35: Chapter 35 Wolves

"You Li family scoundrels! How dare you set an ambush!" Lu Tianshan roared. He forcibly activated a life-saving secret technique, causing flames to surge around his body. With a hardened heart, he dashed fiercely in one direction.

He knew well that today was a matter of life and death, and he could only fight for his life.

However, in the face of absolute strength, everything was merely a death struggle. The next moment, the Li family members attacked him in unison.

"Pfft!"

Second Uncle Li Huahang's long sword pierced through his body, and Li Xuanzhou's fist broke through heavy defenses to smash into his abdomen.

Lu Tianshan's eyes widened, his spiritual power instantly dissipated, and his internal organs were severely damaged. Li Changqing's final attack landed at the perfect moment, piercing through his crown. Lu Tianshan's body went rigid, and he immediately fell to the ground.

The cave entrance returned to silence, with only the sound of the wind remaining.

The Li family members quickly inspected the battlefield, searched the cave, collected the belongings of the Lu family Cultivator, and cautiously handled the traces of the corpse.

Once the cleanup was complete, Li Xuanzhou said in a low voice, "Leave this place."

Half a day passed, and Li Changqing and the others had traveled nearly two hundred miles further east.

By this time, it was already evening. Nighttime was the most dangerous period in the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range. Considering the safety of his clan members, Li Xuanzhou decided to find a place to spend the night and continue on tomorrow.

Thus, the group found an abandoned cave and sat in a circle to begin recovering their state, leaving two clan members outside the cave to take turns keeping watch.

It was a quiet night, and nothing happened.

Early the next morning, as the morning mist of the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range had just begun to disperse, the figures of the Li family's Yao Beast hunting team were already leaping through the jungle.

Li Xuanzhou held a long blade, its edge gleaming with a cold, piercing light under the morning sun. He looked back at the team, his gaze pausing slightly when it fell on the youngest, Li Changle: "Changle, for your first time hunting Yao Beasts, remember that 'observation' comes first. Don't just focus on finding Yao Beasts and forget the dangers beneath your feet and the Yao birds above your head."

Li Changle gripped the Medium Grade Magical Artifact long sword in his hand, his Qi Refining 6th Layer spiritual power stirring slightly within his Meridians, and he nodded solemnly.

More than two hours later, the Li family's Yao Beast hunting team had arrived at the edge of Black Wind Ridge. The mist here was much thicker than at the outermost perimeter, and traces of Yao Beasts were becoming increasingly frequent.

Li Changqing was sweeping a dense forest with his Divine Sense when he suddenly noticed something unusual—the fallen leaves on the ground had been trodden into regular footprints, with faint claw marks along the edges. It was the trail of a wolf-type Yao Beast.

"Great-Uncle Thirteen, there are Azure Spirit Wolf footprints here." Li Changqing reported in a low voice. Hearing this, Li Xuanzhou walked over, crouched down to examine them carefully, and frowned slightly. He raised his hand to signal the team to halt.

Li Xuanzhou crouched down, carefully observing several messy and deep claw prints on the ground, as well as a few tufts of silver-gray fur mixed with leaves.

"The tracks are fresh, no more than half a day old. The wolf pack's activity range is in the valley ahead, and the scale matches our intelligence."

He said in a low voice, his voice exceptionally clear in the silent forest, "Azure Spirit Wolves have keen senses of smell, excellent hearing, and are skilled at coordinated combat. Remember, when you encounter a wolf pack, attack from a distance first."

The group nodded and proceeded to check their Magical Artifacts and Talismans. Although the Li family members had prepared in advance, the agility and numbers of the wolf pack still posed a significant challenge.

The team arrived at the entrance of the Wolf Howl Valley in Black Wind Ridge. The terrain here was treacherous, with steep cliffs on both sides and a narrow valley entrance. Inside the valley was a relatively open flat area, scattered with sparse cold-resistant shrubs. Under the sunlight, the ground reflected a cold luster. Dozens of ghostly green or crimson eyes flickered faintly in the distance, and low wolf howls and whimpers drifted intermittently on the wind.

