Chapter 430: Chapter 426: A Pack of Wolf-Dogs Courting Death

The Yaoling Mountain Range was fraught with peril, but Tu Xiao’an looked like he was on vacation. He started by sitting on a branch, but eventually lay right down, hands behind his head and legs crossed, perfectly at ease.

The Tree Spirit was utterly speechless. ’To be stuck with a master like this,’ it thought, ’I can only blame my own bad luck.’

The bull and the tree traveled for about five kilometers, and the journey had been surprisingly peaceful. But just then, the Tree Spirit seemed to sense something. "Master," it said, "Charlie thinks he smells the aura of a Spirit Tree."

Hearing this, Tu Xiao’an sat up, a strange expression on his face. ’More sensitive than a dog’s nose, huh? A tree that *smells* things? Is that even right?’

"It’s in that direction."

The Tree Spirit extended a vine to point the way. Tu Xiao’an’s eyes lit up. "Bull, clear the way!"

The Bull Demon King was in a foul mood for some reason, and it faintly radiated a brutal aura. As a result, no creatures in the vicinity dared to show themselves.

This left Tu Xiao’an speechless; he’d wanted to conveniently harvest some Evolutionary Energy but now couldn’t find a single target.

Soon, they arrived before a mountainside. Standing high up on the tree, Tu Xiao’an had a clear view of the canyon below.

The canyon was shrouded in a thick mist. The most eye-catching feature was a lake from which steam was rising. The water appeared to be warm, its heat creating the dense, permeating fog.

Tu Xiao’an chuckled as he gazed at the white mist rising from the lake. "Bull, do you know what this place is? It’s quite beautiful, with all the clouds and mist. Simply breathtaking."

The Bull Demon King shook its head. "The Yaoling Mountain Range is vast and full of treacherous places. Master, I must remind you that the more beautiful a place is, the more dangerous it tends to be."

"Are you, a Rank Three Demon Spirit, actually afraid of danger?" Tu Xiao’an said nonchalantly. "The Spirit Fruit Charlie mentioned should be near the lake. Let’s go down and take a look."

「Half an hour later.」 They reached the edge of the lake. The Tree Spirit grew excited, calling out repeatedly, "It’s just ahead! Just ahead!"

Tu Xiao’an also caught a rich fragrance in the air, and his smile widened.

"Charlie, let’s get this straight. When we find the Spirit Tree, the Spirit Fruits are mine, and the Spirit Tree itself is yours. Fair?"

The Tree Spirit fawned, "Fair, very fair! Master is wise!"

The Bull Demon King continued to clear a path. The mist in this area was extremely thick, a vast expanse of white that severely limited their visibility.

Suddenly, the Bull Demon King faltered. Ahead, within the vast white mist, a dozen or so pairs of eerie eyes lit up.

Slowly, the owners of those eyes revealed themselves, along with their savage, ferocious faces.

"GRRRR..."

Low growls echoed from all directions within the white mist. Tu Xiao’an, sitting atop the Tree Spirit, pushed a leaf aside to get a better view. A curious expression crossed his face.

’So it’s a pack of wolfhounds.’ Each one was powerfully built, with ghastly pale-white fangs that promised a swift death.

Seeing these wolfhounds, Tu Xiao’an was certain the Spirit Tree Charlie spoke of was just ahead. ’Aren’t treasures always supposed to be guarded by monsters?’

’Or did we just stumble into their den?’

In the span of just a few breaths, thirty to forty wolfhounds had appeared, completely surrounding the Bull Demon King and the Tree Spirit. Their relentless snarling was thick with Killing Intent. At first glance, they looked like a pack of Bloodthirsty Asuras straight from Hell.

’Not bad, not bad. All Rank One Awakened Creatures.’

’The Evolutionary Energy I wanted is finally delivering itself to my doorstep.’

AWOOO!

A fierce howl cut through the dense mist, and the dozens of wolfhounds attacked as one, as if high on stimulants. There was no warning.

Seeing the wolfhounds charge, the Bull Demon King gave a savage grin and was about to unleash its terrifying aura, but Tu Xiao’an snapped, "Don’t you dare scare away my prey!"

’They might only be Rank One wolfhounds, but there are a lot of them.’

’If the Bull Demon King unleashes its Demon Spirit Qi, will these wolfhounds still be so ferocious and fearless?’

"Master, what are you up to now?" The Bull Demon King was helpless against its willful master and could only use its Iron Fists to send the pouncing wolfhounds flying.

It even sent them flying to a very specific spot: right next to the Tree Spirit.

Tu Xiao’an was pleased. Just as he was preparing to unleash his Thunder to harvest his prey, a vine snaked out from the Tree Spirit’s body. It danced in the air like a serpent, a strange and terrifying sight.

SWISH...

A wolfhound was ensnared by the vine, constricted as if by a giant python, unable to struggle in the slightest. The vine’s surface pulsed with power, and in an instant, it strangled the wolfhound to death.

"Master, Charlie will protect you!" the Tree Spirit declared confidently after killing the wolfhound. ’Its brown-nosing skills are top-notch,’ Tu Xiao’an thought wryly.

Tu Xiao’an’s face darkened. ’There goes over a hundred points of Evolutionary Energy.’

AWOOOO...

Perhaps enraged by the death of their packmate, the other wolfhounds flew into a fury. A dozen of them charged viciously toward the Tree Spirit.

Their sharp, pale-white fangs radiated a thirst for blood.

But the question was: did a Tree Spirit even have blood?

As the dozen or so wolfhounds pounced, Tu Xiao’an was overjoyed. The Power of Thunder and Lightning surged within him, but...

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH! At that very moment, a dozen vines shot out, coiling like giant pythons.

Without exception, every one of the pouncing wolfhounds was ensnared. The vines, like Giant Snakes hunting prey, squeezed with ever-increasing force, tightening their grip until they had crushed all of the wolfhounds to death.

Tu Xiao’an stood dumbstruck, his heart bleeding. ’Please, can you just not help me?!’

"Master, aren’t you impressed with Charlie now?" the Tree Spirit asked smugly. It was actually quite formidable; it just couldn’t do anything about that Blackbird.

Tu Xiao’an exploded, "Who told you to interfere?! Who told you to interfere?! You’re a tree! Why are you racking up all this bad karma from killing?!"

"Master... did Charlie do something wrong?" the Tree Spirit asked, sounding aggrieved. It seemed its attempt at flattery had completely backfired.

Tu Xiao’an couldn’t be bothered to explain. He leaped straight from the tree, landing cleanly amidst the pack of wolfhounds.

The wolfhounds were taken aback. ’Someone this unafraid of death actually exists?’

Expressionless, Tu Xiao’an raised his hands to the sky. Silver snakes of electricity began to writhe around his body as the air filled with a CRACKLE-POP sound.

"Thunderclap!"

BOOM... BOOM... BOOM...

Dozens of lightning bolts, each thicker than a man’s arm, rained down upon the wolfhound pack. In an instant, sand and stone were sent flying as the world was bleached by flashes of brilliant white light.

The agonized howls of the wolfhounds rose in a great chorus before the commotion slowly faded.

When the lightning subsided, a field of wolfhound corpses remained. Every single one was charred black and smoking, all signs of life extinguished. They had been struck dead on the spot.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host, for killing thirty-one Rank One wolfhounds. You have obtained a total of 3,520 Evolutionary Energy points.]

"Let’s move out," Tu Xiao’an said, turning and jumping back onto the Tree Spirit.

The Tree Spirit stared at the pile of wolfhound corpses, too terrified to speak. It felt just like the old saying: to serve a king is to live with a tiger.