"Awooo..."
"Roar!"
"Ah!"
In the depths of the night, outside Snowchill City, the snow plains echoed with chilling howls of snow wolves. By the dim light of the fire within a snow cave, countless dark figures could be seen, some running, some staring at the cave. The shadows swarmed, their numbers unknown, sending shivers down one's spine.
There was no need to guess; their campfire must have attracted the snow wolves. The snow wolves of the Winter City were enormous, fierce in appearance, with sharp teeth and claws. The larger ones weighed as much as a grown man.
The scouts sent out by Zhou Fugui had not detected the wolves' approach. A pack of snow wolves had launched a surprise attack, bursting into a snow cave and killing over a dozen convicts. They were ferociously powerful.
The convicts' dying screams and the snow wolves' howls, in the dead of night, were exceptionally eerie and unsettling.
"Those who are strong, hold the entrance with spears and shields. Archers, stay behind. Do not pursue, do not pursue! Guard the entrance!" Zhou Fugui shouted, holding his Moon-Chasing Bow.
Outside the snow cave, visibility was zero. Fighting the snow wolves outside would undoubtedly put them at a disadvantage, likely resulting in someone being bitten to death or dragged away. Wolves' senses of smell and sight far surpassed humans, especially in the darkness. Therefore, they could only hold the cave until dawn, when the situation would favor Zhou Fugui and the other convicts.
The crowd responded with a roar. The strong ones, armed with spears or shields, crouched at the cave entrance. Those skilled with bows drew their arrows, all eyes fixed on the outside of the cave, ready to strike down any approaching snow wolf instantly.
"Suo Dacheng, Xue Wentai, go to the other snow caves, assess the casualties, and direct the defense against these hungry wolves!" Zhou Fugui then instructed Suo Dacheng and Xue Wentai.
In Zhou Fugui's cave, Xu Mancang, Suo Dacheng, and Xue Wentai possessed the highest combat prowess. The other caves lacked such strong fighters. Hence, Zhou Fugui sent Suo Dacheng and Xue Wentai to the other caves to lead the defense against the ferocious snow wolves.
"Archers, fire with me to cover their retreat!" Zhou Fugui then commanded loudly.
The four or five archers in the cave responded in unison. Following Zhou Fugui, they drew their bows and fired a volley of arrows outwards. The sound of several snow wolves yelping in pain from being hit could be heard, indicating a significant number of wolves surrounding them.
"Charge out!" As the snow wolves were momentarily repelled by the arrows, Suo Dacheng and Xue Wentai roared. One wielding an axe, the other a large ring-bladed sword, they charged out of the cave, bending low.
"Hah!" As Xue Wentai burst out of the cave, two enormous snow wolves pounced. Xue Wentai let out a fierce cry, swinging his ring-bladed sword, splitting one wolf in half. Foul-smelling wolf blood and entrails splattered all over him. The other wolf was incredibly agile, dodging the sword and leaping up, its gaping maw aiming for Xue Wentai's throat.
Because Xue Wentai had just emerged from the cave and had not yet adjusted to the darkness, he was unable to dodge this attack.
"Thump!" With a sound, Suo Dacheng, who had charged out alongside Xue Wentai, swung his heavy axe and smashed the wolf into the snowdrift with a single blow. The snowdrift was instantly dyed red with blood.
"Excellent skill, thank you!"
"Beast, again? Take this blade!"
After Xue Wentai praised Suo Dacheng, he saw four or five more snow wolves pouncing. He roared, swinging his ring-bladed sword in a move called "Eight Directions in Night Combat." The sword traced a semicircle from left to right, its blade flashing, felling two of the attacking wolves. The remaining three wolves were startled into howling, their blood-red eyes fixed on Xue Wentai and Suo Dacheng, searching for an opportunity to attack again.
Xue Wentai tightly gripped his ring-bladed sword, feinted a strike in the air, and roared, charging forward, intending to slay the remaining three wolves.
"Great monk, do not linger!" Suo Dacheng, seeing countless pairs of blood-red eyes appearing in the darkness, grabbed Xue Wentai by his belt with one hand while holding his axe in the other, dragging him back towards the cave.
"Hey, hey, slow down, what's the hurry?" Xue Wentai shouted as Suo Dacheng pulled him backward.
"What do you want to do?" Suo Dacheng asked as they retreated.
"Wolf meat! Fat and tender wolf meat!" Xue Wentai yelled. "This old monk is going to pick up a couple of fat wolves to eat our fill..."
Suo Dacheng was speechless. What a reckless monk. He wanted to eat his fill, but the snow wolves also wanted to eat their fill. It was still unknown who would end up eating whom.
The two dashed towards a snow cave and plunged into it. This cave was crowded with over twenty people, all wearing looks of panic.
After entering, Xue Wentai and Suo Dacheng began organizing the defense against the snow wolves.
"Draw your bows!"
Meanwhile, in the cave where Zhou Fugui and his group were, Zhou Fugui heard the snow wolves' growls growing closer and ordered.
Zhou Fugui casually nocked two arrows onto his Moon-Chasing Bow, pulled the string with his right hand, and the unnamed archers followed suit.
