Wolf Demon Spy (2)

(It's the weekend again. An Hei usual, I wish everyone a happy weekend. By the way, please vote! I saw some big names showing off their royalties today, and I An Hei chickened out. I can only chant a calming mantra and then focus on writing!)

"Our mission is to kill monsters, so we can't let it go. I suggest we use a counter-strategy to lure it out and kill it. Maybe we can even trigger other hidden quests..."

None of those present were fools; upon hearing Li Wei's analysis, they immediately understood what he meant. Clearly, if they could capture the demon disguised as a human, they could, with a little manipulation, perhaps uncover its purpose in infiltrating Qingzhou Prefecture. And in the mission world, nothing happens without a reason. Based on experience, this was likely a condition for unlocking a hidden mission, just like the 'Revitalize Soaring Dragon' mission that Li Wei received, which was triggered only under specific conditions.

For Li Wei and his group right now, they have to seize any opportunity to become stronger, and the rewards for hidden missions are generally higher than those for main missions, so this is a clue they absolutely must grasp.

The consensus was quickly reached, and only one thing remained: how to capture the monster.

Judging from the strength displayed by the opponent today, this is a monster with combat power at least at the B level. Although it is not much stronger than the Black Bear Monster, it has the advantage of being intelligent.

In this way, the human wave tactics used against the Black Bear Monster may not be effective, because a smart enemy will definitely attack the weakest one, and if it finds itself outmatched and in danger, it may run away.

So Li Wei then focused on devising tactics.

Time passed second by second. Zheng Yutong wanted to use her identity to return to the government office to investigate the monster's movements, but Li Wei stopped her. After all, if Zheng Yutong went out alone, she might become the monster's target. The monster had already locked onto several targets with spiritual energy, and if it found that one of them was alone, it would definitely make a move.

Thinking of this, Li Wei's eyes lit up, for he had come up with a solution.

... After a day of bustling activity Wandering Dragon Sect gradually returned to calm. As dusk fell, a woman dressed as a constable walked out of the Wandering Dragon Sect. After bidding farewell to the Wandering Dragon Sect at the gate, she turned into a small alley and headed towards the government office.

The female constable staggered as she walked, reeking of alcohol, which could be smelled from a distance, indicating she had consumed some food and drink. She swayed through two narrow alleys and emerged onto a wide road. By now, there were very few pedestrians, and the shops were all closed. The female constable glanced around, then entered another alley—a shortcut. Passing through this roughly 100-meter-long alley would take her directly back to the government office.

At this hour, the night was deepening, and some clouds in the sky occasionally obscured the already dim moonlight. Inside the alley, there were no candles, and it was pitch black. The female constable felt her way along the wall and slowly walked forward. Before long, she reached the middle of the alley. She only needed to walk a little further to get out of the alley.

At this moment, for some unknown reason, the alley was unusually quiet. Apart from her own footsteps, there was not a sound. The female constable finally sensed something was wrong. But when she suddenly looked up, she found that there was a figure in the alley ahead.

Xiao Zuanfeng was extremely excited. Just a dozen meters away was a target with spiritual energy. He remembered this target very clearly; her identity was a constable in the government office. He had never really discovered anything about this constable before, only assuming she was a female constable with high martial arts skills. If he hadn't discovered those few strands of spiritual energy during his competition with the disciple of the Wandering Dragon Sect today, he might have missed this incredible opportunity.

So he waited Wandering Dragon Sect, and when the female constable came out, he followed her here.

"Hehe, let's start with her. Although it's only a wisp of spiritual energy, it's enough for me to cultivate for several months. It's not much, but today I discovered more than just this one wisp... Besides, apart from that kid Wandering Dragon Sect, the others are all beautiful young women. I'll drain their spiritual energy and bring them all back to 'Hundred Wolf Cave' for my pleasure. Wouldn't that be like being a god? Then, by absorbing those few wisps of spiritual energy, I'll have a chance to become a 'Captain,' and I won't have to put up with that Black Wind guy's whims anymore. Let him do this hard work of infiltrating the human world as a spy; I'm not doing it!" Xiao Zuanfeng's heart was filled with boundless joy, but he stared intently at the female constable with his pair of bright green eyes. The female constable was obviously terrified and instinctively ran away. Xiao Zuanfeng wouldn't let her have her way.

