If they tried to pull it off directly, Teng Qian’s rear would be torn to shreds.

The Iron Claw Worms here were just too big.

Two nearby Beastmen immediately went forward and lifted up Teng Qian, his face contorted in agony.

They carried him face-down. Otherwise, the dangling Iron Claw Worm would swing about as they ran, and the agony would surely kill him on the spot.

"Boss, look behind us."

Teng Kun’s voice came from behind. When the other Beastmen turned to look, a chill ran down their spines.

Perhaps it was the cover of the forest, but they hadn’t seen it before: the ground, tree trunks, and even the bushes behind them were swarming with Iron Claw Worms.

What’s more, these Iron Claw Worms were moving incredibly fast. The densely packed swarm was so vast it seemed to merge with the dimming sky.

The relentless clacking as they swarmed forward made it seem as if the forest behind them was opening a giant maw to swallow them whole.

"Run!"

In the brief moment they’d paused, the clicking from the gloom had grown much clearer. The Beastmen’s scalps prickled, and they immediately took off, sprinting after Yuan Lang.

Yuan Lang’s brow, however, was furrowed. ’These are different from the Iron Claw Worms I’ve seen before. The ones back in that deserted village weren’t this big, and they certainly weren’t this fast.’

Suddenly, Yuan Lang’s heart seized. A spine-chilling sense of danger rushed at him from behind.

He didn’t have time to look back, his body slithering to one side like a snake. Just as he moved, he saw a sharp pincer—as long as a Beastman Warrior was tall and gleaming with a dark luster—shoot past the spot where he’d just been.

The giant Iron Claw Worm’s attack was silent and its movements incredibly swift. By the time Yuan Lang got a clear look at it, it was already swinging its pincer again, aiming for one of the Beastman Warriors carrying Teng Qian.

Startled, he acted on instinct, flinging the pack from his back at the nearby Beastman. The force of the impact knocked the warrior to the ground.

"Get out of the way!"

As he roared, Yuan Lang pulled the wooden spear from his back and hurled it at the Iron Claw Worm, its body seemingly encased in iron.

Sensing the fierce approach of the spear, the giant pincer that had been swinging toward the Beastmen changed course, snapping at the spear instead.

The wooden spear, as thick as a Beastman’s wrist, was snapped in two without a sound.

The sight instantly reminded the surrounding Beastmen of pinching tender wild greens between their fingers.

Thanks to Yuan Lang’s two interventions, Teng Qian and the two Beastmen carrying him finally escaped the Iron Claw Worm’s attack range.

Only then did the Beastmen get a clear look. This giant Iron Claw Worm was as massive as the caves they lived in.

"It’s... it’s enormous!"

"Those pincers are as sharp as our own claws."

The Beastmen couldn’t help but glance at Teng Qian, who still had an Iron Claw Worm dangling from his rear. Suddenly, they felt he was quite lucky.

Luckily, the one that had attacked him was only an arm-length Iron Claw Worm. If it had been this behemoth...

Forget his rear; Teng Qian would have been sliced in two.

Yuan Lang stared at the wooden spear, instantly snapped by the Iron Claw Worm, a profound shock in his heart.

’I made that spear from the wood of a tree trunk I’d found in the valley—one so tough even the Shun Yuan Leader couldn’t break it. It was only shattered when the giant Fierce Beast that heavily wounded two of our warriors stomped on it.’

Rubbing his own fingernails, which still ached faintly, his apprehension toward the Iron Claw Worm grew.

The Iron Claw Worm before them raised its two giant pincers and let out a soundless roar.

The next moment, the massive pincer was instantly before Yuan Lang, its dark, cold surface radiating killing intent.

Yuan Lang threw himself backward. In the instant he hit the ground, he distinctly saw a few white strands drift down—his own hair.

’If I’d been even a second slower, it wouldn’t have been my hair that was cut off, but my head.’

"You all go on ahead. I’ll hold this Iron Claw Worm off for a bit, then I’ll catch up."

Due to the recent Fierce Beast hunt, many of the Beastman Warriors in the group were injured, not just Teng Qian with the Iron Claw Worm on his rear.

Their reflexes were nowhere near as sharp as when they were uninjured, making it extremely dangerous for them to face such a vicious Iron Claw Worm.

"We’ll stay and help! It’s too dangerous for you to be alone, Boss!"

"It’s easier for me to get away on my own. We have a lot of injured comrades; it’s far more dangerous for them to stay."

Seeing them still hesitating, he frowned and barked, "What are you waiting for? Go, now!"

Teng Kun turned and hoisted an injured Beastman onto his back. He pressed his lips together and ordered in a low voice, "We’re leaving!"