Chapter 193: Wolves |
The wolf pack approached rapidly, arriving at the perimeter and circling the crowd.
There wasn't much hesitation. Following a howl from the rear, a group of gray wolves in front viciously lunged at the convoy.
Their target was clear: the gaps between the connected vehicles. They burst forth with incredible speed and launched themselves forward.
"Hold steady!"
"Don't be afraid, these things aren't that big."
Long spears thrust out fiercely from between the carts, sending sprays of blood into the air. But the injured wolves went berserk, biting and tearing at the protruding spear shafts.
A sudden scream rang out. A team member failed to dodge in time, and a wolf's maw, reaching through a cart gap, clamped onto his thigh, nearly dragging him down. A teammate beside him quickly kicked the wolf in the head.
The gray wolf held onto his thigh with a death grip, its eyes fierce and unyielding.
Several people nearby rushed to help, stabbing their long spears into the wolf's body.
Amidst the chaos, a cart on the right flank, under the continuous impact of several vicious wolves, had its wheel suddenly skid, revealing a breach.
Three gray wolves seized the chance and squeezed through.
A chorus of startled cries erupted from the surroundings.
Qin Ziwen's eyes sharpened. Because several hundred people were gathered together, the formation was somewhat cramped. For a moment, Du Yu, Qin Ziwu, and Cao Biansheng couldn't immediately reach the breach.
"Crowned Eagle!" Qin Ziwen was just about to call out.
A figure stepped forward.
"Get! The hell! Away!"
With a furious roar, Jin Hao swung the long spear in his hand, using it like a club.
The nearest gray wolf's head was smashed sideways with a thud, its eyeball nearly popping out. The sharp spearhead grazed its cheek, tearing off a large chunk of flesh.
The spear, trailing afterimages, continued its momentum unabated. The other two gray wolves let out pained howls as they were smashed and sent staggering back.
Jin Hao didn't pause for a second. He stepped forward half a pace, grabbed the reinforced wooden plank of the cart, veins bulging on his forehead, his feet sinking deep into the sandy ground, and forcibly pushed the cart back into its original position.
With the cart back in place, the gap became narrow again, and the pressure on the surroundings suddenly eased.
The fierce battle lasted only a few minutes before a rapid, sharp howl came from behind the sand dune.
As if receiving an order, the wolf pack retreated like a receding tide, leaving a field of corpses behind.
The air was thick with the pungent smell of blood.
Inside the cart formation, everyone gripped their weapons, panting heavily as they watched the direction the wolf pack had retreated.
The assault had come fast and left just as quickly.
A few people had been bitten by wolves that squeezed in, sustaining some injuries.
For many, unless absolutely necessary, they were unwilling to get hurt. Whether it was wound infection or subsequent treatment, an injury would affect an entire family.
Qin Ziwen walked over to Jin Hao, looking at his spear shaft stained red with wolf blood, and asked, "What's your name?"
"Guild Leader, my name is Jin Hao."
"Jin Hao." Qin Ziwen repeated the name once and nodded.
After Qin Ziwen left, a teammate beside Jin Hao nudged his arm. "You struck gold, kid. You performed so well today, the Guild Leader is sure to remember you."
Jin Hao smiled but didn't take the bait.
He Biao walked over. "Jin Hao, do you want to come back to our Alliance?"
"Thank you for the offer, Captain He, but I won't be going back," Jin Hao shook his head.
He Biao continued to persuade him. "I only just found out about that incident. If you come back, I can give you a captain's position."
Jin Hao said, "Captain He, if I went back again, that would truly be flip-flopping. So please, don't put me in a difficult position."
He Biao wanted to say more, but Cao Biansheng walked over. "What's going on, what's going on? Poaching people?"
Seeing Cao Biansheng, who had once made him suffer a major setback, He Biao's face darkened, and he turned to leave. But before going, he gave Jin Hao a deep look.
After He Biao left, Cao Biansheng asked, "Why did that guy surnamed He come looking for you just now?"
Jin Hao hesitated for a moment, then nodded and explained the whole story.
Previously, he had joined a hunting team within the Alliance. Because of his great strength, during hunts he was always on the front line, contributing the most effort.
But when it came to distributing resources, it was basically always split evenly.
If everyone had pulled their weight, he could have accepted it. But there was one slacker in the team, a woman, who usually liked to "get along famously" with the other male team members. When dividing the spoils, she would act coy and coquettish. She did the least work but took no less share.
He couldn't stand the sight of it, clashed with the woman, and she, along with the male team members she was usually close to, started ostracizing him.
Fuming with indignation, and since the Qin Alliance was recruiting, he simply withdrew and joined the Qin Alliance.
After listening to Jin Hao's story, Cao Biansheng slapped his thigh fiercely, filled with righteous indignation. "That pack of dogs! How outrageous! Don't worry, if they dare come looking for trouble, I'll stand up for you!"
A warmth spread in Jin Hao's heart. "It's fine. They're all talk. If it really came to a fight, they're no match for me."
"Haha, I like that arrogance of yours." Cao Biansheng looked up at Jin Hao, who was half a head taller than him. "I saw your performance earlier. You've got quite the strength. Want to have a contest?"
Jin Hao was eager. "Sure! I heard you're ranked sixth in strength within the Qin Alliance. This is a perfect chance for me to test just how strong the sixth rank is."
Cao Biansheng was about to modestly decline when he suddenly processed the words. He said with disbelief, "Wait, what rank did you say I am?"
"Sixth," Jin Hao blinked.
Cao Biansheng nearly coughed up blood. "You could have said third or fourth, no problem, but how did I get ranked sixth?!"
Only then did Jin Hao realize he had misspoken. Fearing he had offended Cao Biansheng, he hurriedly explained, "I'm sorry, I also just heard it from others."
"No need to apologize, I'm not angry." Cao Biansheng waved his hand. "I'm just curious. Since I'm sixth, who are the top five?"
Jin Hao hesitated. Seeing this, Cao Biansheng told him to just say it.
"First is Chief Instructor Du."
Cao Biansheng nodded. He acknowledged that.
"Second is the Guild Leader."
Cao Biansheng paused for a moment, then nodded. The Guild Leader being second was also fine.
"Third is the Chitu Horse."
"Wait." Cao Biansheng almost choked. How could third place be a horse?
But upon careful thought, if it was purely a contest of brute strength, he really might not be a match for the Chitu Horse.
Because the Chitu Horse was also at max stars now, and its base species was a horse, naturally stronger than a human. At max stars, its strength was terrifying, perhaps even more than the Guild Leader's...
Ahem, of course, no matter how strong the Chitu Horse was, it was still the one being ridden by the Guild Leader. So the Guild Leader second, it third was fine.
"Alright, I know fourth must be the Crowned Eagle." Cao Biansheng was truly convinced by that Old Six who made the rankings, actually putting two animals ahead of him.
"Then who's fifth? With the Crowned Eagle and Chitu Horse ranked, could there still be someone ahead of me?"
"Fifth is Instructor Qin Ziwu." Jin Hao stated thusly.
Cao Biansheng's movements halted. A look of sudden understanding dawned on his face, followed by a gritting of teeth. "Good, good, good. Now I know who made this ranking! It seems after breaking through to max stars, he's gotten quite confident!"
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