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Chapter 143: Chapter 143: Fierce Jackal
"Who?"
Everyone immediately went into high alert, and the next moment, three figures stumbled and charged over, "Big, Big Brother, it’s us."
The Wolf King signaled for everyone to relax and glanced at the three men. Indeed, they were his little brothers left to guard the main camp. His brows furrowed, "You’re supposed to be defending the headquarters. What are you doing here?"
"Big Brother, it’s bad! Someone’s attacked us, the captain’s been killed!!"
What?
Everyone was shocked, and the Wolf King abruptly stood up, grabbed one of the men, and asked fiercely, "You’d better not be lying to me!"
"Big Brother, how could I joke about something like this, I saw it with my own eyes! It’s Ma Han, that guy who runs the Meteor Martial Arts Hall in our town. I don’t know where he found a helper. That guy is especially formidable, the captain was no match for him!"
The twenty-men squad, at this moment, all wore grave expressions. The opponent was a member of the Wolf Cavalry, and from their panicked look, there was clearly no need to make up such a tale just for amusement.
"Big Brother, what should we do?"
All eyes were fixed on the Wolf King.
With a sinister voice, the Wolf King said, "I didn’t expect this Ma Han to be someone of note, daring to strike at our lair while we were away. Even the second-in-command is dead!"
"Big Brother, do we go back and fight now?"
One person asked.
"Right, we have so many people, and with you here, Big Brother, even if the other side has a Great Martial Master, we have nothing to fear!" Another said.
The Wolf King signaled for everyone to be quiet; after pondering for a while, he then turned his gaze to the Wolf Cavalry: "Are you sure it’s just Ma Han and his accomplice? Where are they now?"
"It’s really just the two of them. To be precise, Ma Han didn’t lift a finger the whole time; it was all that young man. I reckon they’re still in town, probably not gone far. Striking back now would catch them completely off guard. Big Brother, you must avenge our captain!!"
The Wolf King nodded, then sneered, "To kill the second-in-command, this vengeance must be avenged, but not now. Order the troops to continue marching. The priority is to kill that Fierce Jackal. Going back now would only mean falling headlong into an ambush, playing right into their hands, just like the second-in-command. They probably expected this and deliberately let a few of you go back to spread the news, playing a clever game indeed. But such tricks might fool others; think they can fool me, the Wolf King? Hmph, they’re still too green."
Hearing this, everyone felt a sinking in their hearts. If it were them who received such news, without a doubt, they would immediately turn around and rush back, given that the lair was at stake. With their stronghold taken, they would have no mind for anything else.
"Big Brother truly is sagacious, considering such meticulous details."
Many people admired him deeply in their hearts.
"Set off immediately, towards the den of the Fierce Jackal!"
The Wolf King waved his hand, and more than twenty people prepared to depart.
However, they hadn’t noticed that someone was following behind them.
Lin Feng trailed behind the whole way. Those few Wolf Cavalry who had fled were also cautious, perhaps fearing they were being followed, and deliberately took a few detours.
"Fierce Jackal?"
Lin Feng smiled faintly. He had been worrying about how to annihilate this entire squad.
The Wolf King thought Lin Feng would set up an ambush on the spot and then wait for them to rush back into the net, catching them unprepared. But he never expected that Lin Feng would play such a risky move, coming after them all by himself.
As for Ma Han, Lin Feng asked him to stay in the small town. Having just broken through to martial master, he was not much help, so Lu Keke was left in Lin Feng’s care.
Lin Feng saw Lu Keke walking in the middle of the team from a distance. Despite her dirty face, she seemed to be unharmed, which relieved Lin Feng. He followed them, observing that the group was obviously composed of elite hunters, their actions clean and efficient. The team then reached a valley.
The valley was surrounded by towering trees that blotted out the sun, and mist lingered all around.
"Brother, this is the place! See, there are Fierce Jackal tracks and feces here. The den must be nearby!"
The Wolf King glanced around and nodded, then whispered softly, "Weapon up!"
"Weapon up" was their mercenaries’ jargon, which meant to draw weapons and prepare for battle.
A clattering sound echoed as a group of people drew forth their weapons—swords, longswords, spears, and bows of all kinds.
Roar, roar, roar, roar
At that moment, a putrid-smelling gale swept through, breaking numerous branches. Then, a massive yellow figure suddenly burst out from the depths of the dense forest. It was a Demon Beast, as sturdy as an ox, covered with yellow scale armor, sporting hair on its head like willow branches, with bloodthirsty glints in its eyes. Especially notable was its exceptionally swollen belly.
"Fierce Jackal!"
The Wolf King’s face turned grave as the rest of the group quickly dispersed and encircled the Fierce Jackal.
"Fire!"
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh
In an instant, more than twenty people released Crossbow Arrows that had been strapped to their bodies. The arrows hit the Fierce Jackal but were deflected by its scale armor, the force only making it stagger backward.
With a ferocious roar, the beast whipped up a gale and leaped away, vanishing in just a few bounds.
"Hmph, it seems to be about to give birth. Good, a rare opportunity indeed, and we’ve encountered it. Everyone, be ready to use all your strength. As soon as the Fierce Jackal gives birth to its cubs, we’ll strike together, taking advantage of its moment of weakness to eliminate this creature at once!"
"Yes, Brother!"
A chorus of invigorated replies sounded from the group.
The Wolf King nodded and, with a wave of his large hand, led his men in pursuit.
After they left, Lin Feng finally appeared. "Fierce Jackal, quite the formidable Demon Phase indeed. But alas,"
Lin Feng shook his head and quickly followed. Under normal circumstances, the Wolf King and his men would not dare provoke a Fierce Jackal, but unfortunately for the beast, it was about to deliver its cubs, and would surely enter a period of weakness, with its strength greatly diminished.
This would inevitably be the Wolf King’s opportunity for a full assault.
As expected, after the time it takes to drink a cup of tea passed.
First there was silence, and then an angry roar was heard, followed by shouts from the Wolf King and his men.
"Now, full assault!"
When Lin Feng arrived, the scene was intensely chaotic, but he didn’t bother to watch. The Fierce Jackal’s fate was sealed. He turned his attention to Lu Keke, who was hiding away. Realizing no one was watching her, she promptly turned and ran. To focus on the Fierce Jackal, all of the Wolf King’s men had joined the battle with weapons in hand.
Lin Feng thought to himself that the girl was quite clever for not being scared stiff, and immediately chased after her.
Lu Keke ran breathlessly and frantically.
