Assault Again

Mr. York didn't explain the situation, but his noticeably increased speed made everyone tense.

Liu Zhi was one of only two who had seen the snake path. After discovering it, he calmly walked ahead of the mercenary leader.

The mercenary leader didn't know what was happening, but he instinctively felt something was wrong. Several times he tried to get in front of Liu Zhi, only to be intentionally or unintentionally blocked by him. Finally, he said with some dissatisfaction, "Kid, what do you mean by this?"

"It's about team positioning. You're the mercenary, you're responsible for opening the way and covering the rear, right? I'm just here to get off the map. While I have some combat ability, I'm not considered a combatant."

Although it sounded like he was shirking responsibility, what Liu Zhi said was the truth. Mercenaries, after accepting a contract, would guarantee the employer's safety until all of them were dead.

No matter how displeased the mercenary leader was, he had no reason to force Liu Zhi to cover their retreat.

He glared at Liu Zhi fiercely, but the mercenary leader still stayed at the back of the group with the swordsman. They moved according to the standards for the most dangerous situations when mercenaries advanced. Even as they ran forward non-stop, they still paid attention to their surroundings.

After running for a while, Mr. York finally raised his hand to signal everyone to stop.

"It should be fine now. Let's rest for a bit and eat something. We'll set off again later. We must find a relatively safe place before dark."

Hearing Mr. York say they were temporarily safe, everyone relaxed.

However, Liu Zhi felt a chill down his spine. After thinking for a moment, he moved a little closer to Perkin.

Seeing Liu Zhi approach, Mr. York's expression remained grim. However, he couldn't say anything provocative, merely giving Liu Zhi a glare.

Lloyd, on the other hand, walked up to Liu Zhi. "Let me see your map. Let's see where we've reached."

"Look around, it's all trees. Are you sure my map is detailed enough to map everything in the deep forest?" Liu Zhi glared back at Lloyd.

"What if it is?" Lloyd said somewhat awkwardly.

"That's just a 'what if.' According to the information, there's a native tribe here too. Does this place look like it's inhabited?"

"What did you say?" Perkin and Mr. York both looked at Liu Zhi simultaneously.

Liu Zhi's heart tightened. He then silently put down his backpack and took out the notes he had copied.

"It's just this one sentence. I found it by accident. All the information from the Governor's Mansion only had this one small line."

Perkin took it and then handed the notes to Mr. York.

The notes were simple, stating the source of the sentence and its original content.

'Encountered native hunters in the jungle. No tribal presence discovered after an attack.'

"Forget it. Even if there is a tribe in this jungle, we don't have that much time. We have to get out of this jungle tonight." Mr. York quickly made his decision.

"Alright, you're the expert. We'll listen to you." Perkin nodded affirmatively and then returned the notes to Liu Zhi.

However, Liu Zhi could clearly feel that Perkin's attitude towards him had changed.

And Perkin's attitude represented the team's attitude. Before long, Liu Zhi began to experience subtle or overt exclusion.

Sitting under a tree, Liu Zhi fiddled with the Fine-Thorn Sword in his hand. He was contemplating whether to leave early. Traveling with these people might lead him to even more dangerous places.

Just as he was lost in thought, that unsettling feeling returned.

Without thinking, Liu Zhi lunged forward, then used all four limbs to scramble forward rapidly.

Liu Zhi's movement drew everyone's attention. Mr. York was about to scold him when he saw a huge snake head bite the spot where Liu Zhi had just been sitting.

The snake's head was about the same size as the previous one, but its color was clearly different. The previous one had some earthy yellow, making it easier to hide in the water, while this one had green patterns, clearly a type of Anaconda.

Without biting anyone, the giant snake quickly retracted and vanished into the jungle in an instant.

Neither the scrambling Liu Zhi nor the stunned crowd could find any trace of the snake.

After escaping in another direction, Liu Zhi clutched his chest. It had been a close call. If he hadn't reacted quickly, he might have already been swallowed by the giant snake.

After calming his breathing, Liu Zhi turned to Mr. York. "What now?"

Mr. York also became tense. All eyes were on him, expecting him to come up with a solution.

But he was just a jungle survival expert, not a ranger, druid, or any other wilderness-focused class. What could he do? He was afraid of such a large snake too.

Just then, Perkin stepped forward. "Mr. York, if we can reach the originally planned landing point, can we shake off this snake?"

Mr. York hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth. "Yes. Every snake has its territory. As long as we reach the landing point, we can shake it off."

"Alright, I have something that can help everyone speed up." Perkin said, putting down his backpack.

As the investor of this expedition team, Perkin's backpack was the smallest, but everything inside was of good quality.

Liu Zhi saw Perkin take out a rope about three meters long from his backpack. The rope emitted a faint white glow, similar to something Liu Zhi had found when he first killed a Pirate and opened their corpse.

"Traveler's Rope. It can be used for forced marches three times, allowing six people to run at full speed to a designated location. I originally intended to use this when we were pressed for time, but there's no other way now. We need to hurry, so we have to use this."

However, at this moment, the crowd didn't show any signs of joy at the prospect of hope. Because Perkin had made it clear that this Traveler's Rope could only carry six people, and there were currently eight people here, including Liu Zhi.

For a moment, apart from Lloyd approaching Perkin, the other several people all took a step back, wary of those around them.

But their attention quickly shifted to Liu Zhi.

Mr. York spoke directly. "Hand over the map. If you hand over the map, you can still keep your life..."

Mr. York said as he walked towards Liu Zhi, and the mercenary leader and two other mercenaries also surrounded them from other directions. It was clear they had made their choice.