The Savage Wolf King

This guy really is stubborn.

"Alright, since you insist, I'll take my leave for now. But if you ever need my help in the future, feel free to ask. I can see you're an upright person, and if we meet again, I'll definitely invite you to my cave for a drink!" Ye Qiang said, finally.

With that, he turned and left the forest without looking back.

Soon, the only ones left in the forest were the heavily injured Ye Jiancheng and the five other outer disciples of the Blood Sword Sect, who had been knocked down by Ye Jiancheng earlier. They were sitting cross-legged, circulating their inner energy to heal their wounds.

After bidding Ye Jiancheng farewell, Ye Qiang hurried toward the heart of the Black Mountain Range. He hoped to find the Savage Wolf King as described in the parchment and kill it to retrieve its beast heart, completing his task.

As he drew closer to the center of the Black Mountain Range, Ye Qiang noticed that the strange flowers and herbs had become increasingly rare, and even the usual wildlife—birds and beasts—were almost nonexistent.

The most striking change was in the trees. As he walked, the leaves on the branches grew darker, almost as though they had been poisoned, giving off a chilling and eerie vibe.

This was the first time Ye Qiang had seen such a place with his own eyes. Honestly, he felt a twinge of unease, even fear.

But Ye Qiang didn't back down. He kept reminding himself to stay strong, to press on courageously, to keep pushing forward, to constantly improve, and to be free and unburdened.

So, even if ahead lay a den of dragons and tigers, and death could be just one step away, he would march on. After all, he saw this as nothing more than a test.

After a while, Ye Qiang spotted a massive stone tablet ahead, which read: "You have entered the center of the Black Mountain Range."

As soon as Ye Qiang entered this region, he suddenly felt a wave of fatigue, as if his body had gained several tons in weight.

Moreover, the place, though it didn't seem to be quiet, was eerily silent now. There were no birdcalls in the dense forest.

The atmosphere grew increasingly tense, and Ye Qiang felt more and more uncomfortable. After walking a long distance, a series of haunting wolf howls echoed through the strange forest ahead.

"Could it be the legendary Savage Wolf King?" Ye Qiang thought to himself.

"Ugh..."

"Ugh..."

"Ugh..."

Ye Qiang dragged his heavy steps toward the source of the howls. But when he arrived, what he saw filled him with disappointment and anxiety.

The forest was full of trees, and all around were the bodies of large, fully evolved wolves with copper-colored fur. Each body was covered in dozens of deep sword wounds, some so severe they exposed the bone, leaving a gruesome scene.

Ye Qiang crouched next to one of the Bronze Wolf corpses and noticed that the beast hearts had not been taken.

This worried him. He began to wonder if someone else was on the same mission as him, also searching for the elusive Savage Wolf King.

The Savage Wolf King was said to be a high-level beast that had developed intelligence. It often appeared in the center of the Black Mountain Range.

Many low-level disciples of the Blood Sword Sect had perished during this task, having the misfortune of encountering this intelligent high-level beast.

This task really was difficult. First, Ye Qiang had to search through the entire forest to find the elusive Savage Wolf King. Whether he could defeat it was uncertain, and he also had to worry about running into disciples from the Wuji Sword Sect.

If he was unlucky and encountered Wuji Sword Sect members, a fight would likely break out, as the Blood Sword Sect and Wuji Sword Sect were on the brink of war.

Ye Qiang wandered around the Bronze Wolves for a while, and then he noticed a trail of strange footprints scattered across the forest floor. Some were human, some belonged to beasts, but the most unusual were the enormous prints of a giant stag, marked with fresh blood. From the color of the blood, it seemed to have been left not long ago.

Ye Qiang speculated that these could be the prints of the elusive Savage Wolf King mentioned in the legends.

If that's the case, then the Savage Wolf King must have been wounded. Someone was hunting it, and it wasn't just one or two people—it was a group.

Ye Qiang guessed that these hunters were probably from a sect, just like him, on a similar mission. If that were true, it would be trouble for him.

It was said that there was only one Savage Wolf King in this entire forest, and if it were killed, it would take 100 days for a new one to be born.

If that were the case, Ye Qiang would have come all this way for nothing. He couldn't let the wolf die at someone else's hands.

So, Ye Qiang decided to continue following the wolf's tracks.

Soon, he arrived at the entrance of a pitch-black cave, where a group of young men dressed in blood-red cloaks were gathered, discussing something. To his surprise, these young men were none other than Li Zhi and his group.

After being scared off by Ye Jiancheng, Li Zhi and his companions hadn't left the Black Mountain Range but had instead ventured deeper into the center of the range. Their goal was also to complete the ten-star parchment mission and obtain a mid-tier Earth-grade weapon identical to Ye Jiancheng's, in order to strengthen their abilities.

"Brother, why don't we just charge in and kill it? We've already wounded the beast; we can easily finish it off," said a short-haired boy, not very tall, to Li Zhi.

"You don't understand, junior brother. This beast has awakened intelligence and is very cunning! If we fight it in this dark cave, we might suffer heavy casualties," Li Zhi replied with a frown.

"Then what should we do? We can't just keep waiting here, what if..."

Before the short-haired boy could finish, a series of wolf howls came from the distance.

"Not good! It's the Bronze Wolf pack. What should we do? If they come to aid the Savage Wolf King, we'll be in serious danger. We might not make it out of here alive!" the short-haired boy said in alarm.

Li Zhi thought for a moment and then said, "Then we'll take a gamble. Let's rush in together and kill that damn beast!"

As soon as Li Zhi finished speaking, he and his disciples rushed into the dark cave.

At this moment, Ye Qiang was perched on a black tree, his eyes fixed on the dark cave with a deep, contemplative gaze.

Should he go in or not?

If he went in, a conflict with Li Zhi and his group was inevitable. He wasn't afraid of a confrontation with them, but he was concerned about the Bronze Wolf pack gathering outside and blocking the entrance. If that happened, he would be in a very passive position. No, it was better to stay put and wait for the right moment.