questioned him about Birbo's whereabouts, he could only shrug.
Like Bilbo, he lived alone, but he still had many young Hobbit friends. (Most of them are the descendants of Old Tucker) These people liked Birbo very much when they were young and often found excuses to run to Bag End. Fargo Boffin and Freddy Borg were two classic examples. However, his closest friends were Peregrin Tucker (commonly known as Pippin) and Meryl Brandybuck (his real name was Meryl Yadak, though no one really remembered). Frodo often explored the Shire with them, but more often than not he wandered alone. To the surprise of the average person, Frodo would sometimes leave his house under the starlight and go for a walk on the nearby hills and forests. Meryl and Pippin suspected that he, like Birbo, would secretly visit the elves.
As time passed, people began to notice that Frodo seemed to have inherited the secret of "health preservation." He still looked like an energetic teenager. "Some people are blessed," they said; But it was not until Frodo was fifty years old that they really thought it was strange.
After the initial uneasiness, Frodo began to enjoy the life of inheriting Baggins and Bag End. He had a few years to live comfortably without worrying about the future. But slowly, he began to regret not leaving with Birbo. Sometimes, he would think of some scenes, especially in late autumn. He would start to think of the wilderness outside, and in his dreams, he would see mountains he had never seen before. He began to say to himself,"Perhaps I should cross the river myself one day."”Another part of his brain would answer,""It's not time yet."
The days went on like this. In the blink of an eye, his 50th birthday was approaching. The number fifty struck him as very special (or rather too special). It was at this age that Birbo suddenly experienced many adventures. Frodo was beginning to feel restless, and the path he used to walk on was becoming very tiresome. When he read the map, he would think about what was beyond the edge of the map: Most of the maps drawn in the Shire region would leave the border blank. The range of his strolls became wider and wider, and he ran around alone more often. Meryl and his other friends were worried about him. They often saw him strolling energetically or chatting with strangers who had begun to appear in the Shire.
※※※
It was said that there were many changes in the outside world. Rumors spread everywhere. There had been no news of Gandaph for many years. Frodo had to rely on himself to gather all the information he could. The elves who rarely stepped into the Shire would now pass through this place in the evening, heading west along the forest without looking back. They were prepared to leave the Central Plains and never interfere in the disputes of the mortal world again. In addition, there were more dwarves on the road than usual. The historic West East Road passed through the Shire and led to the Grey Harbor. The dwarves had always used this road to trek to the mines in the Blue Mountains.
They were the most reliable source of information for any Hobbit who needed it. Normally, dwarves would not say much, and hobbits would not ask. Now, however, Frodo often encountered dwarves from distant lands who were preparing to take refuge in the west. Every one of them was preoccupied, and now and then someone mentioned the news of the Infernal King and the Land of Mordor.
These names only appeared in the dark past, and to the Hobbits, they were like names they had not seen for a long time: However, such ominous news was indeed unsettling. It seems that the enemies expelled from Gloomy Jungle by the White Council have now been reborn in the fortress of Mordor in a more powerful form. According to rumors, the Evil Black Tower had been rebuilt. With the Evil Black Tower as the center, the evil forces spread outward like wildfire. The flames of war and fear in the extreme east and south were constantly spreading. The orcs once again wreaked havoc in the mountains. Traces of the cannibal women reappeared. This time, they were no longer the stupid carnivorous beasts in the legends. Instead, they had transformed into cunning armed warriors. There were even more terrifying languages describing creatures that were even more terrifying than these, but they did not have names.
Of course, normal Hobbits would never know about these rumors. But even the most reclusive Hobbits began to hear strange stories, and the Hobbits who had to go to the border for work saw many strange signs. One evening in the spring of the year Frodo was fifty years old, the conversation in the Green Dragon Inn in the waterside made it clear that even the Shire, which was isolated from the world, had begun to spread these rumors. However, most of the Hobbits still scoffed.
