Perhaps it was instinct, or maybe it was just their nature.

When a Black Bear is cornered, it doesn’t matter how many dogs are nipping at its heels. If it spots a human in the distance, that person immediately becomes its primary target.

Now, as the Black Bear and Li Erchen locked eyes—one inside the tree hollow, one out—a murderous intent was already boiling up from deep within the beast.

But just as the Black Bear poked its head out, Minister Li suddenly shoved the wooden poles, jamming the Bear Head in the opening of the tree hollow.

A seasoned hunter would know that the instant the Black Bear is trapped is the best time to strike.

A Black Bear, suddenly trapped, would be dazed for a moment. That gives you time to land one axe blow, and before it can fully recover, land another.

This way, you get two chances to strike.

But as for the Li Brothers, the elder, Minister Li, had taken part in clearing out a Black Bear’s Den with other Mountain Runners before, so he had some experience, at least.

That was why Minister Li was handling the more technical job of bracing the poles from below, leaving his younger brother, Li Erchen, with the task of striking the Black Bear.

In Minister Li’s mind, striking the Black Bear didn’t require much skill. ’Just swing with all your might and aim for the head. Simple as that.’

But Minister Li had forgotten that his brother had never fought a Black Bear before.

To be precise, this was the first time Li Erchen had ever seen a live Black Bear.

The instant he locked eyes with the bear, Li Erchen’s heart was already pounding with terror. When the Black Bear opened its mouth and roared, a jolt shot through his entire body. His legs trembled so violently he nearly collapsed.

Fortunately, at that moment, Minister Li shouted for Li Erchen to strike.

Startled by Minister Li’s shout, Li Erchen’s heart leaped. He remembered the plan Minister Li had laid out and immediately swung the Large Axe, bringing it down viciously toward the Bear Head in the opening of the hollow.

But in the instant he struck, Li Erchen couldn’t suppress the fear in his heart and subconsciously closed his eyes.

It was this sliver of fear that caused the axe to miss the Black Bear’s face dead-on.

At that moment, Li Erchen’s eyes were shut tight; he saw nothing.

Minister Li was holding the poles with both hands, but he craned his neck to watch from below. He saw his brother’s axe swing wide, striking the left side of the Black Bear’s face.

The blow was off-target, slicing away the skin above the Black Bear’s left eye socket and taking its left ear clean off.

"HNNNGH!" The bleeding Bear Head lurched forward. The bear’s shoulders burst from the hollow, and its head slammed right into Li Erchen’s face.

The impact sent Li Erchen falling backward, his nose spraying blood.

That same impact knocked over the two wooden poles that Minister Li had worked so hard to hold in place.

"Not good!" Minister Li was horrified. He quickly abandoned the two poles, lunged forward, and grabbed Li Erchen’s arm, yanking him to his feet.

Li Erchen was completely dazed from the blow, his face covered in blood.

"Bro... Bro..." Li Erchen tried to call out to his older brother, but his entire body felt numb, and he couldn’t muster an ounce of strength.

Seeing Li Erchen in this state, Minister Li grew frantic and, with a flick of his wrist, delivered a sharp slap.

That Big Palm made Li Erchen’s nose gush even more blood.

"Ah! Brother, you..." Li Erchen’s senses snapped back. He clutched his cheek, staring at Minister Li in utter shock.

"Just fucking run!" Minister Li had no time to waste. Grabbing the Large Axe with one hand and Li Erchen with the other, he took off.

When he was knocked down by the Black Bear, Li Erchen had dropped his Large Axe somewhere. When Minister Li yanked him, Li Erchen stumbled for a couple of steps before gradually finding his footing.

"You run!" Reaching the campfire, Minister Li stopped and gave Li Erchen a shove, urging him to keep going.

Li Erchen’s head was still foggy. He ran forward on instinct, only slowly coming to his senses after a few steps.

As for Minister Li, he was now running in circles around the campfire, with a Black Bear in relentless pursuit.

This Black Bear was well and truly enraged!

It had been sleeping soundly in its tree hollow, only to be rudely awakened. But that wasn’t all. It then took an axe to the head, getting the left side of its face sliced off by a Large Axe. How could the Black Bear possibly tolerate that?

One should know that a Black Bear descends a tree in the same posture it ascends: head up, tail down. It simply backs its way down.

But just now, the Black Bear had shot straight out of the tree hollow, tumbled on the ground, and scrambled right back up. The moment it was on its feet, it charged after the two brothers.

As the Black Bear closed in on Minister Li, he leaped up and swung his axe.

After swinging, Minister Li didn’t even check if he had hit the Black Bear. He just spun around, Large Axe in hand, and continued running around the fire.

The axe blow had indeed not harmed the Black Bear, but it successfully drew its ire. With a roar, it relentlessly pursued Minister Li.

The Black Bear’s roar made Li Erchen’s legs go soft again a short distance away. He clung to the Da Hong Pine, watching in terror as the bear hunted his older brother.

Minister Li just kept his head down and ran, circling the campfire eight times in a row.

Normally, with Minister Li’s stamina, another eight laps wouldn’t have tired him. But this was different. With a man-eating Black Bear chasing him, running like this was not only physically exhausting but mentally draining as well.

By the time Minister Li was on his tenth lap, he couldn’t hold on any longer. He could see the Black Bear getting closer and closer.

Minister Li strained his throat to yell, "Erchen! Erchen!"

He only managed two shouts before stopping. The moment he opened his mouth, the whistling north wind rushed in, choking him. Forcing back a cough, Minister Li put his head down and kept running.

Hearing Minister Li’s shouts, Li Erchen, still some distance away, snapped back to reality. Seeing the Black Bear closing in on his brother, he suddenly conquered his fear and sprinted toward the campfire.

After a few sprinting steps, Li Erchen realized he was unarmed. He glanced around but couldn’t find his axe. The only things he saw were the two large wooden poles leaning against the tree at Xiong Cangzi.

Li Erchen ran over, grabbed one of the poles—which was over two meters long—with both hands, and charged toward the fire.

Just then, Minister Li came running around from the left. He glanced at his younger brother, and tears nearly welled up in his eyes.

But Minister Li had no time for emotions. He ran past Li Erchen without breaking stride.

The moment Minister Li passed, the Black Bear came around the fire. Li Erchen swung the pole with all his might.

CRACK!

With a sharp snap, the wooden pole broke in two. Li Erchen tossed the broken half aside and turned to flee south.

The Black Bear took the heavy blow, roared, and gave chase.

Li Erchen sprinted to the Da Hong Pine. Just as the Black Bear was about to pounce on him, he twisted his body and circled around the tree.

The Black Bear slammed on the brakes, its momentum carrying it another half-meter before it forced itself to a stop.

The Black Bear spun around. It had been chasing Li Erchen from west to east, but now it saw him running head down from east to west.

Even the Black Bear was stunned for a moment.

Li Erchen was running with his head down when he felt something blocking his path. A massive, dark shape loomed ahead, blotting out the light.

Li Erchen looked up. The Black Bear was right in front of him!

The distance between them was less than half a meter!

Li Erchen tried to stop, but he couldn’t brake in time. He plunged headfirst into the Black Bear’s embrace!