Chapter 2 - 2, Thrilling Moment [Comments Please!] A Deceitful Monster? Although it was the first time Xia Hong and Xia Chuan had heard the term "Deceitful Monster," seeing the look of fear on their father's face, an inexplicable heaviness rose within them. Their father, Xia Ding, seemed too panic-stricken to address their confusion, and instead quickly ordered the twelve members of the logging team to carry six large trees into the cave. Without a moment's hesitation, he then led the people of the camp to completely seal the entrance of the cave. After sealing the entrance, Xia Ding looked at the bonfire in the center of the camp, a trace of hesitation appearing on his face. But soon, he made a decision. "Extinguish the bonfire! Everyone, wear everything you have, huddle together for warmth. If anyone really can't bear it, you can light the bonfire, but only for ten minutes!" "What, extinguish the bonfire?" "We'll freeze to death." "Leader, that's not possible. My son is still young, he can't take it." ...... The mention of extinguishing the bonfire stirred up a huge wave of protest, with nearly sixty percent of the camp speaking out against it. The remaining forty percent, apart from the members of the logging team who knew the situation, were evidently those of a cooler temperament, waiting for Xia Ding's explanation. Xia Ding raised his hand, and once everyone fell silent, he spoke in a deep voice: "The Deceitful Monster from Redwood Ridge has emerged. Everyone at Iron Peak and Shenju Camps has been wiped out! If we extinguish the bonfire, there's still a chance for survival. If that creature finds us, we'll all die." Just hearing the term Deceitful Monster caused little reaction amongst most people in the camp. Obviously, they didn't know much about the creature. But when they heard everyone at Iron Peak and Shenju Camps had died, a look of shock crept over everyone's face, including Xia Hong. Each of those camps had a population of over three hundred. Redwood Ridge has nine camps, with Rogel being the only medium-sized one, while the remaining eight, like Great Xia, are small camps. Even among small camps, some are stronger than others. Both camps were stronger than Great Xia. The Lord of Iron Peak Camp, Iron Eagle, is even a powerful digger-tier expert. And now Xia Ding said all six hundred people across two camps were dead? Just how powerful is this Deceitful Monster? "Put on your clothes quickly, extinguish the fire. Dawn is approaching, just endure for four hours. If someone really can't hold on, I will consider lighting the fire, don't worry." The people were dazed for a moment, but quickly followed Xia Ding's instructions. Xia Hong hurried back to his family's area inside the cave, gathering all the clothes he could wear. He directly tossed the thickest beast hide coat to his younger brother Xia Chuan. "Brother, you wear it. I have enough clothes." "I'm stronger than you, my body is sturdier. Don't worry." Stopping Xia Chuan from returning the coat, Xia Hong then ran back to where his father, Xia Ding, was located. The camp members acted swiftly; in less than two minutes, everyone was dressed and gathered in the center of the cave. Seeing everyone assembled, Xia Ding nodded to the four people standing by the bonfire holding beast hides, ready to extinguish the fire. The four of them made a few fast moves and extinguished the two-meter-high flames. The entrance of the cave was already sealed, and without the firelight, the cave immediately fell into darkness. Accompanying the darkness was the cold that quickly settled in. The moment the fire was extinguished, the temperature in the cave started dropping rapidly, at a rate perceivable by the human body. There were over two hundred camp members, not just randomly huddled together. The youngest children were in the center, surrounded by women; further out were adult males, and on the outermost edge were the thirteen members of the logging team. Elderly? There's no elderly, not only in Great Xia, but there are almost no elderly in any camps. In such an end-of-winter scenario, ordinary elderly people cannot survive. As sons of the leader, Xia Hong and Xia Chuan didn't receive any special treatment and were placed in the outer area. Time slowly ticked by, and within an hour, the temperature dropped to more than half of what it was with the bonfire. The children in the inner circle began to chatter their teeth from the cold. The women in the middle also started to shiver. The adult men on the outer edge were relatively better, only trembling slightly. The most stable were still the thirteen members of the logging team on the extreme outer edge. "Leader, maybe we should