"Little beauty, wait until I drain your spiritual energy, then I'll let you taste what it means to be in ecstasy, hehehe!" Thinking this, Xiao Zuanfeng suddenly chased after him.

His speed was clearly beyond human capabilities; he was behind the female constable in the blink of an eye, and then extended his claws to grab her.

At that moment, the female constable suddenly turned around and struck out with lightning speed.

The palm strike was swift and ruthless, clearly prepared in advance. Xiao Zuanfeng had no time to react before the blow slammed into his face.

"This constable isn't a woman!" This thought popped into Xiao Zuanfeng's mind, and he was immediately blasted over by the Great Strength of the palm, falling three or five meters backward before coming to a stop. When he finally sat up, his face was covered in blood, and he looked utterly disheveled.

"It's you?" When the clouds drifted away and the moonlight shone down, Xiao Zuanfeng finally saw the 'female constable' clearly. It wasn't the delicate beauty he had imagined, but a man. Xiao Zuanfeng had seen this man before; they had even sparred just a few hours ago.

Xiao Zuanfeng felt that his nose was broken; warm blood was flowing from his nose and mouth, and he couldn't stop it. What annoyed him most was the pain, which shot straight to his head, giving him an urge to scream and vent his anger. But more than these feelings, he wanted to know why the female constable from earlier had turned into the man he had sparred with that afternoon.

"How could it be you? Where is that woman?" Xiao Zuanfeng murmured, his nose almost flattened by that slap.

The female constable opposite him, or rather, Li Wei disguised as Zheng Yutong, ripped off his wig, revealing a cold smile. He didn't answer, though he knew there was no need to. So he suddenly stepped forward and began his fierce attack.

Previously, in order to impersonate Zheng Yutong, Li Wei deliberately released only a wisp of spiritual energy. Combined with the darkness of night and his incredibly realistic makeup, he successfully fooled the demon. Having succeeded in his attack, how could he give it a chance to breathe? In just a moment, he unleashed dozens of palm strikes.

This demon was none other than the martial arts instructor. Although he was more skilled than Li Wei, he was struck in the face first, which greatly affected his fighting ability. Then he was subjected to a series of fierce attacks and could only passively defend for a time. Just as he was feeling extremely annoyed and wanted to retaliate after taking a few blows, several cold lights suddenly shot out from the corner.

The cold light was incredibly fast, reaching the monster's back in the blink of an eye. Although the monster noticed it, it was too late to dodge. With a few soft 'thuds', the cold light struck its target.

These flashes of cold light were actually several sharp daggers, which pierced several inches into the monster's back, splattering blood everywhere and causing the monster to scream in agony.

"Swallow, what a fine throwing knife!" Li Wei exclaimed sincerely upon seeing this, his attacks becoming even more ferocious. Xue Yan, standing in the corner at a distance, smiled slightly before quickly disappearing into the darkness. She had other things to do; of course, everything she did was simply to carry out the plan laid out by Li Wei and the An Hei Lord.

Sensing several figures flashing overhead, Li Wei knew it was time. With a roar, he unleashed the full power of his two streams of spiritual energy, unleashing the Great Strength Divine Demon Art and the Wandering Dragon Palm to attack the demon before him. Under such overwhelming force, the demon was forced to retreat.

Li Wei appeared to have the upper hand, but this was only a superficial appearance. Li Wei knew that the demon still possessed sufficient fighting power. Relying on its formidable physical strength and demonic energy, as long as it maintained its footing, it could launch a counterattack. Therefore, it was necessary to subdue it as soon as possible. Behind the demon, a rope was secretly thrown down, forming a rope loop with a diameter of about one meter.

"It's time!" Li Wei suddenly lowered his head, while Xue Yan, who had already circled behind Li Wei, swiftly unleashed three cold flashes of light. The demon, seeing the flying knives hurtling towards it, hurriedly retreated. However, it did not notice that as it retreated, one of its feet stepped right into the noose.

