Infinite Hunter

As night fell, Cheng Yijiu dragged a fallen tree. "I feel even more that this strength is extraordinary." He used his sword to split the tree into firewood. The bonfire dispelled the night's chill. Cheng Yijiu used branches to pad the ground, and covered himself with wool felt to keep it warm. He also maintained his weapons, carefully wiping his sword, short spear, and arrowhead, and applying grease - although spring steel is not easy to rust...

After everything was done, he had a delicious meal and then fell asleep wrapped in a blanket. Cheng Yijiu shouldn't have been so careless, but for some reason he had a strange feeling, "Nothing will happen tonight." He could even recall the feel of the two plump ancient Greek girls, and then fell into a deep sleep. The next day, he was awakened by the sound of birds, and as expected, nothing happened that night.

The wood burned out, leaving behind a pile of ash. Cheng Yijiu used the hot ashes to heat bread and dried meat, and finally ate all the remaining food and wine - because he would be leaving the mountains soon and might not need this food. He didn't see the city here, but he saw some small villages. They were manors, planted with grapes and olives - these were all Greece could grow, and the food was probably not enough for self-sufficiency.

Cheng Yijiu found that there were almost no people in these villages. When the few people in the village saw Cheng Yijiu walking along the road, they all looked as if they had seen a god. "Gods, how did you get here? How could you not encounter that terrible monster?" They pulled Cheng Yijiu to ask him about the situation in the mountains. "No, I didn't encounter any monsters. What monsters are you talking about?"

"Son of Typhon! The Lion of Nemea!" These people exclaimed with joy. This was a monster that had been wreaking havoc here for over a decade. Few had seen it, and most who had seen it had died. Fortunately, word had spread of the lion's appearance: its enormous size, golden mane, and, of course, its invulnerability. "Invulnerable?" Cheng Yijiu gave the impression of a god. His towering figure and the gleaming cold weapon gave these people a sense of confidence.

"Invulnerable to swords and spears, the city has been recruiting heroes to kill the lion for years. But they have all failed, and they have all been killed by the lion. Their weapons cannot harm the lion." The people said. "Really? Can you show me where the lion is?" Among the people present was a young girl who bravely stepped forward and pointed to the hills and dense forests ahead.

"The lion's lair is in the cave on the mountain over there. I can take you there!" The girl looked quite frail, but her courage was commendable. However, Cheng Yijiu was not prepared to let the girl lead him directly. "First, take me to see the place where the lion attacked recently." Cheng Yijiu must first gather intelligence. He took out a silver coin and said, "Can you sell me some food and water?"

He obtained a lot of food, thanks to the silver coins. The food was a bit rough, but still edible. The girl's name was Dite. She brought Cheng Yijiu to a ruined farm. Cheng Yijiu saw that the girl was obviously trembling. "Don't worry, stay close to me." Cheng Yijiu said, "The lion is not here, otherwise I would have seen it." The wall here was knocked open, and the inside should have been cleaned up without any human remains.

Many usable furniture were also taken away, but Cheng Yijiu found discolored bloodstains on the ground and walls. Unfortunately, the footprints on the ground outside that might have been left by the lion had been destroyed by the farmers coming and going. It took him a long time to find a very blurry bloody footprint in the house that might have been left by a lion. Cheng Yijiu compared it and said, "It's very big, but it's blurry and I can't tell how big the lion is - but at least it can be said to be the largest male lion I have ever seen."

Chapter 10: Cave

How big was this enormous lion? Was it bigger than the Calydonian boar? The boar's bristles were long and stiff, standing straight up, making it appear only about the height of a man—the average Greek man, about 1.6 meters tall. Meanwhile, this lion, in these people's mouths, was described as a monster bigger than a house—of course, this was because it was the son of Typhon, making it half-Titan.

Cheng Yijiu looked at the blurred bloody footprints, shook his head, and stood up. "Don't worry, the lion isn't here." He followed the girl out. "Just point me to the mountain where the lion is and tell me where the cave is and what it looks like. You don't have to take me with you." He didn't want the girl to go because it was too dangerous. Cats are almost all masters of ambushes. Even if a lion's ambush ability is far inferior to that of a tiger, Cheng Yijiu couldn't take care of it alone.

Given the girl's fragile body, even a mere brush with the lion would likely cause incalculable consequences. If Cheng Yijiu wasn't mistaken, he might be facing an opponent unlike anything humankind has ever seen...

"The age discrepancy is nothing in the geological history of the Earth..." Cheng Yijiu muttered. The girl's advice was truly inadequate—she had no education, no concept of many things, and her grammar was also lacking. She could only say, "This mountain, that mountain, and then the cave under the boulder..." Cheng Yijiu could only ask her to point in a direction. "Is it the mountain in this direction? Okay, thank you." He took out a drachma and handed it to the girl.

