Chapter 10: Chapter Ten: Saving Lives from the Wolf's Maw

Dawn was breaking; apart from Ning Ze's squad, all the other squads had already set out. After a night of hunting in the dense forest, a faint bloody scent lingered in the air, and the morning mist would slowly disperse it. Heaven and earth were truly wondrous, so harmonious. Ning Ze yawned, sauntered out of the cave, and headed straight for the direction where he had set traps yesterday. The fortune-telling old Daoist insisted on tagging along no matter what, while Han Xian's father was curious what Ning Ze was up to.

A disagreement arose within Han Xian's squad. Han Da and Han Er opposed Han Xian's idea — too aggressive. That area had plenty of fierce beasts, but their squad's strength simply couldn't handle it. Han Xian argued forcefully: "Who knows what trick Ning Ze is pulling; when we probed yesterday, he was brimming with confidence. We can't lose to him — we must bag a big quarry, give him no chance, and defeat him in one fell swoop."

Han Da and Han Er weren't convinced: "Could Ning Ze be bluffing you? Look at what they caught yesterday — unless they can conjure it up, they're sure to lose. As long as we play it steady today, yesterday's lead is enough to widen the gap."

Han Xian harbored a thread of doubt, yet still didn't dare underestimate Ning Ze. He tried to persuade them once more: "Regardless, we're ahead now; if we can take down a big one, our victory will be fully justified. That place is indeed dangerous — how about this: Han Da and I will scout ahead, Han Er you hang back; if things look wrong, you go back and report. If it's viable we'll take the gamble — you don't want to lose for no reason either, do you?"

Han Da and Han Er knew their younger cousin's temperament — if he lost he'd never accept it. They thought it over, felt the plan was workable, and agreed.

Who would have thought there was such a beautiful valley deep in the mountains? It felt like another world entirely, none of the forest's gloom; sunlight poured freely over this land. A few wild deer bounded out now and then — if not for the tiger roars and wolf howls echoing from within, one could truly marvel at this picturesque place.

Han Xian and Han Da crouched low, not daring the slightest carelessness; this valley was not as beautiful as it appeared on the surface. They had barely stepped inside, no time to admire, when they discovered bloodstains — enough to make Han Da want to back out. The protective hunter watching these three run toward the valley frowned bitterly, yet couldn't interfere with their competition; he was powerless to protect them here either.

On Ning Ze's side, the traps were severely damaged, basically none left intact; the bloody stench was thick and pungent. Han Xian's father wondered what quarry could be so formidable. Ning Ze smiled, not rushing to check the catch, and waved his hand. The three squad members drew bows and shot arrows into the traps — three arrows per trap. From one trap hole came a miserable bear howl.

"Pangdun, bring out your wok, advance slowly. Liu Lv'er, keep firing arrows." Ning Ze stuck close behind Pangdun; the two first flipped open the other traps, finishing off any still alive. Two pheasants and a mountain goat; some traps showed only bloodstains, no quarry — likely other fierce beasts had come last night and dragged away the trapped game; drag marks remained on the ground. As arrows flew into the holes, the bear howls gradually weakened. Chastened by the previous wild boar lesson, Ning Ze didn't dare be careless; he and Wang Pangdun picked up large stones and threw them in until no sound emerged. The fortune-telling old Daoist and Han Xian's father were both rendered speechless — so shameless, and so cautious. Ning Ze still planned to wait half a quarter-hour then toss fire down. Han Xian's father couldn't bear to watch, kicked Ning Ze, and made him use a pole to pry open the trap and look first.

The scene inside the trap was too gory, turning the stomach. The black bear was already silent; its form barely recognizable, smashed to a bloody pulp by stones, several blood holes in its body, a large torn wound; as for arrow fletchings, who knew how many the three had shot. Two wild boars lay nearby — one's skull smashed, eyes burst; the other's back broken, lying in a strange twist. Tsk tsk, Ning Ze marveled at the blind black bear's tremendous strength.

