Work Prophet
Chapter 158 - 6 Respect

Chapter 158: Chapter 6 Respect

Jude’s face flashed with astonishment.

Was it possible that the small container he had thrown earlier had flown back?

However, when he shifted his gaze and saw that the small container still lay quietly in its original place without any movement, he quickly spotted a lizard person peeking from a tree. The smoke was coming from another direction altogether.

Subsequently, the lizard person also threw another smoking small container, but this time, the prepared Black Dragon swatted it away with its wings in advance.

Is this it?

Jude felt somewhat disappointed, as he had already figured out that those small containers posed no threat to the monster in front of him.

On the contrary, the monster effortlessly jumped onto the big tree where the lizard person was hiding, climbed up two steps, and bit into the unlucky lizard person.

He swallowed it whole.

As easily as Black Beauty ate jerky, and it was then that thick white smoke suddenly began to billow out of the two small containers, quickly spreading through the woods.

Simultaneously, a tree branch extended towards Jude.

The ugly-faced man didn’t hesitate, grabbed the branch, and then he was pulled out from the mire.

Barely escaping with his life, Jude didn’t even have time to thank the two lizard people who rescued him before they scooped up the smelly mud from the mire and started smearing it on his face.

Caught off guard, Jude mouthed a mouthful of the foul mud. Just as he was about to get angry, something dawned on him, and a look of sudden realization appeared on his face.

He hastily started smearing the mud from the ground onto Black Beauty as well.

Earlier, the dragon had clearly lost sight of them, yet it kept tracking them here, likely relying on its keen sense of smell.

The stench in the mire, although unpleasant, was exactly what could mask their scents.

Worried that he hadn’t applied enough, Jude ended up rolling on the ground too.

He then hid under a nearby rock with the two lizard people, holding their breath. Indeed, the Black Dragon lost their trail.

After letting out an angry roar, the Black Dragon started rampaging through the forest, breaking several small trees along the way. Once, it even came within less than ten steps of the large rock where Jude and the others were hiding.

The ugly-faced man turned pale with fear.

However, with their sight obscured by the white smoke and their scents masked by the mud, they ultimately eluded the dragon.

Listening to the gradually fading footsteps, Jude finally breathed a sigh of relief and was about to thank the two lizard people who had saved his life.

But then, a strange howling sound reached his ears.

Jude realized that it was the Black Dragon flapping its wings. At first, the remnants of the Enríquez family thought the monster was finally leaving, and a trace of joy appeared on their faces.

But that joy quickly turned to terror.

Because the dragon had been flapping its wings for so long without moving an inch.

This indicated that it wasn’t planning to leave, but rather, it was trying to use its wings to stir up a strong wind to dissipate the smoke in the forest.

Having lived in the wilderness for so long, Jude had encountered various wild beasts, but none had ever made his skin crawl like this. It was not just the disparity in strength that was despairing; the creature’s cunning far exceeded his imagination.

Unfortunately, at this critical moment, the two small containers also stopped emitting white smoke.

These smoke bombs were homemade by Li Yu following online tutorials; their duration and the amount of smoke produced were limited, not comparable to real smoke bombs.

Having fully served their purpose, they naturally clocked out decisively.

Although another lizard person lit two cola cans, they clearly couldn’t last long against the gusting wind.

In just a short while, Jude’s emotions had gone through several highs and lows.

Every time he saw a glint of hope, an even greater despair would envelop him in the next moment, and this time, the man with the ugly face was also out of options.

The moment the smoke dispersed was undoubtedly the moment of their demise.

The two lizard people huddled together to discuss for a moment, then one of them gave Jude one of the two remaining smoke bombs and gestured to him.

Jude figured out that they meant to split up and run. For a moment, he suspected the two lizard people wanted to use him as bait to draw the dragon away.

However, Jude could not think of a better plan at the moment; splitting up at least offered a greater chance of survival than staying together.

Although the dragon was agile, having wiped out all the mercenaries of the expedition in one go, they now had the advantage of Saturday’s white smoke, which also masked their scent.

So, after only a moment’s hesitation, Jude nodded in agreement.

The three of them fled in three different directions.

The man with the ugly face kept a close eye on one of the lizard people, not straying too far from him. That way, if the situation turned sour, he could still lure the Black Dragon towards that person and then take another gamble.

Jude knew he shouldn’t be so calculating with his lifesavers, but he couldn’t help it; that was just who he was.

The man with the ugly face never considered himself a good person, nor did he hide his ruthless nature.

Apart from Black Beauty, he was cold and ruthless to everyone around him, especially when it came to survival. He wouldn’t hesitate to strike even his lifesavers, let alone his own father.

After all, that bastard had abandoned him soon after he was born, and even without any life-threatening danger, Jude wouldn’t mind sending him off early.

However, what Jude didn’t expect was that soon after they separated, the lizard person who was the furthest away suddenly began to shout loudly, quickly drawing the attention of the Black Dragon, who charged in his direction.

The man with the ugly face stood dumbfounded, muttering to himself, "Why?"

The other lizard person didn’t understand what he was saying, but seemed to guess what he was thinking and pointed at the action camera in front of Jude, squeezing out a few words with difficulty, "Merlin... must... go back."

Jude understood then that these lizard people, including the one from the tree earlier, had risked their lives to save him so that he could bring the Holy Artifact, capable of recording images, back to the territory of the Double Rest Sect, to be delivered to Li Yu.

To Jude, this behavior was undoubtedly foolish.

In this world, nothing was more important than one’s own life, not beliefs, nor the continuation of a race. Nothing was more important than staying alive.

However, this did not prevent Jude from respecting these lizard people.

The giant dragon quickly caught up with the isolated lizard person, while the remaining one ignited the smoke bomb in his hand and gestured to Jude to spread out a bit more.

He would continue to lead the giant dragon away.

Jude, knowing how precious time was, didn’t waste any words and softly said before parting, "Farewell, my friend. May you return to the embrace of Saturday after death."

After speaking, the man with the ugly face continued to flee deeper into the forest with Black Beauty.

A man and his dog ran two miles in one breath, not stopping until they could no longer hear any noise behind them, when they finally took a brief breather.

Jude said to the big black dog, "I rarely admire anyone in my life, but those three just now truly earned my respect; however, there’s a way for good people to live, and scoundrels like us have our own way to survive.

"So the next time I tell you to scram, don’t hang around foolishly by my side, got it? You are my dog, you’d better always align with me and prioritize your own life first."

Usually, at this point, the big black dog would whimper softly to show that it had heard Jude’s words.

But this time, it unexpectedly showed no reaction and just pricked up its ears as if listening to something.

Jude furrowed his brow, placing a hand to his ear, but he heard nothing.

Just when the man with the ugly face was starting to wonder if he was being overly paranoid,

he saw through the gaps in the tree branches once again that dreadful black shadow in the distance.

It was like a shadow that followed, a death that could never be escaped.