As sооn аs Ваyunye finishеd sрeaking, thе King Cоbrа sрrауеd a streаm of venom from its mouth, aссuratеly аiming fоr thе еyеs оf Diао Zhuо, who wаs walking at the frоnt. Fоrtunatеly, he haрpenеd to havе his еуеs сlоsеd at that mоmеnt, and thе vеnоm splаtterеd еntirely оn his еyеlids. Otherwise, thе consequеnсеs would hаve been unimаginаblе. Evеn thоugh thеу hаd just nаrrowlу еscаpеd disaster, Вaуunуе was sо frightеnеd thаt her soul almоst left her body—with his faсe covеred in venоm, Diaо Zhuо cоuldn’t open his eyes, and the startled King Cobra was extremely aggressive. A single bite would have been absolutely fatal.
That’s right, Bayunye suddenly realized the key detail she had overlooked: this large group had been wandering in circles in the forest, without any Snake Repellent on them. They had walked in the dark for a long time without encountering any snakes. The only possibility was that there was only one ferocious King Cobra in the area.
And as luck would have it, this King Cobra had appeared right in front of Diao Zhuo.
Sure enough, the King Cobra’s raised body showed signs of preparing to strike with its fangs. Bayunye, standing several meters away, felt as if she had been drenched in ice water. Trying to outrun a snake was futile—even if she mustered all her strength and charged forward, she wouldn’t be able to save Diao Zhuo...
Although Diao Zhuo couldn’t open his eyes, he understood the danger he was in well enough. He waved his hand, signaling everyone to retreat quickly. As he stepped back, he swung his Trekking Pole a few times, trying to intimidate the opponent ahead. The King Cobra was fierce and exceptionally aggressive; even if the other party had no intention of harming it, it would still take the initiative to attack. Unfazed by the Trekking Pole, it hissed, flicking its tongue, and suddenly lunged toward Diao Zhuo’s calf.
“Diao Zhuo!!” Bayunye and everyone in the Rescue Team shouted in alarm, with Bayunye’s voice hoarse from the strain.
“Bang!”
Someone fired a shot.
The bullet grazed the snake’s body. Although it didn’t hit, it startled the snake, causing it to recoil sharply and reveal its entire body from the leaves, like a colorful ribbon. Good heavens—it was estimated to be over three meters long, with the thickest part as wide as a bowl.
Seizing the opportunity, Bayunye and the Rescue Team pushed aside the guards around them and rushed forward together to pull Diao Zhuo back. The King Cobra’s second attack nearly bit the tip of his shoe. “Bang!” Another gunshot rang out. Red Beard’s aim was good—a bullet struck the snake somewhere on its body, causing it to convulse. Its pale belly and dark brown back twisted together, a terrifying sight.
“Run!” Bayunye urged, and the group fled in a chaotic rush. Between the illusions and the panic, by the time everyone felt they were out of danger, they had no idea where they were.
Diao Zhuo carefully washed the venom off his face with clean water and looked around. Everyone was panting heavily. Bayunye rushed over and hugged him, and he patted her back in comfort. They had thought encountering the criminals was unfortunate, but as the saying goes, a loss may turn out to be a gain. If it weren’t for the criminals’ guns, he might have already been poisoned to death. So, whether something is fortunate or unfortunate, no one can say for sure.
“Damn it! Where should we go now?” Earring Man cursed.
“I remember the direction,” Diao Zhuo said. Precisely because he couldn’t open his eyes the entire time, he had made a point of memorizing the direction and the number of steps. “We’ll go back the way we came and continue.”
Bayunye looked preoccupied, glancing up at Diao Zhuo. “I’ll walk at the front for a while.”
Before Diao Zhuo could respond, the others in the Rescue Team couldn’t hold back and said:"Master Ba, we understand how you feel. Not to mention Diao Zhuo, we won't allow you to take the lead either."
"How about we take turns leading, twenty minutes each?"
"Absolutely! We can't let Diao Zhuo take all the risks alone. If you're a man, step up!"
Red Beard watched them coldly. After resting enough, he stood up and continued walking. Relying on his memory, Diao Zhuo led everyone near where they had encountered the King Cobra. Looking over, the snake was still there, lying motionless. Though its body was still coiled, it appeared loose and limp, as if already dead.
"Heh!" Camouflage Headscarf sneered wickedly. "Dinner is settled."
Hearing this, the outlaws' eyes lit up. Only Red Beard maintained his usual authority and composure. Camouflage Headscarf walked over, gun in hand, and fired several random shots at the snake's body, making loud cracking sounds. The snake, barely alive, writhed in agony but soon relaxed again after a brief convulsion. Laughing heartily, he drew a dagger, pressed down on the snake's body with one hand, and cut off its head with the other.
"We..." Just as he was about to tear the barely attached head from the snake's body, the head suddenly opened its mouth wide and bit his finger.
