Swamp People

Alex worried that other beasts would be drawn here, so he wanted to end the fight quickly. One fist slammed toward the saber-toothed tiger’s charging head while his other hand gripped the dagger in reverse, ready to slash open its throat.

Unfortunately, this enormous saber-toothed tiger, more powerfully built than a lion, possessed agility greater than a cat’s and terrifying strength to match.

The saber-toothed tiger merely tilted its head slightly and knocked Alex’s punch away, making his body lean slightly to one side. The dagger in his left hand missed the tiger’s throat as well, cutting off nothing more than a tuft of fur.

In the first exchange, neither man nor tiger gained the upper hand. Realizing the other was a formidable opponent, both cautiously retreated several steps and faced each other down.

"This thing is pretty strong!" Alex shook out his arm and stared in surprise at the saber-toothed tiger, which had likewise backed away a few steps.

Emma looked at Alex with concern and quietly warned, "Be careful, Alex."

Alex nodded casually, kicked off with both feet, and charged at the saber-toothed tiger again. Their strength was nearly equal, and neither had an edge in speed. Alex could only rely on his wits.

Seeing Alex rush at it, the saber-toothed tiger raised its head, parted its jaws slightly, let out a low growl, and sprang forward.

But unexpectedly, Alex’s body suddenly dropped in midair, passing beneath the pouncing saber-toothed tiger. This sudden change was beyond the tiger’s expectations, and by the time it tried to react, it was already too late.

Alex gave a strange laugh. With a tearing sound, the dagger in his hand sliced a huge gash across the saber-toothed tiger’s abdomen. Blood sprayed out in torrents, drenching the already blood-covered Alex from head to toe once again.

After suffering such a devastating wound, the saber-toothed tiger barely managed to steady itself after landing. Its tiger eyes were filled with fury and fear. After hesitating for a moment, it limped into the jungle, leaving a long trail of blood behind it.

The evenly matched battle had reversed in an instant, completely beyond Emma’s expectations. Only when Alex spoke to remind her did she snap back to her senses. She looked at him in delighted surprise. "How did you do that?"

"Don’t worry about that. Let’s find somewhere to wash off all this blood stench!" Alex carried Emma on his back as usual and took off running again. As he ran, he muttered, "If this keeps up, who knows what else we’ll attract!"

Unfortunately, Alex’s words came true. Beasts kept pursuing them along the way. If they could shake them off, they did; if not, Alex had no choice but to fight. After all that fighting, the bloody scent on Alex did not fade but grew stronger, and more and more beasts chased after them. As the battles continued, wounds kept appearing on Alex’s body, and weakness inevitably set in.

"This won’t work. We need to find somewhere to hide." Emma supported the badly wounded Alex with both hands and turned to survey the dark jungle around them, her face full of vigilance, as if a beast might leap out at any moment.

Alex leaned his entire body against Emma and nodded weakly in agreement.

There were many trees and mountains in the jungle, and Emma soon found a cave. The only drawback was that it was truly cramped. Once the two of them squeezed inside, their bodies were pressed completely together, and they could clearly feel each other’s warmth.

But Alex had no mind for that now. His injuries were too severe, and once he saw they had a place to shelter, the tension holding him together finally eased. Before long, he fell into a heavy sleep.

Emma, on the other hand, felt uncomfortable all over, yet she did not dare move for fear of waking Alex. She could only endure it. Enduring and enduring, she eventually fell asleep as well.

The early morning sun passed through dense branches and leaves, shining into the cave through the rocks blocking its entrance. A trace of warmth gradually rose within.

Curled up together, the two of them both moved toward that ray of sunlight. Then, in an instant, the cold sensation startled them awake at the same time. They looked at each other for a long moment before suddenly pulling apart, awkwardness on their faces. After another long silence, they tacitly pushed aside the rocks at the cave entrance and walked out.

After a night of madness, the jungle seemed to have returned to its dead silence. Only scattered cries of unknown insects could be heard, composing a song of the forest.

"I’ll take a look from the treetops." As soon as Alex spoke, he nimbly climbed a giant tree beside the cave entrance like a monkey, reaching several meters up in just a few movements. "See if I can find some water." Both of them were covered in blood. Unless they got rid of the smell, they could forget about resting safely in this jungle.

Emma stood beneath the tree, looking up at Alex as he gradually disappeared among the branches and leaves. Her heart suddenly began pounding wildly, and she wanted to climb up after him, stand beside him at the treetop, and look at the scenery together.

Just as Emma’s thoughts began to wander, Alex jumped down from several meters up the trunk with a thud, startling her so badly that she sprang several meters away.

"I saw a swamp. It’s a little far, so we need to hurry." Alex gave Emma a strange look, then turned and pointed in a direction. "If we’re late, I’m afraid we’ll run into beasts again."

The swamp was much farther away than they had expected. Alex and Emma walked for three or four hours without seeing even a trace of it. Along the way, they encountered several more groups of beasts, from massive dinosaurs to somewhat weaker dire wolves. All kinds of prehistoric creatures made their appearance.

"Why are we running into dinosaurs everywhere? Why haven’t we seen a single savage?" Waving the dagger in his hand, Alex jumped down from the body of an unknown dinosaur, looking completely relaxed.

Alex had only been joking, but Emma seriously analyzed the matter. "With so many dinosaurs, saber-toothed tigers, and other beasts living in this forest, it isn’t suitable for humans. Even if there are savages, they should be outside the forest."

"Outside the forest? You mean that swamp?" Alex shrugged and said skeptically, "People can’t live in a swamp."

Emma shook her head, looking confused. "Alex, have you ever thought about where this place really is? A huge forest, all kinds of dinosaurs, saber-toothed tigers, dire wolves… Who could gather them all together?"

Alex spread his hands helplessly. "I’d like to know too, but I guess it was aliens." Only aliens, aliens beyond anything people on Earth could imagine, might be capable of doing something so shocking.

After more fighting, just as the sun was about to set, Alex and Emma finally emerged from the forest. An endless swamp stretched out before them, with ponds large and small scattered densely across it like oversized pearls spilled over the grass.

Alex ran forward in delight. Just as he was about to jump into a small pond and wash the blood from his body, a figure suddenly emerged from a distant rise.

Naked from head to toe and covered in thick hair, it was unmistakably a savage—a savage living in the swamp.