Luo Jun's figure disappeared into the damp woods.
Jones also stood up and left.
He didn't want to stay here too long. Who knew if that monster would come back? Although it wouldn't be easy for it to hurt him while he hid under the rock, if it guarded outside, he would be in big trouble.
After all, the physical abilities of humans were no match for such monsters, and he simply couldn't last long.
Moreover, Luo Jun had left first, which helped him test whether that monster was still lying in wait for them.
Luo Jun's safe departure proved that it was an excellent time to leave.
In fact, Luo Jun had intentionally left first to probe if the environment was safe. If Jones had left first, with just a handgun and his disability, he would have no chance of escaping.
The unspoken mutual assistance between men was understood without needing to be said.
Saying it out loud would have hurt Jones' pride too much.
No matter what, he was still a senior, so how could a junior like you say you were protecting him in front of him?
Luo Jun had also returned a favor to Jones.
At that moment, Luo Jun also dared not pursue the monster in the woods. Instead, he moved quickly eastward. Before getting that Barrett rifle, Luo Jun dared not relax.
He had originally thought he wouldn't need such a weapon here, but he hadn't expected to need it so soon.
If possible, Luo Jun really didn't want to have a chance to use it.
After all, by the time that monster was discovered, it would often be up close, and using that Barrett rifle at extremely close range was very dangerous.
At the same time, the three women taking shelter from the rain in the emergency shelter were gnawing on charred bear meat.
They were grateful for Luo Jun's foresight. Otherwise, the three of them would have had to endure hunger and cold here, and if they fell ill, death would be the only thing awaiting them.
"When will uncle come back? I'm really worried about him," said Li Shi, looking at the water droplets splashing into the puddle. She missed Luo Jun terribly. Without him here, she and Lorna felt just as insecure.
Actually, Jenny was even more afraid of Luo Jun getting hurt than the two of them.
After all, she had witnessed Jack dying right before her eyes, a horrifying scene that would probably be impossible to erase from her memory.
And she had finally remembered the word Jack had mumbled before he died.
Jack had unclearly uttered a word at the time, but she had been too shocked to remember it.
The word Jack had said was "monster."
Recalling this word, she had initially thought Jack might have encountered a bear or an extremely cruel native.
But now, remembering Jack's expression and wounds at the time, she felt the situation wasn't that simple.
After all, the meaning of this word was still quite broad, with connotations of a huge beast, giant, or cruel person - basically any large creature that could mentally terrify someone to death.
Now that Luo Jun wasn't here, she was worried that the monster that had killed Jack would come here.
Those who had witnessed death were more prone to dangerous imaginings than normal people, so her face looked unwell now. Lorna had thought her wound might be inflamed and helped check it, with Li Shi assisting to change the dressing.
Finally, unable to bear this pressure alone, Jenny broke down in tears.
"Sister Jenny, what's wrong?" Li Shi asked worriedly, rubbing her back.
Lorna came over too, thinking Jenny might be missing her late boyfriend. "Are you thinking about Jack again?"
"I'm sorry..." Jenny cried, recalling the sight of Jack returning with his intestines spilling out - she had been truly terrified then, and Jack had kept mumbling that word for the monster.
Now that she thought about it, Jenny became increasingly convinced there really was a monster on this island.
"Jenny, don't think too much about it. Jack probably encountered a bear that ripped his stomach open. How could there be any monster?" Li Shi tried to reassure her.
However, Lorna wasn't so optimistic, because as a politician, she had access to some secret intelligence that ordinary people would never know about.
Human understanding of the Earth was far from as clear as the publicly available information made it seem - that was just for ordinary people to feel that there was nowhere mysterious left on the world to explore.
In fact, humans hadn't even explored everywhere on Earth. Otherwise, how could scientists keep discovering new species?
How many hidden things remained undiscovered in this world?
Humans hadn't even reached the deepest parts of the ocean, let alone the Earth's core!
The ocean was so vast, and what humans could see was just the tip of the iceberg. Not to mention the Arctic and Antarctic - these two places were so immense and mysterious that humans hadn't explored even a tiny fraction of them.
So what gave them the arrogance to claim they already understood the Earth well?
"No, I feel it's true. Jack's death must have been caused by some monster..."
Jenny became increasingly convinced of her guess.
Li Shi didn't know how to console her, thinking Jenny must have been too frightened and still hadn't recovered. After all, many people were like this, not coming to their senses until long after a loved one had passed away, suddenly breaking down in tears at night.
The lingering warmth of a loved one's care continued to protect those still living.
It was only when that warmth dissipated that people truly realized their beloved had left, and truly felt the void their death had torn out of them.
Lorna wasn't as sentimental as Li Shi. As a politician, she was more rational.
So at this moment, she didn't dare continue discussing this matter.
All she hoped for now was that Luo Jun would be safe and return soon, take her away from here, or build a safer house and find an opportunity to leave this mysterious island.
After four hours of careful travel through the woods, Luo Jun finally reached the reef beach area again along the coast.
Luo Jun didn't linger, quickly making his way to where he had buried the box before. He dug it out, opened it to check that the Barrett rifle was intact, and took it out, removing the scope from the rifle and installing it back on the Barrett.
Then the rifle was left in the box and reburied in the ground.
No matter how fit Luo Jun was, he couldn't carry two guns while moving through this forest. Moreover, the rifle only had less than ten rounds left, so a handgun was more useful to have on hand.
So after reburying the rifle, Luo Jun set off again without stopping, heading northwest.
He needed to return to the emergency shelter first, replenish some food and rest for the night, and then set out to where those mercenaries had gone.
Another three and a half hours later, Luo Jun successfully returned to the area around the emergency shelter.
It had stopped raining by then, but the day was getting late. Those mercenaries probably wouldn't be traveling at this time either, as the risk would be too high for them to take on.
Not seeing the women near the emergency shelter, Luo Jun went to a tree about ten meters away and called out their names one by one.
Hearing his voice, the women immediately came out of the shelter, their expressions a mix of longing and worry, even showing a glint of tears in their eyes.
A feeling of attachment arose naturally.
"Uncle! You're finally back!" Li Shi ran over.
She threw herself into Luo Jun's embrace. Luo Jun's heart filled with boundless tenderness - this feeling, like coming home. For the first time, this homeless man experienced such warmth.
His heartbeat even sped up.
Lorna also walked over, while Jenny stood at the entrance of the shelter, smiling tearfully at Luo Jun.
Luo Jun felt it was time to let them know some of the truth...