Chapter 68: Suffering Before One's Eyes
The source of the sound wasn’t far. He Yan urged her horse forward at full speed, with Shen Hong following closely behind, shouting as he ran, "Hey, wait for me!"
Beyond the mountain peak, the path led into a dense, shadowy forest where the sunlight barely penetrated, casting an eerie, almost nocturnal gloom. He Yan halted before a thicket of tangled undergrowth.
Ahead, Zheng Xuan and his two companions stood surrounded. Their horses stamped nervously, refusing to advance. Zheng Xuan’s face was pale, while the other two looked on the verge of tears.
Encircling them were four wolves, crouched low, growling menacingly. As He Yan and Shen Hong approached, the wolves turned their fierce gazes toward them.
Wolves at this time of year, at this hour? He Yan found it strange.
Observing Zheng Xuan’s group, she noted their disheveled state. More importantly, Zheng Xuan’s sword was missing from his waist. Wolves might attack solitary travelers, but they wouldn’t target three men without reason. "What did you do?" He Yan demanded.
Zheng Xuan remained silent, his face ashen. One of the recruits behind him answered in a trembling voice, "We... we found a den up ahead. There were sounds coming from inside, so we went to look. There was a litter of wolf pups..."
"You touched the pups?" He Yan snapped sharply.
Her harsh tone startled the recruit, who stammered, "N-no! We just wanted to take one back to raise. But before we got far, these wolves appeared."
He Yan nearly wanted to crack their skulls open to see what nonsense filled their heads. Finding a wolf den meant the mother was nearby—yet instead of fleeing, they had taken the pups? Did they truly think the adult wolves wouldn’t track them down?
"Where are the pups now?" she asked.
"...We panicked and threw them back. But..."
"But what?" A sudden sense of foreboding gripped He Yan.
"One of them hit a sharp rock. It... it might be dead," the recruit admitted.
"You—!" Fury surged through He Yan. There was no way these wolves would leave now.
"What are you yelling about?" Zheng Xuan snapped. "They’re just wolves! Kill them! Are we really going to be cornered by a few beasts?"
He Yan scoffed. "Oh? Then where’s your sword?"
Zheng Xuan’s expression darkened further. After dropping the pup, he had drawn his blade to confront the wolves. But they were cunning—despite his skill, his nerves had left him vulnerable, and he had nearly been injured before losing his sword in the chaos. If not for that, they wouldn’t be in such dire straits now.
"Enough talk," he hissed through gritted teeth. "Either we all die here, or we find a way out."
Just then, Shen Hong arrived on horseback. At the sight before him, he gasped, his voice trembling. "S-so many wolves! Why are there so many?"
The wolves crouched lower, baring their fangs—a clear sign of an impending attack.
If only they had a firestarter. Wolves feared fire, but they had set out in daylight and carried none. Before He Yan could think further, the four wolves lunged at the encircled trio.
The men screamed in panic. One horse had its leg bitten, nearly throwing its rider. Shen Hong was on the verge of tears. "Help!"What’s the use of crying for help now? There’s no one else here. With a hardened heart, He Yan urged her horse to charge forward. Her sudden rush scattered the wolves’ encirclement. Several wolves turned their attention to her and lunged.
He Yan shouted, "Where are your spears? Use them!"
"Oh—oh!" The two recruits snapped out of their daze and fumbled for their long spears, waving them clumsily, barely able to hold them steady. He Yan’s heart sank instantly.
There was no hope in relying on these men. She reached for her knife, only to remember that Shen Hong had borrowed it earlier. All she had left was a bamboo stick. "Shen Hong!" she barked. "Throw my knife over!"
Shen Hong responded with a shaky "Yes!" and pulled out the knife to toss it, but his nerves got the better of him. The long blade slipped midair, leaving only the short knife still sheathed. He Yan snatched it out of the air.
The wolves circled them, waiting for an opening. He Yan commanded, "When I tell you to run, turn and bolt. Don’t look back—head straight down the mountain to the camp. Get the instructors to come up here, understand?"
Shen Hong asked, "What about you?"
"I’ll find a way to shake them off!"
"He Yan," one of the recruits beside Zheng Xuan sobbed, "how can we run? We’re surrounded. They’ll go for the horses’ legs—if they cripple them, none of us will get away..."
"Not entirely hopeless." As soon as He Yan spoke, the short knife in her hand shot forward. The blade was slender, and her movement was swift—a flash of silver, a sharp howl, and the stench of blood filled the air.
The largest wolf collapsed, blood bubbling from its throat. The knife had sunk in completely, leaving only the hilt exposed. After a few feeble twitches, the wolf went still.
"Run!" He Yan roared.
Zheng Xuan and the others, along with Shen Hong, didn’t dare breathe. They spurred their horses with all their might, charging out of the dense forest. Expecting the remaining wolves to give chase, they didn’t look back and soon vanished from sight.
The remaining wolves didn’t pursue them. After a brief moment of panic, their gazes locked onto He Yan, filled with vicious intent.
He Yan had killed the alpha.
Wolves were pack animals, and the largest among them had been their leader. Without its command, the pack lost coordination, no longer as cunning as before. But now, as the one who had slain their alpha, He Yan would face their vengeance.
One wolf bared its fangs and lunged at her, claws sharp enough to tear a man’s head apart. He Yan swung her bamboo stick with all her might, knocking the wolf aside midair. It tumbled forward, missing its target.
A faint crack —inaudible to most, but He Yan’s sharp hearing caught it. Her heart sank.
The bamboo stick had split. It wouldn’t last much longer before breaking.
"Damn it!" she muttered under her breath. Three wolves—she could handle them alone under normal circumstances. But now, with nothing but this nearly broken stick, she was practically unarmed. Truly, a hero can be tripped by a single coin ? No—more like misfortunes never come singly .
A human couldn’t be cornered by mere beasts. Recalling Zheng Xuan’s earlier words, she let out a low chuckle.
On the battlefield, aside from attacking head-on, there was one other thing she excelled at—running away.
"Run!"The girl's voice echoed through the mountain forest, startling countless birds into flight. The long staff in her hands seemed imbued with boundless strength as it cleaved straight ahead, forcibly carving out an open path.
She spurred her horse onward, gripping the long staff as if she might vanish into the vast, distant wilderness.
Behind her, a pack of wolves gave chase—like fish swimming in a boiling cauldron—leaving no room for hesitation.
(End of Chapter)
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