Chapter 9: The Leader

Fang Zhirong let out a sigh and said, "Shilei, when did you become so brave?"

This middle-aged man has a dark complexion; although he is not old, his wrinkles are deep. He wears a very outdated flat-top hat, and his large hands are calloused and rough. Judging by his clothing and appearance, he resembles a laborer or a migrant worker.

Lin Xiao exerted great effort to pry open the fingers of Gu Zhiyou, which were gripping his clothing. Looking at Gu's wide-open eyes, refusing to close even in death, he felt a slight sadness and whispered, "If we can survive and return, we will definitely take good care of your family..."

At the time of departure, their team consisted of a total of 43 members. Now, Chen Long, that unknown short and thin man, and Gu Zhiyou have died, reducing the number of people in the team to 40

Wu Wenxu was taken aback; this bundle of green vines was quite heavy. He was somewhat reluctant to carry this bundle with him and couldn't help but murmur, "Sun Yaojie, why aren't you carrying it yourself?"

Many people are already feeling a bit hungry. Upon hearing Lin Xiao's words, everyone immediately felt delighted: "Indeed, indeed, we will definitely be able to eat. This way, the issue of food is resolved."

But can they return alive? Lin Xiao silently stood up, feeling an emptiness in his heart, devoid of any confidence

Although Sun Yaojie is not the leader of the team, his tendency to speak and express opinions, coupled with the fact that what he says often makes sense, has led everyone to unconsciously become accustomed to following his guidance

Lin Xiao nodded and said: "If we fight with all our might, we still have a glimmer of hope. If we flee back out of fear of these Stoneclaw Beasts, we will be doomed."

Upon hearing this, the previously excited crowd felt a sudden heaviness in their hearts

Immediately following this, seven or eight individuals also spoke in agreement with the book, causing the young man with a flat haircut to blush slightly. He defended himself by saying, "I am not afraid; I am merely suggesting whether we should return and share this news with everyone. However, since everyone believes it is unnecessary, let us continue with our previous plan."

A considerable amount of green vines was collected and intertwined to form a sturdy rope, which was then coiled up. This was prepared as a precautionary measure, in case someone were to fall into the quagmire again. With these green vines, it would be much more convenient.

However, with only eight or nine hundred people, how many Stoneclaw Beasts would that require? One Stoneclaw Beast is hardly enough to feed them all?" Following this, Shi Qian from the team thought of another issue and frowned as she spoke.

"Wenxu, you have worked hard on this Qing Teng," said Sun Yaojie, after he and a few others finished their task, adjusting his glasses as he spoke to Wu Wenxu beside him

Lin Xiao and the others were taken aback and looked over, only to find that a middle-aged man, approximately forty years old, had appeared beside them

Sun Yaojie was astonished, clearly not expecting Wu Wenxu to disregard his words

According to the agreement, whichever team makes a discovery can return to the station, then raise a signal smoke, and notify the other teams. Therefore, as long as they see the signal smoke, they can return.

At this moment, he shouldered the heavy bundle of green vines, revealing a simple and honest smile on his face

Upon hearing Lin Xiao's words, Wu Wenxu felt somewhat embarrassed and hurriedly tried to take over, chuckling awkwardly: "I was just joking. I am stronger than you and my physique is better, so let me carry it."

Shi Lei and Wu Wenxu followed closely behind, and after a moment of contemplation, Sun Yaojie also walked up

On the other side, Wu Wenxu wiped the blood from his face. He had just been struck by the tail of the Stoneclaw Beast and a book, leaving several cuts on his face. Although it stung painfully, the injuries were not severe.

Sun Yaojie said, "Then this will trouble you, Uncle. By the way, my name is Sun Yaojie. May I ask how to address you, Uncle?"

Sun Yaojie waved his hand and said, "There is not much time left. Let's temporarily leave these corpses here. We should first scout the way. Lin Xiao, what do you think?"

Zhu Feng frowned secretly, unsure why Fang Zhirong was being so affectionate towards him

Originally, when he suggested selecting someone to scout ahead, many people secretly shook their heads, feeling that taking the lead was too dangerous. However, upon hearing that there were two individuals nearby to provide protection, they collectively breathed a sigh of relief

Fang Xinyi glanced at Sun Yaojie and let out a soft snort. She realized that Sun Yaojie might not truly possess any remarkable skills. Wearing glasses, he appeared quite refined, but in terms of physical ability, he was not impressive, and in terms of intelligence, he was not necessarily the most capable among them. Yet, unexpectedly, he had somehow become the leader of their group without anyone noticing. At least when he called out, many people stopped.

The young man with a flat head chuckled twice before saying, "My name is Zhu Feng"

Unfortunately, there is not a trace of thick smoke rising from the location of that station

Approaching the corpse of the stone-claw beast lying on the ground, I kicked it and said, "It's all this damned creature's fault; I never expected it to be so unafraid of us." As I spoke, I drew the short knife that was embedded in the body of the stone-claw beast.

