Chapter 1164

"You guys say the number of demon beasts outside the city has suddenly dropped so much—could this be a sign that something's about to happen?"

"If we knew why, would the city lord have sent us to investigate?"

A seven-man reconnaissance squad walked through the ice and snow; they were all battle-hardened cultivators with experience defeating demon beasts of equal rank, sent by the city lord to investigate the cause of the demon beast population changes.

They flew low to the ground, wearing white robes with high-grade concealment talismans sewn inside, their magic artifacts at their waists, and their compasses spinning in their hands.

As they moved farther from Mu Xue City, the number of demon beasts finally began to increase.

They were skilled at suppressing their aura; flying past demon beasts went unnoticed, even those one major realm above them in cultivation.

Suddenly, their vision darkened—a massive figure like a mountain appeared, exhaling icy breath; one cultivator didn't react in time, touched by the cold air, and instantly froze into an ice sculpture.

The squad leader looked up, locked eyes with the mountain-like figure, and finally recognized it: "It's the Han Xiang Great Demon King—run!"

At the sight of the Han Xiang Great Demon King, the others were overwhelmed by fear; their rich tundra survival experience and combat history against demon beasts became utterly useless.

The squad leader's shout pulled them from fear; they abandoned concealment and bolted.

A snake-tongue suddenly appeared, snatching away another companion.

The white snake hid in the snow, seemingly invisible; no one noticed its white presence.

"It's the Bai She Great Demon King!"

One after another, legendary tundra demon beasts appeared—all Great Demon Kings—and the crowd lost all capacity for thought, their eyes glazed.

"Stay close, don't fall behind." Lu Huang Doudou's teacher held up a red flag, organizing an extracurricular activity. "Strange—is that from the Hu Xiao Martial Arts Hall? Why are they out of the city?" Two guards from Mu Xue City whispered.

"I don't know."

Not long after the martial arts hall members left, the battered reconnaissance squad captain stumbled back, collapsing with a thud at the city gate, startling the two guards into rushing over.

The captain lay in the guards' arms, trembling as he raised his hand, pointing toward the direction they came from.

"Quickly inform the city lord—the beast tide is coming..."

"What, beast tide?" The two guards shivered; they'd heard beast tides were terrifying, but despite their long lives, they'd never heard of Mu Xue City facing one.

"Wait—didn't the Hu Xiao Martial Arts Hall people head straight toward the beast tide's direction?"

Outside Mu Xue City, Lu Yang led over thirty students, all dressed in thick cotton coats like little snowmen—except Lu Yang, who wore a long robe bearing the Hu Xiao insignia, making him stand out.

"Lu—Lu Teacher, isn't combat training too dangerous right now?"

A student shakily raised his hand; they'd come eagerly for class, only to hear Lu Teacher say they were to go into the wild to slay demon beasts?

Demon beasts, no less—even their parents would flee at the sight; how could they possibly be a match?

"You've trained long enough in Hu Xiao Fist—it's time to test your cultivation. Rest assured, I won't pit you against overly strong opponents."

The students wailed; though Lu Teacher watched sternly, what if something happened and he couldn't intervene in time?

Lu Yang didn't care what the students thought; he held the flag and pressed forward, and they had no choice but to follow.

"There are wolf tracks here—this must be the direction!" Lu Yang crouched, pointing at the blank snow with absolute certainty, like a seasoned hunter.

"Teacher, there are no tracks here?"

"The tracks were buried by fresh snow; you're too young to see them, but I can see beneath the surface."

The students looked up at Lu Yang in admiration.

Pleased with their reaction, Lu Yang led them toward the wolf demon direction sensed by his spiritual awareness.

After walking an unknown distance, Lu Yang raised his hand, clenched his fist, and signaled everyone to stop.

He pointed behind a distant boulder: "See that big rock? Behind it is a wolf demon. Based on my experience, it's a second-layer Qi Refining wolf demon—one-eyed, lame in the left leg, cast out by its pack."

Fang Zhi Ge's expression was strange—can experience really tell you that?

"Gong Che, Shi Yi, you two command the classmates to surround and slay this wolf demon."!

Gong Che and Shi Yi shouted at once, half-panicked, half-excited.

Among them, only Fang Zhi Ge remained calm—he was a peak Qi Refining cultivator; dealing with Qi Refining demon beasts was effortless.

"Xiao Fang, come here." Lu Yang beckoned, calling Fang Zhi Ge to stand under a pine tree.

"Don't fight with them—I'll take you on a Foundation Establishment demon beast later."

Fang Zhi Ge staggered back several steps, incredulous, staring at Lu Yang's calm expression.

How could this be? How could Lu Teacher see through my true cultivation? Even the Golden Core Sect Master Murong couldn't!

Could it be that Luo Teacher never bothered me because Lu Teacher dealt with Luo Teacher?

Thinking this, Fang Zhi Ge lowered his voice and warned solemnly: "Lu Teacher, you shouldn't wade into this mess—perhaps Luo Teacher isn't a threat to you, but behind Luo Teacher lies the endless kill order of the Gui Sha Alliance, and above that, the Nine Gui Alliance—you'll face relentless pursuit!"

Just imagining Lu Huang Doudou's fine teacher facing a life-or-death situation because of him filled Fang Zhi Ge with regret.

"Enough—kids don't need to worry about this; go kill your demon beast."

Saying this, Fang Zhi Ge suddenly realized his biggest problem: he'd only reached peak Qi Refining and had never fought a Foundation Establishment demon beast.

His assassination techniques were useless against demon beasts.

"Go north one li—there's a snow fox there, early Foundation Establishment; go fight it."

Lu Yang slapped Fang Zhi Ge's back, urging him to hurry.

After Fang Zhi Ge left, Lu Yang stroked his chin: "Come to think of it, is the environment around Mu Xue City really this good? We walked so long before finding any demon beasts, and their realms are still low."

"Immortal, what do you think.."

"Ow-ow-ow-ow—I am now a wolf, ow-ow—"

In the mental space, goose-feather-like snow fell thick and fast, burying the palace of the Great Bean Dynasty; the roof was gone, snow fell inside, covering everything from floor to throne in a thick layer.

The Immortal Fairy wore a white wolf pelt, leaping in the snow, howling ow-ow-ow-ow, wolf claws bared and flailing; taking advantage of Lu Yang turning to ask a question, she suddenly pounced on him.

"Immortal, what are you doing?"

After Lu Yang staggered to his feet, he discovered the Immortal Fairy had, while he wasn't looking, draped him in some unknown demon beast's fur.

"This is lang pi."

"Isn't there an idiom, 'lang bei wei jian,' describing a very close wolf-lang relationship? Now I am the wolf, you are the lang—our bond is unbreakable!"