Encountering the Wolf Pack, Secret Manipulation

"Netherworld Wolf pack."

Yu Xiaogang pulled Tang San behind him, one hand already pressed against Luo Sanpao's back. "Don't move recklessly. They're probing us."

Tang San stared at those green eyes. "There are quite a few of them."

"Which is exactly why you can't charge in."

Sweat beaded on Yu Xiaogang's forehead, but he forced himself not to retreat. "Before the wolf king shows itself, guard the snake-repellent powder circle."

Tang San said quietly, "Does snake-repellent powder work on wolves too?"

"No."

Yu Xiaogang gritted his teeth. "But there are plenty of venomous insects outside the circle. If you step out carelessly, you'll be the first one in trouble."

Ji Yuan heard everything clearly from the sole of the shoe. The spores he had released had already sent back the wolves' positions.

There were more than twenty ordinary Netherworld Wolves, scattered across three sides. The real problem was the wolf king behind the bushes.

That thing did not rush to pounce.

It was waiting for Yu Xiaogang to reveal an opening.

Yu Xiaogang knew that too, and his expression grew increasingly grim.

Tang San slid a sleeve arrow from his sleeve. "Teacher, I can shoot the closest ones first."

"Wait."

Yu Xiaogang stared at the few Netherworld Wolves in front. "They haven't attacked yet. If you move first, the entire pack will pounce together."

Tang San's finger rested on the trigger. "But we can't keep waiting forever."

"Listen to me."

The moment Yu Xiaogang finished speaking, a Netherworld Wolf on the left suddenly sprang out. A gray blur skimmed over the grass as it lunged for Tang San's lower leg.

Tang San raised his hand to fire.

Yu Xiaogang shouted first, "Sanpao!"

Luo Sanpao's belly swelled, and his round body thrust forward.

"Fart like thunder, Luo Sanpao shakes the heavens and splits the earth!"

A muffled blast erupted from behind Luo Sanpao. A yellow wave of gas swept leftward, sending the charging Netherworld Wolf tumbling away. It crashed through a section of brush and went still.

The sleeve arrow in Tang San's hand was never fired.

He looked at Luo Sanpao, his expression somewhat complicated.

Yu Xiaogang's face heated up, but he stubbornly said, "Never mind that the move sounds awful. As long as it works."

Tang San nodded. "Teacher, I wasn't laughing."

Ji Yuan watched coldly from the sole of the shoe.

Crude as the method was, it could at least buy them some time.

The poisonous gas scattered the front line of the wolf pack, but they did not retreat.

Several Netherworld Wolves circled toward the rear, their claws stepping on dead leaves without making much sound.

Tang San's ears twitched. He fired a sleeve arrow behind him.

With a soft thud, a pained cry came from the grass behind them.

Yu Xiaogang immediately said, "Good, don't chase!"

Tang San withdrew his hand. "They're trying to surround us."

"That's how wolf packs operate."

Yu Xiaogang took out another medicine bottle and sprinkled its contents in front of himself and Tang San. "Sanpao can use that move one more time, but he'll be weakened afterward. We have to hold out until they become afraid."

Ji Yuan shifted his senses toward the wolf king.

The wolf king had remained still, a low growl suppressed in its throat as its gaze fixed on Tang San.

It smelled the fresh scent of blood on Tang San, and it also sensed the weakness of a young soul master.

This beast had chosen the most valuable meat.

Irritation rose in Ji Yuan's heart.

Tang San could be injured. He could be forced to his limit. But he could not be torn apart by a pack of wolves.

He was Ji Yuan's blood bag. It was not some beast's turn to take a bite.

The wolf pack moved again.

This time, they pounced from both front and back at once. Yu Xiaogang had no choice but to make Luo Sanpao release poisonous gas again. The yellow wave surged forward, but it left an opening behind them.

Tang San turned, his Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track unfolding as he dodged a Netherworld Wolf's claw. His short blade sliced across the wolf's belly.

The scent of blood spread, and the surrounding wolf eyes turned even fiercer.

Yu Xiaogang shouted, "Get back inside the circle!"

Tang San had barely turned when the bushes on the flank were suddenly smashed apart.

The wolf king finally made its move.

It was a full size larger than an ordinary Netherworld Wolf, its back fur tinged black. As it sprang, it went straight for Tang San's throat.

Tang San's sleeve arrows were spent. His short blade was in his right hand, and he did not dare release the Clear Sky Hammer with his left. He could only twist aside and lash out with Blue Silver Grass.

The Blue Silver Grass wrapped around the wolf king's foreleg, but the wolf king tore it apart with a single pull.

Tang San's eyes darkened as another hidden weapon slid into his palm.

Grandmaster's expression changed drastically. "Tang San, duck!"

Tang San did not duck.

The wolf king was too fast. Even if he ducked, he would not be able to evade it.

Ji Yuan waited until the wolf king was directly above Tang San's head before releasing a trace of the high-level aura hidden at the edge of the Clear Sky Hammer's origin.

It was a simulated remnant he had retained after surviving at Tang Hao's side.

Heavy, violent, and steeped in murderous intent.

The wolf king's movements suddenly faltered in midair. Its forelegs curled in, its head tilted aside, and the jaws that should have bitten into Tang San's throat veered toward his shoulder.

Tang San seized the opening, and a sleeve arrow shot from his other cuff.

A flash of silver sank into the wolf king's throat.

The wolf king crashed to the ground, its claws still scraping at the dirt as bloody foam poured from its throat.

