Hunting Demonic Beasts (Seeking Follow-ups, Seeking Monthly Votes)

The giant wolf was nearly five meters long, its entire body covered in crimson fur like burning flames, gleaming red beneath the sunlight.

Its muscles bulged, its four limbs powerful and strong. Every time it landed, it left deep claw marks in the ground, and the fierce wind it stirred up swept sand and stones into the air, howling toward them.

"The Red Flame Wolf is a demonic beast. This one has already reached the seventh level of the first tier. Do not be careless," Luo Siqing warned aloud.

Those that survived in the wild were demons; those raised by humans were spirits.

Demonic beasts possessed astonishing strength and were existences that could rival immortal cultivators. They were not something martial artists could touch porcelain with.

A seventh-level first-tier demonic beast was comparable to a seventh-level Qi Refining cultivator.

"I'll do it!"

A burly man shouted and suddenly strode forward.

It was Yuan Long.

In their last spar, in a clash at the same level, he had lost to Lu Lin. That had left him uneasy, afraid Luo Siqing would look down on him, so now he was eager to show himself, to prove his worth, and thus he was the first to act.

As he charged, his qi and blood surged, wrapping the surface of the Blood Demon Battle Armor in a layer of scarlet light.

He drove the Demonic Ape Palm with all his strength and struck out with one palm. Dense qi and blood gathered in his hand, transforming into an ape's palm as huge as a palm-leaf fan, slapping fiercely toward the Red Flame Wolf.

The Red Flame Wolf likewise clawed toward Yuan Long.

Boom!

The attacks of both sides collided, erupting with a violent roar. A wave of air swept out in all directions, carrying dead branches and rotten leaves into the sky.

The next instant, Yuan Long's body shook violently and he staggered backward. A trace of pain appeared on his face, and several savage bloody gashes appeared across his palm.

He had been born with divine strength, and on top of that he possessed eighth-level Body Tempering cultivation, yet he still was no match for a seventh-level first-tier Red Flame Wolf. Moreover, the gap was not small.

This was the strength of a demonic beast.

Roar!

Having gained the upper hand, the Red Flame Wolf pressed its advantage without mercy. It sprang forward again, its sharp claws going straight for Yuan Long's throat, so fast that only a crimson afterimage remained.

Whoosh—

The sound of something tearing through the air suddenly rang out. An arrow shot over like lightning and sank precisely into the Red Flame Wolf's neck.

The force contained in the arrow was tremendous, sending the wolf's body rolling across the ground several times and splashing up a cloud of dust.

Fang Hong had acted.

He maintained his bow-drawing posture, his gaze as sharp as an eagle's.

"Careful! The wolf pack is here!" he warned loudly, urgency in his voice.

Awoo! Awoo!

Bursts of wolf howls came from the forest, rising and falling one after another, drawing closer and closer.

In the blink of an eye, five Red Flame Wolves pounced out in succession.

Their sizes differed, but all of them had vicious, feral eyes, and scorching breaths sprayed from their mouths.

The largest among them was over eight meters long, and when it stood, it was several times taller than an ordinary person. The fur all over its body was like fire.

"Take note. The strongest one is at the eighth level of the first tier. There are also two at the seventh level of the first tier and two at the sixth level of the first tier. Fang Hong, Lan Zhu, the two of you join forces against that eighth-level one. The rest of you split into groups and cooperate, each dealing with your own enemy!" Luo Siqing reminded them aloud.

What was even more alarming was that the wolf Fang Hong had shot down earlier actually swayed back to its feet. It bared its fangs, the savage light in its eyes burning even brighter, and pounced over again.

Whoosh...

Lu Lin had already drawn his bow and nocked an arrow.

He carefully forced the qi and blood he had restrained to the level of the seventh level of Body Tempering out from his fingertips and slowly infused it into the arrow.

As qi and blood flowed in, the mysterious patterns on the arrow shaft lit up one by one, pulsing like blood vessels. The arrowhead turned as scarlet as blood, faintly emitting a dangerous aura.

Buzz!

The bowstring rang, and the arrow flew. The Spirit-Breaking Arrow transformed into a streak of flowing light, heading straight for the eye of a Red Flame Wolf.

The other guards also loosed arrows one after another. More than ten arrows howled as they shot toward the wolf pack.

But these Red Flame Wolves were exceptionally agile. Some twisted aside to dodge, while others reared up on their hind legs and used their sharp claws to parry.

Most of the arrows were either avoided or knocked flying. Only the arrows of Fang Hong, Lan Zhu, and the other four tenth-level Body Tempering martial artists barely struck the wolves' bodies, but even then, they were caught in the tough muscles and failed to cause fatal injuries.

Lu Lin fired three arrows in a row, yet all of them missed. The arrows were either swept away by wolf tails or brushed past the fur, at most leaving a few shallow marks.

Only being able to use the strength of the seventh level of Body Tempering is truly stifling! he sighed inwardly.

If he could act with his full strength, he was confident his arrows would never miss—one arrow, one wolf.

After three arrows, the wolf pack was already right before them. Everyone abandoned their bows on the ground and leapt forward to meet the enemy.

The one facing Lu Lin was a sixth-level first-tier Red Flame Wolf.

This wolf was slightly smaller, but its movements were still agile.

The wolf claw tore through the air, carrying a scorching wave of heat as it grabbed straight for Lu Lin's throat.

Lu Lin circulated Savage Elephant Charge and blasted out with his right fist. In the wind of his punch, there was the faint trumpeting of a savage elephant.

Fist and claw collided, letting out a dull impact.

Amid the thunderous crash, man and wolf each retreated several steps. Lu Lin felt a burning pain spread across the surface of his fist. He looked down and saw that his skin had been scorched red by the heat.