Sam Gamgee was sitting by the fire, opposite the miller's son, Thad Sandiman. There were also many idle Hobbits listening to their conversation.
"If you listen, you'll hear a lot of strange things these days," said Sam.
"Well," said Teddy,"if you're smart, there'll be a lot of rumors. However, if I only want to listen to bedtime stories and fairy tales, I can listen to them at home.”
" Of course you can go home and listen to it," Sam said disdainfully." I bet there are more facts in there than you know. Who made up these stories? Let's use the dragon as an example."
"Well, I'd rather not," said Teddy. "I dare not compliment you. I've heard stories of dragons since I was a child, and now I have even less reason to believe them. "There's only one dragon in Waterside, and that's the Green Dragon Inn." His audience laughed.
" Alright." Sam laughed along with the others. "What about these treants, or the giants you mentioned? There were indeed people nearby who said that they had seen such creatures that were taller than trees in the wasteland in the north.”
"Who are they?"
"My relative, Howl, is one of them. He was working for Mr. Boffin, hunting in the North Borough. He saw one of these creatures.”
"He said so. How do we know if it's true or not? Your Howl keeps saying he saw something, but it might not have happened.”
"But what he saw was as tall as an elm tree, and it could walk! Each step can cover seven yards!"
"I bet he's mistaken. What he saw was probably just an elm tree.”
"I just said that this tree can walk. There are no elms in the northern wasteland.”
"Then Howl couldn't have seen the elm tree," said Teddy. Some of the bystanders started to laugh and clap. They thought he had the upper hand this time.
" Whatever," said Sam." You can't deny that other people besides our Howl have seen a lot of strange people crossing the Shire. Mind you, it's crossing. There were even more people who were blocked at the border. The border guards had never been so busy.”
"I also heard that the elves have begun to migrate to the west. They said that they were going to the port, but not outside the White Tower for the time being.”Sam waved his arms vaguely. He and the others did not know how far they were from the sea after leaving the western border of the Shire and the old tower. All they knew was that there was a place called Grey Harbor, and the elven ships would never return after leaving the port.
" After they left the port, they sailed far away and kept heading west, leaving us here," Sam recited with dreamy eyes, shaking his head with a sad expression. But instead, he laughed.
"If you believe in ancient legends, this is nothing new. I don't see what this has to do with you and me. Just let them sail away! I promise you and the others in the Ciel won't see this.”
"I'm not so sure," Sam said thoughtfully. He thought that he had seen an elf in the forest before, and he hoped that he would have the chance to see her again in the future. Of all the stories he had heard as a child (and only the poor hobbits 'knowledge of elves), every elf's story moved him. "Even on our side, there are people who know those noble people," he said. "My boss Baggins is an example. He told me the story of their voyage, and he knew a lot about elves. Mr. Birbo knew even more. I heard a lot of it when I was young.”
"Oh, there's something wrong with those two," said Teddy. "At least there was something wrong with old Bilbo's head, and Frodo was still slowly falling apart. If your source of information is these two guys, then anything strange is not surprising. Well, friends, I'm going home. I wish you good health!" He finished his drink in one gulp and swaggered out the door.
Sam sat there in silence. He had many things to consider. For example, he still had a lot of work to do in the garden at Bag End. If the weather was better tomorrow, he might be busy all day. The turf had been growing very fast recently. However, Sam was not just worried about things like planting flowers and mowing grass. He continued to ponder for a moment. Finally, he sighed and quietly walked out of the door.
It was only early April, and the sky was exceptionally clear after the heavy rain. The sun was about to set, and the cool twilight was slowly replaced by night. He walked through Hobbiton under the bright starlight and up the hill, whistling and thinking.
※※※
At the same time, Gandaph, who had disappeared for a long time, appeared again. He disappeared for three years after the feast, and then he visited Frodo briefly; After carefully sizing up his old friend, he went on a long journey again. In the next one or two years, he still appeared frequently. Usually, he would suddenly visit after dark and disappear silently before dawn. He was tight-lipped about his work and his journey, and seemed to care only about the trivialities of Frodo's health and behavior.
