No One Is Leaving

Yuan Ming used the Shadowless Step. With only a slight sway of his body, he shifted sideways five feet and easily dodged Zan Bai's sneak attack.

Three green arrows struck the wall behind him and exploded almost simultaneously, sending thick green mist rapidly spreading in all directions.

"Poison!" Yuan Ming immediately held his breath and waved a hand.

A grayish-black orb shot out and landed on the ground near the cave entrance.

With a muffled puff, a huge cloud of smoke appeared out of nowhere, instantly filling the entire cave and spilling outward. No one could see what was happening inside, and for the moment, they dared not act rashly.

"Trifling tricks!" Wubao snorted. Green light flashed across his fingers as he once again tried to summon a gale to disperse the smoke.

At that moment, the ground beneath his feet suddenly split apart. A sharp wooden spike emerged and rose rapidly.

Wubao stiffened and hastily leaped aside, narrowly avoiding having his foot pierced through. However, his attempt to summon the wind was forcibly interrupted.

Before Wubao's group and Jin Kun's group could react, another Black Orb flew out from the cave under the cover of smoke and landed on the ground outside.

Great billows of mist surged forth again, tangling and rolling together with the smoke pouring from the cave, shrouding a vast area.

Inside the cave, Yuan Ming covered his nose with one hand and reached a stone wall deep within the cavern, then pushed against it with all his strength.

The stone wall slowly moved aside, revealing a pitch-black passage. The wall was actually a huge slab of cut stone.

Yuan Ming slipped inside, pushed the stone back into place, and ran toward the cave's rear exit.

He had long anticipated that the Green Wolf Gang might come looking for him and had prepared precautions in advance. Everything he had done earlier was merely a delaying tactic. By the time Wubao and the others outside noticed something was wrong, he and Hagon would already be far away.

He had not run far when Hagon appeared ahead of him, holding a white glowstone that gave off a faint white radiance. He seemed to have been waiting for him.

"Brother Yuan, I never expected your cave to have another exit. Impressive," Hagon praised.

"This isn't the time for idle chatter. Move!" Yuan Ming grabbed Hagon and ran forward.

The two twisted and turned through the pitch-black cave. Only after a full quarter-hour did they finally reach the rear exit. Yuan Ming used the Fur Transformation Technique, taking the form of a white ape, then threw a punch. The huge stone blocking the rear exit shattered with a thunderous crash.

The two shot out and were about to dart into the distance when streaks of yellow light suddenly lit up across the ground, forming a great yellow net that descended over them.

Yuan Ming was startled. He concentrated all his mana into his legs, and his already exceptionally thick legs instantly swelled by another thirty percent. Bulging muscles rose in ridges as he fiercely kicked off the ground.

Boom!

The ground burst open into a shallow pit, and Yuan Ming shot into the sky, escaping at the instant the yellow net closed.

Hagon, however, failed to escape. He was trapped beneath the yellow net, unable to move.

"A talisman!" Yuan Ming landed several feet away, his pupils contracting. With a flip of his hand, he drew the Azure Fish Sword and slashed at the net.

Two blade-like streaks of golden light shot out from the side, cutting toward his legs.

Yuan Ming hurriedly withdrew his attack and used the Shadowless Step beneath his feet, shifting several feet sideways through thin air and barely dodging the golden blades.

Seven or eight figures shot out from the nearby forest, sealing off the surroundings so tightly that not even water could pass through. At their head stood a humanoid beast with a pointed head and fat body. It had a pair of tiny mung-bean eyes and a long, slender golden tail dragging behind it, making it look like a giant humanoid rat.

The giant rat's fur was dark gold, with the fur on its back especially long and standing straight up like a hedgehog's spines. Its two front claws were also pale gold, their talons as sharp as steel awls.

"Heh heh, did you take me for some vegetarian? Since I accepted this job, I naturally investigated you from top to bottom. Why don't you ask around who Master Jin is?" the humanoid giant rat said coolly. The voice, however, belonged to Jin Kun.

