Let's cooperate.
The sound came again.
Only at this moment did the ' Two-Horned Lizard ' realize that it hadn't misheard.
At this moment, in this place, we would ask it this question...
My brain started working at high speed.
Soon, the ' Two-Horned Lizard ' reached a conclusion, and in the next instant, it shook its head, somewhat confused, and asked:
What are you talking about? Do I know you?
There was no reply; the other party simply stared at it calmly.
Are you sure you haven't mistaken the beast for something else?
"If we don't know each other, then you'd better hurry up..."
"Hmm? Why aren't you here yet...?"
"Hey, you should..."
The Two-Horned Lizard uttered more than ten sentences in a row, and finally, when a look of as if it were looking at a fool appeared in the other's calm eyes, it could no longer deceive itself.
His expression, which had initially shown some confusion and anger, shifted to a mixture of slight indignation and tension.
How did you find me?
Upon hearing the question, the look of disbelief in the other person's eyes finally disappeared, and they regained their previous calm.
"What you think?"
The Two-Horned Lizard frowned, its gaze shifting to the side as its brain raced.
It believed it hadn't revealed any flaws during this time, and to avoid any accidents, it had been diligently mining like any other Calamity Beast every day. But then...
His gaze suddenly fell on the Black Jade Lion and Steel-Mane Bear not far away.
The Two-Horned Lizard paused, then suddenly turned its head and said:
"You also spotted them on the first day those two were shouting, and then hid nearby to observe them, until you saw me watching them too?"
"Perhaps!" the Coiling Mountain Beast in front of him said indifferently.
"Damn humans! It's either yes or no, what's with the 'maybe' nonsense!" the Two-Horned Lizard thought to itself, then tensed slightly as it stared at the other.
"So what? What do you want? To...?"
After a slight pause, the Two-Horned Lizard suddenly remembered the first thing the other party had said after arriving.
It hesitated for a moment, then repeated:
"Cooperate?"
"Hmm," Shen Heng responded calmly.
"What can we cooperate on?" the Two-Horned Lizard asked, frowning, its body still tense.
"Of course they escaped. Otherwise, what could they be cooperating on?" the other party replied.
"Well..."
Seemingly realizing that his question was indeed somewhat problematic, the Two-Horned Lizard coughed awkwardly twice, then looked up at the other party, hesitated for a moment, and asked:
Aren't you afraid that I'll betray you and report you to the authorities?
There was no response, and that gaze, as if looking at a fool, returned to it.
"What kind of look is that?!" the Two-Horned Lizard said, somewhat exasperated.
Without an immediate response, Shen Heng looked at the Two-Horned Lizard, and after a long while, lowered his eyes and whispered:
"I'm starting to have some doubts about whether it was the right decision to come to you for cooperation."
"Hey, hey, hey, I just asked a question, is it really that big of a deal?!" The Two-Horned Lizard's voice unconsciously rose a little.
Earlier, the other party's gaze was somewhat subtle, but these words were a blatant questioning of it.
Shen Heng looked up at the Two-Horned Lizard and asked:
"If I report you to those Black Rat Black Rat, saying you have a problem, and they believe me and try to arrest you on the spot, what would you do if you couldn't resist?"
"Of course, it's you..."
The Two-Horned Lizard paused, then somewhat reluctantly looked away.
It seems that even if it knew, it was generally helpless against the other party, and could only reveal the other party after being caught.
This is something it should have thought of immediately, but...
Damn it, it must be because the other party appeared that I was too nervous to think about anything else!... The Two-Horned Lizard nodded vigorously in his heart.
However, having realized this, it also realized that it no longer needed to be afraid of the other party in this world!
Thinking of this, the Two-Horned Lizard let out a long sigh of relief, and then the beast calmed down and began to think.
Cooperation, getting out—given the cunning of these humans, we certainly can't completely trust what they say, but listening to them shouldn't be a problem.
Thinking of this, the Two-Horned Lizard coughed lightly and asked:
Do you have any way to get out?
"Create a riot, then look for an opportunity to escape," Shen Heng said calmly.
Upon hearing this, the Two-Horned Lizard raised its head slightly, looking at the other party with a hint of disdain:
"This plan won't work. The difference in strength is too great. Those Black Rat are still guarding the entrance to the valley; we can't possibly defeat them!"
"I know. I didn't say we had to defeat them. We just need to scatter them and then find a way out," Shen Heng said.
"That won't work either way. The difference in strength is too great. There are more than a dozen of those Fifth Tier Black Rat. Even if they are scattered, these lousy fish can't hold them off!" the Two-Horned Lizard retorted mercilessly once again.
It had already considered this plan, and then, as it just said, it ruled it out.
The gap between the two sides was simply too great, so great that even if all the enslaved Calamity Beast in the valley revolted together, they could not possibly win.
I initially thought this human had some profound insights, but I was wrong...
What if many of those Black Rat left the valley?
Calm words interrupted the Two-Horned Lizard's thoughts.
It paused, looking at the 'human' with a hint of confusion:
How did you know?
"What you think?"
"Well..."
After a moment's hesitation, the Two-Horned Lizard glanced around at the herd, which had thinned considerably compared to ten days ago:
"Did they go and capture Calamity Beast to replenish their supplies?"
"Mm." Shen Heng nodded.
"How many went?" The Two-Horned Lizard's tone unconsciously rose slightly.
"We're almost halfway out," Shen Heng said.
"What about the Fifth Tier?"
"The exact number is unclear, but there are no more than seven remaining in the valley, and the Fourth Tier ones are probably in the range of twenty or thirty."
"Seven, twenty or thirty..."
The Two-Horned Lizard repeated it, his brow furrowed in thought.
After a moment, he looked up again and said:
"In that case, there is some chance, but it's still very dangerous!"
"What if we could take out at least three or four Fifth Tier Black Rat, as well as some other Black Rat?" Shen Heng asked calmly, looking at the Two-Horned Lizard.
Upon hearing this, the Two-Horned Lizard paused, looking at Shen Heng with disbelief in its eyes:
"You can? How is that possible? You're only at Tier 2 yourself, not even as high as those two!"
"The specifics of how to proceed are not your concern. You just need to see if the cooperation is feasible!" Shen Heng said calmly.
There was no immediate response.
The Two-Horned Lizard frowned, its gaze fixed on the 'human' before it, deep in thought.
If we can take down three or four Fifth Tier Black Rat, the chances of escaping will indeed increase significantly once again!
It would be virtually impossible for the remaining Black Rat to guard the entire valley.
However, cooperation means the possibility of falling into this human trap; non-cooperation... this may be the only chance to escape alive for quite some time!