Slaying the Demon Beast Wolf King

Zhao Tieying's expression was grim. Clad in fine iron lamellar armor, the dark battle skirt at his waist stretched taut with his movements. Both hands gripped the "Shadowless" Sword as he sank his shoulders and lowered his stance, assuming the opening posture of the Three Talents Slash—the Mountain Guard Stance. Copper rivets between the armor plates glinted with a frigid light beneath the thin winter sun. His inner force circulated silently, and a faint white vapor rose around him.

On the other side, the Silver-Maned Wolf King suddenly sprang forward, crossing more than ten feet in an instant. Its fan-sized wolf claw carried Ice Soul Force and struck straight at Zhao Tieying's face like a martial master's Iron Sand Palm. The wind from its claw brought bone-piercing cold, as though even the air had frozen.

Zhao Tieying rolled across the ground. His iron lamellar armor scraped against the frozen earth with a shrill screech. Then the Long Sword flashed with surging cold light as the Wind Chasing Style thrust straight at the Wolf King's lower belly—this was a swift move from the Three Talents Slash, designed to break the nimble footwork of exotic beasts.

Who would have thought that the Wolf King could twist its body in midair like a wildcat, barely evading the blade? Its snowy mane brushed across the sword, scattering tiny sparks, while its claw tips took the chance to rake toward Zhao Tieying's shoulder.

Damn it, what kind of wolf is this? Zhao Tieying's heart churned like stormy seas. He hastily raised his sword to block. With a crisp clang, his arm went numb from the impact.

He had guarded the northern lands for over twenty years and had seen many savage beasts that had undergone Exotic Beast Advancement, yet he had never encountered a demonic wolf as huge as an ox and so versed in the arts of killing. This level of skill was clearly combat power at the level of a Peak Martial Master. Ordinary Gray-Maned Demonic Wolves might be fierce, but they could never possess such ability. It must have obtained the Cold Marrow of Qixia Mountain and undergone this mutation.

Bang!

The wolf claw and sword spine collided violently once more.

The Wolf King whimpered in pain, its right claw numbed by the shock. Clearly, it had not expected the human martial master's sword to contain such fierce Binding Force.

It no longer dared meet him head-on. Instead, it used its swift movements to dodge left and right, circling behind Zhao Tieying again and again with the pine trees as cover, attempting to wear down his strength. Its amber wolf eyes were full of calculation; its intelligence rivaled that of a hardened human bandit.

Zhao Tieying was an old hand. He saw through its scheme at once, sheathed his aggression, and stood still with his sword in hand as he confronted the Wolf King.

He saw it clearly: beyond the bone-deep killing intent in the beast's eyes lay cunning no less sharp than a human's. It resembled an old hunter accustomed to slaughtering in the mountains, rather than a mere wild beast.

"Die, you cursed beast!" Zhao Tieying roared as he took the initiative. As a Peak Martial Master of the northern lands, how could he allow a beast to run rampant before him?

The Shadowless Sword danced out layers of shimmering sword flowers. Binding Force silently clung to the blade, waiting only for the Wolf King to reveal an opening.

Meanwhile, Lin Zhao knew that with his current abilities as a Quasi-Martial Master, there was no way he could interfere in the battle between Zhao Tieying and the Wolf King. Even Zhao Tieying had to treat the Wolf King's Ice Soul Force with caution. If Lin Zhao went up, he would only get in the way.

Lin Family Fortress was at a crossroads between life and death. His foremost task was to clear out the ordinary wolf pack ravaging West Hamlet. Once these vermin were dealt with, they could gather their forces and surround the Wolf King. No matter how fierce it was, it could not defeat sheer numbers.

Protected by a Mandarin Duck Formation formed by five elite Estate Guards at his side, Lin Zhao could finally unleash his Archery to its fullest.

He raised the Zhe Wood Hard Bow, hooked the string until it curved like a full moon, and drew. Though he had wanted to use these demonic wolves to hone the Three Talents Slash, at a life-and-death juncture like this, efficiency came first. Archery killed faster and could reduce the losses among the Estate Guards.

Feathered arrows tore through the air like soul-hooking talismans. Every shot struck precisely between a demonic wolf's brows or through its throat, not a single arrow going astray.