"Pull!" Li Wei roared, and the other fat man and Blood Wolf grabbed the other end of the rope and pulled hard, securing one of the monster's feet firmly in the noose.

"Not good!" The monster was startled and tried to resist, but it felt a strange noise coming from above. When it looked up, it saw a large net falling down on it... Old Xu was in charge of the night watch. This day, he went out of his house as usual to start his work. However, when he got close to the Fortune Comes Inn, he saw a group of people dragging a large cloth bag from the opposite side and then quickly walking into the Fortune Comes Inn.

"Hey, isn't this the manager of Fortune Comes Inn? It's already past midnight... What are you doing here?" Old Xu asked as soon as he saw a familiar figure.

The owner of Fortune Comes Inn was Fatty.

He was covered in sweat. The monster was wrapped tightly in a rope net and a black cloth bag, but it was still causing a ruckus. He and Blood Wolf Li Wei had exhausted all their strength to drag the monster to the entrance of the inn, but unexpectedly, they were bumped into by someone.

But how could this situation possibly stump the fat man? He glanced at Old Xu with obvious impatience and said, "Damn it, some old men in the city want to eat wild game. So, I asked a few hunters to hunt down a big wild boar, and it's still alive. What? You want to take a look?"

Before the fat man could finish speaking, the tightly bound monster stirred, whether in protest against the fat man calling it a wild boar or something else, it was impossible to tell. But no matter how much it struggled, it couldn't break free.

Old Xu night watchman, quickly waved his hand. "How dare I! You are a distinguished guest, sir! I, an old man, would never dare to look at that wild beast!"

Having said that, he took his night watchman's implement and left, but kept looking back as he went, clearly very curious.

"Let's go in!" Li Wei led the way into the inn, followed by the others. The bound demon was naturally dragged into the courtyard as well.

After closing the door, the fat man led everyone into the small courtyard where he lived, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

The hunt was a great success. Using a trap, they captured the martial arts instructor who was disguised as a human alive. All that remained was the interrogation.

This process was not easy, but fortunately, An Hei, the former head of a secret national department, was there. In less than half an hour, he and Blood Wolf emerged from the dark room.

"Have you asked everything clearly?" Li Wei looked at the An Hei and asked.

The latter nodded and began to recount the information he and Blood Wolf had obtained through interrogation. The one who impersonated Chengren, the martial arts instructor, was a wolf demon named Xiao Zuanfeng, from the Hundred Wolf Cave of Quyin Mountain, a hundred miles away. Xiao Zuanfeng could disguise himself as Chengren using a treasure from the Hundred Wolf Cave called Illusion Bone Wood. His mission was to infiltrate Qingzhou Prefecture and secretly capture some young boys and girls with spiritual roots, because the Wolf King of the Hundred Wolf Cave had reached a bottleneck and urgently needed young boys and girls with spiritual roots to replenish his energy.

Upon hearing this, Zheng Yutong and the other women all revealed murderous intent. Such a monster that feeds on children deserves to die a hundred times over. Li Wei, however, was wondering whether they would gain anything from this unexpected intelligence.

Soon, everyone heard a sound of elevation.

"Hidden Quest Triggered: Slay the Wolf King. The Wolf King of the Hundred Wolf Cave in Quyin Mountain is ferocious and cruel, fond of eating young boys and girls. His crimes are heinous, and the Heavenly Realm wishes to exterminate him. A punitive order has been issued, calling upon righteous men throughout the land to vanquish him. Successfully slaying this demon will reward you with a Celestial Sacred Fruit..."

"The Celestial Sacred Fruit blossoms every hundred years and bears fruit every thousand years. Mortals who consume it can undergo a complete transformation, gaining 500 years of lifespan. Cultivators who consume it can instantly attain the Heavenly Dao and ascend to immortality. Immortals who consume it will have their immortal rank elevated and their magical power boundless!"

Upon hearing this hint, everyone was dumbfounded.

