The hand belonged to Rong Shi. 

He was originally seated directly across from Su Ge, with about one or two meters separating them, not a great distance but still requiring more than a single step to reach her side. Furthermore, the ground around them was littered with fallen leaves; any movement would inevitably produce a rustling sound. 

Strangely, Rong Shi had jumped up from where he had just been sitting, rushing over to her side. His speed was very fast, not only fast but also without making any sound. 

Su Ge couldn’t help but glance at Rong Shi a few more times. 

All along, Su Ge’s impression of Rong Shi was primarily based on his excessively handsome face. Secondly, it was his keen interest in learning various martial arts. Lastly, they had previously fought, with neither gaining the upper hand. Naturally, she assumed their strengths were roughly equal. 

Now thinking about it, she realized she had been arrogant. 

Rong Shi must have some special martial skills that he had not yet revealed, and she was equally unaware of them. 

Thinking of this, she couldn’t help but regard Rong Shi differently. There must be many such outstanding individuals in the entire Interstellar Alliance, and there would be many planets similar to theirs. To gain recognition from all of them, both herself and Earth had a long way to go. 

These thoughts raced through her mind. When Rong Shi grabbed the furry little hand, Su Ge didn’t hesitate. She quickly grasped the hand too. With Rong Shi’s strength, they abruptly exerted some force and pulled out the hidden figure from the bushes, which had been entirely invisible until then. 

The creature wasn’t heavy. As Su Ge exerted herself to pull it out, she estimated it didn’t weigh more than thirty pounds. 

It was covered in grey-brown fur all over, looking fluffy. However, there was no fur on its chest, abdomen, face, palms, or soles of its feet, allowing Su Ge to clearly see its appearance and other details. 

This creature looked very much like a human, but its face was not as round and smooth as a human’s. Instead, it seemed as if someone had squeezed a loaf of bread from top and bottom towards the middle, causing all the facial features to be tightly packed together and giving it a sense of urgency. 

The creature probably hadn’t expected to be caught by Rong Shi, so when Rong Shi held it up and looked it in the eyes, it hadn’t reacted yet. Its long, narrow eyes were filled with confusion, but after two seconds, it began to struggle frantically. 

Because both of its hands were grabbed and lifted by Rong Shi, it couldn’t use its arms. However, its body and legs were very agile. Being held in midair, its body swung abruptly towards Rong Shi like a pendulum. Then, its slender but surprisingly strong legs kicked forcefully towards Rong Shi. 

Rong Shi simply intended to lift the creature and get a better look at it in the light behind him. He wasn’t entirely ready for its sudden attack. Although he narrowly evaded the most serious blow from its kicking legs, his hair still got caught as its foot hooked back. 

His hair, which hadn’t been trimmed for over a month, was quite long. Normally, Rong Shi kept it neatly behind his ears, but a few days ago he had borrowed a hairband from other boys to tie his overly long hair into a small braid at the back of his head, solving the problem of his face being constantly covered by these stray hairs. 

But now, with this creature’s foot hooking in, those carefully arranged hair strands were scattered again, suddenly falling over from the back of his head and directly covering half of Rong Shi’s face. 

Instinctively, Rong Shi tried to brush his hair aside. At that moment, the creature seemed to see an opportunity and kicked towards Rong Shi again. Trying to escape, its leg did kick out, but before it could hit Rong Shi again, it was caught in another hand. 

Wild animals typically carry an untameable nature in the wild, ingrained deep in their bones, passed down through generations in their blood. Humans would need thousands of years to tame them. 

It is precisely this wild nature that helps them survive bit by bit in harsh environments. 

When Su Ge was on Earth, her family often insisted she exercise outdoors, where she frequently encountered these animals and learned about their natural instincts. 

Obviously, Rong Shi did not have this opportunity. 

He grew up in the palace from a young age and entered the military for training in his youth, seemingly without much chance to live alongside wild animals. That’s why he fell for the creature’s tricks twice in just a few seconds. 