"A rocky mountain, covered with heather and other small Mediterranean shrubs..." Cheng Yijiu thought, looking at the grayish-white mountain before him. He was already at the pass, scanning for any signs of a lion. It would be difficult to find a monster like this before it attacked. Carnivores are like that, very good at hiding themselves.

What Cheng Yijiu had to do was to find the beast's lair, because if he guessed correctly, such a lion would definitely be found in a cave - there were quite a lot of caves on the limestone hills in Greece, and Cheng Yijiu was looking for one of them that was large enough to accommodate this monster.

At this moment, he recalled the information he had read before joining this mission. Archaeological activities conducted in many large cave structures in Europe, such as Spain, Romania, Germany, and France, have found many animal fossils. The same is likely true in Greece. He needed to find a cave that was quite deep. At the same time, he couldn't miss any traces that might have been left by a lion. Although it was bad, Cheng Yijiu also thought that it would be great if the lion could attack once.

Following the girl's instructions, Cheng Yijiu searched the mountains for the lion's tracks. It seemed he was very lucky today. He soon crossed a mountain and found some fairly conspicuous evidence on the ridge—a ball of golden hair hanging from the heather. Cheng Yijiu quickly approached the spot. He didn't rush to remove the hair, but instead carefully observed his surroundings, wanting to know where the lion had come from and where it had gone.

After coming to a rough conclusion, Cheng Yijiu removed the hair. He rubbed the hair, which was harder than wool, and said, "This should be lion hair...this color." He sniffed carefully, but unfortunately, there was no special smell. Cheng Yijiu knew where the lion came from, and the hair was so bright and shiny that it must have been plucked off not long ago. "Huh? It's like God has helped me. I'm so lucky."

Cheng Yijiu took off the package, put the bow on his back, hung the quiver on his waist, held a short spear in his hand and a half-sword on the other side of his waist, and put on a helmet. Apart from that, he only brought some dried meat and a bag of water. The wool felt might be able to provide some protection, so he also draped it over his shoulders. While carefully observing the ground and both sides, he walked towards the direction where the lion was moving.

He was determined to find the lion's den. Of course, if the lion was very close and hadn't noticed him, Cheng Yijiu wouldn't mind firing an arrow at the monster with his powerful bow to see if it was invulnerable. Following the tracks on the ground—mostly the terrain, of course—he probably wouldn't be interested in jumping onto a nearby boulder and climbing up the mountain on a rocky path that sloped almost 60 degrees. It was definitely moving along the path Cheng Yijiu could also take.

So Cheng Yijiu finally found the footprints, complete and intact, on the loose soil. "Oh, damn!" Although Cheng Yijiu was mentally prepared, he sighed when he actually saw the footprints. It was as huge as he expected, almost as big as a washbasin. Well, Cheng Yijiu thought it was most likely a cave lion. However, according to modern archaeological findings, cave lions should be maneless lions.

However, there is also evidence that the cave lions in the original murals also had a ruff-shaped mane, not as developed as modern lions, but it was still there. Who knows if this lion has a mane now? Perhaps some cave lion species, or even living lions, are exceptionally large... Cheng Yijiu gestured at the enormous footprint, finding only the hope that it wasn't a tiger, otherwise it would have been doomed.

Cheng Yijiu walked forward cautiously, knowing full well that this path led deep into the mountains, and that it might very well end in a lion's den—meaning he could encounter the beast at any moment. If he were alone, "What a shame! Even a steel trap wouldn't be much use." The secret to humans becoming terrifying upright apes was collective action, traps, and crucially, projectiles. But Cheng Yijiu had nothing else.

"No matter if it's a trap or something else, we have to first confirm the beast's lair and behavior patterns." Cheng Yijiu made up his mind and went up along the road - this was basically just a "road" with relatively few bushes.

He walked cautiously along the road for a long time before finally catching sight of a rocky mountain ahead. Halfway up the mountain, a huge rock protruded horizontally. Beneath the rock, Cheng Yijiu saw a dark cave. The cave was quite large, with the entrance at least fifteen or sixteen meters high and over thirty meters wide. From this angle, Cheng Yijiu couldn't see inside, only part of the entrance, so the figure was just an estimate.

Cheng Yijiu raised his vigilance to the highest level and tried to climb up from the other side very carefully - the reason he did not take the flat road was because he was afraid of attracting the attention of the lion, regardless of whether it was in the cave or not.

