The thing stood no more than three feet tall and gave off a nauseating, savage presence.
It had an exceedingly ugly, twisted human face, with a collapsed nose, a broad mouth, outward-curving fangs, and murky eyes gleaming with cunning.
It stood strangely on a single foot, its heel turned backward.
It spread its great mouth, exposing scarlet gums. Thick, foul-smelling saliva dripped from the corners of its mouth onto the snow with faint sounds.
A mountain yaoguai.
Though Chen Linyuan had been bold since childhood, with a temperament unlike most, his heart now pounded like a drum, and a chill shot up his spine to the crown of his head.
Yet strangely, that inexplicable warm current seemed to stir as well, dispelling the cold brought by fear and leaving his mind exceptionally clear in the face of extreme danger.
Afraid?
Perhaps he was.
But a stronger urge to fight overwhelmed that fear.
He knew that in this silent mountain forest, fleeing would only make him die faster.
"Roar!"
The mountain yaoguai clearly had not expected this scrawny human to evade its deadly ambush. Its strange, backward-heeled foot stamped against the snow, leaving a deep pit.
Its short body erupted with astonishing speed and strength, shooting forward like an arrow loosed from a bow as it lunged at Chen Linyuan again on a foul wind!
Its claws were black and curved, gleaming like metal.
Chen Linyuan's pupils contracted sharply. Not daring to meet it head-on, he pushed off and retreated swiftly, throwing his body sideways.
The sharp rush of its claws skimmed his shoulder, tearing a gash in his padded coat and letting the icy air pour in.
Having missed, the mountain yaoguai landed, twisted its strange foot, and sprang up again without the slightest hitch, following him like a shadow.