Charles Gray looked at this, then at that, completely at a loss as to what was going on. He was afraid of the aura of both people, but didn’t dare to ask, so he could only shrink his neck.

No one knew how much time passed before Logan Sullivan finally spoke: “Old Chu, you’re smart. I’ve rarely met anyone smarter than you, so I won’t waste my breath saying things you already understand. You know what’s going on—take care of yourself.”

Carter Shaw squinted, staring at the beef jerky wrapper for a long time, as if he could see something new in it. In the end, he didn’t say anything, his expression and face unchanged, as if the conversation had never happened. No one could tell what he was thinking.

Fifteen minutes later, they set off again, this time with Carter Shaw leading the way at the front.

It had been a sunny morning, but at some point, light snow had started to fall again. The three of them headed west, taking nearly an hour to circle halfway down the mountain. Just then, Charles Gray suddenly spotted something in the snow… something that looked very familiar.

He hurried over, using his thick gloves to brush away the thin layer of snow on top. When he saw what it was, he jumped in fright—it was a plastic arm.

Logan Sullivan only heard Charles Gray let out a loud “Aow!” and shout, “Chief Zhao! Chief Zhao! This is Zach Warren’s arm, Zach Warren’s!”

Truly a mascot—having him around really brings dumb luck, Logan Sullivan thought as he strode back in a few quick steps, snatched up the plastic arm, and flicked Charles Gray on the forehead: “Zach Warren’s arm rotted to mush ages ago. This is just another one of those shoddy knockoffs you waste money on—her arm’s here, but where is she?”

This little bit of snow couldn’t possibly cover Zach Warren’s footprints, even if she was very light now. Logan Sullivan searched the area, then suddenly thought of something and jerked his head up—if she hadn’t walked this way, maybe it meant the arm had fallen from above.

Carter Shaw followed his gaze, glanced down at the map, and understood. He patted Logan Sullivan on the shoulder and pointed upward: “Look there.”

Less than three meters away, on a slope, there was a large cave half-covered by wild grass and snow. It was originally well hidden, but the snow at the entrance showed faint signs of being trampled, which ruined the concealment just enough to catch Carter Shaw’s attention.

Chapter 34 Terra-Spike …

The mountain cabin had been peaceful. Logan Sullivan’s friend had contacted Julian West again, saying it would be at least three or four days before the road could be cleared. William Sherman briefly discussed with the students, and everyone agreed that, given the current unlucky situation, even if there were survivors in Qingxi Village, they probably wouldn’t be in the mood to cooperate with their folklore research. So they decided to wait for Logan Sullivan to return and then go back to Longcheng together.

The female class monitor warmed milk with a small bottle and hot water, feeding Darrin Grant while preparing breakfast for everyone. At their teacher’s request, the others went to help Julian West clean the yard.

The method for cleaning the yard was very simple and rough—under Julian West’s direction, they dug up every skull that had tried to bite them in the middle of the night and placed them in designated spots. Then the fake monk would pick up a big rock from who-knows-where and smash them to pieces, just as their leader had instructed.

It wasn’t long before Holly Harlow returned, carrying a huge bag taller than a person. This strong woman set her things down, took out a small bottle, warmed it in a pot for less than two minutes, then took a hearty swig. She quickly took over Julian West’s job, smashing skulls like cracking walnuts—one after another, with a 100% success rate and excellent quality, never needing to redo a single one.

This simple and rough morning exercise continued until the girls inside called them in for breakfast.

For some reason, Holly Harlow squeezed herself in between a boy and Darrin Grant, who had unconsciously moved closer to William Sherman, and plopped down next to him without any courtesy. “Mr. Shen, could you please pass me the chocolate spread?”

She slathered chocolate spread on beef jerky, sweet and salty together, who knows what it tasted like. While eating, Holly Harlow kept sneaking glances at the unruffled William Sherman, and after a while, pretending to focus on spreading chocolate, she said without looking up, “Our boss is pursuing you.”

William Sherman paused and turned to look at her.

