Setting Out

Early the next morning, Ning Buhui went to the side hall.

When he arrived, Bibi Dong was already seated behind her desk, a stack of documents piled beside her, even more than usual. When she saw him enter, she merely raised her eyes and motioned for him to sit.

"Did you take a mission?" she asked.

Ning Buhui was taken aback, then understood. Little in Spirit Hall could be hidden from the Pope. Someone had probably reported his visit to the mission hall the very night before.

"I did," he said honestly. "Mist-Hidden Shadow Wolves, grade B. I'm going with Senior Sister Hu Liena, Brother Yan, and Brother Xie Yue."

Bibi Dong set down her brush and leaned back in her chair, looking at him. "You certainly know how to pick one. A 4,500-year-old alpha and four younger wolves. Taking a mission like that on your first outing takes some nerve."

"I thought the difficulty was suitable," Ning Buhui said. "The alpha is 4,500 years old, and we're all at the Soul Elder level. Brother Xie Yue has even reached Soul Ancestor, though he hasn't obtained a Soul Ring yet. We can handle them. Besides, the swamp forest will only interfere with spiritual power to a limited extent, so Senior Sister's Charm will be very useful too."

Bibi Dong made no reply. She simply drew a thin sheet of paper from the side of her desk and glanced over it. Ning Buhui caught sight of his own name on the page, with several densely written lines beneath it. His heart stirred, and he knew it was Spirit Hall's record on him.

"After you returned from Sunset Forest, I had other plans for you," Bibi Dong said, setting the paper down and looking at him.

Ning Buhui sat up straighter. "What did you have in mind, Teacher?"

"Real combat," Bibi Dong said. "I saw how you adapted during the beast tide, and I saw your fight against four opponents. What you lack isn't talent or Soul Skills, but genuine combat experience. No matter how much you train in Spirit Hall or how accustomed you become to sparring, it's still different from truly standing between life and death. I'd intended to send you out on your own a few times in a while. Whether you went with a team of deacons or acted alone, blood would have to be shed."

Ning Buhui listened quietly. It was the first time he had heard Bibi Dong speak so frankly about his shortcomings. In the past, she had always been noncommittal, occasionally offering a word or two of guidance and leaving him to work out the rest for himself.

"But since you've already formed a team with Hu Liena and the others, I'll put those plans aside," Bibi Dong said. "Going with them is safer than sending you out alone. Hu Liena is steady, Xie Yue sees the bigger picture, and although Yan is rash, he's strong in a head-on fight. If the four of you work well together, you'll be a force to be reckoned with."

"I thought so too," Ning Buhui said.

Bibi Dong watched him for a while, then suddenly asked, "When do you plan to use your Control System Soul Skill?"

Ning Buhui's heart tightened, and he looked up at her.

"I didn't tell you to keep it hidden forever," Bibi Dong said. "Your Martial Soul is unusual, with two sides and two skills. That won't stay secret forever. But when and how you reveal it depends on the timing. If you run into a situation on this trip where you have no choice but to use it, you don't need to keep it hidden at all costs. But if there's no need, keep it concealed as a trump card. Do you understand what I mean?"

"I understand." Ning Buhui nodded. "A trump card should be saved until the most critical moment."

"That's right," Bibi Dong said. "Also, there's no need to rush to show off your newly acquired wings in front of others. You can save them as another trump card and reveal them at a critical moment. Catching your opponent off guard will make them more effective. And even if people do find out, you're my disciple. I, Bibi Dong, would like to see who dares set their sights on you."

Ning Buhui agreed. He had never intended to show off the Wind Thunder Wings everywhere anyway.

"One more thing." Bibi Dong picked up her teacup and took a sip. "For this mission, the alpha's shoulder bone and mane must be intact. Tell Xie Yue to work quickly when he removes the bone, and not to blast it with a Soul Skill. If the shoulder bone breaks, the mission will have been for nothing. That elder has a bad temper. If the materials aren't good enough, he'll reject them outright."

"I'll remember."

Bibi Dong said nothing more and simply waved him away. Ning Buhui rose and bowed. As he reached the door, he heard her add behind him, "Don't disgrace your teacher."

"I won't," he said, stepping over the threshold.

It was still early when he left the side hall. Ning Buhui went straight to the training grounds and spent the rest of the day practicing with the Wind Thunder Wings. He found a secluded corner and repeatedly spread them, flew, blinked, and folded them away. After each landing, he deliberately steadied his balance as quickly as possible, so an unsteady landing wouldn't leave him vulnerable in a real fight. By the end of his practice, he could attack the instant he landed, bringing his tower crashing down without the slightest delay.

That evening, he went to find Xie Yue and relayed Bibi Dong's instructions. After hearing him out, Xie Yue nodded. "I wasn't planning to use a Soul Skill to remove the bone anyway. My Moon Blades can cut through hide and strip away flesh far more precisely than a Soul Skill. Don't worry."

"One more thing." Ning Buhui lowered his voice. "If the younger wolves rush out first in the swamp forest, don't be too quick to kill them all. Leave them alive."

Xie Yue glanced at him. "Why?"