Without any warning, he suddenly disappeared. Frodo had not heard anything from him for nine years, and he was beginning to think that the wizard had lost interest in hobbits and would never show up again. But as Sam strolled home in the twilight, there was a familiar tap on Frodo's study window.
Frodo was a little surprised, but he was very happy to welcome his old friend to visit again. They sized each other up for a long time.
"Is everything alright?" said Gandalf. "Frodo, you look exactly the same!”
"You too," said Frodo politely. But in his heart, he felt that the wizard looked older and more weathered than before. He eagerly asked the Magus to tell him about the news of the outside world. The two of them quickly chatted as if no one was around until late at night.
The next day, at noon, the two of them who woke up late sat down by the bright window of the study after breakfast. The fireplace was lit with a blazing fire, and the sun was very warm. The south wind was blowing outside. Everything looked so perfect. Spring brought a thriving green color to the flowers and trees.
Gandalf was thinking back to a spring day nearly eighty years ago when Bilbo had walked out of Bag End with him and forgotten his handkerchief. His hair might have been whiter, his beard and eyebrows longer, and his face wrinkled with worry and wisdom. However, his eyes were still bright, and his skill in blowing smoke rings was still admirable. There was also a happy expression on his face.
He was smoking in silence, watching Frodo, who was motionless and thoughtful. Even under the bright morning light, he was still suffocated by the many bad news that Gandalf had brought. Finally, he broke the silence.
"You told me last night about the ring's peculiarity, Gandalf," he said. "And then you seemed to want to say something, but stopped because you said it was better to leave the subject for the day. Why don't you finish it now? You said last night that this ring was very dangerous. It was even more dangerous than I had guessed. Where is it dangerous?"
"It's extremely dangerous in many aspects," replied the wizard. "I never thought that this ring would have such great power. Its power is strong enough to conquer any mortal who possesses it. It will occupy his body and mind."
"Long, long ago, the Elves forged many Elven Rings in Erezhan. These are what you call magic rings. There are many different types of them: Some of them were powerful, while others were relatively weak. Lesser rings were forged before this technique was mature, and they were just insignificant ornaments to elven craftsmen. However, in my opinion, they are still extremely dangerous to mortals. However, there were also the more advanced Ring of Domination, also known as the Ring of Power and the Ring of Strength. Their danger was indescribable.”
" Frodo, a mortal who holds the Ring of Ruling can live forever, but he will not gain a longer life or continue to grow. His physical body continued to exist until every moment became a torment for him, but he still could not escape this fate. If he used this ring to make himself invisible, he would gradually fade away. In the end, he would become invisible forever and be forced to walk in the Soul World under the evil power of the Lord of the Rings. That's right, sooner or later, he would end up like this. If he had good intentions and a strong will, it would have taken a longer time. But kindness and strength could not save him. The power of darkness would devour him sooner or later.”
"This is too terrifying!" said Frodo. The two of them were silent for a long time. The only sound outside the window was the sound of Sam mowing the grass.
"How long have you known about this?”asked Frodo at last. "And how much does Birbo know?"
"I'm sure Bilbo doesn't know more than you do," said Gandalf. "He will never give you anything dangerous. Even if I promise to take care of you, I will not be able to convince him. He simply thought that the ring was beautiful and would be useful at critical moments. Even if there was something wrong, it was only his own problem. He said that this thing seemed to have 'occupied his mind', and he was getting more and more worried about it. However, he did not expect that the culprit was this ring. He only knew that this thing needed special care. Its size and shape varied, shrinking and expanding in a strange way, and it might even suddenly fall off his finger.”
"Yes, he warned me in his last letter," said Frodo."So I've been tying him up with the same iron.”
"You're clever," said Gandalf. "As for Birbo's longevity, he never made any association between the two. He thought that it was because his body was strong, so he felt very proud. However, he felt that his emotions were getting more and more unstable and uneasy. He said that he was 'a little shriveled up and was about to be squeezed dry.' It was a sign that the Ring was beginning to control him.”