Chapter 11 First Meeting

Cheng Yijiu was climbing, climbing up from a cliff that was less vulnerable to surprise attacks. The climb was less than twenty meters. As a hunter with extraordinary physical strength, Cheng Yijiu had no problem climbing with weapons or bare hands. "Unprotected rock climbing... But at this height and slope, it shouldn't even be considered a good option," Cheng Yijiu thought.

He climbed quickly, and in just a few minutes he had reached a height only an arm's length from the cave. But at this height, Cheng Yijiu suddenly stopped moving - he heard the clear sound of gunfire. There were also screams and cries followed, of course, in the end, they were drowned out by the roar of a lion.

"Oh shit! These five guys are actually here!" Cheng Yijiu immediately understood what was going on, so after a pause, he quickly reached out and pulled, pulling his head out of the cave. This place was also a large open space. Because there was a huge rock blocking the top of the cave for more than 20 meters, the soil was quite dry.

After seeing this cave up close, Cheng Yijiu felt that it was perfectly reasonable for the lion to choose this place as its cave - the cave entrance was nearly twenty meters high and wide. Even if it was a trumpet-shaped mouth, it would probably not narrow until it was very deep. At least from his current angle, it was still very bright thirty or forty meters into the cave.

This mountain was probably a limestone mountain. Rainwater might have seeped in and eroded many cracks and holes high up in the mountain, which would have illuminated even the deeper parts of the cave. Cheng Yijiu didn't see anything within his sight, so he quickly climbed to the platform.

Cheng Yijiu didn't rush into the cave—now that he knew the lion was definitely inside and hadn't come out, why rush? He decided to pack up his gear, rest for a while, and then go in and kill the lion. Cheng Yijiu remembered the bottle the king of Athens had given him, saying Apollo was protecting him. He should remember to anoint it before hunting.

While this might be a bit superstitious, hunting is a natural thing, and applying oil to one's body might also mitigate damage. Cheng Yijiu quickly opened the small jar. The ointment inside exuded a unique aroma, the scent of thyme, the scent of a warrior. Cheng Yijiu smeared the oil on his body, his muscular body reflecting the oil, like a god descending from heaven.

He originally loved sword fighting, although he had never been as tall as the main players, with a height of 1.9 to 2 meters and a weight of more than 120 kilograms. However, after experiencing many hunting and punishment missions, although he is now 1.84 meters tall, his weight has reached more than 95 kilograms, especially in the waist and abdomen where there is still some fat.

After applying the ointment, it was as majestic as an ancient Greek statue. Cheng Yijiu put on his equipment one by one, his palms filled with talcum powder from a small bag - he didn't want to lose his grip on the weapon. Cheng Yijiu put on his helmet and strode into the cave.

At this time, the sound of gunfire from inside was like popping beans, and there were also various shouts, but they were all drowned out by the roars of lions. Cheng Yijiu strode quickly and soon saw his target this time - less than a hundred meters into the cave.

Before him lay a vast hall. The ceiling was over fifty meters high, with huge cracks on either side. Sunlight filtered through the plants clinging to the cracks, illuminating the entire hall with a brilliant light. The hall was an irregular circle, covering at least three to four thousand square meters. Several rocky platforms were scattered throughout the cave.

The first thing Cheng Yijiu saw was the majestic lion - "What a beautiful lion!" The lion was very big, almost the largest lion Cheng Yijiu had ever seen since Africa. A rough estimate of its shoulder height was about 1.2 meters... The lion was running, and he also saw the group of five.

There were five people jumping on the platform, shooting guns, throwing various elemental balls and controlling the situation, and three people were dodging towards the lion below... "Six people?" Cheng Yijiu looked for a while. His arrival had been seen by these people. At that moment, the three guys tried to lead the lion towards Cheng Yijiu.

Cheng Yijiu shook his head secretly. He quickly raised the bow, put the arrow on it at an extremely fast speed, and pulled the bowstring with three fingers - "It's unexpectedly easy!" Cheng Yijiu sighed. He took aim briefly and let go. The bow force of his hunting bow was seventy pounds, which was considered a very strong bow.

Unfortunately, the arrow missed, zipping past the leader of the group, glancing off the lion's mane and likely stuck far away—he was probably useless even if he retrieved it. He quickly nocked a second arrow and released it, spinning the bow with his fingers and placing it directly into the bow pouch on his back, then drawing his short spear.

The second arrow was only about ten meters away from the lion, and again, oddly enough, it missed. "It's still lacking! I really need to practice hitting moving targets." The lion didn't look injured at all, and the guns those guys were using were probably just firewood sticks... "Is it really invulnerable?" Cheng Yijiu began to doubt it.

