Chapter 25: Competitors in the Ecological Chain

Watching the retreating back of their leader, who was still brandishing his "fire spear," the panting Feique collapsed completely to the ground.

Earlier, when brothers from the tribe suddenly rushed to the perimeter with the leader's orders to confirm the situation, he had learned that the giant spider had emerged. He immediately followed instructions and ran back to the camp to fetch fire. Carrying two torches, he had hurried back as fast as he could, and thankfully, he had arrived just in time.

The tribesman caught in the spider silk had clearly been on the verge of exhaustion. Zhou Xu hadn't had time to overthink it; he simply hurled one of the torches. As a polearm, the bone spear already provided an advantage in attack range. By binding a torch to its tip, the reach was extended even further, giving Zhou Xu a significant boost in confidence.

Once he charged, the fire spear in his hands began to whirl. The giant spider was clearly terrified of fire; the mere sensation of the heat sent it scurrying backward in a panic. Seizing the opportunity, Zhou Xu used the fire spear to burn through the silk holding his tribesman, then proceeded to lunge fiercely at the beast with the flame.

Afraid of the fire, the giant spider dared not engage. Yielding to its primal instincts, its massive body spun around, and it fled. Its speed was so great that it quickly put distance between them, leaving Zhou Xu unable to pursue even if he had wanted to.

During the retreat, Dashan, clearly unwilling to let the spider escape, took two explosive steps forward and hurled his stone axe. The force of the flying axe was far greater than that of a stone projectile. The moment it struck the spider’s main body, Zhou Xu clearly saw a spray of greenish liquid splatter outward. The sight invigorated him; it proved that the spider’s defense was not as formidable as he had feared.

"Enough, stop chasing," Zhou Xu quickly called out to Dashan, who was still intent on pursuing. The spider was faster than them; once it started running, they could never catch it. Moreover, while the spider feared fire, it did not fear them. Holding a torch could scare it away, but killing it was another matter entirely—again, because it was too fast and too agile.

Just as Zhou Xu was lost in these thoughts, the tribesman who had narrowly escaped death rushed to his side and knelt before him. He could think of no other way to express his gratitude. Zhou Xu, snapping out of his thoughts, was momentarily stunned, then subconsciously glanced at the others around him.

He clearly noticed that the gaze of the tribesmen, including Dashan, had undergone a distinct change. If they had initially worshipped him as a "deity," there was now something more in their eyes—a genuine sense of "respect." The image of Zhou Xu charging at the spider monster with his fire spear and forcing it back had been deeply branded into their hearts. Truth be told, facing such a monster, none of them had dared to charge. Even Dashan had only acted after being inspired by Zhou Xu.

"Alright, send someone to keep watching that spider. I’m afraid we need to change our plans," Zhou Xu said as he helped the kneeling tribesman to his feet. "Let’s head back to camp first."

In his original plan, the sling, as a ranged weapon, held a vital position. But now, it was clear that the stone projectiles lacked the necessary power.

They returned earlier than usual this time, which inevitably caused some curiosity among Butterfly and the others who had remained in the camp. Because of the recent ordeal, the shaken team members seized the opportunity to recount the events, and their descriptions were vivid and dramatic. Involuntarily, the others in the tribe gathered around, which only encouraged them to tell the story with even more fervor. When they reached the exciting parts, they began to heap praise on their leader's bravery, causing the tribesmen to look at Zhou Xu with ever-changing expressions.

As the protagonist of all this, Zhou Xu sat by the campfire, too busy to care about what they were saying. He was completely lost in thought. The first question in his mind was: *Why did that giant spider come out?*

As he had analyzed earlier, spiders primarily hunted by waiting for prey to come to them. Why had this one suddenly launched an assault? After much contemplation, he hit upon a possibility: food.

To put it bluntly, this Black Forest was a godforsaken place with scarce food resources. As far as he knew, the only animals inhabiting this area, besides those hardy, omnivorous mice and insects, were the giant spiders that fed on them. Given this, once they—the outsiders—settled here and began feeding on those same insects and mice with reasonable efficiency, they had become direct competitors in the local food chain within a limited space.

The decrease in food and the increased difficulty of hunting had forced the giant spider, which usually preferred to stay deep in the Black Forest and wait patiently in its web, to take the initiative. In any case, a situation of "either you or me" had formed between them and the spider around this forest.

*To deal with that giant spider, I must first find a way to curb its speed... Dig a pitfall trap?* That was the first idea to flash through his mind. *No, no, that spider is too big. How large and deep would a trap need to be to catch it? We don't have the strength for that right now. And with those eight legs, it could easily climb out of any hole.*

As a modern man, Zhou Xu’s thinking was broad, and he could imagine many solutions. However, considering the current situation and the limited resources at hand, there were very few viable options, forcing him into deep deliberation.

During this time, their hunting expeditions had to continue, for if they stopped, they would have no food. Under these conditions, to ensure the safety of the tribesmen, each squad now sent one member to carry a fire source, and every member carried a torch. Their weapons were also switched back from stone axes to bone spears. Once they encountered the giant spider, they would immediately bind them into "fire spears" to drive the beast back.

Yet, the frequency of the spider's attacks grew higher and higher. Even with "fire spears" in hand, their safety could not be guaranteed one hundred percent. The intangible pressure forced Zhou Xu to initiate his plan a week ahead of schedule.