Before long, the quiver at his waist was empty. Apart from one arrow fired at the Wolf King that missed, all thirty remaining iron arrows struck their targets, killing twenty-six wolves on the spot.

Such godlike Archery left the Estate Guards staring in dumbfounded amazement.

The Estate Guards, who had been forced steadily back by the wolf pack, finally caught their breath upon seeing their fortress lord's valor. Their grips on their Ring-pommel Swords steadied, and they began to counterattack.

With no arrows left, Lin Zhao had no choice but to draw the Frost Condensation Sword and join the close-quarters slaughter.

He wore Cloth-faced Hidden Armor. The iron plate lining was not particularly heavy, but it was enough to resist the bites of ordinary demonic wolves. So long as he was not surrounded by the pack, his life would not be in danger.

But the Estate Guards suffered terribly. They wore only Rattan Armor, which could not stop the demonic wolves' sharp teeth. Once bitten, their flesh split open, and they fell screaming into the snow.

From the corner of his eye, Lin Zhao saw three Estate Guards already knocked down by the wolves. Their flesh was torn apart in an instant, severed limbs scattered everywhere.

His eyes turned bloodshot as his blood and qi surged. At once, he fully circulated the Mystic Dragon Breathing Technique, pouring inner force into both arms as he charged fiercely toward the densest cluster of wolves with sword in hand.

[Three Talents Slash Proficiency +4]

[Three Talents Slash Proficiency +5]

[Three Talents Slash Proficiency +3]

Every clean stroke of his sword came with a jump in proficiency, but Lin Zhao no longer had the leisure to care. His killing had left his gaze unfocused. Wolf blood covered his hidden armor, congealing into dark-red patches and dripping through the seams, leaving winding trails of blood across the snow.

These Estate Guards and Tenant Farmers were all people of Lin Family Fortress. Though in these troubled times their lives were as insignificant as blades of grass, they were still someone's sons, someone's fathers—living, breathing people!

Watching dozens of lives perish in wolf jaws, Lin Zhao, after three years in this world, truly felt for the first time how cheap human life was in troubled times. Wars and banditry were bad enough; now even beasts from the mountains could take lives as they pleased.

"I have to grow stronger! These little skills are nowhere near enough!"

A sudden wave of hunger seized his stomach. Running the Breathing Technique at full force with the cultivation of a Quasi-Martial Master consumed enormous energy. Without food to replenish himself, he would sooner or later collapse from exhaustion.

He swept his gaze over the Estate Guards beside him and asked hoarsely, "Do any of you have dry rations?"

Frightened by his blood-soaked body and crimson eyes, the Estate Guards shuddered as they answered, "N-no, Fortress Lord. This lowly one will go find some at once!"

"No need." Lin Zhao bent down, seized the hind leg of a freshly slain demonic wolf, and tore off the entire leg with one arm. Parasites, plague—what did any of that matter? The inner force of the Mystic Dragon Breathing Technique could nourish his meridians and resist at least some filth and corruption.

If he did not eat something to restore his strength now, his inner force might fall into disorder, or he might even suffer qi deviation.

He crouched in the snow and tore into the raw wolf meat in huge bites, blood dripping from the corners of his mouth.

When he had read martial arts tales in his previous life, the people he despised most were the fiends who drank blood and ate raw flesh. Yet now he had become the same. In troubled times, staying alive came first.

In the end, through Lin Zhao and the Estate Guards' desperate battle, more than sixty ordinary demonic wolves lay dead on the spot. Seeing the tide turn against them, the remaining thirty or so tucked their tails between their legs and fled into the deep mountains.

But Lin Family Fortress had also suffered grievous losses: eight Estate Guards and fourteen Tenant Farmers had died, while twenty-two oxen and thirty-six sheep had been bitten to death. For the already impoverished Lin Family Fortress, this was like frost atop snow.

The entire fortress settlement had only a little over two hundred households, fewer than eight hundred people. Every person and every animal was the foundation of survival.

"Once I break through to the Martial Master Realm, I will wipe out every demon beast on Qixia Mountain!" Lin Zhao muttered through gritted teeth. "In these troubled times, these beasts are a grave threat as well."

He secretly regretted not having the bird guns issued by the Northern Garrison. If he had one, then after training his firearms skill to maximum level, no matter how many demonic wolves came, one shot would drop each. Even the Wolf King would have no chance of escape.

