This wall means I'm very close to the indigenous settlements, and I need to be extra careful in everything I do now.

While I was lost in thought about these questions, Top had quietly disappeared from my sight. When I turned around again to call Top, I found that it was gone.

"Top? Top?"

I called out tentatively twice, but this time Top didn't respond to my calls as usual; all around remained silent.

It was only then that I belatedly realized that this area was unusually quiet; I couldn't even hear a single bird chirping.

Thinking about this, a chill ran down my spine. Could it be...?

"Pat! Pat!"

I started to panic and quickly called Pat's name, but as usual, Pat didn't respond to my calls.

At this crucial moment, even Pat disappeared without a trace. I quickly pressed the shotgun against my shoulder and looked around rapidly.

In just a short while, Pat and Top both vanished without a trace, as if they had evaporated into thin air.

Just as I was feeling extremely anxious, a sharp eagle cry came from the northwest direction to my left.

It's Pat!

Upon hearing that familiar eagle cry, my first reaction was to run over, without considering my own safety.

Top and Pat are my family. How can I live with a clear conscience if something happens to them?

I immediately dropped my basket and other unimportant items, picked up my shotgun, and ran toward the direction from which the eagle's cry was coming from to my left.

Since Top wasn't too far away from me at that time, and because I've been doing manual labor for many years, my physical fitness has improved significantly.

The running speed was acceptable. Soon I saw a human-shaped figure flash by in the corner of a grove of trees, and I could clearly see on his shoulder that it was a gray-haired monkey.

Moreover, I am very familiar with the figure of that gray-haired monkey. Who else could it be but Top?

At that moment, Top lay limply on the man's shoulder without the slightest sign of struggle. Seeing this, my heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition came over me.

"Damn it! Those natives!"

I cursed angrily, but I didn't dare to stop for a moment and chased after the disappearing figure.

At this moment, the native running ahead also sensed that I was chasing him, and he clearly ran even faster with Top on his feet. His dark figure disappeared into the jungle in a flash.

I chased him into the woods, and it felt like entering a green ocean; the man's whereabouts vanished without a trace.

"Pat, go back!"

As I gave the command, Pat flew down from the sky and landed on my right arm.

At this moment, Pat's expression remained anxious as he gazed intently at the eagle's cry deep within the jungle, seemingly very worried about Top's safety.

Although the situation was critical, I calmed down and checked Pat's condition.

Pat had lost many feathers and had bloodstains on his paws.

I wiped away the blood, but found it wasn't Pat's. That left only one possibility: the blood belonged to the native. They must have been fighting, and Pat's claws must have scratched the native.

After checking him over, I was relieved to find that Pat had no other injuries.

I stared at the distant jungle, my eyes turning bloodshot. At that moment, I was consumed by rage and hatred, and an overwhelming killing intent emanated from my eyes.

I had been thinking that I would have a good talk with them if possible, but now it seems there's no need for that.

Top is my longest-lasting companion. If anything happens to him, I swear I will use all my knowledge and any means necessary to wipe out the enemy tribe as a sacrifice to Top.

"Pat, can we continue tracking?"

I touched Pat, who was still panting heavily. Pat didn't respond to me at all and immediately flapped his wings and took off again, flying into the depths of the forest.

Pat responded to my question with his actions; their relationship has improved significantly over this period of time, and the two species, which should have been mortal enemies, are now playing together.

Top's disappearance has clearly made Pat somewhat anxious.

Pat flew up again to survey the ground, trying to find the native. I wasn't idle either; I started searching for traces of blood in the nearby grass.

I've witnessed the power of Pat's claws firsthand. The wound on that native, inflicted by Pat, is unlikely to stop bleeding anytime soon.

Soon I found some blood on the leaves of a shrub. When I touched it, it was still fresh, so it must have been fresh blood.

I picked up my shotgun and headed in that direction, but after only two steps I felt like I stepped on something, something that I trampled down.

not good!

My pupils dilated suddenly. I was all too familiar with this feeling; it was the unique sensation that only occurred when a mechanism was triggered.

My first thought was to get away as quickly as possible, but these traps in the jungle are designed to deal with wild animals, so they're not so easy to avoid.

These traps are not only fast and powerful, but also hidden in the jungle, making them difficult for wild animals to guard against.

I never expected that this guy would set a trap for me halfway through, and because I was so eager to save Top, I became impatient and fell into his trap.

What's trapping me now is the same trick I used to hunt yellow muntjacs.

The speed and power of this type of elastic rope trap depend entirely on the material used. If the force is great enough, even large prey can be pulled into the air, losing their limbs' leverage points and their chance to escape.

My right foot was suddenly pulled up by a tremendous force. Due to the excessive force, I lost my balance and was hung upside down, head up and feet down.

Thinking that it was a slightly milder trap made me feel a little more at ease.

I grabbed the rope loop binding my ankle, stood up like I was doing a sit-up, pulled out my machete, and with a snap, cut the straw rope in one stroke.

I landed heavily on the ground, thankfully from a low height. Even so, I was still quite disoriented from the fall.

Ignoring the pain, I got up again and continued searching forward.

Making traps takes time, and he couldn't possibly make a very dangerous trap in a short period of time.

This is our first meeting, so this trap couldn't have been set up by him beforehand. He must have rushed to make it while I was checking on Pat.

I cursed inwardly. Dealing with these savages was indeed more dangerous than dealing with wild beasts. If you weren't careful, you might not even know how you died.