Break the Forest, Pierce the Sky, Bite the Tail and Kill

He approached quietly and drew a small Meteorite Iron sword from his Sword Pouch.

With the Shuriken technique paired with a Meteorite Iron sword, its power was like a tiger gaining wings.

This was his first time hunting a strange beast, and Li Beichen did not want to fail.

He sought perfection in every detail.

Ahead, the Black Wolf had already devoured more than half of the Yellow Sheep.

Yet, it remained unsatisfied.

It continued to tear into the remaining flesh.

Suddenly, Li Beichen saw the Black Wolf lift its head and gaze in his direction.

Li Beichen immediately ceased his advance.

A moment later, the Black Wolf returned to its meal.

This beast has incredibly keen senses!

It nearly discovered me from a hundred paces away!

Li Beichen knew that at this distance, every step forward increased the risk of being detected.

He had to be ready to strike at any moment.

At a hundred paces, a distance Li Beichen had tested, his Shuriken technique—at the minor accomplishment stage—combined with the power of Bright Force could hit the target, but it would only have enough force left to pierce paper.

To kill a ninth-grade strange beast, Li Beichen estimated he needed to be within fifty paces.

Li Beichen's mind was extremely calm at this moment.

He excluded everything except the Black Wolf.

He cast aside all other thoughts.

Using the cover of tall trees, he hunched his back and moved forward with small steps.

Eighty paces.

Sixty paces.

Li Beichen charged out!

He crossed the ten-pace distance in an instant.

Only then did the Black Wolf, still devouring the Yellow Sheep, finally discover Li Beichen's presence.

But by now, Li Beichen had made all preparations for the kill.

His muscles tensed, gathering all his strength into a single point.

Using his body as a bow and his tendons as the string.

He pushed off from the soles of his feet.

Whoosh!

The Meteorite Iron sword in his hand transformed into a gray streak.

It tore through the forest and pierced the air.

The Black Wolf had just opened its blood-stained maw, intending to command the pack to attack Li Beichen.

But the sound had not yet escaped its throat.

BANG!!!

A Meteorite Iron sword struck from above, piercing diagonally through the Black Wolf's neck.

Trailing a line of blood, it buried itself into the ground.

This strike had shattered the Black Wolf's cervical vertebrae.

In an instant, it lost all mobility.

"Awoo!"

This ninth-grade strange beast, having no room to resist, collapsed beside the bloody remains of the Yellow Sheep, letting out a painful howl.

Its loss of bodily control threw it into a panic.

Seeing their leader injured, the surrounding pack of wolves fell into immediate chaos.

They were completely at a loss.

Whoosh!!

Another Meteorite Iron sword shot out from the forest.

It entered through the Black Wolf's eye socket and drove deep into its skull.

Instantly, the ninth-grade strange beast fell completely silent.

Before Li Beichen's eyes, several lines of small text appeared.

It was a notification that his Hunting skill had advanced to the "Entry Level."

However, Li Beichen had no time to examine it closely and simply flicked his mind to close the window.

Ahead, with the alpha dead, the One-Eyed Wolf was the first to react.

It let out a long howl, attempting to lead the remaining wolves in a retreat.

But although it was stronger than the other wolves, it struggled to maintain control over the entire pack.

Only a few wolves followed it as it fled.

The rest of the pack were a beat behind, scattering in different directions only after a delay.

In the forest, Li Beichen strode out with long, rapid strides.

"One-Eyed Wolf, you won't escape this time!"

Having killed the Black Wolf, Li Beichen's next target was this One-Eyed Wolf.

He raised his hand and drew a small refined iron sword from his Sword Pouch.

Bolstered by the Sharp trait of his Shuriken skill, even as the One-Eyed Wolf darted away, it could not escape Li Beichen's lock-on at this distance.

Whoosh! The small iron sword pierced through its body.

Overcome by sharp pain, the One-Eyed Wolf leaped into the air, ran a few more steps, and then could move no further.

Its life force drained away rapidly.

He did not bother with the One-Eyed Wolf any longer.

Li Beichen caught up to the slower wolves and charged straight into their midst.

He unleashed his Giant Elephant Fist, each strike sounding like a thunderclap, every blow landing with bone-crushing force.

Like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, he began a massive slaughter.

These wolves were unable to organize a coordinated attack, even when a few tried to turn back and bite at Li Beichen.

But under his iron fists, they were simply sent flying.

Wolves are said to have copper heads, iron bones, and tofu waists.

But to Li Beichen, unless it was a beast-level creature like the Black Wolf, the ordinary wolves were no match for him.

A single punch of Bright Force would shatter their skulls, killing them instantly.

In just a few moments, Li Beichen had wiped out a dozen wolves.

For those that had run further away, Li Beichen killed them by throwing his Shuriken.

However, his Sword Pouch only contained nine Meteorite Iron swords and nine refined iron swords in total.

For those he could catch up to, Li Beichen still chose to finish them off with his fists.

This slaughter lasted for a full half-hour.

Of the dozens of wolves, only a few lucky ones escaped his notice; all the rest were butchered by him.

As he hammered the final wolf to death, the panel popped up with a few more lines of text.

Skill: Hunting (Minor Accomplishment)
Progress: (0/1000)
Traits: Hunting Perception, Mountain Forest Affinity, Physique Enhancement
Hunting Perception: Significantly increases perception of prey; few can escape your tracking.
Mountain Forest Affinity: When in the mountains or forests, slightly increases all physical states.

Suddenly, a warm current surged into Li Beichen's body, providing a minor boost to his physique.

Although it was also at the "Minor Accomplishment" stage, the improvement Hunting provided was quite small compared to Shuriken.

Not to mention how it paled in comparison to Giant Elephant Fist.

However, what pleasantly surprised Li Beichen were the two new traits: Hunting Perception and Mountain Forest Affinity.

The moment they appeared, Li Beichen felt as if he had merged with the surrounding forest.

He could sense the thriving grass and trees, the flapping wings of birds in flight, and the breeze brushing against the treetops.

His body and mind felt relaxed and joyful, and his stamina began to recover at an accelerated rate.

As for the few wolves that had just escaped, Li Beichen could now sense their tracks.

Following his intuition, he indeed discovered a wolf den hidden within a mountain hollow and jagged rocks.

The remaining few prime wolves were hiding inside.

In addition, there were some old, weak, sick, and injured ones.

After a few more punches, the wolf pack of Small Gravel Mountain had been completely wiped out by him alone.

With that done, Li Beichen took out his dagger and began to collect his spoils.

He had no use for the meat of these common wild wolves, so he only skinned them to take back for fur coats.

At the same time, he had to retrieve the small swords he had just thrown.

Li Beichen discovered that the strength of these Meteorite Iron small swords far exceeded that of refined iron ones.

Many of the refined iron swords that had struck rocks were completely deformed and could no longer be used.

However, the Meteorite Iron small swords had at most a few tiny dents; after a little polishing back home, they would be as good as new.

There were too many common wild wolves, so Li Beichen found a vine and skillfully wove it into a rope to bundle the wolf pelts together.

This was a craft brought about by his slightly accomplished [Hunting] skill.

After finishing with all the common wild wolves and collecting the small swords scattered around, he retrieved them.

Li Beichen looked toward the greatest harvest of this hunt.

A Ninth-Grade exotic beast, the Black Wolf.