Hunted by Demons

Remembering the contestants who had died miserably hanging from the tree branches, Han Zhiqi tightened his grip.

The Spider Demon struggled even more violently.

Suddenly, an earth-shaking roar came from the forest behind him, accompanied by the sound of trees snapping one after another.

Han Zhiqi felt a fierce gust of wind rushing at him from behind. He immediately exerted more force, trying to sever the Spider Demon's neck in a short time, but its will to survive was strong. Its two hands and six legs desperately tried to stop the blade from moving.

Left with no choice, Han Zhiqi swiftly pulled back his sword and turned around when the gust was within a meter behind him.

He retreated while swinging his blade to block whatever was attacking from behind. Though he had not known what it was at first, he could sense from its temperature that it was identical to a demon's. It was very likely another demon.

Yet the roar had come from seven or eight meters away, while the attack had already reached him. For a moment, Han Zhiqi could not figure out what kind of demon it was.

Only when he turned around and his Nichirin Blade collided with the thing behind him did Han Zhiqi realize it was an arm as thick as a thigh—and there was more than one.

Three arms extended from the forest ahead, each seven or eight meters long. Three enormous hands kept reaching for Han Zhiqi.

Sure enough, this was another mutated demon.

Han Zhiqi swung his Nichirin Blade from side to side, continuously slashing at the giant hands grabbing at him. After retreating some distance, the hands finally stopped pursuing him and withdrew into the forest.

Taking advantage of that opening, the Spider Demon had already scurried up a nearby slope and vanished without a trace.

Han Zhiqi did not choose to pursue it. Instead, he stood where he was, facing the wind and staring intently in the direction where the hands had vanished. That big fellow would probably emerge soon.

"Run, hurry..."

An urgent voice came from the path down the mountain. It sounded familiar. Sure enough, it was Nohime and the other two.

At that moment, Nohime was carrying Yuka on her back as she and Akino hurried toward him. From time to time, she glanced back over her shoulder.

"Why did you come back?" Han Zhiqi asked curiously as he looked at the two panting before him.

"Demons... demons, there are demons everywhere down the mountain."

Akino's eyes were filled with terror, and his body would not stop trembling. He had not even caught his breath, so his words came out in fragments.

Nohime carefully set Yuka down and used torn strips of cloth to roughly bandage her wound.

Yuka had already awakened. Clinging to the last scraps of consciousness, she weakly murmured a thank-you.

Nohime forced out a pale smile. She truly had no mood to smile now. After offering a few casual words of comfort, she rose and walked over to Han Zhiqi.

"What happened?" Han Zhiqi asked.

"Who knows where they came from, but suddenly there are many demons down the mountain. There's one every three to five meters, and they're searching everywhere for contestants, barely leaving any hidden corner unchecked. What's more, they're acting strangely. Even when they encounter people, they don't chase them. It... it seems like they're driving people up the mountain."

Akino turned to look at Nohime beside him. It was true that there were many demons, but as for driving people up the mountain, he really had not noticed.

Han Zhiqi thought for a moment, then blurted out, "They're hunting us."

"Hunting us?"

Nohime and Akino were startled by Han Zhiqi's words. They had only ever heard of humans hunting animals. They had never imagined that one day, they themselves would become the hunted.

"Your return was badly timed. There will probably be another surprise soon."

A surprise? Would it really be a surprise, or a scare?

Half believing him, Nohime swept her gaze across the clearing ahead. The Spider Demon from before had disappeared, leaving behind only a strange patch of skin lying crookedly on the ground.

"What is that?"

"The skin that demon shed."

"Skin shed by a demon?" Nohime could not help frowning, feeling rather disgusted. "Did you kill it?"

"No. I was just about to cut through its neck when three arms suddenly shot out of the forest and gave it the chance to escape."

"Arms shot out of the forest? Three arms? What was that? Another demon?"

"Probably. We should see it soon enough."

Listening to the two of them chatting back and forth, Akino's heart rose to his throat, especially when Han Zhiqi mentioned that he had been "just about to cut through its neck."

That demon had been the culprit behind Kimura's group falling apart. So many people had been unable to do anything about it, yet the boy before him had nearly cut off its head.

Standing beside the two of them, Akino felt as though he had no presence at all.

Panicked figures gradually began appearing in the surrounding forest.

The moment they spotted the three people in the middle of the clearing, everyone without exception rushed toward them. Perhaps they believed there was strength in numbers, and gathering together could bring a sliver of comfort to their terrified hearts.

Kimura and Eimi also emerged from a dark corner.

Kimura no longer had his former spirited appearance. He and Eimi looked like a pair of beggars pleading along the street, listless and filthy from head to toe.

Of course, the others looked much the same as the two of them, with the exception of Han Zhiqi and Nohime among the crowd.

The group had once been so bright and polished; now, it was just as dejected and dispirited.

When they had first climbed the mountain, there had been forty or fifty people. Now, fewer than twenty remained.

Kimura and Eimi immediately spotted the clean and tidy Han Zhiqi and Nohime among the crowd. Look at them—they were practically no different from when they had first gone up the mountain. Then they looked at themselves, as wretched as homeless dogs.

Remembering what had happened in the square, both of them flushed crimson with embarrassment. Lowering their heads, they quickly joined the group.

Nohime naturally noticed Kimura and Eimi as well. Meeting again under such circumstances was indeed awkward. Yet now, Nohime was somewhat grateful to them. If not for the two of them, she would never have had the chance to meet Han Zhiqi.

Nohime stepped back beside Han Zhiqi and asked quietly, "What should we do next?"

Looking at this ragtag bunch before him, Han Zhiqi felt increasingly uneasy.

They said a defeated army collapsed like a mountain. When they had first gone up the mountain, the demons had already scattered them in a single night. Six days later, reunited once more, this group that had lost all confidence would probably do nothing but hold them back.

"I don't know. Let's see what happens first."

At last, someone in the crowd realized something was wrong. Over the past six days, they had mostly hidden in groups of two or three in every nook and cranny. Now they had all suddenly gathered together again. No matter how they looked at it, it was abnormal.

"Wh-what's going on? Why did you come up here too?"

"We had been hiding perfectly well, just waiting for the assessment to end tomorrow. Then, for some reason, several demons appeared around us. They didn't attack us at all. It was like they were deliberately driving us up the mountain."

"Same here."

"..."

Everyone finally seemed to realize that the reason they had gathered here again was because the demons had deliberately driven them up the mountain.