Li Xuanzhou quickly organized the tactics: "Changqing, you lead two people to ambush on the cliff above the left side of the valley. Huahang, you lead two people to ambush on the right cliff as well. The rest will stay with me to attract the wolf pack from the front. When the wolf pack charges into the valley entrance, those who can use bows and arrows, use them; those who cannot, use Talismans or Spells to attack from a distance. Do not let the wolf pack get close."

The two men received their orders and each led two Qi Refining Cultivators to quietly climb up the cliffs on the upper side of the valley, beginning to carefully lie in ambush at their predetermined positions.

No sooner had the preparations been completed than the wolf howls within the valley suddenly became dense and high-pitched. Clearly, the wolf pack had detected intruders. Ghostly green and crimson light spots were seen moving and gathering rapidly, and accompanied by the dull thud of soil being crushed, streams of silver-gray torrents surged from the depths of the valley.

The giant wolf leading the pack was far larger than its peers, with a shoulder height nearly that of an adult human. Its fur was silver-gray mixed with crimson and cyan, and the cyan fur on its neck stood up like ice spikes. Its eyes were crimson as blood—it was none other than the 1st Realm Peak Azure Spirit Wolf King.

Behind it, over forty wolf-type Yao Beasts fanned out. Most had cyan-gray fur, exposed fangs, and breathed out white mist containing ice shards. Their movements possessed both the agility of wolves and the unique spiritual power fluctuations of Yao Beasts.

The Wolf King launched the attack first. It did not charge directly at the formation, but instead raised its head and let out a long howl. The sound wave contained spiritual power, as if summoning its companions, and then dozens of Azure Spirit Wolves surged behind it like a tidal wave, galloping towards the people above the valley.

Li Xuanzhou's heart tightened, knowing that the wolf pack had already discovered their trail. He did not hesitate, stood up abruptly, and shouted, "Attack!"

Before his voice had even faded, Li Changqing pulled his longbow into a full moon, with three arrows quenched in paralytic poison nocked on the string, their tips pointing directly at the valley entrance.

With three "whoosh" sounds, the three arrows accurately struck the throats of two Azure Spirit Wolves. The Azure Spirit Wolves did not even have time to scream before they fell to the ground, convulsed a few times, and ceased to breathe.

Li Changle and the Qi Refining 7th Layer Cultivator Li Huacheng simultaneously threw several "Ice Needle Talismans." The Talismans transformed into thousands of ice needles, raining down upon the front row of the wolf pack. Second Uncle Li Huahang swung his heavy sword, which had a "Great Strength Talisman" attached to it; every strike carried the force of a thousand catties, sending the pouncing wolf beasts flying.

Li Changqing's arrows did not stop, specifically targeting weak points like the wolves' eyes and throats. Although his archery had not reached a god-like level, he had considerable talent in archery practice; he did not need to aim deliberately, as he could point his arrows at vital spots by sensing them with his Divine Sense.

Li Xuanzhou focused on the front. He took out an "Explosive Flame Talisman"—this was a 1st Realm Peak-grade Talisman. Once activated, it could produce chain explosions, making it most suitable for dealing with dense enemy groups.

He threw the Talisman into the densest part of the wolf pack. With a deafening roar and flames shooting into the sky, five or six Azure Spirit Wolves instantly turned into charred ash, and many more wolf Yao Beasts were affected by the explosion.

The Wolf King was completely enraged. It let out a low growl, exerted force with its four paws, and the ground cracked. Its body soared into the air like black lightning, pouncing toward Li Xuanzhou with a speed that was extremely fast, far exceeding that of an ordinary Qi Refinement Stage Cultivator.

"Bring it on!"

Li Xuanzhou leaped up from the front, his entire spiritual power concentrated in his fist. Like a crazed bull, he collided with the Wolf King's front claws with the sound of tearing wind, and a loud boom rang out.

"Clang!" The sound of the Magical Artifact colliding with the claws echoed throughout the valley. Li Xuanzhou used the force to drift back several zhang, his fist and arm beneath the fist-shaped Magical Artifact feeling slightly numb. The Azure Spirit Wolf was also forced back half a step by the counter-shock force, leaving a white mark on its claw.

"What hard claws!" Li Xuanzhou felt a chill in his heart. This pair of gauntlets he wore was a custom-made 1st Realm Peak-grade Magical Artifact, yet it failed to break through the defense.