"Ah! It's you! You're here." An stood on the open beach and saw Joyce emerge from the woods.
Feeling the dull, damp, salty air blowing from the sea, Joyce was a little unaccustomed to it. Having stayed in the jungle for so long, she was still more used to the scent of vibrant plant life.
She walked nervously towards An, her hands behind her back.
"Um, do you still have some meat? My companion just recovered from an illness, and I want to help him recuperate."
Meat?
An's smile grew even brighter, and combined with his gentle voice, it made him seem even more trustworthy.
"Yes, we have a lot. Come with me."
An led Joyce slowly towards their camp. Along the way, other than the constant sound of waves crashing against the shore and the howling sea breeze sweeping across the surface, there was a profound silence. The snow-white beach shimmered brilliantly under the radiant sun, and the ground was so hot it felt like it could scorch one's soles, showing no sign that it had recently endured a heavy rain.
Finally arriving at the camp, the sight before Joyce made her eyes widen. She saw only a few crude huts in the camp, cobbled together from branches, sticks, and leaves. Compared to the shelter she and Xiao Yaba lived in, they were far too simple. Roughly counting, there were only 10 people in the entire camp!
All of this greatly exceeded Joyce's expectations. She had always imagined that someone as friendly and helpful as An should be able to unite all his companions to survive together.
Even if some people were unwilling to stay together, there should at least be about 20 people who chose to remain here! After all, most people on that ship had received An's friendly treatment.
Why were there only 10 people left now? Could it be... Joyce's heart tightened suddenly, and a terrifying thought involuntarily surfaced in her mind. But she dared not delve deeper, because although her past life wasn't perfect, she couldn't imagine that someone could be so depraved as to cruelly take the lives of many innocent people just to save his own.
At this thought, Joyce couldn't help but swallow with difficulty, extreme fear making her once rosy lips now ashen. However, when she saw An walk into the grass hut, a glimmer of hope rose in her heart: An seemed like a kind-hearted person; he shouldn't do such a heinous thing, right?
Not long after, An emerged from the simple grass hut, holding a fist-sized, somewhat greasy piece of meat tightly in his hand.
He walked with light steps directly towards Joyce, who was standing nearby. As he approached, he noticed Joyce's slightly pale face, as if she wasn't feeling well. So, An stopped and asked with concern, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Do you want to rest for a bit?"
Hearing An's caring words, Joyce couldn't help but look up, gazing at the man with a worried expression. She secretly thought to herself, perhaps she was really overthinking things.
After all, in this wilderness, some people simply don't want too much contact with others, so maintaining a high level of vigilance is understandable. Thinking this, Joyce slowly turned her head and scanned the other people in the camp. Sure enough, a few people's gazes were thoughtfully on her, but their expressions revealed nothing unusual or suspicious.
After some thought and observation, Joyce's previously anxious heart finally settled down a bit. She gently shook her head and said to An with a smile, "Thank you for your concern, but I should be fine. Well... I'll be leaving now." With that, she turned to depart.
Seeing this, An quickly nodded and waved to Joyce, responding kindly, "Alright! If you need any more help later, feel free to come find me anytime." With that, An continued to watch Joyce's receding figure with a smile.
She wondered if Xiao Yaba had returned yet. She needed to go back quickly. Joyce had somewhat forgotten the way back. She looked up at the faint smoke drifting high above and figured she could definitely get back by following the smoke. She randomly picked a path and plunged into the woods.
After walking for a while, Joyce noticed many flies and insects flying around. Had some animal died here?
Gathering her courage, she pushed aside the bushes, and just one glance made her collapse to the ground in terror. It was a corpse, a piece of flesh dug out of its abdomen, and insects were crawling into his abdominal cavity, devouring his internal organs. She recognized this boy; he had been very close to An on the ship, small and often bullied by other children, and An had protected him.
How could he have died?
Her trembling hand couldn't even hold the meat. Extreme fear prevented Joyce from noticing someone getting closer behind her.
