Golden-Eyed Demonic Sheep

"Keep pulling backward!"

Xia Chuan and the other six pulled the Frost Beast away, and Xia Hong naturally freed himself from the wall. However, he did not turn and run; instead, he had Xia Chuan and the others continue pulling with all their might while he lowered his body, tensed his waist, and swung fiercely upward in a diagonal slash with the second stone axe he had just received.

The six massive horns on this Frost Beast's head were simply too large and hard to hack through.

Every single strand of the white mane draped over its body was half a meter long, covering almost its entire torso, and during their brief contact just moments ago, Xia Hong had already felt the hardness of those bristles.

Undoubtedly, this Frost Beast possessed a terrifying defense that surpassed even the Snow Mane.

It was definitely impossible to breach its body through normal means.

The lower jaw was the only vulnerable spot Xia Hong could think of.

"My strength has already reached nine thousand seven hundred catties, and the Great Battle Fist Style combined with a weapon can erupt with a force exceeding ten thousand catties at maximum output. I refuse to believe your bones are this hard!"

The stone axe Xia Hong swung diagonally upward whipped up a fierce gale that frictioned rapidly against the cold air seeping in from outside the cave, even sparking a faint trace of fire in midair.

The force of this axe strike was unimaginably ferocious.

Seemingly sensing the threat, the sheep-like Frost Beast's struggle grew increasingly frenzied, and the seven people holding the ropes were instantly thrown into a chaotic back-and-forth sway.

Xu Ning, who had made his breakthrough last among the seven, was even knocked to the ground, but he still gritted his teeth tightly and refused to let go, bracing his legs against a protruding rock on the ground to anchor himself, his skin already ground raw and bleeding profusely.

Bang...

Risking their lives to hold onto the ropes, the seven ultimately bought Xia Hong the opportunity for this single axe strike. The stone axe chopped into the lower jaw, producing a loud crash of intermingling stone and bone as the air itself seemed to vibrate.

Yet, Xia Hong, who had delivered this blow, wore a visage of continuous, startled shock.

This was because not only had the stone axe failed to pierce the opponent's defense, but it had instead been shattered directly by its jawbone, just like the axe that had struck its horns moments before.

The lower jaw of this monstrosity was actually just as hard as the horns on its head.

Roar...

Even though it shattered the stone axe, the Frost Beast was clearly still driven to a piercing agony by the blow. It threw back its head and roared, its body erupting with power far exceeding anything before, and almost instantly, it snapped all the ropes in half, sending the seven people nearby tumbling head over heels.

Not only that, but after breaking free from the ropes, the Frost Beast's primary target was not Xia Hong, who had just slashed it with the stone axe, but Xu Ning on the other side.

Among the seven who had just been pulling him, Xu Ning was positioned closest to the head. After the rope snapped, he was dragged directly toward the Frost Beast's flank, making him the closest target.

"Xu Ning, get out of the way!"

Xia Hong rushed in front of the Frost Beast, blocking the path before Xu Ning.

There was no avoiding a test of strength this time.

Xia Hong gritted his teeth, planted his feet firmly on the ground, seized the exact timing, and caught the sharp horns charging toward him with his bare hands.

Xia Hong's original intention was to brace against the Frost Beast's impact. Even if he could not hold it back, he could at least save Xu Ning, and the worst that would happen to him was being pushed back or sustaining some minor injuries.

Only, he had thought things too simply.

The impact force of the enraged Frost Beast was on a completely different level from before.

Bang...

This charge from the Frost Beast not only sent him flying directly, slamming him into the wall directly above the cave, but it also nearly snapped all ten of the fingers on his hands at the roots.

"Don't touch its horns, you'll be cut!"

Falling down from the cavern wall and looking at the lacerations on his hands, Xia Hong had no time to deal with the blood flowing from them. Giving them just a casual wipe, he immediately raised his head to warn the others.

It was a pity his warning was still a step too slow. After sending him flying, the Frost Beast immediately charged into the crowd.

Perhaps because the posture of pulling the rope earlier had been too savage, Xu Ning had been marked by the Frost Beast, and its target remained none other than him.

Xu Ning wanted to escape behind the Frost Beast, but his speed was simply too slow. Before he had taken two steps, the beast's sharp horns were already pressing against his waist.

