29: Chapter 29 Misty Forest

Chen Yuanji was in no hurry to leave. Leaning against a tree trunk, he took the healing medicine the Deer Clan girl had given him. The effects were rapid; a cool current of Qi circulated through his body, repairing his damaged Meridians and muscles. This medicine was much better than what Shen Wuchang had provided; it was likely a secret concoction of the Yao Race.

An hour later, Chen Yuanji stood up and stretched his limbs. His injuries were mostly healed, but his blood and Qi remained depleted. He needed to eat—and eat a lot—to replenish his vitality. He hadn't walked far when he saw a wild rabbit darting through the grass. With a flick of his right hand, he fired a pebble, killing it with precision. He picked up the rabbit, found a relatively open spot, used his short knife to skin and gut it, and then gathered some dry branches to start a fire for roasting.

The rabbit meat sizzled over the fire, its aroma wafting out. Once the meat was about seventy to eighty percent cooked, he took it off the fire and began to eat in large bites. Halfway through his meal, a rustling sound came from the thick mist. Chen Yuanji set down the meat and gripped the short knife at his waist.

The sound drew closer, and moments later, a dozen pairs of green eyes lit up in the dense mist, surrounding Chen Yuanji. Wolves! These were no ordinary wolves; they were first-tier Yao Beasts, Iron-backed Wolves. There were over a dozen of them, led by an exceptionally massive silver-grey wolf whose aura was comparable to the Peak of the Guiyuan Realm. Chen Yuanji stood up, his gaze sweeping over the pack. If he were at full strength, he wouldn't have spared a second thought for a dozen Iron-backed Wolves. But now, with his blood and Qi depleted, his Dan Power could only exert thirty percent of its strength, making a confrontation with so many wolves somewhat taxing.

The silver-grey giant wolf let out a low growl, and the pack pounced simultaneously. Chen Yuanji did not retreat; instead, he charged toward them. With short knife in hand and Huajin circulating, he refrained from using Dan Power, as it consumed too much blood and Qi—a cost he couldn't afford right now. Huajin was sufficient. Chen Yuanji wove through the pack, and with every swing of his blade, an Iron-backed Wolf fell. His robes were torn in several places, but his flesh remained unharmed. The perception granted by Huajin allowed him to anticipate the wolves' attack trajectories, making every dodge perfectly timed. In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, all the Iron-backed Wolves lay on the ground, either dead or wounded. The silver-grey giant wolf had not participated in the attack, standing on the periphery and watching Chen Yuanji coldly. Chen Yuanji flicked the blood from his knife and looked at the giant wolf.

"Your turn."

The giant wolf growled low, but instead of pouncing, it turned and vanished into the thick mist. It had fled!

Chen Yuanji did not pursue it. He crouched down, used his short knife to cut open the skulls of the Iron-backed Wolves, and extracted their beast cores. These dozen or so cores were worth several hundred taels of silver. He tucked the cores into his robe, sat back down, and continued eating the remaining rabbit meat. This time, he was not disturbed.

By the next day, Chen Yuanji's blood and Qi had mostly recovered. He could now exert fifty percent of his Dan Power. He continued deeper into the Mist Forest, hunting Yao Beasts as he went, using their beast cores and flesh to replenish his strength. The Mist Forest contained a wide variety of Yao Beasts, ranging from the first to the third tier. A third-tier Yao Beast was equivalent to a human in the Shentong Realm; given his current state, Chen Yuanji didn't dare provoke them and took detours whenever he encountered one.

On the third day, he finally emerged from the outskirts of the Mist Forest and entered a relatively open valley. A stream ran through the valley, its water crystal clear. Chen Yuanji crouched by the stream to wash his face, but just as he was about to drink, he heard a scream from upstream. He stood up and followed the sound. Upstream, a youth lay by the bank, covered in blood. There was a wound on his leg so deep the bone was visible. The youth had a delicate face and a pair of antlers on his head, just like the Deer Clan girl from before.

Chen Yuanji walked over and knelt to examine the youth's injuries. The wound had been torn open by the claws of some large Yao Beast; if left untreated, the boy would bleed to death. He pulled out the healing medicine Shen Wuchang had given him, poured it onto the wound, and bandaged it with a strip of cloth. The youth groaned in pain and woke from his coma. Seeing Chen Yuanji, his eyes flashed with terror.

"Don't be afraid, I am human," Chen Yuanji said. "What is your name?"

"Lu... Lu Ming," the youth stammered.

"Lu Ming, how were you injured?"

"White... White Wolf, a giant white wolf," the youth's body trembled. "It chased me... I couldn't... couldn't get away..."

Chen Yuanji recalled the Deer Clan girl's words: "If you encounter a giant white wolf, run. Do not look back, do not stop, just keep running."

"Where is it?"

"Over there." The youth pointed toward the depths of the valley. "It ate my clansmen, I'm the only one who escaped..." The youth's eyes reddened, and tears began to fall.

Chen Yuanji was silent for a moment before picking the youth up onto his back. "Come, I will take you out of here."

"It's no use... the White Wolf will catch up..."

"Then let it come."

