Chapter 12: A Little Dangerous

Chapter 12: A Bit Dangerous

Four heads came together in a huddle, whispering among themselves.

"Did we get it right this time?"

"No worries, following your big brother is always the right call." Zheng Yuanzhi wore a look of inexplicable confidence, strolling as if he planned to walk all the way to the M78 Nebula.

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

Chen Shuoan quickly caught up and walked behind them, calling back to Li Wei, "Brother Li, watch our backs."

Li Wei was truly exasperated with this group, but he reluctantly quickened his pace to catch up.

The day had been fruitful—no big game spotted, but they had bagged several river deer.

At noon, they butchered two rabbits for a meal.

Chen Shuoan found it all quite new and interesting. Though the meat was bland, he still ate it with gusto.

Now the group pressed deeper into the forest.

Unlike yesterday's clear skies, today's weather was overcast, casting a dim, gloomy light over the woods.

They had barely walked a few minutes when they heard voices not far away.

The voice was rambling and indistinct, impossible to make out clearly.

Zheng Yuanzhi, curious to meet these people, followed the sound in that direction.

Chen Shuoan looked at the dense trees around him, an uneasy feeling rising in his chest.

That sense of unease only grew stronger as they drew closer to the voices.

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

Qin Zhonglian hadn't expected to run into them here either, and struck up a conversation with Zheng Yuanzhi.

Chen Shuoan, standing beside Zheng Yuanzhi, felt more and more that something was off.

Suddenly, he caught sight of a pair of eerie green eyes.

They were hidden in a bush about twenty paces behind Qin Zhonglian.

Those were certainly not human eyes.

Chen Shuoan's hair stood on end. His breathing grew shallow as he murmured to Qin Zhonglian, who was ahead of him, "There's a wolf—right behind you."

His voice was so low that even Li Wei, standing farther back, didn't hear it.

Both Zheng Yuanzhi and Qin Zhonglian stopped breathing.

Qin Zhonglian tensed, his hand snapping to the sword at his waist, his voice cold and sharp: "Where?"

Zheng Yuanzhi had clearly spotted it too. He swallowed hard and forced out, "About twenty yards behind you, behind the bush—and there's more than one."

The sky suddenly darkened, and thunder cracked not far away—rain was on the way.

Panic seized the group, and they began chattering and scrambling to head back the way they came.

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

The sky was darkening fast, and the danger that had been lurking finally surfaced.

A wolf's howl rang out, and suddenly more green eyes appeared from the jungle. The howls came one after another, shattering whatever composure the group had left.

Qin Zhonglian spun around, pressing his back against Chen Shuoan's and Zheng Yuanzhi's backs. His voice was grim: "The alpha is pinpointing the pack's position. In a moment, more wolves will close in. They've had us in their sights for a while."

Thunderclouds rolled overhead, lightning flashed, and within moments a light rain started 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 now! Protect yourselves, and look out for your comrades as best you can. Remember, don't run, don't run!" Chen Shuoan screamed at the crowd at the top of his lungs.

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

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

Qin Zhonglian snatched up a longbow from the ground, nocking an arrow and drawing in one fluid motion. With a dull thud, the arrow sank into a wolf's body—but the beast's eyes burned with savage resolve, showing no sign of pain.

The dozen or so people clustered together as the wolves slowly tightened their circle.

Raindrops as big as beans struck Chen Shuoan's eyelashes, blurring his vision.

Li Wei watched the wolves draw closer and muttered grimly, "I hope reinforcements get here fast."

No sooner had he spoken than a wolf burst forward, clamping its jaws around the leg of the person on the edge of the group. The man cried out in pain as he was dragged a couple of steps away.

Seeing this, Chen Shuoan's courage surged, overriding his fear. Without a second thought, he charged over and slashed his sword down on the wolf's tail.

The beast released its bloody grip and bared its fangs at him, snarling viciously.

The rain washed the smell of blood through the air, while the stench of wet earth mixed with the foul reek of beasts filled everyone's nostrils.

The wolf pack kept growing. The alpha stood on a high point and howled—a sound whose excitement was unmistakable to any species.

At the alpha's command, the pack charged. Qin Zhonglian swapped arrow for blade, springing up to slash at a wolf's snout as it lunged.

The wolf drove hard with its hind legs, slamming Qin Zhonglian to the ground. He bent his elbow to protect his neck while twisting his body, driving his blade into the beast's eye.

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

It opened its fang-filled jaws and bit down—Qin Zhonglian could even see the blood-red depths of its throat.

Suddenly, the wolf's head jerked backward. Someone had grabbed the scruff of its neck and was hauling it back with all their strength.

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

Qin Zhonglian scrambled up, drove his short blade into the wolf's throat, yanked it out, and stabbed it several more times. Then he grabbed Chen Shuoan's wrist and yanked him behind him, cursing, "When you play hero, how about checking what's behind you first!"

Two more wolves were eyeing the two of them hungrily.

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

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

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

Qin Zhonglian's eyes were bloodshot as he struck first. He moved with lightning speed, darting toward the two wolves and slashing his longsword at the front paws of one. Chen Shuoan saw the other baring its fangs and immediately lunged forward, flailing his sword wildly in a desperate attempt to keep it at bay.

Their side was struggling with every step, and the others weren't faring much better.

Zheng Yuanzhi's face was plastered with rain, and a chunk of flesh had been ripped clean off one of his hands. The cold spring rain washed over him, leaving his lips even paler.

Zhang Chenggong looked at the companions around him still putting up a desperate fight, and shook his head hard, trying to force himself to focus.

In the nick of time, someone in the team shouted, "The Crown Prince is here!"

Everyone instantly perked up as if someone had lit a fire under them.

Such was the Crown Prince's prestige—he was the people's rock.

Chen Shuoan heard the sound of horse hooves that seemed to pierce through the dark of night.

He followed the source of the sound and saw the leading man with flowing ink-black hair, majestic and imposing, seeming to shine even in the dim light.

But his attention was quickly pulled to the figure behind the Crown Prince.

It was Yuan Rang, cool and unruffled.

As if sensing something, Yuan Rang swept a sharp glance over, and his gaze caught Chen Shuoan's across the space.

In the darkness, Yuan Rang's expression was hard to make out, and Chen Shuoan only knew that he was coming straight for him.

An ancient poem from his school days came to mind out of nowhere.

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

It suited his lord perfectly.