If Su Ge didn’t react when the thing kicked Rong Shi the first time, and if she still didn’t react when it kicked him a second time, she would have laughed at her own foolishness. 

“So, she made her move. When she did, it seemed unremarkable at first glance, but in fact, her angle of attack was extremely cunning and precise. Not only did she effortlessly grab hold of the creature’s flailing legs, but she also swiftly subdued it, leaving it no chance to struggle. 

When the creature kicked towards Rong Shi for the second time, he quickly tried to evade. Moments later, he realized someone had already firmly seized its attack halfway through. Glancing back, Rong Shi saw that it was Su Ge who had somehow reversed the creature’s maneuver. She swiftly pulled out a rope from her backpack, intending to tie it up. 

The creature clearly wasn’t used to such treatment and kept struggling throughout the process. It was remarkably strong, it nearly escape several times as it twisted its body. In the end, Rong Shi acted just in time, and together they managed to tightly bind it. 

If it came to a contest of physical strength, handling a creature of this size would certainly be very easy. Both Su Ge and Rong Shi could likely incapacitate it with a single blow. However, if their goal was to keep it alive, the task would prove much more challenging. In summary, Rong Shi and Su Ge exerted considerable effort in tying up the creature, leaving them both sweating profusely. 

During this process, the creature kept struggling and screaming, which was quite peculiar. Despite its small size, no one would expect it to emit sharp, high-pitched cries. However, the sound it made was unexpectedly dull, resembling the noise of a wooden barrel being thrown upside down into a well, making a muffled puffing sound. 

It wasn’t until the creature was securely bound on the ground like a dumpling that Su Ge could clearly examine it. 

The creature resembled a human with fur. Judging from its counterattack against Rong Shi just now, it not only had some combat experience but also showed a bit of cunning… 

Su Ge stared at the creature, still rolling around on the ground, feeling a strong sense of strangeness. 

This thing… why does it look so much like a monkey? 

Even though it had no tail, even though its face looked compressed, and even though its screams were extremely unpleasant ‘pupu’ sounds, it was still very much like a monkey. 

“What is this thing?” Rong Shi asked almost to himself as he looked at Su Ge. 

Su Ge shrugged and spread her hands, indicating she didn’t know either. 

And so, after catching this creature, neither of them knew what to do next for a moment, only able to watch as it briefly fell silent. 

When the “monkey” appeared earlier, although Rong Shi and Su Ge caught it without hesitation, neither had thought about what to do after catching it. 

Although the night before, Rong Shi hadn’t clearly seen what the secondary intelligent beings that had entered the camp to steal was, judging from its silhouette and height, it should be the species they had now captured.” 

“But even if we catch it, what can we do? 

The creature clearly didn’t understand the common language, and communication through questions was futile. 

Secondly, this is a secondary intelligent being. But how intelligent it actually is, they don’t know. How are they supposed to handle such an enigmatic creature? How can they communicate with it? 

Lastly, these secondary intelligent beings are a group, and Su Ge and Rong Shi are in their territory. They cannot afford to act rashly. If they anger the others, who knows what repercussions they might face? 

These are indeed significant challenges. While they appear to be dead ends, they are all issues that must be addressed. Otherwise, Su Ge and the others will not be able to peacefully remain on this desolate planet 756. 

Not to mention they still want to preserve their own food. 

Rong Shi had almost identical thoughts swirling in his mind. These unsolvable problems were truly giving him a headache. As they remained silent, the monkeys rolling on the ground emitted a “puff puff puff” sound, which seemed unusually harsh in the quiet forest. 

Su Ge looked at the “monkey” with some hesitation and embarrassment: “Shouldn’t we shut its mouth?” 

Rong Shi looked up at the monkey for a moment, his face showing a helpless expression. He nodded first, then lowered his urgent voice: “You’re right, but I think it might be too late.” 

It was indeed getting late. Just as the two of them fell into silence, a faint and almost inaudible sound echoed through the forest around them. 

