บท 6: Section 7: Life and Death on the Line
บรรณาธิการ: Henyee Translations
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Zhenjin's counterattack was remarkably effective, exterminating many Fire Poison Bees, yet it also attracted even more bees.
The Fire Poison Bees swarmed incessantly.
After hundreds of sword thrusts, Zhenjin felt his muscles ache.
After thousands of thrusts, the ache turned into throbbing pain, especially in his sword-wielding arm. It felt as though it had swollen a size, and the sword in his hand grew heavy.
Buzz, buzz, buzz...
The Fire Poison Bee Swarm seemed endless, their casualties enraging them, causing a large group to fly from the campfire. The swarm surged like a tsunami, threatening to engulf the young man and woman.
"Damn it!"
Zhenjin cursed inwardly, mustering all his strength to swing his longsword.
The sword felt several times heavier, a sign he knew signaled his physical strength had reached its limit.
He was drenched in sweat, his head muddled.
His arm almost wasn't his anymore, muscles numb, each thrust sending stabbing pains from his bones like aged, rusted gears forced to work.
Fire Poison Bee after bee stung Zhenjin. Under such assault, his chainmail's defense meant little.
Zhenjin clenched his teeth, ever mindful of the girl Zi Di behind him. To protect his fiancée, he had not taken a single step back in this battle!
He held his sword in one hand, the other trying to pull out the struggling Fire Poison Bees stinging him.
The bees died as he threw them to the ground.
"My lord, my lord..." Zi Di's sobs came from behind him.
No bees attacked her, probably because Zhenjin had utterly enraged the swarm. The bees, abandoning even the blazing campfire, focused on Zhenjin. Perhaps his intense movement heat drew them more than Zi Di's.
Time stretched unbearably for Zhenjin.
Finally, his vision cleared abruptly; no Fire Poison Bees remained in sight.
The ground was littered with bee corpses. He had won!
Zhenjin's heart relaxed, causing his grip on the longsword to fail, the tip nearly piercing his foot.
Numbness was his primary sensation.
But soon, wounds from bee stings sent burning pain across his body.
His right arm felt nonexistent, almost devoid of sensation.
"My lord, look out!" Zi Di exclaimed.
Her cry jolted Zhenjin's numb mind to sudden clarity.
Despite the campfire nearly extinguished, a dozen more Fire Poison Bees emerged, coming for him again.
A final batch of bees remained!
But...
"I can fight no more," Zhenjin said with a bitter smile, fully aware of his state.
He knew that if all those bees had attacked at once, he might've handled them. But now, having relaxed even a bit, he couldn't lift his sword.
Though feeling nothing, Zhenjin knew the Fire Poison had spread within him.
An inner voice warned that continuing to fight meant likely death.
This was a warrior's strong intuition.
Zhenjin heeded it, knowing he could fight no longer.
"Run!" Zhenjin sighed, pulling Zi Di's hand as they swiftly fled.
The young couple plunged into the dark forest.
They had no choice but to escape.
Staying meant death under the swarm's stingers, but fleeing, though perilous, held a glimmer of hope.
"I will not give up until the end!" Zhenjin's eyes shone with resolve, unyielding in spirit.
Zi Di stumbled behind him, her pace unable to keep up despite Zhenjin's waning physical ability.
"My lord, let me stay. I can distract them..." Zi Di panted out.
"Silence!" Zhenjin suddenly turned, facing her.
She cried out, crashing into his arms from inertia.
The next moment, her world spun, her view changed.
She realized Zhenjin had picked her up, running madly.
Their reckless dash through the forest stirred restless sounds from all around.
Zhenjin tried evading the bee swarm, but the persistent buzzing drew closer.
Even in mortal peril, the boy held onto reason.
The simplest way to evade bees was to jump into water, causing them to withdraw. But rivers known to them harbored Python Vine—jumping was suicide.
Zhenjin could only run as they had by day, hoping to distance themselves. It was their best option in desperation.
However, darkness severely limited his vision, forcing reliance on vague memory.
On the third near-collision with a tree, Zi Di managed to pull a potion from her waist pouch.
Encased in glass, the potion emitted a firefly-like glow.
They could now roughly discern their path.
Dense branches and tangled roots made forest travel hard, let alone a frantic run!
Often, bushes and ferns formed near-walls.
Zhenjin crashed through these barriers clutching Zi Di!
The forest seemed to exude malevolence, reaching with countless tendrils to thwart his escape.
He tore through every vine, ignoring thorns that ripped clothes and skin in the dark.
