Yan Shen and Cheng Feng weren’t the type to curse much, but under the circumstances, they quickly picked up this innate talent.
Though they didn’t have the energy to actually voice their curses, their hyper-focused minds had already arranged and combined various forms of “greetings” – no names attached.
No matter how much you call yourself a lone wolf, you can’t outrun real wolves. After summoning their pack, emboldened and driven by hunger, the three wolves revealed their savage nature, fiercely snapping at their heels. Every time Cheng Feng looked back, she felt like she was one step closer to being taken offline.
Moreover, wolves have incredible endurance. Trying to shake them off in a chase was basically a pipe dream.
Yan Shen was running ahead, carrying a massive military backpack. From Cheng Feng’s angle, she couldn’t see what he was doing with his hands, nor did she have the focus to spare. As she glanced back and forth, she noticed that Yan Shen was also slowing down – the distance between them was shrinking. Whether he was out of strength or actively coming back to help, Cheng Feng was just beginning to feel a touch of gratitude when Yan Shen squeezed a sliver of air from his overburdened lungs and let out a sharp, thin shout, “Hold them off!”
Cheng Feng: “??” If she were capable of taking on three wolves by herself, would she really be in such a pathetic state?
But with danger closing in, she didn’t have even half a second to hesitate.
Her expression stiffened slightly. Then she slowed her pace, filtered through the jumbled ringing in her ears to catch the footsteps of the three wolves, calculated the distance, and flung the thick animal hide in her hand, throwing herself backward with all her strength.
The wide pelt landed directly over the head of one emaciated, mangy wolf. But even blinded, the beast charged forward without pause.
Cheng Feng had just slowed from a full sprint; blood that had been rushing to her heart now seemed to be flowing backward toward her limbs. Her legs felt weak and unsteady. The wolf’s momentum yanked her off balance, stumbling backward several steps before she managed to steady herself.
But before she could regain control of her balance, another wolf lunged at her from the side.
This time, Cheng Feng had no chance to dodge. She could only raise her arm to block, protecting her neck and face from fatal strikes.
The wolf’s two paws slammed into her abdomen, and its forward momentum knocked her straight to the ground. With the instincts of a hunter used to fighting in the wilderness, the beast managed to lock its jaws precisely around her arm even while mid-air.
She felt sharp teeth sink deep into her flesh. Cheng Feng’s pupils trembled and briefly lost focus – all thought came to a halt. Before the pain even reached her brain, she raised her knife and stabbed back.
The military-grade blade from San Yao was extremely sharp. Even though Cheng Feng had little strength left, she still managed to pierce through the wolf’s hide, the blade striking bone with a grating, teeth-aching crunch.
Man and wolf both suffered heavy blows. A spray of blood followed as they tumbled across the ground in a tangle.
This wolf hadn’t tasted the sweetness of blood in a long time. Even after being stabbed, the frenzy in its eyes only intensified. It clamped its jaws even tighter, determined to tear a chunk of flesh from Cheng Feng’s body.
Cheng Feng endured the dull pain, raised her leg, and kicked hard, sending the wolf flying.
When the soul-reaping banners of the Black and White Impermanence are already planted on your forehead, even the most excruciating pain starts to feel trivial.
No sooner had Cheng Feng broken free from that wolf’s bite than the other two lunged at her one after another.
Wolves are highly intelligent animals with strong adaptability. Wary of the weapon in her hand, they didn’t charge recklessly this time. Instead, their stinking, drooling jaws turned toward her ankles – clearly aiming to bite through her legs and cripple her mobility first.
Staring at those yellowed fangs glistening with cold menace, Cheng Feng’s scalp tingled with terror. She kicked fiercely at the long-nosed, protruding head of the wolf in front of her, then used the strength of her core and arms to quickly push herself upright. Raising her arm, she slashed downward, using her weapon to scare off the other wolf that was still looking for an opening to strike.
It was truly too cruel to expect Cheng Feng to take on three such desperate, death-defying creatures all by herself.
Yan Shen was busy with something, but he still spared a glance to assess the situation on her side. Seeing that Cheng Feng reminded him of someone from his memory – someone who could handle just about anything thrown at them, their combat ceiling a complete mystery – he couldn’t help but offer some encouragement. “You can do this!”
Cheng Feng: “??”
Even if it cost her her life, she would use her hoarse throat to scream out, “Get lost!”
Cheng Feng moved her injured hand behind her back and stood up.
The two wolves adjusted their positions as she moved, searching for another chance to strike. Their wounded companion, meanwhile, voluntarily withdrew from the fight, lying on the ground and licking the blood off its fur.
Cheng Feng had no idea what signal wild wolves used to launch an attack. Facing two predators charging at her simultaneously, she had already drafted her “offline” speech in her head.
Her epitaph in the exam arena would be a letter of indictment against Yan Shen.
She would find Xiang Yunjian and file a complaint – this was no way to treat an employee.
Breach of contract. Pay up.
Her thoughts raced like wild horses, but her movements left no room for hesitation.
Cheng Feng ducked low to avoid the wolf’s lunge, then struck out with her right hand as fast as lightning. Figuring she’d take down one if she could, she abandoned all defense and focused all her offensive power on the target to her right.
The blade sliced across the wolf’s face, but in doing so, Cheng Feng’s vital points were completely exposed to the other wolf’s fangs.
At this critical moment, Yan Shen threw the rabbit from earlier with all his might. It struck the left wolf’s head, knocking it sideways and buying Cheng Feng a fleeting chance to survive.
Cheng Feng thought to herself that this wasn’t much help. Compared to something furry like that rabbit, the two of them – outsiders to these parts – were clearly a far more filling meal, with their tender white skin and delicious, juicy flesh.
