The gluttonous beast, which had intended to pester Ye Jingyu for another roast pheasant, saw Ye Jingyu suddenly bolt away, causing every hair on its body to stand on end, instantly transforming into a blur and vanishing without a trace…
Rushing hundreds of meters toward the sound, Ye Jingyu arrived at a modest stretch of wilderness where he saw a pack of jackals, each as large as a calf, surrounding a group of armored figures. The ground was littered with the corpses of slain jackals, clearly victims of this besieged group…
However, the situation for the armored figures was far from optimistic. The jackals numbered in the hundreds, while the group consisted of barely twenty people. Even if each of them possessed formidable strength, resisting the onslaught of several hundred mutated jackals seemed impossible…
The recent scream had come from one of their number being dragged away from the encirclement by a single jackal, only to be torn apart by the others in a desperate cry of agony…
His comrades had paid a terrible price attempting a rescue, yet they still failed to save him…
Out of sheer curiosity, Ye Jingyu looked toward the cluster of people trapped at the center of the jackal horde and noted they were all clad in the common light armor of the Shu Yun Kingdom. This armor could deflect standard arrows, but it offered no defense against the ferocious claws and teeth of these beasts…
Their weapons were three-foot-long broadswords, standard issue for the military, suggesting this group likely belonged to the Shu Yun army…
Could they have been sent by that fellow Qin Yan to search for him in the Southern Wild Forest? Ye Jingyu suddenly recalled the traitor from White Cloud Manor, Qin Yan, who had gained great merit by assisting the court in eradicating the manor. After such service, high positions and wealth would surely await him… sending a search party would be no difficult task…
Wait, he believed Ye Jingyu was dead, so why would he dispatch men to look for him? This couldn't be his doing?
Abruptly, Ye Jingyu dismissed his prior speculation and cast his gaze back upon the trapped group…
Upon closer inspection, he realized every one of them was an elite fighter. Each individual’s Zhenqi could be projected externally. While they hadn't reached the Gang Qi manifestation of innate Zhenqi, they were undoubtedly masters of the Martial Master realm. Four of them projected their Zhenqi completely, forming tangible Gang Qi—this was innate Zhenqi, possessed only by Innate Martial Masters…
Such figures would be high-ranking officers in the Shu Yun Kingdom. Why were they gathered here?
Ye Jingyu then noticed, amidst the four Innate Martial Masters (For full text novels, visit .1.(1.m. Wenxue Net), stood a youth wielding a longsword, perhaps seventeen or eighteen years old. He wore a white silk robe, parts of which were torn, revealing glimpses of gold-threaded armor beneath. His appearance was handsome, with sharp eyes and defined brows, carrying an air of noble bearing. Even facing such imminent danger, he showed no trace of panic…
“It seems these men are protecting that young master. But what brings them here?” Ye Jingyu murmured to the Taotie beside him, “Xiao Tao Tao, go take out the Wolf King of this pack. Tonight, we feast on Wolf King banquet…”
“Swish^…” Upon hearing the words 'Wolf King Banquet,' the Taotie's silhouette instantly vanished from its spot and rushed toward the endless wolf pack. For other creatures, even a sixth-level Uniceros, to plunge into such a mass of wolves would be tantamount to suicide. But the Taotie cared not at all…
Its powerful physique, astonishing speed, and its nature as a vicious beast capable of devouring souls allowed it to completely disregard the attacks of these jackals…
Seeing the Taotie launch itself forward, Ye Jingyu also drew his battered saber and charged toward the wolf pack. He knew the Taotie would take at most half an hour to locate the Wolf King, and dispatching it would take only a blink of an eye. Once the Wolf King was dead, these jackals posed no threat…
Having finally encountered people from the Shu Yun Kingdom, how could he pass up the chance to glean information from them after his grueling cultivation these past days…
In just a few strides, he reached the periphery of the wolf pack. A surge of Zhenqi coursed through his body, instantly condensing in his right hand. The first move of the "Thunderclap Saber Art," "Thunderclap Splitting Slash," erupted forth…
Instantly, a pale white saber gleam flared, a blade light over ten feet long that sliced through the three or four jackals before him as easily as cutting tofu. Blood and shredded meat sprayed everywhere, while Ye Jingyu’s body shot rapidly forward…
The jackals that had been attacking the surrounded group were suddenly infiltrated by this new assailant. A contingent broke off, baring their fangs, and lunged at Ye Jingyu. But facing the sharpness of Ye Jingyu’s saber gleam, they were slaughtered without the slightest chance of resistance…
This was the terrifying power of the Thunderclap Saber Art, though it consumed several times the Zhenqi of other techniques. If Ye Jingyu had not cultivated the Bavuan Art, which infused his Zhenqi not only through the Extraordinary Meridians but into every cell, granting him several times the Zhenqi reserves of other Martial Masters at the same level (external Zhenqi projection), he would have collapsed from exhaustion long ago…
Even so, after slaying over thirty jackals, a feeling of strain began to creep in…
Fortunately, at this moment, the Taotie seemed to have killed the Wolf King. The jackal pack began to scatter and flee in all directions. Furthermore, about ten Martial Masters from the besieged Shu Yun group, realizing help had arrived, broke out to meet Ye Jingyu, merging with him just as he was about to succumb to exhaustion under the wolf tide…
Watching the retreating, scattered wolves, Ye Jingyu lost interest in them. His focus turned to these mysterious guests. He desperately wanted to learn some news from the Shu Yun Kingdom—at the very least, find out how his enemies were faring…
“We thank this brave warrior for intervening. Otherwise, we might have perished here today…” At this moment, the wolf pack had fled the scene, leaving over a hundred corpses behind. Besides the loss of their King, they had faintly sensed the aura released by the Taotie, an aura that most wild beasts found impossible to resist… The youth clad in the white silk robe walked over and spoke to Ye Jingyu with marked friendliness…
Even though his entourage consisted of elites, facing hundreds of calf-sized jackals meant that even if they survived, the casualties would be devastating…
Yet, what puzzled him was why these jackals had retreated so swiftly just moments after this youth appeared?
“Who are you? Why are you here?” Ye Jingyu ignored the youth’s pleasantries and asked his core question directly—that was his primary objective…
Everyone present froze. Then, the four Innate Martial Masters and the other Martial Masters alike showed looks of indignation, clearly displeased with Ye Jingyu’s demeanor. Just as they were about to issue a reprimand, the youth stopped them…
“I apologize for my abruptness. I am Luo Ruofeng. May I inquire as to the name of this valiant warrior…” The youth spoke with utmost courtesy…
“Luo Ruofeng? The Luo of the Shu Yun royal surname?” Upon hearing the name, Ye Jingyu’s expression shifted. In the entire Shu Yun Kingdom, the Luo surname belonged to only one lineage: the Shu Yun royal family…
But the youth and the others present were even more shocked than Ye Jingyu when they heard his question…