Chapter 303: A Narrow Encounter with the Bear
Fang Xiaocao led the way in front while Hummingbird carried Wan Xiaozhou on her back, closely following behind as they hurried toward the exit. Although Wan Xiaozhou’s bleeding had stopped, she remained weak and could not walk on her own. Several times, she nearly lost consciousness.
Luckily, they hadn’t encountered any dangers along the way. The traps that Tom had set were either triggered or dismantled by the mercenaries who entered after them. Otherwise, those traps alone might have been enough to stop them.
After an exhausting rush forward, the exit was finally in sight.
Suddenly—
“Crack!”
A faint snapping sound came from behind them. Fang Xiaocao and Hummingbird immediately halted in their tracks. Alarmed, Fang Xiaocao turned her head to look behind them.
She met Hummingbird’s gaze—both of them were filled with confusion.
“Did you step on something?” Fang Xiaocao asked cautiously.
Hummingbird shook her head. “It wasn’t me! The sound came from behind us!”
Before she could finish speaking, heavy, ragged breathing filled their ears.
Fang Xiaocao and Hummingbird spun around at the same time.
In the next second—
Their expressions changed drastically.
A massive black bear loomed in front of them!
And Fang Xiaocao recognized it.
That bear—it was the one that Taotie had beaten up earlier!
Alarms rang in Fang Xiaocao’s mind.
“Why is this bear here?”
“Is it here for revenge?”
She regretted not letting Taotie finish it off back then.
“Mercy was a mistake!”
Now, the bear stood before them—a creature that held grudges.
Cursing herself for her soft-heartedness, Fang Xiaocao gritted her teeth and unlocked the safety on her gun, preparing for a desperate fight.
Even though a handgun wasn’t ideal against such a massive beast, it was still better than using a knife.
“Hummingbird, we have no choice but to fight!” she said in a low voice.
Hummingbird glanced at the bear, which was breathing heavily and staring them down, and nodded in agreement.
Carefully, she crouched to set Wan Xiaozhou down. She moved slowly, not wanting to provoke the bear. Carrying a person on her back meant she couldn’t fight properly—if they were going to fight, she had to be free of extra weight.
But even though she moved cautiously, the bear reacted.
“ROAR—!”
With a deafening roar, the black bear stood on its hind legs, its massive frame becoming even more imposing.
Hummingbird quickly finished putting Wan Xiaozhou down and drew her katana in a flash, positioning it toward the bear.
The bear loomed over them, step by step closing the distance.
Fang Xiaocao tightened her grip on her gun, finger on the trigger, ready to fire.
Hummingbird’s sharp eyes scanned the bear’s body, looking for a weak spot to strike.
“Princess, you two should leave…” Wan Xiaozhou said weakly.
“Don’t say nonsense!” Fang Xiaocao cut her off. “Bears are smart! It won’t just let us escape. If we run, it’ll chase us. Our only option is to fight!”
Hummingbird nodded. “She’s right. If we don’t kill it, none of us are getting out alive.”
As the bear came within just a few meters, Fang Xiaocao’s finger slowly pulled the trigger, and both she and Hummingbird braced themselves—
But just then—
Something completely unexpected happened.
The black bear suddenly dropped to its knees!
It bowed repeatedly, as if… begging for mercy.
Fang Xiaocao was so startled she accidentally fired her gun!
“BANG!”
The bullet narrowly missed the bear’s head, grazing its fur and leaving behind a burnt streak. The smell of singed fur filled the air.
The bear let out a pitiful wail, raising its paws to cover its head, looking completely terrified.
For a moment, the entire tunnel fell into an eerie silence.
The giant bear—once an overwhelming threat—now crouched trembling on the ground, as though being bullied, like a helpless victim of schoolyard bullying.
Fang Xiaocao and Hummingbird exchanged a look, utterly bewildered.
“It looks… scared?” Fang Xiaocao blinked.
Hummingbird nodded hesitantly. “Yeah…”
“But why?” Fang Xiaocao muttered.
Hummingbird frowned and glanced at the bear before hesitantly saying, “It… looks like it’s afraid of being beaten?”
It sounded absurd, but looking at the bear’s submissive posture, that seemed to be the only explanation.
Fang Xiaocao sighed. “What should we do?”
Hummingbird hesitated, then suggested, “Maybe we should… test it?”
The moment the words left her mouth, she regretted them.
Test it? With what? Our lives?
Fang Xiaocao took a deep breath, still gripping her gun tightly, and cautiously took a step forward toward the bear.
“Princess!” Hummingbird exclaimed in alarm, trying to stop her.
“Be careful—it could be a trick!”
But even as she said it, she didn’t fully believe it herself.
Would a bear really go this far just to trick them?
If it wanted to attack, it could have done so already. There was no need for this bizarre display of submission.
Fang Xiaocao chuckled. “Since when do bears pray before eating?”
Then, an idea struck her—
“I have a theory.”
Hummingbird raised an eyebrow.
“What if this bear… has been completely beaten into submission by Taotie?”