Meanwhile, the Silver-Maned Wolf King, locked in battle with Zhao Tieying, saw that the situation was lost. The youth's Archery was far too vicious; in moments, more than half its subordinates had fallen. The remaining wolf pups cared only about fleeing for their lives. Who still cared about their Wolf King?

Knowing that staying meant death, it desperately unleashed Ice Soul Force to force Zhao Tieying back. Though the Shadowless Sword cut its hind leg, it still limped into the deep mountains. It was as swift as the wind, and after Zhao Tieying chased it several dozen feet, he could only watch its dust from afar.

"That cursed beast actually got away." Zhao Tieying frowned and sighed. The Wolf King was too cunning. Having suffered today, it would surely return someday. It would be much harder to kill then.

Lin Zhao walked over, pointed at the wolf blood staining the ground, and said in a cold but certain tone, "No matter. Take some wolf blood to Yuan Da and the others. With the noses of the Northern Snow Apes, it cannot run far."

The setting sun was red as blood as it spilled over the devastated West Hamlet.

Animal carcasses, Estate Guard corpses, and wolf bodies lay piled layer upon layer. Blood soaked into the frozen earth, and the air was thick with a nauseating stench of blood and flesh.

Lin Zhao sheathed the Frost Condensation Sword and instructed the old steward, Steward Fu, "Bury the dead properly. Issue each family five dou of millet according to fortress rules. Send the wounded to Doctor Wang for treatment; the fortress will cover the medicine costs. Transport all uneaten beef, mutton, and wolf meat back to the fortress. Skin the wolves and contact fur merchants to sell the pelts. As for the rest, we will speak of it after I cut the grass and pull out the roots."

Steward Fu was still shaken by the ordeal. The wolf disaster just now had been too horrifying; the dense black mass of wolves had pressed in like storm clouds crushing the city. Yet this Young Master, only fourteen years old, had moved calmly through the pack, hunting and killing with his sword. That cool, ruthless bearing reminded Steward Fu of the Black Dragon General, Lin Yuanshan, who had once guarded the northern lands.

Lin Zhao and Zhao Tieying returned to the fortress shoulder to shoulder and headed straight for the rear courtyard. The three snow apes had been sprawled on the ground playing. The instant they saw Lin Zhao return, they stood upright and came over to rub against his arm.

Over the past year, Lin Zhao had nearly emptied his personal savings to raise these three "gold-swallowing beasts." They each ate at least ten jin of cooked meat a day, more than Lin Zhao himself.

But troops were raised for a thousand days to be used in a single moment. Now was the moment for them to prove their worth.

"Yuan Da, Yuan Er, Yuan San, come here." Lin Zhao beckoned. Zhao Tieying promptly brought the Wolf King's blood on his sword close to their noses. Thanks to the effect of the Heart of Beast Taming, Lin Zhao could clearly sense the snow apes' emotions. The moment they smelled the blood, their fur stood on end. Low growls rumbled from their throats, and their feet scraped at the ground as they strained to spring into action.

"You are saying this beast killed your mother?" Lin Zhao asked in a deep voice. The three brothers nodded vigorously, their eyes brimming with ferocity.

"Good. Take us to it." Cold light flickered in Lin Zhao's eyes. "Today, we will avenge your mother—and the fellow villagers who died in the fortress!"

Zhao Tieying added, "I injured the Wolf King's hind leg with Binding Force. It cannot move easily and cannot have gone far. Its strength is greatly diminished right now. This is the perfect chance to cut the grass and pull out the roots. If we wait for its injuries to heal, hunting it down will be difficult."

Lin Zhao immediately selected ten elite Estate Guards. Each was equipped with a fine Ring-pommel Sword and two quivers of arrows. Following behind the three snow apes, they set off toward the depths of Qixia Mountain.

Though the Wolf King was cunning and tried all along the way to take detours, double back, and even lure them toward sheer cliffs, the snow apes' sense of smell far surpassed human beings'. Together with Zhao Tieying's superb tracking skills, after many twists and turns, they finally found the Wolf King's lair outside a cave in the rear mountains of Qixia Mountain.

Upon a huge boulder outside the cave, the Silver-Maned Wolf King was madly tearing apart the corpse of a Gray-Maned Demonic Wolf—it was eating its own kind!

