A massive wolf-like Ferocious Beast emerged from the ruins ahead.
The Ferocious Beast stood a full meter thirty at the shoulder and measured nearly two meters long, not counting its tail. Its eyes gleamed viciously, its fangs lay bared, and a savage aura radiated from its body.
A tier-one Ferocious Beast, an Ironback Wolf.
Shen Qingqiu relaxed slightly at the sight of the Ferocious Beast.
Thank goodness.
"I'll take it!"
Before Shen Qingqiu could speak, Zhao Gang tightened his grip on his saber and walked toward the Ferocious Beast.
"Awooo!"
The Ironback Wolf howled and lunged at Zhao Gang.
Zhao Gang shifted slightly sideways, dodging the Ironback Wolf's lunge by a hair, then swung his saber backhanded into its neck.
Shlick!
The blade bit into flesh, opening a massive gash in the Ironback Wolf's neck. It collapsed with a scream, foul-smelling blood gushing wildly.
The entire fight had lasted less than five seconds.
Watching the whole thing from behind, Jiang Lan felt his scalp prickle.
Was this guy even human?
Both his strength and his speed went beyond anything Jiang Lan could comprehend.
He instinctively tightened his grip on his saber.
Could I beat that thing?
After giving it some serious thought, Jiang Lan reached a conclusion.
Probably... presumably... possibly... maybe?
After all, he had indestructible diamond body, which had considerably boosted his defenses.
As long as he seized an opening and stabbed a vital spot, he should be able to kill it.
Once the Ironback Wolf was dead, Zhao Gang crouched and cut open its corpse.
Then he extracted a heart that was still slowly beating.
At some point, a small bottle with a spike on its tip had appeared in his hand.
Zhao Gang stuck the bottle into the Ironback Wolf's heart, and blood immediately flowed into it.
That was how Fierce Beast Blood Essence was collected.
That one bottle was worth over two thousand Credit Points.
With the essence blood collected, Zhao Gang raised his saber again, plunged it into the Ironback Wolf's skull, and stirred it around before prying out a translucent, diamond-shaped object.
It was small, only a little wider than a bottle cap, and gleamed faintly in the sunlight.
A Beast Core—the Ferocious Beast's energy core.
The most valuable parts of a Ferocious Beast were its essence blood, followed by its Beast Core.
A tier-one Ironback Wolf's Beast Core could sell for around a thousand Credit Points.
Once Zhao Gang finished, Shen Qingqiu waved a hand.
"Keep moving."
Along the way, Jiang Lan obediently followed behind the others, picking through the junk.
He wanted to kill Ferocious Beasts too, but he simply never got the chance.
During that time, the squad encountered several more tier-one Ferocious Beasts, all easily dispatched by Shen Qingqiu and Zhao Gang.
Jiang Lan did more than just watch. While the two fought, he observed them and learned from their fighting styles.
Even last-minute preparation was better than none.
At least, Jiang Lan thought it was quite useful.
An hour later, they had searched roughly half the area.
Just then, a deafening roar suddenly erupted from deep within the ruins.
"Roar!"
The roar was powerful, several times louder than the Ironback Wolf's had been.
Shen Qingqiu's expression changed at once.
"It's a Second-Tier Ferocious Beast! Fall back!"
Zhao Gang felt his scalp prickle.
"Captain, didn't the intel say that thing had left?"
"Who knows?" Shen Qingqiu spoke rapidly. "Maybe it came back. Stop talking and retreat with me!"
Everyone's expression shifted.
A Second-Tier Ferocious Beast was beyond their ability to handle.
Although Second-Tier Ferocious Beasts corresponded to martial artists at the meridian opening stage, Ferocious Beasts possessed an innate advantage in size and strength.
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Martial artists could generally only kill Ferocious Beasts of a lower rank than themselves.
Against a beast of equivalent strength, it usually took two martial artists just to hold their own. To guarantee victory, they needed three.
So the smartest choice now was to flee immediately.
A massive figure burst out from deep within the ruins.
A Second-Tier Ferocious Beast—a Bloodfang Tiger!
The Bloodfang Tiger was enormous, standing over two meters tall at the shoulder. Instead of fur, crimson scales covered its body. Its two canine teeth were incredibly sharp, leaving no doubt that a single bite from this thing would pretty much spell the end.
The Bloodfang Tiger roared and charged fiercely at the squad.
Shen Qingqiu called out urgently.
"Zhao Gang, cover the retreat with me! Everyone else, run!"
As he spoke, Shen Qingqiu slashed the Bloodfang Tiger with his saber.
Clang!
The blade struck the Bloodfang Tiger's skin with the ringing clash of metal, scattering sparks.
Yet it left only a faint white mark on the Bloodfang Tiger's scales, failing even to penetrate its defenses.
Jiang Lan's heart tightened at the sight.
But he also knew that staying here would accomplish nothing except getting in Shen Qingqiu's way.
"Get moving!"
At Shen Qingqiu's urging, Jiang Lan had no choice but to run back with the squad.
Shen Qingqiu was at the Middle Meridian-Opening Stage, and Zhao Gang was at the Initial Meridian-Opening Stage. Even if they could not defeat the Bloodfang Tiger, keeping themselves alive should not be a problem.
Jiang Lan gritted his teeth and picked up his pace.
The other three, meanwhile, each fled on their own, with no intention of sparing Jiang Lan any attention.
In ordinary circumstances, perhaps they would have. But now that real danger had struck, staying alive was all that mattered. Who cared whether anyone else died?
Still, that suited Jiang Lan perfectly.
After running for a while, he turned straight down a side path and broke away from the squad.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If he really fled now, there was no telling when he would get another chance to obtain Fierce Beast Blood Essence.
There should still be tier-one Ferocious Beasts in the ruins.
He had to seize this opportunity and get their essence blood.
Jiang Lan gripped his saber tightly and scanned his surroundings warily.
After confirming there were no Ferocious Beasts nearby, Jiang Lan rounded a corner and continued forward.
About three minutes later, Jiang Lan stopped short.
An Ironback Wolf lay napping on the rubble not far ahead.
Jiang Lan's eyes lit up.
Here's my chance!
He took several deep breaths, tightened his grip on his saber, and slowly approached the Ironback Wolf.
The napping Ironback Wolf seemed to sense movement. It abruptly raised its head, fixing its crimson eyes on Jiang Lan.
"Rrroar!"
Without the slightest hesitation, the Ironback Wolf sprang up and hurled itself at Jiang Lan.
Jiang Lan gripped his saber tightly and assumed a fighting stance.
The Ironback Wolf was incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, it reached Jiang Lan, raised a paw, and swiped at him.
Jiang Lan twisted sideways, narrowly avoiding the blow.
But the Ironback Wolf reacted just as quickly. Its paw abruptly changed direction in midair and struck at Jiang Lan again.
Jiang Lan's pupils contracted, and he raised his saber to block.
Clang!
The Ironback Wolf's claws struck the blade, sending sparks flying.
The web of Jiang Lan's hand went numb, and the impact drove him back several steps.
Clearly unwilling to give him a chance to catch his breath, the Ironback Wolf lunged again, raising its claws and striking at Jiang Lan's chest.
Knowing he could not dodge in time, Jiang Lan could only lift his arm to block.
Thud!
With a dull impact, Jiang Lan staggered back two steps.
Numb.
Jiang Lan lowered his head.
Numb?
His arm was completely unharmed. It merely felt a little numb.
Seeming to realize something, Jiang Lan lifted his head and gave a savage grin.
"My fucking turn!"
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