The Trap

"Hiss..."

The cold, beastly eyes met Qi Liang's, and he stiffened. He gasped, his hair standing on end, a chill seeping from the inside out.

Qi Liang shivered, his mouth opening and closing. After a long moment, he found he couldn't speak. Taking a deep breath, he finally managed to shout, "Bear!!"

"Roar!"

Before Zhao Ke could even react, he heard a bear's roar and a cracking sound from behind him. He instinctively dove to the side.

"Bang!"

Dust and debris, like the remnants of an exploded firecracker, hit Zhao Ke, making his whole body ache. He looked back, and his heart sank.

"The wall... it collapsed!"

The earthen house was old, with cracks in many places along the walls. Zhao Ke had thought of this when they first entered, but he hadn't expected it to actually fall.

"Roar!!"

A deep growl made the faces of the three people in the room change. Through the dust, a blurry outline gradually became clear.

They hadn't been able to see the bear's appearance clearly in the misty forest before. Now, by the lamplight, they saw its black mane and solid, sharp claws. Its sheer size alone made Zhao Ke feel a deep sense of pressure.

Without a doubt, this was the real Xiong Er. In front of this behemoth, even taking a deep breath felt like a luxury.

Especially its blood-red eyes, staring at the three people in the room, made their skin crawl.

Suddenly, Xiong Er's gaze shifted, fixing directly on Chen Jing, who was cowering in the corner.

"Save... save... save me!"

Chen Jing's face turned pale, her muscles freezing. Clutching the fruit knife Zhao Ke had given her, she curled up tighter in the corner.

Xiong Er's eyes landed on the fruit knife in Chen Jing's hand. It lifted its thick snout, sniffing the familiar scent on the knife. Xiong Er's pupils constricted, and staring at Chen Jing, it slowly revealed its sharp fangs. A wave of extreme anger and killing intent, accompanied by a low growl, surged out.

"Roar!"

Chen Jing saw darkness before her eyes as a large black paw rapidly enlarged in her pupils.

"Dodge!"

Qi Liang reached out to push her, but his legs were clumsy. Just as he moved, a flash of red appeared before his eyes. His face felt like it had been splashed with hot water, and a strong smell of blood hit him. He wiped his face with his hand, revealing a face covered in blood.

He looked at Chen Jing. She was still standing, but half of her head was gone.

"Fuck your mother."

Qi Liang gasped, grabbed the axe from the table, and swung it at Xiong Er's head. However, Xiong Er swiped with its forelimbs, sending Qi Liang, axe and all, flying backward.

"Clang..."

Qi Liang's vision went black. He almost fainted from the fall. When he moved slightly, he felt like his bones were about to fall apart.

Fortunately, he had a good physique; otherwise, someone else would have been knocked unconscious. He shook his head, struggling to get up. Just then, the light in front of Qi Liang suddenly dimmed.

He looked up and saw Xiong Er's massive body standing upright like a human, its head almost touching the roof beams. Its blood-red eyes, filled with malice, were coldly staring down at him.

"Hey! Xiong Er."

Hearing someone call its name, Xiong Er instinctively looked up. Its beastly eyes tightened. Zhao Ke was holding a bear's head and, with a swing, tossed it into the boiling pot.

"Roar!"

Xiong Er's expression instantly changed. Ignoring Qi Liang, it turned and lunged towards the stove.

"What are you standing around for? Run!"

In the blink of an eye, Zhao Ke grabbed Qi Liang's arm and the axe from the ground, pulling him along as they ran.

Qi Liang's legs were still not steady. Zhao Ke supported him by one arm. After they ran out of the house, they headed directly east.

The sky was just beginning to lighten. They hadn't run far when they heard Xiong Er's deep roar from behind them.

"Roar!!"

Even though they couldn't understand the words, they could feel the intense killing intent in the sound. This was followed by the sound of rapid running and roaring.

Zhao Ke could even hear the snapping of tree trunks as they were broken, clearly indicating that the creature had gone completely mad after seeing the cooked bear corpse in the pot.

"Buddy, I can't go on! Give me the axe, you run."

Qi Liang's forehead was covered in sweat. He realized that if they continued, they would both die.

Zhao Ke was taken aback. He looked at Qi Liang for a moment, confirming he was speaking sincerely. Zhao Ke's gaze toward Qi Liang became complex.

The reason he had dragged Qi Liang along was to use him as a meat shield at a critical moment, buying himself time to escape.

But now... Zhao Ke's heart wavered. Human nature was inherently complex. Kindness might exist, but how many people could truly maintain it consistently? Especially when facing death, their hidden primal instincts would erupt.

Just like the female office worker pushing Chen Jing down the steep slope earlier. But Qi Liang's determined gaze, ready to face death, made Zhao Ke truly doubt.

"Don't just stand there, let's go!"

Seeing Zhao Ke's inaction, Qi Liang gritted his teeth, snatched the axe from Zhao Ke's hand, pushed him away, and said, "Hurry up and go. You helped me before, this time I'm returning the favor."

Zhao Ke raised an eyebrow, looking at Qi Liang's face with a hint of stubbornness. He changed his mind.

"What's your phone number."

"What?" Qi Liang blinked in surprise.

"What's your phone number!"

"I..."

Before Qi Liang could finish speaking, he heard the sound of rustling bushes from behind. Seeing this, Zhao Ke grabbed Qi Liang's arm without waiting for him to speak and put him on his back.

