He could no longer walk. If not for the fear of freezing to death, he truly wanted to just lie down.
Yizhi Xie and Zheng Wei greeted the other three and went off in separate directions.
They wanted to see if there was a cave or something.
Although Shen Xiaoyan also wanted to go, her stamina was insufficient, so she could only wait where she was.
Perhaps it was because it was getting dark, but the wind seemed to have picked up significantly compared to the afternoon. The snowflakes were no longer drifting onto their faces but were fiercely pelting them.
After about fifteen minutes, Yizhi Xie and Zheng Wei returned joyfully.
"Found it, found it."
Yizhi Xie's voice reached them before he even arrived.
Normally, Yizhi Xie wasn't exactly cold and aloof, but he still carried an air of grace.
As Shen Xiaoyan helplessly shook her head, she deeply understood that this was a predicament forced by life.
When the three followed Yizhi Xie and Zheng Wei to the so-called cave, they also showed expressions of joy.
Unexpectedly, despite the icy and snowy world outside, the interior of the cave was very dry.
The cave wasn't large, at most twenty-odd square meters, but for them, those twenty-odd square meters were akin to a boundless paradise.
Shen Xiaoyan stood at the cave entrance for a moment, then urged Luoluo to bring out two tents.
The group quickly set up the tents and arranged the bedding inside.
Only then did Shen Xiaoyan take out the stove and brazier.
On the three stoves, one held a rich lamb rib soup that had been simmered to tenderness, another held newly cooked congee, and the third was for boiling hot water, as they needed to wash up before sleeping.
While waiting for the congee to finish cooking, the five of them sat around the brazier, gazing at the roaring flames and feeling their bodies gradually warm up. Only then did they feel truly alive.
After the arduous journey of the afternoon, they were all extremely tired. After a hasty dinner of congee, they each used hot water to wash their hands, feet, and faces before retreating into their tents to sleep.
Shen Xiaoyan had only brought out two tents for two reasons: the small space, and because sleeping together would be warmer.
Normally, she would have slept with Zheng Wei, and Yizhi Xie with Namuchong, but that would have left Lu Taobao alone.
Therefore, the decision was made for the men to sleep together and the women to sleep together.
Naturally, the three men had to take turns keeping watch.
Although they all felt it was unlikely for anyone to be out in this freezing weather, what if there were wild beasts living there?
Shen Xiaoyan slept very soundly. When she woke up, she discovered she was the only one left in the tent.
She quickly put on her clothes and stepped out of the tent, only to see Namuchong standing by the stove, holding a ladle and gently stirring the pot.
"Muchong, what are you doing?"
Shen Xiaoyan asked, but her feet were already moving.
"Where are the others?"
Approaching Namuchong, Shen Xiaoyan suddenly realized she couldn't see Zheng Wei and the other two.
At this moment, Shen Xiaoyan also clearly saw what Namuchong was doing.
The pot contained nothing else but snow.
"Why are you boiling snow? Are you thirsty?"
As Shen Xiaoyan spoke, she was about to tell Luoluo to bring out the congee from the space.
Before sleeping last night, she had already prepared their breakfast for today.
To avoid any accidents, she had put it in the space for Luoluo to watch over.
This way, they could take it out and eat it directly upon waking.
Seeing Namuchong boiling snow now, Shen Xiaoyan assumed she was thirsty and wanted to boil some water.
Hearing Shen Xiaoyan say this, Namuchong chuckled:
"Do I seem so desperate for food? If I were truly thirsty, do you think I would have let you sleep so soundly?"
Shen Xiaoyan also smiled, "Then what are you doing?"
"Skinning and dismembering."
Shen Xiaoyan:!
Seeing Shen Xiaoyan's shocked expression, Namuchong continued to explain, "We caught a big thing outside. The three of them said that since they couldn't tame it, they might as well skin it and eat it. So they asked me to boil some water first to make it convenient later."
Shen Xiaoyan looked at Namuchong suspiciously upon hearing this.
Although the pot was quite large, if it was a big thing that Zheng Wei and the other two couldn't tame, could it really be cooked with just this pot of water?
Seeing Shen Xiaoyan open her mouth as if to say something, Namuchong quickly waved her hand and pointed outside.
Shen Xiaoyan became even more curious. Why the mysterious demeanor?
Her heart filled with questions, Shen Xiaoyan walked towards the cave entrance.
Stepping out of the opening, she saw Zheng Wei and the other two standing with their backs to the entrance.
Observing their relaxed postures, Shen Xiaoyan deeply doubted Namuchong's words from earlier.
Standing like that, even a rabbit would have probably escaped.
However, after Shen Xiaoyan walked out, she realized she had been mistaken.
Because in front of the three of them was a colossal, snow-white creature.
The reason she hadn't seen it earlier was partly because she hadn't paid attention, and partly because the creature's color was similar to the snow, and it was lying on the snow, making it difficult to spot without careful observation.
"What is this thing?"
Shen Xiaoyan pointed at the colossal creature on the ground and asked Zheng Wei.
Zheng Wei turned his head to look at Shen Xiaoyan, his face full of smiles.
"We don't know what it is either. This cave we're staying in must be its lair. It came back in the middle of the night, and I just happened to catch it."
Shen Xiaoyan was startled. Such a large creature must be incredibly powerful in combat. Was Zheng Wei injured?
As if sensing her worry, Zheng Wei quickly said, "Mimi, don't worry. I wasn't injured. Don't let its size fool you, but for some reason, it didn't attack me at all. More importantly, I gave it the leftover lamb rib soup from last night, and it just refused to leave."
Shen Xiaoyan was speechless. So, it was just a glutton?
"Then what Namuchong said earlier..."
Didn't Namuchong say they couldn't tame it and were preparing to cook and eat it?
Zheng Wei naturally heard Shen Xiaoyan's earlier conversation with Namuchong and continued to explain, "After it ate the lamb rib soup, it just stuck around. In the morning, it even blocked the cave entrance, preventing us from leaving. The three of us put in a lot of effort just to get it to move back a little. Otherwise, we would still be stuck in the cave right now."
Lu Taobao also quickly chimed in, "The situation now is that it's determined to stay with us."
After saying that, he also shrugged helplessly.
Shen Xiaoyan looked carefully at the giant monster. Although it was large, it was also soft, cute, and harmless. Since there was no danger, why not keep it?
Upon hearing Shen Xiaoyan's response, Lu Taobao's eyes widened in surprise, and he exclaimed, "Sister-in-law, even you have moments of being caught off guard!"
Shen Xiaoyan was puzzled, "Caught off guard about what?"
Lu Taobao pointed at the giant creature, "Look how big it is! How much food will it eat? Can we afford to feed it? In the end, if we run out of food, won't we become its meal?"