Chapter 8

Our survival instinct pushed us to exhaust our stamina completely. By the time we reached the base of the waterfall, my legs felt entirely numb. My breathing was scorching hot, feeling like a branding iron in my throat.

“He… he didn’t follow us,” Xiaodie gasped, hunched over and out of breath.

“We’ll wait for him here. He’ll definitely come.” I tossed my backpack onto a rock, scanning our surroundings.

According to the map, we were only two or three kilometers away from the final “treasure location.” As long as Zhang Zilong escaped danger, the three of us could complete the mission.

The sun slowly sank below the horizon, and gusts of sea breeze blew over us. The temperature began dropping, and Xiaodie’s body started to shiver. I gathered some dry branches, intending to start a campfire.

“Brother Zhou… Brother Zhou…” Xiaodie looked at me, pale as a ghost.

“What is it?” I slowly walked over to her.

A blood-red cockscomb snake had slithered onto the rock opposite Xiaodie. It arched its body like a coiled spring, the crest on its head swaying like a fan, emitting an eerie hissing sound.

“Don’t move. Don’t startle it. Venomous snakes usually don’t attack unprovoked; they conserve their venom,” I whispered to Xiaodie.

Xiaodie tried desperately to stay calm, but the near-freezing temperature made her shake uncontrollably. The snake coiled back further and further.

It was about to strike.

“I’ll draw its attention, be ready to dodge.” I gritted my teeth, gripping the stick Zhang Zilong had whittled for us, and let out a loud whistle.

Sure enough, the cockscomb snake snapped its head around, its ugly, malevolent face locking onto me.

How fast is a snake strike? Though I’d never seen one, it couldn’t be much slower than a bullet, right?

Since that was the case, I had to strike first. I swung my weapon wildly. The snake launched itself at me almost simultaneously, like an arrow released from a bow. A speed beyond description. My hand grew heavy; I felt the impact. The cockscomb snake was knocked back behind a rock, quickly disappearing from sight.

I let out a long breath. But before I could even celebrate, a slight numbness hit my right leg, followed by a burst of agonizing pain that made me cry out.

There was actually another one right behind me! Who would have thought these creatures would attack in a pincer movement—one feinting, the other ambushing? The world began to spin. With the last of my strength, I swung the stick hard at the snake’s head. The blow was heavy; the snake splattered green fluid, writhed a few times, and stopped moving.

It’s over. It’s all over.

I collapsed exhausted onto the ground, looking up at the darkening sky. To think that my mediocre yet exhaustively hard-working life would end in such a ridiculously comedic way.

“Brother Zhou!” Xiaodie threw herself beside me, pulling me into her arms, frantically calling my name.

The young girl’s scent reminded me of my wife. Many years ago, she had given me a hug just like this. My eyes shut heavily, and my consciousness began to sink, as if falling into a bottomless abyss.