Chapter 9: Fire at Me

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

"Protect me, you bastards! Where the h*ll have you gone to? Help!"

Meng Yang's hair stood on end as the pig-headed monster strode nearer and nearer toward him, emitting that murderous aura. He could see that the monster was coming for him specifically.

Meng Yang was confident that his scent was more appealing compared to the wizened old man next to him, but that was meaningless at this moment.

Meng Yang looked around quickly. He noticed that there were some clothes beside the door of the cage, from when the man was stripped. He picked them up hurriedly and tied them a knot around two particular bars in the cell. He then retreated deeper in to the cage by two steps.

Just as Meng Yang finished, the pig-headed monster arrived in front of him. A loud clang sounded as the monster shook the wooden gate with its meaty hand.

The gate was sturdy. The cloth shreds seemed to have tied the door tight, and the monster had expended a lot of its energy before—it failed to force the gate open its first attempt.

Grrr…

The pig-headed monster slammed furiously at the wooden cage twice. The cage trembled and came close to breaking. The cloth Meng Yang used was also fully shredded.

"Damn it! I'm really gonna die this time!"

Meng Yang broke out in a cold sweat. His legs turned into jelly. He plastered himself onto the back of the cage. He got a clear whiff of the monster's breath, a putrid odor smelling of rotten flesh that was more potent than the pungent stench pervading the cave.

Another loud crash.

The monster opened the cage slowly before the eyes of a terrified Meng Yang. Meng Yang looked on as the monster stuck its thick, brawny arm inside.

It looked like Meng Yang had no chance to escape, but then suddenly he heard the sound of something whooshing through the air. A fist-sized stone landed heavily on the thick skin of the monster's neck.

"Second Elder Senior, I'm back!" ¹

An arrogant and taunting voice reverberated in the cave. That voice was the most melodious song to Meng Yang at this moment.

At the entrance of the cave, Liu Chuanfeng stood arrogant, carrying several stones in his arms as he taunted the monster.

Grrr…

The pig-headed monster growled. The pain on its neck made it withdraw the arm reaching toward Meng Yang. It did not stand up and head toward Liu Chuanfeng at the entrance, though. It learned something from the prior attacks. It no longer wanted to entertain those annoying tiny creatures. Now it was ravenous. Eating its fill was its priority right now.

"Ha, it's not paying me any attention!"

Liu Chuanfeng exclaimed with surprise. He seemed careless in the way he stood, but he was actually prepared to make a run for it.

When the monster did not barrel toward him like before and opted to ignore him instead, he felt braver. He grabbed a stone and lobbed it toward the monster, hard.

Bang!

The stone landed heavily on the monster's injured eye. The severe pain angered the beast. It turned its massive head abruptly toward him and growled furiously.

This time the pig-headed monster did not rush at him either. Its gaze flitted between Meng Yang in the cage and Liu Chuanfeng at the entrance. At last, the need to satisfy its hunger came first. Its gaze locked on Meng Yang.

"You're a quick learner, huh?"

Taking note of the monster's disregard of him, Liu Chuanfeng remarked on its realistic characterization mentally. It was then when he suddenly caught a glimpse of a gudao on the ground from the corner of his eye. Ecstatic, he ran to pick it up quickly.

When everyone was equally poor and deprived of resources, they used what they could find like the thigh bone of some beast or sticks and stones they picked up somewhere. Compared to those, this gudao was practically a God-level weapon.

The pig-headed monster, which ignored him initially, erupted in fury instantly when Liu Chuanfeng picked the gudao up. It growled ferociously and stomped toward Liu Chuanfeng with heavy steps.

Liu Chuanfeng did not dare stay on the spot as the monster headed for him. He grabbed the gudao and dashed outside the cave.

The pig-headed monster was extremely furious. Getting hit a few times was nothing. Its best weapon getting snatched away was the last straw.

Under Meng Yang's expectant stare, the monster left the cages and headed out after the player who stole the gudao ran. It only made two steps before pausing on the spot, though.

It turned back angrily, its one blood-red eye honing on the caged Meng Yang, and slammed the gate shut with a bang. It then growled and stomped out in pursuit.

Meng Yang exhaled in relief when the monster lumbered out of the cave, slumping to the ground.

He had wet his pants out of terror when the pig-headed monster wanted to grab him. The despair and helplessness he felt then could measure to when he was cornered in an alley by the massive hound from next door when he was younger. He dared not shed a tear or even move.

"This pig-headed monster probably had prey that escaped before."

Meng Yang turned to look at the shut wooden gate again. He wanted to cry, but no tears came out. He had not even entertained the possibility of escaping when the monster ran out that first time, but then the monster had the presence of mind to come back and slam the door shut.

"Young man, we probably won't be this lucky the next time around."

While Meng Yang was rubbing his chest, trying to tame his rapidly beating heart, and feeling lucky that he had survived once more, the strange old man beside him said with a sigh.

"Yes, we're gonna be toast next time."

Hearing the old man's sighs, something flashed in Meng Yang's mind. He bounced up from the ground, and his gaze fell on the sturdy, rough wooden gates.

This simple-minded monster did not forget to confine him here even when it was distracted by those gamers. As a gourmand, it must protect its food well before charging out for a fight.

After exiting the cave with gudao in hand, Liu Chuanfeng dashed out quickly on his spindly legs. The cave was a few hundred meters away from the ambush point. He would have collapsed out of exhaustion from running to and fro between the two points if his energy was not replenished after respawning.

Behind him, the monster's rumbling breaths and footsteps were getting nearer and nearer. The pig-headed monster weight looked cumbersome, but it had an aura not unlike a military tank when it was running. It was not fast, but its steps were huge. Every step threatened to shake the ground it ran on.

"It's coming, it's coming!"

Outside the cave, near a small pile of stones, Xu Zhe, Zhuang Dafa, Sun Shuai, and Ma Xiaoling hid behind their own boulder. Everyone had a few stones ready as they waited for the pig-headed monster to charge in.

"Get ready!"

Xu Zhe gestured at the others as he saw Liu Chuanfeng dashing in their direction, tongue stuck out. Everyone picked up a stone.

"Puff… Puff…"

Liu Chuanfeng stuck his tongue out. Running a few hundred meters was deathly exhausting. He was almost there, but his legs felt like they were filled with lead, weighing him down and wringing his energy out of him.

Grrr…

He heard the pig-headed monster growl from behind him. Liu Chuanfeng started, and he picked up his pace again. He picked a spot and suddenly tossed the gudao in his hand toward a boulder nearby.

He then paused and turned to face the pig-headed monster.

The pig-headed monster froze, seemingly perplexed by Liu Chuanfeng's actions, but then its one eye glinted threateningly, and it pounced toward Liu Chuanfeng.

Liu Chuanfeng did not dodge. As the monster landed on him, he put on a brave face and waved his arms. "Brothers! For the success of our mission, fire at me!"