A shadow fell over her head. Joyce slowly looked up and met An's hazel eyes. He was still smiling, but his eyes watched her coldly.
"I had planned to deal with you two in the last few days, but whose fault is it that you have bad luck? You just had to take this path."
Joyce didn't even have time to scream. An hit her head with a stone, and she collapsed to the ground... It took longer than he expected. The boy, carrying a wild chicken, walked through the woods. He had noticed traces of wild chickens when he found the potatoes. It was probably almost evening now, and he needed to get back quickly.
Returning to the camp, it was empty, and the fire was reduced to just a few glowing embers. He frowned. Where was Joyce?
She was nowhere to be found. Could it be... Recalling the person named An, he had sensed his ill intentions from the very beginning. Was Joyce taken by him?
He threw down the wild chicken, picked up the bottom of the glass bottle, and ran towards the beach, quickly darting through the jungle. Many sharp branches scratched his face and body, but he didn't stop. Even his ill-fitting straw sandals were lost in the run.
As he got closer to the beach, his vision suddenly opened up. He gasped for breath, his eyes searching, and then he saw a scene that made his eyes split with rage.
Joyce was tied to a tree, and the tree was surrounded by branches and weeds. Ten people surrounded her, and An, who was leading them, held a burning torch. He looked at the suddenly appearing boy with surprise, then smiled maliciously.
In front of the boy, he threw down the torch. The moment An made his move, the boy smashed the bottom of the glass bottle on the ground, picked up a sharp shard, and charged towards them.
Seeing the other party fearlessly charging over again, An frowned deeply, a hint of annoyance flashing in his eyes. He quickly turned and casually waved to the tall children behind him, signaling them to hurry and stop this ignorant fellow.
The two people who tried to block him immediately took large strides to meet him, intending to subdue him. The boy tightly gripped the sharp glass shard in his hand, his eyes as cold as a cornered beast.
Just as the two were about to get close to him, the boy suddenly struck, the glass shard accurately piercing one of them in the abdomen.
This sudden attack stunned everyone. No one expected this seemingly weak boy to possess such a dangerous weapon.
The injured person screamed, then fell to the ground in pain, his hands desperately covering the bleeding wound, a piercing cry escaping his lips.
The other person, who had been aggressive, was now frozen in terror, completely daring not to move another step. After all, they were still just children, and facing such a bloody and violent scene, their hearts were inevitably filled with fear and panic.
Seeing this, An was both shocked and enraged. He widened his eyes and yelled loudly, "What are you still standing there for? Stop him!" With that, he picked up a thick wooden stick nearby and unhesitatingly swung it hard at the boy who was running towards him.
However, unexpectedly, although the stick hit the boy squarely, he seemed to feel nothing, his body not even swaying. Instead, he took advantage of the gap in An's attack, suddenly accelerated his charge, and the incredibly sharp glass in his hand went straight for An's eye.
With a muffled "splat," An's right eye was instantly pierced by the glass, his eyeball bursting. A sharp pain instantly swept through his entire body. An instinctively reached out with both hands to cover his injured eye, letting out a heart-wrenching wail: "My eye! Ah! My eye!!" Bright red blood gushed from his eye socket like a breached dam, staining his hands and cheeks. At this moment, An was completely engulfed in extreme panic and despair.
An couldn't understand why the children here had always been submissive and easily manipulated, but why this seemingly gentle and harmless little boy had turned into a wolf in sheep's clothing.
The other children, who were already hesitant, were directly scared into immobility, watching as he rescued Joyce from the raging fire and carried her away from there.
------------------------------
I've just released 40 brand-new chapters on Patreon!
If you're enjoying the story and want to read ahead, feel free to check out my Patreon. Every bit of support truly means a lot to me.
👉 patreon.com/Kazenova223
Thank you so much for reading and supporting the story! And if you're liking it here, don't forget to drop a Power Stone to show your support!