Although everyone knew it was dangerous, no one dared run.
If they abandoned those Intermediate Mages and angered them, the Intermediate Mages might all flee on their own, and the ones who suffered would still be weaklings like them.
Staying offered a sliver of hope. After all, those Intermediate Mages were charging into the fray.
Under Lu Wu's lead, everyone capable of casting offensive magic unleashed it. Even those who could not attack used their magic to throw the Bone Spike Fierce Wolf, which had lost its three eyes, off balance.
"This isn't working. That Bone Spike Fierce Wolf can't hurt us anymore, but our magical energy is about to run dry," Wu Xiaoxiao panted.
The lesser Warrior Level Bone Spike Fierce Wolf was already covered in wounds.
There were wounds of all sizes inflicted by the Intermediate Mages' earlier spells, and now, under everyone's concentrated fire, those injuries kept worsening.
"This thing's almost at its limit," Lu Wu replied, looking at the Bone Spike Fierce Wolf's completely shattered bone spikes.
The others' magical energy was nearly depleted, but his was not.
Seven Stars aligned, a red Star Path flashed around him, and he hurled a ball of flame from his hand.
The Bone Spike Fierce Wolf stood over ten meters tall and was now only about thirty meters from them. Lu Wu threw downward, landing his Fire Burst squarely on it, where it continued burning.
Under the others' somewhat astonished gazes, Lu Wu charged straight down, aimed at the Bone Spike Fierce Wolf's head, and cast a second-tier Fire Element spell.
"Wu Xiaoxiao, isn't Lu Wu's magic a little too powerful?" Dongfang Qing asked uncertainly.
Flames that burned even the Bone Spike Fierce Wolf's flesh and bones did not seem like Burning, the first-tier Basic Level Fire Element spell.
They seemed more like... Bone Burning!!
"Shouldn't you be better able to tell?" Wu Xiaoxiao asked in return.
Dongfang Qing was the Fire Element mage. She would know best whether there was a difference; Wu Xiaoxiao could not tell.
"I'm asking you because I'm not sure. I feel like Lu Wu has reached Basic Level Second Tier, but that's impossible." Dongfang Qing's face was pale.
It was not from injury, but from exhausting her magical energy.
Even the same spell varied in power between mages.
Dongfang Qing could not quite tell whether her Fire Burst: Burning was inferior to Lu Wu's, or whether his magic had reached the next stage.
"This guy casts so quickly and has such deep reserves of magical energy that nothing would be surprising. Maybe his magic is just powerful," Wu Xiaoxiao reassured her.
Lu Wu was already just over ten meters from the Bone Spike Fierce Wolf, and he hurled the ball of fire in his hand at the back of its head.
He kept attacking its head because he wanted to see whether he could obtain organs to sacrifice.
The more concentrated the energy in an offering, the greater the reward.
With Warrior Level organs, Lu Wu was eagerly hoping he could awaken another element!!
Captain Yu Keyan and the others' battle was also nearing its end.
The regular Warrior Level Bone Spike Fierce Wolf's aura was already very weak. Its whole body was drenched in blood, and it was in an even more wretched state than this lesser Warrior Level Bone Spike Fierce Wolf.
"Roar!!"
As the aura of the Bone Spike Fierce Wolf a short distance ahead slowly faded away, Lu Wu approached it.
An aura could indicate strength, and it could also indicate life or death.
There was no way this Bone Spike Fierce Wolf still had the strength to conceal its aura.
After its aura faded away, the regular Warrior Level Bone Spike Fierce Wolf roared in fury, then took a Thunderbolt from Yu Keyan and a Fiery Fist from someone else.
Its aura likewise vanished swiftly.
Unlike Lu Wu and the others, once the battle ended, those Intermediate Mages either lay down or passed out.
One of them, in particular, had been struck by the Bone Spike Fierce Wolf. Although protected by a Rock Barrier, he had been sent flying along with it and had long since lost consciousness.
