From Robinson Crusoe

Although cold-blooded animals have reduced mobility due to environmental factors, they need to keep moving or sunbathing to restore their body temperature in order to maintain their vitality. Their hunting and escape abilities are not as good as those of warm-blooded animals.

But even ants struggle in such a life-or-death moment, let alone this thick python.

Although the blade was sharp, Sunday only used one hand to strike, so the force was insufficient and the giant python's neck vertebrae were not severed.

The pain and the sudden attack did not frighten the python; instead, they aroused its ferocity.

Having grown in this dense forest for many years, it has always reigned supreme and never suffered such humiliation.

Ignoring the need to continue vomiting the undigested lamb from its belly, the python contracted its muscles and firmly clamped the blade embedded in its body.

Then it coiled its body, bursting with speed completely disproportionate to its robust size, and poked its head out to wrap around Sunday's calf.

The blade was firmly embedded in the snake's nape and could not be pulled out for the time being.

During the battle, Sunday was focused and reacted extremely quickly. He decisively let go of the long sword, avoided the giant python's attack, and ran backward.

……

Chen Zhou gripped his spear, his sights already locked on the giant python, waiting for it to get any closer before shooting it down.

Unexpectedly, Sunday ran towards him while waving his hand, as if signaling him not to shoot. This made Chen Zhou very hesitant. He didn't know if Sunday was really confident in killing the giant python or if he didn't want to lose face in front of the natives and was just deliberately showing off.

Pulling against such a dying behemoth is no joke. If you lose your grip, even if you don't get bitten, being strangled by the python would be a serious problem.

The python's entire body is covered in muscles, and the force of its contraction can easily break a person's ribs.

Although there are some medicines on the island, they are not very effective for fractures and could easily lead to death.

In a fight, a python has many opportunities, while a human will suffer severe damage if he makes even one mistake.

Seeing Sunday wave, Chen Zhou did not fire immediately, but he also did not put down his rifle, keeping the sights fixed on the giant python.

He would not hesitate to fire if he made a mistake or encountered danger on Sunday.

It would take an unknown amount of time and effort to cultivate such a talent again, and the island is in dire need of manpower right now, so there's no need to suffer losses for the sake of saving face.

……

The python was fast, but its agility was still much worse than Sunday's.

Fueled by the rage aroused by its injury, it forced its muscles to work and chased after Sunday for a distance, attempting to launch three attacks.

But the cunning monkey, with its agile movements, dodged away one after another.

Forget about biting or entangled anyone; after so many attempts, the python couldn't even touch the corner of Sunday's clothes.

As its already dwindling strength dwindled, and the unexploded food in its stomach made it feel unwell, the python's movement slowed down even further. The long knife that had been firmly clamped around the back of its neck fell into the muddy grass.

In a short time, the roles of offense and defense shifted.

……

Sunday enjoyed the process of toying with his prey. He turned to Chen Zhou, grinned, and showed that he still had energy left before returning to battle mode and focusing intently on dealing with the giant python.

Although the prey was nearly exhausted, Sunday dared not let his guard down.

He used feints to lure the giant python into attacking, then stopped the attack in time, harassing the python until it became increasingly exhausted.

The natives had already seen the scales of victory tipping in Sunday's favor, and they were in high spirits, shouting slogans in their native language, making the area around the pool extremely noisy.

Seeing that victory was assured on Sunday, Chen Zhou finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He stopped raising his gun, ready to fire at any moment, and instead began to watch the battle with great interest, wondering how the python would finally be finished on Sunday.

……

The trampled grass resembled an abstract artist's painting, with traces of snakes running over it and human footprints everywhere. These elements blended with the tangled weeds, creating an unsettling sight.

The python eventually abandoned its attack on Sunday, choosing instead to remain still and retract its body, temporarily ceasing its assault and beginning to expel the food from its stomach.

The undigested sheep carcass makes its body bloated and greatly reduces its speed. If it can get rid of this shackle, it will be more confident in either fighting or fleeing.

However, the battle is far from over; Sunday is just around the corner, and the python is not about to give up its prey.

By this time, he had completely abandoned his gun, setting it aside, and instead picked up the long knife that had fallen to the ground.

As soon as the python showed signs of vomiting, he would immediately thrust his knife forward, forcing the python to focus more on dealing with his harassment rather than concentrating on regurgitating its food.

