Caçador Interestelar

Planet of Beasts, 50.78 light-years from the home planet, a nameless wasteland, at high noon.

The scorching sun blazed down, searing the earth.

It was the hottest time of day, with ground temperatures soaring to 56.8°C. Li Juxu lay motionless among the scattered rocks, his clothes soaked through, yet his heart felt as if plunged into an ice cellar, his hairs standing on end. Less than three centimeters from his eyes, a sandy-colored snake slowly slithered by, its forked tongue flicking in and out, making faint sounds.

Hiss—

Its head was triangular; its tail pale white. Its body was covered in fine, rust-colored patterns, with patches of yellow-green scales clustered like lichen. These lichen-like spots met along the midline of its back, forming a continuous vertical stripe.

This was the Wasteland Copperhead, a venomous snake from the viper family—highly poisonous. A single drop of its venom could kill twelve adult men. Once bitten, the victim’s body stiffens instantly, foam appears at the mouth within three seconds, consciousness clouds by five seconds, and no one survives beyond ten seconds. The Wasteland Copperhead can grow up to 4.5 meters long and is extremely aggressive. The one before him measured nearly 3.8 meters.

The venomous serpent glided past the NC-22 sniper rifle. Li Juxu dared not breathe; beads of sweat slid down his forehead, stinging his eyes with salt, yet he remained unblinking. The moment the snake’s belly brushed his cheek, a cold shiver ran through him. At that instant, he saw goosebumps rise on his arm. His hear