The frog-man was clearly not chasing Lin Xiao Tian; it was also fleeing for its life. What was most frustrating was that this creature shared the exact same thoughts as Lin Xiao Tian.
The frog-man was injured, and Lin Xiao Tian was carrying the sprained Li Xue. Their speeds were similar, and the catfish-man behind them was clearly enraged, chasing them with utter disregard for its own safety. If Lin Xiao Tian hadn't struck its gills earlier, they would have been caught by now.
The two humans and one beast fled desperately.
After a while, a small waterfall suddenly appeared ahead. The frog-man leaped past Lin Xiao Tian and dived into the waterfall. Lin Xiao Tian, with his sharp eyes, took a close look and noticed what seemed to be a cave behind the cascade.
Now it was just Lin Xiao Tian and Li Xue. They were surrounded by a small patch of land. If they waded through the water, the catfish-man would surely catch up. Moreover, once in the water, the catfish-man's speed would be entirely different.
Lin Xiao Tian had two choices. One was to follow the shore, but the shore was generally fan-shaped. If Lin Xiao Tian ran along the shore, he would only get closer to the catfish-man. By the time the catfish-man recovered, neither of them would be able to escape.
After much thought, there was only one option left.
Lin Xiao Tian held Li Xue tightly and plunged into the waterfall.
Behind the waterfall, a dark mountain cave appeared. Lin Xiao Tian saw the frog-man hiding in the deepest part of the cave, staring intently at him.
Lin Xiao Tian frowned. If they clashed with the frog-man now, and the catfish-man noticed, they would all die.
Lin Xiao Tian stopped at the cave entrance, not approaching the frog-man.
Fortunately, the frog-man had some intelligence and seemed to realize Lin Xiao Tian had no hostile intentions, so it didn't attack him.
Not long after, the catfish-man also arrived. Lin Xiao Tian heard gurgling sounds from outside.
Lin Xiao Tian took out the scent-concealing powder. The powder was already damp, but it was still usable. Lin Xiao Tian mixed the powder with water to make a medicinal liquid, then sprinkled it around the cave entrance.
The catfish-man lingered on the shore for a while. Due to the waterfall, it couldn't see where Lin Xiao Tian was and had to rely on its sense of smell. After sniffing for a while,
Soon, it dived into the water.
Lin Xiao Tian cautiously observed the activity in front of the waterfall, his dagger gripped tightly in his hand. He was prepared to fight the catfish-man to the death.
Fortunately, the catfish-man did not appear. Only when dawn broke did Lin Xiao Tian finally breathe a sigh of relief.
However, there was still a troublesome matter.
Lin Xiao Tian's gaze fell on the frog-man at the back of the cave.
This creature had been shot by his pistol but had not died. It still seemed to have the strength to fight. However, Lin Xiao Tian was not in much better condition and could only face it in a stalemate.
During the day, the frog-man appeared quite docile, only occasionally licking its wound. Its tongue could almost circle its entire body.
Lin Xiao Tian originally wanted to leave, as who would want to stay with a man-eating monster? But he considered the complicated situation in the water. He would have to bring Li Xue with him, and if anything went wrong, both of them might perish. Rather than that, it was better to rest here for a while.
Lin Xiao Tian massaged Li Xue's arm. Coupled with his massage techniques, Li Xue would recover faster than under normal circumstances.
And so, a day passed.
On the second day, Li Xue's condition improved significantly. If she rested for a while longer, she should recover fully. But Lin Xiao Tian couldn't wait any longer; he prepared to leave the cave with Li Xue.
The main reason for his haste was the frog-man at the back of the cave. It had also almost recovered.
Last night, Lin Xiao Tian had even sensed it approaching. If Lin Xiao Tian hadn't noticed and made some noise, who knew what would have happened.
"We have to leave!" Lin Xiao Tian said.
Li Xue also understood their current predicament. Although her leg hadn't fully healed, she couldn't afford to care about that anymore.
Lin Xiao Tian tucked his dagger into his waist and then cautiously peeked outside.
Outside, it was peaceful. A egret flew over and landed on a small islet in the lake.
Lin Xiao Tian grabbed Li Xue and prepared to walk out.
Just as his hand touched the waterfall, a disturbance suddenly arose from the middle of the lake.
*Splash!*
A stream of water shot up from the lake.
Immediately after, the egret disappeared.
Lin Xiao Tian's eyes widened. He had just seen a small, squat creature drag the egret into the lake.
There were other frog-men here?
This completely disrupted Lin Xiao Tian's original plan.
Lin Xiao Tian wanted to retreat, but a commotion suddenly came from behind him.
*Croak!*
The frog-man leaped onto Li Xue, its mouth full of sharp teeth lunging towards her face.
Li Xue, being a martial artist, reacted quickly and shook off the frog-man.
But although the frog-man lacked strength, its speed was truly astonishing. It immediately charged forward again.
Lin Xiao Tian directly kicked it flying.
This time, the frog-man stopped charging and instead let out continuous croaking sounds.
Lin Xiao Tian thought of Xue Ding's previous howls. It was those howls that attracted the pack of black dogs. Could this frog-man also be trying to call for help?
"Bad!"
"Make it quick, we can't let it keep croaking."
Lin Xiao Tian shouted to Li Xue.
At the same time, Lin Xiao Tian sprinted towards the frog-man.
The frog-man knew it couldn't defeat Lin Xiao Tian and jumped around, evading his attacks.
Soon, Li Xue's voice came from the cave entrance.
"Oh no, several more have arrived."
Lin Xiao Tian focused his gaze. Two more frog-men entered the cave entrance.
"They were indeed signaling for reinforcements!"
Lin Xiao Tian gritted his teeth.
At this moment, he no longer held back any strength.
His blade danced, and a short knife had an inherent advantage in such a narrow cave. In just a moment, three frog-men were slayed by Lin Xiao Tian.
But these frog-men were incredibly resilient. They were still moving. With Li Xue's cooperation, Lin Xiao Tian added a few more blows, and these frog-men finally stopped their croaking.
After finishing this, Lin Xiao Tian sat on the ground, panting, his gaze fixed on the cave entrance.
Fortunately, no new frog-men appeared, which brought him some relief.
And so, another day passed.
By evening, Lin Xiao Tian's stomach rumbled uncontrollably. They hadn't eaten for a whole day.
"We can't stay here forever. We have to go out and find food," Li Xue suggested.
But Lin Xiao Tian shook his head, "No, there are many monsters in the lake. We'll definitely have to wade through water to get out, and we can't possibly defeat these monsters in the water."
"Then what? Are we going to starve to death here?"
Lin Xiao Tian frowned, his gaze falling on the frog-man in front of him.