Chapter 30: The Wolf Pack (Part 1)

A single rabbit was naturally not enough for so many children and three adults to eat; instead, it only whetted their appetites. This half-full, half-empty feeling made them crave food even more, and sweat beaded on everyone's forehead.

"Then let's eat until our bellies are round."

So Li You asked Wa Qingyun to gut the piglet again, while Liu Longjin busied himself skinning the hairy rat.

Li You used small wooden sticks to skewer the grasshoppers, bamboo worms, and silkworm pupae one by one, roasting them over charcoal just like lamb skewers.

Although these things looked repulsive, they were extremely rich in protein. Sprinkled with salt, they were excellent for growing children like Xiao Juzi, Shuizhu, and Xiao Niang.

After only a short while roasting, the insects began to emit a fragrant smell. Li You distributed them according to age.

In the prosperous era of his past life, many children would never have eaten such things, but for the children of the present, this was simply a delicacy, and one that was rare and hard to come by.

After they finished eating the insects, Wa Qingyun had already placed the pork on the fire. Liu Longjin had been slightly slower in skinning the hairy rat, but it too was soon roasting.

Next came another round of gluttonous eating. The feeling of being full made every cell in Li You's body filled with joy; all anxiety and troubles were instantly swept away.

Until the sky grew dim, they were all stuffed until their bellies were round. Hei Liuzi, who had eaten a large pork knuckle, lay happily on the ground, humming.

"Gather the bones, don't throw them away. Take them back and make soup for those mine workers," Li You said.

Liu Longjin had already gathered all the bones; regarding the matter of filling bellies, there was no need for Li You to say anything.

Wa Qingyun also found a vine to tie up the rabbit skin, the pig skin, and the hairy rat skin; these fur items were of great use.

Although the two of them were old bandits, they had once served under the good man Wu Ying, so their hearts were not evil. Later, after Wu Ying died, knowing the filth involved, they defected to Cao Er and served as guards at the mine. They had never committed murder, arson, rape, or abduction when going down the mountain.

Even as guards and overseers, they were not as ruthless as the likes of Huang Mao, Gu Laosan, and Lu Biding. Precisely because of this, they belonged to the most marginalized layer in the Shanzhai, and no one respected them.

"This world is a great dye vat; it can soak a normal person and turn them into a beast... The bandits in the Shanzhai cannot all be lumped together. Some have become demons through killing, while others still have not lost their conscience, though such people are indeed few."

"Those six border soldiers must be won over somehow. As for the group of mine workers and salt slaves, they are mostly honest farmers who till the land, so they too must be won over... But what exactly is my situation in the Shanzhai right now..."

"A bunch of old schemers plotting against each other. Why do I feel like I've become a bargaining chip for balance of power? When will I get the chance to break the deadlock?"

"Let's go, Li Xianggong. It's almost dark. We just gutted animals and roasted meat here; surely tigers and wolves will smell it!" Wa Qingyun said to Li You.

"Hmm... okay..." Li You cut off his thoughts, collected his arrows, and walked at the very front. Liu Longjin walked among the children, while Wa Qing brought up the rear.

Before they had walked a li, in the foothills on both sides of them, more than a dozen green, glowing "fireflies" followed like shadows.

"Are those fireflies?"

Xiao Juzi suddenly pointed at the flickering lights in the grass.

Liu Longjin's face suddenly changed drastically, and he shouted in a sharp voice...

"Wolves, it's a wolf pack!"

"Do not panic, do not turn around, do not run. In this terrain... running... is just offering up meat," Li You immediately roared.

Their current position was a li away from the small plain where they had roasted meat earlier. Fortunately, they were not there; that place was too flat, making it a natural hunting ground for the wolf pack. The current location was better because there was a sheer rock face on the south side of the stream.

"Xiao Yu, you take care of them. We will all retreat together, first back to the rock face and stand firm. Do not let the wolf pack get your backs!"

Li You suppressed the panic in his heart and calmly spoke to Yu Zhengchun behind him.

At the same time, he glanced at Liu Longjin and Wa Qingyun out of the corner of his eye and breathed a sigh of relief. The two of them were probably used to seeing wolf packs; their expressions were relatively normal, though they both pressed their lips tightly, holding single-edged blades, and stood in an arc on either side of Li You. Behind them were Yu Zhengchun, Xiao Juzi, and the other children.

"Twelve... fourteen... Wow, so many!"

Li You's heart began to pound, feeling somewhat nervous. His blood seemed to boil throughout his body, and his skin felt a little prickly from the inside out. This was the surge of hot blood.

He gripped the cold hilt of the blade, but it suddenly seemed to turn into scorching charcoal. Li You vaguely felt he was holding a bolt of lightning, a Mount Taishan, an RPK machine gun. If he charged up and slashed, there would be crimson wolf blood, the pungent smell of wolves, and all the evil wolves would be torn into pieces of minced meat by him...

This abnormal bloodlust quickly swallowed the little nervousness he had, as if a strong impulse to rush up and fight immediately surged within him!

But the children behind him, like Xiao Juzi, forced him to forcibly suppress this overwhelming heat. The primary target of this wolf pack was definitely those children.

Generally, wolf packs only appear in winter.

During this season, small animals hide away for the winter, and wolf packs can only hunt large, herd-forming animals like deer and wild boars. At this time, they must cooperate in groups. Behind this concerted effort, there must be one or two wolves responsible for leading the pack, the alpha wolf.

After spring arrives, wild wolves need to breed pups, and small animals will also become more numerous.

At this time, they choose to live in small groups. Under normal circumstances, there are usually seven, hence the saying "Seven Wolves." It is rare for a wolf pack to exceed ten in number. Although it is still early before winter, the temperature is already unbearably cold, so encountering such a large pack is not surprising!

Li You wanted to quickly identify the alpha wolf, but it was not easy. The so-called super-large wolf king covered in white fur, standing high on a stone and howling, often seen in movies, had not appeared.

"It must have attacked humans more than once. It must have seen the bow in my hand and is hiding in the grass or behind rocks, not yet revealing itself... Don't be impulsive, be patient! Must be patient."

Li You muttered to himself, took a shovel-headed arrow from his quiver. The arrow shaft was fully three and a half chi long. He nocked it onto the bowstring. With the support of the Dragon Spine Bow, Li You was confident he could shoot the wolf king through with a single arrow!

Upon discovering that Li You and the others had changed direction, they slowly revealed themselves from the grass.

They were all gray wolves. Their snouts were pointed, their noses protruded, their yellow-gray fur was curly and dull, their ears appeared extremely sharp and long due to hunger, their eyes were greenish-yellow, and their fangs were menacing. Combined with the long drool hanging from their mouths, they gave a feeling of cruelty and bloodlust...

About seventy paces away, the wolf pack peered and patrolled. It seemed their figures were everywhere, but in fact, looking closely, they were divided into two groups, front and rear, with their focus more directed at Wa Qingyun and Liu Longjin.

There were indeed three or five wolves directly in front of Li You, but their steps were unsteady, and they looked left and right. They were mostly feints, at least against Li You who held the great bow.

"Here they come!"