He watched with his own eyes as the bullets slid off the lion, unable to even penetrate its fur. Furthermore, it seemed the woman, who was supposed to be in control of the situation, was completely useless—the lion's movements were sharp and fierce, without a trace of slowness. Those three were clearly cunning; even the fat man started to slack off the moment he saw Cheng Yijiu approaching with his short spear.

Their slacking off meant they weren't actively attacking; they were still desperately dodging and defending—primarily dodging. If the lion had slapped them, these guys would have been seriously injured. Of the three, only the woman was in better shape. The fat man and the captain were both torn and bloodshot.

It must be said that their dodging skills are very good. They can always dodge the lion's attacks when they are in danger. However, Cheng Yijiu feels that they are actually using props to consume the lion's attacks instead of relying on their own abilities to dodge. Cheng Yijiu held the spear with both hands and directly pressed against the lion.

After close contact, Cheng Yijiu finally got a good look at the lion. It looked young and strong, and when it raised its head, it was almost as tall as the woman controlling the scene with her mental power. The lion's size seemed incredibly large up close. The previously ferocious lion seemed to calm down after seeing Cheng Yijiu, starting to intimidate and engage him.

Chapter 12 Death Fight

The lion had clearly seen human weapons, especially spears like this one. So, it was quite wary, crouching low to engage Cheng Yijiu. Cheng Yijiu knew he only had one chance to strike. If he couldn't inflict significant damage on the beast, there was little chance of a counterattack. Fortunately, unlike tigers, lions lacked the power of their forelimbs, so they rarely lunged and struck.

If he pounced on it, pinned it down, and bit it, Cheng Yijiu might have dealt it a serious blow. "There's no point in dragging it out. These guys don't look like they'll be able to help." Cheng Yijiu sensed a change in the atmosphere. Those people had already begun to gradually move out of the cave. If there was a favorability system, it would have been able to determine that Cheng Yijiu's favorability towards them was rapidly declining, and it was almost zero.

Cheng Yijiu also lowered his center of gravity, his feet one in front of the other, and suddenly launched a stabbing attack, aiming at the front of the lion's body. This lion's mane was not as majestic and gorgeous as that of an African lion, which almost covered the entire front half of the body, so Cheng Yijiu could clearly see the lion's chest. His stabbing was as swift as thunder. He quickly shifted his center of gravity, shifting forward and backward, ready to move at any time.

The result of the stabbing made Cheng Yijiu's heart sink. The spear tip didn't penetrate very deeply. Only the short tip of the spear was stained with blood. The lion in front of him was probably just scratched. If it were a local bronze weapon, it would probably be considered invulnerable. "This is not normal!" Cheng Yijiu thought so too, but he kept his feet moving, constantly turning and thrusting the spear tip forward, leaving the lion no chance.

If it were a bear or a wild boar with a dumber brain, Cheng Yijiu would probably find it troublesome. It was the clever big cat in front of him that gave Cheng Yijiu a chance to breathe. The lion seemed to react differently after being stabbed. It was not hurt before, but now it is hurt. It seems that the lion was being cautious, and after Cheng Yijiu noticed this, he took the initiative to attack. "If the previous stab had been more powerful, it should still have been able to penetrate the lion's fur."

He used about 30% of his strength in the tentative attack, but Cheng Yijiu felt that if he used all his strength, he should be able to inflict a fatal injury to the lion - as long as he could stab a vital point. The lion before him was surprisingly easier to deal with than he had imagined... Cheng Yijiu's reflexes and physical strength were at their peak at this time. He used his short spear to control the distance, and whenever the lion bared its teeth and claws and tried to pounce, he would always use the tip of the spear to stab the lion, forcing it to stop.

This big cat seems to be afraid of pain... and has enough fighting skills.

By this time, the men had retreated to the cave entrance, and the lion, finally unable to contain itself, roared furiously, charging forward with its head lowered—presumably hoping to use its hard skull to hold the lion, while its mane would greatly mitigate the damage of the thrusts. Cheng Yijiu, meanwhile, ran in circles, stabbing fiercely with his short spear. This should have been a collaborative effort, perhaps even involving throwing spears, but Cheng Yijiu killed the lion alone.

The Maasai used spears and shields to kill lions, and now Cheng Yijiu was going to try it. This massive lion was no slouch, its claws nearly tearing through his chain mail. Even though Cheng Yijiu quickly retreated, the claws hooked into the mail, deforming the rings and damaging the linen padding underneath. Cheng Yijiu's body oil was effective, and several times the lion's front paws touched his body, they successfully slipped away, relieving the force.