Although Su Ge’s hearing was not as sharp as Rong Shi’s, she could feel as if she was under a burning gaze, a sensation that had been haunting her for some time. As this feeling reached its peak, she noticed shadows among the trees around them, where countless eyes seemed to have suddenly appeared. 

All of these eyes are long, narrow, and green. 

She sensed that the intense gaze emanated entirely from these eyes. 

Following this unsettling feeling, Su Ge noticed hairy, gray-brown bodies crouching on the branches of every large tree, even though she couldn’t see them all. 

These beings hadn’t fully exposed themselves; only a few occasionally revealed their forms from behind the leaves, leaving it uncertain how many more lurked within the pitch-black foliage. 

Icebergs on the sea surface weren’t terrifying; the real terror lay in not knowing what lay hidden beneath them, much like now. 

A chill wind seemed to blow down her neck, causing Su Ge’s hairs to stand on end. 

She slowly turned to look at Rong Shi, who had also realized their current predicament. Their eyes met briefly in mid-air without a word exchanged. In the next moment, both moved at lightning speed, grabbing their belongings and dashing out of the forest. 

They were fast and had left markings on their way in. As long as they followed these marks while remaining alert, escaping the forest shouldn’t be difficult. 

Of course, if their opponents had been huge monsters or creatures that struggled to move in the forest, Su Ge and Rong Shi could have easily outrun them. Unfortunately, their opponents were not. 

Their opponents were a sizable group of “monkeys” smaller in stature but more familiar with the forest than they were, and their numbers were considerable. 

Su Ge and Rong Shi were running desperately in front, with the “monkeys” quickly chasing them from behind. Occasionally, one or two would rush forward and attempt to attack them fiercely. A few times, their attacks were successful, leaving shallow scratches on Su Ge and Rong Shi’s arms and backs. 

Sometimes, avoiding a fight helps preserve strength and assess the opponent’s capabilities before making a final move. However, at other times, avoiding a fight might be seen as an invitation for abuse, leading to more attacks. 

Clearly, this was the latter case. 

After succeeding two or three times, these “monkeys” appeared to lose their inhibitions, becoming more frenzied in their attacks. This was certainly not the moment to avoid a confrontation. 

They turned their heads and glanced at each other. Though they didn’t know each other well, they shared an unusual tacit understanding in that moment. Without hesitation, they turned back simultaneously and faced the new wave of attacks. 

Su Ge drew the wooden sword from her backpack and charged directly. Her martial arts had been honed through numerous battles, giving her substantial combat experience. In just moments, she effortlessly dispatched several of the closest monkeys that approached her. 

Rong Shi had already mastered combat skills to the fullest, learning from many others along the way. Even without high-tech weapons, he was more than capable of dealing with these monkeys. 

Two people immediately displayed absolute dominance as soon as they took action, which immediately subdued the “monkeys” following behind them. Wild animals instinctively fear danger, so their speed slowed down, as did their rush towards them, but there were still quite a few of them. 

Su Ge and Rong Shi showed no mercy towards them. No matter how many rushed at them, they ruthlessly fought back. One practiced ancient martial arts and the other had extremely high combat skills. When they truly displayed their strength, not only did these “monkeys” stop attacking them, they found it nearly impossible to even get close. 

After circling three or four times, these “monkeys” clearly realized something—they were no match for these two outsiders. They hesitated and began to withdraw, no longer daring to approach and attack them actively. 

Just at this moment, Su Ge and Rong Shi, in perfect harmony, turned and sprinted out of the forest. 

Ironically, they had no problem dealing with a few “monkeys” like this, but if an endless stream of them continued to rush in, they wouldn’t stand a chance. They had just used their ultimate moves to subdue these “monkeys,” all to wait for an opportunity where they wouldn’t dare to approach. 

Now that opportunity was right in front of them. If they didn’t run, were they supposed to wait to be captured by these creatures? 

Su Ge had never known she could run for such a long time. She had good explosive power, but in terms of endurance, she wasn’t that great. However, this time, she didn’t care about her physical fatigue at all; all she could think of was running faster and faster. 