Besides Ning Ze's composure, no one had expected the traps to yield so much game. Wang Pangdun and Liu Lv'er were thrilled — though they trusted Ning Ze, the result still exceeded expectations. Han Xian's father badly wanted to probe how Ning Ze did it; forget it, Han Xian that kid was done for — seeing Ning Ze's smug expression, clearly he had no intention of revealing anything now, the smug brat.

The group expended tremendous effort dragging the quarry out — the blind black bear was simply too large. The fortune-telling old Daoist was delighted; this bet was in the bag, already planning how to spend the winnings; though he was also curious, he didn't want to give Ning Ze a chance to show off, and suppressed his questions.

Han Xian's three-man team also had a rich haul — in a short time they killed three quarry: two roe deer and a lone wolf. This excited Han Xian; Han Da and Han Er were also exhilarated, completely forgetting this wasn't a safe hunting ground. The lone wolf's killing wasn't accidental — it was a scout sent by the pack. Now the wolf pack had caught the trio's scent; undulating shrubs concealed the wolves' figures as they arched their bodies and closed in for the kill.

With a wolf howl, the pack swiftly ran to encircle. Han Er, who spotted the wolves first, had no time to warn — Han Xian's group up front had already run into them. The three faces instantly turned ashen; damn, the wolf pack was surrounding them; the valley had no prominent cover; this time they might well be left here for good.

"Quick, up the trees, dump the quarry!" Han Xian thought fast; the three scrambled up trees. Han Er, slightly farther, was clawed by a wolf while climbing — a chunk of flesh torn from his back. At the critical moment Han Xian thrust with his spear, saving a life. The hunter hiding in the rear was far off, not encircled by the pack, and managed to escape.

"Today we won't get out alive — my fault, too aggressive and greedy." Han Xian was deeply remorseful, dragging Han Da and Han Er to their deaths with him. Han Da didn't blame Han Xian — the decision was made together; now he had to tend to his brother's condition — the wound was too severe; if delayed, he certainly wouldn't survive.

The wolf pack was cunning; the discarded quarry had already been divided and eaten; they ringed the trees, every so often a few wolves trying to climb up, draining Han Xian and the others' stamina. The Wolf King lay not far off, waiting with great patience — at a position Han Xian's arrows couldn't reach. Now barely holding on in the trees, Han Xian stared desperately downward, terrified a wolf would climb up. Seeing this would take a long time, the Wolf King howled again — this time the wolves directly gnawed at the tree trunks around them. Han Xian grew frantic, only able to desperately use his long spear to fend off the pack.

The hunter hiding in the rear hadn't been encircled; he fled while the pack chased the three, not daring to stop, hurrying back for reinforcements — otherwise Han Xian's trio's fate was unthinkable. Fortunately the return trip had no mishaps; outside the cave the hunter lit thick smoke. Everyone seeing the thick smoke immediately rushed back — this was the agreed emergency signal.

Ning Ze's squad arrived first. Han Xian's father saw the hunter, realized Han Xian was in trouble, and urgently asked: "What happened? Where are Han Xian and the other two?" The hunter quickly explained; the situation was grave; everyone's faces turned solemn hearing it. Wolf pack encirclement — even if everyone went up it wouldn't be enough to kill them all. Han Xian's father hesitated, torn — one side his son, the other side possibly dooming everyone. Ning Ze grasped the problem, stepped forward and said: "Uncle Han, Pangdun, me, and Uncle Ming — the four of us go check the situation first. Liu Lv'er and Doctor Lai stay here, gather everyone, no more hunting." Han Xian's father looked at Ning Ze with gratitude.

"I'll go too — Han Er's wounded, afraid he won't last long." The fortune-telling old Daoist had no intention of staying. No time to lose; the five hurried out.

