Ji An slapped a Golden Armor Talisman onto himself, then activated the Earth-Spirit Pearl. Layers of golden and earthy light lit up one after another, forming a protective aura around his body.
The Earth-Spirit Pearl revolved around him like a small satellite.
After setting up his defenses, he formed another hand seal.
A bright yellow Exploding Fireball spun before him, ready to be unleashed at any moment.
He had already caught sight of Ge Luoying chasing from afar, and he also noticed the droplets of blood scattering as the Blackwind Wolf ran. From that alone, he understood that this wolf demon must be her prey.
Their group had just happened to stumble into this hunt, truly unlucky.
Still, he knew that as long as they stalled the wolf for a few breaths, their mission would be complete.
Before departing, he had already suspected that this assignment was aimed at attacking Mingfeng Mountain, so he had made sure to familiarize himself thoroughly with the behaviors and distribution of the beasts here.
Mingfeng Mountain was ruled mainly by Blackwind Wolves. These wolves fought primarily with brute force; only a few awakened wind-attribute spell talents.
Ji An had prepared countermeasures in advance and had thought deeply about how the battle might unfold, so he wasn't surprised when the wolf blew apart the fire cloud.
The instant the fire cloud was scattered by the wolf's Wind Howl, Ji An traced the arc of its leap, roughly calculated its trajectory, and immediately launched an Exploding Fireball.
He wasn't expecting it to land. This wolf was clearly much stronger and faster than the one they killed yesterday. His goal was simply to force the wolf to adjust its movements mid-air.
At the same time, he formed another seal, releasing a second Exploding Fireball. This one was the real strike.
Most demon beasts had an instinctive fear of fire-attribute spells. Blackwind Wolves were no exception; unless they'd reached a certain realm, they could not overcome this instinct.
Meanwhile, when Zhong Yue activated his Fire-Cloud Gourd, he didn't stay put.
As an Enforcement Hall cultivator who fought beasts year-round, he understood well how fast high-tier Blackwind Wolves could be.
When he saw the fire cloud dispersed by the wolf, he was stunned for a moment, then instantly heard a muffled bang behind him.
One of the disciples behind him had been struck by a nearly transparent, barrel-sized wind sphere. His chest collapsed inward, and his entire body was blasted into the air as if rammed by a raging bull.
Ji An's attention remained locked onto the wolf. When the beast burst out of the shredded fire cloud, his first fireball was already arriving.
The Blackwind Wolf glanced at the incoming fireball with a flash of disdain.
Though chased and wounded by the female cultivator behind it, it still didn't take this group seriously.
It twisted gracefully in mid-air, dodging the attack like a windborne spirit.
Just as it leapt upward again, Ji An let a faint smile curl at his lips and calmly triggered the second fireball he had been holding in reserve.
Let's see you dodge a second jump in mid-air.
Ji An sneered inwardly, shifting his position while preparing yet another spell.
Until the enemy was truly down, he would never relax.
But to his disbelief, the Blackwind Wolf twisted its body again and avoided the second fireball as well.
However, Zhong Yue's second strike arrived!
As a veteran of countless beast fights, his battle instincts were razor sharp.
While the wolf focused entirely on Ji An's fireball, Zhong Yue swiftly repositioned himself to attack from the wolf's blind spot.
Attacking from both front and back amplified their advantage enormously.
When the wolf finally sensed the massive fire cloud descending behind it, it was already too late. Its glossy, fluffy fur ignited instantly.
"Aooo!"
A hurried, furious, humiliated howl tore from its throat.
In the Blackwind Wolf's understanding, if not for the female cultivator chasing it, it should have been able to tear through these low-level cultivators within moments.
Yet here it was, injured by enemies it never even bothered to look at.
The sword hum behind it grew louder and colder; the killing intent was closing in.
It knew it couldn't escape.
But it refused to die quietly.
With a violent shudder like a drenched dog throwing off water, the flames coating its body were swept away by a sudden gust, revealing large patches of charred, blistered skin beneath.
The Blackwind Wolf roared, wind swirling around its form. It left streaking afterimages through the air as it darted straight toward Ji An.
Even in death, it wanted to take someone down with it.
"Run!"
Zhong Yue shouted. He could clearly see that the beast had begun to fight desperately. This was the most dangerous moment. But as long as they held out a little longer, the wolf would be surrounded.
The Blackwind Wolf's speed suddenly surged again, exceeding Ji An's calculations.
Ji An twisted his body, shifting his position in a small arc while simultaneously forming a hand seal to cast the Pan Mountain Art. A faint yellow glow spread across him, but concealed beneath the earthen light of the Earth Spirit Pearl, it was nearly invisible.
The Blackwind Wolf drew closer and closer. Its fanged maw opened wide as it unleashed a Wind Howl. A compressed blast of wind surged out like a cannonball, shooting straight toward him.
Ji An had no time to dodge; he took the blow head-on and was blasted backward.
The Blackwind Wolf lunged after him, determined to tear him into pieces.
The protective light from the Earth Spirit Pearl shattered under the beast's enraged strike. Ji An watched as the wolf's enormous maw rapidly enlarged in his field of vision, the stink of blood rushing over him.
He saw the cold gleam on the wolf's raised claws, the immense hatred burning in its eyes, and the chilling glint on its white fangs.
