Chapter 36

The heavy panting of the beast came from behind, accompanied by a strong smell of blood, as if one could imagine its sharp, white fangs dripping with saliva.

“Gurgle gurgle…” The sound from the beast’s throat approached oppressively bit by bit.

Fear surged through Lu Yu in an instant, a layer of cold sweat suddenly broke out on his back, and his body became extremely stiff.

Lu Yu slowly turned around.

A giant lion with eyes like bronze bells was walking towards him step by step.

Lu Yu had laughed before at the bald patch on this lion, but now he found it terrifying.

Lu Yu’s throat felt dry, and his face turned pale.

Somehow, this lion had discovered him and deliberately bypassed the people to come specifically for him.

It’s become a spirit.

In this situation, he really couldn’t figure out what to do. Should he run? How could he possibly outrun a lion? It seemed like his only option was to call for help loudly.

Lu Yu forced himself to calm down, took a deep breath, prepared to shout loudly, while quietly took out several red pills from his ring, ready to put them in his mouth to resist for a while.

Hope this bald lion doesn’t bite his head off…

Just as Lu Yu opened his mouth, the lion, which had just been leisurely approaching, suddenly backed off and pounced towards him with force, opening its huge mouth wide.

“Help—”

Before Lu Yu could finish saying the word, the lion pounced on him, and its claws, full of fur, pressed against his face, blocking the words he wanted to shout.

At this moment, Lu Yu still had a little mind to wander.

This lion—it really has become a spirit!

The next second, Lu Yu didn’t have the leisure to think about it anymore because the bald lion viciously bit into his waist, its sharp teeth piercing his flesh.

Lu Yu groaned, the intense pain spreading through his body’s nerves in an instant, causing him to involuntarily convulse.

Now, he couldn’t even make a sound.

Before losing consciousness, Lu Yu could only use all his strength to put the red pills in his mouth.

That’s all he could do…

Lu Yu was picked up by the lion and ran into the woods.

Although he didn’t know where this bald lion was taking him, it definitely wouldn’t let go of this piece of meat in its mouth.

No, he’s going to die like this. What about that person…

Lu Yu’s vision gradually darkened.

—

Cheng Ping’s ears twitched, and he stopped attacking, suddenly looking back.

A Matai person came to help him block the lion’s attack, not kindly saying, “Cheng Ping, what are you looking at? We’re still in a battle!”

Cheng Ping’s heart pounded faster and faster, “I feel like something’s not quite right…”

The Matai person grabbed the attacking lioness and kicked her away. “What’s wrong? Finish the fight first! Chief warned us to prioritize safety in battles, don’t waste Witch’s medicine for nothing!”

“Oh right! Witch!” Cheng Ping’s heart pounded, then suddenly stopped, “I think I heard Witch shouting just now!”

At these words, the Matai person’s face immediately changed color. He knew how sharp Cheng Ping’s ears were; he could hear very subtle sounds.

“Are you sure?” The Matai person asked urgently.

Cheng Ping started to panic, a bad feeling creeping into his heart. “I’m sure! No, I have to go back and check!”

The Matai person pushed him, “You go first! We’ll stay here and hold them off!”

Cheng Ping ran back to where Lu Yu was hiding.

The more he ran, the more something felt wrong.

In theory, Witch would definitely watch them fight.

He also recognized Witch’s grass cloak that he usually wore as a disguise.

But why, why couldn’t he see Witch now!

As Cheng Ping ran to the back, his pace gradually slowed, and he approached the rock where Lu Yu was hiding, softly calling out, “…Witch?”

There was nothing behind the rock.

Cheng Ping clenched his fists tightly, turned around, and shouted, “Witch’s gone!!!”

Hearing the shout, everyone engaged in the battle paused, “What?!!” They didn’t bother with the lions anymore and quickly defeated them, then rushed back anxiously.

The Matai people ran to Cheng Ping’s side.

They also found nothing behind the rock.

They couldn’t believe it, “Where’s Witch, where’s Witch…”

Cheng Ping had just looked around, his voice trembling, when he reached out his hand, “I searched all around, didn’t see Witch, but I saw this—” Before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted.

“I’m back!” Excited voice of Shan Pu came from behind the crowd.

Shan Pu was puzzled, “What are you all doing here? How much prey did you catch?”

Cheng Ping turned around, “Shan Pu, Witch, he…”

“Oh right!” Shan Pu pushed through the crowd, “Witch, am I awesome or what! You owe me a lot tonight…”

“Witch?” Shan Pu stared blankly at the empty space behind the rock, “Where’s Witch? Is he peeing?”

Cheng Ping knew how much Shan Pu liked Witch, gritted his teeth, “Shan Pu, Witch’s gone, we need to quickly…”

“What are you saying?” Shan Pu turned his head, looking puzzled, “What happened to Witch?”

Cheng Ping showed him the bloody leaf he found just now, “I heard Witch shout, and when I came back, Witch was gone, I only found this. Shan Pu, we need to hurry and find Witch, and also deal with this matter…”

Shan Pu stared at the leaves for a few seconds, grabbed them, and his eyes turned red as he stared at the bloodstains on them. Then he lifted his head, his face completely devoid of its usual playful demeanor, serious and calm.