Five or six wolf corpses piled under the tree; the main trunk half gnawed through; even with mouths full of blood, the wolves still tried to climb up for a bite. Han Xian felt exhausted; he could barely hold on — there were simply too many wolves. Han Da had long since joined in to help; the endless harassment was truly unbearable. Wolf claws carried massive bacteria; Han Er's wound hadn't been properly treated; his consciousness was starting to blur.

The five observing from afar were frantic with anxiety; Han Xian's father wanted to charge up and fight to the death, but Ning Ze held him back.

"Too many wolves — charging in to rescue is just sending ourselves to death; we need a plan. This place is open — fire won't work. Can we try driving other fierce beasts? Or just kill the Wolf King." Ning Ze's mind raced. Neither method could guarantee everyone's safety; Han Xian's father flatly refused — he didn't want to fail to save them and lose more lives in the process.

Ning Ze also understood Han Xian's father's thinking; seeing the wolf pack, a sudden idea struck: "Fire won't work, but we can use smoke — wolves have keen smell. With a pack this big, there's bound to be plenty of wolf dung; gather it and burn it, make wolf-smoke to drive the pack away." Everyone stared at Ning Ze — how does your brain work, how do you come up with so many ideas?

No more talk; the group acted fast. Smoke gradually spread; several men built a bonfire upwind. Wolf dung, damp pine, dry grass — as much smoke as possible. In no time the smoke reached the wolf pack. Thick smoke choked the wolves into howling in all directions; for wild beasts, fire is always their nemesis; thick smoke in their life memory signals fire's arrival. The encircling wolves began to shift restlessly; the Wolf King unwillingly howled at the sky — the prey before them could only be abandoned; the wolves started fleeing deeper into the valley.

As the wolf pack fled, the five finally exhaled, rushing over to save the trio. Just as everyone relaxed, five wolves burst from the shrubs. This Wolf King was truly formidable — it had kept five wolves waiting for Han Xian's trio to come down; unluckily they ran into Ning Ze's five.

"We must end this fast, or the Wolf King will return and resume the siege."

Wang Pangdun charged forward with his "wok"; Ning Ze followed with his saber; the struck wolf flew sideways. Ning Ze and Han Xian's father tried to close in for the kill, but two wolves blocked their path. The remaining two were treacherous — they circled around Wang Pangdun's trio and went for the weakened Han Xian group. The hunter called Uncle Ming nocked an arrow and fired, blocking the wolves' approach; Han Xian and Han Da gritted their teeth and readied weapons to defend. The three wolves in front attacked frenziedly — if not for Wang Pangdun's "wok", the three would likely have been clawed bloody already. The two in back, unable to close directly, began skirmishing, trying to wear them down and delay.

Ning Ze shouted helplessly: "Pangdun, smash one wolf aside with all your strength; Uncle Han, no delaying — kill one wolf first."

Wang Pangdun's immense force knocked the smaller wolf to the ground howling; after knocking it down he twisted and used the "wok" to block the two wolves' attacks, leaving his back to Ning Ze to finish. Han Xian's father sprinted and thrust a spear, piercing a wolf's belly. Ning Ze not to be outdone, slashed his saber into a wolf's throat. Looking back, Wang Pangdun was struggling against two wolves, steps growing chaotic. Before Wang Pangdun could charge again, Ning Ze directly chopped at one wolf's back — wolf has copper head, iron back, tofu waist; this slash didn't cut through. Wounded but not dead means frenzy; the wolf snapped at Wang Pangdun's side; Han Xian's father clearly couldn't reach in time; Wang Pangdun couldn't turn to block either.

Ning Ze's mind reeled — couldn't let it bite Wang Pangdun, had to chop the wolf down. "Ah!" a furious roar; first slash angrily hacked down, second hacked onto the back — the wolf was cleaved in two.

The remaining three wolves, seeing this, howled in fear and began retreating, falling back to the periphery, then turning and diving into the shrubs to escape. The high-intensity battle left everyone somewhat drained. Han Xian's father ordered: "Withdraw first; get to safety before dealing with the rest."