The moment Boss Wu finished speaking, a faint, ethereal blue flame suddenly ignited at the cave entrance behind us.

The light began subtly but quickly intensified, and we could hear the sound of countless Ming Huo beating their wings.

Seeing me still looking back, Boss Wu tugged at me. "Stop looking and move deeper inside, quickly. If those Ming Huo catch up, it won't be fun. This space is too narrow; even if they can't close in, we'll be roasted alive."

I nodded, said nothing more, and quickened my pace, following Boss Wu further into the depths.

However, our strides were clearly no match for the speed of the Ming Huo. Soon, the area behind us grew brighter and brighter, illuminating the path ahead so well that we barely needed our own light sources. A burning sensation prickled the back of my neck, as if a flame were licking my skin.

Both our faces were ashen, leaving no room for conversation as we focused only on lifting our feet and scrambling through the jumble of rocks.

Thankfully, this time I had learned my lesson and wasn't wearing jeans or casual trousers, but sturdy nylon hiking pants. Otherwise, the sharp edges of the rocks would have shredded them long ago.

Truthfully, I detested this constant feeling of fleeing, but without real danger, this couldn't truly be called an expedition into the perilous unknown.

Squeak, squeak, squeak...

Even though we were advancing at our maximum speed, our legs couldn't possibly keep up with wings.

Soon, it felt as if a glowing red-hot iron ball was rolling right behind me; the surroundings were now illuminated as if it were midday. The rock formations, jagged and uneven like wolf teeth, reflected a bizarre, ghastly white light.

I glanced back inadvertently and saw a massive, ethereal blue fireball closing in on us, only five or six meters away. Within the ball, countless flaming Ming Huo screeched, their ugly faces twisted, revealing blood-red eyes, seemingly warning us intruders against encroaching on their territory.

"We can't outrun them! We need to find a place to hide, now!" I gasped out to Boss Wu, simultaneously attempting to duck my head down.

At that moment, Boss Wu grabbed my sleeve and yanked me sharply to the side.

Instantly, I realized we had been pulled into a semi-circular recess in the wall.

I noticed the shape of this alcove was peculiar, but there was no time for further thought; I quickly squeezed into the innermost corner with Boss Wu.

By now, that great swarm of Ming Huo had swept past the spot where I had been standing, rushing by like a colossal train.

I was puzzled. Given the agility of bats, if they had seen us turn, they should have instantly pivoted to pursue and cornered us in this dead-end passage. But they didn't; instead, they flew past us, heading deeper into the cavern.

I looked at Boss Wu, my expression clearly showing confusion.

Boss Wu whispered, "Their target wasn't us. They must have spotted food out there, which is why they're ignoring us."

Even as the huge formation of Ming Huo had not completely flown past, I strained against the searing heat washing over my face, yet I couldn't discern any food being carried within the swarm.

I mused that although these creatures resembled bats, their diet must differ from true bats; surely they wouldn't be hunting insects or small reptiles.

If they were catching an insect, for instance, it would be reduced to ash the moment it entered their mouths.

Different types of bats exhibit vastly different diets—some eat insects, some eat fruit, and some even subsist on human or livestock blood. Based on our previous encounters, the primary sustenance for these Ming Huo should likely be the phosphorus found within animal or human bones.

But I genuinely could not fathom how these creatures could transport human corpses. Even a charred body would weigh twenty or thirty jin; the largest of these bats was only palm-sized—it was impossible for them to carry such weight.

If they were feeding on-site, I hadn't noticed any gnawed openings on the corpses lying outside.

Perhaps it was the ingrained habit of a biologist, but I was intensely curious, determined to figure it out if I couldn't rationalize it.

So, once all the bats had streamed past us, I instinctively moved to go back out.

But as soon as I took a step, Boss Wu gripped my arm, asking in a low voice, "What are you doing?"

I whispered back, "I want to see what these bats eat."

Boss Wu frowned slightly. "Stay put. There's something else coming from behind."

I thought to myself, What else could be back there? I don't see any more ethereal blue light coming from the Ming Huo.

However, since Boss Wu said it, I felt it carried weight, so I remained where I was.

Soon, I heard a few extremely faint footsteps.

The steps were light and the sound particularly odd; it had to be some kind of animal, not human. The reason the sound was strange was that with every step taken, there was a very subtle sound, like a PIA.

I often feel that Chinese characters lack the precise character for this sound—it’s used often, for example, giving someone a PIA slap, or sticking a poster with a PIA sound onto a wall.

But the sound I was hearing now was neither of those. It was more like the sound made when a bowl of shaved ice is accidentally spilled onto the floor.

To be more accurate, it was the sound made by some creature with very long claws walking across a stone slab.

The sound was very faint but rapid, gradually approaching our location.

I wondered nervously if the strange creature that had been eating the apple earlier had followed us.

The thought made my heart pound, filling me with unease.

Though I couldn't see Boss Wu's face, I imagined it wasn't pleasant; I could hear his breathing growing ragged.

If there had been some faint illumination filtering in from the cave entrance when we were closer to it, now that all the Ming Huo had passed, our surroundings were plunged into absolute darkness.

We only heard that peculiar footfall growing nearer and nearer until it stopped right beside us.

I noticed Boss Wu's breathing becoming shallower; clearly, he was holding his breath.

I was even tenser than him, my fists clenched so tightly I felt sweat almost forming.

To be honest, what I hated most was waiting—it felt like sitting ducks waiting for fate. You never knew what might be lurking in the darkness.

But we had no choice but to wait now. Since the footsteps had stopped near us, it meant it had detected us. Given that, any rash move would be foolish.

We remained there, suppressing our breaths, yet maintaining a state of high alert. Any anomaly before our eyes—even the dropping of a needle or a slight gust of wind—would be immediately noticed by us.

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