Chapter 43: Twenty Seconds

The black bear attacked relentlessly, seven or eight times in a row, each assault weaker than the last.

The heavy thudding sounds gradually softened, becoming faint, almost negligible slaps.

"That's about it..." Qi Xia said, "Its attacks should stop here."

Indeed, just as Qi Xia predicted, after its final feeble assault, the black bear cautiously eyed the iron plate in front of it, snorted a few puffs of hot breath, and then gave up.

It didn't seem particularly exhausted, but it ceased its attacks nonetheless.

"Is that it?" Qiao Jiajin peeked out from beside the iron plate, "That thing still has energy left."

"Animals are different from humans. To handle the dangers prevalent in the wild, they rarely exhaust themselves completely. Even with some strength remaining, it's not going to keep battling this iron plate to the end."

Indeed, the black bear silently turned around and headed toward a corpse on the ground.

This was the woman who had died at the very start of the game.

She was also a more stable and secure food source for the black bear.

The black bear stared in the direction of the iron plate, sniffed the corpse on the ground, then opened its mouth and bit into the corpse's belly with a "pop" sound.

It was like puncturing a water-filled plastic bag; fresh red contents spilled everywhere.

Next, the black bear nudged with its nose and began licking out the organs it favored. Soon, the sound of "smacking" filled the air, as if it were relishing the meal.

Everyone turned away, unable to bear the sight.

Meanwhile, the black bear ate while glancing toward the iron plate, creating a strange standoff between them.

Fortunately, time was running out.

In the tense and oppressive atmosphere, the black bear made no further moves; it simply devoured the corpse's abdomen completely, exposing a few stark ribs.

Qi Xia checked the time—only about thirty seconds left. It seemed the game was about to end.

But just then, the sated black bear suddenly let out a low roar and charged back, twisting its massive body.

It seemed to realize time was nearly up and was going all out.

"Here it comes! Get ready!" Qi Xia shouted, alerting Qiao Jiajin.

Qiao Jiajin braced his feet back and leaned against the iron plate at an angle.

The line of people behind him quickly formed up, showing some unity as each one steadily held the person in front.

They thought they could weather this assault as before, but to their surprise, the black bear reached the iron plate and reared up on its hind legs, its over-two-meter height imposing a tremendous pressure on everyone.

"Oh no..." Qi Xia sensed trouble.

In the next second, the black bear placed its front paws on the top of the iron plate and thrust its head forward. Its mouth was open, with bits of human flesh stuck between its teeth.

"Roar—!"

The massive roar made Qi Xia feel like his ears were about to burst, and the bear's foul saliva sprayed across his face.

"Hold on!" Xiao Yanjing yelled.

Qiao Jiajin gritted his teeth and pushed hard against the plate, clearly feeling several hundred kilograms of force trying to crush him flat.

"I... damn... it..."

Qiao Jiajin struggled even to speak. Qi Xia rushed forward to help brace it, as the black bear's strength was terrifying, leaving those behind in a state of shock.

The black bear pushed forward a few more times, but seeing the iron plate wouldn't budge, it gripped the edge with its paws and suddenly yanked toward itself.

Qiao Jiajin and Qi Xia had been pushing outward and never expected the bear to pull back, so the iron plate was yanked over and crashed to the ground.

The two lost their footing and tumbled down.

"Clang!"

With the loud crash of the iron plate hitting the ground, everyone was exposed to the black bear, especially the most vulnerable Qiao Jiajin and Qi Xia.

Before they could react, the black bear swung its front paw at Qiao Jiajin.

Qiao Jiajin flipped over just in time to dodge the strike.

"Hey! Deceiver! Get up!" Qiao Jiajin shouted as he rolled aside.

"Stay down and you're dead!"

Qi Xia writhed on the ground, feeling like he'd been hit in the chest, making it hard to breathe for a moment.

Qiao Jiajin scrambled up and anxiously looked toward Qi Xia: "This is bad... Deceiver, get up!"

Qi Xia tried to rise, but his body hurt too much, and he kept collapsing.

The black bear seemed to notice Qi Xia's condition and abandoned the agile Qiao Jiajin, lunging toward him instead.

Qiao Jiajin gritted his teeth, took a running start, leaped into the air, and delivered a flying knee strike from the side, landing squarely on the black bear's face.

The black bear howled in pain, its eyes squeezed shut as it swatted with its front paw, striking Qiao Jiajin in the abdomen.

"Urgh!"

The blow, though casual, hit a weak spot, sending Qiao Jiajin flying straight back.

"Cough... damn it..." Qiao Jiajin felt like his ribs might be broken.

"What... what do we do..." Xiao Yanjing said nervously.

"We have to save them..."

As soon as he finished, he turned to the middle-aged man and said, "Lao Lv! Take off your shoes! I have a way to save them!"

"Don't be stupid!" the middle-aged man snapped.

"Xiao Yanjing, are you trying to get us killed?! If the black bear takes them out, we're safe! Time's almost up!"

Xiao Yanjing glanced up and saw the game had less than twenty seconds left.

The black bear was now extending its arm toward Qi Xia. Based on the situation, even though the game was ending soon, Qi Xia was doomed.

This man had been holding the line against the black bear at the iron plate, whatever his ultimate goal— he'd definitely saved everyone's lives.

After a second of internal struggle, Xiao Yanjing made his decision.

"Hey! You bastard!" He jumped forward while shouting.

"Don't touch him!"

The black bear paused, pulling back slightly.

The middle-aged man was startled and growled, "Damn it! Xiao Yanjing, have you lost your mind?!"

"You blind bear..." Xiao Yanjing ignored the middle-aged man and taunted the black bear.

"If you've got the guts, come chase me..."

Before he could finish, the black bear pounced.

Xiao Yanjing was terrified and turned to run. He'd thought he could tangle with the black bear like Qiao Jiajin for a few dozen seconds.

But he never imagined how terrifying it was to be chased by this massive, bloodthirsty hunter— hot wind and a foul stench constantly at his back. Though he tried to stay calm, his legs shook uncontrollably, and he stumbled every couple of steps.

He kept getting up only to fall again, fall and get up once more.

At this rate, he might end up killing himself before the black bear did.