"Discovering" the Abyss Wolf's Habits

At the entrance of the spiral staircase on the second floor.

Chen Yu was trembling uncontrollably, not from fear, but from a massive surge of shock and adrenaline that rushed to his head like a torrent of boiling blood.

In common parlance, his scalp was tingling.

His phone screen was still frozen on the final frame of Lin Yi dragging his blood-dripping staff back into Hongfu Restaurant, with the terrified, retreating Abyss Wolves at the edge of the plaza in the background.

"Holy shit. Holy, holy shit!"

Chen Yu jerked his head up to look at Zhou Jianjun beside him. "Uncle, did you see that? Did you see it! Seven! Seven of them! In less than a minute, Brother Yi took them all down by himself with just a few moves! This is like he's got some kind of cheat code for an 'unrivaled' mode!"

Zhou Jianjun did not answer immediately.

This veteran, who had experienced border conflicts and witnessed real warfare, felt his own chest heaving violently. His lips were pressed into a thin line, and the look in his eyes was quite complex.

It was a mix of astonishment at his nephew's near-inhuman combat prowess and a lingering sense of dread.

Zhou Jianjun gripped the edge of his crude wooden shield tightly, the rough splinters digging painfully into his palm. He used that sharp sting to barely suppress the turbulent emotions in his heart.

Because heavy footsteps, accompanied by the faint clinking of armor, were already echoing from the stairwell.

Soon, Lin Yi's figure reappeared on the spiral staircase.

His mighty "Heaven-Equaling Battle Armor" was newly coated in dark red bloodstains and grayish-black powder, and several gruesome claw marks on the chest and leg plates looked shocking in the dim light.

He walked up the steps one by one with a steady gait, but once he reached the second-floor landing, he stood still.

"A-Yu."

Lin Yi's voice was somewhat hoarse. He stopped at the stairwell and, instead of moving further, asked urgently, "Did you finish recording? Did you turn it off?"

"Off, it's off! I turned it off right after you finished fighting to save battery. But Brother Yi, from the moment you went downstairs until you came back in, I didn't miss a single second! It's crystal clear!"

Chen Yu snapped out of his daze and hurriedly held up his phone to show him, muttering, "That was so damn cool! It's even better than game CG."

"That's good."

Hearing that the video was off, Lin Yi finally relaxed.

As he spoke, he leaned against the nearby wall, propped his heavy black iron staff against it, and then braced his hands on his knees. He hunched over, gasping for air, while sweat mixed with blood dripped from his temples onto the cold floor tiles.

Chen Yu paused for a moment, then realized what was happening. A smile tugged at his lips as he thought, You kid, you're exhausted to the point of collapse and still trying to act cool.

He was just about to step forward to help when he saw Zhou Jianjun dash to Lin Yi's side in a single stride. He looked as if he wanted to support him but was afraid to apply too much pressure, asking anxiously, "Xiao Yi! How do you feel? Are you hurt anywhere?"

Zhou Jianjun's gaze scanned Lin Yi's body urgently, focusing especially on the torn sections of the armor.

Lin Yi took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and then straightened his back. "I-I'm fine, Uncle. It's just that my Source Energy consumption was a bit high in a short time."

Hearing this, the stone in Zhou Jianjun's heart dropped, and his tone took on the characteristic reproach of an elder:

"You—you kid, you're too reckless! Why did you have to kill that last one? If it ran, let it run; there will be other chances. Those beasts outside are all watching!"

"What if—what if you provoked them and they swarmed you all at once? You..." His tone carried a hint of lingering fear. "Two fists can't fight four hands! No matter how good you are at fighting, you can't handle that many jumping on you at once!"

Lin Yi looked at his uncle's anxious face, wiped the sweat and blood from his own, and grinned, pulling a somewhat cunning smile. "Uncle, don't worry, I have it under control. The reason I insisted on killing that beast and going out to pick up the crystal and the staff was, first, I couldn't lose my weapon, and second... I wanted to test something."

He paused to steady his breathing, his gaze sweeping over Chen Yu and Zhou Jianjun.

"After these two encounters, I've discovered that these monsters aren't just shaped like wolves." Lin Yi's expression turned grave. "They have tactical coordination; they probe, they call for backup. Those last two were clearly scared and wanted to run. They have a cunning and instinct similar to wolves."

"So..."

