Chapter 27: The Azure Wolf Beast

Within the Spirit Shadow Valley, there were over forty Azure Wolf Beasts dwelling in this secluded place. Most of them were low-tier first-rank demon beasts, though a handful had reached the peak of the first rank, their strength akin to cultivators at the late stage of the Qi Refining realm. Among them was a second-rank Azure Wolf King who led the entire pack; it could be said that only this Wolf King posed any real threat to Qiu Han—provided, of course, he did not resort to the life-saving magical power stored in the ring given to him by Gu Sui Feng.

In the world of cultivation, all beings with spiritual essence strive to cultivate. The term “cultivation” itself originated from the legends of ancient immortals. As time passed into the era of antiquity, those ancient immortals vanished mysteriously and were lost to history. With the immortals gone, the term “cultivation” replaced “immortality.” Cultivation was not the domain of humans alone; demon beasts could cultivate as well, and these were known as demon cultivators. Even certain spiritual beings of heaven and earth, upon awakening to consciousness by chance, could step onto the path of cultivation.

Yet for demon beasts, the path was far more arduous than for humans, though their lifespans exceeded those of mortals by far. Unless a demon beast reached the stage of transformation, it could not awaken true intelligence or assume human form. Most demon beasts relied on their formidable bodies for both offense and defense, and without reaching the transformation stage, they would not learn or wield spells.

Still, nearly all demon beasts were born with one or two innate low-level magical abilities, such as those Qiu Han had encountered before; the techniques they used were all innate spells. Only upon reaching the transformation stage and surviving the baptism of a heavenly tribulation could a demon beast take human form, gain intelligence to rival mankind, and learn human language and spells. For demon beasts to soar through the skies, they must reach at least the third rank—equivalent to a human cultivator at the Core Formation stage—before their power allows flight. Those below the third rank cannot fly, with the exception of avian demon beasts.

These basics about demon beasts and their cultivation were things Qiu Han had already learned during his time in the Hengyuan Sect. In recent days, he had been pondering how to deal with the Azure Wolf Beasts, and just now, he seemed to have made up his mind.

Within the valley, the Azure Wolf Beasts moved about as usual, wholly unaware that danger was quietly closing in. It was near midday; in the valley, which stretched nearly a thousand yards across, the forty-odd Azure Wolf Beasts were scattered throughout. At this time, a few on the outskirts, far from the inner valley, began to venture out in search of food.

After days of observation, Qiu Han had discovered that almost every day, about ten Azure Wolf Beasts would leave the valley to hunt. Their strength ranged from the sixth to the twelfth layer of Qi Refining in human terms. The few peak first-rank beasts and the Azure Wolf King had never once left the valley during his surveillance.

This was an opportunity. Qiu Han resolved to shadow these wolves, searching for a chance to strike them down in one fell swoop, gradually depleting their numbers. This would be a protracted war of attrition, testing whether he could maintain his patience.

High in the sky, robed in white, Qiu Han drifted slowly, his gaze fixed intently on the pack of wolves leaving the valley to seek prey. After about an hour, his quarry entered the depths of the forest. Qiu Han’s flight paused abruptly, and he descended from the sky. With a flick of his right hand, a small black flag, no larger than a palm, appeared in his grasp.

Channeling spiritual power into the flag, it began to expand, and in the space of a few breaths, grew to its full size, enveloping his body and vanishing him from sight.

Thus concealed, Qiu Han followed the seven wolves, keeping just behind them. The wolves had no inkling that a human cultivator was stalking them so closely.

After another hour’s travel, they had journeyed some fifty miles from the valley. The forest here was especially tranquil; only the occasional call of a bird or the gentle rustling of leaves disturbed the silence. Under the sunlight, the woods seemed vibrant and full of life.

“Four of them are about as strong as a cultivator at the sixth layer of Qi Refining, two at the eighth, and the last is probably at the ninth or tenth. Killing them should be simple enough, but I mustn’t make too much noise—and the faster, the better!”

Qiu Han pondered inwardly, waiting for his chance.

At that moment, the strongest wolf took the lead, having caught wind of prey ahead. It quickened its pace, with two others following closely, while the remaining four—those equal to the sixth layer of Qi Refining—paused where they were.

Qiu Han seized the moment. With a swift motion, he stowed away the black flag, revealing himself, and dashed toward the four lagging wolves. With a wave of his right hand, four icicles, sharp as daggers, materialized in the air, streaking toward their targets faster than the eye could follow. In an instant, before a single cry could escape them, all four wolves collapsed, lifeless, each with a wound the size of a bowl at its throat, blood spraying from the gaping hole.

With his current strength, dispatching these four was effortless. Glancing at their motionless bodies, he vanished from the spot in a flash.

The three remaining wolves appeared to sense something behind them. Though Qiu Han’s attack had been swift and silent, the whistle of the ice arrows and the scent of fresh wolf blood in the air aroused their suspicion.

Rather than continue forward, the three turned and retraced their steps to where their companions had fallen. Upon finding the four corpses, they stared with wide eyes, sniffing the bodies and nudging them with their snouts. Once certain of their deaths, they raised their heads and howled mournfully at the sky.

After several breaths, their lament ceased, and they began to search their surroundings, as if seeking the murderer. But the forest was silent and empty—no sign of man or beast. After a few more whimpers, they abruptly turned and left.

The three wolves then split up to search for the killer. The two at the eighth Qi Refining layer headed south, keeping some distance between them, while the strongest one moved eastward.

Once the wolves had departed, a figure emerged atop a towering tree nearby—it was Qiu Han. After slaying the weaker four, he had cloaked himself with the black flag, observing the wolves’ every move from above.

He now landed, took out a storage pouch, and collected the four wolf corpses within. Glancing briefly in the direction of the two southern wolves, he smiled faintly and slipped away in pursuit.

In the depths of the dense forest, the two wolves moved apart, one to the left, the other to the right, their distance never exceeding a hundred yards. Some fifty yards behind one of them, a youth in white, appearing to be in his early twenties, followed quietly. Tall grass half his height concealed his form as he trailed the wolf, keeping himself hidden from its sight.