18: Ironback Wolf Pack

Although she was still somewhat indignant, Lin Yue knew that,

with her current strength, especially since her injuries hadn't recovered yet, she would likely become a burden.

As for Lei Lie, facing Qin Yue's order, he could only comply.

That evening, the group gathered once more to refine their plan and decided to set out early in the middle of the night.

This was also to prevent their movements from being exposed.

Especially regarding Vulture; the reason Qin Yue disliked him was because he always believed that A Sheng's death was likely related to him.

However, he hadn't found any evidence.

Meanwhile, Vulture, who felt he had lost Face during the day, returned to the Black Vulture training base in a fit of rage.

Just as he was thinking of how to vent his frustration, he suddenly received a mission proactively assigned by the stronghold.

In the dim office, Black Vulture was reviewing an encrypted mission file.

"Scout the distribution of Divine Gene's experimental bases around Dragon City?"

Black Vulture frowned, falling silent for a moment.

He was hesitating over whether or not to inform Divine Gene of this news.

After all, he had secretly gained many benefits from cooperating with Divine Gene over the past few years.

He was essentially playing both sides.

Furthermore, Sky Patrol hadn't detected any movement at all.

Ultimately, Black Vulture set out secretly ahead of time, taking Poison Fang and Iron Claw—two team members who followed his every lead—with him.

These two were the strongest in the team after him, both having reached the Middle Stage of the Foundation Condensing Realm.

Over the years, the coordination between the three had become increasingly seamless.

In the middle of the night on the day after Black Vulture's departure, the six members of the Sky Patrol Squad were ready to go.

Before leaving, to ensure nothing went wrong, Zhou Xing absorbed two more divinity fragments.

This was one of the benefits of joining The Watchers; thanks to Qin Yue's connections, he had directly obtained a god of frost divinity fragment for Zhou Xing.

Then, Zhou Xing used the god of corrosion divinity fragment from the Scavenger "Doctor" he had killed previously and had Qin Yue help him exchange it for a god of flame fragment.

[Ding! Obtained "god of flame" fragment (18%)]

["god of flame" fragment divinity total increased to 22%]

[Extracted Ability: Fire Meteor (Intermediate)]

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[Ding! Obtained "god of frost" fragment (16%)]

["god of frost" fragment divinity increased to 25%]

[Extracted Ability: Ice Burst (Intermediate)]

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[Strength increased to the Foundation Condensing Realm Middle Stage]

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Because the System existed,

Zhou Xing's original divinity content would not increase just because his strength improved.

However, as long as it didn't exceed the bearing limit of his Realm, he could continue to undergo Fusion with divinity fragments.

However, the total divinity content gained after Fusion would decrease slightly as his strength increased.

It was impossible for someone with 10% divinity to reach 28% just by fusing an 18% fragment.

Even so, Zhou Xing was very satisfied.

Not only had his strength improved, but he had also gained two powerful skills.

Advancing rapidly all the way, they neared the territory of the Ironback Wolf Pack by nearly noon.

At this time, the group's marching speed noticeably slowed down.

"Stay alert and check the situation." Qin Yue raised his hand to signal a stop, his expression serious. "We are already within the active range of the Ironback Wolf Pack."

White Night crouched down at this moment, a layer of water film on his fingertips spreading out along the sandy soil beneath his feet.

A minute later: "There are traces of large-scale biological movement three kilometers away. It's clearly the wolf pack. As for the number... there are probably over forty of them."

"Prepare for defense; they've already discovered us."

At this moment, Ink Rain, who had just gone out to scout, suddenly returned and warned them with a tense expression.

"Awoo—"

No sooner had she spoken than a loud wolf howl rang out, and a cloud of dust rose on the distant horizon.

At the same time, over a dozen Ironback Wolves had already lunged out from the rock crevices on the right.

These Ironback Wolves were each the size of a bull, their greyish-black backs seemingly clad in a layer of steel armor.

The Ironback Wolf charging at the very front seemed to be the pack's vanguard, its size noticeably a third larger than a normal Ironback Wolf.

Opening its bloody maw with saliva dripping, it was the first to charge over.

"Freeze!"

Frost Power surged in Zhou Xing's palm as he pushed it forward, the power of extreme cold spreading out in a fan shape.

The five Ironback Wolves charging at the front were instantly covered in frost, frozen into ice sculptures.

But due to the powerful force of their charge, they continued to slide forward even though they were frozen. Cracks began to appear in the outer layer of ice, which was about to break.

"Ice Burst!"

However, at that moment, Zhou Xing's fingers suddenly clenched. A terrifying explosive force erupted, tearing the five Ironback Wolves apart.

Because they were charging so densely, several Ironback Wolves behind them that couldn't stop in time were also caught in the explosion.

In the end, only two scarred Ironback Wolves survived.

"Holy crap, Zhou Xing, you're so cool."

Everyone was stunned by Zhou Xing's formidable power.

The power of five Ironback Wolves exploding together was no less than Qin Yue's strength at his Peak.

But this was good; with Zhou Xing's ability, they could save a lot of effort.

"Roar!"

Just then, a roar drew everyone's attention.

More Ironback Wolves appeared on the surrounding rocks, surrounding the group.

The leader was clearly the Wolf King, its size more than double that of an ordinary Ironback Wolf, with a large number of bone spikes protruding from its spine.

The aura it emitted, no weaker than Qin Yue's, made everyone feel the pressure.

Moreover, compared to the few Ironback Wolves from before, many in this pack had reached E-rank (Foundation Condensing Early Stage).

Clearly, those twelve wolves from earlier were just vanguard pawns used to delay them.

At this moment, its fierce eyes stared at the group, and it let out a low growl.

Immediately, the entire wolf pack shifted its formation.

Many powerful Ironback Wolves circled around to flank them, while those of average strength were responsible for containment.

"Fire Meteor!"

Not wanting to waste time, Zhou Xing waved his hand. Scorching flame power erupted, and a crimson cloud covering dozens of meters appeared overhead.

Instantly, meteors wrapped in flames rained down from the sky, accurately striking the Ironback Wolves one by one under Zhou Xing's control.

At the same time, Zhou Xing's other hand continuously threw out numerous ice spikes, while ice pillars suddenly emerged from the ground, piercing through the bodies of the Ironback Wolves.

Combined with Ice Burst, under the double-layered power, the Ironback Wolves suffered heavy casualties.

The others only needed to protect Zhou Xing and focus on defense.

"Roar!"

Just then, the Wolf King suddenly stood on its hind legs, and the numerous bone spikes on its back shot toward the group like missiles.

"Watch out!"

Just as White Night called out a warning, several of the incoming bone spikes actually self-destructed.

Many fragments embedded themselves into the arms and thighs of several people.

"Zhou Xing, you handle the pack; I'll take care of the Wolf King."

With those words, Qin Yue charged toward the Wolf King...