This happened repeatedly, and the python's emotions became extremely volatile.

However, as the saying goes, old people become wiser and old things become strange. The python had lived for so many years, and its intelligence was several levels higher than that of its kind. After realizing that it was impossible to eat the monkey no matter what, it gave up the idea of ​​fighting to the death.

The python temporarily stopped regurgitating its prey, coiled up, and attempted to escape.

On Sunday, it saw through its intentions and shifted from provocation to a formal attack.

……

Probing forward, using the tip of his knife to pierce the python's thick skin, Sunday cautiously maintained a relatively "ambiguous" distance from the python, constantly creating new wounds on its body through the extended arm of his "long knife".

Every time the python's skin was punctured, the surrounding natives would erupt in cheers.

It's clear that close-quarters combat with prey is deeply ingrained in the genes of all humans. Just like the bloody gladiatorial combats beloved by ancient Rome, this kind of thrilling and exciting one-on-one hand-to-hand combat can always excite people and make them feel excited.

The python was under both physical and psychological pressure, and became increasingly agitated.

However, the more impatient one is, the more flaws one exposes, and the easier it is to get injured, which puts it into a vicious cycle of constantly aggravating its injuries.

If it weren't for its large size and strong vitality, it might have died long ago from Sunday's knife.

Chen Zhou was getting anxious, wishing he could take Sunday's place and chop off the giant python's head with a single blow.

Of course, his thinking clearly had a "the emperor isn't worried, but the eunuch is" slant. If it were really him in charge, the python wouldn't survive a minute before being hit by several bullets; it wouldn't be able to struggle until this point.

……

Despite his young age, he displayed a maturity beyond his years in fighting the giant python on Sunday.

His fighting style is like an ant swarm, clinging to the python and nibbling away at it bit by bit, wearing down the python's strength.

Only after exhausting the python's powerful muscles did the snake burrow into its body and deliver the fatal blow.

And this process wasn't very long—

The python lowered its body further and further down, until finally it even struggled to lift its head.

Its body was covered with small holes poked by the knife tip on Sunday. Because it had been crawling on the muddy ground for too long, the blood from the wounds had mixed with the mud and water, staining its entire body reddish-brown, making it look extremely disheveled.

In fact, several minutes earlier, the giant python had already conceived the idea of ​​burrowing into the deep pool to escape.

But Sunday guessed its intentions and always blocked its escape route, wielding his long knife, forcing the giant python to return to its original spot and wait for its death.

When the python is exhausted to the point where it might not be able to escape even if it is allowed to, even if its body is not sealed off on Sunday, the python will have no strength left to escape.

Coiled on the ground in despair, the python no longer reacted to Sunday's feint. Its murky eyes stared, as if watching a clown's comical dance, a dance brimming with murderous intent.

After what seemed like the umpteenth attempt to strike, just as Chen Zhou was wondering whether Sunday's attack was genuine or not, Sunday lunged forward, gripped the hilt of the sword with both hands, and thrust it directly into the giant python's vital spot.

The sharp tip of the long knife pierced through the scales and penetrated the python's body like a hot knife cutting through butter. As Sunday pushed off the ground and exerted force forward, he emerged from the other side of the python's body with unstoppable momentum.

Chen Zhou didn't know if the knife had accurately pierced the python's heart.

In short, after that one strike on Sunday, the python never moved again.

Witnessing how Sunday slew such a terrifying monster with just a knife, all the natives present erupted in cheers.

They shouted slogans in the indigenous language such as "brave," "warrior," and "victory," and were extremely excited.

……

In this almost frenzied atmosphere, most people who kill pythons become extremely proud and even start to show off their achievements.

This is understandable; after all, being able to fight a giant python that no one has ever seen before is indeed something to celebrate.

Especially for young people, this is a time when they care about their image and like to show off.

But Sunday is an exception.

He remained remarkably calm during the battle, and after the battle, he was not overwhelmed by the cheers of the natives.

Having recovered from his "facial paralysis," on Sunday he pulled out a long knife, circled the snake's neck along the initial cut, and severed the snake's head.

He sheathed his longsword, cradled the bloody, unseeing head in his hands, and walked straight to Chen Zhou. He knelt on one knee and placed the snake's head at Chen Zhou's feet.

