"Great… This is Johnny's signal."

"Come on! Let's hurry before they realize we're following them."

"Hahahaha poor bastards…"

"Today they will learn what happens when someone dares to cross our territory without permission"

"Kukukuku I hope there are women with them"

"There are only men in their group."

"Well… It doesn't matter, they still work"

"…"

The group of bandits advanced in a hurry with smiles on their faces. There was nothing that put them in a better mood than looting people who dared to enter their territory. Most of these men had been born in these wastelands devoid of life... For them this was normal, after all in the Desolate mountain Range only the law of the jungle applied.

The strong survive and the weak perish...

"Damn… Can you imagine how many spiritual stones we can sell that damn snake for, Boss?"

"I know… That's why I hope Johnny doesn't screw up," The masked leader said with an expectant voice.

'Since Mildir and his group monopolized the caravan route, almost no one comes this way... I'm afraid that sooner or later the band will end up dismantling if we don't get a new source of income soon...'

'At least this damn snake and those boys we captured will help us solve our debts in the coming months...'

Life in the Desolate Mountains was not easy, even for the bandits themselves who fought with each other for control of the caravan routes. Traders and their caravans were the only source of wealth in this godforsaken place.

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"Boss, we are close!"

"Great…" After a while the group of twenty bandits finally reached where their scout was supposedly. The place consisted of a small cave which was carefully surrounded by bushes. Without a doubt an ideal place to hide. Outside the cave was a small smoke signal which had supposedly been activated by the bandit acting as a scout.

"Does anyone have a damn torch?"

"I have a boss!"

"Great… And what are you waiting for to turn it on, idiot?"

"…"

"Mmmm it smells bad around here…"

"And that you say it… It smells like a corpse"

"Will there be any dead beasts around here?" The bandits began to murmur among themselves as they went deeper into the cave. It was not uncommon to encounter dead beasts along the way, after all this place didn't even have a stable source of water. Although there were some spirit beasts that had made this place their home, the reality was that very few of them even managed to reach adulthood.

"You… Be alert!!" The masked bandit warned as he tiptoed. He didn't know why but a bad feeling took over him.

'I hope that's not what I'm thinking...' Finally the group of bandits arrived at the place.

"Oh Shit…"

"What is that thing?"

"I don't know but it looks like a roasted corpse."

"Wait… Don't tell me what it is… SHIT!! IT'S JHONNY GUYS!!" One of the bandits shouted when he recognized a small bronze necklace on the corpse's wrist.

"SHIT… THEY SET A TRAP FOR US" The leader of the bandits shouted as he looked around. It was more than evident that they had been deliberately lured to this place.

"LISTEN TO ME WELL…LET'S GO BACK SLOWLY…"

"REMEMBER THAT THE CORPSE CAN ATTRACT MORE BEASTS" The leader of the bandits said sternly as he began to retreat step by step followed by his companions.

"Juarr" "Juarr" "Juarr" "Juarr" The sound of macabre laughter began to echo in the area.

"Juarr" "Juarr" "Juarr" "Juarr" "Juarr"

"What the fuck is that?" The strange laughter only increased, reaching the point that the echo of these fearsome laughter could be heard throughout the cave. A large number of pairs of yellow eyes began to appear from the darkness of the cave. In a matter of seconds the bandits were completely surrounded by these unknown creatures.

"Shit… They're hyenas!

"They are the damned Sand Hyena's" The leader of the bandits shouted in frustration when he realized that they were in one of the worst possible scenarios. The Sand Hyenas were one of the most dangerous predators that one could encounter in this place.

Hyenas were cunning spirit beasts, they were known to only attack in packs and when the situation was completely favorable to them.

"Why the hell are there Sand Hyenas here…?

"Aren't we far from your territory?"

"We're actually pretty close... It seems like we completely forgot about them to follow Johnny's trail."

"And what do we do?" A bandit asked with concern as he held his spear with trembling hands. They were undoubtedly in a situation of certain death.

"And what else are we going to do, idiot? We must fight if we want to get out of here" The leader of the bandits shouted as he drew his sword. His aura as a cultivator in the first stage of the Earth Realm completely flooded the cave, reactivating the group's confidence.

"If we get out of here I promise to kill the bastard who set up this ramp for us."

"Juar" "Juar" "Juar" "Juar" "Juar" "Juar" "Juar"

"Kill all the beasts you can!!"

"ARRGHH "MY ARM ARRGHH!!"

"HELP!! MY LEG ARRRGHHH" One by one the fighting began between the powerful pack of Hyenas and the group of bandits. Although the numerical advantage belonged to the hyenas, this did not seem to affect much the bandits who took advantage of the narrow terrain of the cave.

Sand Hyenas were level two spirit beasts. Most of them looked like dogs, only much larger and more dangerous than the latter. From their sharp teeth to their long claws, each one of them was a deadly tool at the disposal of these terrible beasts.

"FIGHT BASTARDS!!"

"THANK YOU BOSS" The leader of the bandits at the moment was the pillar of the resistance, after all he was fighting in the vanguard. The corpses of several hyenas were piled up on the ground as he continued to fight with determination.

"Iron Thrust Position one"

"Iron Thrust Position two"

"Iron Thrust Position three" "

The boss is awesome!!"

"And you say it! Look how he applies all those techniques" The bandits were filled with admiration as they saw how their leader was little by little making the fearsome beasts retreat. However, while the bandits fought with determination, two pairs of eyes coldly observed them from the depths of the cave. Unfortunately for the bandits, the real danger was still lurking, waiting for the right moment to intervene...

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