Chapter 61: The Law of the Jungle

Qu Xiang asked me what she and the others should do if I went hunting with the rest of them. This was indeed a problem, but figuring Peng Qian wouldn't be that foolish, I raised the wooden bow in my hand and told Qu Xiang that this bow was extremely powerful.

There were some things I kept from Qu Xiang and Lan Fang. Last night, when that man was pursuing Huang Jianfen, even in the dead of darkness, his eyesight had proved to be flawless. The fact that he didn't even need to use it to catch his prey suggested that the bow was not meant for casual hunting.

Recalling how he had completely dominated me during our fight, and analyzing the encounter step-by-step, I realized that had he used this bow and arrow back then, I would have had zero chance of escape. At the time, I had wondered why he didn't use it, but looking back now, it instantly became clear: this bow and arrow could undoubtedly prove fatal!

What was formidable wasn't just the wooden bow itself; those greenish-tinged arrows were clearly the most terrifying part!

While continuing to simmer the remaining bear paws in the campfire, I first hoisted Lan Fang up into the tree.

The people over there looked somewhat surprised when they saw I possessed such a long rattan rope. Although they were not far away, we could clearly observe each other's expressions, each wearing a different look.

I couldn't be bothered with them, leaving a sharpened wooden spike for Lan Fang. Although she and Huang Jianfen seemed safe enough up in the tree, I wasn't willing to take any chances, especially given those people's established track record of shamelessness. My traps offered a certain level of deterrence, but I knew that wasn't the main thing!

Shortly after, Qu Xiang and I sat by the campfire. I originally intended to watch if those people would pull any tricks, but to my surprise, the fat man came over, brazenly begging for some soup!

I had intended to ignore him, but the fellow put on a deadpan expression, claiming they had three wounded people and that since we were all together now and we had the cooking utensils, we ought to share some with them.

I hadn't disliked the fat man all that much previously. But seeing him again with even worse injuries, and listening to his words and actions, a sense of aversion welled up inside me. Thick skin was one thing, but showing such self-righteous entitlement was truly a rare sight in my experience.

Still, I didn't care to argue at that moment. Especially seeing him approach with his water bottle looking thoroughly wretched, I figured he must have taken plenty of abuse following Peng Qian and his crowd, which almost made me admire his persistence. Of course, remembering that he had also left because of injuries, a certain empathy stirred within me.

Because the fire in the pit was blazing and the stone pot wasn't very deep, it couldn't hold much liquid at a time. Every time water was added, it quickly boiled away. So, I used my knife to cut off the small spout of their water bottles, placed the bottles into the giant taro leaves filled with water, and used a bamboo tube to funnel water into them.

Though I wasn't trying to show off, I wasn't stingy either, tossing the remaining few mushrooms into the pot. Along with the bear heart from earlier, I hadn't dared let Qu Xiang and Lan Fang eat too much of it, so quite a bit was left. I sliced some of that up and added it in, finally filling three bottles of soup for them to take back.

The drama that unfolded over there goes without saying, but when I stood up to look, I saw Chen Mengzhi actually crying as she drank the soup. Although I didn't know the inside story, after going so many days without cooked food—let alone hot soup—anyone forced to contemplate their current plight would inevitably feel overwhelmed by emotion.

The nighttime temperature here was noticeably much lower than during the day.

Peng Qian, Jia Lue, and the others seemed to remain gathered around their campfire. Though they were murmuring among themselves, I couldn't be bothered to pay attention. I knew that kind of focus was useless; it was far better to keep my own guard high and pay attention to small details instead.

Clearly, they were feeling the crisis now, perhaps even realizing they couldn't guarantee their own survival, which explained why they were cooperating with me. Seeing that Huang Jianfen wasn't dead and that I had managed to secure that man's weapon, they must have vaguely sensed that I possessed some capabilities, prompting them to actively extend an olive branch.

Yet they weren't completely devoid of sense either; they invariably assigned one person to stand guard on the side, keeping watch for everyone. No doubt thanks to this arrangement, despite being attacked, they had managed to survive by a stroke of luck.

Watching their movements, I remained unbothered, signaling Qu Xiang to climb up into the tree and rest. It would save her energy and let her recuperate; I didn't want to waste time. I still trusted Qu Xiang, so I planned to alternate watch duties with her.

As for whether Lan Fang could help, I certainly didn't want to force it. In my view, even if Lan Fang and Huang Jianfen fell into their hands, they would just be a burden. Their ultimate goal was simply to force my submission, and now that I was willing to cooperate, they wouldn't be foolish enough to harm them!

After sitting for a while and seeing that the people over there didn't seem to be paying attention to our side—evidently having grasped the tacit understanding—my mind remained unsettled, still harboring a flicker of hope.

Ever since I first acquired this backpack, I had discovered its secret. Therefore, now that the backpack had fallen into their hands, I deeply hoped they hadn't noticed it. As the surroundings grew quiet, a sense of nervous anticipation gripped me, and I quietly unzipped the backpack once again.

When my fingers brushed against the bottom board of the pack and I felt that the item was still there, my heart naturally began to hammer wildly.

They truly hadn't found the knife hidden inside, which instantly gave me a few more layers of confidence. Reaching in to grope around and pulling it back out, I felt a surge of strength flood through my entire body.

Free of reservations now, I stared at the blade in my hand, my mind even drifting far into the future. Yet, knowing I wasn't ruthless enough, I looked at the glittering edge and even pressed a finger against it to test its sharpness.

I ultimately refrained from doing anything that foolish, instead directly splitting a piece of sharp bamboo and carefully shaving off some thin bamboo strips. With these, I re-wrapped and wove a tighter grip around the knife handle to increase friction and prevent my hand from slipping.

Naturally, I also cut off a set of tightening straps from the backpack itself. Using a strip of cloth connected to the handle, I looped one end directly around my wrist. This way, I could keep the knife constantly at hand—having at least one weapon ready by my side at a moment's notice.

Using the stone pot as a whetstone, I even ground the blade to make it sharper. The sound of sharpening steel in the dense rainforest naturally stood out rather abruptly. Perhaps noticing I was still awake, Peng Qian actually came over and invited me to sit with them.

While somewhat surprised, I wasn't entirely astonished. After all, when people reached this stage, there was no longer any need to beat around the bush. Their willingness to cooperate clearly meant they had reached the end of their rope. I didn't believe Peng Qian and the others would dare try anything against me right now.

Still, I didn't lower my guard. I left the bow and arrow with Qu Xiang in the tree, carefully navigated past my own traps, and under Peng Qi's nervous gaze, generously walked over to their side.

Whether intentionally arranged by Jia Lue and Peng Qian or not, Zhou Guojun was currently the one sent out to stand guard.