Hunt

Wu Tian made no attempt to hide his trail. He left the mountain gate directly and ran toward the mountainside.

Although the people behind him used curse energy to conceal their forms, under the innate gift of Auspiciousness and Avoidance of Disaster, their malice appeared within his perception like glaring targets. He could not ignore them even if he wanted to.

"There's no sign of Tong Jin."

Wu Tian's nose was extraordinarily keen. Through the information carried on the wind, he discovered that Tong Jin was not among them.

"Looks like Master was right. Tong Guan really is an old fox. He won't take the bait."

"But it doesn't matter. This is an open stratagem."

"If he wants to resolve our grudge, he'll have no choice but to take the things I want and deliver them to my door."

He raced through the mountain cliffs as if traversing level ground. If he had not been worried about those idiots behind him losing the trail, he could have run even faster. As it was, he was deliberately slowing down.

"That old bastard Tong Guan really is ruthless. He sent eight disciples to their deaths just to let me vent my anger and resolve our grudge."

"As expected of Skull Mountain—a crooked sect of the unorthodox path. And it's in these desolate wilderness mountains too. If it weren't for that senior suppressing the place, it would probably be even more chaotic and bloody than it is now..."

As Wu Tian ran, the seven or eight disciples from Wild Dog Cave following behind him were also discussing things animatedly.

The eight of them consisted of six men and two women. All were disciples of the Qi Nourishing Realm. Three were still practicing qi circulation, while the other five had already begun forming their shapes and had refined Beast Robes.

Each of the eight possessed a Curse Artifact. With their Beast Robes protecting them as well, they naturally did not take a newly enlightened white dog seriously.

"What luck! This is truly a heaven-sent opportunity!"

"We originally thought it would be inconvenient to make a move inside the sect. After all, this beast belongs to Qiyun Cave. If someone saw us killing it, we'd offend Uncle-Man Xiong of Qiyun Cave and run into trouble."

"Exactly. Junior Brother Tong Jin isn't afraid of Qiyun Cave, but our little arms and legs can't afford to offend them."

"It's a pity Junior Brother Tong Jin was taken away by Master to be taught curse spells and couldn't come with us."

"It's only a beast. Killing it is killing it. We'll make our move outside the mountain gate. As long as no one sees us, who'll know we did it?"

"Hahaha, perhaps after we return, Junior Brother Tong Jin can put in a good word for us with Master, and we might even be taught one or two more curse arts."

"Indeed. Speaking of which, this beast really is courting death. It would have been troublesome to kill it on the mountain, but now that it has run out, we can simply make our move."

"Go a little farther ahead. There's a patch of woods. We'll act there, finish it quickly, strip its hide, extract its soul, and then return to the mountain. Better not let the night grow long and bring more dreams."

After discussing the matter, they reached a decision.

Although Wu Tian did not know what they were planning, he deliberately headed toward a secluded place thick with trees.

Just as he was nearing the mountainside, his ears suddenly twitched. He heard the sound of something tearing through the air behind him.

"Move!"

Someone shouted sharply. The eight men attacked almost simultaneously.

Someone even called out, "Be careful! Don't ruin the beast's hide!"

"Woof, woof, woof!"

Wu Tian sensed the danger and let out a roar.

He spun around violently and saw eight young disciples rushing out from the shadows.

One of the female disciples tossed out a palm-sized Black Net. The net swelled in the wind, and in the blink of an eye, it grew enormous above Wu Tian before dropping over his head.

Another female disciple held a Bronze Bell in her hand, ringing out a clanging chime.

Aside from those two female disciples and the disciple holding the Cloud Covering Banner,

the other five each carried an ironwood staff and pounced at him.

Because of the ironwood forests outside Wild Dog Cave, most disciples chose the Water Breaking Staff method to refine their Curse Artifacts.

Seeing this, Wu Tian remained unhurried. He recited the Thunder Sound Curse to protect his mind and prevent the bell's ringing from disrupting his consciousness.

Then he suddenly accelerated, turning into a streak of white light as he whipped around and fled.

The Black Net descending from the sky immediately missed its mark.

"Beast, where do you think you're going!"

The Wild Dog Cave disciples had never imagined that Wu Tian could erupt with such speed. Even the Soul Stirring Bell had failed to affect him. Now that they saw their prey about to escape, they instinctively chased after him.

But Wu Tian was too fast. When it became clear that he was about to run beyond their sight, the people pursuing him grew frantic.

"We'll chase after him first. Junior Sister Yun, Junior Brother Li, Junior Brother Zhao, you three follow afterward."

As they spoke, the five disciples who had refined Beast Robes rolled across the ground. Their clothes transformed, and in the blink of an eye, they had turned into wild dogs.

The five wild dogs each looked different. Some had short black fur and stubby tails, some were covered entirely in yellow fur, and others had mottled coats streaked with black and yellow.

Compared to Wu Tian's snow-white fur, their appearance was worlds apart.

After transforming into wild dogs, the five greatly increased their physiques and speed, rapidly catching up in the direction Wu Tian had fled.

Wu Tian had deliberately wanted to divide the enemy. By using his speed to pull them along, he naturally would not truly let them lose him.

After running some distance, he saw that only five people had followed, and that their speeds varied as they passed through the dense woods. He slowed down slightly.

"Heh, you really think wearing a Beast Robe makes you a spirit monster?"

"Killing me in the woods? What a joke."

"Let me show you what a true hunt looks like..."

Wu Tian sprang behind an ancient tree, hiding his form and reining in his aura.

He had long since cultivated his hunting skill to perfection and had even awakened an innate gift. Those perfected skills would not disappear; with the support of his innate gift, they would only become more terrifying.

A spirit monster with hunting techniques honed to perfection was the most terrifying hunter in the jungle.

Wu Tian moved with swift, nimble grace, using the trees to perfectly block his enemies' vision. When the fastest pursuer drew near, he suddenly unleashed his full strength. The extreme speed of Divine Speed of a Thousand Miles erupted, and his entire body became a blur. In the flash of lightning and spark of flint, he pounced forth.

The Wild Dog Cave disciple chasing him saw Wu Tian's figure vanish from sight and grew anxious, thinking only of catching up as quickly as possible. He never imagined Wu Tian would turn around and counterattack.

His forward momentum was already fast, and Wu Tian suddenly burst out from behind the tree. The two collided almost instantly.

Pfft!

Wu Tian thrust out both claws, then suddenly opened his jaws. His vicious teeth clamped precisely onto the enemy's throat. With that terrifying biting force, he even heard the crack of the throat breaking.

Everything happened too quickly. The Wild Dog Cave disciple had not even reacted before Wu Tian bit through his throat.

Wu Tian's teeth tore viciously into the enemy's throat. He carried him a zhang before finally stopping, dragging the corpse across the ground and sending clouds of dust and fallen leaves flying.

He had bitten down so savagely that he had nearly torn the enemy's head from his neck.

Without wasting even a moment, he quickly dragged the enemy's corpse beside another large tree.

Buzz!

After several breaths, the disciple who had transformed into a wild dog returned to human form. His head was almost severed from his body, and blood gushed from his throat, staining the ground before swiftly pooling into a bloodstained puddle.

Wu Tian dragged him to a conspicuous spot beside the tree, then quickly sprang up the trunk and concealed himself among its luxuriant branches and leaves.

By then, the Wild Dog Cave disciples behind him had also caught up. Two were in front and two behind, though the distance between them was not great.

They spotted the corpse and blood from afar and all grew frantic.

"Senior Brother!"

"Junior Brother!"

"What happened?"