What would have been bruises, even strained muscles and broken bones, were now "healed" by the cool sensation of the ointment. Cheng Yijiu's strength grew even stronger. He decisively struck again and again, successfully wounding the lion, inflicting at least three or four wounds on its skin. The wounds bled profusely, but Cheng Yijiu knew, just like the wild boar, these were merely flesh wounds.

The lion roared furiously. This reckless lunge caused Cheng Yijiu's short spear to slip from its skull. With incredible speed, Cheng Yijiu released the short spear and drew his sword. At this point, he couldn't avoid the blow and was knocked down by the lion, which weighed at least 350 kilograms. Miraculously, Cheng Yijiu escaped unscathed, even managing to flip himself onto his feet, pushing the lion away.

Cheng Yijiu was now wrestling with a lion, displaying incredible strength. He used his left arm to firmly hold the lion's jaw, preventing the lion from biting him, while his right hand struggled to open the lion's claws. His muscles flexed, and for a moment, it looked as if he might overwhelm the lion. The situation was actually very dire. The weight of his body was overwhelming, and if this continued, Cheng Yijiu would surely be overwhelmed by the lion, and ultimately die under its claws and teeth.

His only escape lay in the half-sword he had held in his right hand, which was too long to be effective at this distance. If Cheng Yijiu could manage to get on the lion's back, he'd have a chance of winning the fight. "Damn it!" The lion's mouth was only a fist's length from Cheng Yijiu's cheek, and a foul breath gushed out of its gaping maw. Cheng Yijiu gritted his teeth, then suddenly loosened his left hand and thrust it into the lion's mouth.

He pinched the lion's tongue and tried to thrust it into its throat. For a moment, the lion couldn't bite his head, and instead instinctively retreated, trying to free Cheng Yijiu's hand. The bite of the teeth did limited damage. The key was that Cheng Yijiu attacked from the front, avoiding the canines. In this way, thanks to the armor on his arm, although his arm was bruised by the teeth, it was only a bloody mess, not a serious injury like a broken arm.

The lion's claws scratched wildly. Cheng Yijiu's alchemical chain mail was broken through. The spells attached to it were ineffective. The lion's claws could actually destroy the extremely strong titanium chain mail, creating long and deep scratches on Cheng Yijiu's back and body. At this time, Cheng Yijiu clenched his half-sword and smashed the lion's shoulder socket with the weighted ball on the hilt. After a little loosening, he lowered his arm and twisted his fingers, and began to stab the lion's chest and abdomen with the hilt forward.

Cheng Yijiu half-knelt on the ground, trying hard to support his body while holding the lion. He thrust his left arm into the lion's throat with all his strength, completely ignoring the pain. Cheng Yijiu was covered in blood, and even grease could not stop the lion's attack. However, Cheng Yijiu's act of stuffing made the lion's strength gradually weaken. He immediately thought that this was suffocation. He had suffocated the lion by stuffing his arm into its throat.

Chapter 13: The True Nemean Lion

The lion gradually suffocated, its bite intensifying, but Cheng Yijiu clamped its jaws with the hilt and hilt of his sword. Cheng Yijiu's hand dug deep into the lion's throat, never letting up even as the lion's vomiting, stomach acid burning his hand, gave way. The lion's claws began to weaken, unable to tear Cheng Yijiu's flesh from its skeleton. The powerful warrior held the lion's body tightly against him—until it stopped moving.

Cheng Yijiu's body had solidified at this moment, his muscles and skeleton had entered a state of rigidity. If this continued, he would suffer extensive muscle rupture and necrosis, which would lead to his own death. Fortunately, the remaining ointment on his body saved him, loosening his muscles and allowing Cheng Yijiu to finally shift his center of gravity and let the lion fall to the ground with a thud.

He pulled out his bloody arm and sat on the ground, gasping for breath. Cheng Yijiu's vision went dark, he couldn't breathe, and he slowly lay down on the ground to rest. "My fingers and arm are stiff, I have to try to pull them apart..." Cheng Yijiu tried hard, and finally he relaxed his muscles. He immediately took out the small jar and smeared the remaining ointment on his body. Unfortunately, there were many wounds on his back that he couldn't reach, so he could only apply it on the cloth and then rub it on his back.

It really hurts.

The lion fell to the ground, blood oozing from its mouth. Cheng Yijiu's left hand had not only suffocated it, but also caused severe esophageal bleeding - this was probably one of the main causes of death. "Huh, taking the heart out of a lion's mouth?" Cheng Yijiu laughed, looked at the lion's size, and shook his head. "Otherwise, I would be the Lionheart King." Cheng Yijiu regained some strength, and the bleeding from the wound seemed to have stopped.