……

His action seemed to pour cold water on the heads of the fanatical natives.

These guys then realized who their leader was, and who truly held the power of life and death.

The most astute natives, seeing Sunday kneel, quickly followed suit. The others, though a beat slower, also knew to imitate and knelt on the ground.

……

Looking at the snake head at his feet, the kneeling natives, and the respectful Sunday in front of him, Chen Zhou showed little joy.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, looked at Sunday who had his head down, and then glanced at the natives, without saying a word.

In fact, Chen Zhou had already felt somewhat displeased when the natives started shouting in unison.

He can allow his subordinates to shine, but he cannot allow them to overshadow him.

As for establishing personal prestige among other natives, that is an even greater taboo.

Chen Zhou couldn't fathom people's hearts. He didn't know if Sunday's situation was a coincidence or premeditated, nor did he know if Sunday had ulterior motives or if he himself was just overly sensitive and suspicious.

At this moment, looking at Sunday kneeling down, he ultimately did not reveal his attitude. He simply kicked the snake's head aside with his foot and then pulled Sunday up.

……

When he got up on Sunday, his face had the look of a child expecting praise from his father.

This innocent and simple expression was something the other natives had never seen on his face.

Taking in Sunday's expression, several thoughts flashed through Chen Zhou's mind in a short moment.

Some of them thought that Sunday was a "performer" who deliberately put on that expression to prevent him from settling scores;

Some felt that Sunday was a time of simple-mindedness, and that her expression at this moment was a genuine expression of her feelings;
Some believe it was just a coincidence, and that Sunday had no ill intentions.

One of the most extreme proposals was for Chen Zhou to kill Sunday on the spot in order to transfer the prestige Chen Zhou had established to himself, while also intimidating the natives and consolidating his rule.

With his thoughts wandering among many ideas, Chen Zhou ultimately chose to believe Sunday.

Having spent over a year with this young indigenous boy, Chen Zhou still has a good grasp of Sunday and Saturday's personalities.

Things like "sheep flocks mixing with wild goats" and "snakes eating sheep" are all coincidences and could not possibly happen in a planned or organized way.

Killing the snake with a knife was clearly a spur-of-the-moment decision, which is consistent with Sunday's personality—he has never been good at hiding his inner thoughts.

Chen Zhou felt that the fault lay not with Sunday, but more with the indigenous people.

If they hadn't pushed the atmosphere to this point, the situation wouldn't have become so awkward.

……

Patting Sunday on the shoulder in encouragement, Chen Zhou raised his hand, signaling the natives to stand up. Then he leveled his spear and whispered to Sunday.

"Don't use a knife next time, it's too dangerous."

Use this; it's simple and safe.

As he spoke, he aimed at the severed bones in the python's neck and pulled the trigger.

At such close range, the accuracy of the Chen rifle is beyond doubt; it can be described as being able to hit exactly where you point it.

The Minié bullet, fired through the rifling, whistled and spun, emitting a loud, menacing cry, before striking the snake's skeleton.

The python's corpse seemed to have been kicked by some invisible monster, suddenly veering to the other side. Its spine was also shattered into countless pieces by bullets, scattering in all directions.

……

Chen Zhou spoke in a very low voice to Sunday, so the natives didn't hear him; they only heard the sudden gunshot.

They saw the python's body, its shattered bones flying and hitting the grass, embedding themselves in the mud, as it moved sideways.

The lethality and mystery of firearms clearly outweigh the feat of killing the snake single-handedly on Sunday.

For the natives, nothing was more intimidating than the soul-shaking sound of gunpowder explosions.

The indigenous people were not good at reading between the lines, and their ability to think and analyze things was incomparable to that of modern people.

Unaware that they had broken a taboo and angered their leader, they stood there dumbfounded after hearing the gunshot, as if they had lost their souls from the sound.

This lack of tact left Chen Zhou somewhat speechless, unsure whether to get angry or let these clueless "dull pumpkins" off the hook.

……

"Tell them to light torches, work through the night, cut all the grass here, and find the rest of the missing sheep."

"No food, no sleep until the grass is all cut. You're in charge of supervising."

After a moment of silence, Chen Zhou put away his gun, maintained his cold expression, and tossed a sentence to Sunday.

He then turned and left the deep pool, without even glancing at the giant python's head or the corpse lying in the mud. (End of Chapter)