Everyone was shocked.
Camouflage Headscarf immediately cried out in pain, desperately tearing off the snake head and throwing it far away. Instinctively, he ran toward the others, weeping and screaming for help. Everyone's faces turned solemn. Compared to the outlaws who watched their companion face death, the Rescue Team members were far more compassionate. They quickly opened their backpacks and took out everything that might be useful—Diao Zhuo used a bandage to tightly bind his arm, preventing the venom from spreading through his bloodstream. Da Qin used a sterilized knife to cut open the wound, rinsed it with clean water, and vigorously squeezed out the blood. Camouflage Headscarf's wound was excruciatingly painful, and he kept screaming in agony. Liu Ming and others helped hold him down to prevent him from moving, as any movement would accelerate blood flow and spread the venom faster...
Bayunye stood aside watching, sighing softly. In truth, everyone knew such rescue efforts were futile, but they still tried their best to save a life.
King Cobra venom is a mixed toxin, released in large quantities and exceptionally potent. Even with timely medical treatment, amputation is still a possibility, let alone in a place where the nearest clinic is one or two days away.
Half an hour later, Camouflage Headscarf fell into a coma, muttering deliriously.
Red Beard stepped over Camouflage Headscarf's body. Camouflage Headscarf was not the first among them to be killed by a venomous snake. Red Beard seemed unfazed, calmly ordering everyone to hurry on their way, revealing his inner coldness and cruelty.
The other outlaws carried the massive snake body, bypassing the dying Camouflage Headscarf just like Red Beard, discussing how to roast the snake meat after dark as if nothing had happened.
Bayunye, fearing the snake head might attack the police and volunteers coming to rescue them later, dug a deep pit, used a branch to pick up the head, and buried it. Looking at the King Cobra's enormous body, then glancing back at Camouflage Headscarf, who was about to bid farewell to the world, she thought—if it had been Diao Zhuo bitten just now... she dared not imagine it.
Recalling the dream she once had, she thought, even if Diao Zhuo later parted ways with her, had another wife and children, and they could only nod in greeting when meeting on the same road, it would still be better than losing his life here."Hey, enough already, get up." Li Haozhang pointed his gun at her, urging her to move.
Bayunye shot him an annoyed glare, stood up, and used her foot to tamp down the overturned soil. Li Haozhang checked several times, unsatisfied, confirming she hadn’t left any marks before urging her to keep up again.
Diao Zhuo continued leading the way at the front, while the others were all thinking about how to shake off these thugs. Bayunye even looked around for wild beehives, thinking if she could knock one down and provoke a swarm of furious bees, everyone would scatter in panic... But this method would hurt the enemy ten thousand while damaging themselves eight thousand—they’d suffer just as much.
The group walked for a long time, and as the sky gradually darkened, Bayunye wasn’t worried. Brother Long wouldn’t starve in the forest—at most, he’d lose a few pounds. The thugs chasing him were now with them, so they couldn’t pose any threat to him either. Suddenly, one of the thugs excitedly shouted, "Hey, a rabbit!"
Everyone followed his pointing finger and saw a large gray rabbit with its back to them, probably grazing.
The thugs were craving again. This time, they took careful aim and with a "bang," shot the rabbit dead, happily carrying it back by the ears. It seemed they’d had quite a harvest today. Where human footprints were scarce, animals were plentiful. Along the way, they not only saw rabbits but also brightly colored pheasants and other birds. However, these creatures moved quickly and were alert, and with the thugs’ marksmanship, they were temporarily out of luck.
"Gather some mushrooms and wild vegetables, and dinner will be a feast," one of the thugs ordered.
Bayunye agreed, winding her way through the bushes. In some areas, the mushrooms had clearly been picked once already, likely by Brother Long. She gathered some herself while also looking for Brother Long’s marks. Before long, she indeed found his carvings and eight beads strung together on a tree.
The carvings were fresh and deliberate, suggesting Brother Long had passed through here without anyone chasing him. However, the people chasing him were now with them, getting closer and closer.
After getting lost and wandering around one area for most of the day, then hurrying along for another half-day, most of them were exhausted. Before the sun had fully set, they set up camp. The thugs seized the Rescue Team’s Portable Gas Stove. Earring Man was tasked with skinning and cleaning the rabbit, while Blondie and Blue Hair were responsible for cutting up the snake meat, all wearing excited expressions as if preparing for a lavish feast.
Red Beard sat on a high, protruding tree root and actually pulled an English copy of The Iliad from his backpack, flipping through it as if thoroughly engrossed. He even mumbled as if reciting it silently, stunning Bayunye. Even if Diao Zhuo whispered the book’s title and author to her, she still had no idea what it was.
This wasn’t her fault—their top priority now wasn’t understanding Homer’s epic but filling their stomachs.