Cheng Yijiu had lost a lot of blood and his mouth was dry, so he drank most of the wine bag. The sugar replenished his physical strength. This gave Cheng Yijiu enough strength to stand up and collect his trophy - if possible, he hoped to skin the lion. This lion's skin seemed surprisingly tough, perhaps even stronger than ordinary leather armor. It really needed to be peeled off and tanned, and then worn on himself.

Will those people secretly come back to rob his spoils? Cheng Yijiu didn't want to test whether he could withstand the gun - although he had an idea that the power of this gun might be seriously "weakened" in this world? But no one knew it without trying it personally. If possible, Cheng Yijiu didn't want to try it at all. "I hope they just leave and don't come back."

The lion's hide was incredibly difficult to peel. Cheng Yijiu's sword and short spear blades couldn't penetrate—the sharp blades could penetrate, but the edges were difficult to cut. After much deliberation, Cheng Yijiu finally tried using the lion's claws—which proved more effective than a knife. After finally peeling the hide and knocking off the fangs and claws, Cheng Yijiu felt he'd likely accomplished his task and happily moved toward the cave entrance.

"It seems those guys knew the situation well and didn't launch a surprise attack." Cheng Yijiu walked briskly, but the closer he got to the cave entrance, the more uneasy he felt. "This is a very, very ominous premonition!" Cheng Yijiu slowed down his pace and draped the bloody lion skin around himself. The lion's head perfectly covered his helmet. Cheng Yijiu put his bow and arrow aside, adjusted the position of his sword, and held the short spear firmly in his hand.

The closer Cheng Yijiu got to the cave entrance, the heavier the atmosphere became. The hair on his body stood on end. "It's unlikely those six were attempting a surprise attack at the entrance—they couldn't possibly be putting that much pressure on me!" Cheng Yijiu rounded the corner and truly saw the cave entrance. In the sunlight, the ground was littered with broken limbs and human remains. If he was not mistaken, it was the fat man with the shield.

Beside the fat man's body stood a golden figure. Cheng Yijiu sighed deeply when he saw this. "I am so naive."

This was a massive lion gnawing at the fat man. It still had a relatively short, ruffed mane, but this lion was probably 1.5 meters tall at the shoulder, much larger than the lion he had killed in the cave. "I'm afraid this is the real owner of the basin-sized footprints. I was too lucky and overthinking it before." Cheng Yijiu clenched his short spear. He didn't want to fight this lion, or he would be unable to escape.

The door hasn't appeared yet, which means he hasn't completed the task yet.

The fat man's body was here, but the human remains here weren't just from him. Cheng Yijiu easily recognized several pieces of flesh and limbs that didn't belong to him. "So that's how it is. Most of these people were wiped out, or only one or two escaped." Cheng Yijiu's sharp eyes even saw the broken and shattered guns. These people had definitely played all their cards, yet they still lost, and their defeat was horrible—and this lion didn't even seem to have lost a single hair of its mane...

The lion inside was practically invulnerable, but the one outside was probably useless to ordinary weapons. Even if the enchanted weapon could break the lion's skin, Cheng Yijiu had no idea if it could penetrate its muscles and shatter its internal organs. In terms of size, this lion wasn't as big as the virus-infected mutant lion he'd encountered in Raccoon City, but it wasn't like that mutant monster would eat his magic-breaking weapon.

The lion raised its head and looked at Cheng Yijiu. Cheng Yijiu saw the mockery and contempt in the lion's eyes, which quickly turned to anger—probably because he had seen the lion skin he was wearing. The lion roared from its bloody mouth and pounced directly. Cheng Yijiu knew that this was a fight to the death. If he wanted to defeat the lion in front of him, he would probably be in great danger with just a short spear or a half-sword.

As expected, even with the short spear propped up against the ground for leverage, the lion's own strength could only pierce its skin. Unlike the one in the cave, which had become cautious after being pierced, this lion became even more ferocious. Cheng Yijiu had already lost his short spear—it was bent into a L-shape, and the fact that it hadn't broken was a testament to his skill. So he drew his half-hand sword and engaged the lion. This lion was far more formidable than the previous one, and the half-hand sword certainly couldn't cut through its skin.

"How can such a sharp object not be broken?" Cheng Yijiu couldn't understand. The lion was very fast and powerful, and its huge body quickly forced Cheng Yijiu into the cave. The lion was very cunning and did not give Cheng Yijiu any chance to go around to the outside and escape.

Chapter 14: Strangulation

"The hunter's journey may be coming to an end." Cheng Yijiu didn't feel any fear. He was calm. His long hunting career had made him accept the laws of nature. When it was time to die, you would die. Crying and running away were useless. He was simply prepared for a final fight for his life. Unfortunately, the weapon in his hand was of little use. He might have to strangle the beast with his own hands, just like last time.