If he were impaled by those, certain death awaited him.

Xia Hong had already gotten to his feet, rapidly closing in on the direction of the Frost Beast, but the distance was too great and he could offer no help whatsoever. The remaining six also tried in vain to stop the beast, but their strength was too weak, and they were batted away before even getting close.

His own end seemed already sealed.

Detecting the dangerous signal emanating from his waist, cold sweat poured down Xu Ning's forehead. Glancing sideways to see the half-meter-long mane on the Frost Beast, he gritted his teeth, leaped sideways, grabbed the bristles, and vaulted into the air. With a sudden flip, he landed squarely on the back of the Frost Beast.

Splat...

Of course, things did not go so smoothly. Although he avoided a hit to the waist, his shoulder was still impaled by the Frost Beast's sharp horn. Had an intense desire for survival not driven Xu Ning to yank his wound directly off the horn, a casual flick from the beast would likely have torn his body into two pieces.

Perhaps the piercing wound on his shoulder also unleashed a ferocious streak in Xu Ning. Sitting atop the Frost Beast's back, he snatched up a stone axe and hacked wildly at its spine.

Just as Xia Hong had anticipated, the defense of this Frost Beast was far more terrifying than a Snow Mane. Xu Ning delivered over a dozen axe blows in succession, which merely managed to shear off a few bristles; the skin beneath the mane remained completely undamaged.

Even so, Xu Ning did not stop his axe. The blood flowing from his shoulder wound had already stained half his body red, and he relied entirely on a fierce tenacity, terrified that if he stopped, he would never be able to move again.

Roar...

Suddenly, for reasons unknown, the Frost Beast let out a shrill, miserable screech.

Xu Ning, who was sitting on its back, froze for a moment. The beast's reaction had been minimal even after he had continuously chopped at it for so long; why would it suddenly emit such a shriek?

Xu Ning reacted quickly as well, hurriedly halting his actions, raising his axe, and looking toward the exact spot he had just been hacking.

Although much of the hair on the Frost Beast's back had been chopped away, the coverage remained vast due to its extreme length. Pushing aside the hair around the area he had just struck with his axe, Xu Ning's expression instantly froze.

Covered beneath that fur was shockingly a palm-sized eye, its pupils a pure, lustless gold right in the center, gazing at him without a shred of emotion and without the slightest movement.

"This is its weakness!"

Xu Ning did not linger in observing that eye; the moment he saw the trace of an axe blow right beside it, he instantly realized that this eye was the Frost Beast's weakness.

"There's a golden eye on its back—that must be its weakness!"

Xu Ning shouted loudly to alert the others, then wore a ferocious look as he raised the stone axe and abruptly brought it down toward that golden eye.

"Don't do anything reckless, Xu Ning!"

Xia Hong, who was currently entangling the Frost Beast, realized what Xu Ning was about to do and shouted a frantic warning, but alas, he was still a step too slow.

The Snow Mane's weakness was the long tongue in its mouth, yet the most dangerous part of its body was also that very tongue; the Frost Wolf's weakness was its small size, yet it was precisely because of its diminutive stature that its speed was startlingly swift.

No creature would ever evolve a weakness for no reason at all.

A weakness often implied an even greater danger.

Believing he was about to succeed, Xu Ning widened his eyes as his axe descended straight toward the fist-sized golden pupil.

Yet at that very moment, that golden pupil suddenly blossomed with a dazzling, blinding glare, and Xu Ning's tightly fixed gaze was instantly struck with such intensity that he could barely keep his eyes open.

Still, Xu Ning was unwilling to let go of such a prime opportunity. Closing his left eye and staring solely with his right, he kept his stone axe driving relentlessly toward the pupil.

Splat...

Tomorrow night is the first round. I thank all the brothers who clicked their way here, whether you are reading carefully or just flipping through; the upward momentum of my follow-read count has been quite good lately. My heartfelt thanks to you all. The new book period is just like this—even one extra follow-read might mean victory over another book and gain a few more exposure opportunities. I cannot guarantee that the subsequent writing will completely match your expectations, but I will definitely do my utmost to portray the story in my mind. I beg you all to continue supporting me and walk these four rounds by my side. All my motivation for typing comes from your daily reads. Having said so much, there are actually only three things: thank you, thank you, and fucking thank you!!!