Those Classmates who Suddenly Disappeared
Chapter 1221: Jungle Python

Chapter 1221: Chapter 1221: Jungle Python

It was the middle of the night, and nothing could be seen clearly around, so Gu Fan suggested to stop moving forward, go ashore and then set up camp.

The members of the Lightning Mercenary Corps objected, arguing that the longer they stayed, the greater the danger, so it would be best to keep traveling through the night, even without stopping for a break.

Gu Fan disagreed with this view. On their first day entering the fearsome Dark Primitive Mountain, they had encountered only minor trouble, which indicated that most creatures were attracted by other mercenary groups. This meant they had to keep pace with the other groups—the progress of other mercenary groups determined their own, always using the others to help draw the fire.

To travel through the night now would be tantamount to venturing deep into enemy territory alone, which could be even more dangerous.

Hearing his reasoning, everyone felt it made a lot of sense. After discussing, they decided to follow Gu Fan’s advice.

So, Gu Fan and his companions moored their boat to the shore, set up camp, and dispatched people to keep watch for any disturbances. Despite their numbers, they were surrounded by constant danger and were also wary of each other.

The Lightning and Flame Mercenary Corps sent more than ten people to stand guard, while Gu Fan and Su Hui took turns keeping watch, as it felt reassuring to have one of their own on duty.

Gu Fan took the first half of the night shift. He wandered around the campsite, confident that nothing could harm him with the protection of the Destiny Stone Body Guard.

Feeling the chill of the Dark Primitive Mountain at night, Gu Fan couldn’t help but shiver. Who knew what they would encounter tomorrow?

At that moment, Irina, also on duty for the first half of the night, walked over and offered Gu Fan a cigarette, which he declined, saying he had quit.

"Quit?" Irina looked at Gu Fan with a puzzled expression, then asked another question, "Do you actually never smoke?"

"Not really," Gu Fan answered, then reached for a cigarette and lighter, "I smoke occasionally, when socializing requires it."

Gently touching the rugged ancient trees, Irina commented, "These primeval forests truly live up to their name with trees so tall and robust. I wonder how long they’ve been growing. Perhaps they’ve been here even before humans existed."

"Indeed!" Gu Fan, looking up at trees as tall as ten city buildings, couldn’t help but exclaim, "It’s a shame this place is going to become a battlefield. Who knows how much will be destroyed."

"Worrying about plants is less important than worrying about our current predicament," Irina pointed out poignantly, "I certainly don’t think we can make it to our destination without incident. Danger could strike at any moment."

"I agree, especially since we don’t have anyone to take the fire for us. I fear..." Gu Fan carefully scanned his surroundings and added, "I think we need to slow down our pace tomorrow."

Irina made another plea, "Considering your abilities, you don’t seem to fear these dangers, so I’m here to ask a favor. Please don’t leave us to die out there, seeing that we’re all comrades."

"How could we? Since we’ve agreed to cooperate, we’ll surely face adversity and retreat together," Gu Fan finally understood why Irina, who could have rested, chose to take the night shift—to have a conversation and reach an understanding with him.

Gu Fan asked, "Considering the unprecedented dangers of this mission, is the Hunter’s Guild only sending just a few of you? Isn’t the big boss planning on coming?"

"Him? I mentioned this operation to him, and then he suddenly went off the radar," Irina’s words tightened something inside Gu Fan, giving him the impression that the big boss was up to some secret mission.

In fact, not only the big boss, but Zhuo Hang was also unaccounted for. The simultaneous disappearance of the two individuals possessing perfect immortality was quite odd.

Just then, a member of the Lightning Mercenary Corps rushed to a tree to relieve himself, but something felt amiss—a foul, unfamiliar stench hit his nose.

As the man looked up, he was horrified—a giant snake had slithered down from the tree, it opened its massive jaw and bit down on the man’s head, then swiftly climbed back up.

The man’s screams alerted everyone; those on watch duty came running, only to find nothing and remain clueless about what had transpired.

More people woke up, grabbing their weapons and rushing out of their tents, facing the pitch darkness around them and revealing faces full of fear.

Lu Yi and Ouyang Jin stayed in their tent, back to back, each hearing the other’s rapid heartbeat.

Listening to the frantic steps outside, Ouyang Jin knew that everyone had entered a state of alert and couldn’t help but complain, "It’s all because of you, Lu Yi; couldn’t you keep quiet for once?"

Lu Yi felt wrongly accused, "I didn’t do anything; you can’t blame me as the doomsayer."

Ouyang Jin shook his head with a wry smile, "I heard you talking in your sleep, saying ’How could nothing happen tonight given such a dangerous environment?’"

"What, did I really say that in my sleep?" Lu Yi couldn’t believe it, and suddenly another scream pierced the night, further heightening everyone’s sense of dread.

Ouyang Jin gritted his teeth in frustration, "It looks like from now on, I’ll have to stuff a rag in your mouth while you sleep. Even your dreams bring bad luck to the team; whoever teams up with you is jinxed."

Another scream followed, and from a different direction, indicating that the attack was coming from at least three different directions, and that more than one bloodsucking creature was involved.

Lu Yi tried to boost Ouyang Jin’s morale, "Buddy, don’t be so pessimistic. Haven’t you noticed? Although I’m always the doomsayer, we always manage to turn bad luck into good, don’t we?"

Ouyang Jin gave a hollow laugh, "Turning bad luck into good presupposes facing danger, but if you weren’t doomsaying all the time, we wouldn’t be in danger at all."

Lu Yi’s expression turned slightly sheepish, "Buddy, I’m going to all this trouble to comfort you; can’t you just play along a little?"

"Sorry, under these circumstances, I’m not really in the mood to play along. But I appreciate the sentiment, so I’ll forgive you halfway," Ouyang Jin had barely finished speaking when another scream sounded, this time alarmingly close.

"Oh, my God, it mustn’t be coming for us," Lu Yi and Ouyang Jin huddled closer, with Ouyang Jin forgetting to blame Lu Yi for being the doomsayer again.

The tent of Lu Yi and Ouyang Jin wasn’t on the edge of the camp, which meant that the bloodsucking creatures could breach the perimeter and attack those within relatively easily, or they were incredibly fast, could burrow underground, or even fly.

With these possibilities in mind, everyone turned their attention to the ancient trees, shining their flashlights up the towering trunks. Some immediately spotted something unusual and cried out in alarm, "There are snakes! Snakes!"