The Ugly Monster

In the end, the four of them still ended up together.

As George ran, he said, "Avril, let's go that way and take a detour around Negotiation Mountain. The Long-Haired Demon is too bulky. It definitely can't get through the mountain path. It'll be safe there."

"Where you go is your freedom. Where we go is ours. Don't follow us!" Victor said bluntly.

The burly man said angrily, "Kid, do you know any rules? This little guy may be young, but at least he has a good heart. And he's right. The trail on Negotiation Mountain was originally carved out by smugglers. Not only is it narrow, but there's a seaside cliff on the right. We can pass through, but the Long-Haired Demon is too big. It simply can't get through. Even if it forces its way along, it'll fall into the sea in no time."

"Let's go, Avril. Trust me just once, only once!" George said as he looked at Avril.

"Victor?" Avril asked softly.

"Then let's go!" Victor said coldly, having no other choice.

In truth, he was afraid the burly man would get angry and beat him up again. Normally, getting beaten did not matter, but if he got seriously injured now and caught the Long-Haired Demon's attention, it would definitely be a dead end.

The four quickly changed direction and soon fled from one side of the town onto Negotiation Mountain's narrow trail.

The problem was that there were too many clever people.

George could think of this route, and so could everyone else. Thus, quite a few people were already waiting on Negotiation Mountain's trail for those ahead to pass through.

The path was only about thirty centimeters wide, and they had to press tightly against the mountain wall as they walked. It was extremely dangerous, so although everyone was frantic, they could only proceed one at a time.

"Why are there so many people? Damn it," George thought anxiously when he saw the scene.

Ten minutes later, it was finally their turn. The burly man immediately went first, followed by George, with Avril and Victor close behind.

The four pressed themselves against the wall and moved forward when screams suddenly came from behind them. Victor turned his head and saw the Long-Haired Demon appear behind them. He immediately cried, "Hurry! The Long-Haired Demon is here!"

The Long-Haired Demon had actually followed George here. However, there had been too much prey along the way, distracting it and delaying it for quite some time.

It crushed a town resident's head and slowly looked toward the people on the narrow trail.

The next moment, it quickly stepped onto the path. Yet it was completely different from what the burly man had analyzed. It did not need to rely on the path at all. It merely drove its fingers into the mountainside, moving even faster than a human.

"Don't come over here!"

The town resident closest to the Long-Haired Demon screamed in terror as it approached.

Next, the Long-Haired Demon began slaughtering people at high speed, drawing closer and closer to the four of them.

"What do we do? The Long-Haired Demon is coming!" George screamed in terror.

The burly man kept roaring at the people ahead, forcing them to move faster. In the end, one of the town residents in front slipped in panic, screaming as he fell into the sea.

But the burly man had no time to care about that. He hurriedly sped up and headed toward the other side.

"Sorry, Avril. I really don't want to be a hero, but I have no choice. George, if you really like Avril, protect her well," Victor said with a bitter smile. The Long-Haired Demon had already killed the person behind him.

Tears welled in Avril's eyes. Victor gently wiped them away and smiled. "Believe it or not, I really did want to marry you, but it looks like I can't!"

He turned around, took a deep breath, roared, and leaped directly at the Long-Haired Demon's tail.

The Long-Haired Demon was using its tail to coil around the neck of the town resident behind him. When Victor suddenly wrapped himself around it, its weight instantly increased. Moreover, Victor had jumped with all his strength, carrying tremendous impact as he grabbed that tail. Caught off guard, the Long-Haired Demon's body immediately tilted backward.

In fact, the Long-Haired Demon had enough strength to support three people hanging from the mountainside. The problem was that the section of mountain it clung to could not support three people. A chunk of earth broke away from the mountainside along with the Long-Haired Demon, plunging rapidly toward the sea.

"Victor!"

Avril cried out as she watched Victor fall into the sea.

At this moment, George seized the chance to say, "Avril, hurry up! The Long-Haired Demon might still come back."

Though heartbroken, Avril still forced herself to continue onward through her grief.

A minute later, the three of them finally crossed the narrow trail. On the other side was a mountain road. Once they went down it, they could reach the main road or take another route.

Quite a few people quickly headed down the mountain. The burly man took a deep breath, patted George, and laughed. "Kid, not bad. Let's go."

"Avril, let's go!" George immediately said.

However, just as the three reached the mountainside, they heard screams coming from below.

The burly man and George's expressions changed at the same time. The burly man immediately made his decision. "We're going back!"

They swiftly returned. Since the people behind them had all been killed by the Long-Haired Demon, no one blocked the way.

The burly man took the lead and stepped straight onto the narrow trail. Before George and Avril could follow, they suddenly felt a terrifying presence.

Both froze. Turning around, they saw a tall man standing not far away, blood continuously dripping from both hands.

They did not know that this man was Jabus. George asked in terror, "Who are you? Why are you killing people?"

But Jabus did not speak. He merely slowly moved forward, and George hurriedly shielded Avril behind him.

