Chapter 95: Overwhelming Battle

Xu Yang suppressed the soul power within his body and quietly made his way to the foot of the mountain. Facing the steep cliff wall, he began to climb directly. Fearing that the wolf bandits might sense fluctuations in his soul power, he chose not to use any soul power but relied solely on his physical strength to ascend.

At his current level, this height was effortless.

Years of body tempering had given him a weight of about two hundred jin (around 100 kg) and a strength exceeding two thousand jin (roughly one ton). If it weren't for the lack of more advanced body tempering methods, his strength and speed would be even greater. This was precisely why he wanted to find more base soul masters — hoping to develop superior body tempering techniques by learning from their control over the physical body.

Observing Xu Yang's movements, Chen Xin (Chén Xīn) shook his head mid-air and said, "Why do you sneak around like this when you could just go straight up? You still have issues with your mindset — lack of confidence. Do you really think a month's training was useless? These are just over thirty wolf bandits. Still, if you can secretly take down five this way, you're impressive. The rest will give you plenty of real combat practice."

At this moment, Xu Yang was unaware of Chen Xin's thoughts. He silently continued climbing the cliff swiftly and without a sound. As long as the wolf bandits above didn't look in his direction, they wouldn't detect him.

In less than two minutes, Xu Yang reached the halfway point of the cliff. Seeing a wolf bandit standing with his back to him, gazing down the mountain, a murderous glint flashed in Xu Yang's eyes. With a sharp exertion of both hands, he launched himself into the air. At the same time, the Sun Sacred Blade appeared in his right hand, and like a phantom, he instantly appeared behind the wolf bandit.

The wolf bandit didn't even realize what was happening before Xu Yang slashed off his head.

"That was way too easy!"

As Xu Yang slowly lowered the corpse, a flicker of doubt crossed his mind. He had expected to expend much more effort but was surprised the target fell with a single simple slash.

He glanced briefly at the wolf bandits patrolling the valley entrance, then suppressed his doubts and stealthily entered the valley.

Inside the valley, many human skeletons lay scattered. Xu Yang even saw several wolf bandits gnawing on human thigh bones. He did not act rashly but observed carefully. To find the Wolf King, he had to first catch the Wolf King by surprise and kill him — only then would he be confident in eliminating all the bandits.

Soon, Xu Yang spotted a massive wolf bandit seated on a throne. This wolf bandit was about one and a half times larger than the others, radiating soul power at the strength of a Soul Sect.

Yet, something felt off to Xu Yang. This group of wolf bandits was too quiet — very different from the brutal, bloodthirsty beasts described in the books he had read. What could be the reason?

"Kid, even the most meticulous plans have flaws. You're thinking too much and forgetting that these wolf bandits are all canines, with noses as sharp as the Gale Demon Wolves. Outside the valley, the wind direction kept them from detecting you, but inside the valley, the moment your aura entered, the wolf pack knew. Their silence means they're just waiting for their prey to fall into the trap. What will you do next?" Chen Xin watched Xu Yang with interest.

Despite the unease, Xu Yang did not stop climbing and continued moving toward the Wolf King. What he didn't notice was that the wolf bandits were quietly closing in around him, leaving no escape routes.

When Xu Yang came within ten meters of the Wolf King, the wolf king's mouth curled into a bloodthirsty grin. Rising from the throne, he fixed his gaze on Xu Yang's direction.

"Damn, I've fallen into their trap!"

Xu Yang's expression changed drastically. He was certain the Wolf King had been watching him all along, waiting silently to lure him into an ambush.

Instantly calming down, Xu Yang decided to force his way through. His soul power exploded suddenly; the Sun Sacred Blade flared brilliantly as he transformed into a shadowy blur, charging straight at the Wolf King.

The saying goes: To catch the thief, catch the leader first. If he could take down the Wolf King, there was still hope.

"Howl!"

The Wolf King howled to the sky. The surrounding wolves immediately leapt at Xu Yang. Their claws were entwined with soul power and swirling hurricanes, aimed at Xu Yang's vital points.

Seeing the wolf pack attack, Xu Yang's movements were as swift as lightning. The Sun Sacred Blade in his hand swung rapidly, each strike carrying immense soul force. His blade's aura cut through the storm-like claws, destroying all incoming attacks. He killed several wolf bandits in the process.

"This is way too easy! Their attacks are full of openings. Killing them is simple."

Amidst his rapid dodges and strikes, three more wolf bandits fell due to their careless attacks.

"I think I've been too influenced by my previous life and the novel's plot!"

After effortlessly killing several wolf bandits, Xu Yang realized his mistake. Upon hearing about wolf bandits, his first thought was the original story's depiction — when the Shrek Seven Devils' Soul King and Soul Emperor fought wolf bandit packs, they had to fight with injuries before wiping them out.

That had made him assume wolf bandits were tough opponents, hence his plan to sneak in and kill the Wolf King first.

Now he saw he had overthought it. For over a month, Chen Xin had been with him in real combat. The continent's top swordsman, his sword techniques, vision, and mental state had all improved significantly. Compared to now, wolf bandits, like wild beasts, were riddled with flaws.

"Grandpa Sword must have realized this a long time ago!"

Xu Yang gave a bitter smile but his eyes grew firmer and more confident. Locking onto the Wolf King, he tightened his grip on the Sun Sacred Blade, which radiated powerful sun soul energy. Ignoring the wolves rushing toward him, he darted forward.

"It seems he's realized it. Now I can relax!" Chen Xin in the air sighed with relief. The Seven Kill Sword in his hand dissipated, and he calmly watched the battle below.

At this moment, Xu Yang was surrounded and attacked by the Wolf King and his pack. Despite his exquisite sword moves, fighting so many equally strong wolf bandits meant he couldn't avoid all attacks and was clawed several times.

However, Xu Yang's control of his soul power was flawless. He formed a soul energy defense to block attacks from the Soul Sect-level wolves. Though he was wounded, it didn't affect his overall combat ability.

Because of this, not only did the wolf bandits fail to harm him greatly, Xu Yang killed seven or eight wolves while fending off attacks, dealing them heavy losses.

"Howl!"

Realizing this wasn't working, the Wolf King knew they needed a quick victory. The fewer the pack, the harder it became for them. He roared furiously, circulating soul power throughout his body. His claws grew more than three times larger, and a dazzling green light glowed around him.

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