Two soldiers received their orders and set out, moving cautiously, keeping a distance of seven or eight paces between them. After only a few steps, they stopped again. Through a gap in the jungle foliage, a small face appeared—it was the prisoner who refused to come out.

Baldy looked at everyone with a grin, saying nothing, just nodding repeatedly, as if beckoning his companions over to watch something amusing. That unconcerned demeanor showed he didn’t take the Xuanfu soldiers seriously at all.

This was not the Baldy the boys remembered.

The officer, seeing the person, lost his panic and burst into anger. “Bold prisoner, do you have a death wish?”

The veteran turned his head and said to the officer, “Something’s not right, be careful…”

The two soldiers in front continued to approach the jungle, left hands holding shields, right hands raising long swords, as if facing a formidable enemy.

Baldy still wore a broad smile, nodding even more frequently, encouraging the soldiers to come closer.

The two soldiers vanished quite suddenly, as if something had yanked them hard. They lunged into the jungle with arms outstretched, dropping their swords and shields to the ground.

“Demon beast!” one soldier shouted. Without waiting for the officer’s command, the soldiers sprang into action, striking their swords against their shields, advancing in unison toward the jungle—not at the grinning Baldy, but at a spot more than ten paces away from him.

Behind them, the officer reined his horse back, only regaining his composure after a few steps. He also drew his long sword and raised his oval shield, but didn’t dare advance.

The boys from Wildwood Town didn’t quite understand what “demon beast” meant. That was clearly the familiar Baldy, and they themselves had just been in the jungle—where would a “monster” come from?

But Jack was shocked, suddenly recalling the warning from the Taoist by the bridge—stay away from demons.

Just as the boys were completely unprepared, a demon truly appeared: an enormous snake head emerged from the jungle. It clearly knew its presence had been discovered, so it abandoned its tricks and prepared to confront the Xuanfu soldiers directly.

The snake’s head hovered high in the air, its yellow eyes looking down on the humans. The two giant fangs in its palate were almost as long and sharp as the soldiers’ swords.

In that instant, Jack thought he saw a flash of green light in the snake’s eyes.

Chapter Seven: The Fainting Officer

Jack ran as fast as he could, his legs almost no longer his own. That enormous snake head seemed to be right behind him, its long tongue nearly brushing his back.

He was a brave boy, but had never seen anything like this. Wildwood Town was a remote and peaceful place, where demons were nothing but absurd legends. Now, seeing one in the flesh for the first time, how could he not be terrified out of his wits?

Supple branches whipped his cheeks, and the ground was full of tangled roots and obstacles, but nothing could stop Jack. He ran desperately forward, not caring about direction, not knowing if there was a path ahead. He had no idea how long he ran before suddenly realizing someone was behind him.

Grace was running with him, moving so fast she didn’t seem at all like the well-disciplined daughter of a strict tutor. She had no other choice, either—their right wrists were still tied together, a long rope trailing behind them, miraculously not tangled in the trees.

Jack turned his head, and the two exchanged a glance. Neither slowed down. So frightened, their eyes showed no emotion at all, as if they were strangers who just happened to be running together.

Suddenly, the ground gave way beneath their feet, and before they knew what was happening, they were tumbling down a slope.

It was a long, shady incline, piled with years of old and new leaves, giving off the unique scent of forest decay. Rolling down it was actually rather soft.

At last, they reached the bottom. Jack and Grace sat on the ground, one in front of the other, dizzy and covered in dirt and dead leaves. Gasping for breath, they looked at each other again, but neither could stand up.

Fortunately, the giant snake hadn’t followed. Jack mustered his courage and looked back, seeing only a thick layer of broken branches and dead leaves, everything above them silent. He breathed a little easier, though his fear had hardly lessened.

Grace was petrified, staring at Jack. Once her breathing steadied a bit, she suddenly asked, “Did you really dream about me?”

“Huh?” Jack didn’t understand what Grace meant at first. After a moment, he remembered that Daliang had let it slip last night, saying he’d dreamed of Grace asking him for help. But he didn’t know why Grace would ask about this at such a critical moment. “Yes… I dreamed…”

Before he could finish, a rustling sound came from above. Jack somehow found the strength to grab Grace and roll together behind the nearest big tree.

The two clung to each other, peering fearfully up the slope.

Thud—a person tumbled to the bottom. It was Eric, looking dazed, just like Jack and Grace had been, able only to sit, unable to stand.

Thud, thud, thud… One after another, more people rolled down from above. The boys of Wildwood Town fell like ripe fruit.

Jack felt a little relieved and was actually able to stand. He pulled Grace out from behind the tree and asked, “The big snake didn’t follow us, did it?”

Such a simple question nearly sent the boys into a frenzy—half of them jumped up, the other half hugged their heads and trembled on the ground, wishing they could bury their heads in the rotting leaves.

When they realized it was Jack speaking, the boys relaxed again, collapsing on the ground, limbs sprawled out.