Reporting to the Chieftain

Frost covered the ground, freezing it hard. Anyang Province lay at the far north of the continent, after all... and winters here were even colder.

"You're not going into the Destruction Mountain Range today?" Zong Ling asked as he strolled alongside Dongbo Xueying. "Is it because you killed the Shadow Leopard and are getting ready to head back?"

The Shadow Leopard's corpse was worth over a hundred thousand gold coins.

Dongbo Xueying had achieved the most important goal of his trip to the Destruction Mountain Range—earning tuition money for his younger brother!

"No." Dongbo Xueying smiled. "My spear technique improved after my fight with the Shadow Leopard. I practiced through the night without resting. I'm going to work on my spear technique a little more... then get a good night's sleep. Tomorrow, when I'm fully rested, I'll go back into the Destruction Mountain Range and wipe out the Silver Moon Wolf Pack!"

"Wipe out the Silver Moon Wolf Pack? Are you sure you can do that?" Zong Ling was startled.

"I'm sure." Dongbo Xueying nodded.

Before his breakthrough, his chances of defeating the entire Silver Moon Wolf Pack had been less than one in ten. The odds of dying had been very high.

But now?

His spear technique had improved by leaps and bounds. Even without activating his Strength Bloodline, he could reach the Ten-Spear Realm! Before, he had only been at the Five-Spear Realm... This was a qualitative improvement!

"As long as you're sure." Zong Ling felt relieved. He was happy to see Xue Ying growing stronger.

Around midday the next day.

In a shadowy forest in the Destruction Mountain Range, wolves howled from all directions, their cries rising and falling—some frightened, others furious.

Silver Moon Wolves lay dead all over the place.

The enormous Silver Moon Wolf King stood atop a boulder, roaring in fury as wave after wave of Silver Moon Wolves charged at a black-clad youth.

"Die."

The black-clad youth advanced.

Snowflakes drifted through the air, and his spear flashed like icy shadows. With every flicker, another Silver Moon Wolf fell! Each had been pierced through the throat, head, or another vital spot.

His spear technique was simply too fast. No matter how wildly the Silver Moon Wolves attacked, they couldn't break through Dongbo Xueying's spear's reach. Any that dared approach died!

This Silver Moon Wolf Pack dominated the surrounding area. The other magical beasts didn't dare provoke them, and even human armies suffered heavy casualties whenever they encountered the pack during a sweep. Silver Moon Wolves were large and powerful, and they fought without fear of death. They were like two or three hundred Heaven-Rank Knights attacking at once—a true nightmare.

But now...

Dongbo Xueying had become the Silver Moon Wolves' nightmare.

"Die. Die." Dongbo Xueying showed no mercy as he killed them.

Magical beasts were enemies of all humankind.

That was why human armies went on sweep after sweep. Magical beasts repeatedly slaughtered human towns, and such attacks were common whenever humans were weak.

"Roar!" The Silver Moon Wolf King finally charged out, rushing toward Dongbo Xueying.

"Just what I wanted."

Dongbo Xueying's eyes lit up.

"Get out of my way!" The spear in Dongbo Xueying's hands moved like a nimble flood dragon, sweeping from side to side. The Silver Moon Wolves on either side were knocked flying or sent tumbling to the ground.

As a Spear Technique Master, he controlled the force of his spear with incredible precision.

Parting Grass to Seek Snake!

As his spear swept back and forth, the Silver Moon Wolves parted like grass, and Dongbo Xueying charged straight toward the Silver Moon Wolf King.

The Silver Moon Wolf King was alarmed. It had intended to attack alongside its pack, but the force of the human youth charging toward it filled it with fear. It even wanted to turn and flee.

But it was too late.

Whoosh! The spear spun through the air and thrust toward it.

The Silver Moon Wolf King leaped with all its strength, dodging the strike. The spear passed beneath its body.

"Up you go."

Dongbo Xueying suddenly put his strength into the weapon.

The spear's fierce thrust turned into a powerful upward swing! It slammed into the Silver Moon Wolf King's underside with a deep thud. The beast let out a shrill howl as blood seeped from its mouth and nose. Its body tumbled through the air and crashed to the side.

Whoosh! A spear thrust as fast as lightning chased after it and pierced its throat through the fur.

The enormous Wolf King was pinned to the ground.

Its body struggled feebly.

The more than a hundred remaining Silver Moon Wolves retreated in alarm. This black-clad human youth was terrifying.