Sun Yaojie is quite skilled in winning people over, showing great courtesy to everyone. However, he occasionally exhibits a somewhat self-centered attitude and enjoys giving orders to others

"Uncle Pan, if you can't carry it anymore, remember to call me," Lin Xia looked at Pan Sixi. He felt that although this middle-aged man appeared quite old-fashioned, he was very honest and a reliable person

Shi Lei's face turned from black to red, and his voice became softer: "It is useless to be unbrave; we have no other choice"

There is some dissatisfaction in my heart regarding Sun Yaojie casually commanding me, as it seems that everyone is equal. Why does Sun Yaojie act as if he is the leader of the group?

Wu Wenxu possesses great strength, so Sun Yaojie entrusted him with the task involving the green vine

Lin Xiao nodded and said, "Although the skin of this Stone Claw Beast appears to be like rock, its skin and flesh are not hard. I believe its meat may be edible."

Fang Xinyi nodded and followed him as they walked to the other side

Lin Xiao glanced at the corpse of Gu Zhi You on the ground, sighed softly, shook his head, and began to walk in another direction, saying: "Let's leave these here for now; we should proceed according to plan. We can discuss the specifics when we return"

Wu Wenxu happily said, "Not bad, let us dig down this horn"

Sun Yaojie extended his hand, brushed over Gu Zhiyou's face, and closed his pair of round, wide-open eyes. After a moment of silence, he said: "Three people have died."

"Is it the pig madness? My name is Fang Zhirong, this is Lin Xiao, this is Sun Yaojie, this is..." Fang Zhirong suddenly embraced him, then pointed at Lin Xiao and the others, announcing each of their names.

Although it sounds nice, in reality, he is just feeling timid inside.

Fang Zhirong chuckled and patted him on the shoulder, saying: "This statement is quite reasonable, my brother. You have spirit. I wonder how I should address you?"

Forty people left this place in a line, and among the crowd, many looked towards the direction of the station and the book, all hoping to see thick smoke

The man wearing a flat-topped hat chuckled as he introduced himself, sharing a name that was quite common among others, imbued with a strong local flavor: Pan Sixi

Fang Xinyi responded with a crisp voice, "It is precisely this statement that leaves us no choice. Regardless of whether we encounter more of these Stoneclaw Beasts or face other dangers ahead, we can only move forward. If we all retreat at the slightest hint of danger, we will surely perish here."

This path, having been explored, allowed everyone to walk quickly, and before long, they arrived at the location previously marked by Lin Xiao, after which they proceeded to feel their way towards the thicket and the row of trees.

Among the crowd, a young man with a crew cut spoke up: "I never expected to encounter such a beast here. Should we continue deeper inside? What if we encounter it again? Should we go back and inform everyone about this?"

As soon as he finished speaking, several people immediately echoed his views

Upon his remark, many people turned their gaze towards the horn of the Stoneclaw Beast's corpse lying on the ground

Some people are naturally inclined to command others, while others are inherently disinclined to think for themselves and prefer to follow directives from others

Lin Xiao had just chopped down a straight branch about the thickness of his wrist on the other side and was currently whittling it with a short knife. Upon hearing Wu Wenxu's words, fearing that a dispute might arise, he hurried over, lifted the green vine from the ground, and said, "Let's take turns. I'll carry it first."

Lin Xiao knew that Fang Zhirong was somewhat unpredictable, acting without any sense of reason. He ignored him and looked at the several corpses on the ground, saying: "Do you remember the bulletin board at the station? It stated that in order for the library to reach the next stop, the required ticket is 'Horn of the Stone Claw Beast'"

Upon reaching the thicket and the row of trees, everyone began to select and cut longer branches. Sun Yaojie further directed the group to collect the green vines clinging to several large trees on one side.

As soon as this statement was made, everyone immediately felt invigorated

Sun Yaojie frowned, glanced at him, and then said: "It is of no use to go back now. There is no food, no water. How long can we last? We should think of a solution while we still have a bit of strength left; otherwise, we might as well all wait for death together."

Sun Yaojie noticed that everyone had stopped to look at him, and he felt a sense of accomplishment in his heart. He quickly put on a serious expression and said: "This many wooden sticks should be sufficient. Let us select a few leaders to use these sticks to explore the way. However, each explorer must have at least two people by their side for protection, to prevent sudden attacks from the Stoneclaw Beasts"

Shi Lei was famously timid, always shrinking back into the crowd. Upon hearing Lin Xiao's words, he waved the short knife in his hand and said, "Lin Xiao is right; we have no way out now, we can only fight it out."

Sun Yaojie nodded. At this moment, not only this bundle of green vines, but others had also carved out quite a few slender wooden sticks from branches. Seeing that it was sufficient, he called out: "That's about enough, it's sufficient."

"I have become accustomed to carrying such heavy sandbags; this little bit is nothing to me, haha." Pan Sixi laughed heartily

While we are here, another person approached, snatched the bundle of green vines from Lin Xiao's hands, and said: "Stop arguing, I may not be as quick as you, and I might not be able to deal with that stone beast as well as you can. However, when it comes to carrying things, you young men should step aside. Leave this to me."