"Still spacing out?" the other person said to the girl, who then snapped back to reality and quickly ran towards the side.
The newcomer was none other than Ye Bufan, who had been cultivating on the cliff just now. Ye Bufan had no intention of intervening, but this white-furred giant wolf was no ordinary wolf; it was a type of demonic beast – the Silver Hook Snow Wolf.
The Silver Hook Snow Wolf had white fur. In its juvenile state, its body could be about the size of an adult. Once mature, it would be as large as a rhinoceros. Silver Hook Snow Wolves possessed large and sharp claws. Wounds inflicted by them would rapidly be covered by frost, followed by ice and snow toxins entering the body. Those with poor resistance would quickly succumb to the ice and snow toxins, turning into a popsicle.
Simultaneously, the Silver Hook Snow Wolf had a berserk state. In this state, its attack power was astonishing, especially its speed, which was incredibly fast, severely testing the reaction time of those who faced it.
Clearly, the Silver Hook Snow Wolf before them was in its juvenile state.
Ye Bufan couldn't understand why such a demonic beast would be found in this area. The only possibility was that a teleportation array might exist nearby.
Therefore, Ye Bufan decided to subdue this Silver Hook Snow Wolf, use his spiritual power to locate the teleportation array, and see if there was anything of value to be gained.
"Awooo—"
The Silver Hook Snow Wolf, held aloft by Ye Bufan, roared in fury as the prey it was about to devour slipped away.
Ye Bufan exerted a little force, sending the Silver Hook Snow Wolf flying several meters away. However, the wolf's reaction was swift. After tumbling several times in mid-air, it charged towards Ye Bufan as soon as it landed.
"Whoosh—"
The Silver Hook Snow Wolf's gaze was incredibly sharp. As it reached Ye Bufan, its eyes suddenly turned completely white, entering a berserk state.
The Silver Hook Snow Wolf appeared before Ye Bufan, then suddenly vanished. Ye Bufan stood his ground as the wolf instantly reappeared behind him.
"Be careful!" the girl exclaimed, her voice filled with fear.
"Chh!"
The remnant sword unsheathed, blocking the Silver Hook Snow Wolf. The wolf bit down on the remnant sword, but it sliced across its mouth, severing its tongue into two pieces.
Ye Bufan leaped into the air, gently tapping the Silver Hook Snow Wolf on the head with his foot. The wolf immediately fell to the ground, and the remnant sword pierced its throat. At the same time, Ye Bufan unleashed his Illusionary Sound Demonic Eyes, using his spiritual power to invade the wolf's consciousness.
Instantly, Ye Bufan's vision was filled with images from the Silver Hook Snow Wolf's perspective, ultimately pinpointing a cave.
"So there are so many more." After seeing the information in the Silver Hook Snow Wolf's mind, Ye Bufan ended its life with a single sword strike.
"Thank you, benefactor, for saving my life." The girl stepped forward, intending to kneel before Ye Bufan, but found that her body was beyond her control; she couldn't even kneel.
"Gratitude doesn't require such elaborate gestures as kneeling," Ye Bufan said to the girl. "What is your name? I heard you and that fleeing young man refer to each other as senior and junior siblings."
"My name is Wang Yao, and that was my senior brother, Feng Quan. We are disciples of the Ten Thousand Sword Sect," Wang Yao replied.
Ye Bufan nodded. Judging by Wang Yao's movements, this sect didn't seem like a traditional martial arts sect; there was a hint of a cultivator's aura in their techniques.
"You are not an ordinary martial arts sect, are you?" Ye Bufan asked.
Upon hearing Ye Bufan's question, Wang Yao was taken aback. "Yes. Benefactor, you don't seem like a martial artist either. I have nothing to hide."
"Our Ten Thousand Sword Sect is the outer sect of the Scarlet Sword Sect, a hidden cultivation sect," Wang Yao stated.
"Scarlet Sword Sect," Ye Bufan murmured the name. He had heard it from Lin Xiaoyao before.
"Does the Scarlet Sword Sect have an immortal swordsman named Ming Qin?" Ye Bufan inquired.
Wang Yao's expression changed drastically upon hearing the name. "He is our Scarlet Sword Sect's Grand Elder."
Ye Bufan nodded. Lin Xiaoyao had once mentioned that when he was traveling in the past, he encountered a child and gave him a few pointers. The child's attainments in swordsmanship advanced by leaps and bounds, and he later joined the Scarlet Sword Sect.
At the time, Ye Bufan thought Lin Xiaoyao was bragging, wondering how a few pointers could lead to such rapid progress in swordsmanship.
Lin Xiaoyao, exasperated, then said that Ye Bufan could spar with him if he had the chance, but due to the passage of time, he wasn't sure if this Ming Qin was still around.
Swordsmanship wasn't about the body; it was about the intent of the sword.
"Alright, you should leave quickly too. I have something to do," Ye Bufan said to Wang Yao. "This place is not safe. Also, in the future, you need to be more discerning about people, or you won't even know how you died."
Wang Yao's face flushed as she listened. She did indeed admire her senior brother, and this trial was his idea. However, at the moment of life and death, her senior brother had abandoned her and fled.
Wang Yao's expression changed. Abandoning a fellow disciple to save oneself was a violation of sect rules.
With this thought, Wang Yao decided to return to her sect and formally report him.
"Thank you, benefactor, for saving my life. If you ever need my help in the future, I will do my utmost," Wang Yao bid farewell to Ye Bufan and turned to leave the forest.
Ye Bufan glanced back. These sect disciples lacked worldly experience. Ye Bufan couldn't comprehend the appeal of seclusion in the mountains all day long.
Seeing Wang Yao depart, Ye Bufan used his purple fire to incinerate the Silver Hook Snow Wolf's corpse and then left the scene.
Not long after Ye Bufan left, another figure appeared. He frowned upon smelling the burnt odor in the air.
"Could it be that junior sister is not dead?"
The newcomer was none other than Wang Yao's senior brother, Feng Quan, his expression grave.
"No, I cannot let Wang Yao return to the sect. My future will be ruined."
Feng Quan pondered his options, then mysteriously smiled and vanished from the spot.
Meanwhile, Ye Bufan headed directly towards the cave from the Silver Hook Snow Wolf's memory. Just as he had suspected, there was a teleportation array there. However, it seemed to have some issues, and there were also some corpses of Silver Hook Snow Wolves scattered around.
Upon reaching the cave entrance, Ye Bufan hid in the shadows and observed five Silver Hook Snow Wolves. Three of them were adults, as large as rhinoceroses, while the other two were juveniles. The three adults had cultivations in the late Qi Refining stage, with one being just a step away from the Foundation Establishment realm.
The two younglings were similar to the one he had encountered earlier, with mid-Qi Refining cultivation.
Inside the cave, the teleportation array flickered intermittently, indicating unstable operation.
A Silver Hook Snow Wolf poked its head out of the teleportation array. The array instantly dimmed, and the wolf's head was severed, falling to the ground. The rest of its body vanished into the array.