"The pack follows the alpha's commands. The younger wolves will only be probing us when they charge in, while the alpha holds back to support them. If you kill the younger wolves too quickly, the alpha might sense something's wrong and turn tail. The fog is thick in the swamp forest. If it runs, we might not be able to catch up," Ning Buhui said. "Leave the younger ones alive and let them tie us down. Once the alpha thinks it has an advantage, it'll come out on its own."

"Then once the alpha shows itself, we focus our attacks and kill it first?"

"Right. Once the alpha is dead, the younger wolves naturally won't be much of a threat."

Xie Yue thought for a moment, then nodded. "All right. Keep watch when the time comes. I'll wait for your signal."

Early the next morning, at the west side gate.

Dawn had barely broken when Hu Liena arrived first. She had changed into a trim, practical outfit, her long hair tied in a high ponytail. Two short daggers hung at her waist, and a silver bracelet on her wrist gleamed faintly in the morning light. Yan came second, his thick-backed saber strapped to his back and a black iron ring on his right index finger. It was clearly a Storage Soul Tool, and he had probably packed everything he needed inside. Xie Yue arrived last but traveled lightest, carrying only the Moon Blades at his waist. He hadn't even brought a waterskin, so he clearly had a Storage Soul Tool as well.

Ning Buhui was already waiting for them. The silver-gray ring on his left ring finger rested unobtrusively against its base. Once the four had met up, they wasted no time leaving through the west gate and taking the main road. There were still few travelers about, and the sound of hooves on the flagstones rang especially clear.

"The route's settled," Xie Yue said. "We head west from the city. It'll take two and a half days to reach the outskirts of the Mist Swamp Forest. The swamp forest is bigger than we thought, so once we're inside, we'll have to find traces of the pack first. It won't be easy in the fog. Buhui and Nana have strong spiritual power, so we'll rely on their senses to lead the way."

"Where do the wolves usually live?" Yan asked.

"There's a patch of dry ground deep in the swamp forest. It's higher than the surrounding land, and the trees are dense," Xie Yue said. "Mist-Hidden Shadow Wolves like to make their dens in places like that. We'll follow the edge of the swamp forest north, circle around to the dry ground, and sneak in from downwind. The wind blows south, so the wolves won't catch our scent."

"You even worked out the wind direction?" Yan clicked his tongue.

"I asked the local hunters yesterday," Xie Yue said. "Some people in the town outside the swamp forest often go hunting in there. They don't dare venture too deep, but they know the outskirts well."

Ning Buhui listened silently, going over Xie Yue's route in his mind. He had seen a topographical map of the Mist Swamp Forest in the library, and it was much as Xie Yue described. A shallow river ran close along the western side of the swamp forest, while low hills lay to the east. If the wolves were startled, they would most likely run toward the river. He made a mental note of it but didn't rush to speak.

The four traveled quickly and had already left Spirit City's territory by noon. Tender green shoots were emerging in the fields on either side of the road, and the wind carried the scent of earth. Yan walked at the front with a blade of grass between his teeth, taking long strides. Hu Liena and Xie Yue walked side by side in the middle. Ning Buhui brought up the rear, keeping an eye on the tracks by the roadside as he walked. Occasionally, a merchant caravan came from the opposite direction, carts and horses rumbling past and raising a thin trail of dust.

After traveling for most of the day, they stopped to rest at a fork in the road as the sun tilted westward. An old tree stood at the junction, its enormous crown casting a broad patch of shade. The four settled beneath it and each took food and water from their Storage Soul Tools. Yan had brought dried meat and flatbread, Hu Liena took out a few pieces of fruit, and Xie Yue merely poured himself a bowl of water and drank it slowly. Ning Buhui broke off half a flatbread and chewed it with cold water from his waterskin.

Another group of traveling merchants was resting not far away. Several men sat in a circle on the ground, talking loudly about market conditions in the west. A middle-aged man with a short beard said, "The Mist Swamp Forest hasn't been peaceful lately. Two groups of hunters went in last month. One came back empty-handed and said they hadn't seen so much as an animal hair; the other never came out at all. Even the locals don't dare go in there now."

"That wolf king in the swamp forest has probably gotten even older," another put in.

"Who knows? All I know is, no matter how much money I'm offered, I'm not going anywhere near there."

Yan bit into a piece of dried meat and spoke around it. "Hear that? The wolf king's fierce."

"The fiercer, the better." Xie Yue stoppered his waterskin. "If it were too tame, it'd be harder to find."

Hu Liena rubbed a piece of fruit against her sleeve and took a bite. "The wolf king they're talking about should be the one we're hunting. It's at least 4,500 years old, probably even older. The age on the mission sheet might not be accurate."

"We'll see when we get there." Ning Buhui swallowed his last bite of flatbread. "I'm not worried if it's a little older. I'm worried it might be smarter than we think."

Once they had rested enough, the four set off again. The sun gradually sank toward the western ridge, and there were fewer and fewer travelers on the road. Far away, at the edge of the sky, a hazy gray-blue shape hovered over the horizon. It looked like a forest, or perhaps fog; it was impossible to tell where one ended and the other began. That was where the Mist Swamp Forest lay.