"How long have you known about this?”Frodo asked again.
"How long?" said Gandalf. "Much of the information I know is secrets only the Wise Ones know, Frodo. However, if you mean that I have a thorough understanding of this ring, you can say that I don't know enough. I still have to do one last experiment to be certain. However, I no longer doubted my guess.”
"When did I start to suspect?”He pondered and searched his memories. "Let me see, it was the year the White Council expelled the evil forces of Gloomy Jungle, just before the Battle of the Five Armies and Birbo found the ring. At that time, I felt a little uneasy, but I didn't know what I was afraid of. I have often wondered how Gollum could have acquired the Ring of Domination so easily, at least it seemed so at first. Then I heard the strange story of how Birbo had 'won' the ring, which I never believed in from the beginning. When I finally managed to force the truth out of him, I knew at once that he wanted the Ring for himself. Just like Gollum claimed it was his 'birthday present'. The similarity between these two lies made me feel increasingly uneasy. It was obvious that this ring had some kind of power that could affect its wielder. I warned Bilbo not to use the ring, but he ignored it, and was soon enraged. I can't do anything about it. I could not take the Ring from him by force and leave him unharmed, and I was in no position to do so. I could only watch from the sidelines and wait for the right time. I should have gone to ask Saruman for help, but my sixth sense made me hesitate.”
"Who is he?" asked Frodo. "I've never heard of this person before.”
" Maybe you really don't know," Gandalf replied. "At least until then, he didn't care about the Hobbits. But he had a very high status among the sages. He is the leader of my generation and the chairman of the parliament. He had profound knowledge, but his pride also grew with it. He hated anyone meddling in his affairs. Regardless of the size of the elven ring, it was his area of expertise. He had been studying this field for a long time, hoping to regain the knowledge to forge them. But when we argued in the Council about the power of the Ring, he was willing to reveal information about it that was the exact opposite of what I feared. My doubts were buried deep, but my uneasiness did not subside. I continued to observe the changes in the world, waiting.”
"Birbo doesn't seem to be affected. Year after year, his appearance did not seem to have been eroded by time. My heart was once again shrouded by a shadow. But then I said to myself,'After all, his mother's side has a long-lived bloodline. There was still time. Wait patiently!'"
"I continued to wait. Until that night when he left the house. His actions filled my heart with fear that Saruman's words could not suppress. I finally confirmed that a deadly evil force was operating behind the scenes. Since then, I've spent most of my time searching for the truth behind it.”
"Will this cause permanent damage?”asked Frodo nervously. "He will slowly recover, right? I mean, he could at least live a peaceful life, right?”
"He felt better at once," said Gandalf. "However, there is only one faction in this world that knows all the information about the rings and their influence. As far as I know, there is no power in this world that has a thorough understanding of the Hobbits. I was the only one among the sages who was willing to study the history of the Hobbits. Although it was considered trivial, it was full of surprises. Sometimes they were as weak as water, but sometimes they were as hard as steel. I believe that this race might be able to resist the influence of the One Ring for a long time. I don't think you need to worry about Birbo.”
"Indeed, he had the Ring for many years and used it before. The aftereffects might take a long time to disappear. For example, it was best not to let him see this ring again to avoid serious consequences. In this way, he should be able to live happily for many years, unlike when he gave up the Ring. It was because he had given up on the Lord of the Rings with his own willpower, which was very important. After he let go, I stopped worrying about Birbo. I feel responsible for you.”
"I've been worried about you ever since Bilbo left this place, worried about you happy, fun, helpless hobbits. If the dark forces conquer the Shire; What if all of you considerate, understanding, and naive Borg, Trumpeteer, Boffin, and Embracing families, not to mention the famous Baggins, were all enslaved by the power of evil?”
Frodo shuddered. "How is that possible?" he asked. "Why would he want slaves like us?”