Repeating the previous process again? I'm afraid it will be difficult.

At that moment, the air vibrated due to the lion's roar and running, and a thick stone pillar fell from the cave wall. It landed right in front of Cheng Yijiu. "This doesn't look like a stalagmite, more like petrified wood or something like that." A flash of thought struck Cheng Yijiu, and he immediately grabbed the thick-at-one-end, tapering stone pillar. It was about 1.3 meters long, and it weighed, perhaps 30 or 40 kilograms, perhaps even more.

The thick end was about the size of a bowl, and Cheng Yijiu, no longer a human, grabbed the thing and swung it sideways, striking the lion hard in the face from the side. The force of the blow was immense, sending the lion, weighing nearly 600 to 700 kilograms, staggering. It staggered, shaking its head as if dizzy, as it retreated. Cheng Yijiu strode forward and struck upward, but the lion recovered quickly, and the tilt of its head only removed a few wisps of its mane.

The lion roared wildly, and Cheng Yijiu could clearly see the eyeball on the side that had been struck was red and bloodshot. Indeed, blunt force was better than sharp weapons against heavily armored opponents. The lion's claws sent Cheng Yijiu flying, even though he quickly turned sideways to let his shoulder and hide take the brunt of the blow. Cheng Yijiu slammed into the cave wall, fell to one knee, and gasped for breath. He didn't vomit blood, but the pain was dull, making it difficult for him to move.

The lion lunged forward, threatening to crush his head in one gulp. Cheng Yijiu's response was simple: enduring the intense pain, he thrust his club forward, aiming for the lion's nose. Wild animals' noses are always a vulnerable spot, so Cheng Yijiu successfully forced the lion to retreat violently after the collision, rendering it almost impossible to attack again.

At this moment, Cheng Yijiu felt a dampness on his back, probably from a broken wound. He ignored the pain and bleeding, wielding his club with all his might as he began to fight the lion. His lion hide provided excellent protection, just like the lion before him. Sharp weapons were almost useless against him—the lion's claws grabbed hold of Cheng Yijiu several times, trying to tear him apart, but the hide blocked the claws.

This is very interesting. The lion's claws could have been used to peel off the lion's skin, and this lion was probably the real son of Typhon, so its claws and fangs must have been even more terrifying. However, the claws slipped on the lion's skin, so although Cheng Yijiu was covered in blood, he did not suffer any fatal injuries.

As he hammered away with the stone pillar, the lion was forced to retreat—the human before him was as ferocious as a waterfall from a high mountain. He was incredibly strong, like some beast cloaked in human skin, and he wielded the heavy stone club without fatigue. Cheng Yijiu wielded the stone club—which he used like a warhammer or a scepter—with all his might, smashing back the lion's attacks and claws. If he couldn't block them, he'd use the lion skin to cover his body and ram into them.

Every collision sent him flying and injured, but each time Cheng Yijiu used his terrifying willpower to force himself back to his feet and keep up the pace of the battle—his bones were likely broken long ago, but his muscles held them in place, and his will transcended his flesh, allowing him to keep fighting. And despite its large size and sharp claws, the lion's body was deformed where it was struck by the stone club.

That's right, the lion was also injured. The club weighing dozens of kilograms struck it at high speed, with a force that must have been a ton. A lion's muscles would have been bruised, and even bones might have been broken. Blood oozed from the lion's snout, the result of two or three blows from Cheng Yijiu. Of course, the lion's claws had left fresh scars on Cheng Yijiu, and its teeth had nearly crushed his skull several times.

Cheng Yijiu's reaction speed had already matched the lion's, which was quite remarkable. And now, amidst the clash, Cheng Yijiu finally found his opportunity—he crouched down and lunged, slipping under the lion's flailing front paws to reach its side. It's true that a lion's front paws are far more clumsy than a tiger's. Having seized this position, Cheng Yijiu extended his left hand and directly strangled the lion's neck, then rolled over and climbed up the lion's side, securing himself with his right leg.

His right hand's range of motion was limited, and if he held the stone club, there wasn't enough space for him to swing and exert force. So, Cheng Yijiu used his left arm to form a triangle around the lion's neck, and with his right hand, he extended the stone club from behind the lion, allowing his left hand to be trapped inside his right wrist and begin to exert force—this was a naked choke. Could a naked choke kill a lion? Looking at that thick neck, perhaps it wasn't possible, but for any creature that breathes through its neck, it should be useful, right?

