Chapter 51: Fighting to Exhaustion

Though it was unclear why Xu Minghui’s train of thought worked that way, Shen Xing really didn’t have the mood to joke with her at this moment.

But then he reconsidered—Xu Minghui’s explanation wasn’t so bad after all.

Since this matter was difficult to explain, the best approach was naturally to avoid explaining it altogether.

Most importantly, whether Xu Minghui truly thought that way or was just saying it deliberately, she gave Shen Xing a sense of security.

This feeling was completely different from the one he had when facing Ouyang Lin back then.

Shen Xing ended the topic, and Xu Minghui didn’t press further.

They lay quietly on their respective sides, silently waiting for time to pass.

At one moment, just as Shen Xing was beginning to feel drowsy, Xu Minghui suddenly asked:

“Shen Xing, what kind of person do you want to become in the future? Is there anything you particularly want to do?”

Shen Xing thought for a moment, remained still, and replied softly:

“I haven’t thought about specifics. Generally speaking, I want to become a strong person. In this era, only with strength can one live a decent life. What about you? Do you have any ideals?”

“I was pretty much like you before—no, even more confused. At least you have a general direction; I had none. I became a soldier because of my family’s arrangement. I thought I’d just drift through life aimlessly like this. But now, I’ve found my direction.”

“Oh? What do you plan to do?”

“I want to become stronger! I want to be promoted, earn battle merits, and become a high-ranking official!”

Shen Xing was momentarily stunned and exclaimed:

“That’s quite a drastic change! Having a goal is good, but the path you’ve chosen will definitely involve many dangers. You must act within your limits.”

“Heh, I know.”

They chatted idly back and forth for a while, then the steady sound of footsteps came again from afar.

“Really won’t let us rest. Looks like this area is going to get filthy too.”

Shen Xing perked up and stood, ready for battle.

But after a while, the footsteps slowed and showed no sign of approaching closely.

“They seem... not to be coming down. Could they be scared?” Xu Minghui whispered.

“If they’re scared, why would they come this close? I have a bad feeling about this,” Shen Xing frowned.

His understanding of goblins was far from enough to predict their behavior accurately.

Soon, however, they both realized the goblins’ intention.

“They’re setting a fire! They want to burn us to death!” Xu Minghui exclaimed, grabbing Shen Xing’s sleeve in alarm as she watched the flames flicker in the distance.

Shen Xing focused on the scene and shook his head slowly:

“No, to burn us to death, they’d have to be much closer. If that happens, we can kill them and then put out the fire easily.

I think they want to suffocate us with smoke. See, the wood they’re throwing down isn’t all dry branches—there are quite a few damp ones.

This is bad. It seems we really can’t counter this method.”

Shen Xing’s expression grew grave.

This tactic was the simplest yet most effective way he had simulated in his mind that could help the goblins turn the tide.

He hadn’t expected those creatures to actually come up with it.

“How did they suddenly get so smart? What should we do? If worst comes to worst, we should break out! As long as we kill all the goblins at the entrance, the danger will be over.”

After a brief moment of worry, Xu Minghui chose a radical approach.

“No. This area is protected by a dimensional gate barrier that stops powerful creatures from invading. If we just rush out, there’s an eighty to ninety percent chance some top-level predator nearby will kill us. For now... we have to stall.”

Shen Xing firmly refused the idea of breaking out but had no better solution.

So they remained in place, quietly waiting for a turning point.

Time passed slowly, and the smoke in the cave grew thicker.

Xu Minghui coughed a few times, urging:

“Do we keep waiting? At this rate, we won’t last much longer!”

Shen Xing gritted his teeth and commanded:

“Not yet. Hold on a bit more! Minghui, pour water onto a towel and cover your mouth and nose. That will help us hold out a bit longer.”

They each made a simple wet cloth to filter the smoke.

The discomfort in their throats eased somewhat, but their vision worsened.

The dense smoke obscured their sight and stung their eyes.

“These green-skinned beasts are treating me like Sun Wukong in his tribulations. If I get out of here this time, next time we meet, I’ll make sure to wipe them out with this smoke tactic,” Shen Xing muttered with his eyes closed.

At this point, all he could do was force himself to remain calm.

He kept telling himself that as long as he didn’t lose consciousness, he wouldn’t leave.

To his surprise, Xu Minghui didn’t suggest breaking out again either.

Instead, she imitated him, closing her eyes and sitting cross-legged.

This smoky torment was undoubtedly one of the cruelest human tortures.

Especially for a girl’s delicate skin, it was a brutal ordeal.

Xu Minghui’s composure impressed Shen Xing greatly.

Enduring this seemingly endless agony, they persisted moment by moment.

Shen Xing had lost track of how much time had passed.

Several times, cunning goblins tried to sneak in through the wet cloths to attack from the shadows.

But Shen Xing was prepared and blasted them all away.

However, maintaining such intense focus couldn’t last forever.

At this moment, Shen Xing felt his mind growing foggy, consciousness teetering on the edge of collapse.

“Minghui, are you... alright?” he whispered, realizing he hadn’t heard her voice for some time.

“I... I can still hold on. But our water... is gone.”

“Then use urine. It’ll buy us some more time. Do you have any? If not, I’ll share mine.”

Under the high temperature, moisture evaporated rapidly.

Their water supply had long since been exhausted through continuous use.

“Ugh! I... don’t have any. I’m useless—I can’t even pee!” Xu Minghui cried, overwhelmed with frustration. In this critical moment, her body gave no sign of needing to urinate.

Taking half of Shen Xing’s urine only set him back further.

For Xu Minghui now, the thought of being a burden to Shen Xing was unbearable.

“It’s okay. It all has to come out eventually. If you don’t use it, it’s just wasted,” Shen Xing comforted her before searching for a bottle.

After some effort, he managed to collect half a bottle.

There was no choice; since this operation began, they hadn’t dared to drink any water.

After some more time passed, with his mind fading, Shen Xing thought he heard strange noises nearby.

They were... goblin sounds.

He snapped awake and instinctively raised his gun and fired.

Bang!

A wooden stick stopped just twenty centimeters above his head, and the body holding it shattered.

“Minghui, enemy attack!” Shen Xing shouted as loudly as he could.

But there was no response.

His heart sank.

Xu Minghui had been right behind him. Since the goblins had just arrived, she likely hadn’t fallen victim yet.

But most likely, she had lost consciousness.

Shen Xing had no time to think further; with his remaining strength, he fought off all the goblins around him.

“Ouyang Lin, you wicked woman, why... didn’t you come to save me...”

Before losing consciousness, Shen Xing no longer sensed any goblins around.

As he collapsed, he couldn’t help but curse softly.