" To tell the truth," replied Gandalf," I believe that so far, remember, so far, he has ignored the existence of the Hobbits. You should be grateful for this. But your peaceful days are over. He does not need you. He has all kinds of cruel and fierce servants, but he will not forget your existence. A suffering hobbit slave would be more to his liking than a free and happy hobbit. There were indeed pure evil thoughts and the obsession for revenge in this world!”
"Revenge?" asked Frodo. "What revenge? I still don't understand what this has to do with Bilbo and me, and our rings.”
" All of this originated from that ring," Gandalf said. "You haven't encountered a real crisis yet, but it's about to happen. I wasn't too sure the last time I came here, but the situation has proven everything. Give me the ring first."
Frodo took out from his trouser pocket the ring he had tied to his belt. He let go of the lotus and slowly handed it to the wizard. The Ring suddenly became very heavy, as if it or Frodo did not want Gandalf to touch it.
Gandaph accepted the ring. It looked like something made of pure gold. "Can you see any markings on it?”he asked.
"No," said Frodo. "There's nothing up there. The design of the ring was very simple, and it would never have any scratches or signs of fading.”
"Then you'll see!" What happened next shocked Frodo. The wizard suddenly threw the ring into the furnace. Frodo cried out and tried to pick up the poker to pick up the ring, but Gandalf stopped him.
"Wait!" he said in an authoritative voice, with a look at Frodo.
There was no obvious change to the ring. After a while, Gandalf stood up, closed the window, and drew the curtains. The room went dark and silent; the only sound was the sound of Sam's shears working closer and closer to the window. The wizard looked at the fire and took it out with a pair of tongs. Frodo gasped.
"It's still cold," said Gandalf. "Take it!" Frodo's little hand took the ring. The ring seemed to have become much thicker than before.
"Pick it up!" said Gandalf. "Look carefully!"
As Frodo did so, he saw that the inside and the outside of the Ring were marked with the most minute marks, more detailed than any man's brush; The flame-like handwriting seemed to form some kind of flamboyant writing. They emitted a dazzling light, but it was out of reach, as if they were flames from the depths of the earth.
"I can't read these glowing words," said Frodo in a quavering voice.
"I know," said Gandalf,"but I understand. These are ancient Elven words, but they are written in the dialect of Mordor, and I do not wish to read them aloud here. But translated into the common language, it meant:
All the Ring belongs to the Lord,
The Lord guides the Rings,
The Ring of Power summons all the rings,
The rings merged into the darkness.
These were four lines extracted from a poem passed down by the elves since ancient times.
The Three Commandments belong to the Fairy King of Light Heaven,
The seven precepts must belong to the underground dwarf emperor,
The nine precepts are given to those of the mortal realm,
The Ring belongs to the Dark King,
Mordor, Nvyao, the realm of shadows.
All the Ring belongs to the Lord,
The Lord guides the Rings,
The Ring of Power summons all the rings,
All the rings are one in the darkness,
Mordor, Nvyao Realm, Shadow Concealment."
He paused for a moment, then said in an extremely deep voice,"This is the Lord of the Rings, the One Ring that rules over all the other rings. This was the Ring he had lost countless eras ago, which greatly weakened his power. He must have the Ring, but we must not let him.”
Frodo did not say a word, but sat motionless. Fear seemed to have gripped him with a huge hand, like a dark cloud rising from the east. "This…this ring!" he stammered. "How, how could it fall into my hands?”
"Ah!" said Gandalf. The story began in the Dark Ages, and only the most knowledgeable historians remembered this period of history. If I had to tell you the whole story, we might sit here from spring to winter.”
"However, last night, I mentioned to you about the Dark Demon Lord Sauron. The rumors you have heard are true: he has indeed risen again, leaving his dwelling in Gloomy Jungle and returning to his ancient Dark Tower in Mordor Fortress. I believe even you Hobbits have heard of this name. It is like the legendary evil place that contains all darkness. No matter how many times it was defeated, the specter would transform into another form and begin to grow again.”