Due to its skeletal structure, the lion's claws were useless, making it difficult for it to exert force there, thus failing to inflict serious damage to Cheng Yijiu's arms. Its hind paws also couldn't stamp or scratch Cheng Yijiu's body or legs—its only recourse was to roll over, a human fighting tactic not shared by animals. This lion didn't appear to possess human intelligence—though it might be much smarter than the average lion.

The naked choke seemed to have little effect on the lion, as it continued to roar furiously, leaping and tearing, even rolling on its back—a truly clever lion. Even under the weight of several hundred kilograms, Cheng Yijiu held his breath and resisted, constantly pulling his arms in. His iron-like muscles bulged, pressing against the lion's neck. The mane made this move quite difficult.

But it finally closed in, bit by bit. The lion's panting was unusually loud, and Cheng Yijiu was nearly overcome by the beastly stench. He kept closing his arms, regardless. His vision went black from the exertion, and a crackling sound of bones rubbing against each other could be heard throughout his body—accompanied by excruciating pain as his broken bones moved under the pressure of his muscles. Cheng Yijiu's bones were exposed in many places, some protruding from his flesh, some worn away by the rocks during the tumble...

Chapter 15 Reality

Cheng Yijiu seemed to have lost the feeling of his arms, but his iron will kept him tightening. The lion, larger than a horse, was spitting, but his legs eventually gave out. Cheng Yijiu had been thrown off the lion's back by the lion's tumble. He was now kneeling on one knee, supporting part of the lion's weight, and the lion's breathing was getting heavier.

After an unknown amount of time, the lion collapsed to the ground, and Cheng Yijiu had also passed out. The sky darkened, the moon reached its zenith, and then the first light of dawn appeared. Cheng Yijiu finally slowly opened his eyes. "Not dead yet..." His face was covered in congealed blood, but he still managed to smile. He felt his arms regain some feeling, but the pain was too great—as if countless needles were pricking his arms repeatedly.

Cheng Yijiu stumbled as he stood up, his entire body on the verge of collapse—this had severely damaged his body, and if this continued, he would surely not live long. Yet, he was still alive, while the lion lay stiff on the ground. Cheng Yijiu's arms were black, on the verge of necrosis, and it took a lot of effort for him to relax the stiff muscles slightly enough to release the lion's body.

Cheng Yijiu stood for a while but was too weak to stand anymore. He knelt down in front of the lion's body, blood oozing from his mouth and nose. "Damn it! Everything is blurry..."

Cheng Yijiu put his hand on the lion's body and said, "Dedicate you to Apollo! The boast I made at the beginning has finally been fulfilled." At this time, the hunter was almost losing his strength and consciousness, and gradually began to slide down - this situation was more dangerous than when he had fought a bloody battle with the werewolf. Being unconscious for a night wasted too much of his time.

In the morning light, a young and handsome man appeared. He wore a crown woven from laurel and a luxurious silk robe. Beside him, there seemed to be a woman holding a bow and arrow, but after a while, Cheng Yijiu could no longer see clearly. "Your courage and strength satisfy me greatly. I accept the spoils."

Cheng Yijiu seemed to hear something like this, but everything was dark before his eyes and he knew nothing...

When he regained consciousness, sunlight shone on his face, and Cheng Yijiu felt a long-lost sense of relief. He found himself lying on a marble slab, his short spear, bow, and half-hand sword at his side. His chain mail was intact, as was the lion skin covering it. He stretched his arms and was pleasantly surprised to find that his injuries had almost completely healed, even the broken bones had been healed, and his body was covered in ointment.

His helmet was on the other side, and in its place was a laurel wreath on his head. As for the lion he had strangled, it was naturally gone—he didn't even know where he was. All around him were rolling hills covered with olive trees, and the valley was full of grapes. He was standing under a large tree on the top of a mountain. "Do gods really exist?" Cheng Yijiu was also extremely surprised.

But since there's a hunting lodge, it doesn't seem surprising that there are gods. And didn't he see an adventurer in the infinite world? What's the difference between the infinite world and gods?

Cheng Yijiu's hand touched a stone stick on the side. He grabbed the weapon, stood up and walked forward. A door appeared in front of him. Cheng Yijiu let out a long breath, pushed the door open and disappeared from this world.

The light in the hall confirmed it was daytime. Cheng Yijiu placed his weapon on the weapon rack. "I really don't want to go on this hunt again." He personally preferred and was more suited to stalking those terrifying beasts with a rifle, then shooting them from a distance of dozens of meters. Cheng Yijiu removed his equipment one by one and placed them on the mannequin. He even smiled and thought that it was unlikely that Phillips would become Hercules.