“Cheng Ping, you go back and find Chief. Others, spread out and search nearby for any more bloodstains. If you find any, make sure to leave a mark.”

The crowd acknowledged and immediately started to act. Shan Pu observed the chaotic surroundings, chose a direction, and dashed out. Witch would be fine, Witch would definitely be fine. He has the red medicine; even if he’s injured, he will surely heal. As long as he runs faster, finds Witch faster, everything will be fine. As long as he runs faster.

Shan Pu tensed his muscles and pushed his calves for another burst of speed. In this full-speed sprint, his legs soon began to feel a burning pain, but he didn’t slow down in the slightest…

Cheng Ping returned to the village with the news. Because Cheng Ping and the others went hunting in a relatively distant place, the other hunting teams had already returned.

Seeing Cheng Ping, they greeted him without understanding, “Cheng Ping, how much prey did you catch today? With Witch by your side, you must have caught a lot, right? By the way, why are you alone? Where’s Witch…”

Cheng Ping didn’t answer and anxiously asked, “Where’s Chief?”

“Chief seems to be at the back, preparing the wild animals…”

Cheng Ping ran towards the back of the village.

The person scratched his head, “What’s wrong with him?”

“Don’t know.”

“But where did Witch and the others go?”

“Probably at the back…”

—

While they were hunting today, Tai Lie accidentally killed one of the red boars. Dead prey didn’t need to wait for Lu Yu to return; they could be handled immediately. Tai Lie was processing this red boar.

Knowing they had returned from the Beasts Plain, the people in the basin began to exchange meat here again.

He prepared the meat to exchange with them later. Tai Lie was meticulous, handling the wild boar mechanically, with swift and precise movements, without any wasted actions.

He stripped the meat and bones accurately. Previously, Tai Lie didn’t care much about the bones, but when he heard Lu Yu say he wanted to make soup from the bones, he paid special attention.

Whether it was small bones, big bones, or cartilage, he peeled them off and set them aside.

“Chief!!” An urgent voice came from the front.

Tai Lie frowned, raised his head, and saw Cheng Ping running towards him. “What’s the matter?”

Cheng Ping gasped for breath and urgently said, “Witch’s missing!”

Snap—

Tai Lie crushed the hard white bone in his hand, stood up, and calmly said, “What did you say?”

Cheng Ping looked at the bone, which was about to crumble, and then at Chief’s expressionless face. A sense of fear inexplicably rose in his heart.

He clenched his fists, braced himself, and said, “No one’s at the place where Witch was hiding, there are bloodstains on the ground, Shan Pu and the others have gone to search…”

Tai Lie threw away the broken bones in his hand and strode past Cheng Ping with a hoarse voice, “Gather everyone.”

“Yes.”

Cheng Ping’s voice trembled as he responded. In the instant Chief walked past him, the overwhelming pressure almost made his legs go weak. Though appearing calm, it was already suppressed to the extreme.

The last time he saw Chief like this was ten years ago, that night covered in enemies’ blood… And this time, Chief’s eyes seemed to contain more ferocity and madness.

If they couldn’t find Witch, then Chief…

Cheng Ping shivered, stopped thinking further, and quickly went to gather everyone. Upon hearing Lu Yu’s disappearance, the Matai people erupted in an instant.

“Witch’s missing?!!”

“How could this happen! Was Witch attacked by wild beasts…”

“What are you saying! No, no way…”

In their hearts, Witch not only provided them with the red medicine but also helped build the village. The gratitude and affection they felt for him couldn’t be expressed in words.

They had long regarded him as one of their own, an extremely important family member. Witch’s disappearance was like a heavy blow to them. When they thought of Witch, who was much weaker than them…

The Matai people’s eyes reddened, and they became increasingly restless. Some even began to lose control, nearing a state of frenzy, and the scene became chaotic.

“Enough!” Tai Lie’s voice boomed.

Their habitual loyalty to Chief temporarily quieted everyone down.

With a tense jawline, Tai Lie said each word deliberately, “Everyone, follow me and bring him back.”

For a second, the Matai people were silent, then they suddenly raised their arms and roared angrily, “Bring Witch back!! Bring Witch back!!”

Xia Cao frowned. “Chief, Shi Tou and Cha Zhe are still on the other side of the river…”

Tai Lie calmly ordered, “Leave one person behind to inform them when they return. Let them wait in the village.”

“Yes.”

The Matai people quickly and disciplinedly regrouped, moving rapidly towards the place where Lu Yu disappeared.

Xia Cao followed behind Tai Lie, looking worriedly at him. Just after hearing this news, apart from worrying about Witch, she immediately thought of Chief.

She thought that given Chief’s temperament and Witch’s position in his heart, Chief might completely erupt and become unstoppable.

But now, although Chief’s momentum was terrifying, he still seemed calm…

As Xia Cao was thinking this, the sight she saw the next moment caused a storm in her heart. There were thin traces of blood appearing on Tai Lie’s back muscles, forming cracks…

Xia Cao was extremely shocked. This situation only occurred when their emotions were both extremely agitated and suppressed to the extreme… Chief…

While Tai Lie was suppressing madness and the Matai people were going berserk, Lu Yu quietly opened his eyes.

What appeared before him was darkness…