Kill

Lu Heng stood steadily on the second-floor platform, his Giant-Feather Crossbow already raised.

The beasts, which had been lying dormant all day, finally stirred into action in the dead of night.

The fence at the Shelter was built extremely high, steep and straight, with no footholds to step on. Wild animals naturally know how to seek advantage and avoid danger, and none of them attempted to force their way through the main gate. All the jackals, wolves, and wild dogs scattered and rushed to the lower sections of the fence on the left and right sides, preparing to climb over into the shelter from there.

The night was pitch black, and visibility in the mountains was extremely poor. Hail kept falling, blurring the scenery in the forest. But Lu Heng was in a high position, overlooking the entire courtyard. He didn't need to turn on his Wristband to Silk-Peeping Bug. He could see every movement of the dark shadows below, every jump and landing.

The Wolf Pack charged ahead. Adult wolves, with their strong limbs and ferocious explosive power, leaped nimbly over the wall, landing heavily on the damp, cold mud inside the yard. Close behind were packs of wild dogs, stocky in build, not focused on speed, huddled together, gradually scaling the wall and filling the side open space. Finally, a pack of jackals burst in, small and agile, squeezing through the gaps in the wall with cunning, shuffling movements, moving swiftly close to the ground.

The entire side courtyard was instantly filled with a dense array of beast shadows.

Lu Heng had laid thirteen animal traps around the perimeter of the wall. Two or three were placed in secluded areas around the main gate, where no wild animals approached, and they remained buried quietly under the withered grass and mud, never being triggered. The remaining ten ordinary animal traps and two high-quality traps made of Frost-Patterned Iron Ore precisely covered the paths that wild animals would inevitably take on both sides and the low-lying blind spots.

The wild beast, which had just landed, hadn't even regained its footing when suddenly its footing tightened.

A series of crisp, metallic snapping sounds rang out, drowning out the continuous sound of hail and rain. Most wild beasts didn't even have time to react before their paws, calves, chests, and abdomens were locked tightly by the iron teeth.

A series of agonizing screams instantly filled the courtyard.

Wild wolves are relatively large and charge with the most ferocity, resulting in the most severe injuries when struck. Many wolves have their legs crushed, with bone fragments piercing their flesh, and blood flowing continuously down the severed limbs. Their massive bodies lie paralyzed in the mud, struggling violently, each twist causing the iron teeth to embed even deeper.

The stray dogs, being bulky and clumsy, huddled together, trampling each other to avoid traps. In their panic, they stepped into the traps one after another, getting their waists locked. They could only lie there whimpering and shaking their bodies, struggling in vain to break free.

The jackals are the most agile and have the fastest reflexes. A few individuals manage to escape through the gaps in the traps, but most of the small, scurrying jackals have no way to avoid it. Their tiny limbs are locked in iron clamps, and their sharp hisses rise and fall, making one's eardrums tighten.

In just a few seconds, nearly one-sixth of the beasts that charged in during the first wave were killed.

The originally dense and surging attack was abruptly stopped by the traps scattered all over the ground. The dead bodies lay everywhere, and even the uninjured beasts were shocked by the tragic state of their companions, and their movements became noticeably hesitant.

Lu Heng calmly scanned the entire room, silently weighing his options.

Fifty or sixty wild beasts surged in, their numbers intimidating, but after the initial barrage of traps, their formation was completely disrupted. Most of the remaining beasts suffered minor injuries or scratches, and very few possessed any real fighting strength.

He raised his hand to steady the Giant-Feather Crossbow, his gaze fixed on the darting beasts below.

The high vantage point left all the wild beasts completely exposed and within firing range. Lu Heng kept his breathing steady, his wrists still, aiming, pulling the trigger, and firing – every movement was crisp and clean, without the slightest waste.

The soft whistling of crossbow bolts piercing the air echoed continuously through the night, each one precise, aimed directly at the head, chest, and other vital organs of wild beasts.

After being hit by arrows, the Wolf Pack convulsed violently and collapsed heavily; the wild dogs, after being hit by arrows, swayed their heavy bodies twice and then collapsed to the ground; even the nimble jackals, despite their best efforts to dodge, could not avoid the accurately aimed crossbow bolts and fell one after another into the mud.

While Lu Heng continued shooting and harvesting the remaining beasts, his eyes scanned the entire area, deliberately searching for the figure of the three-headed tribe leader. No matter how many ordinary beasts there were, they were just scattered soldiers; the real threat was only the leader hidden among the beasts.

After shooting down more than a dozen wild animals, the corpses scattered all over the ground thoroughly enraged the remaining herd.

Three massive, dark figures, far exceeding the size of ordinary wild beasts, leaped over the wall and entered. The Wolf King king was tall and fierce, with glossy black fur; the Wild Dog King was sturdy and robust, with broad shoulders and a commanding presence; the Jackal King was not large, but moved extremely fast, with sinister and cunning eyes.

After landing, the three leaders did not participate in the melee. Instead, they turned around and led all the remaining beasts to rush towards the main gate of the Shelter.

A dense swarm of wild beasts surrounded the heavy stone gate. The three-headed leader led the way, raising its claws and scratching and ramming the stone gate with force. Sharp toenails rubbed against the hard stone repeatedly, and stone chips fell off incessantly, the ear-piercing scraping sound particularly jarring in the silent night.

Lu Heng remained calm despite witnessing this scene.

This stone door has been reinforced and modified many times, and its hardness far exceeds that of ordinary stone. It is impossible for wild beasts to budge it even a little bit with their flesh and claws.

But after staring at it for a while, a strange feeling slowly welled up in his heart.

