Chapter 37

For a moment, Lu Yu thought he had gone blind.

He blinked his eyes, and the blurry darkness in front of him gradually became clearer, revealing the rough outline of uneven stones. Is this… a cave?

“Hiss—” Lu Yu let out a soft groan.

As his vision cleared, the sensation of pain returned to his body. Immediately, he felt the intense pain on his side. Lu Yu reached out his hand and lightly touched his waist. It was sticky with blood.

The bitten wound was still there, and even a slight touch caused excruciating pain, making him feel like passing out immediately.

However, it seemed that the red medicine he had stuffed into his mouth before passing out had worked, otherwise, he would have bled to death already.

Thinking of this, Lu Yu took out a few more red medicines from his ring and swallowed them.

After taking the medicine and feeling slightly relieved, Lu Yu was able to divert his attention from the pain and think about his current situation.

The lion had brought him here, but for some reason, it didn’t immediately eat him. Instead, it left him alone in this cave.

Lu Yu sat up, supporting himself with his body, and looked around.

The cave seemed quite deep, and the entrance appeared to be blocked by weeds or something similar, which was why it seemed so dark when he woke up.

It looked like a natural cave with no signs of human habitation, but the smell of beasts was heavy, and there were some broken bones and meat in the corners of the cave.

Lu Yu frowned.

Could this be the secret base of that bald lion?

On second thought, how did that bald lion discover him?

Lu Yu was not good at fighting, but when it came to hiding, he was quite skilled. He could lie motionless in one place for a long time, covered in thick grass clothes and using a special grass juice to mask his scent.

With this set of skills, even before encountering the Matai people, he had never been directly found by wild beasts like this…

Forget it, it’s not the time to think about this now. It’s better to leave quickly.

Before leaving, Lu Yu glanced at his wound.

He didn’t know if it was because his injury was too severe, but the wound that would normally be completely healed with just one red medicine required him to take several, and although the wound had shrunk significantly, it had not fully recovered, and the pain still persisted.

Oh well.

Lu Yu took a deep breath and got up from the ground, heading towards the cave entrance.

Perhaps today he had fallen victim to Murphy’s Law (Means: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong).

The more one worries about a certain situation, the more likely it is to happen. Lu Yu had barely taken two steps when he heard the sound of a beast moving at the entrance of the cave.

Lu Yu’s heart sank. The bald lion had returned!

Gritting his teeth, Lu Yu didn’t believe for a moment that the despicable lion would spare him, no matter why it hadn’t eaten him directly earlier. For now, he could only fight it out.

Lu Yu was not the type to sit and wait for death, but in this moment…

From his ring, Lu Yu took out a stone spear and a piece of armor dropped by a wild beast. The armor was a leather vest, offering better protection than the tough grass clothes he had initially brought from the Beast Plains, which was given to him by Qiuguang. Originally intended for the hunting team, Tai Lie insisted on giving it to him…

Tai Lie…

Lu Yu’s hand tightened around the armor, but it was not the time to dwell on it. He quickly put on the vest, tightly gripped the stone spear, and aimed it at the cave entrance…

—

Tai Lie led the Matai people to the place where Lu Yu disappeared. Pointing at the giant rock, Cheng Ping said with a slightly breathless voice, “Chief, it’s here.”

Tai Lie knelt down and picked up a piece of blood-stained leaf from the messy grass and branches on the ground.

Xia Cao looked at the leaf with a mixture of urgency and pain in her heart. “Is Witch injured?”

Veins bulged from Tai Lie’s arm to his back.

His mind was filled with scenes of Lu Yu being injured. He was originally weak, no less pain-sensitive than others. If he was injured, he wouldn’t know how to endure the pain…

For the first time, Tai Lie felt pain.

Not physical pain, but heartache.

The thought of that gentle person who smiled all day lying in a place he couldn’t see, covered in blood, and even attacked by wild beasts…

Tai Lie’s violent temper was about to be suppressed, and bloodshot veins rushed into his pupils.

“Chief, you…” Xia Cao saw more and more bloodstains on Tai Lie’s body, his complexion deepening, feeling anxious in her heart.

“I’m fine.” Tai Lie forcibly suppressed the desire to destroy in his heart, his voice as cold as ice. He picked up a golden long hair stuck to the leaf and twisted it. “It’s from a lion.”

Cheng Ping stepped forward and affirmed, “Yes! We came today to hunt a group of lions! It’s very likely that one of them found Witch and took him away!” Saying this, Cheng Ping felt very regretful.

They should have left someone to protect Witch. If anything happened to Witch, it would be their fault.

Tai Lie stood up and ordered, “Everyone, disperse and search for the lions.”

The Matai people roared, “Yes!!”

Xia Cao hesitated and asked, “Chief, what if…”

Tai Lie knew what she wanted to say and said expressionlessly, “If we still can’t find him, kill all the wild beasts here, one by one. We’ll find him eventually.”

Xia Cao nodded solemnly.

Not only Tai Lie, but they wouldn’t give up if they couldn’t find Witch. Witch had healing pills on him and would definitely hold on until they came to rescue him.

It must be like this.

