Hunting Team

Wu Tian was being chased away by the guards at the entrance when an adult white dog, a full six feet long, walked out of the room.

When they saw the white dog, respectful expressions appeared on the guards' faces. This was the Dog King of the settlement, who had led the entire settlement in avoiding countless disasters and saved innumerable tribespeople.

It was highly intelligent, with wisdom comparable to that of an adult, and held an extremely lofty position throughout the settlement.

"Dog King, Silver Frost!"

Wu Tian recognized the white dog at once. If Chieftain was the leader of the entire settlement, then Silver Frost was its totem.

Silver Frost walked slowly toward Wu Tian. As its figure drew closer and closer, Wu Tian's fur instinctively bristled all over, as if he sensed some kind of danger. He lowered himself to the ground and let out a low growl.

Looking at the young Wu Tian, a gentle expression appeared in Silver Frost's eyes. It had already lived for many years and was nearing the end of its life.

Being able to witness the birth of such an intelligent descendant was a fortunate thing.

It barked several times, gradually calming Wu Tian, who had initially been somewhat uneasy.

Canines could not communicate with the same fine detail as humans through language and writing. They could only convey simple intentions.

But Wu Tian quickly understood what Silver Frost meant. It was telling him that he was to go with it tomorrow.

"Woof, woof, woof~" He barked several times at the Dog King of the settlement, then scampered away in a flash.

Silver Frost watched him leave, its gaze gentle, like an elderly man watching his mischievous grandson.

The commotion at the entrance naturally escaped neither Chieftain nor Guxiong Mu inside the house.

Chili Mu's father was an exceptionally valiant warrior in the Hunting Team. He had originally been the person many in the settlement had tacitly acknowledged as the next leader of the Hunting Team, but no one had expected this accident to happen.

Wu Tian's childhood name was White Dragon, the name Chieftain had given him when he helped deliver him. At the time, besides White Dragon, two other puppies had been born in the same litter, and both had been given to other households.

Only White Dragon had been kept behind.

Chieftain leaned both hands on his wooden staff. Only after Silver Frost came in and lay down on the ground again did he sigh and say, "The Hunting Team has suddenly lost so many people. Even if we replenish its ranks temporarily, its fighting strength will inevitably decline."

"Not to mention that more than a dozen white dogs died at once. This will greatly increase the risks faced by our entire settlement."

"However, the Hunting Team is the foundation of the settlement's survival. Besides giving you five more men, I'll also give you eight more hunting dogs. With that White Dragon from earlier added in, it should just about be enough."

"You'll set out first thing tomorrow morning. Try to avoid Black Fish Lake. Although it's an excellent hunting ground, now that a Bear Demon has been born there, it's no longer somewhere we can set foot."

Guxiong Mu's expression was somewhat grim. "There weren't many places suitable for hunting around the settlement to begin with. Before this, more than half of the prey in the settlement was hunted at Black Fish Lake."

"If we stop going to Black Fish Lake, it'll be very difficult for us to hunt enough food."

"Should I lead the young men deeper into the mountains?"

Chieftain shook his head. "So many people in the settlement have just died. It isn't wise to risk another incident for the time being. If the Hunting Team suffers heavy losses, I'm afraid we'll have a very hard time making it through this winter."

"Let's endure for now. When spring comes next year, there should be envoys arriving from Skull Mountain. At that time, I'll see whether I can ask the envoy to take action and slay that Bear Demon."

Although Guxiong Mu also wanted to hunt more food, he knew Chieftain was right and nodded silently.

"If that's the case, hunting enough beasts will probably be far more difficult than before..."

The next morning, before dawn had broken, Wu Tian carefully slipped out of Chili Mu's warm embrace and came to stand before the Bronze Ancient Cauldron in the center of the settlement.

The Hunting Team gathered here before every departure.

By the time Wu Tian arrived, quite a few people were already there. They carried bows and arrows on their backs and hunting knives at their waists. A few even carried bamboo baskets filled with supplies for entering the mountains.

Besides the members of the Hunting Team, there were also more than a dozen white dogs. Most were adults, each three or four feet long, with nimble, powerful bodies.

Although they were not as massive as those ferocious beasts, these adult white dogs were agile and alert, making them the best companions during a hunt.

Wu Tian very consciously slipped into the group of white dogs. He was only two years old and barely over a foot long, making him especially conspicuous among the adult white dogs.

He honestly followed behind Silver Frost, neither showing off nor causing any trouble.

As a young dog with no experience hunting in the mountains and forests, all he needed to do next was obediently follow the group and grow until the day he gained the ability to protect himself.

As time slowly passed, all the members of the Hunting Team had arrived. Including the newly assigned recruits, there were nineteen in total.

Nineteen burly men with powerful physiques, capable of drawing bows and wielding knives, along with more than a dozen white dogs—so long as they did not provoke demonic or ghostly creatures, this strength was enough to make them unafraid even when encountering large beasts.

The group soon set out from the settlement. More than a dozen white dogs scattered in all directions, checking the movements ahead, behind, and to either side.

Wu Tian continued to conscientiously stay beside Silver Frost, imitating and learning the Dog King's movements.

They moved swiftly along the way. Whenever they occasionally encountered snakes, insects, poisonous ants, or other vermin, they drove them away. Before long, they entered the depths of the jungle, a place Wu Tian had never visited before.

Ancient trees towered into the heavens, their layers upon layers of branches and leaves woven together so densely that even sunlight could not fall through. Decayed fallen leaves and dead branches lay piled everywhere on the ground, while snakes, insects, poisonous ants, and other vermin appeared with increasing frequency.

Wu Tian even saw a Jade Scale Three Flower Snake coiled around a branch, at least ten feet long. Its entire body was covered in shadowy green scales with black patterns, and as it slithered along the trunk, it made one's heart turn cold.

This snake was naturally extremely venomous and was usually no more than three feet long. Such a gigantic serpent had certainly already become a Qi Eater and gained sentience.

Fortunately, Silver Frost led the tribespeople in taking a wide detour, without disturbing that dangerous monster.

There were also spiders the size of adult fists, centipedes a foot long, foxes with crimson tails...

This was a true deep mountain wilderness, where an unknown number of living creatures dwelled.

At first, Wu Tian honestly followed Silver Frost.

But it was not long before he grew restless. His purpose was not to become a hunting dog, but to temper his skills, strengthen his body, and gradually embark on the path of becoming a Demon.

So, when they encountered snakes, insects, poisonous ants, and other vermin again, he began taking the initiative to pounce on and kill them. To avoid delaying the group's progress, every movement he made was extremely swift.

He sought neither victory nor defeat, only slaughter.

If he could not win halfway through, he would simply dart behind Silver Frost.