Yuan Ming's eyelid twitched.

Though none of these Furred Beast Slaves around him were worth fearing in a one-on-one fight, gathered together, they could not be underestimated. With Jin Kun holding down the fort, breaking out would be exceedingly difficult.

As Yuan Ming's gaze shifted, he looked toward Hagon, who was bound tightly in the yellow net. Yet neither Jin Kun nor the others spared Hagon a glance; all of them stared fixedly at Yuan Ming.

Though he and Hagon had met by chance, they had weathered some hardships together. Hagon counted as one of Yuan Ming's few friends in these Hundred Thousand Mountains. Unless driven into a corner with no road ahead and no road behind, he did not want to abandon him.

"Brother Yuan, don't worry about me. Go on without me!" Hagon cried, his face filled with despair.

"Go? None of you are leaving today!" Wubao's voice rang out as another seven or eight figures swept over from afar.

Wubao had also used the Fur Transformation Technique, transforming into a towering green wolf.

This green wolf's transformed appearance was quite similar to Hagon's, but it was clearly a size larger, standing nearly twenty feet tall. Even standing motionless, it exuded considerable pressure.

Most peculiar of all, a pale purple horn grew from the wolf's forehead, marked with faint spiraling patterns of lightning.

At the sight, Yuan Ming's heart sank, and fine beads of cold sweat formed at the tip of his nose.

Clearly, he had miscalculated this time.

Though the situation was extremely unfavorable, Yuan Ming had not the slightest intention of giving up resistance. Thoughts raced through his mind as he tried to find a way out of the predicament before him.

"Boy, use whatever tricks you have left. Otherwise, obediently surrender and let yourself be captured! I may even spare your life," Wubao said calmly when he saw Yuan Ming standing still.

Yuan Ming's heart skipped a beat. Wubao had victory practically in his grasp, yet he was in no hurry to kill him. Could it be that he wanted something else from him?

"Jin Kun, go capture him!" Seeing that Yuan Ming still did not move, Wubao shouted.

"What are you shouting for? I, Jin Kun, am not your subordinate!" Jin Kun glared with his mung-bean eyes and snapped.

Though he said that, he still waved a hand, signaling his subordinates to close in on Yuan Ming.

Yuan Ming slowly backed away several steps, took a deep breath, and swept out an arm.

Two Smoke Bombs flew from his hand and struck the ground to his left and right.

With a soft bang, thick smoke appeared out of nowhere, swallowing the space within dozens of feet.

"I thought you had some trump card up your sleeve. So it was just this same trifling trick!" Wubao sneered. Green light flared from his wolf claws as a gale rose around them again, much fiercer than before, rapidly dispersing the surrounding smoke.

Taking advantage of the moment, Yuan Ming's body flickered, turning into a white blur as he charged in one direction.

For now, he could only escape first and make plans afterward. As for Hagon, he truly could do nothing for him.

Two Furred Beast Slaves saw Yuan Ming rushing toward them. Panic briefly appeared on their faces, but they immediately steadied themselves and joined forces to meet him.

"Get lost!" Yuan Ming swung both arms, and surging strength erupted like ocean tides.

The arms of the two Furred Beast Slaves immediately snapped. Their massive bodies were sent flying, and their wails of agony rang out without end.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Arrow after arrow of emerald green shot over from ahead, landing in front of Yuan Ming and bursting into a vast cloud of green mist, forcing him to halt.

But immediately after, Yuan Ming pushed the Shadowless Step to its limit. His figure suddenly blurred, and with a flash, he dodged the remaining emerald arrows and crashed into the oncoming crowd of Furred Beast Slaves.

More than half of the surrounding smoke had been blown away. Wubao and Jin Kun spotted Yuan Ming's position and pounced at him together.