Luckily, their path showed signs of prior travel, having been cleared by day. Otherwise, navigating the forest at such a pace would be impossible.
Zi Di hurled potions at the bees; sometimes they were distracted, slowing, but mostly to no effect.
"Damn," Zhenjin's heart sank. The surroundings grew unfamiliar; they had entered unknown territory.
No choice remained. Stopping meant certain death, so he ran headlong.
At last, an agony-filled howl signaled a beast's ambush from the foliage.
"What is it?!" Zhenjin glimpsed what seemed a Black Panther.
A gust of predator-scented wind buffeted him!
At the last instant, he dodged, not looking back, continuing his desperate run.
Bees and the Black Panther engaged behind him.
Soon, the panther retreated, outmatched, giving Zhenjin a brief respite.
The relentless bees began closing the gap again, nearing the beleaguered duo.
Zhenjin's legs felt like lead, his stamina pushed to the brink.
His speed ebbed.
The terrain shifted upward; a cliff emerged under the potion's faint light, an abyss below.
They had strayed into unfamiliar land while fleeing.
Bees closed in from the left rear.
"There's a cave with a light!" Zi Di suddenly exclaimed.
From the cave emanated a faint orange light, indicating habitation.
With renewed hope, Zhenjin dashed into the cave with Zi Di.
Inside, a blast of hot air hit them.
No signs of human presence, only glowing ores that emitted dim orange light and heat.
Sparse and small at the entrance, the glowing ore grew denser and larger deeper in.
After hundreds of steps, Zhenjin felt like they were in an oven. Zi Di was drenched in sweat.
Progress was impossible; the air was scorching, with a tangible risk of being cooked alive.
Yet the pursuing Fire Poison Bees also entered, bringing Death ever closer.
Zhenjin set Zi Di down, forcing them to venture deeper.
The pursuit was in its final stage.
Hope sparked within Zhenjin: though unable to fight the bees, the cave's unique terrain might confuse them.
He knew bees tracked heat. The higher the heat, the more they were attracted!
Though dark, a flicker of light struggled on.
Grunting, they trudged onward, straining their remaining strength.
The cave narrowed, heated ore nearly covering the walls, glowing red.
Contact was impossible—it was too hot!
"Look, animal marks." Zi Di whispered.
Zhenjin saw claw marks on the walls.
Any beast surviving such extremes had to be formidable!
His heart sank but he smiled bitterly, knowing they had no choice.
Despite being drawn to the ores, bees kept at their trail, flying and resting.
Uncertain of their fate, the duo kept moving.
Suddenly, Zhenjin staggered.
A violent dizziness struck, nearly causing a blackout.
"Damn," Zhenjin stumbled, vision quaking like an earthquake, barely standing.
The Fire Poison acted!
Zhenjin had to brace himself on the cave wall.
Sizz...
The wall scorched his glove, smoke rising.
An awful stench emanated from him.
The odor enraged the bees; they abandoned the ores, their murderous intent honing in on Zhenjin.
Zi Di's face turned ashen white, realizing: bees attracted by heat also used the Fire Poison's scent to track. The stink of Fire Poison activated their fury.
Zhenjin's body held much Fire Poison, evidence of many bees he'd slain. The formidable foe incited frenzied attacks.
Zi Di, frantic, poured a potion to mask the stench, easing the bees' anger, drawing them back to the ores.
"Hurry, the potion won't last long." Supporting Zhenjin with her small frame, they trudged on.
A few steps in, Zhenjin felt the world tumble, his sense of direction gone, each step an ordeal!
The poison heated his body, a ceaseless tolling filling his mind.
Clinging to sanity, he weakly urged Zi Di: "Run, just run."
Unpoisoned, the bees wouldn't target Zi Di in the cave.
She could escape!
But Zi Di vehemently shook her head, teary and determined: "No, my lord! I will not leave you. We've come so far, we can't give up!"
Zhenjin sighed, pushing her away: "Run!"
"No, my lord!"
They fell in a heap.
Bees buzzed overhead.
Death loomed!
Zi Di shut her eyes; Zhenjin, glaring, lay prone, unable to rise.
He watched bees approach, until but an inch from his face when...
Roar!
An animal's roar echoed in the cave.
Bees scattered, shocked.
They flew erratically, some colliding.
Thud, thud, thud...
Thunderous drumming followed, like a giant pounding a war drum.
A monster charged. It sped so fast only a massive shadow remained in their vision.
The mysterious creature attacked the bees.
The brutal bees fled in panic under the onslaught.
The beast chased them away.
Cold quiet filled the cave.
The pair lay gasping, staring at the cave ceiling, bewildered.
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