In the dead of night, one could not fire indiscriminately without seeing the target. Once the arrows ran out, they would be in a severely passive position. Therefore, Zhou Fugui and the others had to aim carefully.
Furthermore, they could not draw their bows without knowing if the hungry wolves were close. Drawing a bowstring was extremely energy-consuming.
"Awooo..."
"Roar!"
Zhou Fugui, judging by sound, made a reasonably accurate assessment. Moments later, the snow wolves indeed charged, leaping through the air, their jaws agape, revealing terrifying fangs, and attacking Xu Mancang and the others guarding the cave entrance.
"Thump! Thump! Thump!"
The whistling sound of arrows rent the air. Zhou Fugui and the other archers loosed their shots, bringing down snow wolves from the air. Zhou Fugui's aim was unerring; two arrows struck the eyes of two massive snow wolves.
Xu Mancang and his men, wielding spears and sabers, continuously hacked at the approaching snow wolves. In an instant, wolf carcasses piled up at the entrance. However, the snow wolves seemed relentless, or perhaps driven by extreme hunger, they continued to charge towards the cave without regard for their own lives.
"Ah!" A convict was bitten in the thigh by a snow wolf that had rushed into the cave, letting out a piteous cry. The wolf shook its head and tail, tearing ferociously and dragging the convict out of the cave. Once outside, the convict's fate was predictable; they would be torn to shreds by the pack.
"Puff!" The snow wolves had already breached the entrance, rendering arrows useless. Zhou Fugui discarded his Moon-Chasing Bow, drew his waist knife, and met a wolf that lunged at him. Dodging its bite, he swung his blade, pinning the hungry wolf to the ground. Wolf blood splattered, coating Zhou Fugui's face.
"Do not panic! Grab torches and drive the hungry wolves out!" In an instant, two people had been dragged out of the cave by snow wolves. Zhou Fugui, anxious, shouted loudly.
Zhou Fugui then picked up a burning branch from the fire pit. Holding the torch in one hand and his saber in the other, he desperately drove back the snow wolves that had entered the cave.
Xu Mancang and the others followed suit, picking up burning branches. While fighting, they drove the wolves back.
Wild beasts always feared fire. Seeing the burning branches sweep towards them, they were forced to retreat until they were all driven out of the cave.
Zhou Fugui and the others then piled the burning branches at the cave entrance. By the flickering light, they could see pairs of eyes in the darkness, glinting with a man-eating gaze. The howls of the snow wolves were incessant, and from other caves, sounds of fierce combat could be heard.
This could not go on. Zhou Fugui thought anxiously. The number of hungry wolves was clearly significant. If they continued to be depleted in this manner, Zhou Fugui and the others would either be bitten to death or exhausted to death.
"Fire arrows!"
After a moment of thought, Zhou Fugui had an inspiration and instructed the five archers.
"Er Lang, what are you planning? Are you signaling the city?" Xu Mancang, after a long struggle with the snow wolves, having killed countless of them, was exhausted. He sat at the cave entrance, plunging his blood-stained dagger into the snow and asked.
Xu Mancang was also covered in wolf blood and torn flesh, looking like a bloody apparition.
"You guessed correctly, but not entirely," Zhou Fugui replied and then waved for the archers to prepare to fire the fire arrows.
Zhou Fugui did intend to signal Snowchill City for reinforcements. However, he also understood that the possibility of Snowchill City sending reinforcements was very small, almost nonexistent.
The three commanders of Ghost Valley Pass, Feixiong Pass, and Snowchill City, Hu Yan Sheng, had already ordered that Zhou Fugui and his group were not allowed to return to the city until dawn. Since they were not allowed back until dawn, Snowchill City would likely not send reinforcements.
Hu Yan Sheng had clearly decided to let Zhou Fugui and his group fend for themselves for the night.
Zhou Fugui's order to fire fire arrows had another purpose.
Although the five archers were puzzled, they tore strips of cloth from their clothes, soaked them in animal fat, tied them to their arrowheads, and lit them.
"Shoot! Shoot as high as possible!" Zhou Fugui nocked an arrow onto the back of his Moon-Chasing Bow and instructed.
"Chih! Chih! Chih!"
Five fire arrows soared into the sky, like five meteors streaking across the dark expanse, exceptionally bright and dazzling. After their ascent ended, they slowly descended, casting some light in the darkness.
The countless snow wolves on the snow plain all looked up, fearfully watching the five fire arrows.
Under the faint light of the fire arrows, Zhou Fugui spotted an exceptionally large white wolf within the pack. The white wolf was entirely white, without a single impurity, completely unlike the surrounding snow wolves with their grayish-white fur.
Zhou Fugui then drew his bow and arrow, pulling the string back as if embracing a full moon, and with all his might, shot an arrow.
To capture the king, one must first capture the leader. To kill the wolf, one must first kill its head! Every wolf pack had a leader, and this large white wolf must be the pack leader. Therefore, Zhou Fugui intended to kill it to break the wolf pack.
Zhou Fugui's arrow, shot with all his strength, carried immense force and a chilling whistling sound. It flew like lightning straight towards the white wolf.