light the fire..." One woman, seeing her child's lips turning blue from the cold, couldn't help but speak up to Xia Ding. However, she was interrupted by Xia Ding before she could finish. "Let me tell you about the Deceitful Monster from Redwood Ridge!" Although everyone was cold, hearing the term "Deceitful Monster," they couldn't help but look up at Xia Ding in the darkness. Though they understood Xia Ding wanted to distract them, to help them hold out a bit longer, the mysteries that had troubled them were finally about to be answered, so Xia Hong also perked up his ears to listen carefully. "That Deceitful Monster from Redwood Ridge... I've never seen it myself, but heard of it from an old friend of mine at Rogel Camp. In fact, not just me, but amongst the nine camps around Redwood Ridge... Only one person has seen the creature and survived." "Who?" Xia Chuan, being young and brimming with curiosity, couldn't hold back the question, breaking the silence where everyone was listening in rapt attention. Of course, he was essentially voicing the question for everyone else. "Luo Feng from Rogel Camp!" Wow...... At the mention of Luo Feng, the crowd gathered together suddenly erupted in chatter. Even Xia Hong couldn't help showing an expression of surprise. Luo Feng, the former leader of Rogel Camp, was rumored to be the first digger-tier expert of Redwood Ridge. More than twenty years ago, Rogel Camp was quite similar to Great Xia, just a small camp with just over two hundred people. It was under Luo Feng's leadership that it grew and became a medium-sized camp. The surprise among the crowd was due to Luo Feng's reputation. Additionally, the man was rumored to have gone mad. Fifteen years ago, a sensational piece of news spread from Rogel Camp, claiming Luo Feng had gone mad while practicing cultivation and had personally killed his own son, causing quite a stir. Could his madness be related to the Deceitful Monster? "You guessed it right, Luo Feng's madness was indeed because of that Deceitful Monster. While leading a hunting team, he encountered the creature. The team consisted of twenty people, but he was the only one who survived. Yet after returning to Rogel Camp, one night he suddenly went crazy for unknown reasons and killed his young son. When he regained consciousness, he had gone mad. Before he went mad, he instructed the hunting team at Rogel Camp not to venture deep into Redwood Ridge and shared some information about the Deceitful Monster. This is how a small number of people at Rogel Camp came to know about the creature, and I learned it from them." "What does that Deceitful Monster look like?" It was again Xia Chuan who couldn't suppress his curiosity, asking the question. Xia Ding paused before answering. "It has no specific appearance. It is said that Deceitful Monster can transform into anyone's appearance." Transform into anyone? Isn't that an Immortal Technique? 72 Transformations? Although he knew this was a supernatural world, hearing such a detail left Xia Hong quite shaken. "Can it really not be distinguished?" Even Xia Hong couldn't help but ask. Xia Ding seemed surprised by his question and replied after a moment of silence. "There's no way to tell, no matter what method you use." "If it transformed into someone else, what would it do?" Yet another key question was raised, and Xia Hong listened intently. Xia Ding's voice suddenly turned grave, "It is said it would transform into someone you trust to gain your complete trust. Once you fully trust it, you'd immediately become a human post." "Human post?" "A human post — standing motionless." "And then?" "It would use a small knife to slice away all your flesh, bit by bit. No matter how painful it is, you won't die until every piece of flesh is completely cut off." Gasp... All gasped collectively, sucking in a breath of cold air. The pain must be unbearable, but death won't come easily. Can the Deceitful Monster be so perverse? Everyone was frightened by Xia Ding's words, and the entire cave fell silent instantly. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂 However, just then, a clear voice echoed from outside the cave. "Why seal the cave so early? Open up, we're back." With a swish, everyone huddled together inside the cave stiffened at once upon hearing the voice. Including Xia Hong. "Open the door quickly, didn't you hear?" Another voice came, and in the pitch-black cave, everyone's eyes widened in shock. All of them first glanced at the cave entrance. Then they turned their heads toward Xia Ding who had been talking. The shock on their faces transformed into intense fear. Because the voice from outside the cave, was also Xia Ding's voice...