The three leaders' claws were already raw and bloody, their toenails broken and torn off, their skin turned inside out, revealing pale finger bones, and dripping blood stained the entire doorway red. But they seemed to feel no pain, mechanically and stubbornly scratching and butting repeatedly, tirelessly, without the slightest retreat, completely unlike the usual behavior of wounded wild animals that would flee in pain.

Lu Heng frowned slightly.

He couldn't understand why. The near-extinction of their kind hadn't deterred them; instead, it had fueled their almost obsessive ferocity. With the situation unclear, he had no time to delve into the reasons. He could only suppress his doubts and continue shooting arrows, clearing away the remaining beasts that were trying to surround the door.

Arrows were rapidly being used up, and crossbow bolts were fired one after another, causing the remaining beasts in the courtyard to fall to the ground.

Before long, all the arrows he carried were used up.

Almost all the wild animals living in the courtyard were wounded, with broken legs, disembowelments, and pierced shoulders being commonplace. They had completely lost their ability to charge and posed little threat.

Lu Heng put away the Giant-Feather Crossbow, his fingertips gripping the Bronze Hunting Blade at his waist. The cool, hard metallic touch brought him complete composure.

The long-range harvesting was over, and now was the perfect time for close-quarters clearing. The second floor wasn't far off, posing no danger whatsoever. Lu Heng slightly bent his knees, leaned forward, and leaped steadily from the platform.

The moment his feet touched the ground, he lightly stepped on the muddy water, steadily dissipating the force and standing firmly without swaying in the slightest.

As soon as he regained his footing, two wounded wild dogs growled and charged at him, their heavy bodies slamming into his chest with a foul stench. Lu Heng dodged the attack precisely to the side, his right hand sweeping the Hunting Blade horizontally.

A cold glint flashed across the night, and the sharp blade instantly severed the wild dog's carotid artery. Scalding blood gushed out, the wild dog's howl was abruptly cut off, and its massive body slammed heavily into the muddy water mixed with icy shards, never to move again.

On the other side, a wounded wolf, enduring its injuries, lunged and attacked, its fangs aimed straight at its throat. Lu Heng remained calm, raising his hand and bending his elbow to block, forcefully withstanding the wolf's head strike. With a flick of his wrist, he thrust his Hunting Blade vertically downwards, precisely piercing the wolf's eye and penetrating its skull.

The wolf's limbs went limp, and it died on the spot.

These ordinary, crippled beasts were riddled with injuries and moved slowly and stiffly, making them no match for Lu Heng. Anyone who dared to get close and attack was either killed with a single strike or kicked until their bones were broken, leaving them sprawled on the ground struggling and convulsing, completely incapacitated.

Lu Heng wasted no time, his gaze instantly locking onto the strongest Wild Dog King in the arena, prioritizing the elimination of the greatest threat.

He suddenly accelerated, stomping through the muddy ground as he charged forward. Sensing the danger, the Wild Dog King abandoned its digging at the door, turned and barked wildly before lunging forward with its remaining ferocity.

Lu Heng neither dodged nor avoided the attack. The moment the opponent's body was close, he sidestepped the fangs and, following the momentum of the attack, used his Hunting Blade to slash a deep wound across the opponent's broad chest and abdomen.

The soft, tearing sound of flesh being torn rang out, and the Wild Dog King, in excruciating pain, suddenly froze.

Before it could retaliate, Lu Heng stepped closer, and with a flick of his wrist, the blade pierced precisely through its skull.

The Wild Dog King's massive body collapsed heavily to the ground, lifeless.

The remaining Jackal King and Wolf King kings were instantly enraged and immediately abandoned the main gate, attacking from the left and right. The Wolf King charged head-on, sweeping with its sharp claws with fierce force; the Jackal King, with its cunning movements, circled around to the side to launch sneak attacks, combining speed and slowness in an attempt to disrupt Lu Heng's rhythm.

The combined attack of two Black Iron Tier leaders created a sense of oppression far exceeding that of ordinary melee combat.

Lu Heng focused intently, maneuvering and shifting amidst the attacks of the two ferocious beasts, calmly seizing every opening. When the Wolf King's claws slashed down, he bent low and barely dodged, then swung his blade in a backhand strike, creating a deep, bone-revealing gash that instantly soaked through the wolf's fur.

The moment the Wolf King retreated in pain, the sinister Jackal King suddenly pounced, its forelimbs aimed straight at Lu Heng's forearm.

Lu Heng had anticipated this, shifting his feet to the side to dodge the sneak attack, and then raised his hand to slash horizontally. The blade landed precisely on the Jackal King's forelimb joint, cleanly severing the limb.

The excruciating pain instantly shattered the Jackal King's ferocity. It lost its balance and rolled on the ground, letting out a shrill howl. Lu Heng took a step forward, raised his knife, and brought the jackal king's life to an end.

Only the wounded Wolf King remained on the field, facing off alone, with no companions to support him.

The remaining few remaining beasts were utterly terrified by the bloody battle and had lost all will to fight. They scattered in all directions, trying to escape. However, the walls on both sides blocked their retreat, and the main gate was too high to climb. With nowhere to run, the beasts panicked and ran around aimlessly.

Many fleeing wild animals stumbled into the open space around the main gate and stepped on the several animal traps that had been left unused the whole time.

The dull snapping sound rang out again, followed by cries of agony. The frantically fleeing beasts were all bound by the iron teeth, pinned to the spot, unable to move.

At this point, the entire venue fell completely silent.

The hail continued to fall, pelting the corpses and muddy ground with monotonous, drawn-out crackling sounds. The heavy stench of blood mingled with the damp earth and icy chill, filling the entire courtyard.

The ground was a mess, with corpses scattered everywhere. A few trapped wild beasts trembled in fear, no longer able to cause any disturbance.