After pondering for a while, I came up with no answer.
Shen Heng focused his gaze once more, looking ahead.
A faint light shimmered on the treetops not far ahead.
Shen Heng, who was about to do something, suddenly paused slightly and turned his gaze in another direction.
Then, his expression quickly turned serious.
Qin Yu, who had been keeping a close eye on the team leader, noticed the problem immediately.
She glanced sideways at the captain.
She was met with a deep, somber gaze.
Without uttering a word, nor needing to, Qin Yu, who deeply understood the other party's capabilities, immediately realized what had happened.
"Really, is there an ambush...?" Qin Yu thought to herself with a heavy heart.
"Huh? No way?" Night Spirit Liya said, her voice filled with frustration and disbelief.
"The captain shouldn't make a mistake!" Qin Yu replied.
"I didn't say he was wrong, but if there really were Black Rat lying in ambush nearby, how did that guy in front get away?" Night Spirit Liya asked.
Upon hearing this, Qin Yu paused for a moment.
Perhaps because she had been by the captain's side for so long, a thought subconsciously surfaced in her mind.
"Perhaps... it's to lure us out?"
"Uh, ah..."
The voice echoed in my mind, then fell silent.
Before they could exchange more words, voices began to rang out beside them.
"Faster! You need to be even faster!"
The voice seemed no different from usual, but knowing in advance that something unusual had happened, Qin Yu still sensed the underlying seriousness in the words.
A surprised voice echoed in my mind.
"No way, knowing there's an ambush, why are we still going forward?!"
Qin Yu didn't understand, but she knew that this must be the result of the captain's consideration, so she didn't hesitate and quickly followed.
Beside him, Stone paused for a moment, then followed without thinking much of it.
The Two-Horned Lizard was also taken aback for a moment, and followed suit, but its gaze subconsciously swept over the 'human' who was a few meters ahead of it.
For some reason, it always felt like something had happened that it didn't know about.
Before it could think any further, the wind howled overhead.
"Boom--".
The sound rang in my ears.
"Damn it, the intensity changed so quickly..."
"Crunch, crunch..."
"Boom--"
"Bad boy, bad boy..."
"... Just now... an order? But... these few?... Should we... arrest them or not..."
Shen Heng ran forward with a sullen face.
Although they didn't want to, they were indeed tricked out by the Black Rat.
There may be only one voice, but that doesn't mean they have the ability to resist the other.
He knew without a doubt that at this moment, the only creature hiding on the sidelines was the Fifth Tier Black Rat!
Fifth Tier...
Given their current numbers, even those at the Late Fourth Tier Fourth Tier still have a chance to fight.
But Fifth Tier...
If we can't win, should we retreat?
To be honest, with Qin Yu around, the chances of successfully retreating are quite high!
but...
Then what?
Shen Heng didn't believe that the Black Rat appearing nearby was an accident.
Furthermore, the fact that the portal to leave this world appeared right next to it the first time it did so might not be entirely unexpected.
If that's the case...
"Boom--"
The giant branch piercing the earth interrupted Shen Heng's train of thought.
He raised his eyes...
On a small hill a little further away.
Black Spine stared intently at the few twisting branches below.
Faintly, one could still see several figures running quickly forward.
Although it successfully caught some fish, it wasn't happy.
After all, the number of clansmen guarding the temple should not be so small if they were able to eliminate them!
so...
I'm torn.
Should we just let those guys go, like before?... Black Spine wondered.
If we let them go, there's a chance we can bring out even more guys!
but...
What if those guys keep coming out like this, several at a time? Or what if there aren't actually that many, and these few already make up a significant portion?
so...
To arrest or not to arrest?
Black Spine lay on the ground, its gaze fixed on the ground below not far away.
Under its gaze, several movements quickly moved toward the source of the light.
800 meters, 500 meters, 300 meters, 200 meters, one...
Finally.
The dark figure swayed slightly before standing up on the mountaintop.
"Forget it, let's just... arrest these guys first..."
"Laugh--"
The beast's claws scraped against the ground, and the hurried figure came to a stop.
"It's too late, let's go back!" Shen Heng said, watching the three figures pass him in the blink of an eye.
Upon hearing this, one figure seemed to know something and stopped. The other two figures also slowed down, but their expressions were clearly somewhat stunned.
But in the next moment, they realized what was happening.
"No, why? The door to get out is right in front of us!" the Two-Horned Lizard exclaimed, its eyes wide.
"Yes, Lord Shen Heng!" Stone chimed in from the side.
"It's too late!" Shen Heng repeated once more, then without pausing, turned and ran straight to the left.
Qin Yu lowered her head and silently followed.
Stone hesitated for a moment, then followed.
Only the Two-Horned Lizard remained in place, conflicted.
It turned its head with some difficulty, looking at something a hundred meters ahead.
The light shines ahead.
They could even see the Distortion portal floating in mid-air through the tree trunks.
If I wasn't mistaken, that glowing thing over there is indeed a portal.
But we're already so close.
They could have passed through the portal in another twenty or thirty seconds.
So, the human told it to leave?!
Why?
The Two-Horned Lizard was somewhat puzzled.
A powerful, survival instinct was driving it forward, forward through that portal, out.
But reason told it that the human would never make such a baseless claim!
Now, should we continue forward, or...?
The Two-Horned Lizard's gaze shifted back and forth between the rapidly receding figures and the light radiating ahead.
Finally.
It gritted its teeth, turned around, and quickly followed the figures.
"Hey, I'm telling you, you have to tell me why you ran away when you were so close!" the Two-Horned Lizard whispered.
This time, the figure in front finally responded.
"There are Fifth Tier Black Rat lying in ambush nearby. We can't get to the portal before they arrive!"
While dodging the increasingly fierce attacks of the surrounding branches, Shen Heng replied...
"Now, the only way to escape the Black Rat's attack is to go back!"
"Maybe?" the Two-Horned Lizard said, its lips twitching slightly.
"Hmm, escaping that Black Rat's pursuit won't be so easy, especially with these branches around causing trouble!" Shen Heng replied.
Fifth Tier, Black Rat, ambush... The Two-Horned Lizard's eyes widened in fury.
Before it could think any further, the sound came from ahead again.
"You, hurry up, tell the other Calamity Beast to run in another direction, don't go that way!"
The Two-Horned Lizard paused, then looked up. "Can they hear me?"
"Sure! They're not far from here. If you speak loudly, they'll definitely hear you!"
Shen Heng replied, his gaze meeting that of the Two-Horned Lizard behind him.
"Whether they survive or not depends on their fate!"
"But no matter what, at least they can buy us a little more time!"
Upon hearing this, the Two-Horned Lizard slowly nodded.
Then his bloodshot eyes lifted.
"Quick, run somewhere else, there are Black Rat..."