And indeed, the three wolves didn’t spare the rabbit a single glance. They stayed focused on the obvious choice. The ones not seriously injured gathered once again and charged at Cheng Feng.
Cheng Feng scrambled backward. Then Yan Shen’s sharp command cut through all the noise. “Hit the deck!”
Cheng Feng instinctively followed the command, turned, and dropped to the ground.
Yan Shen moved even faster. He couldn’t even wait for her to hit the floor before throwing something from his hand.
An irregularly shaped object exploded mid-air, sending up a massive yellow wave that spread in all directions.
Cheng Feng felt countless fragments scrape across her face. Her body was hit as if by a powerful shove, slamming her to the ground.
A flash of fire streaked through the air, and the blast carried a wave of heat. Yet the temperature wasn’t scalding, and it quickly dissipated as Cheng Feng was pushed further away.
This small-scale explosion wasn’t very lethal. At best, it could only restrict the target’s movement or cause minor blunt-force trauma.
Cheng Feng rolled twice on the ground before stopping. Darkness filled her vision for a few seconds. After a brief pause, she finally regained control of her body.
With great effort, she raised her head and saw Yan Shen advancing through the blast’s aftermath, manually ending the lives of two wolves. The third wolf – already injured by Cheng Feng’s knife – let out pained, low whimpers. Sensing something was wrong, it began limping away.
Yan Shen chased it down, pressed down on its back from behind, and cleanly sent it back to the database.
Having narrowly escaped death, Cheng Feng closed her eyes and lay back, completely drained.
The sky above was tinged with a pale red glow. Even through her tightly shut eyelids, the bright light was harsh enough to make her eyes sting.
After a long moment, Cheng Feng finally found her voice and asked weakly, “This top 10% scholarship of yours… it’s a little too high-stakes, don’t you think?”
Was this really worth fighting for with her life?
If she’d made a single mistake, or if Yan Shen’s aim had been even slightly off, the exam would have ended right there.
Was this the standard of the Alliance’s infantries? Had she underestimated them all along?
Yan Shen remained silent. He was equally exhausted, his face pale. He sat heavily on the ground, head lowered, trying to regain his composure.
With his hands resting on his knees, he listlessly glanced at the animal carcasses. Then, recalling the ordeals they’d faced along the way, he turned his head and shot Cheng Feng a deeply complicated look from the corner of his eye.
Cheng Feng winced as she raised her injured left arm and struggled to her feet, intending to find a medical kit. As she passed by Yan Shen, she noticed the subtle expression on his face and asked suspiciously, “What’s wrong?”
Yan Shen shook his head, looked away in self-doubt, and said, “Nothing.”
…
The online viewers had been watching with their hearts in their throats, barely daring to breathe. Only now did they finally feel free to exhale.
Even though they were merely spectators, the constant ebb and flow of tension left them feeling utterly drained – as if they, too, had been chased for three kilometers in the sweltering heat by a demanding superior.
That anxious, breathless feeling had even broken out hot sweat on their skin.
“This duo is truly unlucky, but they’re also truly blessed with nine lives.”
“Please, Cheng Feng, find a temple to pray at once you get out. Your level of bad luck is beyond what science can fix.”
“Under normal circumstances, you don’t encounter a pack of wolves – even just three -when running a solo or duo mission with your character stats already in the red. So whose fault is it?”
“I can vouch for Yan Shen on this one. He’s not that unlucky. He doesn’t deserve this!”
“Then it’s definitely not Cheng Feng’s fault either. She single-handedly held off three wolves and wounded two of them. San Yao, you’re going to have to figure this one out on your own.”
“There’s less than a day left. Shouldn’t our biggest concern right now be the fact that they might not even make it to the campsite?”
Cheng Feng dug out the medical kit from her own backpack.
After the danger had passed, the pain came rushing back all at once, multiplying its revenge as she tugged at the fabric around her wounds.
Just a few simple movements left her forehead dotted with fine sweat.
Yan Shen rested briefly, then relit the fire and started preparing their food. Seeing that Cheng Feng was making a complete mess of even just cleaning her wounds – biting down on one end of the bandage and pulling it tight as if she had a personal grudge against herself – he sighed in resignation, told her to hold still, and went over to help bandage her up.
As the painkiller slowly took effect, Cheng Feng perked up a little and asked the person in front of her, “What did you use to make that explosion just now?”
“A fire starter and an alarm,” Yan Shen replied, wrapping the bandage around her arm layer by layer. He tilted his chin toward the backpack to indicate it. “With some modifications, it can be turned into a very underwhelming explosive device.”
It really was quite underwhelming.
He hadn’t even finished modifying it before Cheng Feng was nearly done for. The fact that it exploded mid-air, only a few meters away from sending her offline, said it all.
She reached up and touched her hair.
Though it hadn’t caught fire, her bangs had still been singed by the residual heat of that spark. The tips were curled, with a faint, sharp smell of burning.
Seeing the gloomy look on her face, Yan Shen kindly offered some comfort. “You can have the rabbit legs. Both of them.”
Cheng Feng nodded, but then something felt off. She looked up and said, “Don’t try to fool me. Doesn’t a rabbit have four legs? Isn’t this a basic case of distributing according to contribution?”
Yan Shen fell silent.
Cheng Feng was shocked. “What exactly was your plan before this? Do you even have a conscience?!”
Yan Shen said with utter sincerity, “No, not at all!”
But sharp as she was, Cheng Feng wasn’t going to fall for that again.
After finishing the bandaging, Yan Shen wiped his hands and said casually, “Let’s get ready to eat.”