At this moment, Xia Cao didn’t want to consider the worst outcome and could only firmly believe that Witch would surely strive to survive…

—

Lu Yu was indeed striving to survive.

Just as he finished gearing up, a large male lion stepped in.

Although the light was dim, Lu Yu still recognized the lion as the bald one.

Lu Yu gripped the stone spear tightly, bent down, and stared at the lion’s movements without blinking.

The lion also spotted Lu Yu.

It seemed puzzled; how could the person it had seemingly killed come back to life?

“Roar—” The lion stopped and let out a low growl.

Perhaps the sharp stone spear in Lu Yu’s hand had some effect; the bald lion didn’t immediately pounce.

Lu Yu didn’t relax his vigilance, his nerves stretched to the limit.

He knew he had only one chance.

If the lion pounced on him and he failed to stab it in a vital spot with the stone spear, but instead got bitten again, he would definitely lose his ability to resist.

The stone spear didn’t intimidate the sharp-eyed lion for too long. After a while, the lion roared and leaped towards Lu Yu.

Perfect timing!

Like a wolf, lions were known for their “copper head, iron mouth, tofu waist.” The only vulnerable spot was the eyes, but even if they were hit, it could only be once. Other areas, such as the fur, were probably impenetrable, leaving only the waist and belly.

Almost as soon as the lion moved, Lu Yu leaned backward, raising the stone spear and stabbing upward fiercely.

At that moment, the bald lion was about to leap above him, and the stone spear pierced into its belly.

Lu Yu felt relieved.

Got it!

But before he could rejoice for more than two seconds, he found that the stone spear had only pierced a small hole and couldn’t go in any further.

Lu Yu:…

What’s this all about!

Was his spear too lousy, or did this lion have armor on? This was too much!

No time to think about it, Lu Yu quickly slid forward.

The bald lion landed gracefully on all fours, shook its fur, and turned around leisurely.

Seeing its relaxed demeanor, Lu Yu almost thought that he had just scratched it.

Lu Yu swallowed hard, clutching the seemingly useless stone spear, and moved backward in small steps.

The bald lion scratched its face with its claws, let out a low growl, and pounced again.

This time, it lowered its leap height, obviously not giving Lu Yu a chance to slip away from below.

Close combat with a long stone spear was suicidal. Lu Yu didn’t hesitate to throw away the spear and fight the lion bare-handed.

Thanks to his training in the dream training ground the night before, he could keep up with the lion for a while. However, soon enough, he was pinned down by the lion.

Lu Yu grabbed the lion’s neck with his hands, watching the gaping jaws getting closer and closer, feeling a chill in his heart.

“Tai Lie!!!”

The forest was suddenly filled with the fluttering of birds.

Tai Lie abruptly raised his head and looked ahead.

“Lu Yu…”

Tai Lie’s muscles tensed, and he rushed forward suddenly.

Ignoring all the thorns and grass, even if his skin was scratched and he stepped on sharp stones, his speed didn’t slow down at all.

After Lu Yu shouted, his strength gradually waned. He watched as the despicable lion was about to bite his neck. Anger surged within Lu Yu, and he fiercely bit the lion’s front leg.

Even if he died, he would take a chunk of flesh from this lion. Tai Lie and the others would definitely come looking for him. When they found human bite marks on the lion’s leg, they would know who the culprit was!

Thinking of Tai Lie, Lu Yu’s heart felt a pang. In the morning, he was deliberately avoiding Tai Lie, but now unexpectedly, he was the one he longed for the most.

It wasn’t because he was taken away by a beast while hunting with Tai Lie that he missed him, but rather, if he died, Tai Lie might really be… sad…

He couldn’t imagine what Tai Lie looked like when he was sad. Before, when Xia Cao mentioned the night ten years ago, Tai Lie was more furious than sad due to his innate personality. However, Lu Yu just felt that if he died, Tai Lie would be sad…

Actually, if he were a woman, he might have accepted Tai Lie long ago.

Well, even as a man…

At this moment, Lu Yu didn’t want to deliberately suppress the faint feeling in his heart anymore.

He really didn’t dislike Tai Lie.

When a man confesses to you, you feel only shy and nervousness in your heart, not disgust. What does this mean?

He actually understood, but he had never experienced it before, and he was really at a loss…

Coming out with Shan Pu and the others today, he wanted to sort out his emotions and feelings, but he didn’t expect to encounter this kind of thing.

Maybe, it was just not meant to be…

Damn it, fate, fate. He had crossed from the 23rd century to this godforsaken primitive society. How could there be no fate!

Thinking of this, Lu Yu suddenly felt very angry.

He exerted force with his mouth, his teeth clamped down, and he bit off a chunk directly, flesh and skin included.

Just as he was about to spit it out, he paused.

Wait a minute, why does the taste of this lion meat seem strange, like I’ve eaten it somewhere before…

In the blink of an eye, Lu Yu’s mind was enlightened, and he suddenly remembered—he had indeed eaten it!

Just a second before he was transported here, he was tasting a strange dish prepared by a contestant. He still remembered the taste. It wasn’t as bloody as this, but the texture was exactly the same.

Speaking of which, after eating that piece of meat, he…

Crossed!