CHAPTER 43: CHAPTER 41: THE CAVE

"Phew, those damned bastards, don’t let me see you again!"

The Lizardman captain Rodney sat on a stone, breathing heavily, while the group of beastmen beside him were also panting.

In the end, they couldn’t catch up with the pack of hyenas, which managed to escape.

It’s not surprising; although the beastmen are physically much stronger than humans, they are still no match for these four-legged creatures accustomed to fleeing through the forest.

"Captain Rodney, just let them run. If we go further, we might run into people from other tribes."

One of the beastmen team members advised Rodney while panting, they had been chasing the hyenas for over twenty miles, and going further away from Dragon Nest Territory could easily lead to danger.

"Alright, in that case, let’s give up. Anyway, those damned thieves probably won’t dare come around here again. Let’s rest for a bit and prepare to head back."

Rodney exhaled deeply, considering for a moment. Although feeling a bit unwilling, he knew he had to stop.

They couldn’t stray far from Dragon Nest Territory to continue the chase and risk entering a dangerous environment.

Moreover, those hyenas had already been driven out of Dragon Nest Territory, so at least they posed no threat to the territory anymore.

The group of beastmen rested for a while and prepared to leave.

Just then, a thunderous boom erupted in the sky, and the gloomy heavens began to pour down rain. The torrent of rain crashed onto the leaves of the mountain forest, creating a loud rustling noise. At the same time, lightning flashed among the clouds, and the rumbling thunder echoed across the land.

Rodney looked up at the pouring rain in the sky and couldn’t help but curse:

"This damned weather!"

At this time, the cold winter had just passed. The ground’s snow hadn’t fully melted, and the air was still quite chilly; getting drenched by this icy rain would make a person shiver all over, and the feeling was definitely unpleasant.

"If you don’t want to get soaked, hurry and find a place to take shelter."

Rodney’s full and loud voice shouted, and the beastmen immediately scattered.

"Report, Captain, there’s a cave here!"

Not long after, a beastman team member shouted loudly from not far away.

The beastmen quickly hunched their necks and scurried through the forest, running swiftly towards the source of the sound.

It was a cave hidden under a cliff tens of meters high, its entrance surrounded by vegetation. Sharp stalactites hung irregularly from the cave ceiling, indicating it was a naturally formed cave.

The beastmen searched the surroundings and, seeing no dangerous creatures, settled inside the cave to rest.

The rain outside continued to pour, and the wet beastmen shivered in the cool breeze that swept through the air.

"Damn it, someone start a fire, this damned rainy weather!"

With Rodney’s cursing, a few beastmen quickly made a fire inside the cave. Fortunately, the cave had existed for countless years, leaving some dry twigs and leaves on the ground. As the flames rose, the coldness around them dissipated somewhat.

"Captain Rodney, last time you got punished by Chief Vini and put in that little black room because of your greed, didn’t you say you’d teach him a lesson once you got out? What happened?"

"Damn it, Alyosha, don’t bring that up again. Next time you mess up, I’ll lock you in that little black room, and we’ll see if you’re still as smug!"

"Hahaha..."

Inside the cave, the beastmen warmed themselves by the fire, sitting together discussing various happenings in the territory. When excited, they burst into laughter. The military training truly bonded them, forging a camaraderie not common among ordinary beastmen.

Suddenly,

a rustling sound came from within the cave.

"What was that noise?"

Even amidst their conversation, some sharp-eared beastmen heard the sound.

"What noise? You must have misheard."

As they spoke, a beastman took a burning stick from the fire, held it high, and illuminated the cave’s interior.

"It’s...!!!"

Following the light, Rodney’s eyes widened in shock, pupils shrinking to pinpoints.

In the dark corners of the cave, countless eyes reflected a green glow, calmly watching them from the shadows. Sinister silhouettes were drawn long and stretched in the firelight, like demons baring claws and fangs in the darkness.

Spiders!

Spiders larger than beastmen! Cramming every corner in numbers!

Looking further into the cave, they could see ground covered in eerie white bones and webs crisscrossing everywhere, with small spiders crawling ceaselessly on them.

The surroundings deeper inside felt particularly eerie.

...

As time passed, Dragon Nest Village entered a stage of rapid development.

With the passing of the cold winter, some impoverished tribes began migrating. Some beastmen scattered during the migration, filtering into the Kawa Great Forest to become roaming beastmen, and were then attracted by the white smoke columns to join the Dragon Nest Tribe.

Though in the Kawa Great Forest, smoke columns didn’t always signify prosperity. Some evil and cruel beastman tribes would, when lacking food, lure wandering beastmen with such smoke and turn them into food. However, compared to the perilous wilderness survival with almost no chance of success, an eighty percent success rate was a worthwhile gamble for those hungry and cold roaming beastmen.

Thus, with the end of the cold winter, the number of wandering beastmen drawn by the white smoke columns on nearby hills not only didn’t decrease but increased substantially.

The population influx brought sufficient manpower to the Dragon Nest Tribe.

Through military training, the beastmen gained strong discipline and cooperation abilities. Austin also taught them various hunting techniques and strategies from his previous life. Together, they’ve carried out several joint hunting operations in Dragon Nest Territory, yielding a large haul of prey to meet the needs of the growing population.

Nevertheless, the Blue Young Dragon understood that such extensive hunting, while providing ample food in the short term, would make it difficult to secure enough meat just by this method once the wild beasts in the territory were greatly reduced.

Despite this, Austin wasn’t worried.

The primary goal of launching operations against wild beasts and secondary predators around Dragon Nest Territory this early spring was mainly to create a relatively safe environment for Dragon Nest Territory, not to obtain food.

In his plans for this year, if one or two goals could be achieved, coupled with regular hunting and gathering, then they wouldn’t have to worry about food scarcity during the upcoming cold winter.