Snow Peak Mountain.
Located in the south, it was a stretch of rolling hills, with its highest peak only a little over a thousand meters above sea level.
The depths of Snow Peak Mountain led directly into the Southern Mountain Range, the territory occupied by demon wolf packs. As such, the demons here were mostly wolf-type demons.
Servant Grade One-eyed Demonic Wolves and General Grade Three-eyed Demon Wolves, also known as Bone Spike Ferocious Wolves.
These two types of demon wolves were the most common in Snow Peak Mountain.
Of course, aside from wolf-type demons, there were also many pervasive rodent demons. The most typical among them were Giant-eyed Starry Rats.
"Gugu gugu..."
On the relatively damp ground, a Giant-eyed Starry Rat was foraging for food.
It extended its claws toward the base of a massive tree that would take several people to encircle, digging into the soil until it exposed the roots. Only then did it pounce on them excitedly and begin gnawing.
The crunching of roots echoed through the dark mountain forest.
"Tap tap tap..."
Suddenly, footsteps sounded, drawing closer from afar.
The Giant-eyed Starry Rat abruptly raised its head. Its huge eyes glowed scarlet as they stared straight in one direction, while its fang-filled mouth let out a shrill, strange cry.
"Gugu gugu!"
"Extreme Cold—Ice Vine—Cover!"
Before the figure appeared, the magic had already arrived.
Ice blue frost descended from above, instantly shrouding the Giant-eyed Starry Rat. The Level Three Ice Vine, amplified threefold, left it completely unable to resist.
The Giant-eyed Starry Rat was immediately frozen into an ice sculpture.
Under the bone-piercing chill, the Giant-eyed Starry Rat's vitality plummeted. One of its scarlet eyes gradually dimmed.
A moment later.
Qin Yuan slowly emerged from the darkness. Looking at the Giant-eyed Starry Rat ice sculpture before him, he brought his foot down.
"Crack!"
A breaking sound rang out. It was not only the solid ice that shattered, but also the Giant-eyed Starry Rat's spine.
The White Tiger Vessel on Qin Yuan's wrist flickered faintly, drawing the Giant-eyed Starry Rat's Remnant Spirit into it.
"There really are quite a lot of Giant-eyed Starry Rats. I haven't seen many other rodent demons, though."
Qin Yuan muttered to himself and continued exploring ahead.
Along the way, he had killed quite a few demons. Five of them had been One-eyed Demonic Wolves, all of which had come looking for death themselves.
With his current strength, he could even take on a General Grade Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf, let alone Servant Grade One-eyed Demonic Wolves and Giant-eyed Starry Rats.
As long as Qin Yuan did not provoke the Winged Azure Wolf that ruled the depths, he could roam freely through Snow Peak Mountain.
"One-eyed Demonic Wolves and Giant-eyed Starry Rats can't test my strength. I still need to find a Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf and have a go."
Qin Yuan moved through the darkness.
Relying solely on his physical body, he was still far faster than a One-eyed Demonic Wolf.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..."
After running for a while longer.
"Awoo~!!!"
A loud wolf howl came from his front left. At that volume, it was no longer something a Servant Grade One-eyed Demonic Wolf could produce.
"Found it." A trace of excitement flashed through Qin Yuan's eyes as he hurried over without stopping.
Encountering a General Grade demon alone, he advanced rather than retreated.
If the hunters and Military mages at the Waystation had known of Qin Yuan's actions, their jaws would have dropped.
Under the moonlight.
A small patch of forest stood bare, its trees all broken by external force and lying haphazardly across the ground. Green leaves carpeted the earth.
Amid the wreckage, a Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf as tall as a two-story building was locked in battle with two Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rats, both massive and covered in bulging muscles.
Though the Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rats were also General Grade demons, their actual combat strength ranked near the bottom among Minor Generals.
The Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf, however, was undoubtedly a Minor General demon. A very few particularly powerful ones could even rival Great General Grade demons.
One Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf versus two Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rats.
"Three General Grade demons. They should be enough to test my combat strength."
Qin Yuan stood atop a large tree, watching.
He intended to observe for a little longer. Once he understood how the two types of demons fought, he would show himself and kill all three in one stroke.
"Gugu!"
One Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rat fought without honor.
"Whoosh!"
While the Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf was fighting the other Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rat, it secretly released a Scarlet Beam.
However, the Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf was no pushover.
The three eyes on its head gave it a 270-degree field of view. Combined with its prior vigilance, it easily evaded the beam.
"Awoo!"
The Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf pounced again.
The ghastly white bone spikes covering its body stabbed viciously toward the Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rat.
"Puchi!"
The Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rat cried out in pain and immediately retreated, pulling free from the bone spikes embedded in its bulging muscles.
Blood gushed wildly from the bloody holes.
The Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf would not let such an opportunity go. It immediately lunged forward, its blade-sharp wolf claws slashing toward the rat's reddened eye.
"Gugu gugu..."
The Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rat retreated in terror.
Seeing that it still could not evade the wolf claw, it could only turn its back and use its thick, muscular spine to withstand the strike.
"Rip!"
"Gugu gugu!"
The Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rat wailed painfully again, its entire body covered in blood.
The Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf was about to continue attacking when the other Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rat launched another sneak attack. This time, it was not a Scarlet Beam, but its long, hook-like claws.
"Puchi!"
The rat claw swept past, tearing open the flesh of the Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf's hind leg.
The Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf felt a piercing pain. Before it could react, another rat claw came from the front—the claw of the blood-covered demonic rat.
"Awoo!"
Sensing danger, the Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf ignored the pain and immediately leaped into the air, escaping the encirclement of the two Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rats.
It fixed its cold gaze on the two Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rats, its icy killing intent completely undisguised.
If there had been only one demonic rat, it could have slaughtered it with ease. But there were two, and they knew how to cooperate.
If it wanted to win this battle, it would certainly have to gain a few more scars.
"Awoo!!!"
The Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf howled, as though bolstering its morale.
It crouched low, apparently gathering strength as it prepared to charge one of the demonic rats without restraint.
The two demonic rats did not dare let down their guard. They screeched and prepared to leap backward at any moment.
Just as the next exchange between both sides was about to erupt, all three demons sensed something and turned toward a patch of darkness.
The dark clouds dispersed, and moonlight poured down.
Qin Yuan slowly approached, holding a purple long blade that crackled with electricity. Tiny arcs of lightning spilled from it and vanished in the air.
"Awoo?"
A trace of astonishment appeared in the three eyes of the Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf.
As far as it knew, nearby humans avoided it whenever they encountered it and would never provoke it.
Qin Yuan was the first to come looking for it on his own.
Something was off.
Wolf-type demons were naturally intelligent, and the General Grade Bone Spike Ferocious Wolf was even more so.
However, not every General Grade demon possessed intelligence. Like the two Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rats, one of them charged straight at him.
Humans were delicious.
"Heh heh."
Qin Yuan chuckled softly. A flash of electricity flickered across the Thunderclap Blade in his hand, crackling sharply.
Rather than retreating, he advanced, charging forward with the Thunderclap Blade in hand.
"Gugu gugu!"
A hint of mockery flashed through the eyes of the Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rat.
It raised its rat claws and opened rows of sharp fangs. Its gaping mouth dripped with saliva and some unidentified sticky fluid, making one feel nauseated.
As the distance between them rapidly closed, Qin Yuan looked before the Blood-patterned Giant Demonic Rat like a child charging at an adult man with a fruit knife.
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