Food was scarce in winter, and after being badly wounded, it could no longer care about the rules of the pack.

Sensing their approach, it abruptly stopped and threw back its head with a mournful howl. More than twenty demonic wolves immediately surged out from all directions and swiftly gathered around it.

The Wolf King's eyes were blood-red as it stared at Lin Zhao's group with exposed savagery. Its gaze first landed on the three snow apes. Just as it had expected, these humans had taken in the three snow ape cubs!

"You are indeed a rare exotic beast. What a pity—you must die today." Lin Zhao gazed at the Wolf King and sighed softly. Then he nocked an arrow and drew his bow. The feathered arrow shot through the air like a meteor!

Bang!

A Gray-Maned Demonic Wolf suddenly sprang out and blocked the arrow for the Wolf King. The arrowhead pierced straight through its chest, killing it instantly.

The Wolf King locked its cold gaze tightly onto Lin Zhao. That gaze was sharp as a blade, giving him the illusion that he faced a formidable human enemy.

"Uncle Zhao, keep the Wolf King occupied. Leave the rest to me!" Before Lin Zhao's words had fully fallen, Zhao Tieying was already charging forward with sword in hand. The Shadowless Sword, carrying Binding Force, thrust straight toward the Wolf King's throat. He intended to end this quickly before its leg injury healed.

The Wolf King struggled to stand, only to stagger. The fracture in its hind leg made even standing steady difficult.

Ordinary blades could hardly harm its thick hide and tough flesh, but the vibration of Zhao Tieying's inner force had already shattered the bones in its leg.

This battle of vengeance went even more smoothly than expected.

Lin Zhao directed the Estate Guards into a Mandarin Duck Formation to withstand the ordinary demonic wolves' attacks, while he moved about with the hard bow in hand, every feathered arrow striking true.

The three snow apes also showed their prowess for the first time in this battle. Yuan Da slapped one demonic wolf flying with a single hand. Yuan Er bit down on a wolf's neck and tore viciously. Yuan San nimbly circled behind another and ripped open its belly with his claws. Though only two years old, they could already hunt ordinary demonic wolves alone. Once they matured, they would surely become exotic beasts that cowed an entire region.

The battle between Zhao Tieying and the Wolf King swiftly neared its end.

The injured Wolf King was ultimately no match for a Martial Master at full strength. With Lin Zhao frequently firing arrows to ambush it, more and more wounds appeared across its body, and its movements grew increasingly sluggish.

At last, Zhao Tieying shouted, pouring all his inner force into the blade as he unleashed a fierce Shaking Force Three Talents Slash!

Ripples spread through the air beneath the sword's force. The next instant, the Wolf King's massive head rolled to the ground.

Even before death, its cold eyes remained fixed on Lin Zhao. The venomous resentment and unwillingness in its gaze sent chills down the spine.

"Heh. What are you looking at?" Lin Zhao stepped forward and planted a foot on the Wolf King's head. "If you had not come attacking us of your own accord, you would not have ended like this."

Fearing that the mutated Wolf King might have some trick left behind, he immediately ordered the Estate Guards to build a fire and cremate its corpse on the spot. There were already rumors in this world of Exotic Beast Remnant Souls. If the body transformed, it would be a serious nuisance.

"What a pity about that fine wolf pelt. If it were sold to the Nobles and Aristocrats of Yingtian Prefecture, it could fetch at least five thousand Taels of Silver." Lin Zhao watched the roaring flames and could not help sighing. Though the money pained him, fire was the safer choice compared to potential danger.

The Estate Guards cheered excitedly. "Revenge! We have finally avenged our dead brothers!"

"Bind these wolf corpses to the sleds and haul them back to the fortress," Lin Zhao ordered. These wolf pelts and wolf meat could at least make up some of the fortress's losses.

Just then, Yuan San suddenly ran over to Lin Zhao, rubbing his head against Lin Zhao's arm while issuing low growls from his throat. His eyes repeatedly gestured toward the rear of the cave.

Lin Zhao's heart stirred. Through the Heart of Beast Taming, he sensed Yuan San's intent—while exploring the Wolf King's lair, Yuan San had discovered a hidden stone chamber containing a human skeleton dressed in Martial Master garments!