The jackalmen squad traveling through the wilderness was led by Suihou Blood Axe.
Suihou was the name he had chosen for himself. It meant "to crush an enemy's throat with your teeth."
Blood Axe was the name of his tribe, and the surname shared by every jackalman in it.
Early that morning, he had received a task from the chieftain: lead a squad southeast and search for traces of a Human tribe.
There were Humans to the southeast?
He only remembered that a few days ago, three of his tribesmen had been ordered to search in that direction and never returned.
Everyone in the tribe suspected there was a vicious beast out that way.
He wasn't afraid of the rumor.
They were mighty jackalman warriors!
What kind of beast could stand against more than ten jackalman warriors?
So he had set out without hesitation with twelve of the tribe's bravest warriors.
If they found a beast, they would hunt it and take it back to the tribe.
Just like the Unicorn Saber-toothed Tiger he had led his squad in hunting a few days ago.
And if they really found a Human tribe...
He savored the memory of the delicious taste of Human flesh, a cruel smile spreading across his lips.
With the tribe's warriors at his side, they searched all the way southeast, but never found any trace of Humans.
They did encounter a few wild animals, but none of them were even close to being a fierce beast.
They were nowhere near as strong as the Unicorn Saber-toothed Tiger!
Just as he was wondering whether the chieftain's information was wrong and there really wasn't a Human tribe here...
A series of meaningless shouts came from behind them on the right.
The jackalmen's instinctive vigilance made him turn around at once. Two or three hundred meters away, a Human stood in a patch of bushes, shouting at them.
He couldn't understand what the Human was yelling, but he assumed it was a frightened cry.
There were four Humans in all. As soon as they realized they'd been spotted, they turned and ran without a moment's hesitation.
That was only natural for Humans.
The weak and cowardly Humans would run when they saw mighty jackalman warriors. What else would they do?
"Haha! I finally found you! After them!"
He waved his hand, raised the Wolf Tooth Club in his grip, and charged after the four Humans.
"Could this be a trap?"
One of his companions asked from behind.
Suihou grinned.
"A trap?"
"What could those puny Humans use to trap us mighty jackalman warriors?"
After Three Rounds of Drinks and the other three dashed through the bushes toward the valley, sprinting as they ran. They didn't forget to glance back at the jackalmen behind them.
When they saw all ten-plus jackalmen rapidly catching up—and especially when they noticed that, with Wolf Tooth Clubs in their hands, they were chasing on two legs—Da Qing and the others felt a rush of excitement.
The mission reward was as good as theirs!
The jackalmen and the players raced through the wilderness, one group chasing and the other fleeing.
Even at level 2, players who weren't in the Agility Class had seven points in Agility.
The jackalmen had around eight points of Agility. If they didn't run on all fours, they were only a little faster than the players.
On top of that, they were all carrying heavy Wolf Tooth Clubs. With the extra weight, their speed dropped until it was almost the same as the players'.
A few minutes later, the four players had run three or four li, but the jackalmen behind them had barely gained any ground.
The distance between them was still nearly two hundred meters!
Suihou wasn't in a hurry. Hunting down these Humans was only part of the mission. The other part was finding their settlement.
He'd be more than happy if the players ran all the way back to their tribe and revealed its location to him.
The jackalmen pursued them at a leisurely pace, while the four players running ahead could barely hide their smiles.
The valley entrance had come into view, only a few hundred meters away!
The mission to lure the jackalmen had practically been a success already!
The four of them picked up speed, streaked to the valley entrance, and darted inside.
As he watched the four Humans disappear into the valley, Suihou's face broke into an equally irrepressible grin.
It looked like the Human tribe was hidden somewhere in this valley.
The valley really was secluded. No wonder they had searched for so long without finding the Human tribe.
"Haha, these Humans are so stupid. They know we're chasing them, yet they still run back the way they came."
"Their stupidity will get everyone killed!"
Suihou couldn't help laughing.
People said Humans might be physically weak, but they were clever. Now it seemed they weren't all that clever after all!
"Could there be a trap in the valley?"
The jackalman following behind Suihou raised the question again.
This wasn't their first time dealing with Humans.
A few days earlier, when they had just migrated to the eastern part of the island, they had attacked a Human tribe.
The Humans in that tribe were weak, but their warriors had been incredibly brave. To cover the retreat of their fellow tribespeople, they had fought to the very end.
The Humans he remembered didn't seem like the sort to do something this stupid.
"A trap?"
At that, Suihou scoffed.
"There are only two Human tribes in the eastern part of the island: the Baimu Tribe in the north, and the Ying Clan Tribe we attacked a few days ago."
"The Baimu Tribe is in the north, so they're unlikely to be here. The ones hiding in this valley are almost certainly the survivors who fled from the Ying Clan Tribe."
"Even if ten of them managed to escape our attack that day, I'd be surprised. How could they possibly trap us?"
Suihou looked completely unconcerned.
"I still think we should be careful."
The jackalman behind him persisted.
Suihou gazed at the valley, thinking for a few seconds.
"You make a good point. All right, Suiya, Suishou, Suijiao..."
Suihou called out the names of seven jackalmen.
"You seven, go into the valley first and check for traps. The rest of you, wait with me at the entrance. Once we're sure there's no trap inside, we'll go in."
"If there is a trap, we'll attack them from behind and hit them from both sides."
He gave his orders.
There was one thing he didn't say.
If there were too many of them waiting in ambush, we'll just stay out of it.
We'll go back and report to the chieftain, then bring reinforcements to avenge you!
"Whew, I'm exhausted!"
"Good thing the valley wasn't far. I couldn't have run much farther."
After Three Rounds of Drinks and the others ran into the valley and met up with Lin Feng and the rest. They bent over, braced their hands on their knees, and panted heavily.
They had run three or four li without stopping. Even in a game, and even as level 2 or level 3 powerhouses, they were completely worn out.
Thank goodness it was a game.
If this had been real life, they probably would've collapsed from exhaustion before covering half the distance.
"You did great!"
Lin Feng patted Da Qing on the shoulder, then began issuing orders.
"Archers, get ready. The moment the jackalmen enter the valley, open fire!"
"Everyone else, hide on both sides of the entrance and cut off their escape route!"
The Archers were the twelve players carrying bows.
Liubai Dianmo had hand-crafted the bows over the past few days. There were twelve in all, distributed among twelve players whose archery skills were decent enough.
They would deliver the first volley against the jackalmen who pursued them into the valley.
But Lin Feng didn't have high hopes for them.
The players would be lucky to hit even one shot.
They could treat it as practice.
The seven jackalmen entered the valley and cautiously surveyed their surroundings.
The four Humans who had fled were nowhere to be seen.
Had they hidden themselves?!
One of the jackalmen lifted his head and sniffed the air around him.
"I can smell Humans in the air. There are more than four!"
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