"Let go. If you carry me like this, neither of us will escape."

Qi Liang's expression changed. He tried to break free from Zhao Ke's back, but Zhao Ke's hands were like iron clamps. No matter how much Qi Liang struggled, he couldn't break free.

"Shut up."

Carrying Qi Liang on his back, they groped their way east. Although the sun hadn't fully risen yet, it wasn't as pitch black as before, making it possible to see the path.

At this moment, Zhao Ke suddenly stopped. After surveying his surroundings, he subtly lifted his nose. Smelling a faint fragrance in the air, Zhao Ke's eyebrows shot up as he sniffed carefully.

In the damp, cold air, mixed with the faint fragrance was a strong smell of blood. Glancing sideways, Zhao Ke suddenly saw a circle of white powder sprinkled on the grass nearby. If one didn't look closely, they probably wouldn't have noticed it.

Putting Qi Liang down from his back, Zhao Ke squatted down and reached into the grass with his hand. As his fingers parted the grass, Zhao Ke's heart skipped a beat, and the corners of his mouth curved into a slight smile. He knew his guess was correct.

"Huh? That guy doesn't seem to be chasing us anymore?"

Qi Liang, standing nearby, listened carefully to the sounds around them. The roaring and heavy footsteps were gone.

Seeing this, Qi Liang's heart leaped, and a look of joy appeared on his thin face. "He's not chasing us?"

Hearing Qi Liang's words, Zhao Ke couldn't help but feel a bit puzzled. The two of them weren't running very fast, and with their scent, Xiong Er, whose sense of smell was comparable to a hunting dog, wouldn't be able to lose track of them no matter where they ran.

Yet, at this moment, they couldn't hear Xiong Er's pursuit. He glanced at the surrounding bushes and thought, "Is he really not chasing us?" However, this thought only flashed through Zhao Ke's mind before he immediately dismissed it.

Although a bear's eyesight was poor, its sense of smell was also very keen, comparable to a hunting dog. They couldn't possibly lose them with their scent.

Just as Zhao Ke was feeling confused, a cold wind suddenly changed direction and blew from the nearby bushes. Zhao Ke sniffed the air, and a familiar foul odor made his body stiffen. He suddenly looked up.

He saw a pair of blood-red eyes staring at him from within the bushes.

"Roar!"

Zhao Ke's face instantly froze. He instinctively jumped back. A sharp claw emerged from the bushes, carrying a strong smell of blood. In an instant, Zhao Ke even saw some dark red meat fibers clinging to the claw.

With a "rip..." sound, Zhao Ke rolled on the ground. Looking down, he saw that the clothes on his chest had been torn into strips, and his chest felt like it was on fire, with four scratches beginning to bleed.

Seeing this, Zhao Ke felt a chill run down his spine. If he had been a step slower, that swipe would have likely gutted him.

He looked again and saw Xiong Er walking out from the bushes, his black, shiny mane and blood-red eyes fixed on him. Most bizarrely, a human-like sinister grin appeared on the bear's face.

"Damn it! He's like a persistent ghost."

Qi Liang raised his axe in front of his chest, positioning it horizontally between himself and Zhao Ke, ready for anything. At the same time, he urged Zhao Ke in a low voice, "I'll hold him off. You hurry and run. Run as far as you can."

"Do you think I can outrun this guy?"

Zhao Ke, covering his chest with one hand, got up from the ground. A wry smile appeared on his gaunt face.

"It's better than waiting to die! Didn't you say you believed in me? This is the result of me believing in you!"

Qi Liang glared back at Zhao Ke fiercely, signaling him to leave quickly.

Hearing Qi Liang's roar, Zhao Ke's gaze gradually deepened. He reversed his grip on the heavy black dagger and said with a cold, insincere smile, "You really are a soft-hearted fool."

"You!"

His good intentions were belittled by Zhao Ke as being a soft-hearted fool. Qi Liang's chest tightened, and he was so angry he couldn't speak, his face turning red.

Ignoring the furious Qi Liang beside him, Zhao Ke turned his gaze to Xiong Er, slightly bent his legs, and sneered, "What, your mother's meat, tasted pretty good, right? Just a bit tough, otherwise..."

"Roar!!"

Before Zhao Ke could finish speaking, Xiong Er's eyes turned red, and he lunged at Zhao Ke and Qi Liang. His dark, massive body exuded an oppressive aura that made one feel suffocated.

Qi Liang's face turned pale, his muscles instantly stiffened. He held his breath, watching the charging body. A chill, like a venomous snake, crawled up his spine, making his scalp tingle.

"It's over!" This was Qi Liang's last thought.

"Dodge!"

At this moment, Zhao Ke's shout reached Qi Liang's ears. Before he could understand what was happening, Zhao Ke kicked him in the back, sending Qi Liang flying, and at the same time, used the momentum to leap and dive to the side.

"Bang! Awooo..."

Accompanied by a scream and a thundering sound, a giant pit about 3 meters in diameter appeared behind where Zhao Ke and Qi Liang had been standing.

Zhao Ke got up and walked to the edge of the pit. He saw sharpened bamboo spears standing upright inside. Xiong Er had plunged headfirst into the pit, his head and body instantly impaled like a beehive.

However, what surprised Zhao Ke wasn't Xiong Er, but the two people at the bottom of the pit.