Li Qing finally saw the pig-eating ants he had been desperately looking for, but he preferred to remain in the dark. He had trypophobia, and seeing such a long, deep red rope up close was a terrible visual experience. Even worse, given the current state of tribal civilization, shoes were absolutely unheard of. Li Qing had been walking barefoot until now, which made him constantly imagine the pig-eating ants crawling up to his feet and biting his soles… Although, according to Li, these creatures wouldn't actively attack humans, who knew if they would become indiscriminate in their hunger?

The other members of the hunting party were also startled when they saw the dense swarm of pig-eating ants passing in front of them. They instinctively moved away from the ants, because if these things could really eat a wild boar, they could eat them in an instant.

"Wheat, do you think these... pig-eating ants can really eat a wild boar?"

Daohua hid behind Li Qing, saying incredulously.

"They're about the same size as the ants I usually see."

Li Qing smiled wryly and said, "If size can be used to measure strength, then the nemesis of an elephant cannot be a mouse."

Daohua: "...?"

“What I mean is that these ants are called pig-eating ants, probably because they contain a toxin that can kill pigs,” Li Qing said. “The two tentacles on their front are very likely where the toxin is secreted.”

Daohua was even more frightened after hearing Li Qing's words, but fortunately, Li gave everyone a boost of confidence at this moment, "They only like to eat wild boar meat. As long as you don't look for death, don't talk to me, or deliberately trample them to death, just stand quietly where you are and wait for them to finish moving. You will be fine!"

Since Li Du had said that, Daohua could only swallow hard and stare intently at the pig-eating ants crawling past their feet.

The line was very long. Li Qing turned his head to look at Li's position, but found that it seemed to stretch on forever, with a swarm of pig-eating ants still ahead.

This waiting was agonizing; the hunting party had no choice but to patiently wait for them to finish moving.

...

Finally, after an unknown amount of time, the swarm of pig-eating ants completely disappeared from their sight.

After all the pig-eating ants disappeared, many young warriors, like Li Qing, who had almost never left their tribe, breathed a sigh of relief. Some even became unsteady on their feet. Maintaining a single posture for a long time under high mental tension had caused insufficient blood supply to their legs, and they almost fell to the ground after taking a few steps.

Li turned around and saw the group in this state, a hint of worry flashing in his eyes, but his voice remained calm: "This is just the beginning. We've only left the tribe a short distance, and we'll encounter many more dangers ahead..."

Chu casually chimed in, "What he means is that you still have a chance to back out. Those who are scared should hurry back to the tribe! Otherwise, if we go too far away later, it won't be so easy to get back to the tribe!"

Li did not refute Chu's words, which can be considered as tacit agreement.

After all, this is no joke. Going out to hunt means high rewards, but it also means high risks. Moreover, Chu's words were actually more for the benefit of the Red Flower Tribe.

After all, the Red Flower Tribe has lost most of its fighting strength, and no matter what, it cannot afford any more sacrifices.

The younger members of the hunting party fell silent this time. Before setting off, they had loudly proclaimed that they were not afraid of anything and would be as brave as Yong, Li, and Chu. But undeniably, the mere sight of a row of ants passing by them had terrified them.

The hunting party fell silent; not a single person stepped forward to say a word.

Chu seemed somewhat disappointed by the hunting team's response, and said in a rough voice, "If no one has any objections, we'll continue on our way."

At Chu's command, the hunting party began to move forward again.

Daohua followed Li Qing. He looked around and, finding no one paying attention to him, whispered to Li Qing, "Maizi, aren't you afraid?"

"What?"

"Pig-eating ants."

"Don't be afraid. Didn't Chu say that they only like to eat wild boar meat and don't like to eat people? As long as we don't provoke them, they won't bother us."

Li Qing turned to Daohua and smiled, "And wasn't that exactly what happened just now? If they liked to eat people, we wouldn't be alive and well now."

Daohua said anxiously, "That's not what I meant! I meant..."

Li Qing sighed, "I know what you want to say."

"That……"

“Everyone is afraid, do you think Li and the others aren’t? They are definitely afraid too, they would rather face wild boars that are several times bigger and stronger than them than face something like this,” Li Qing said. “But they have no way out. From the very beginning, they said that the hunting team was going out to hunt on behalf of the important task of saving the tribe, not just to have fun. The tribe doesn’t have much food left. After the tribe suffered heavy losses, we are the strongest people in the tribe. If we are afraid, won’t the Red Flower Tribe collapse?”

These words clearly did little to comfort Daohua; instead, she lowered her head, her heart heavy, lost in thought.

Li Qing looked ahead. According to Li's plan, they still needed to walk at least half the distance to reach that place, and they hadn't rested before reaching it.

He looked up again.

"The sun is almost at its zenith, and it's almost noon, the hottest and most unbearable time of day. The hunting party is exhausted by now, but exhaustion is bearable, and even hunger is bearable, but... what are we going to do without water?"

"We didn't bring any water with us, and we've walked for so long without resting. What if someone in the team shows signs of dehydration, and Cang isn't around to help?"

"Moreover, it doesn't look like there's water around here."

Li Qing looked around and thought to himself.

It's so dry here!

It's estimated that even if there is a water source nearby, it must be several miles away, going in the opposite direction from where the hunting party is going.

Li Qing looked at Daohua. His own strength was passable, but Daohua was already panting heavily. His face looked pale, and his lips looked very dry. He seemed to be considering the overall situation of the hunting team and was trying his best to control his desire to drink water.

But... how long can he hold on? No, how long can the hunting team hold on?

The temperature is currently above 40 degrees Celsius. Walking in this environment is torture, let alone the fact that the environment here is also very hot and dry. The group of people haven't eaten anything all morning.