When the other Netherworld Wolves saw their king fall, they first circled it with low growls. Then one turned and fled into the forest.

The wolf pack dispersed.

Grandmaster leaned against a tree, gasping for breath. Luo Sanpao lay on the ground with even its tongue hanging out.

Tang San stood where he was, the fabric over his shoulder torn open by wolf fangs, blood seeping from his skin.

He lowered his head to look at his sleeve arrow and said quietly, "It shifted just now."

Grandmaster made his way over with a hand on the tree. "You reacted quickly. The Blue Silver Grass affected its judgment."

Tang San frowned. "The Blue Silver Grass had already broken."

Grandmaster glanced at the severed grass on the ground, fell silent for a moment, then changed his words. "In a life-or-death situation, spirit beasts can make mistakes too. Don't overthink victory and defeat as something too mysterious."

Tang San nodded, but he did not completely set aside his doubts.

Ji Yuan sneered from beneath his shoe.

Think about it.

You could rack your brains and still never find him.

Grandmaster crouched to inspect the wolf king's corpse. "It's less than a hundred years old, so its spirit ring is useless, but the materials can still fetch some money. Unfortunately, we can't spend too long processing it now. The smell of blood will attract other spirit beasts."

Tang San asked, "Teacher, should we leave this place?"

"First, clear away the traces."

Grandmaster took medicinal powder from his belt. "Cover the blood. We'll find another place to rest."

Ji Yuan had no intention of letting the wolf king's corpse go to waste.

As Tang San approached to help drag the body, the hidden layer beneath Ji Yuan's shoe split open slightly. Dark-red roots pressed against the mud, burrowed out, and pierced into the wound in the wolf king's chest.

Its still-warm heart's blood was drawn away.

The wolf king's fur and flesh caved in, and the meat around its chest rapidly shriveled.

Tang San was pulling with force when he suddenly felt the corpse become much lighter.

He looked down. "Teacher, why did this wolf dry out so quickly?"

Grandmaster saw it as well, his brow furrowing even tighter. "Something's wrong. A spirit beast that just died shouldn't be like this."

Tang San recalled the Lone Bamboo Rats from daytime, then looked toward the withered Man-Eating Flower. "Teacher, all the corpses we saw today dried out very quickly."

Grandmaster said gravely, "There may be blood-sucking spirit beasts active in the Hunting Soul Forest."

Tang San immediately grew alert. "Could it be nearby?"

Ji Yuan withdrew his roots and sent the wolf king's heart's blood back into his main body.

The wooden thorn beneath the sole of the shoe became harder, and fine barbs sprouted along its edges, embedded in the old cloth without showing outside.

Grandmaster pulled Tang San up. "Don't stop. Take our things and go."

Tang San glanced at the wolf king's corpse, which no longer held much value, but did not object.

The two packed up their camp, avoided the previous clearing, and moved toward an opening deeper in the woods.

Luo Sanpao walked ahead, dispirited, its cries much quieter than before.

Tang San asked softly, "Teacher, what are blood-sucking spirit beasts usually?"

"Bats, venomous insects, and a small number of plant-type spirit beasts."

Yu Xiaogang walked while scanning the surroundings. "The most troublesome are parasitic types. They might not attack head-on—they could hide where you can't see them and suck your blood."

Tang San stopped, reaching for his chest. "Parasites?"

Ji Yuan's roots immediately contracted to their smallest extent.

Yu Xiaogang turned back. "What's wrong?"

Tang San hesitated. "Nothing. I just think Soul Beasts like that are hard to guard against."

Yu Xiaogang said, "That's why, once we enter the forest, we can't overlook any abnormality. When we return, I'll examine you, especially your skin and meridians."

Killing intent rose in Ji Yuan's heart, then was swiftly suppressed.

An examination?

Go ahead and examine him.

With a theoretical master like you there to take the blame, every problem you find will become Tang San's own special constitution.

After moving to a new campsite, Yu Xiaogang did not let Tang San continue cultivating. He only told him to rest against a tree.

Yet Tang San could not sleep, his fingers repeatedly rubbing the mechanism of his sleeve arrow.

"Little San."

Yu Xiaogang sat beside the fire. "Afraid?"

Tang San shook his head. "I was thinking about that Wolf King from before."

Yu Xiaogang asked, "Thinking about why it acted strangely?"

"Mm."

Tang San raised his left hand, then slowly lowered it again. "I keep feeling like there are things inside my body that I can't control."

Yu Xiaogang's expression shifted slightly. He immediately said, "Don't overthink it. Your second martial soul naturally places a burden on your body. Once your first soul ring stabilizes, I'll help you adjust."

Tang San looked at him. "Are you sure, Teacher?"

Yu Xiaogang met his gaze. "Since I accepted you as my disciple, I'll be responsible for you."

Tang San fell silent before nodding. "I trust you, Teacher."

Hearing that, Ji Yuan's dark-red roots spread beneath the soles of his shoes.

Trust him.

The more you trusted, the easier it would be to hide.

The fire gradually died down, and the forest fell quiet once more.

But that quiet did not last long.

The spores at the perimeter conveyed an even stronger sense of oppression. The swarms of insects in the mud began fleeing in the opposite direction. Luo Sanpao had only just lain down when he lifted his head again, forcing out an anxious cry from his throat.

The medicine bottle in Yu Xiaogang's hand rolled onto the ground.

He looked toward the shadows among the trees, all color draining from his face.

A fishy wind swept past. The surrounding insect cries vanished completely, and a Datura Snake several meters long raised its inverted triangular head.