Yuan Ming's heart thudded. He threw out both fists, white light flashing across his chest and abdomen as a third ape arm emerged and struck at a furred beast slave blocking the way ahead.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Three Furred Beast Slaves were sent flying.

Yet even more people rushed forward. They were impossible to defeat no matter how many he struck down, while Wubao and Jin Kun followed like shadows from the side, apparently held back by some concern and unwilling to attack personally.

The longer Yuan Ming fought, the more alarmed he became. He had no chance to escape at all, and both his mana and physical strength were being consumed at an accelerating rate. If this continued, he would be worn to death alive.

He did not believe Wubao would truly spare his life. Even if Wubao wanted something else from him, once he achieved his aim, Yuan Ming would still face a dead end.

But at that moment, the nearby forest rustled. A tall white figure shot out and plunged headlong into the encirclement.

Two Furred Beast Slaves failed to dodge in time and were directly rammed away. They spat blood and collapsed, unable to rise again.

"Everyone, watch out! Reinforcements!" Zan Bai shouted, aiming his crossbow ahead as three emerald poison arrows shot toward the white figure.

Everyone present was battle-hardened. The three Furred Beast Slaves nearby abandoned Yuan Ming and moved to surround it.

The tall white figure ignored everyone else and charged straight inward, its arms suddenly blurring.

Amid sharp sounds of air tearing apart, all three who had gone to meet it spat blood and flew backward into the nearby forest. Their fates were unknown. The three poison arrows also snapped and fell to the ground.

"Where did this fool who doesn't know life from death come from? Die for Master Jin!" Jin Kun flew into a rage, abandoning Yuan Ming as he pounced toward the white figure.

Of the three people badly wounded just now, one was a member of Hyena Hall named Chi Na.

He had awakened an ability related to smell. The Green Wolf Gang and Hyena Hall had been able to find this place so easily and block Yuan Ming's retreat entirely thanks to his methods.

Seeing this, Wubao hesitated briefly before changing targets as well and pouncing toward the white figure.

Threads of lightning flickered over the purple horn on his forehead with loud crackling sounds. Arcs of electricity surged forth and coursed across his entire body, instantly turning him into a man of lightning as he slammed fiercely into the white figure.

Golden light blazed across Jin Kun's body, and the golden fur along his spine stretched taut.

Swish! Swish!

Great swaths of golden fur shot off his body, raining toward the white figure like a barrage of arrows.

The tall white figure still ignored the two of them and continued rushing into the encirclement, sweeping out an arm.

With a tremendous bang!

Wubao and Jin Kun were both blasted away, flying four or five yards like paper kites before smashing heavily into the ground.

However, Wubao's strength was far beyond that of the previous Beast Slaves. The white figure also stumbled, coming to a halt for the first time.

Only then did everyone present see the white figure's true appearance. It was a strange creature shaped like an old white-furred ape, standing twenty feet tall and covered from head to toe in white fur. Its eyes were blood-red, long black claws grew from its hands, and when it bared its teeth, it revealed a mouthful of uneven fangs gleaming white.

"What kind of monster is that?" Everyone present was greatly shocked.

A look of surprise also appeared on Yuan Ming's face. His eyes shifted as he retreated, flicking his arm.

With a soft bang, another Smoke Bomb exploded. Thick smoke spread out and swallowed everything around them.

"Careful, stop him!"

The few people encircling Yuan Ming hurriedly gave chase, trying to keep him entangled. However, Yuan Ming had already vanished into the smoke, and no one knew where he had gone.

"Awooo..." The white-furred monster seemed enraged by Wubao and Jin Kun's obstruction. It threw back its head in a wild roar and pounced to kill them.

"Jin Kun and I will deal with this white-furred monster. You go after Yuan Ming!" Wubao hurriedly focused himself for battle and shouted.

Before his words had faded, several Smoke Bombs flew in from nowhere and landed throughout the battlefield.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Thick smoke exploded outward, enveloping everyone present. In an instant, no one could see anything.

For a moment, the scene descended into chaos.