Chapter 30

"Damn it, wasn't it said it was seriously wounded and fled south? How did it end up here?"

Qin Shuo's scalp went numb, his palm gripping the bow drenched in sweat, his entire body's muscles tensed.

According to the three hunters, this Dujiao Yinlang broke through the encirclement of the Sky Wolf Gang while seriously wounded, its strength extremely terrifying.

But the opponent had just cleanly and swiftly bitten to death a Thousand-Catty Moose—where was there any sign of having been wounded?

"Why am I so unlucky!"

Qin Shuo cursed inwardly, unconsciously pulling the bowstring back, his eyes aiming at the opponent's weak point.

One man and one wolf faced off in midair!

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

In the silent mountain gully, Qin Shuo could even hear his own thumping heartbeat.

Whoosh!

Finally, the Dujiao Yinlang could no longer restrain itself and launched the first attack.

Its entire body emitted silver light, like a bolt of lightning lunging forward, speed so fast it was shocking, almost impossible to catch with the naked eye!

Fortunately, Qin Shuo had prepared in advance.

At the moment the silver wolf lunged out, he decisively released an arrow, blocking its forward pace.

At the same time, he retreated hastily, increasing the distance between them.

Bang!

The Dujiao Yinlang slapped away the arrow shot straight at it with one paw, its body also pausing because of it.

Seizing this opening, Qin Shuo continued to draw his bow.

Possessing the two supreme techniques Hundred-Step Piercing Willow and Shoot Stone Drink Feather, even a wolf as strong as the silver one dared not ignore his arrows.

Moreover, he aimed at the wolf's weak points—attacking to force a rescue, blocking its pouncing assault.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The bowstring trembled, arrows piercing the air.

Qin Shuo drew and shot arrows while circulating his Inner Strength to retreat deep into the mountain gully.

The slopes on both sides were too steep for retreat, so he could only keep retreating deeper into the gully.

Roar!

With its attacks repeatedly blocked, the Dujiao Yinlang let out an angry roar.

Its entire body flared with silver light, as if burning up, and it suddenly leaped, instantly closing the distance by dozens of meters.

Damn!

Qin Shuo cursed inwardly, his inner strength surging wildly, focused on his feet, retreating at extreme speed.

At the same time, the arrow in his hand shot out like a bolt, straight for the Dujiao Yinlang's eyes.

Bang!

The silver wolf in midair could not turn, but it extended its wolf claws and shattered the incoming arrow outright.

Seeing the silver wolf's offensive blocked again, Qin Shuo felt a surge of joy and continued retreating.

Suddenly, his face froze, his body stiffening on the spot.

"Damn, we've hit the end!"

Qin Shuo felt a chill in his heart, never expecting to have retreated to the bottom of the mountain gully so quickly.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

With no way to retreat further, Qin Shuo shot arrows madly, letting them fly like meteors.

However, the Dujiao Yinlang's speed was as swift as flowing light; even though they were only thirty or so meters apart, it still easily dodged them.

"Damn it! No arrows left!"

Having shot the last arrow, Qin Shuo's face also turned completely grim.

He drew the long knife at his waist, preparing for a fight to the death.

Meanwhile, the Dujiao Yinlang, having once again dodged the arrow pursuit, also stopped, panting heavily, its vicious light fully exposed.

At this moment, the man and wolf were less than ten meters apart.

Qin Shuo could even clearly see the scars on the silver wolf's body.

These were wounds left by blade slashes, present on both body and legs.

Some wounds had even split open, blood gushing out, staining the surrounding silver-glowing fur red.

"Looks like it's also at the end of its strength!"

Qin Shuo's eyes narrowed, instantly realizing the true state of this silver wolf's poor condition.

At first he thought the opponent wasn't seriously injured, so he was very wary.

But now it seemed this silver wolf was merely bluffing, its injuries not light.

Roar!

The Dujiao Yinlang let out a low growl, as if warning, as if showing off.