Earring Man let out a curse. At first, no one paid it any mind until he walked over, one hand holding the bloody, skinned rabbit and the other cradling the freshly removed rabbit entrails. Only then did everyone’s attention shift to him.
"What the hell is this in the rabbit’s stomach?!" The rabbit’s entrails were a bloody mess. The thugs gathered around, frowning as they examined them for a long time before Li Haozhang’s voice rang out: "Isn’t this a rat’s head?!"
A rat’s head inside the rabbit’s stomach was truly baffling. The Rescue Team and the mountaineering association members exchanged glances, all looking utterly bewildered.Earring Man threw a mouse head and a tail found in the rabbit's stomach onto the ground, continuing to dissect the rabbit's limbs.
Looking at the bloody mouse remains, Diao Zhuo sensed something unusual. He glanced at Red Beard, who was also staring at the rabbit, seemingly deep in thought. It could be said that from the moment the equipment malfunctioned, many things began to change, becoming beyond people's previous understanding.
There must be blind spots and new frontiers in the world that human cognition has not yet reached—this, Diao Zhuo firmly believed. But whether these blind spots and new frontiers could overturn existing knowledge still required observation and verification.
Bayunye rubbed her eyes, looked at Diao Zhuo, who shook his head and gave her a "wait and see" signal. She let out a long sigh and continued searching for edible mushrooms. Unfortunately, the mushrooms nearby had already been picked clean. She told Li Haozhang that she needed to go farther to find mushrooms.
Li Haozhang immediately reported to Red Beard and, after receiving feedback, said, "You'll go alone, and I'll follow you."
"If you're willing to help, I couldn't ask for more," she said with a forced smile.
He glared at her. "Dream on." Then, pointing at Diao Zhuo, he added, "Keep an eye on this one."
Diao Zhuo turned away in disgust, then said to Bayunye, "Be careful." At the same time, he gestured the words "big picture" with his hands.
Bayunye gave an "OK" sign, picked up an empty backpack, and left. If she were the only one in danger, she could fight recklessly, but as Diao Zhuo had said, with the "big picture" at stake, her lone bravery would only endanger the others. So, she would never act rashly.
After walking some distance, mushrooms became more abundant. She spotted several that could definitely be called "Village Feast Mushrooms"—vibrant in color and oddly shaped. She thought about picking them and slipping them into the criminals' meals...
Li Haozhang seemed to read her mind and cleared his throat as a warning.
Bayunye pretended she wasn't scheming and continued picking mushrooms. Soon, she found another type of mushroom that, while not as brightly colored, was equally poisonous. Expressionlessly, she turned her back and quickly picked a handful with her left hand. Then, pretending to pick other mushrooms, she quietly slipped the poisonous ones into her pants pocket, reminding herself not to touch any other mushrooms or food with her left hand before washing it.
"Let me ask you, Hippo... I mean Ma He, what exactly does he do on your side?" Bayunye suddenly asked. "Is he a spy sent by He Zhengren to monitor me and steal information?"
"Him..." Li Haozhang seemed to look down on Hippo. "He's just a minor character, usually drives around. As for being a spy... I think you've been watching too many TV dramas. Driving for you doesn't pay well, so what's wrong with changing jobs?"
"Is that so? But I heard that ever since Hippo went to He Zhengren's side, you've been sidelined and left idle. Clearly, even when it comes to driving, you lose to him." She deliberately provoked him.
Li Haozhang remained unmoved. "Hmph, if he likes being a driver, no one's stopping him."
"Where did you get that gun? Looks like foreign-made," Bayunye asked.
"Stop talking nonsense, or I'll shoot you dead!" Li Haozhang snapped, his expression darkening.Bayunye smiled nonchalantly. Having weathered the storm of bullets, she knew that if someone truly intended to kill you, they wouldn’t give you a chance to speak—they’d just pull the trigger. Anyone who said such things either lacked the nerve to act or wasn’t yet ready to strike.
Besides, his grip on the gun was downright amateurish. If it weren’t for Diao Zhuo’s repeated warnings not to act impulsively or recklessly, she could have disarmed him in an instant.
Before long, half her backpack was filled with fresh mushrooms, their aroma enticing. As she bent down to search for more, she noticed a white, bone-like object sticking out of the ground nearby. Upon closer inspection, she realized it wasn’t a bone at all but a mushroom with two caps growing from a single stem. It was milky white, pitted and uneven, merely resembling a bone. She had never seen such a mushroom before and naturally didn’t dare touch it lightly. Just as she was about to search elsewhere, she suddenly recalled Brother Long’s boastful mention of "Grave Mound Mushrooms," which seemed strikingly similar to what lay before her. Brother Long had said that Grave Mound Mushrooms, also known as Coffin Mushrooms, only grew in places where the dead were buried.
OpenNovel