Final Victory, Sudden Change

"Ah..."

Xu Ning's shrill scream echoed through the cave.

Xia Hong and the others quickly turned their heads and felt a chill run down their spines.

His axe never landed.

Not only did it not land, but his right eye seemed to have been gouged out by something out of nowhere, leaving only an empty socket. Blood flowed down his face from the inside, a truly gruesome sight.

"You guys keep it busy, I'm going to save him!"

Despite feeling a deep sense of dread, Xia Hong made a decisive command. Gritting his teeth, he grabbed the Frost Beast's mane and leaped onto its back.

Without hesitation, he helped Xu Ning up and tossed him down. Xia Chuan and the others immediately stepped forward to catch him.

"Leader, don't look at the eyes on its back. My left eye was closed just now and I was fine. It seems something inside came out and took my eyeball."

Even without his right eye, Xu Ning was still conscious.

Before being dropped, he didn't forget to shout a warning.

Xia Hong took a deep breath, shifting his body with the Frost Beast's struggles. He didn't dare to look down, only reaching out to feel around on the beast's back.

After a moment, Xia Hong found the location of the golden eye.

"Spread out and control its four limbs, just for a second, quickly!"

Xia Chuan and the others, who had sent Xu Ning to safety, looked at the Frost Beast. Though unnerved, they quickly dropped their Stone Axes and charged forward bare-handed.

The Stone Axes couldn't penetrate the Frost Beast's defenses and were useless. Keeping them would only be a burden and hinder their movements.

Lin Kai and Qiu Peng rushed to the Frost Beast's rear and together grabbed its right hind leg.

Yue Feng and Lu Yang held onto the left hind leg.

Yuan Cheng and Xia Chuan went to the front, grabbing the two front legs, one on each side.

Roar...

The distribution was reasonable, but compared to the Frost Beast's strength, the six people spread out were clearly outmatched.

The Frost Beast thrashed wildly, essentially dragging the six people across the ground. The cave was small, only a few dozen meters from end to end. Xia Chuan, Yuan Cheng, and the others were slammed into the walls several times.

All six were spitting blood, either from being stepped on by the Frost Beast or from being thrown against the walls by the impact.

Even so, the six didn't let go. They held tightly onto the Frost Beast's limbs, gritting their teeth, all to create that brief moment for Xia Hong.

Xia Hong hadn't moved, not because he didn't want to, but because the commotion caused by the Frost Beast was too terrifying.

Compared to the six holding its limbs below, the Frost Beast clearly felt that he on its back was a greater threat. So, each time it slammed into a wall, it deliberately used its back and tail.

Xia Hong was also hit several times, but his left hand held onto the mane to keep from falling, while his right hand remained on the eye he had located earlier.

"Don't let go, hold on a little longer, it's almost out of strength!"

Xia Hong shouted to everyone, his face gradually contorting.

"I don't believe this beast has endless energy!"

The seven of them remained locked in a stalemate with the Frost Beast for over half a minute. Whether they were stepped on or slammed into walls, no one let go.

Finally, after another collision with the wall, the Frost Beast suddenly paused.

Hoo...

It was panting.

Now.

Xia Hong's pupils contracted sharply. He retracted his right hand, pulled a short knife no more than five inches long from his waist, and plunged it fiercely into the eye position he had been feeling for so long and had memorized.

Squelch

"Everyone let go and get back!"

Knowing he had succeeded, Xia Hong immediately told Xia Chuan and the others to retreat.

The six people who were desperately holding the Frost Beast's limbs immediately let go and retreated rapidly.

Roar...

As the Frost Beast let out a pained roar, a warm current enveloped Xia Hong's hand. The Frost Beast beneath him began to struggle even more violently.

Xia Hong was no longer afraid. Riding on the Frost Beast's back, he looked at its golden eye.

It turned out that with the force of that stab, he had not only inserted the short knife but his entire hand.

That warm current was the sensation of his palm soaking in blood after the eye was pierced.

With the golden eye on its back pierced, this Frost Beast was clearly suffering more than just pain. Xia Hong, riding on its back, felt it most directly.

The first time its head was pierced in the eye, the Frost Beast had erupted with even more terrifying power than before. But as time passed, its movements clearly became distorted and slowed, and the strength it could exert weakened.

Even so, Xia Hong didn't dare to be careless. He remained on its back, holding tightly onto its mane.

Until finally, the eye on the Frost Beast's back stopped bleeding, its limbs began to stagger, and it finally collapsed to the ground.

Only then did Xia Hong truly breathe a sigh of relief.

He could feel it up close, the Frost Beast's life force had completely extinguished.

As he released his grip, a wave of intense exhaustion washed over him.

"It's dead?"

"It's really dead?"

"It's dead, everyone come over!"

Xia Hong's answer finally allowed the tense nerves of Xia Chuan, Yuan Cheng, and the others to completely relax.

Realizing it was finally over, smiles spread across everyone's faces.

"Hahahaha, we dodged it so many times before, I never thought it would come right to our doorstep."

"That was close, if it wasn't for the leader, the outcome might have been different."

"I was holding onto its hind legs just now, and several times I thought I was going to be crushed to death. If I hadn't seen you all holding on, I might not have made it."

"Hahahaha, me too."

Combat was the best way to unite people, especially battles for survival like this.

Although everyone had sustained some injuries, some quite serious, the way they looked at each other clearly held something more than before.

Listening to their post-disaster banter, Xia Hong also felt much more at ease.

However, there was still one severely injured person, and he didn't know how they were doing.

"Where's Xu Ning? How is Xu Ning?"

At the sound of his voice, everyone quickly looked towards the back of the cave.

"Leader, I'm fine. Let's get someone to seal the cave first. Many of the adults' faces are already blue from the cold, and some of the children are barely holding on."

Although Xu Ning had lost his right eye, he had remained conscious the entire time. As he answered Xia Hong, he also reminded him to quickly seal the cave entrance.

Xia Hong turned to look at the crowd and only then noticed that the adults and children alike had faces ashen from the cold. He quickly got up and led people to seal the cave and start a fire.

The battle itself had actually lasted less than ten minutes from start to finish.

But in those ten minutes, the ordinary people in the camp had already reached their limit.

In fact, it wasn't just them who couldn't take it. Even Xia Hong himself felt the cold rapidly setting in after disengaging from the fight.

Daytime was truly that terrifying!

Xia Hong told the more seriously injured like Xia Chuan to rest first, while he led others to move supplies and seal the cave entrance. Xu Ning was also lying on the ground, so the ones who came to help were the other adults in the camp.

"Leader, you're injured, go rest. Leave this to us."

As Xia Hong was moving supplies, he heard the concern from someone nearby. He turned and showed a slight smile, saying, "It's fine, I'm basically uninjured. Hurry up, once the cave entrance is sealed, we can start a fire and save everyone from freezing."

The others' faces immediately showed emotion.

"Leader, this is a small matter, just leave it to us, don't worry!"

The middle-aged man who had spoken, urging Xia Hong to rest, also took two steps towards Xia Hong with a moved expression, wanting to help him carry the wood in his hands.

Xia Hong's eyes flickered. He didn't refuse and instantly handed the wood to him.

Unexpectedly, just as the man reached Xia Hong.

A sudden change occurred.

He suddenly threw a punch with his right fist, striking fiercely towards Xia Hong's head.

This sudden turn of events immediately threw everyone into a panic.