Chapter 26: Wolf Warrior

After the duration of a single stick of incense had passed, the remaining low-level demon wolves gradually fell into defeat. As Qin Yuniang’s sword struck down the head of the last low-level wind wolf, Shi Chun and the other were finally able to finish off their opponents.

Looking at the demon wolf corpses lying haphazardly on the ground, Shi Chun confirmed there were no stragglers. He then scanned the rest of the battlefield and realized that Zhang Tieshan's situation was looking grim; facing the fierce onslaught of a high-level wind wolf, he was already in critical danger.

He had somewhat underestimated the strength of this high-level demon wolf at the peak of the Qi Refinement stage. The creature's magical power was incredibly profound; it looked as though it might break through to become a second-grade demon beast in just a few decades.

Shi Chun’s mind raced, and he quickly made a decision. He said to Qin Yuniang beside him, "Yuniang, Tieshan can't hold out much longer. I'll go help him first; you go assist Fellow Daoist Zhang."

Shi Chun's original plan had been to first assist Zhang Baishan, who had the highest cultivation among them, to kill the mid-level demon wolf pinning him down. This would allow Zhang Baishan to free his hands so they could go assist Zhang Tieshan together. However, it seemed Zhang Tieshan wouldn't last that long. After some thought, Shi Chun decided to change tactics: he would let his junior sister, Qin Yuniang, support Zhang Baishan alone while he went to help Zhang Tieshan stabilize the situation.

On Song Qingming's side, facing this mid-level wind wolf that had only recently broken through, the battle seemed somewhat effortless from the start. Song Qingming used Earth Wall techniques to slow the wind wolf's attacks and evade its strikes, while simultaneously using the fire-attribute spells released by his Blazing Sun Sword and several low-level Fireball Talismans to strike the opponent from a distance.

The wind wolf's several attempts at attacking had failed, and it looked somewhat disheveled after being struck by several fireballs, clearly becoming enraged.

Seeing that it could not close the distance to Song Qingming, the wind wolf let out a furious howl and flew toward an earth wall. A spiritual light flashed on its back, and a crescent-shaped wind blade flew rapidly toward Song Qingming. Song Qingming intended to use his Lightness Technique to dodge again, but he hadn't expected the wind blade to be so incredibly fast; in the blink of an eye, it was right in front of him.

Seeing how fast the wind blade was, Song Qingming did not panic. He immediately released a black shield from his storage bag to block in front of him. The wind blade struck the shield with a *clang*, leaving only a shallow mark before dissolving into a streak of green light and vanishing.

This black shield was called the Black Gold Shield. Song Qingming had purchased it a year ago on Grass Hut Mountain from a rogue cultivator at the late stage of Qi Refinement for the high price of forty spirit stones. It was a mid-grade magical tool, but because it was infused with a significant amount of high-grade Black Gold ore, its quality was about thirty percent better than typical mid-grade defensive tools—though, of course, its price was also twenty percent higher.

Song Qingming had been refining the Black Gold Shield for over a year and had become quite proficient in using it. It was precisely because of this shield's protection that he had remained uninjured while being pursued by that high-level demon crocodile earlier.

Seeing the Black Gold Shield easily block the wind blade, Song Qingming felt a surge of joy; his forty spirit stones had indeed not been wasted. Since he could counter the demon beast's most formidable assets—its speed and wind blades—the subsequent battle would naturally be much simpler.

First-grade demon beasts possessed almost no intelligence; even cunning creatures like wolves mostly relied on animal instinct to attack. Song Qingming first used the Black Gold Shield to bait the wolf into using its spells. Once the wolf had exhausted most of its spiritual energy, he turned the tide, unleashing his Blazing Sun Sword to launch an offensive against the fatigued creature.

Not long after Shi Chun and his junior sister finished their battle, Song Qingming also finished off the mid-level demon wolf with a single strike. After glancing at the other battlefields, Song Qingming intended to go help Zhang Tieshan and Shi Chun, who were being suppressed by the high-level wind wolf, but unexpectedly, Shi Chun called out to him.

"Fellow Daoist Song, we can still hold our ground here. Go help Fellow Daoist Zhang and Yuniang first."

Zhang Baishan had already been gradually gaining the upper hand. After Qin Yuniang joined the fray, the demon wolf she was fighting had lost its ability to attack. Within a few rounds of Song Qingming joining the fray, the wind wolf's throat was severed by the two short blades in Zhang Baishan's hands.

The high-level wind wolf, which was fighting Zhang Tieshan and Shi Chun, saw its subordinates being killed one after another. Seeing the three of them—including the now-free Song Qingming—closing in, it sensed danger. It exerted all its strength to release a wind blade to repel Zhang Tieshan and the other, then turned and fled into the dense forest.

The last remaining mid-level demon wolf, which was fighting Wu Tianmu, saw the wolf king retreat and attempted to break away from Wu Tianmu to follow the king and save its life. Unfortunately, it did not have the wolf king's luck; it was quickly entangled by Wu Tianmu again, and once the others surrounded it, it died a tragic and indignant death under Zhang Tieshan's giant sword.

Through their strenuous fighting, the group finally won this battle against the pack of demon beasts, managing to emerge without serious incident.

