Blood Moon by the Lakeshore

Lam Phong tightened his grip on the shield.

“How many?”

“Don’t know yet.”

Hao Nhien shook his head. “But they’ve already started closing the circle. First, find somewhere the trees don’t block our view too much. Keep moving and watching, and don’t chase any of them on your own.”

Tieu Van nodded. “Which way?”

Hao Nhien quickly surveyed the terrain. The trees were too dense on the left. The nearest howl had come from behind them, while the ground to the right was lower but offered a wider field of view.

“Right. Keep your spacing.”

The three changed direction. Hao Nhien led the way, Tieu Van watched the rear, and Lam Phong guarded the right flank with his shield held ready.

The howls continued at irregular intervals. Some came from far away, while others suddenly sounded much closer, yet not a single wolf rushed out to attack.

The way they kept their distance only made Hao Nhien more certain that the pack was watching them, waiting for the three cultivators to move into a more favorable position.

After a while, the trees ahead began to thin, and the damp scent of water entered the air.

Hao Nhien raised a hand, signaling the others to slow down.

Beyond the gray trunks ahead, a stretch of cold light appeared. It came from a broad lakeshore. The lake itself was black, reflecting the enormous moon hanging overhead. Small ripples moved across the surface, pulling the silver reflection apart into distorted fragments.

The moment Hao Nhien reached the edge of the damp ground, he stopped. Lam Phong and Tieu Van halted with him.

The earth beside the water was covered in overlapping claw prints. Patches of gray grass had been trampled flat, streaks of dried blood still clung to several rocks, and tufts of gray fur were caught on low branches.

Hao Nhien crouched to examine the signs for a moment.

“A whole pack comes through here often. At least more than ten have passed through this area. Stay alert.”

He had barely finished speaking when the bushes across the lakeshore trembled.

A pair of dark red eyes appeared.

Then a second pair.

A third.

Within a few breaths, gray wolf silhouettes began emerging one after another from the darkness around the lake. They were not gathered in one place. Some stood directly ahead, others moved in and out of sight on the left, while several more shadows had already circled farther around to the right.

Lam Phong lowered his center of gravity.

“That’s a lot.”

Tieu Van said nothing. Both of his short knives were already drawn.

Hao Nhien took in the entire area.

The wolves did not charge. Those in front merely lowered their bodies and growled, while the ones on the flanks spread farther out, constantly shifting behind tall grass and rocks.

A larger shadow stood farther back. Its aura was clearly stronger than the others.

Second rank.

That beast was very likely the one keeping the entire pack in rhythm.

“Don’t break formation,” Hao Nhien said. “If the records are accurate, they coordinate closely and often rely on the strongest one to control the flow of the fight. Until we understand what they’re doing, no one rushes out alone.”

Lam Phong nodded.

Tieu Van rolled one of the knives lightly in his hand. “Then let’s survive the encirclement first.”

The pack had already begun to move.

Five wolves in front advanced slowly, staying just far enough away to force the three cultivators to watch them. At the same time, gray shapes kept slipping through the tall grass along both flanks, sometimes near, sometimes far. Not one attacked alone.

They were forcing the three of them to divide their attention.

“Lam Phong, hold the right.”

“Got it.”

“Tieu Van, don’t drift too far.”

“Understood.”

The three tightened their formation into a small triangle.

Two Gray Shadow Wolves on the right suddenly lunged.

Lam Phong had been waiting for them. His round shield struck the ground and rose into their path. Both wolves crashed into its surface with a heavy metallic impact, forcing him half a step backward. He twisted his shoulder and drove the shield forward, knocking one of them off its line.

At the same time, another gray shadow came from the left.

Tieu Van stepped diagonally aside, both short knives flashing across the nearest wolf’s front legs. Blood sprayed as the beast lost its footing and rolled into the low grass.

He withdrew before another wolf could exploit the opening.

The formation held.

Hao Nhien watched every movement.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, the embryonic cycle inside the Divine Soul completed another circulation. His awareness sharpened slightly, making the distances, angles of attack, and shifting rhythm of the wolf pack easier to grasp.

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He stopped looking at the wolves as separate beasts.