In the end, when the two of them burst out of the forest, Su Ge finally let out the breath she had been holding in her chest. At this moment, she seemed to feel a burning pain echoing throughout her chest cavity. 

And this pain spread incredibly fast. It seemed that just as Su Ge started to feel it, it instantly spread throughout her entire body. The strength throughout her body seemed like it would be completely burned away by this raging pain. She reluctantly glanced down at the tracker on her hand, calculating the time. She had probably been sprinting at top speed for nearly eighty minutes, far exceeding her endurance limit. 

At this moment, every part of her body was in tearing pain, her limbs exhausted to the point where they felt like they weren’t her own. The breath she had let out seemed impossible to gather again. She bent over, hands supporting her knees, gasping heavily, relying solely on her willpower to prevent herself from collapsing. 

Because even Su Ge knew that if she fell to the ground now, she wouldn’t be able to get back up. 

Despite having left the forest, they were not in a safe zone yet. If the “monkeys” attacked again now, she doubted she would even have the strength to swing her wooden sword. 

From the dark forest behind them came the distant and near “pupupu” sounds—the cries of those “monkeys” who had not left the forest at all. Their burning gazes remained fixed on Su Ge. 

Su Ge was certain that if she didn’t hurry up and leave now, those “monkeys” might rush out of the forest again. She wanted to stand up, supporting her knees, but the feeling of powerlessness was overwhelming and she couldn’t shake it off. 

Just then, Su Ge felt someone grab her wrist. Before she could react from her dizzying fatigue, the scenery before her began to sway. She felt her limbs suddenly lift off the ground. Instinctively reaching forward, she landed in a broad and sturdy place. 

Dizzy, Su Ge realized she was being carried on Rong Shi’s back. She hesitated for a moment and quickly protested, “No, put me down…” 

“Don’t talk. Rest well.” 

“You’ve been running for so long too.” 

Though Rong Shi was also breathing heavily, he was far from the exhausted state Su Ge was in. He held Su Ge tightly, instructing her to hold on to him. Then, Su Ge felt Rong Shi start running. His speed was fast and incredibly steady. 

Looking back at the forest, which was getting farther and farther away, Su Ge could still hear the “pupupu” sounds coming from inside. The image of countless “monkeys” rushing towards them had gradually receded into the distance. 

“Rest here for a bit. It’ll take a while to get back to the camp from here,” Rong Shi’s voice carried over on the wind. Su Ge, lying on his back, could even feel the vibrations in his chest as he spoke. 

“Okay.” At this moment, Su Ge suddenly had many things she wanted to say, but for some reason, she couldn’t get any of them out. All her thoughts seemed to condense into a single word by the end. 

For the next stretch of time, neither of them spoke. The sky gradually darkened… 

Su Ge was startled awake by a loud noise. In fact, she wasn’t sure how she had fallen asleep or when it had happened. All she knew was that when she opened her eyes, she found herself back at the camp. 

The expressions on everyone’s faces at the camp were far from calm. Rong Shi and Su Ge had returned in a rush, looking rather disheveled, but that alone wasn’t enough to darken everyone’s mood. The real reason for their somber expressions was— 

On the ground lay a bundle of a “monkey,” tied up like a dumpling, seemingly dazed from the journey. It had stopped struggling and making “pupupu” noises, now lying motionless and staring at everyone. 

Su Ge was quite shocked and turned to Rong Shi. “You actually brought it back?” 

During their escape, they had been in a rush. Su Ge had only managed to grab her backpack and hadn’t noticed what else Rong Shi might have brought. She never expected him to bring this thing back. 

Rong Shi chuckled awkwardly and shrugged. “Honestly, I didn’t even notice. I just brought it back without thinking.” 

Su Ge: =.= 

Sure! 

Well, in that situation, who knows what anyone might do… 

“What… is this?” Flynn circled around the “monkey” several times, expressing great surprise. “They look somewhat like the people from Grogh planet.”