Those scars all over its body not only didn't make it look weak, but instead made it appear more ferocious and terrifying.

The next second, the wolf fur on its body rose again with specks of silver light, burning like flames.

It was draped in silver flames, like a wolf god descending to earth, its sharp eyes also tinged with silver, cold and merciless.

Whoosh!

After erupting, the Dujiao Yinlang's speed surged again, like a bolt of electricity lunging at Qin Shuo.

I don't know if it's an illusion.

Qin Shuo noticed that each time the silver wolf erupted with silver light, its body shrank a bit, as if its flesh and blood were withering.

But right now he had no time to think further, and could only swing his saber to block.

He pushed his strength to the limit, and the Thousand Catty Arm Strength and Inner Strength burst forth simultaneously at this moment; the Tiangang Thirty-six Forms surged out like a tide, raising a snow-white saber wall three feet around his body.

Clang clang clang……

The long saber gleamed snow-bright, flowing with cold, piercing light.

Though the Dujiao Yinlang was fast, it could not breach this impenetrable saber wall.

Its silver-light-wrapped wolf claws kept striking the side of the long saber, yet dared not touch the saber's edge.

"Hah! I thought you were strong, but you're just relying on speed alone!"

Feeling the repeated impacts transmitted through the saber, Qin Shuo's heart settled.

This Dujiao Yinlang, though swift, had only moderate force—at least still within what he could bear.

"If that's all you've got, then go die!"

Qin Shuo shouted angrily, no longer holding his ground, but began to counterattack.

He stomped his feet hard on the ground, Inner Strength boosting his feet to increase speed, and with Thousand Catty Arm Strength swung his saber, shifting from defense to offense, chopping at the Dujiao Yinlang.

In an instant, the offense and defense reversed.

Qin Shuo's figure moved like a white ape, agile; the long saber in his hand seemed to turn into a light, vast and white, crisscrossing and surging, enveloping the Dujiao Yinlang.

Debris flew between the valleys, and boulders rolled down.

When Qin Shuo also began to take the offensive, the already narrow mountain gorge instantly felt even more constricted.

One man and one wolf clashed in the mountain gorge.

The confined terrain greatly restricted the silver wolf's speed advantage, and with it severely wounded, it gradually began to fall into a disadvantage.

"Owoo……"

The Dujiao Yinlang let out a long howl, its fur standing on end, emitting a brilliant silver light; its power surged instantly, and a fierce aura spread.

It began to go berserk, its claws wrapped in silver radiance, nearly shaking Qin Shuo's long saber from his grip.

Qin Shuo was shaken until his tiger's mouth split open, blood flowing from the crack and soaking his palm.

Yet Qin Shuo was not startled but delighted.

This time he saw clearly: when the Dujiao Yinlang erupted in silver light, its flesh and blood were indeed withering.

It was as if it were burning its blood and vital energy through a secret art to gain a short burst of speed and strength.

Moreover, this burst was not sustainable.

Aside from the initial few strikes, which were ferociously unmatched, its speed and strength thereafter plummeted sharply.

Most importantly, the Dujiao Yinlang now was nothing but a sack of skin and bones.

As long as he could withstand this wave of attack, this Dujiao Yinlang would surely die.

"Roar!"

Unable to prevail after prolonged assault, the Dujiao Yinlang grew somewhat anxious, and its attacks became disordered.

This disorder immediately gave Qin Shuo the opportunity to counterattack.

Clang clang clang……

Qin Shuo swung his saber wildly, like a rampaging white ape.

His Inner Strength had been completely exhausted, but his physique remained strong, possessing Thousand Catty Arm Strength; when he chopped, it brought forth a piercing sound of wind being torn.

Puff puff puff……

Several light sounds followed in succession as the long saber sliced through the Dujiao Yinlang's fur, leaving one bloodstain after another.

Yet strangely, no blood flowed from those wounds, as if they had already been burned away.