At the same time, Victor surfaced from the sea below the cliff. He often went swimming by the shore, so although he had fallen from a great height, he was not actually injured.

He gulped in huge breaths of air. Sure enough, those Long-Haired Demons could not swim.

No.

More accurately, those Long-Haired Demons seemed to die the moment they fell into seawater.

The Long-Haired Demon that had fallen into the water with him had quickly turned ash-gray upon entering the sea. By now, it had probably sunk to the ocean floor.

"Avril!!!!"

Victor roared from the sea, his eyes splitting with rage.

Meanwhile, George quickly stepped onto the narrow trail, muttering to himself as he walked.

She was just a worn-out shoe. He would never risk his life to protect a worn-out shoe.

Trembling, he hurried toward the other side. But just then, the burly man who had reached the opposite end had his head seized by a hand. His skull was crushed as easily as a watermelon.

George stared in terror at the Long-Haired Demon that had appeared ahead, then looked back at Jabus behind him...

This was truly a long dream. She felt even more exhausted than before she had gone to sleep.

She opened the chat group and typed: I know where Jabus is.

Mark replied quickly: Where?

Jennie answered: In Two-Harbor Town. At least, he was definitely in Two-Harbor Town last night.

Mark: Captain, should we change course?

Hawkins: Then let's go take a look at Two-Harbor Town.

The Black Knife swiftly changed direction. Countless tentacles beneath the water paddled rapidly, propelling the ship forward at incredible speed.

Two hours later, the Black Knife arrived at Harbor Village.

Two-Harbor Town, as its name suggested, was a small town connecting two harbors. Located at a major transportation hub, it had a permanent population of one hundred thousand.

When Hawkins and the others arrived at Harbor Village, they saw many people hiding aboard ships, all too afraid to go ashore.

The Black Knife slowly moved forward. At that moment, someone on a sailboat shouted, "Don't go ashore! There are Long-Haired Demons in the village!"

"As long as we don't go ashore, we'll be fine?" Mark asked from the edge of the ship.

The person nodded. "That's right. They don't dare go out to sea."

Many people from Two-Harbor Town had fled to Harbor Village. Warned by these people, most of Harbor Village's residents had escaped onto ships in time and avoided the Long-Haired Demons' poisonous claws.

However, the Long-Haired Demons were unwilling to give up. They hid in dark places around the houses, waiting for opportunities to strike.

Just now, someone had been bold enough to try returning home for belongings. But after taking only a few steps ashore, he had been snatched away by a Long-Haired Demon that suddenly sprang out. He was likely doomed.

After Mark understood the situation, he first sent a message through the chat group, then asked Hawkins. Hawkins's solution was simple: prepare to go ashore.

Hawkins had been conducting experiments these past few days, yet had made no breakthrough progress. This was a good chance to change his mood.

After receiving Hawkins's approval, Mark directly had Arthur steer the ship to shore. Several kindhearted people tried to dissuade them multiple times, but when it proved useless, they stopped trying.

"I'm turning on the video. If any of you notice something, remember to tell me," Mark typed into the chat group.

During a previous fishing trip, he had received a child's warning because he had been recording a video. Only then had he realized that videos had this function.

Jennie: Wait, Mark, look to the right. That man.

Mark looked over. On a wooden sailboat not far away, a gloomy-faced man crouched at the bow, sharpening a knife.

Jennie: It really is him. He's one of the people from my dream. I didn't expect him to be alive.

Mark frowned. George?

Jennie: No, he's Victor, the Victor who fell into the sea.

Mark: Oh, so it's him. Should we go over and sound him out?

Jennie: Mm-hmm. Although this guy doesn't look like a good person, he was willing to sacrifice himself for the person he loved. I think he's especially brave.

Mark hurriedly typed: I can do that too. Besides, he probably had no other choice at the time. Dead either way, so he might as well die more heroically.

Ai Miye: You're jealous.

Mark: Arthur, steer over there. I'll go meet this devoted lover.

Arthur: Okay!

The Black Knife changed direction and slowly approached the wooden sailboat. Victor aboard the sailboat glanced at the Black Knife, then continued sharpening his knife, looking as though the whole world owed him a debt.

Once the Black Knife drew close to the wooden sailboat, Mark jumped over from the Black Knife. One hand gripped a rope while the other rested on his hip as he laughed. "You don't even dare go ashore, so what's the use of sharpening your knife?"

"Who are you?" Victor stopped and asked.

Mark said smugly, "A good person, probably!"

"Don't get in my way. If you want to pick a fight, find someone else," Victor said flatly, then continued sharpening his knife.

Mark crouched down and asked, "You want revenge for your woman? I know who the beast is."

"What do you want?" Victor stopped again and asked.

Mark grinned. "I don't want anything. I just want to see how brave you really are."

"Then tell me, who killed Avril?" Victor immediately asked.

Mark's smile vanished as he looked at Victor. "The one who killed your lover was Jabus!"

Clang!

The knife in Victor's hand fell to the ground.