He watched how the entire pack moved.

The wolves in front forced them to tighten formation. Those on the flanks searched for openings. Whenever the balance of the fight shifted, the second rank wolf in the rear adjusted its position as well.

It was not merely waiting for an opportunity.

It was keeping the pack in rhythm.

To break the encirclement, that rhythm had to be broken first.

“Tieu Van.”

“Hm?”

“When I step back half a pace, leave the left side open.”

Tieu Van glanced at him, then nodded.

Lam Phong heard as well, but asked nothing.

The three continued to hold the line.

Two Gray Shadow Wolves charged from the front. Hao Nhien drew the Tieu Dao Sword, stepped slightly to the right, and slashed across the first wolf’s shoulder. The blade tore through flesh and forced it back.

The second wolf tried to exploit the gap, but Lam Phong swung his shield across and stopped it with a ringing impact.

Hao Nhien stepped back half a pace.

At the same moment, Tieu Van drew inward, deliberately exposing a narrow opening on the left.

The gap existed for only an instant.

But the second rank wolf moved.

It burst from the darkness without so much as a growl. Its body was nearly twice the size of the others, and its long claws tore through the grass as it accelerated toward the opening.

Hao Nhien had been waiting for exactly this moment.

“Now.”

Lam Phong forced his shield to the right, blocking two wolves that tried to follow.

Tieu Van pivoted and cut off the retreat route on the other side.

The second rank wolf charged straight at Hao Nhien.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, the Spirit Sword moved.

A razor-sharp intent pierced directly into the Gray Shadow Wolf’s Divine Soul.

Its body froze for a fraction of a moment.

That was enough.

Hao Nhien lowered his center of gravity, leaned aside to avoid the pounce, and swept the Tieu Dao Sword upward from below.

The blade cut across one side of the beast’s face, spraying black blood across the grass.

The second rank Gray Shadow Wolf roared and staggered backward, but Tieu Van was already at its flank. Both short knives drove into the tendons of its hind leg, throwing it off balance.

Lam Phong charged and slammed his shield into its side with the weight of his whole body. The beast lurched sideways.

Hao Nhien gave it no chance to recover.

The Tieu Dao Sword thrust straight forward.

The wolf opened its jaws and snapped down. Hao Nhien twisted his shoulder away from most of the bite, but one fang still scraped across the defensive layer of his protective artifact.

A section of protective light shattered over his shoulder.

In exchange, the Tieu Dao Sword had already driven deep into the beast’s throat.

Hao Nhien poured eighth layer true qi into his arm and twisted the hilt hard.

Blood surged out.

The Gray Shadow Wolf thrashed violently, its red eyes still filled with ferocity.

Hao Nhien did not retreat. He pulled the sword free and struck once more.

The second rank beast collapsed.

The pack’s formation changed the moment it died.

The short coordinating howls vanished. Several wolves on the outer edge began to pull back, while others, driven into a frenzy by the smell of blood, continued attacking without the same coordination as before.

They were still dangerous, but the rhythm holding them together had broken.

“Don’t chase the ones retreating!” Hao Nhien shouted. “Deal with the ones still coming!”

Lam Phong swung his shield to block a wolf from the right. Tieu Van flashed behind him, his short knife cutting into the leg of another beast trying to circle around Hao Nhien.

Hao Nhien had just cut down a wolf in front when claws tore through the air at his side. Lam Phong brought his shield across in time, the impact ringing through the lakeshore.

Another wolf attacked from a blind angle.

Tieu Van slashed across its front leg before it could reach them.

No first rank Gray Shadow Wolf could match Hao Nhien head on.

But the pack had never intended to fight him that way.

Even after losing its leader, sheer numbers still made the wolves dangerous if the three cultivators allowed their formation to break.

Hao Nhien kept the Tieu Dao Sword close and stopped trying to finish every wolf as quickly as possible. His priority was keeping the space between the three of them from being torn open.

The melee continued for several dozen breaths.

At last, the remaining wolves began retreating deeper into the forest.

Hao Nhien did not pursue them.

“Stop.”

Lam Phong breathed heavily but kept his shield raised. Tieu Van also held his ground.