After the battle, Shi Chun urged everyone to quickly clean up the battlefield and leave to avoid being tracked by other demon beasts drawn by the scent of blood.

Everyone's faces were filled with smiles; they hadn't expected so many demon beasts to deliver themselves to their doorstep just as they were nearing home. After collecting the demon beast materials, and under Shi Chun's arrangement, the group began to discuss how to divide the spoils of war.

The greatest credit naturally went to Zhang Tieshan. Had he not risked his life to stall that high-level wind wolf, everyone would have had nothing to do but flee for their lives. This time, they had killed a total of three mid-level wind wolves and five low-level wind wolves. As expected, Zhang Tieshan received the largest mid-level wind wolf.

Next was Shi Chun, who was responsible for commanding the battle. His ability to remain calm and command effectively while being surrounded by wolves left a deep impression on Song Qingming. Shi Chun and his junior sister together received one mid-level wind wolf, one low-level wind wolf, and five spirit stones.

Zhang Baishan was smiling broadly; he received the last mid-level wind wolf and produced five spirit stones to compensate Shi Chun and his junior sister.

The remaining two, Song Qingming and Wu Tianmu, had similar contributions and received slightly less, with each getting two low-level wind wolves. Song Qingming had no objections to this; although this battle had cost him several low-level talismans, obtaining two low-level demon beasts was still quite profitable.

Even though he had personally killed a mid-level wind wolf, the one he fought wasn't particularly strong. He only had the opportunity because the others were able to stall the stronger beasts, a fact everyone understood.

After receiving their spoils, everyone was jubilant and satisfied, and they continued their journey.

"It truly is strange. We are not far from Guiyuan Market, yet there are still such large packs of demon beasts. It seems the unrest of the Northern Border demon beasts is drawing closer," Zhang Baishan said suddenly with a solemn expression, stroking his beard while looking at the joyful group.

Upon hearing him mention the Northern Border demon beast unrest, everyone's expression changed, and they fell silent.

Song Qingming had heard of this from his family elders and quickly asked, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, based on the timing of the last unrest, shouldn't the Northern Border invasion still be about twenty years away?"

"Who knows? The timing of the unrest is never perfectly accurate. It could be twenty years earlier or twenty years later. I only fear that when the time comes, our cultivation will be too low to survive such a catastrophe," Zhang Baishan said, taking a deep swig from the wine gourd at his waist.

The Northern Border was a vast region, occupying a quarter of the entire East Phoenix Immortal Province. It was filled with mountains and spiritual treasures, yet few cultivators dared to venture deep into it because it was the core territory of the demon race, teeming with beasts. The Floating Cloud Mountains in northern Wei were merely a small frontier of the entire Northern Border.

Roughly every hundred years, the Northern Border demon beasts would revolt. During these times, massive numbers of beasts would cross the Floating Cloud Mountains to attack the human territories to the south. Whenever this happened, the surrounding countries, including Wei, would face sieges by demon beasts.

Facing the centennial invasion of the Northern Border, the Xiaoyao Sect of the State of Wei was also deeply troubled. They could only conscript numerous cultivators within the borders to head to the frontier to combat the invasion. This was one of the rare great wars in the thousands of years of peace in the Wei cultivation world.

After every Northern Border unrest, a large number of cultivators would perish on the battlefield. Even the Foundation Establishment cultivators and Golden Core ancestors, who usually held high status, were not immune. This was why everyone's faces had paled upon hearing the news.

Seeing the group's mood dampen, Shi Chun said to Zhang Baishan with a grin, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, the unrest is at least a decade or so away. It has little to do with us rogue cultivators; that is a headache for the high-level cultivators of the Xiaoyao Sect. We don't even know if we'll live until that day. We might run into the Fire Wolf Gang tomorrow and be reincarnated on the spot." His words drew a round of laughter from the group, instantly easing the tension.

The Fire Wolf Gang Shi Chun mentioned was a group of rogue cultivators who had become active in the Floating Cloud Mountains in recent years. They specialized in robbing fellow rogue cultivators and were notoriously cruel; those targeted by them rarely left alive. Even Guiyun Market had issued a bounty for this infamous gang of bandits. When Song Qingming first met Shi Chun and the others, Zhang Tieshan had almost mistaken him for a member of the Fire Wolf Gang.

"Old drunkard, you only know how to scare people once you've had a drink. In twenty years, we might not even be here; whether the demon beasts come or not has nothing to do with us."

Qin Yuniang was the youngest, yet the most free-spirited. Facing the crisis of ten or twenty years away, she showed no worry on her face and remained the calmest.

Only Song Qingming could not find peace in his heart for a long time.

Compared to them, a few wandering rogue cultivators, Song Qingming knew that as a member of a cultivation clan in the State of Wei, the Song family would likely find it difficult to avoid this catastrophe. Currently, he truly did not know if he would have the ability to survive if he were caught in the middle of it.

In such a battlefield, one would need at least a late-stage Qi Refinement cultivation to have even a slight chance of self-preservation.

Song Qingming made a silent vow: before the Northern Border demon beast unrest arrived, he must raise his cultivation to the late stage of Qi Refinement.

(End of Chapter)