Carrying the youth, Chen Yuanji walked downstream along the creek. Before they had gone half a mile, a low wolf howl echoed behind them. Chen Yuanji stopped and turned around. From the dense mist, a massive White Wolf slowly emerged. It was three or four times larger than an Iron-backed Wolf, over ten feet tall at the shoulder, with fur as white as snow without a single stray color. Its eyes were golden with vertical pupils, radiating a cold light.

A third-tier Yao Beast! It was equivalent to a human in the Shentong Realm, but it was no ordinary third-tier creature. Chen Yuanji's senses told him that this White Wolf's aura was far stronger than Tie Sha's; it was at least at the Late Stage of the Shentong Realm.

"Put him down." The White Wolf spoke in human tongue. Only Yao Beasts of the third tier and above could speak, indicating that its intelligence was very high. Chen Yuanji did not put Lu Ming down; he simply watched the wolf silently.

"He is my food," the White Wolf's voice was icy. "Put him down, and you may leave."

"And if I don't?"

"Then you die together."

The White Wolf's front claws scraped the ground, killing intent surging in its golden eyes. Chen Yuanji took a deep breath and placed Lu Ming behind a large boulder. He turned back to face the wolf. He circulated his Dan Power to the limit; the golden inner core in his Dantian spun frantically, and his blood and Qi surged like a rushing river, flooding into his limbs. This was the first time he would go all out since his Breakthrough to the Dan Power stage.

The White Wolf moved. Its speed was absurdly fast, covering a hundred yards in the blink of an eye. A massive claw swiped at Chen Yuanji's head with a force greater than Tie Sha's full-strength punch. Chen Yuanji didn't meet it head-on; instead, he utilized his Bagua Footwork to the fullest, his body flickering like a ghost to evade the strike. Simultaneously, he threw a right punch—a Crushing Fist aimed straight at the wolf's flank. The golden fist-force slammed into the wolf with a muffled thud. The White Wolf's body shook slightly, but it was uninjured. Its fur was too thick, absorbing most of the Dan Power's impact.

"You have some strength," the White Wolf sneered, its tail sweeping around like a steel whip.

Chen Yuanji had no time to dodge. He crossed his hands, using the An Power technique of Taiji to intercept the blow. *Bang!* He was sent flying, crashing into a large tree with enough force to snap the trunk. Chen Yuanji hit the ground, blood leaking from his mouth. The White Wolf gave him no time to breathe, pouncing again. Chen Yuanji rolled up and charged forward instead of retreating. He stopped aiming for the wolf's body and targeted its eyes instead. As the claws swiped again, Chen Yuanji ducked and bunched his fingers together, using a Drilling Fist strike to go straight for the wolf's left eye. The White Wolf hurriedly closed its eye and jerked its head aside. Chen Yuanji's fist grazed the eyelid; though he missed the eyeball, he left a bloody gash at the corner of its eye.

The White Wolf howled in pain. "Damned Human Race!" It stopped holding back, and a sphere of white light condensed in its mouth before being spat at Chen Yuanji. The sphere moved incredibly fast, leaving no room for evasion. Chen Yuanji crossed his arms and pushed the blood and Qi in his Dantian to the absolute limit to withstand the strike.

*Boom!* A deafening explosion rang out. Chen Yuanji was blasted away, slamming heavily into the ground as he spat out a mouthful of blood.

The White Wolf walked over slowly, its golden eyes filled with murderous intent. It opened its massive maw to bite into Chen Yuanji's throat. Just then, a white figure dashed out of the mist and blocked the way. It was the Deer Clan girl. She spread her arms, shielding Chen Yuanji.

"Aunt White, don't!"

The White Wolf's teeth stopped just before the girl, an inch away from crushing her head.

"Little Deer, move aside," the White Wolf's voice was cold.

"No!" Tears welled in the girl's eyes. "He was injured trying to save Lu Ming. Aunt White, please let him go."

The White Wolf stared at her for a long time before slowly backing away. "You are just like your mother—too soft-hearted." It turned and vanished into the mist.

The Deer Clan girl turned around and knelt by Chen Yuanji, checking his injuries. "Are... are you alright?"

Chen Yuanji lay on the ground, gasping for air, blood still seeping from the corner of his mouth. "Not dead yet."

The Deer Clan girl looked at him and suddenly smiled. "You human, you certainly have guts. Aunt White is a Peak third-tier Yao Beast, yet you, a human who hasn't even reached the Guiyuan Realm, dared to fight her."

"I am not in the Guiyuan Realm," Chen Yuanji said. "I do not cultivate Yuan Power."

The girl was stunned, curiosity flashing in her eyes. "You don't cultivate Yuan Power? Then what do you cultivate?"

"The Physical Body."

The girl nodded thoughtfully and reached out her hand. "My name is Lu Yao. And yours?"

"Chen Yuanji."

Lu Yao helped him up and leaned him against a large tree. "Your injuries are severe. Come back to the tribe with me. Our Deer Clan has the best healers; they can cure you."

Chen Yuanji hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Thank you."

"No need for thanks," Lu Yao smiled. "You saved Lu Ming, and I saved you. We're even."

She picked up Lu Ming and led Chen Yuanji toward the depths of the valley.