Only when the last sounds faded into the forest did the three relax slightly.

The lakeshore fell quiet again.

More than ten Gray Shadow Wolf corpses lay scattered around them. Some were completely dead, while others still twitched weakly. The wolves that had escaped were already gone.

Hao Nhien breathed slowly. One corner of his protective artifact had cracked, his left sleeve was torn, and a shallow claw mark ran along his arm. Wolf blood stained his face and robe.

Lam Phong leaned against his shield, its surface now covered in deep claw marks.

Tieu Van wiped the blood from his knives and exhaled.

“We killed the second rank one the moment it showed itself.”

Hao Nhien shook his head. “If the two of you hadn’t held the flanks, I couldn’t have drawn it out.”

Lam Phong gave a dry laugh. “At least the plan worked.”

“Not finished yet.”

Hao Nhien looked around. “The smell of blood is too strong. Harvest quickly, then we leave.”

The three got to work.

Tieu Van handled the corpses nearest to him. His short knives were well suited for extracting beast cores quickly, while Lam Phong kept watch as he dealt with the bodies near the edge of the lake.

Hao Nhien crouched beside the second rank beast and used the Tieu Dao Sword to cut open its head. Inside was a dark red beast core, clearly larger than those of first rank beasts.

A second rank core worth thirty examination points.

He stored it away and helped the others finish checking the battlefield.

In total, they collected one second rank beast core and ten first rank beast cores. Two others had been damaged beyond use during the fight.

Lam Phong stared at the shattered cores with obvious regret.

“Twenty points.”

Tieu Van shrugged. “Survive first. Count points later.”

Hao Nhien did not let them linger.

Just as they were preparing to leave, his gaze stopped on the damp ground near the lakeshore.

Among the gray grass were six medicinal plants with dark red stems and thin silver veins running across their leaves. Faint spiritual qi gathered over their surfaces, clearly marking them as more than ordinary weeds.

He walked over to inspect them and recognized the plants from the Tieu Dao Encyclopedia. They were a type of mid grade medicinal herb that usually grew in areas with high moisture and relatively stable spiritual qi.

“Useful.”

Tieu Van came closer with Lam Phong and asked, “Take them too?”

“Mm. Keep the roots intact.”

The three dug up all six plants.

No one argued over them.

Afterward, Hao Nhien placed the spoils on a clean rock: one second rank beast core, ten first rank beast cores, and six mid grade medicinal herbs.

“The second rank core goes to me. Of the ten first rank cores, each of you takes four and I’ll take two. The six medicinal herbs are divided evenly.”

He looked at the other two.

“That gives me fifty examination points and forty each for you. Next fight, we divide things according to contribution again.”

Lam Phong nodded. “Fair.”

Tieu Van put away his share, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. “No objection.”

Hao Nhien stored his own share as well.

This had only been their first real battle, and three months still remained.

If even a pack of Gray Shadow Wolves could coordinate like this, whatever lived deeper inside the Spirit Beast Forest would not rely on brute strength alone.

Hao Nhien was about to signal that they should leave when a roar sounded from far away.

Deeper than a wolf’s howl.

Heavier.

The surface of the lake trembled slightly.

Lam Phong turned toward the sound. “Captain?”

“Retreat.”

There was no hesitation in Hao Nhien’s voice.

The smell of blood had become too strong. The beast corpses, the blood of a second rank creature, and the lingering spiritual qi disturbances from the battle could all attract something else.

They gathered what they needed and left the lakeshore against the wind.

Before leaving, Hao Nhien looked back once.

Blood from the wolf corpses had flowed into the water. Each ripple carried streaks of red across the moon’s reflection, distorting what had once been cold silver into a dark crimson image beneath the surface.

He watched for only a moment before turning away.

The three accelerated into the gray forest.

They had not gone far when another deep roar came from behind them.

Hao Nhien did not look back.

“Faster.”

Lam Phong and Tieu Van quickened their pace.

A second roar rolled through the forest, far deeper than any Gray Shadow Wolf’s howl.

Hao Nhien tightened his grip on the hilt of the Tieu Dao Sword.

The blood had indeed called something else.

The examination had only just begun.