Chapter 59: Predicament

“Qilin, hang in there!”

Squatting low, I called out to Qilin, fully aware of the bow warrior’s skills and understanding just how dire Scavenger Qilin’s situation was. As I shouted, the Storm Hammer thundered forth once again!

Yet, my words couldn’t change my current predicament. I knew—now, I could only rely on myself! The situation on Xuanwu Colossus’s side was just as critical, after all, Black Jasmine was the only mage who could use Healing Rain.

Clenching my teeth, I slung the hardwood longbow onto my back and drew the Silver Beast Dagger, its blade encircled by a shimmering blue lightning ring. With a swift turn, I faced the Black Gale Demon Wolf barreling toward me from twenty meters away, activating Dash once again!

My Dash increased movement speed by 20%, just enough to outpace the Black Gale Demon Wolf. In the blink of an eye, the distance between hunter and prey shrank rapidly.

The wounded demon wolf, seeing its enemy suddenly give up fleeing, grew excited, charging forward without losing momentum, as if determined to avenge itself with tooth and claw for that arrow!

At that moment, I silently thanked my luck: I hadn’t suffered a magical attack yet, and my magic defense was almost nonexistent… Had the wolf paused to cast a spell earlier, my odds of survival would’ve been less than forty percent!

But since the Black Gale Demon Wolf chose close combat, well, I couldn’t ask for more! Without dodging or hesitating, I pressed forward, man and beast rushing headlong at one another at top speed.

My wild gamble left Meteor, who was recovering his MP nearby, utterly stunned. Was this really what Scavenger Qilin meant by “trust him”?

Trusting a level 13 bow warrior to face head-on a level 15, magic-using Black Gale Demon Wolf?

Meteor’s heart tightened. Unconsciously, he stood up, quietly drawing the bronze short sword he’d kept since changing classes. It seemed inescapable; perhaps he’d have to return to his old ways, hoping to buy Xiaomei and the others a bit more time.

However…

The next moment, the battle—seemingly without suspense—defied all Meteor’s expectations!

In the blink of an eye, the twenty-meter gap shrank to less than five.

Man and beast exploded into action simultaneously!

A feral howl tore through the air!

——

The Black Gale Demon Wolf kicked off the ground, its body surging with boundless strength, leaping at me like a thundercloud blotting out the sky. I’d witnessed this move in Kodo Valley, but compared to the demon wolf, an adult kodo was little more than a kitten—it was nothing like the terrifying beast before me.

Its savage speed left no room for escape.

And a wolf’s pounce is truly the ultimate killing technique, meant to kill in one strike—side-stepping as I would a kodo was impossible. Any attempt to dodge sideways, and the wolf would adjust midair to snap my neck or rake a scar across my body I’d never forget.

For my knowledge of the wolf’s nature and skill, I owed everything to our great instructor—if only he knew the goals he’d instilled in me were now being used to battle monsters in a game.

A wry grin tugged at my lips.

As the demon wolf lunged, I didn’t hesitate; suppressing my instinctive terror, I advanced rather than retreated! With a slicing hiss, the Silver Beast Dagger lashed out like a viper at the demon wolf’s underbelly!

At the very instant the wolf’s claws flashed before my eyes, I threw myself backward.

A tearing sound—the dagger drove deep into the demon wolf’s abdomen… as its claws grazed the top of my head.

“Target hit. 42 damage dealt to Black Gale Demon Wolf!”

“Black Gale Demon Wolf missed its attack on Scavenger Qilin.”

The system’s battle report echoed in the minds of everyone in the party. Meteor was utterly stunned!

He could hardly believe what he’d just witnessed—Scavenger Qilin had not only dodged the attack with textbook precision, but had wounded the demon wolf in return. What startled him most was the silver dagger, crackling with blue electricity, in Qilin’s hand.

A silver-grade weapon? A level 13, ragged bow warrior actually wielded a silver weapon. And judging by the over forty damage dealt to the demon wolf, it seemed that weapon’s attack power was far from low.

Wasn’t he a newbie?

Meteor rubbed his eyes in disbelief. Meanwhile, the battle shifted again.

——

No wonder the Black Gale Demon Wolf was level 15—its hide was truly tough. Otherwise, with my normal attack of 23–26 (Sharpening increasing physical attack by 3%), I could have gutted it right at that weak spot.

A pang of regret struck me, but I couldn’t help feeling a bit lucky: to deal 42 points of damage against an opponent two levels above me was already impressive! The demon wolf was no ordinary kodo beast.

Adding the previous critical strike, the demon wolf had already lost a third of its HP. A few more rounds, and I could end this quickly!

Without a second thought, I halted my forward momentum, not daring to relax for a moment. While Dash was still active, I turned and lunged at the wounded, grounded demon wolf.

At that instant, the injured Black Gale Demon Wolf landed heavily. Its pair of increasingly blood-red, vicious eyes locked onto me, the human who’d wounded it yet again. Wisps of wind element rapidly coalesced before it!

Black-edged wind blades swirled into existence. My heart skipped a beat—so fast!

Almost the moment it hit the ground, the wind blade formed fully in front of the demon wolf!

As my Silver Beast Dagger shot out, the wind blade, unleashed with the demon wolf’s furious roar, blasted toward me! At less than two meters, there was no way I could dodge!

All I could do was pour every last ounce of strength into driving the Silver Beast Dagger into the demon wolf’s furious, green-and-red eyes before the wind blade struck my body—

A mournful howl shattered the air!

As the demon wolf screamed in agony, the wind blade slammed into my Snow Wolf Hide Armor. In that instant, I could almost hear the tearing of the leather.

A massive force crashed into me, accompanied by searing pain. The wind blade smashed me violently through the air.