Chapter 327: Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Wolf
In the Jiuli Mountain Range, ancient trees towered into the sky, and brilliant sunlight shone down through the gaps in the leaves and branches.
Below, a merchant caravan of more than a dozen people moved forward in a long procession.
As the group ventured deeper, Shen Daoxing clearly felt the surroundings grow quieter and quieter—terrifyingly so.
At the same time, the thick, bloody scent within the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi grew stronger and stronger.
Shen Daoxing could see that the Leader of the Escort Team, Chu Guifeng, who walked at the very front of the group, had a grave expression and was watching their surroundings with extreme caution.
"SQUEAK!"
A sharp cry rang out.
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat suddenly poked its head out from Shen Daoxing’s robes.
The Jiuli Mountain Range might be fraught with danger for the others, but for the rat, it was paradise.
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat suddenly twitched its nose as if it had smelled something. Its eyes lit up, and with a soft WHOOSH, it tried to dart out of Shen Daoxing’s robes.
But just as it leaped, one of Shen Daoxing’s large hands shot out, grabbed it, and stuffed it back into his robes.
"Squeak squeak!"
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat shrieked a few times in protest. ’Out there, I could tolerate not being able to eat people, but now that we’re here, I can’t even touch a few little demon beasts? This is just bullying a rat!’
As if sensing the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat’s thoughts, Shen Daoxing said coolly, "Later. You’ll have plenty of chances to open your mouth."
"Squeak squeak!"
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat squeaked a few more times before finally quieting down.
But with a RUMBLE, its stomach betrayed it and growled loudly.
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat felt wronged. Ever since leaving the Celestial Lake Swamp, it hadn’t had a single full meal.
Immediately, the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat quietly poked its head out from Shen Daoxing’s robes again. This time, however, its eyes were fixed on the Sumeru Ring on Shen Daoxing’s finger. It knew that Shen Daoxing had hidden a lot of ore inside it.
But just as the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat got close...
"Hey! The little mouse is trying to steal something again."
Xin’s childish voice rang out, and in the next moment, a wooden stick came swinging down.
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat immediately retreated to dodge the blow. Its fur stood on end, and it began chittering at Xin, the two of them facing off in Shen Daoxing’s arms.
Before they knew it, the group had traveled for a long time. The surrounding forest looked terrifying, but they hadn’t encountered any danger.
However, due to the high tension, everyone was somewhat exhausted, their mouths dry and tongues parched.
Seeing this, Shen Daoxing walked to the rear of the group to where Ma Wan and Luo An were standing guard.
"You two go get some rest. I can watch your post for you," Shen Daoxing offered.
Hearing this, Luo An was instantly delighted.
Ma Wan, however, waved his hand impatiently. "Go on, get out of here. What’s a rich young master like you doing trying to get in on the action? The demon beasts of the Jiuli Mountain Range love to launch sneak attacks. I wouldn’t dare entrust the most important post—the rear—to you. What if we get attacked by a demon beast?"
At this, Luo An didn’t know what to say.
Shen Daoxing just smiled faintly and walked back to the middle of the group.
The caravan continued its long procession forward.
Chu Guifeng, the Leader of the Escort Team, was walking at the front and pushed aside a thicket of trees.
The group heard the clear sound of flowing water and saw a clear stream meandering slowly by.
They had traveled for a long time; it was time to rest.
Immediately, the Leader of the Escort Team, Chu Guifeng, raised a hand to signal the group to halt. "We’ll rest for a while."
Instantly, the group relaxed, setting down their luggage. They went to the stream’s edge, cupped water in their hands, and drank in big gulps.
Ma Wan, walking at the rear of the team, didn’t rest right away. Instead, he cautiously observed their surroundings for a while from the back. Seeing no movement and confirming that everything was safe, he finally turned and sat down on a large rock to rest.
Shen Daoxing, holding Xin, also found a rock and sat down. He was naturally pleased that they hadn’t encountered any danger along the way. ’As long as I can get out of the Jiuli Mountain Range and enter Cangzhou, I won’t have to hide anymore. I won’t have to fear the Celestial Profound Sacred Land.’
’However, this place is very close to the Ancient Battlefield, where two Mountain Masters from the Celestial Profound Sacred Land are stationed. For an ordinary person, traveling from the Ancient Battlefield to here would take a considerable amount of time, but for those two Mountain Masters, it would only take minutes. I still have to be extremely careful not to attract their attention.’
Elder Mu fetched a bowl of water from the stream and respectfully approached Shen Daoxing to offer it to him, truly looking like a servant.
Ma Wan saw this and sneered. ’What a young master.’
Shen Daoxing took the water and passed it to Xin first.
But just as the group was resting, their guard completely down...
A patch of bushes by the stream stirred without a breeze. Suddenly, a huge figure shot out from it, its mouth open as it lunged toward a merchant’s carriage driver who was drinking by the water.
It was a giant wolf with powerful limbs, twice the size of an ordinary wolf. Two sharp fangs protruded from its lips, and white stripes covering its body shimmered with a faint glow.
Seeing the giant wolf pounce, the merchant’s carriage driver immediately panicked.
"Don’t be afraid, everyone! It’s just a Snow Wolf at the ninth layer of the Grotto Heaven realm! Watch how I, Luo An, deal with it!"
Luo An was the first to step forward, eager to fight and with an excited expression, as if he had been waiting for this moment.
"SHING!"
With a clear ring, Luo An drew a sharp longsword, leaped high into the air, and silvery-white Spiritual Power rippled along the blade. The sword carved a graceful arc through the air as he brought it down on the giant wolf’s head.
Seeing this, Ma Wan’s expression suddenly changed in alarm. "That’s not right! That’s not a Snow Wolf, it’s a Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Wolf—a demon beast at the sixth layer of the Spirit Transformation realm! Watch out, you damn kid!"
"Huh?"
Luo An froze for a second, but it was already too late.
"CLANG!"
A sound like striking metal rang out as Luo An’s sword slammed down on the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Wolf’s head.
However, the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Wolf merely shook its head, completely unharmed.
In the next instant, a fierce wind erupted from under the giant wolf’s paws, and one after another, azure Wind Blades howled forth.
"SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!"
Instantly, a dozen cuts were torn into Luo An’s clothes, revealing the blood-soaked flesh beneath.
"Damn kid, you just don’t know your own limits."
Ma Wan roared, then leaped to Luo An’s side. He sent Luo An flying out from the storm of Wind Blades with a palm strike, then immediately raised his greatsword.
"You beast!"
Ma Wan bellowed, his greatsword slashing down. A powerful Sword Gang shot forth as he immediately engaged the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Wolf in battle.
Seeing this, the other Darts Masters on the side were about to rush forward to help, but Chu Guifeng suddenly stopped them with a shout. "No need to help! Ma Wan can handle it alone. Guard the caravan and stay alert for other demon beasts ambushing us!"
The Darts Masters halted, then moved to form a defensive perimeter around the caravan.
And Ma Wan truly lived up to his reputation as a seasoned veteran with years of experience in the Jiuli Mountain Range.
With a light shift of his feet, his figure flickered left and right, dodging several flying Wind Blades. He appeared before the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Wolf, and with a sudden slide, he found its weak spot and viciously slashed his greatsword across the giant wolf’s belly.
"AWOOOO~"
A miserable howl echoed.
The Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Wolf’s massive body swayed a few times before it crashed heavily to the ground with a THUD, falling silent.