The Gray Wolf King (Seeking Collection, Seeking Recommendation)

Zhao Fu sent two men to herd the group of green oxen back, and the party continued on their way. Suddenly, a rustling sound emerged from the grass to one side. Everyone stopped in their tracks, and a Fierce Fire Rabbit leaped out from the brush. This one was smaller than the one they had killed previously.

The Fierce Fire Rabbit had a truly volatile temper; the moment it appeared, it dared to launch an attack against Zhao Fu's large group, firing a fireball toward them.

The shield-bearers stepped forward, raising their shields to block the projectile. The power of the fireball merely knocked the shield-bearer back a single step, causing virtually no damage.

Zhao Fu ordered his archers to attack. Facing a barrage of arrows, the Fierce Fire Rabbit dodged nimbly, but the outcome was inevitable; it was riddled with arrows and killed. However, no elemental orb dropped upon its death, which left Zhao Fu somewhat disappointed.

They continued forward and soon encountered over thirty black goats. Using traps, they successfully captured them, and the following days proceeded much the same way.

By now, they had tamed quite a few beasts: 36 wild boars, 85 green oxen, and 215 black goats.

They had yet to obtain a single magic-type skill, nor had they found any trace of horses. Over the past few days, Wang Dawu had basically finished simple repairs on all the weapons obtained from the rifts, and the iron armor had been restored as well.

Their equipment had been completely renewed. The thirty men under Zhao Fu's command were now mostly equipped with blue-quality weapons for the archers and shield-bearers, while the infantry were almost entirely outfitted with blue-quality gear.

Once Wang Dawu finished these repairs, Zhao Fu ordered him to craft special equipment. This gear had been designed through consultations between Zhao Fu, Bai Qi, and Li Si, specifically for dealing with skeletons.

As for the present, Zhao Fu continued leading his men to explore the interior of the Terror Forest, hoping to encounter more magical beasts or discover horses.

While passing through a valley, several gray wolves suddenly charged out, only to be quickly shot down by the archers. Zhao Fu became slightly interested in the valley and decided to go in and take a look.

It was a good thing he did, for he discovered a lair. Zhao Fu hid on a distant hillside to observe, not daring to get too close.

Inside the valley below lay a flat expanse of nearly three thousand meters overgrown with weeds. In the center of this clearing stood a platform built of stone bricks, much like the Land of Origin found in ordinary villages, but a stone carving shaped like a wolf floated above it.

The platform was surrounded by a large pack of gray wolves playing and brawling in the valley. There were many of them—at least four hundred, perhaps nearly five hundred—including one at the level of a wolf king. It was as large as a tiger, with sleek gray fur, sharp eyes, and a tuft of silver hair atop its head.

Although he hadn't found any magical beasts or signs of horses, this discovery still brought Zhao Fu a pleasant surprise.

He immediately led his men back to assemble his forces, totaling 326 soldiers, and headed toward the Gray Wolf Valley.

At first, Zhao Fu naturally did not choose to attack directly. Unless he could create an overwhelming situation, he would not opt for a head-on assault, so he initially had his men lie in wait.

He had them set up traps to lure the gray wolves out. It was quite simple: use fresh meat to attract them. The traps didn't need to be too close, just at a reasonable distance, as wolves had a keen sense of smell. This would ensure they only lured out a dozen or so at a time.

This time, Zhao Fu killed a few wild deer, carefully cut them into pieces, and splattered a large amount of blood on the ground. To ensure the success of the trap, those who set it had to roll in the mud to mask their scent, while also carrying garlic and chili to further confuse the wolves' noses.

The plan was a success. Before long, the scent of blood drew out a dozen gray wolves. The wolves were still very cautious; they didn't pounce on the deer meat immediately, but instead sniffed from a distance. Only after sensing no danger did they slowly approach.

The pack reached the deer meat but didn't eat it right away, lowering their heads to sniff again. If Zhao Fu had used poison, it wouldn't have worked. Just as the wolves, having found no danger, were about to start eating:

"Swish! Swish! Swish..."

Arrows flew from the forest toward the pack. The wolves were startled and turned to flee, but most were shot down. A few escaped the rain of arrows, only to be intercepted by the men Zhao Fu had positioned in advance.

Suddenly, one gray wolf stopped, lifted its head, and prepared to howl. Zhao Fu was alarmed; a howl would surely draw out the entire pack, causing the plan to fail. He hurriedly drew his bow and fired.

The arrow traced an arc through the air, flashing with a cold glint.

"Puchi!"

The arrow buried itself directly into the wolf's neck. The beast collapsed, choked, twitched once, and died. Zhao Fu immediately ordered his men to quickly finish off the others before they could make a sound.

The men obeyed, swiftly dispatching the remaining wolves. They continued using this method to lure out small groups, though they proceeded with even greater caution.

In this manner, they killed 213 gray wolves. With so many dead, the Gray Wolf King in the valley sensed something was wrong. It stood up, walked onto a large rock, and raised its head high!

"Awoooo!"

A massive howl echoed through the valley. All the gray wolves that had been playing or eating stopped their activities and responded by tilting their heads back to howl!

"Awoooo! Awoooo! Awoooo..."

The chorus of howls was deafening, startling countless birds in the valley into flight.

Zhao Fu had his soldiers form ranks. With heavy, rhythmic footsteps and an oppressive, murderous aura unique to an army, they marched into the valley.

The Gray Wolf King stood on the large rock, its eyes fixed on Zhao Fu's group. It let out an angry howl, and the wolves charged recklessly toward them. Three hundred gray wolves surged forward like a gray flood.

"Form ranks!"

Zhao Fu shouted. The spearmen and shield-bearers marched forward three steps with heavy, thudding footfalls, pointing their spears toward the charging wolves. The archers drew their bows, and the goblins readied their crossbows.

"Fire!"

Seeing the pack enter range, Zhao Fu shouted.

"Swish! Swish! Swish..."

The sound of arrows piercing the air rang out as a rain of projectiles flew toward the charging pack.

"Thwack! Thwack! Thwack..."

The arrows fell like raindrops, striking down wolf after wolf, though others continued to charge forward, undeterred.

"Fire!"

Zhao Fu shouted again.

Another volley of arrows flew out, shrouding the pack and felling more wolves.

By now, the pack had reached them, lunging at the soldiers. But the men thrust their spears forward in unison.

"Thwack! Thwack! Thwack..."

Blood sprayed as the wolves were impaled. A single wolf was not particularly strong; it was the pack that was dangerous. But after two volleys of arrows, only about 150 wolves remained. While still a pack, Zhao Fu now outnumbered them two-to-one, and with his complete array of unit types and solid defenses, the battle was almost entirely one-sided.

The Gray Wolf King could no longer watch. Its body blurred into a black shadow as it charged toward Zhao Fu's group.