Cave Refuge

After last night's experience, the leader once again summoned his Companion Spiritual Treasure in the evening. Although no one was stationed on deck this time, he doubled the number of members on indoor duty at night.

That night, only four people disappeared, but it had an indelible impact on their team. Consequently, for a long time afterward, many people couldn't sleep soundly at night, fearing they might never open their eyes again once they closed them to sleep.

If the mysterious disappearance of the team members that night brought everyone a tremendous psychological pressure, then what followed during their daytime return journey was a brutal reduction in numbers – the forest that suddenly sprang up and enveloped them on the way back, making the team, eager to return, suffer a severe loss.

As said before, when the whole team travels together, although they must slow down to accommodate the weaker members, and thus the members can't exert their full strength, this team was formed based on the standards of an elite team. Therefore, even the weakest member among them actually has substantial combat power.

For this reason, after the bizarre disappearances of the night, although all personnel didn't have the right to engage in combat during their journey, they moved much faster than before the Night Watchmen disappeared, hastening their retreat in unspoken agreement.

But even as they quickened their pace, they were still encircled by trees that suddenly burst from the ground during their move.

Although there was a distance of about two meters between these sudden obstructive giants, after witnessing trees breaking through the ground and growing into Sky-Reaching Giant Trees in just a few seconds, anyone with sense wouldn't rashly approach these Sky-Reaching Giant Trees at this time.

When the leader saw the road ahead already blocked by those giant trees, he didn't stop to carefully devise a plan but decisively led the way in a different direction. After all, reality isn't a game; they had to move according to the planned route.

So the leader thought, if the path ahead was blocked by giant trees, they might as well choose a different direction to escape. At this moment, no one wanted to take unnecessary risks.

Although most Chinese People do not fear sacrifice, different scenarios of sacrifice can lead them to make different or even completely opposite decisions.

For example, in significant events or when bearing a critical mission, it is believed that most people would be steadfast – not only unafraid of sacrifice but would even volunteer for it.

For instance, in intense battle, if all other members of your group have died, leaving you alone, the enemy is approaching – it's a choice between surrender or continuing to fight.

While most people have not experienced life-and-death battles, if they were truly involved in war, the majority would act as it's said online: "If only one person dies in my team, I become very afraid, but if all other members die and I'm left alone, then I'll be fearless."

I may fear death, but I fear more the looks others will give me after all my comrades have fallen and I alone survive.

When it comes to being the last one standing in battle, a senior has already given a clear answer:

Report to Command Headquarters: I am still here, the position still holds. Set your target on me, advance bombardment 50 meters to the east, request carpet bombing in thirty seconds. I will charge towards the enemy; long live China.

Yet, such fearless courage only emerges at significant moments; but in times of obscurity, apart from those on a mission, most ordinary people harbor a great fear of death.

Just like in robberies of the past, why is it that merely three or four knife-wielding robbers could intimidate and subdue dozens of ordinary people?

Logically speaking, in the real world, even with strong combat capabilities and handheld melee weapons, it's almost impossible to win a battle when outnumbered.

To put it more simply, even a robber armed with a six-shot revolver can easily control twenty or thirty people.

Even though those being controlled are well aware that the assailant doesn't have enough bullets to kill everyone present, they still aren't willing to be the first to rebel.

But if someone takes the lead to resist, there will surely be others who will follow and resist together.

This just corresponds to the saying: If only one person dies, then I will be extremely fearful, but if only I remain alive, then I will fear nothing.

When everyone learned that the night watchmen mysterously disappeared in the thick fog, a growing sense of fear took hold in everyone's heart.

So when they discovered that a tree suddenly rose from the ground and obstructed the path ahead, their first choice was not to go over and investigate, but to immediately change direction and try to leave this dangerous area.

What terrified them was that no matter which direction they turned, even if they retreated toward the direction from which they came, they were blocked by trees shooting up from the ground.

Once they realized that sky-reaching giant trees had appeared in all directions and they had completely fallen into the encirclement of the trees, everyone stopped in their tracks.

Before they could even calm their nerves and discuss how to break through the situation, a struggling figure gradually emerged from the trunk of the tree.

The tree bark, which should have been incredibly hard, was now strangely elastic like plastic film, and as the figure inside the tree trunk struggled harder, more and more of its body seemed to want to break free.

As the figure's struggle grew fiercer, the elastic tree bark, akin to a last line of defense, ultimately could not hold on and cracks began emerging. With the expanding cracks on the bark, the figure gradually broke free from the tree trunk.

When one after another, figures separated themselves from various tree trunks, everyone realized that these figures emerging from the trees resembled matchmen in appearance.

Their heads were round wooden balls, and their limbs and torsos were five unevenly sized but equally thick wooden sticks.

Holding those weird figures that had emerged from the tree trunks, everyone present was momentarily unable to respond to such a bizarre scene.

However, though they were initially stunned by the strange entrance of these matchmen, as soon as they started rushing toward their position, the elite hunting group immediately snapped back to reality and assumed a combat formation.

Though they were all using melee weapons at the moment, in a combat situation, they quickly dispersed their formation; martial artists need enough space to move freely, preferring one-on-one or small-scale battles, rather than the military formations of ancient armies.

Before the matchmen could get close, all martial artists had already drawn their weapons, with the majority wielding horse-cutting blades or similar blades.

These types of blades are sharpened only on one side, with a blunt back on the other, which makes it convenient to wield with one hand on the handle and the other hand pressing down on the back to increase lethality.

Reality is not like a game where one can only use one type of weapon; under normal circumstances, those who join the hunting group like Robinson William would typically prepare at least three different types of weapons.

These are polearms, melee weapons, and ranged weapons.

Polearms are mostly staves; melee weapons are generally blades similar to horse-cutting blades, and ranged weapons are no longer traditional like bows; instead, they are various types of firearms.