"Awooo!" "Awooo!" The Silver Moon Wolves cried out in panic, turned, and scattered.

"Beautiful, Xue Ying. I didn't expect you to handle the entire Silver Moon Wolf Pack so easily." Zong Ling appeared as well.

"My spear technique is well suited to dealing with groups." Dongbo Xueying smiled.

"Let's hurry and harvest the materials," Zong Ling said. "There's so much blood in the air. Even though we're in the Silver Moon Wolf Pack's territory, other magical beasts will come if we stay too long. Leave the butchering to me. I'm much more experienced than you."

Clang, clang, clang...

Zong Ling drew six blades in an instant. His six arms moved, and the Silver Moon Wolf King's corpse was quickly cut apart.

"This is the Silver Moon Heart." Dongbo Xueying immediately stored it in an iron box, then put it into his Storage Pendant. The Shadow Leopard's corpse already took up most of the pendant's space, but there was still enough room for a few small items.

After gathering some precious materials,

they also removed the entire pelt of the Silver Moon Wolf King.

"It's a pity. The Wolf King's meat would fetch a high price too, but we have to leave it behind." Zong Ling shook his head.

The Silver Moon Wolf King's body yielded nearly twenty thousand pounds of meat. It was so large—how could they carry it? And even if they could bear that much weight, how would they walk? Besides, the smell of blood would certainly attract more magical beasts.

"Let's go."

Zong Ling folded the Wolf King's pelt and tied it up with a cloth strap. It was taller than a person!

"This pelt must weigh nearly two thousand pounds," Zong Ling said in amazement.

"I'll carry it." Dongbo Xueying was strong and didn't mind the two thousand pounds.

He hoisted the enormous folded pelt onto his back, the Wolf King's head hanging off to one side. Its fur was snowy white and beautiful, with a richer sheen and an even brighter white than the fur of an ordinary Silver Moon Wolf. Many nobles liked it as material for clothing. Spread across a bed or floor, it made a bold display; hung on a wall, it was a valuable collector's piece.

Not counting the other materials, the Silver Moon Wolf King's pelt alone was worth about fifty thousand gold coins. Naturally, they had to carry it back.

"Let's go home," Dongbo Xueying said with a smile.

"Right, let's go home." Zong Ling was happy too. They had truly gained a lot from this trip to the Destruction Mountain Range.

******

The Curved Blade Alliance.

Their hideout was extremely well concealed, inside the heart of a mountain, just over two hundred miles from the mountain's outer slopes.

"One-Ear, I heard the Luo Family refused to pay up this time?" Two bandits were crouched in the wild grass atop a mountain near the hideout, keeping watch as they chatted.

"The Luo Family says they'll only pay half! Otherwise, they'll fight us to the death," said the lean, one-eared man beside him.

"Do you think the Luo Family's been squeezed so hard they're running out of money?"

"Damn them! The chieftain said not a single copper coin less. If they dare refuse, we'll go on a killing spree in the Luo Family's territory next time! Wipe out a few villages, and they'll learn to be afraid! Those damned nobles never learn until they see the coffin," the one-eared bandit cursed under his breath.

"Look! Someone's there!"

"Huh? Someone actually dared to enter the Destruction Mountain Range!"

The two bandits on watch were both startled.

More than ten bandits kept watch around the hideout, but their main concern was magical beasts. As for humans? No one had attacked their hideout in a very long time. And when human armies came to sweep the area, they had friends in the army who warned them in advance. They always left the mountains and waited somewhere outside whenever a major operation was planned.

"Look, isn't that the Six-Armed Snake Demon? Six-Armed Snake Demon Zong Ling of the Snow Eagle Territory!" The one-eared bandit recognized him at once. This Six-Armed Snake Demon was a master who had fought their own chieftain and survived.

"And the youth beside him has such a beautiful pelt on his back! It's much finer than any ordinary Silver Moon Wolf pelt we've seen. And it's so huge! It must be a Silver Moon Wolf King's."

The two bandits exchanged a glance.

A Silver Moon Wolf King's pelt?

It was worth nearly fifty thousand gold coins—about as much as the entire Snow Eagle Territory would fetch if sold.

"Such beautiful snow-white fur. So white, so big, so lustrous... It has to be a Silver Moon Wolf King. It has to be."

"One-Ear, hurry and report to the chieftain! I'll keep watch here."

Both bandits were so excited they were practically drooling.

This was an enormous score.

But whether to take the Silver Moon Wolf King's pelt was for the chieftain to decide.