Zhou Jianjun looked thoughtful.

"That's why I wanted to test them. If I could verify my hypothesis, it would be good to tell everyone in the video later."

Lin Yi tilted his head slightly, gesturing toward the main entrance downstairs. "I walked out there openly on purpose just to see how they would react to me picking up the loot right under their noses. Would they be completely enraged and charge regardless of the cost? Or would they be intimidated?"

"And as you saw, Uncle, they just stared and growled, and even seemed to back away a bit. What does that mean? It means they are bullies by nature, and more importantly, that my killing spree just now scared them! They know there's a tough nut to crack here, and they won't dare to come up easily again."

"That's their nature!"

Lin Yi caught his breath and continued, "Besides, I dared to go out not because I was reckless, but because I still had one more burst of blue light left in me. If the situation had turned bad and the beasts really dared to charge, I could have retreated immediately. They weren't that close, and we still had time to fall back to Fujin Hall."

Zhou Jianjun listened to Lin Yi's logical, almost battlefield-analysis-style explanation, and his feelings were quite complex.

He stared fixedly at the exhausted youth with the damaged armor before him, as if seeing his nephew for the first time.

Was this really the same boy who used to secretly practice staff techniques to show off after his college entrance exams?

He was clearly a warrior tempered in blood and fire!

Having participated in combat at the border, Zhou Jianjun wasn't surprised by such a change in his nephew; there were plenty of soldiers who seemed like different people after a single battle.

He only felt a pang of regret that his nephew, having just turned eighteen, had to experience such life-or-death struggles, and that the wisdom he should have been using for his studies was now being used to dissect the habits of enemies.

"You..."

Zhou Jianjun was silent for a moment, finally letting out a heavy sigh and patting Lin Yi on the shoulder. "You kid... your mind is sharper than this old veteran's! But... next time, it's best to give a heads-up."

Chen Yu, who had been listening from the side, finally couldn't help but chime in: "Brother Yi! How does your brain even work? You can actually study monster habits while fighting them? Awesome! That's just too awesome! And that video..."

"Let's go back first. We'll talk about it when we're back."

Lin Yi waved his hand, cutting him off.

Although everything had been under control, fighting while intentionally holding back was exhausting. Moreover, given his physical limits and total Source Energy, he was indeed reaching his breaking point.

Lin Yi leaned on his knees for a moment to catch his breath before beckoning the other two.

"Let's go, back to the hall first."

The side door of Fujin Hall was pushed open a crack with extreme caution, then quickly widened.

As the figures of Lin Yi, Zhou Jianjun, and Chen Yu appeared in the doorway, the tension and oppressive atmosphere that had permeated the hall were instantly shattered.

"Xiao Yi!"

"Son!"

Lin Ruiming and Zhou Jinghua rushed over almost simultaneously.

Seeing the fresh bloodstains and damage on her son's armor, tears welled up in Zhou Jinghua's eyes instantly; her hands trembled as she reached out, yet she dared not touch him.

Lin Ruiming grabbed Lin Yi's arm, his voice tight: "How is it? You weren't hurt this time, were you? Quickly, take off the armor so we can check!"

"Dad, Mom, I'm really fine. This armor is sturdy; it just looks scary," Lin Yi hurriedly reassured them. "With the armor blocking it, nothing reached me inside, but I do need to take it off and clean it up after I finish recording the video."

"Brother!"

Seeing Lin Yi return, Zhou Mengmeng broke free from her aunt's embrace and charged over like a little cannonball, clinging tightly to his arm with a look of pure adoration on her small face.

The uncle's family, Zhou Yuxuan, Ye Qingyu, Zhao Xiaowen, and Li Jie—almost everyone gathered around, concerned about Lin Yi's condition.

Ye Qingyu stood slightly behind the crowd, her clear eyes following Lin Yi's figure closely. Only when she saw that his eyes were bright despite his exhaustion did she quietly heave a sigh of relief.

"Xiao Yi, what about the monsters guarding below?"

Seeing that Lin Yi was unharmed, Lin Ruiheng asked at the right moment. His voice was not loud, but it instantly drew everyone's focus.

Lin Yi did not speak; he simply raised his left hand, which he had been clenching tightly, and slowly opened it.

Resting quietly in his palm were seven Spirit Radiance Crystals, each emitting a faint gray glow.