Amid the sweltering heat that seemed to intensify with each passing wave, Xia Xin knew she couldn't wait any longer. Yet, she couldn't flee in the open; Xu Ping and Xu An were just outside, and if she dashed out, capture would be imminent.
Weighing her options, Xia Xin decided to take cover among the tall, unburned grasses, making her way up the road toward the mountain.
'The firefighters will surely come for a blaze this big,' Xia Xin thought. 'If I can hold out until then, I'll be safe.'
What Xia Xin forgot was a warning from a bird she'd encountered earlier—she was heading straight into the lion's territory.
Before she knew it, a guttural roar echoed through the wilderness. She stopped dead in her tracks, not even given a moment to assess the situation before the sound of crackling and burning grass erupted from behind her. Glancing back, she saw that the raging fire had nearly devoured the landscape.