"I hope it never happens," said Frodo.
" I hope not," Gandalf said." All those who were forced into this era would never want to encounter such a situation. However, the evolution of the world was not something they could decide. All we can decide is how to use the precious time we have to prepare. Frodo, the shadow of history has begun to fall upon the river. The Demon King's power was constantly increasing. I believe that his scheme is not mature yet, but it is not far away. We must do our best to prevent this from happening. Even if we don't grasp this terrifying opportunity, we must do everything we can to stop him.”
" To destroy all his enemies, crush the last line of defense, and let darkness descend upon the earth once again, the Demon King only lacks a treasure that can give him knowledge and power. The Ring was not in his hands.”
" The three Elven Kings with unparalleled beauty and virtue and the three Ruling Rings are not in his sphere of influence. His evil and ambition have never contaminated them. The royal dwarven family had seven magic rings. He had already found three of them, and the rest had been devoured by the dragon. He gave the other nine rings to the nine humans who had made great contributions, and imprisoned them. In ancient times, they had succumbed to the power of the One Ring and became Ringwraiths. They were Specters that obeyed the orders of the Demon King and were his most terrifying and powerful servants. The nine Ring Spirits had disappeared from this world for a very long time. But who could be sure of their whereabouts? When the Specter expanded again, they might appear again. Don't talk about this topic anymore! Even in the morning light of the Shire, their names should not be mentioned easily.”
"The current situation is like this: he has already taken back the nine precepts, and the remaining seven precepts have also been subdued by him. The three elves were still out of his control. However, this problem no longer bothered him. He only needed to retrieve the One Ring that he had forged with his own hands. When he was forging the ring, he had poured most of his magic power into the ring so that he could control all the other rings. If he had found the Ring, he would be able to command the Rings again; Even the Elven King's three magic rings were no exception. All their strength and deployment would be exposed to him, and he would obtain unprecedented power.”
"This is the crisis we face, but it is also a turning point, Frodo. He believed that the One Ring had been destroyed by the Elves; I also hope that this is true. But now, he knew that the One Ring had not been destroyed and had reappeared. He had put in all his effort just to find this ring. All his thoughts were focused on it. This is his greatest opportunity and also our greatest crisis.”
"Why, why didn't they destroy the Ring?”shouted Frodo. "If the Demon King is so powerful and this is so precious to him, why did he lose this ring?”He clutched the Ring as if he could already see the claws of darkness reaching for him.
"The ring was taken from him," said Gandalf. " In ancient times, the elves were even more powerful against him than they are now, and not all humans were estranged from the elves. The humans of the Western Royal Family had come to support them in their fight against the Demon King. This was a history worth recalling. Although darkness was imminent and the flames of war were everywhere, great achievements, heroic battles, and deeds were enough to turn the situation around. Perhaps, one day, I will tell you the whole story, or let someone who knows this history in detail personally tell you.”
"I'll tell you everything you need to know. This will save a lot of time. The ones who overthrew Sauron's tyranny were the Elf King Gilgarad and the Western Royal Family, Elendil, but both of them also died in battle. Elendil's son, Isildur, cut off Sauron's ring and took it for himself. Soran's body was reduced to ashes, and his soul was hidden for a long time before he was reincarnated in Gloomy Jungle.”
"But the Ring was lost at the same time. It fell into the great river Anduin and disappeared without a trace. At that time, Isildur was marching along the river bank. When he arrived at the Gradon Plain, he was ambushed by the Orc army. Almost all his subordinates died on the spot. He jumped into the river, but the Ring slipped as he was swimming, and the orc who found him shot him dead on the spot.”
Gandaph stopped. " Just like that, the Ring fell into the dark mud of the Gradon Plain," he said." It retired from the stage of history and legend. There were only a few people who knew about its origins, and the Sage Council could not learn more. But at least, I think I can continue the story.”
