Chapter 12: A Little Dangerous

Chapter 12: A Bit Dangerous

The four of them huddled together, whispering.

"Did we take the right path this time?"

"No worries, just follow me this time." Zheng Yuanzhi wore a look of inexplicable confidence, striding as if he were about to walk to another galaxy.

Zhang Chenggong closed his eyes, braced himself, and followed Zheng Yuanzhi.

Seeing this, Chen Shuoan quickly caught up, calling back to Li Wei behind him, "Brother Li, watch our backs."

Li Wei was utterly done with these people. He sighed helplessly, then quickened his pace to catch up.

Today's haul was pretty good. Though no big game was spotted, they had bagged several musk deer.

At noon, they butchered two rabbits for a meal.

Chen Shuoan found it quite novel. Though it lacked flavor, he still wolfed it down.

The group was now pushing deeper into the woods.

Today's weather wasn't as clear as yesterday, and the forest felt darker and gloomier.

They hadn't been walking for more than a few minutes when they heard voices not far off.

The voices were rambling and indistinct, impossible to make out clearly.

Zheng Yuanzhi was eager to meet this group, so he headed toward the sound.

Chen Shuoan looked at the densely packed trees around him, and a wave of unease washed over him.

The unease grew stronger the closer they got to the voices.

"So it's Young Master Qin." Zheng Yuanzhi stepped forward to greet.

Qin Zhonglian hadn't expected to run into them here either, and he started chatting with Zheng Yuanzhi.

Chen Shuoan, standing beside Zheng Yuanzhi, felt increasingly uneasy.

Suddenly, he spotted a pair of eerie green eyes.

About twenty paces behind Qin Zhonglian, hidden in the bushes.

Those were definitely not human eyes.

Chen Shuoan's hair stood on end. His breath grew shallow as he murmured to Qin Zhonglian ahead, "There's a wolf, right behind you."

His voice was low—so low that even Li Wei, standing a bit farther away, didn't hear it.

Both Zheng Yuanzhi and Qin Zhonglian held their breath.

Qin Zhonglian's body tensed. His hand clenched tightly around the sword at his waist as he asked coldly, "Where?"

Zheng Yuanzhi had clearly spotted it too. He swallowed hard and said with difficulty, "About sixty feet behind you, behind the bushes. There's more than one."

The sky suddenly turned overcast, and thunder cracked not far off—a sign that rain was on the way.

Panic swept through the group, and they started chattering frantically, ready to turn back the way they came.

The faint rustling sounds around them seemed a hundred times louder in Chen Shuoan's ears. His pupils constricted as he heard the soft crunch of claws on dry grass.

The sky was darkening rapidly, and the crisis that had been lurking finally came to a head.

A wolf's howl rang out, and suddenly more green eyes emerged from the woods. The howls echoed one after another, completely shattering the group's nerve.

Qin Zhonglian spun around swiftly, standing back-to-back with Chen Shuoan and Zheng Yuanzhi. He said sharply, "The alpha wolf is pinpointing the pack's position. In a moment, more wolves will be closing in. We've been targeted for a long time."

The sky was thick with dark clouds, thunder rolled, and in an instant, a light rain began to fall.

Chen Shuoan's mind raced. His limited life experience could only dredge up the one club activity he'd ever organized.

"The rain isn't heavy yet—everyone, fire your signal flares for help! Protect yourselves at all costs, look out for each other as best you can, and remember—don't run, don't run!" Chen Shuoan screamed at the crowd with all his might.

In an instant, signal flares shot into the sky, their brilliant colors lingering over the gloomy forest for a long time.

The wolf pack snarled and lunged at the group, claws bared.

Qin Zhonglian grabbed the longbow from the ground, nocking an arrow and drawing the bow in one fluid motion. With a thud, the arrow buried itself into a wolf's body. The wolf's eyes were fierce, showing no sign of pain.

The dozen or so people were pressed together, and the wolf pack was slowly closing in around them.

Raindrops the size of beans fell on Chen Shuoan's eyelashes, blurring his vision.

Li Wei watched the wolves drawing closer and said grimly, "Hope reinforcements get here soon."

The words had barely left his mouth when a wolf charged forward and clamped its jaws around the leg of the person on the edge of the group. The man cried out in pain as he was dragged two steps away.

Seeing this, Chen Shuoan's courage outweighed his fear. Without a second thought, he rushed over and slashed his sword across the wolf's tail.

The wolf let go of the man, its mouth bloody, and bared its teeth viciously at Chen Shuoan.

The rain washed away the smell of blood hanging in the air, while the stench of earth mixed with the beasts' foul odor filled everyone's nostrils.

The wolf pack's numbers were still growing. The alpha stood on high ground and let out a howl—a sound that anyone could recognize as pure excitement.

At the alpha's command, the pack charged. Qin Zhonglian switched from bow to blade, springing up swiftly to slash at a wolf's snout as it lunged.

The wolf pushed off with its hind legs and slammed Qin Zhonglian to the ground. Qin Zhonglian bent his elbow to protect his neck while twisting his body, driving the blade into the wolf's eye above him.

The wolf yelped in pain, but it had no intention of letting go of his arm.

It opened its fanged maw and bit down toward him. At that moment, Qin Zhonglian could even see the blood-red depths of its throat.

Suddenly, the wolf's head jerked backward—someone had grabbed the fur at the back of its neck and was yanking it away with all their might.

Chen Shuoan gritted his teeth, both hands straining, wishing he could use his feet too.

Qin Zhonglian sprang up in a flash, driving his short blade into the wolf's throat, yanking it out and stabbing it again and again. Then he grabbed Chen Shuoan's wrist and pulled him behind him, cursing, "When you play the hero, can you check what's behind you first!"

Two more wolves were eyeing this pair of comrades hungrily.

Chen Shuoan's throat was burning with pain now. He managed to force out, "A true hero never looks back at the explosion."

Qin Zhonglian had no time to argue about explosions with him. His muscles were taut, his face bore fresh scrapes from being tackled, and blood dripped from his wrist—a nasty sight.

Chen Shuoan stepped out from behind him and said, "I love playing support."

Qin Zhonglian's eyes were bloodshot as he made the first move. With agile movements, he dashed toward the two wolves and drew the long sword at his waist, striking at the foreleg of one. Seeing the other baring its fangs, Chen Shuoan immediately rushed forward, flailing his sword wildly in an attempt to keep it at bay.

His group was barely holding it together, and the others weren't doing any better either.

Zheng Yuanzhi's face was plastered with rain, and a chunk of flesh had been ripped clean off one of his hands. The icy spring rain soaked him, draining the color from his lips even further.

Zhang Chenggong, looking at the companions around him still putting up a desperate fight, shook his head hard, trying to clear his mind.

Just when things were at their worst, someone in their ranks shouted, "The Crown Prince is coming!"

Everyone instantly perked up as if they'd been shot full of adrenaline.

Such was the Crown Prince's prestige; he was the people's anchor of calm.

Chen Shuoan heard hoofbeats that seemed to pound through the darkness.

He traced the sound and saw the leading man with ink-black hair streaming behind him, commanding and imposing, looking like a blaze of light even under the grim sky.

But his eyes soon landed on the figure behind the Crown Prince.

It was the aloof, composed Yuan Rang.

As if sensing something, Yuan Rang swept a sharp glance over and locked eyes with Chen Shuoan in mid-air.

In the dark, Yuan Rang's expression was hard to read, and Chen Shuoan only knew that he was heading toward him.

An ancient poem he had learned in middle school suddenly came to mind.

A silver saddle on a white horse, swift as a shooting star.

It suited his lord perfectly.