As soon as we heard Liang Qian's sharp cry, we instantly dropped the fishing nets we were holding and stood up, turning back toward the lake.

Yet, we couldn't see Liang Qian or Tony near the water’s edge; the "Ah..." sound was drifting from the snowdrift behind a cluster of large trees.

I rushed toward the lake, terrified that something might have happened to Liang Qian.

But because the ice was slick and we were all wearing ordinary shoes, our speed was severely limited. We stumbled and slid, nearly falling several times over just three steps.

Da Xiong trailed slightly behind me, already breathing heavily after only a few strides.

Just as we neared the lakeside, Da Xiong suddenly shouted, “Xiao Chuan! Look at the bottom of the lake! There’s a light down there!”

I thought to myself, how could I possibly have the presence of mind to look at the lakebed? If anything had happened to Liang Qian, I would regret not running fast enough for the rest of my life.

Seeing that I ignored him, Da Xiong said no more, but he kept running forward while glancing back with a worried look.

I rounded a large tree and darted into the snowy clearing, but at that exact moment, a small, slender figure burst out from behind the trunk, colliding squarely with me.

I staggered back two steps and looked at the person in my arms—it was Liang Qian, her face a mask of sheer panic. She pointed behind her, sputtering, “Tony! Tony was grabbed by Lauren!”

I thought, this is serious! We witnessed Lauren attacking Tony just yesterday. If this was a premeditated move today, Tony was surely in grave danger.

Hearing this, Da Xiong’s face went pale, and he cursed, “That damned beast! If anything happens to Ni Zi, I swear I’ll skin him alive!”

With that, he charged ahead, plunging into the thicket. His whole body moved like a steamroller, flattening the grass where he passed.

We followed close behind the 'steamroller,' sprinting through the undergrowth at our utmost speed.

After running for several dozen meters, Da Xiong looked back at Liang Qian and asked, “Is this the right direction?”

Liang Qian shook her head and replied, “I don’t know. I was just chatting happily with Tony when a dark shadow flashed past my eyes, and she vanished right in front of me. I jumped up to chase, and I saw a huge black dog carrying her off. The dog bolted into the bushes. I wanted to follow, but there were sounds everywhere in the brush—I was afraid of an ambush by a wolf pack—so I shouted, then ran back to find you. As for which way they ran, I really don't know.”

I examined the faint tracks left on the snowfield and told Da Xiong, “It must be right. These are the same tracks we saw earlier.”

Da Xiong nodded, following the tracks another hundred meters or so before suddenly stopping.

We halted too, asking him what was wrong.

He said, with a hint of relief in his voice, “Found them. Looks like they’re fine.”

I hurried around Da Xiong’s massive frame and saw, just ahead in the grass, a person and a dog sitting together.

Tony was petting Lauren’s neck, laughing heartily.

Although Lauren remained still, his gaze was incredibly gentle.

Seeing us approach, Lauren stood up from the ground and began barking incessantly at us with clear hostility.

At this point, Tony spoke to Lauren, “It’s okay, they are friends.”

I hadn't realized when or how Lauren and Tony’s relationship had become so good. However, Lauren didn't seem to heed Tony much, still glaring at us with a threatening expression.

I took a step back and said, “Tony, don't stay so close to him. Come here, come to Uncle.”

Tony stubbornly shook her head, still reaching out a soft hand to stroke the fur on Lauren’s neck.

Suddenly, Lauren threw his head back and let out a long howl toward the sky.

Instantly, the surrounding brush rustled, and over a dozen white wolves leaped out from all directions, surrounding us completely. Further out, there were even more.

Cold sweat instantly broke out on my brow. I turned to Da Xiong and whispered, “We’re done for. This is a trap. Maybe those tracks near the tree were meant to lure us here so they could attack us all at once. That’s a typical wolf tactic.”

Da Xiong’s expression was equally tense, and he muttered under his breath, “I didn't expect this guy to hold such a grudge. I just kicked one of the white wolves yesterday, and now these bastards go to such lengths for revenge.”

However, Liang Qian seemed much less tense than we were, remarking with curiosity, “I don’t think these wolves are about to attack us. Look, some of them aren't even looking at us, especially the ones behind us.”

At her suggestion, we both turned around and saw that the wolves that had jumped out from behind us weren't paying us any attention at all; in fact, they had their backs to us.

Or rather, all the wolves were staring intently in one direction—the direction we had come from, which was toward the small lake.

As I wondered what was happening, all the wolves howled toward that direction, their calls agonizingly desolate.

Then, something completely unexpected occurred.

We heard a tremendous crash, and the ice surface of the lake cracked open. Amidst the spraying water, a white sphere of light, roughly five or six meters in diameter, emerged from the depths of the lake and slowly ascended into the air.

The three of us were stunned silent, and Tony actually burst into tears.

My mouth hung open as I watched the bizarre spectacle. After the light sphere rose about twenty or thirty meters high, I finally turned to Da Xiong and asked, “Was that the glowing object you mentioned earlier?”

Da Xiong nodded and replied, “Probably. Why does this thing look so much like the UFO from the underground cave in Lop Nur?”

I also voiced my confusion, “Yeah, what is this doing here? Quick, take pictures!”

Da Xiong, who had been using my phone to play games earlier, quickly pulled it out and snapped a photo of the sphere hanging in the sky.

After he finished shooting, I grabbed him and urged, “Let’s go! Let’s hurry over and see!”

With that, I scooped up Tony and sprinted back toward the lake shore.

Lauren ignored my actions but let out a few barks. The surrounding wolves grew agitated, following us as we all ran toward the lake.

By the time we reached the water’s edge, we were all gasping for breath. The light sphere had already climbed to a hundred meters high, shrinking into a patch of light the size of a basketball.

“Did you bring a gun!” I asked Da Xiong, staring up at the sphere.

Da Xiong panted heavily and replied, “No! If I had, I would have taken it out and started shooting already.”

I stomped my foot and said, “Then I guess we won’t catch up.”

Da Xiong shrugged, then picked up a handful of snow from the ground. He added a small pebble to the snow, molded it into a ball, and hurled it toward the luminous object.

I heard a sharp whoosh past my ear; the snowball shot upward like an arrow loosed from a bowstring. Due to air resistance, snowflakes continuously flaked off, resembling a space shuttle shedding stages as it ascended.