Behind him, Luo Siqing, watching the battle, had a slight shift in her gaze as she noticed the faint white smoke rising from Lu Lin's fist.

To fight a Red Flame Wolf to a draw despite being one minor realm higher in cultivation was already rare among martial artists.

What drew her attention even more was that Lu Lin's qi and blood seemed to have grown a few degrees thicker than two months ago.

"Looks like his Demonic Ape Blood Qi Art has broken through to the fourth layer." She pondered inwardly, a trace of barely perceptible approval flashing through her eyes.

In the field, Lu Lin had already tangled with the Red Flame Wolf once more.

Each sweep of the wolf's claws brought scalding wind pressure with it, while Lu Lin met force with force using Savage Elephant Charge. Every collision shook the surrounding air until it hummed.

In the span of several breaths, the two sides had clashed head-on three times. The Red Flame Wolf suddenly reared up like a man, both claws striking out together, intent on tearing Lu Lin to shreds.

Just then, a large hand covered in battle armor smashed in from the side, striking heavily between the Red Flame Wolf's waist and belly.

The timing of this blow was grasped with extreme precision, exactly when the Red Flame Wolf's old strength had been exhausted and its new strength had yet to be born.

Caught off guard, the wolf's body flew sideways and rolled several times across the ground.

How could Lu Lin miss such a fine opportunity?

The Blood Demon Blade rang as it left its sheath, its body gleaming with a cold, blood-colored light beneath the sun. His legs abruptly exerted force, cracking the ground, and his figure shot out like an arrow. In an instant, he was already before the wolf.

The long blade turned into a blood-colored startling rainbow, cleaving toward the wolf's neck with an ear-piercing sound of cutting through the air!

Pfft!

The Blood Demon Blade, which cut iron as though it were mud, was bolstered by his thick qi and blood and forcibly split open the Red Flame Wolf's muscles, hard as iron. Wherever the blade passed, the wolf's neck was almost completely severed. Scalding fresh blood sprayed out like a fountain, splattering across Lu Lin's battle armor.

Another guard quickly caught up and added a slash, thoroughly finishing off the demonic wolf.

"Many thanks for your help, Brother Ma." Lu Lin cupped his fists.

The one who had struck was a young man with a full beard, around thirty years old, with a burly build. His name was Ma Cheng, and his cultivation had already reached the peak of the eighth layer of Body Tempering.

"We're both serving the Immortal Master, so we should naturally fight shoulder to shoulder." Ma Cheng smiled, pulled the Blood Demon Blade from the wolf's body, and brought out a spray of blood. "Be careful. These beasts are trickier than you'd imagine." With that, he leaped toward another battle group.

Lu Lin took a deep breath and followed closely behind.

Apart from Lu Lin, the other eleven people had clearly carried out missions many times before. Their coordination was seamless. In groups of two, they watched each other's backs; some took the main attack, some provided support, some lured enemies, and some launched sneak attacks.

Fang Hong and Lan Zhu cooperated even more exquisitely, attacking the eighth-layer first-rank Red Flame Wolf from left and right, driving it back step by step and leaving it covered in wounds. Killing it was only a matter of time.

One Red Flame Wolf after another fell.

Before long, the Red Flame Wolves had been dealt with one by one.

Wolf corpses lay scattered all over the ground, the blood dyeing the earth red. The air was thick with the heavy stench of blood.

"Into the mountain!" Luo Siqing waved and gave the order.

Everyone moved swiftly, retrieving their bows and carefully pulling the arrows from the wolf corpses. These Spirit-Breaking Arrows were not cheap to make, and not a single one could be lost.

Fang Hong and Lan Zhu took the lead in opening the path, and the twelve guards cut into the mountain forest like a sharp sword.

The deeper they went, the higher the temperature became.

After advancing more than a thousand meters, two more Red Flame Wolves pounced out from the forest and were shot dead by everyone using Spirit-Breaking Arrows.

They pushed forward the entire way, and more than ten Red Flame Wolves successively died at their hands.

Half an hour later, the group crossed a mountain ridge and drew close to the central mountain hollow.

The scene here had already changed greatly. The grasses and trees were sparse, replaced by jagged black strange rocks and crisscrossing lava fissures.

The ground temperature was extremely high, and even their battle boots gave off faint sizzling sounds when they stepped on it. The air warped from the heat, and waves of heat rushed toward their faces, making it hard to breathe.

Everyone had no choice but to continuously circulate their qi and blood to resist the scorching heat, and a faint glow of qi and blood rose over their bodies.

"The Wolf King is here. Spread out and use Spirit-Breaking Arrows to restrain it. I'll take the main attack." Luo Siqing suddenly spoke, her gaze already sharpening.

Before her words had finished falling, the magical artifact beneath her feet lit with a gentle glow, lifting her lightly into midair.

Lu Lin and the others' hearts tightened. They immediately used their movement techniques to scatter, each seeking cover.

Some hid behind giant rocks, some leaped onto tree trunks, and some lay low in the bushes.

Awooo!

A heaven-shaking roar came from deep within the mountain hollow. The sound wave struck everyone's eardrums as if it were solid, shaking the surrounding leaves until they rustled down.

A terrifying pressure spread out like a tide.

In the next instant, a giant wolf over ten meters long appeared in everyone's field of vision.

The crimson long fur all over its body leaped like burning flames. With every step it took, the rocks beneath its feet were left with two charred black footprints from the high heat. Its savage gaze locked onto Luo Siqing in midair, and the breath it exhaled carried sparks.

It was precisely the overlord of this place, the Red Flame Wolf King.