"Looks like your people still aren't good enough." A voice came from above the canyon.
The moment that voice rang out, Yu Keyan and the others, who had already let their guard down, all stood up.
The newcomer was a mage dressed in Military Mage robes. He stood above the canyon, looking down at everyone.
Lu Wu turned to look at the Military Mage. He was alone, yet his gaze swept over everyone.
"But I'm afraid you'd want to recruit any one of them into the Military Department." Hei Guan emerged from the other side of the canyon.
Beside him were the two mages who had been sent out as scouts.
"They're all right. I suppose I could take them all." Zhan Kong's beard looked as though it had not been shaved for some time. He spoke casually, looking at Lu Wu. "What's your name?"
"Forget it, Zhan Kong. He even turned down my Great Sparrow City Military Department," Hei Guan called out.
Despite being a hundred meters away, he heard him perfectly clearly.
Both men spoke loudly, and Lu Wu could hear them too. Presumably, they had used their auras to amplify their words.
Lu Wu shook his head, indicating that he did not want to go.
This man named Zhan Kong was presumably from the Bo City Military Department.
Like Hei Guan, he had probably been lying low above the canyon for some time, yet Lu Wu had not sensed the slightest trace of his aura.
They butchered the two Bone Spike Fierce Wolves' corpses, packing away the intact bone spikes and organs, along with some blood marrow and wolf bones.
Everything valuable was packed away.
"Between the two Bone Spike Fierce Wolves, there were five intact organs in total. Our squad got two organs. We basically didn't get any bone spikes, but we did get some blood marrow," Yu Keyan told his squad members as the group followed Zhan Kong back to Snow Peak Mountain Station.
Hei Guan and Zhan Kong walked at the very front, seemingly discussing something.
After the three team leaders divided the spoils, Yu Keyan returned to his squad to tell them.
"In that case, with the three One-Eyed Demon Wolf cubs as well, the five of us will get quite a lot," Mu Shengqi said, looking rather happy.
Their squad had reaped the greatest haul.
After all, they had been lucky enough to get three One-Eyed Demon Wolf cubs, and those were the most valuable.
"If there's anything you need, you can take it. I'll sell off the rest and give you the money," Yu Keyan said at that. "Or the four of you can just divide it among yourselves. I don't need any."
"Captain, how could we do that? Whether it's the One-Eyed Demon Wolf cubs or these organs, we couldn't have gotten them without you." Mu Shengqi shook his head. "Let's split it evenly."
"My family has made arrangements for me. Once I successfully enter the Great Sparrow City Military Department, I'll receive more resources than all of yours put together." Yu Keyan shook his head.
Those words immediately silenced Lu Wu and the others.
So he was a wealthy family's son preparing to enlist.
No wonder Captain Yu Keyan had never intended to trade the three One-Eyed Demon Wolf cubs for cultivation resources from the outset.
"To divide it roughly, each One-Eyed Demon Wolf cub counts as one share. The remaining two organs, bones, and blood are worth a little less, but not by much," Yu Keyan told them.
"I'll take the organs," Lu Wu said quickly.
Indeed, in terms of sale price, those two organs could not fetch as much as a cub.
But for him, the organs were what was most useful.
Rather than split the money and then go looking for organs to buy, he might as well take those two intact organs.
"If no one else objects, I have no objection." Yu Keyan nodded. "But what do you want the organs for?"
"I promised someone in Magic City I'd send some back. I'll mail them when we reach the station," Lu Wu lied outright.
Hearing Lu Wu voluntarily take the smaller share, the others naturally had no objections.
Of course, they would wait until Yu Keyan sold the cubs before taking the money to exchange for resources.
"Why are there so many demon beasts even inside the Safe Zone?" Hei Guan asked from the front of the group.
Zhan Kong frowned at the question. "I'm not too sure. Nothing went wrong during patrols, but the fact that you killed so many demon beasts does mean something slipped through the cracks somewhere."