"Ow……"

The Dujiao Yinlang sensed the threat, its eyes gloomy, its face growing ever more ferocious and terrifying.

Its physical condition was dire, already on the verge of collapse.

Yet this did not make it retreat; instead, it aroused its ferocity.

It opened its blood-soaked maw, revealing icy fangs, hoping to rely on the sharpness of its teeth to snap Qin Shuo's long saber.

But how could Qin Shuo let it have its way? The White Ape Heavenly Gang Saber Technique was fully deployed, easily snapping several of its fangs, and he kicked it flying with one foot.

"Die for me!"

Qin Shuo gripped his long saber tightly, his eyes firm, and charged toward the Dujiao Yinlang like a leopard.

"Roar!"

The Dujiao Yinlang roared angrily, trying again to burn its blood and vital energy to erupt in silver light.

But this time, it failed.

It had already been severely wounded by the Sky Wolf Gang, its blood and vital energy deficient.

After fighting Qin Shuo, it had burned its blood and vital energy multiple times to boost speed and strength, and now it had reached the point of exhausted fuel and dried wick.

Pfft!

Qin Shuo's long saber swept across the Dujiao Yinlang's neck.

No blood spattered; only a withered skull flew up and crashed heavily to the ground.

Whoosh!

Qin Shuo plopped down on the ground, panting heavily.

This battle was too perilous!

If the Dujiao Yinlang had not already been severely wounded, he would probably have truly capsized in the gutter today.

Having confirmed the Dujiao Yinlang had no life left, Qin Shuo lay on his back at the bottom of the mountain gorge, and it took a full half-hour before he caught his breath.

"Fighting is still too exhausting!"

He walked toward the already-dead Silver-Horned Silver Wolf, wanting to see what was special about the flesh and blood of such a ferocious spirit beast.

However, when his palm touched the Silver-Horned Silver Wolf, its body, like burnt firewood, suddenly collapsed and shattered into pieces.

Ding!

At the very moment the silver wolf's body collapsed like dirt, a crisp collision sound caught Qin Shuo's attention.

He brushed aside the scattered flesh and dirt of the silver wolf and found a thumb-sized silver-gray bead within.

Before he could study it closely, a line of text appeared before his eyes.

【Ingredient Discovered: Silver Wolf Inner Core】

【Refining Effect: Silver Wolf Blood-Burning Technique!】

"Blood-Burning Technique?"

Qin Shuo's eyes lit up.

He recalled the silver light that had risen from the Silver-Horned Silver Wolf earlier; that must have been the effect of the Blood-Burning Technique.

During their previous fight, he had guessed the wolf used a secret method of burning flesh and blood to forcibly boost speed and strength.

Now it was indeed confirmed by the Taotie Cauldron.

"Spirit beasts truly are extraordinary, even capable of displaying secret arts." Qin Shuo clicked his tongue in wonder.

At the same time, he also realized he had stumbled upon a treasure.

The value of this silver wolf inner core alone was probably no less than that of the White Jade Ginseng King from before.

"First store it away, then slowly refine it!"

Qin Shuo focused his mind and placed the silver wolf inner core into the Taotie Cauldron.

Afterward, he turned his gaze to the scattered silver wolf flesh and dirt on the ground, feeling a tinge of regret.

This was spirit beast meat, worth more than ten times that of an ordinary exotic beast; if not for the exhaustion of its qi and blood, it would have been an unimaginable fortune.

"What a pity!" Qin Shuo sighed.

But he also knew that if not for the silver wolf being severely wounded and forcibly expending its vitality through the secret technique, he would likely have struggled to survive today.

"One shouldn't be too greedy, especially when I still have this Thousand-Catty Moose."

Qin Shuo looked toward the distant moose, which had been completely choked by the silver horned wolf's single move and utterly cut off from vitality, his heart heating up once again.

He approached the moose's bitten-off neck and sniffed carefully.