You resent me quite a bit, huh? I really don't like that look…
Ji An bared his teeth in a savage grin, revealing a mouthful of sharp teeth of his own, and was faintly exhilarated.
Even though the Earth Spirit Pearl's protection had been destroyed, he still had Pan Mountain Art, Golden Armor Talisman, and most importantly, his body refined by the Golden Jade Bone Physique, giving him defensive strength comparable to a Foundation Establishment–stage beast.
Ji An flicked his wrist lightly. A palm-sized golden crescent blade slipped straight into the wolf's open mouth.
The light blade spun through the beast's body and, by pure misfortune, exited through its rear end. Wherever it passed, organs were shredded.
The hatred in the wolf's eyes was instantly replaced by unbearable agony. The power it had gathered in rage drained away completely.
Its body collapsed atop Ji An, spasming reflexively.
Ji An fell to the ground along with it. He grabbed the wolf's two front legs, each thicker than his arm, and pushed the corpse aside, rolling himself away.
Ding!
A sword cry tore through the air as a sword-light arrived belatedly, slicing into the wolf's body.
Ge Luoying flew over and formed a hand seal to recall her flying sword.
She immediately sensed something was wrong. A living beast would never lie still and allow itself to be sliced without attempting to dodge or at least howl in pain.
Zhong Yue rushed over, shouting anxiously and quickly:
"Senior Brother Ji! Are you alright?!"
Ji An clasped his fists slightly, wearing a lingering look of fear.
"Thank you for the concern. Luckily, I came prepared. I brought plenty of high-grade talismans."
Ge Luoying descended, landing lightly, and asked in a cold voice:
"What did you just do?"
By now, she realized the wolf had already been dead before her attack arrived.
She knew Ji An was merely a spirit farmer. By logic, he shouldn't have been able to kill a late-stage Foundation Establishment wolf.
Ji An replied:
"Nothing much. I just activated a Golden Light Talisman into its mouth at the right moment."
Ge Luoying raised a brow. He said it lightly, but for a spirit farmer, the difficulty was immense.
To endure a beast pouncing onto him and still grasp the perfect timing to fire a talisman, such battle sense was innate.
"Not bad. This Blackwind Wolf belongs to your team."
With that, she summoned her sword-light again and merged with it, flying off.
Since she hadn't delivered the killing blow, she didn't want the spoils.
"Thank you, Senior Sister!" Ji An called out.
He didn't like her tone; she always acted as if someone owed her money. But this decision of hers, he could appreciate.
A late-stage Foundation Establishment wolf corpse was extremely valuable; no reason to turn it down.
Hearing their exchange, Zhong Yue pieced together the situation and swallowed hard.
"Senior Brother… that's impressive!"
No matter how it happened, another late-stage Blackwind Wolf had died at Ji An's hands. If it were him, he wasn't sure he could've done it.
"It was practically a life-for-a-life trade. And the beast was heavily injured before it reached us.
Had I encountered it alone, I would've been its meal."
"In battle, 'if' doesn't matter. What matters is the wolf is dead and you're alive!"
Just then, a Qi-Refining disciple stumbled over, tears still streaking his face.
"Two… two Senior Uncles… Zhang Cheng is dead.
His chest caved in completely… and all his organs were ruptured…"
Zhang Cheng had entered the sect from the same courtyard as him. They had trained side by side for over a decade, closer than blood brothers.
Zhong Yue sighed:
"Gather his body. I'll report the incident to the sect. Perhaps his family will receive additional compensation."
A Qi-Refining disciple who takes a late-stage beast's Wind Howl head-on stands no chance of survival.
"Yes…" The disciple bit his lip and walked off with heavy steps.
Ji An watched his fading silhouette in silence, sighing faintly.
With the beast tide erupting, who knew how many more separations like this they would face?
"To meet a late-stage Blackwind Wolf one with awakened wind talent and lose only one person… that's already the best outcome."
Zhong Yue understood well the cruelty of fighting beasts. The roles of hunter and prey could reverse at any moment.
He pulled several bottles and jars from his storage bag, rolling up his sleeves.
"Senior Brother, we can't waste the beast's essence blood."
Wolf skin, wolf bone, and essence blood were all valuable materials. Foundation Establishment–tier beasts also produced demon cores worth a fortune.
The demon core was pitch black, occasionally flashing faint cyan. Ji An stored it respectfully in a jade bottle.
The group continued forward.
An hour later, Jinmao burst from the rocks, squeaking excitedly.
"Squeak squeak!"
It stood upright like a tiny person and pointed ahead with its little paw.
Ji An understood there was treasure ahead!
"Lead the way!"
He slapped a Golden Armor Talisman onto himself and used Wind-Riding Technique to follow behind Jinmao.
"Be careful!" Zhong Yue called out.
Ji An rounded a massive two-zhang boulder only for brilliant light to flash before his eyes.
He shielded his gaze and squinted. Ahead was a patch of golden-leaved spirit bamboo, shimmering in the sunlight like rippling water.
Jinmao climbed up one stalk and shook it vigorously.
The bamboo stalks were the dull yellow color of dried bamboo, but the leaves were shaped like blades.
Ji An darted forward and touched a leaf, only to feel a sharp cutting sensation.
His eyes lit up instantly. He grinned widely.
"Profound-Leaf Sword Bamboo!"
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