Holly Harlow, eyes downcast, said in a casual, almost indifferent tone, “You can’t possibly not have noticed, right?”

William Sherman’s expression didn’t change. He didn’t answer, just picked up a few more packets of chocolate spread and handed them to Holly Harlow: “Want some more?”

Holly Harlow fell silent. She looked up at him with a very strange expression. Under his gaze, her normally round pupils slowly elongated, turning into vertical slits like a cold-blooded animal’s, looking especially eerie on her pretty face.

Yet William Sherman just glanced at her and calmly turned his attention back to his food.

“So do you like him?” Holly Harlow lowered her voice and whispered in his ear.

William Sherman replied unhurriedly, “Why do you want to know?”

“I…” Holly Harlow’s eyes darted, “I’m just gossiping. Gossiping about the boss is every exploited, oppressed employee’s right.”

William Sherman gave her a half-smile: “If you’re so gossipy, how could you not already know?”

Holly Harlow: “……”

William Sherman chuckled softly, carefully using a wet wipe to take the milk off the little stove, and asked Holly Harlow, “You’re eating such dry food, want something to drink?”

Holly Harlow’s expression twisted for a moment, but she forced out a smile: “Sure, I’ll have some, thanks!”

The metal shell of Holly Harlow’s thermos was dented by her grip, but William Sherman seemed not to notice at all, calmly pouring her a cup of milk, and even, out of habit, said, “Drink it while it’s hot.”

The dent in Holly Harlow’s cup deepened.

There seemed to be a hint of amusement in William Sherman’s eyes. Just as he put the milk bottle back and was about to say something, he suddenly seemed to sense something, whipped his head around, and stared out the window toward the far end of the valley, his expression changing instantly.

Holly Harlow wasn’t sure if she was being overly sensitive, but the sudden change in William Sherman’s demeanor made her very uncomfortable. She almost instinctively wanted to move away, but forced herself to stay put.

Why should she be afraid of a university teacher who couldn’t even kill a chicken?

That made no sense!

Sunlight glinted off William Sherman’s glasses, reflecting a blinding light.

“I’m full,” after a moment, Holly Harlow heard him say, “I’m going to help clean the yard. Everyone, don’t wander off—listen to the officers.”

With that, he walked straight out of the courtyard.

It seemed like a minor incident, and no one thought much of it… Strangely, even after everyone finished breakfast and went outside twenty minutes later, no one noticed that William Sherman was already gone.

It was as if he had never existed at all. Even Holly Harlow and Julian West didn’t remember that there should have been one more person there.

Meanwhile, the missing William Sherman appeared out of nowhere ten minutes later, right where Logan Sullivan and the others had just found Zach Warren’s “arm.”

He wasn’t even wearing a coat against the cold. The mountain wind whipped his shirt collar and hair, and snow blown by the wind landed on his glasses, but he didn’t seem cold at all.

William Sherman stood at the foot of the slope, looking around in all directions. Suddenly, he stretched out his hand, palm down, and made a grabbing motion.

His hand was extremely pale, blue veins showing clearly beneath the skin, like a carefully crafted mannequin. The whole ground trembled with his movement, the mountain wind howled louder, swirling into a vortex that shot up like a blade into the sky. Then, the entire ground seemed to be “lifted” by him from the void, revealing cracked frozen earth beneath the thick snow.

At that moment, something shot out from underground like an arrow, aiming for William Sherman’s back.

He seemed completely unguarded.

A smell, both rotten and strangely floral, spread through the air a moment later. But in the next instant, William Sherman had already turned around at some untraceable speed and grabbed the attacker by the neck.

The one he lifted by the throat was a Netherbeast.

William Sherman’s brows furrowed sharply, his face suddenly full of menace.

The Netherbeast made a gurgling sound in its throat, bloodshot eyes fixed tightly on William Sherman.

“Rules are rules,” William Sherman said coldly. “You brazenly crossed the boundary and left the forbidden land without permission. The punishment is death.”