Time passed. Though the Qin Family disciples held the upper hand in individual strength, the sheer number of wolves was far beyond their imagination. A prolonged battle left them exhausted, their energy depleted.
Blood stained the vast expanse of snow red. Wolf corpses littered the ground, yet the pack's counterattack only grew more ferocious.
Despite the heavy snowfall, the Qin Family disciples were drenched in sweat. Their bodies were spattered with blood—some from the wolves, some their own—all mixed with sweat until it was impossible to tell the difference. The True Essence within their bodies had all but run out.
They couldn't help but cast their gazes toward Qin Yuncheng, who was battling the Wolf King not far off. The anxiety on their faces was plain to see.
If they were anxious, Qin Yuncheng was even more so.
A faint Protective Qi Shield enveloped him, his black hair whipping about as his palms struck out at the Snow Wolf King again and again. He had already attacked more than a hundred times.
But the Wolf King was absurdly fast; he couldn't land a single blow.
If not for the True Essence Body Protection Shield granted by his Profound Origin Realm cultivation, he likely would have been no match for this Snow Wolf King. By now, the thought of escape had already taken root in his mind. 'If this keeps up,' he thought, 'I'm going to die here.'
The Snow Wolf King stared intently at Qin Yuncheng. For the first time, a frenzied light appeared in its pale yellow eyes. This human was clearly no easy opponent.
They had been locked in combat for so long. Though the human couldn't harm it, that Protective Qi Shield of his was incredibly troublesome, blocking all of its attacks.
The battle had reached a stalemate.
Not far from them, Qin Ya leaned against a tree trunk, sipping from a jug of General Order as he watched the scene with cold detachment. As for going down to save them?
Qin Yuncheng was already on his kill list. As for the others, he couldn't care less whether they lived or died. So, he'd see how he felt.
"Qin Ya! It's Qin Ya!"
someone suddenly roared.
Qin Ya paused. 'I've been spotted?'
It wasn't surprising, though. He hadn't made any effort to hide.
The shout also drew the wolves' attention to Qin Ya's location. A portion of the pack immediately broke off and lunged toward him.
"Heh. Perfect timing. The wine is finished."
Qin Ya casually swatted a Snow Wolf away with his empty wine jug and was just about to leap down.
"You piece of trash, you're here too? Get your fucking ass down here and help!"
"Yeah! I'm breaking my back fighting for my life, and you're just sitting there drinking! Get down here and help, or I'll make you regret it when we get back!"
The foot Qin Ya had been about to step forward with retracted. His gaze turned icy. 'These people... they're beyond saving.'
His eyes swept over them, and memories of their past insults flooded his mind. 'So, they've really gotten used to calling me trash, haven't they?'
"Qin Ya, you bastard! Get down here and help!"
"ARGH...!"
A bloodcurdling scream rang out. A Qin Family disciple had let his guard down and was tackled by a Snow Wolf. The rest of the pack immediately swarmed him, tearing him to pieces.
Qin Ya watched with cold eyes, his heart completely unmoved. He had seen far too much death in his past life. The demise of someone who had insulted him meant nothing.
The other Qin Family members, however, were not nearly as composed.
"Damn it, my True Essence is almost gone!"
"Why hasn't the Young Master finished off that Snow Wolf King yet?"
"You worthless trash! May you die a horrible death!"
The shadow of death loomed over the hearts of the Qin Family disciples. With their energy and strength depleted, how could they possibly fend off the wolf pack? In a matter of moments, two more fell.
Watching this from a distance, Qin Yuncheng's eyes were bloodshot with fury!
"Qin Ya, may you die a horrible death!"
Qin Yuncheng's True Essence flared, forcing the Wolf King back. He then abandoned his fight with it and turned to attack Qin Ya.
Seeing this, the Wolf King behind him let out a long howl. The surrounding wolves immediately swarmed the charging Qin Yuncheng, but how could they possibly stop him?
"Get out of my way!"