" A long time later, but still a long time ago, there lived a group of nimble little fellows on the banks of the great river and the great wasteland. I guessed that they were related to the Hobbits, possibly the same blood as Stuart's ancestors, because they loved rivers and often swam in them, building small boats or bamboo rafts to sail on them. Among them, there was a family with a very high status. Not only was this family prosperous, but their financial resources were also unparalleled. Legend had it that the ruler of this family was a wise and stern old grandmother. The most curious boy in the family was called Smeagol. He liked to get to the bottom of everything. He would dive into deep pools, he would dig holes under tree roots and plants, he would explore all kinds of caves. He no longer looked at the top of the mountain, nor did he pay attention to the trees or the fragrance of flowers in the air. His gaze and attention were focused on the soles of his feet.”
"He's got a friend like him, Dego. He's got sharp eyes, but he's not as fast or as strong as Smeagol. One day, they carried a small boat and went boating on the Gradon Plain. Smeagol went to the shore to explore, while Dego sat in the boat fishing. Suddenly a large fish swallowed Dego's hook and dragged him to the bottom of the river before he could react. He thought he saw something shiny on the riverbed, so he let go of the line and held his breath, trying to pick it up.”
"Then, his head was full of water grass and mud, and he swam ashore in a sorry state. Unexpectedly, when he washed away the mud on his hand, he found that it was a beautiful gold ring. It reflected an alluring light under the sun, making his heart flutter. But at this moment, Smeagol was hiding behind a tree and looking at him. When Dego was staring at the ring, Smeagol walked up behind him silently.”
"'Give me that thing, old friend Dego,'Smeagol said to his friend.”
"'Why?' said Dego."
"'Because it's my birthday and I want presents,'said Smeagol.”
"'I don't care about you,'said Dego.‘I've already spent a lot of money to buy you a present. I found it, so it should be mine.'”
"'Oh, really, old friend,'Smeagol grabbed him and strangled him to death. Finally, he put the ring on his finger.”
"No one knew what happened to Dego after that. He was killed far away from home, and his body was hidden well. Smeagol went home alone and found that no one could see him when he wore the ring. This made him very happy, so he did not reveal this matter to anyone. He used this ability to inquire about all the secrets and information that could benefit him. His eyes and flower began to be extremely sensitive to the things that others had on them. The Ring bestowed upon him the power equal to his nature. No wonder he soon became so unpopular, ostracized by all his relatives (when he was not invisible). They would kick him, and he would bite them. He began to steal, talking to himself, making strange noises in his throat. They called him Gollum and cursed him and told him to get lost. In order to avoid conflict, his grandmother drove him out of the family residence.”
"He wandered alone, occasionally crying for the cruelty of this world. He strolled along the river and finally came to a stream flowing down the mountain. He continued to walk along the stream. He used his invisible fingers to catch fresh fish in the pond and ate them raw to satisfy his hunger. One hot day, he was fishing in the pond. The hot sun shone on his back, and the reflection in the pool made his tears flow. As he had lived in the dark for a long time, he had almost forgotten about the sun. He raised his fist and cursed the sun for the last time.”
" When he lowered his head, he found that he was in front of the Misty Mountains, where the stream originated. He suddenly thought,'It must be very cool at the foot of the mountain. The sun won't shine on me anymore. There must be many secrets that had never been discovered at the bottom of the mountain.'”
"Just like that, he went out during the day and rushed to the higher ground at night. He found the cave where the stream flowed out. He crawled into the mountains like a maggot and disappeared from the records of history. The Lord of the Rings followed suit and disappeared into the darkness. Even if its creator had been reborn, he would not be able to sense its existence.”
"Gollum!" shouted Frodo. "Gollum? Don't tell me you're talking about that Gollum Birbo met? This is too evil!"
"I think it's a sad story," said the wizard."It could have happened to anyone else, even the hobbits I know.”
" I don't believe Gollum and the Hobbits are related, no matter how close they are," Frodo said excitedly. "This is too insulting!"
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