Ye Chong received the message and immediately led his people toward the trap.

Since Bai Youwei was convinced that no second attack would follow the first so soon, he would strike when she least expected it.

…No. Perhaps he should be a little more gentle about it.

Frighten her. Terrorize her. Drive her into a state of helpless anxiety and dread—and then appear before her, one by one, eliminating her teammates. And watch her cry. Watch her suffer. Watch her beg for mercy…

That, he thought, would be enormously entertaining.

Ye Chong’s heart hammered violently. His blood felt like it was about to boil. He was desperate, consumed by impatience, aching to see that vision of despair and beauty.

The others behind him were slow. Reluctantly, he stopped to wait for them, unable to hide his displeasure.

“Hurry up!” Ye Chong urged them.

In truth, Ye Chong was exhausted as well. Even after eating the food delivered by the drones, he didn’t feel his energy had recovered much. He was still weary. Drowsy.

Aside from him and Tian Li—both of whom had been through the labyrinth twice—Xiao Qi, the muscle man, and the ponytail girl were lagging far behind, pale-faced and stumbling along on unsteady legs.

But Ye Chong didn’t care. Even if those useless people got eliminated, he wouldn’t bat an eye. Because the final victor only needed to be one person—himself.

“I can’t do this anymore… I’m so tired. Let me rest a while…” Han Lu pleaded from the rear of the group.

She was no longer running—she could barely lift her legs to walk. As the only woman in the group, she had the weakest endurance of them all. Her lips were colorless, her cheeks slick with cold sweat, frail as if she were recovering from a serious illness.

The muscle man, despite his imposing build, was in no better shape—panting at every step, completely spent.

Tian Li was exhausted too. Seeing the state of his companions, he tentatively suggested, “What if we slow down a bit… She won’t be going anywhere for a while, and if we walk quietly, we’re less likely to be spotted.”

The reasoning sounded sensible. Ye Chong considered it briefly and agreed.

They were granted a reprieve and moved slowly into the forest, gradually approaching the trap where Tan Xiao and Shen Mo had fallen.

The location was a small clearing—easy to identify. But when they arrived, there was no sign of Bai Youwei.

“What’s going on?”

“Did she already leave? That doesn’t make sense…”

“Could it be that person lied to us?”

“If he dared to deceive us, isn’t he afraid we’ll make him pay?”

Everyone murmured and speculated.

Ye Chong narrowed his eyes slightly, scanning the surroundings—trees, grass, thickets of shrub… A little further ahead was the range guarded by the rabbit. Edge too close and it would deliver a warning shock.

Ye Chong felt that something was off.

Had they come all this way for nothing? Had Bai Youwei changed her mind at the last moment and never come here?

He was still mulling it over when suddenly a sound tore through the air!

Whoosh!

An arrow buried itself in the muscle man’s chest!

“AHHHH!!!” Han Lu shrieked in terror!

Immediately, a second arrow flew—straight through her leg!

Han Lu collapsed, screaming in agony!

Ye Chong was still trying to locate the archer when a third arrow came from the completely opposite direction, embedding itself in the nearby underbrush!

Then a fourth arrow! A fifth!

They were clearly in an ambush!

Watching his group dissolve into chaos, Ye Chong’s fury erupted. He bellowed, “Fall back!! FALL BACK!!!”

He sprinted out of the firing range. Tian Li followed close behind. Xiao Qi hoisted the injured Han Lu onto his back and fled after them in a panic.

In a matter of seconds, the clearing held nothing but a corpse. Not a single person remained.

A’Shalina dropped from a tree, collected the arrows off the ground, and burst into delighted laughter. “They were so arrogant before—and now look at them running away with their tails between their legs! Hahaha…”

Bai Youwei descended from a tree on the opposite side. Her expression was not particularly pleased.

She hadn’t hit anyone with a single arrow.

—