He unleashed waves of True Essence, crushing the wolves in his path. In a few breaths, he was before Qin Ya, striking with his Cloud Shattering Palm, the attack as turbulent as a gathering storm.
"Right on time!"
Qin Ya neither dodged nor evaded. He leaped down from the branch and met the attack with a palm strike of his own. His aura was in no way inferior to Qin Yuncheng's, surging like one ocean wave after another.
As their palms connected, the impact sent sand and stones flying, devastating the surroundings. A dozen nearby Snow Wolves were flung through the air, while both Qin Ya and Qin Yuncheng were forced back several steps.
"You... How is this possible?"
Qin Yuncheng's face was a mask of horror. 'He's only at the Human Element Seventh Grade! How could he possibly block my Cloud Shattering Palm? How?!'
What he didn't know was that Qin Ya cultivated the Nine Heavens Shocking God Record, one of the rarest Cultivation Techniques in the world. Combined with the Profound-Level Upper-Class Martial Skill, Overlapping Waves Palm, even though he was merely a Human Element Seventh Grade Martial Artist, his combat power was on par with the Profound Origin Realm.
Just as Qin Yuncheng stood there in a daze, the Snow Wolf King lunged at him.
'Not good!'
Qin Yuncheng cursed inwardly. He dodged to the side, raising his hands to protect his chest. The Wolf King's attack arrived in an instant. With a thunderous BOOM, his body was sent flying.
PTHOO...
Qin Yuncheng couldn't stop himself from spitting out a mouthful of blood. His internal organs felt as if they'd been smashed by a giant hammer, and his True Essence Body Protection Shield flickered, on the verge of collapse. He shot a venomous glare at Qin Ya.
"I'll remember this. Once we're out of here, I'll make you wish you were dead."
At these words, the faces of the remaining Qin Family disciples, who were still fighting for their lives, turned pale.
"Young Master, you can't abandon us!"
"Save us, Young Master!"
But Qin Yuncheng paid them no heed, immediately starting to break out of the encirclement.
"You think you can just run away?"
Qin Ya sneered. He activated his Carefree Travel Body Technique, and his speed instantly tripled. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of Qin Yuncheng, blocking his path.
Qin Yuncheng's pupils contracted. A sliver of fear crept into his heart.
"An attack Martial Skill, a Body Technique Martial Skill... Qin Ya, just what did you find?"
"What I found... is something you'll never know."
As his words fell, he unleashed the Overlapping Waves Palm. The Palm Power surged forward like a raging torrent.
Heavily injured, Qin Yuncheng barely managed to rally his meager remaining True Essence to use his Cloud Shattering Palm in a desperate attempt to block. But when the two palm powers clashed, the Overlapping Waves Palm Power shattered his attack instantly, with the ease of crushing dry weeds.
Qin Yuncheng let out a wretched scream as his bones shattered. He collapsed to the ground, only for the charging Wolf King to bring a claw down on his head, splattering his brains across the snow.
The Qin Family's genius, Qin Yuncheng... was dead.
"Qin Ya, save us! We swear we won't tell anyone you killed the Young Master! Just save us!"
"Please, save us, Uncle Qin! Save us!"
"I was wrong, Qin Ya! We're clansmen, please, save us!"
"You worthless trash! May you die a horrible death!"
Curses, roars, and desperate pleas for help filled the air, but Qin Ya turned a deaf ear to them all. His eyes were locked on the Wolf King.
Soon, the voices faded into silence. The last of the Qin Family disciples were dead.
The Wolf King, however, did not relax in the slightest. Its instincts as a Fierce Beast screamed that the black-clad youth before it was far more dangerous, far more terrifying.
The Wolf King let out an uneasy growl. The youth's expression was indifferent, but his toes dug into the ground, ready to erupt into action at any moment.
Qin Ya glanced around. Hundreds of Snow Wolves, and one Snow Wolf King.
Escaping would be no problem for him.
But running from a fight wasn't his style.
The battle was about to begin!