My hand being what it was—half-crippled—meant I felt nothing as the flames licked it, though the sleeve was shredded, revealing the hard, green skin beneath.

“Your hand…” Boss Wu saw the state of my arm by the firelight, his expression tinged with surprise.

I had no time to explain why my hand looked that way, as the monster I had just knocked back was already lunging again.

This time, I had ample time to ready the pistol. When the black silhouette rushed toward me once more, I pulled the trigger instantly.

With a sharp bang, a bright muzzle flash erupted, striking the monster squarely in the mouth.

The close-range hit drove the thing backward with tremendous force, sending it tumbling away.

But I dared not relax my guard, for I had seen too many monsters that could survive a bullet. Even an ordinary brown bear might not die from a shot like that, and this creature was clearly much larger than a bear.

As expected, after only a moment, the thing struggled up from the ground, let out a hoarse roar directed at us, and charged again.

I cursed under my breath, “Idiot! Still coming!”

Then, with another bang, I fired again.

This time, however, the fire spat out, missing the monster entirely and striking the stone wall opposite, showering sparks.

I stared ahead in surprise, realizing the creature had vanished from my immediate sight.

“Watch out above!” Boss Wu yelled frantically while struggling to break free from the person holding him from behind.

I looked up and saw that, precisely at the moment I fired, the monster had been prepared. It had launched itself upward, latching onto the cavern ceiling. Its two hind legs were dangling down, its neck curved, and its face was pointed directly at me, with a glow building in its mouth, seemingly preparing to spew fire.

I scrambled to raise my arm to block, but it was too late. A stream of ghostly blue flame shot toward me, carrying an intensely searing heat.

Though my right hand was formidable, it couldn't block the flames. Seeing that the stream was thick as a washbasin, I knew it would engulf me completely.

At that split second, someone suddenly shoved me hard from behind, sending me tumbling onto the ground.

The flame whistled past my backside, scorching a patch of earth right where my crotch had been.

I felt a searing heat where my vital areas were, and instantly sprang back up to check.

To my relief, my trousers hadn't caught fire, only feeling slightly scorched. However, the ground the creature had hit was now blazing fiercely, the stones glowing red-hot and sizzling audibly.

A cold sweat broke out on my brow. This heat is practically equivalent to a steel furnace, I thought. What in the world is this monster?

It was then I noticed the person who had pushed me was still standing there.

I could see this wasn't Boss Wu; this person was taller and built more solidly. They wore a tattered, deep-blue hoodie, the hood pulled low over their head. Long hair obscured their eyes, making their features completely invisible.

But this person had two very distinct characteristics: first, an unusually long, black ancient blade strapped to their back; and second, the right hand resting on the hilt of the sword had an abnormally long middle finger.

They stood motionless, their breathing suppressed to almost nothing, yet an aura of formidable power radiated from them.

It wasn't just me who sensed this presence; even the monster hanging from the ceiling instinctively drew its neck back.

The person remained rooted, but the sword began to slide slowly from its sheath.

The blade possessed no luster; even in the faint firelight on the ground, it appeared dull, completely devoid of sharpness.

Yet, the moment the blade was partially drawn, the creature on the ceiling immediately released its hold, dropped to the floor, and began retreating with roars, clearly intimidated by the weapon.

The mysterious figure drew the sword halfway and then stopped, issuing a cold command: “Get out!”

His voice wasn't loud, possessing a certain detached indifference, but it was enough to make the monster flinch backward, actually turn tail, and vanish into the darkness at incredible speed.

Seeing the monster gone, the man slowly slid the partially drawn blade back into its scabbard. He then turned to face me, his hair-obscured eyes seemingly locking onto my strange hand.

He watched for several seconds without speaking. During that time, I swallowed hard, unable to utter a word.

Finally, the man spoke, saying, “Wu…”

He paused, then thought better of it, lifting his foot and walking in the direction the monster had fled.

I didn't stop him, merely watching him silently.

The man walked several meters before stopping. He turned his head halfway back toward me and said, “I knocked your companion out. Wake him and tell him to go back.”

I neither answered nor nodded.

The man, however, didn't seem inclined to press the issue. He turned away and, with a few light bounds, disappeared into the darkness.

I felt utterly bewildered, wondering why this person had knocked out Boss Wu. The person who had been restraining Wu earlier must have been him. How had he appeared? If he had been there all along, we surely would have noticed him.

A flood of questions swirled in my mind, yet I had no answers.

After much deliberation, I could only scratch the back of my head and walk back to check on Boss Wu.

Boss Wu was indeed motionless on the ground. I quickly twisted a glow stick to life, helped him sit up, and patted his face.

Boss Wu hadn't been knocked out deeply. The veins in his neck tensed, he coughed twice, and then sat bolt upright.

I thought to myself that he probably hadn't been genuinely unconscious, because the first reaction of someone knocked out is usually severe headache, which Wu lacked. It was as if someone had struck an acupuncture point.

As soon as he woke, Boss Wu became agitated, grabbing my collar and demanding, “It was him! I knew he’d show up here! Where is he? Where is he!”

I felt dizzy from his shaking and managed to say, “The man who knocked you out? He left, heading deeper into the cavern. If we chase now, we might still catch him.”

Unexpectedly, Boss Wu instantly calmed down, slowly shaking his head. “It seems he didn’t want to see me. If that’s the case, we won’t catch him.”