"Ye Ge, you're really amazing, to have gathered such a set of equipment in this place. I knew when I was still at the company that you were stronger than everyone else!"
On our way back to the cave, Wang Peng was particularly attention-seeking.
The other survivors were either hurrying along, lost in their confusion about the future and saying nothing, or whispering with others.
But he was jumping around, scouting ahead sometimes, and loudly chatting with others.
Now he walked in front of me again, trying to curry favor.
I glanced at Wang Peng out of the corner of my eye. This kid was talking too much on the way back, which was annoying me.
But since he was smiling, I didn't want to offend him. I hadn't noticed anything strange about him, and being too deliberate might make him suspicious.
So I treated him equally and gave him a few perfunctory words to get rid of him.
Wang Peng seemed to sense my impatience, and with some cleverness, he laughed it off and went to talk with the others behind.
Without Wang Peng bothering me, I could finally calm down and carefully think about the Kasa tribe.
The entire Kasa tribe had now hit rock bottom.
Most of their elite warriors had died in the previous war with the Du'an tribe, and the remaining few were also sent to their doom by me.
When we went to the Kasa tribe to accept the survivors earlier, although we didn't stay long, I still saw through their situation.
The survivors of the Kasa tribe were likely divided into two factions, holding each other in check.
The military faction represented by Ke Zhu, and the elder faction represented by that old savage.
Although Ke Zhu led the tribal warriors, his prestige was insufficient to command everyone's full trust.
The old savage, despite lacking military support in the Kasa tribe, could temporarily suppress Ke Zhu by relying on his past prestige.
If we hadn't intervened, the old man would have likely lost in the power struggle with Ke Zhu before long.
After all, power comes from the barrel of a gun, and given Ke Zhu's previous brutal and bloodthirsty nature, the old man would have met a tragic end.
Thinking of this, I finally understood why the old savage was so obediently surrendered to us and handed over his power when he saw me bringing Ke Xin and Ke Ya.
Without the backing of force, relying solely on the old man's personal charisma was not enough to lead the Kasa tribe to recovery, and survival itself would be questionable.
So, when I killed Ke Zhu and proved that I possessed greater military might than him, Ke Ya becoming the new leader was a natural progression.
Although Ke Xin and Ke Ya were just former saintesses, they were more qualified to speak than those who were now dead.
If a few comedians stand together and curse, whoever lives longest is the artist – this is a principle that holds true everywhere.
With the old man's official endorsement, Ke Ya's legitimacy in inheriting the tribe was no longer questioned.
"Ah!"
As I was contemplating, a scream suddenly came from the back of the group!
I turned around abruptly and saw a man at the very back of the line being dragged into the bushes by a thick black root. Wang Peng, standing beside him, was stunned and frozen with fear, watching the man being dragged away.
The other survivors, having only been on this island for a few days before being captured and enslaved by the Kasa tribe, had never witnessed such a scene.
They were all at a loss, not knowing how to react.
"What are you standing around for? Hurry and save him!"
Although this was my first time encountering something that was neither animal nor plant, I had seen enough major events since arriving on this island, so I wasn't flustered at all.
The panicked survivors snapped back to reality at my call and rushed forward, grabbing the black root to prevent it from dragging the unfortunate man away.
I didn't stand idle either. I drew my alloy knife and lunged forward, slashing at the thick black root.
I don't know how things grow on this deserted island. When I swung my knife at the black root, it made a sound like metal striking stone.
Caught off guard, I was jolted by the recoil, my hand going numb.
Damn it, what kind of monster is this?!
The survivors were also in trouble.
They were pulling the unfortunate man, trying to free him from the root's grasp.
But the black root, like an octopus, tightened its grip the more they pulled. Five or six people exerted all their strength but couldn't budge it at all, and were instead being dragged deeper into the bushes.
"Help, help, I don't want to die, please save me, Lu Zi Ye!"
The unfortunate man's eyes were filled with terror and despair. He strained with all his might to extend an arm from the root's embrace towards me, seemingly begging me to rescue him from this desperate entanglement.
Damn it, I've weathered so many storms, and now I'm going to be defeated by this bizarre tentacle!
The tenacity of the black root only fueled the ferocity within me.
I jammed the alloy knife into the ground, pulled out my pistol from my pocket, and fired a shot at the rear of the root.