"This Celestial Sacred Fruit reward is ridiculously overpowered!" Li Wei thought for a moment, then realized that compared to it, the Hades Fruit, which he considered his most treasured possession, was like comparing heaven and earth. Since this opportunity could trigger a hidden quest, wouldn't it be a lifelong regret not to give it a try? Moreover, for Li Wei, this was simply a choice that didn't require any consideration.

"The Hundred Wolf Cave, the Wolf King, the Celestial Sacred Fruit... This is an opportunity, but also a deadly trap!" An Hei glanced at the crowd and spoke up.

His remarks were like a bucket of cold water poured on everyone, instantly dampening their excitement.

"You need to understand, we don't possess our previous combat strength right now. We're no different from newcomers to Shadow Street, starting almost from scratch. Although our abilities have been enhanced, our highest combat strength is only C-rank, while the wolf demon in the house has close to B-rank strength. Moreover, from the wolf demon's words, I learned about their strength ranking..."

An Hei paused, then continued, "The lowest rank is the wolf demon... then the centurion... then the captain... the Wolf King's guards, and finally, the Wolf King himself. Do the math, the Wolf King's combat strength is at least A3 level, maybe even... S level. If we still had our strength, killing it would be a piece of cake. But in this weakened state, killing Wolf King that might be S level is tantamount to suicide... That's why I said this is both a chance to rise to the top and a deadly trap!"

Hearing this analysis, everyone calmed down. Indeed, with their current strength, trying to take down the Wolf King was simply a pipe dream.

"Where's Li Wei?" An Hei suddenly realized that Li Wei had disappeared just now. His previous words were mainly meant for Li Wei. After all, among these people, Li Wei was the one who most wanted to improve his strength quickly. It's no exaggeration to say that Li Wei was under the greatest pressure of all of them. Even An Hei himself could not fully understand Li Wei's state of mind.

"What you're saying is simply to prevent Li Wei from taking risks. But don't forget, he's not you, he's Li Wei. Even if there's only a one in ten thousand chance of survival, he'll still try." Zheng Yutong smiled. If we're talking about understanding, she's one of the people who understands Li Wei the most.

An Hei knew all this perfectly well; he simply gave a bitter smile and said nothing more.

Soon, Li Wei, who had just disappeared, emerged from the small, dark room where the wolf demon was imprisoned. He held a waist token in his hand and waved it in front of everyone.

"This is Xiao Zuanfeng's waist tag. It's said that there are countless wolf demons in the Hundred Wolf Cave, so they made these kinds of identification tokens. Perhaps we can use this to get close to the Wolf King..."

Upon seeing the waist token, the group's eyes initially lit up, but after careful consideration, they became dejected. Even with the token, what good would it do? Infiltrating the Hundred Wolf Cave wouldn't guarantee they wouldn't be recognized. And even if they encountered the Wolf King, could their current fighting strength possibly defeat Wolf King?

The answer is definitely no, absolutely not.

Seeing the expressions on everyone's faces, Li Wei knew exactly what they were thinking. This time, in order to make the mission rewards better, he had used the Rule Codex to modify the mission rewards, all for the sake of obtaining Hades Fruit. However, everyone, including himself, had their combat power and abilities stripped away. In a way, he was the one who had dragged them down.

However, all of this was in order to deal with the Main God Mordor. If he played by the rules, it would be a pipe dream to defeat Mordor. Therefore, Li Wei had no choice but to take an unconventional approach.

Now that they have the opportunity to obtain a better Celestial Sacred Fruit, Li Wei will not give it up no matter what. However, just as everyone was worried, given their current combat strength, they probably couldn't even defeat a wolf spirit captain, let alone the Wolf King.

Holding the wooden waist tag, Li Wei clenched his fist.

Is there really no other way? Are we really going to just watch this opportunity, which could potentially lead to instant success, slip away?

Back at the Wandering Dragon Sect, Li Wei didn't sleep, but instead thought about it all night. But no matter how he thought about it, the difference in strength was undeniable. The other person was S-rank, while he was merely C-rank. Even if he stood there and let him kill him, he probably couldn't do it.

Therefore, all the problems stem from 'strength'; without sufficient strength, nothing you say will make a difference.