Published: September 2, 2025
Chapter 577: Nameless Land
After a short while, the torches finally arrived nearby.
Using their light, Han Li could see some things at a short distance.
Nearby was a white, bright expanse, covered everywhere with piles of fish and shrimp, thickly layered across the ground. He and the woman were perched on a relatively high mound of these.
In the distance, there was still a vast pitch-black area where nothing could be seen clearly; it just seemed this place was very wide, with no walls or anything like that in sight.
A few men stopped about twenty or thirty feet away from Han Li.
They quickly set their leather bags on the ground, and except for one man who stood guard, alertly scanning the surroundings, the others buried their heads, frantically stuffing fish and shrimp into their bags.
Seeing this, Han Li was somewhat surprised.
The woman beside him let out a soft, barely audible sigh, but because the sound was so low, the men did not notice. Han Li instinctively glanced at the woman’s face.
In the faint red glow, a delicate and sweet face appeared faintly from the darkness.
The woman immediately realized Han Li was looking at her so boldly. Her face flushed a rosy red; she slightly twisted her neck and then hid her face back into the shadows, leaving only a pair of shy, bright eyes sparkling.
Han Li found this amusing.
The woman was interesting—when neither could see each other clearly, she seemed frank and a little bold; but now that she could see him, she suddenly became timid and bashful.
The fierce impression she had given him before vanished completely.
Just then, a shout came from afar.
“Trouble! Quickly retreat! Firescale beasts are coming!” The man on watch suddenly turned and shouted low to the others.
Immediately, the men stuffing their bags hoisted them onto their backs and took off running wildly in another direction. Only two torches, stuck in the ground, flickered uncertainly in the spot they left behind.
Almost simultaneously, from the darkness came several long, eerie howls, as if something had discovered these men. Then sounds of heavy objects hitting the ground—“bang, bang”—came rapidly.
Several crimson, roughly several feet long figures shot out from the darkness, then after a flash, disappeared from sight.
In that brief moment, Han Li clearly saw the so-called “firescale beasts.” They were fierce monsters with leopard heads and red scales, baring sharp fangs, looking extremely ferocious.
In the blink of an eye, calm returned once more.
Han Li let out a sigh of relief. The beasts hadn’t discovered the two of them—fortunately, luck was on their side.
After a little while, Han Li gently clenched his fists and then embraced the woman at his chest around her waist, slowly standing up.
His body had finally returned to normal, and he could move freely again.
“You… put me down, I’m almost fine,” the woman said softly in Han Li’s arms, her cheeks flushed.
“Don’t worry about the fishy smell on you; I don’t care,” Han Li glanced at her and said calmly.
Hearing this, the woman looked down at the fish and shrimp scattered on the ground and hesitated for a moment, then wisely said nothing more.
At that moment, Han Li lightly jumped down from the fish pile with the woman in his arms, heading toward the torches.
Although they didn’t know exactly where this ghostly place was, if there truly was no light at all, it would undoubtedly be troublesome.
Bending slightly, Han Li reached out and pulled a torch free, looking around carefully. Then, his expression grew thoughtful.
“Put me down. I can move now,” the woman whispered shyly after a moment.
Han Li immediately released his hold without a word, and she landed lightly on the ground. After adjusting her clothes, she took up the other torch and scanned the surroundings as well.
At that moment, Han Li suddenly lifted his leg and strode boldly toward the direction the men had come from.
“Where are you going?” The woman was startled and hurriedly asked.
“I don’t want to wait for those beasts to come back—naturally I want to find a safe place first,” Han Li replied without looking back.