In these desolate mountains and wilds, such a scene inevitably brought all manner of bizarre legends to mind. But Fang Qianyuan possessed an innate ability to find calm amid chaos. He quickly composed himself and, suppressing his astonishment, answered, "Brother... er, Brother Wolf, I came alone."
"You came alone?"
The lead wolf circled Fang Qianyuan a few times, seemingly surprised.
But he soon said, "Well, all right. Guiding one is still guiding someone. That lord to the west told you what you needed to do, didn't he? Follow us. The hunt will begin soon."
"And call me Uncle! Brother Wolf, indeed. Have you no respect for your elders?"
With that, he rolled his eyes at Fang Qianyuan, turned, and ran toward the hill to the north.
Seeing how clearly he thought and spoke, and how he even understood human seniority, Fang Qianyuan inwardly marveled.
This must be an extraordinarily formidable awakened beast.
So Fang Qianyuan thought.
It was not merely a matter of behaving like a human. Behind that lay profoundly advanced cultivation and attainment, achieved through who knew how many years of painstaking practice-or else an exceptionally powerful bloodline.
Fang Qianyuan also recalled that monsters, spirits, demons, and ghosts were races of living beings other than humans. Their ranks and systems of advancement differed greatly from those of Spirit Tamers.
The greatest and most important difference was the crucial step of awakening intelligence.
Humans were the most spiritually gifted of all creatures. Apart from those born deficient, witless, or bereft of their faculties, all possessed sufficient spirituality to cultivate from birth.
At first glance, most ordinary people seemed to muddle through unremarkable lives, but that resulted from circumstances after birth, not their innate nature.
Humans did not need to pass this hurdle and could hardly appreciate its mysteries. Most