The Lin's Patriarch is weird.

Yew Woods:

Winter was particularly harsh during this time of the month.

Heavy snow covered the ground of Yew Woods, while a freezing wind swept between the ancient trees. The deeper one ventured into the forest, the more difficult it became to see through the falling snow.

A group of cultivators was currently fighting a Snow Bear.

The beast stood several meters tall, its massive body covered in thick white fur. Its cultivation had already reached the level of a Beast General, making it an opponent that ordinary cultivators could not afford to face carelessly.

The group was barely holding on.

The only person capable of confronting the Snow Bear head-on was a young boy who appeared to be no older than twelve.

He wielded a sword in both hands and moved constantly around the beast, deliberately drawing its attention toward himself.

"Come on!"

The boy shouted as he slashed toward the Snow Bear before quickly retreating.

The enraged beast roared and charged after him.

The boy focused entirely on keeping its attention on himself while the other cultivators attacked from behind.

Every time the Snow Bear turned toward them, the boy immediately struck it again, forcing the beast to chase after him.

Meanwhile, the others remained at a safe distance and continuously attacked its exposed back.

Their attacks gradually accumulated injuries across the Snow Bear’s body.

Blood stained its white fur, yet the beast refused to fall.

It repeatedly attempted to escape into the deeper parts of Yew Woods, but the cultivators had already prepared for that possibility.

They had laid out a formation around the area, and whenever the Snow Bear tried to break through, the formation forced it back toward the center.

The Snow Bear became increasingly furious at its repeated failures.

It roared and desperately attempted to charge through the formation once more.

But there was nowhere for it to go.

The boy immediately took advantage of the opening.

He stepped forward and raised his sword.

With the Snow Bear confused and enraged, he gathered the remaining strength in his body and charged straight toward its head.

The Snow Bear noticed him too late.

The boy’s sword flashed through the falling snow.

A moment later, the massive beast collapsed heavily onto the ground.

The surrounding snow shook from the impact.

The group remained silent for several breaths.

Then someone finally let out a relieved sigh.

After such a long and arduous battle, they had finally managed to kill the Beast General.

"Well done, Fengzhao. You are truly making us question why we ever hesitated to let you join our group."

The speaker’s tone carried a hint of arrogance, as though he were doing Zhaofeng a great favor by acknowledging him.

Zhaofeng merely gave him a slight nod.

He had no interest in entertaining such remarks.

He knew very well that this group would not have been able to deal with a Beast General of this caliber without him.

Still, there was only one reason he had remained with this group in the first place.

Before he could think further, a young girl rushed toward him.

She was a few years older than Zhaofeng, and the moment she reached him, she wrapped her arms around him.

"Are you hurt anywhere?"

Zhaofeng shook his head.

"I am fine."

"Do not lie."

She pulled back slightly and anxiously examined his arms.

"I clearly saw the Snow Bear scratch you!"

Zhaofeng looked down at the scratches on his arms.

"They are nothing."

The girl frowned.

"What if they are poisoned? Do not be stubborn. Let me treat them."

Zhaofeng smiled and silently allowed her to examine his wounds.

She was the only mortal within the group.

She could not compare to the great beauties that cultivators often encountered, but there was a certain charm to her that made her pleasant to look at.

The arrogant young man from earlier seemed to think so as well, judging by how quickly he had approached the two of them and invited them to join their group.

"Tch. Stop wasting your herbs on such menial wounds."

The young man, whose name was Guo Tian, glanced at them with a look of displeasure.

One of his followers immediately chimed in with a grin.

"Yeah. If anyone else saw this, they would probably think the two of you have been together for years."

The girl’s face immediately reddened.

Just then, a pair of crimson eyes emerged from the snow-covered trees and before anyone could react, a massive Spirit Wolf lunged forward and snapped its jaws snapped shut.

Guo Tian did not even get the chance to react as the Spirit Wolf tore into him, killing him instantly.

Blood splattered across the snow.

The two cultivators standing behind him were frozen in terror.

Their faces turned pale as they stared at the beast that had appeared without warning.

Meanwhile, Zhaofeng gently grabbed the girl’s hand and pulled her toward him.

The Spirit Wolf gave a low growl as it watched the remaining four people.

The other two cultivators finally snapped out of their fear.

"Run!"

They turned around and desperately tried to flee.

One of them stumbled forward, but his legs refused to move.

"Move! Why won’t my legs move?!"

His voice trembled with terror as he desperately tried to force his body forward.

The Spirit Wolf moved and in the blink of an eye, it lunged toward the two cultivators.

Their screams echoed through the snowy forest before abruptly falling silent.

Zhaofeng did not wait to see what happened next.

The instant the Spirit Wolf moved toward the two cultivators, he immediately took out a group teleportation talisman and crushed it.

A burst of spiritual light enveloped him and the girl.

"Hold on, Mei Lin."

Before the teleportation could fully activate, Zhaofeng pulled her closer.

The talisman flashed brightly and their figures disappeared from the forest.

A moment later, they reappeared several hundred meters away.

Zhaofeng did not stop.

He immediately grabbed Mei Lin’s hand and began running away from Yew Woods.

Behind them, the distant roar of the Spirit Wolf echoed through the snow-covered forest.

Zhaofeng and Mei Lin continued running through the snow-covered forest.

Their footsteps sank into the thick snow as they pushed further from Yew Woods.

Zhaofeng repeatedly looked over his shoulder.

The distant roar of the Spirit Wolf was growing louder.

It was already catching up.

His expression gradually became more serious as he realized the teleportation talisman had only bought them a short amount of time.

"Damn it."

Zhaofeng gritted his teeth and reached into his storage pouch.

He quickly pulled out another talisman.

Without slowing down, he placed it against Mei Lin’s back and activated it.

A brilliant golden light immediately enveloped her body.

"What are you doing?"

Mei Lin barely had time to react before the golden light completely surrounded her.

A golden sphere formed around her, sealing her safely inside.

Zhaofeng suddenly stopped.

He turned around and pushed her forward.

The golden sphere rolled through the snow, carrying Mei Lin farther away from him.

"Fengzhao!"

Mei Lin cried out his name in panic.

Zhaofeng ignored her as he turned around and drew his sword.

The Spirit Wolf emerged from between the trees.

Snow scattered beneath its paws as it charged toward him at terrifying speed.

Zhaofeng tightened his grip around his sword.

He knew he could not outrun it but he also knew he could not allow it to reach Mei Lin.

The Spirit Wolf suddenly leaped, its enormous jaws opened wide as it lunged toward him.

Zhaofeng raised his sword just in time and the wolf’s teeth slammed against the blade.

A deafening metallic clang echoed through the forest.

The force of the impact drove Zhaofeng backward, his feet carving deep trails through the snow.

His arms trembled from the sheer strength of the beast.

The Spirit Wolf pressed down with its jaws, trying to crush the sword and tear through him.

Zhaofeng gritted his teeth and pushed back.

His spiritual energy surged through his body.

The sword in his hands trembled violently as he struggled against the wolf’s overwhelming strength.

The beast’s eyes remained cold and ferocious.

Then, with another powerful push, it forced Zhaofeng’s knees toward the ground.

Zhaofeng’s expression hardened.

He knew this battle was going to be far more difficult than the Snow Bear.

Still, the burning passion in Zhaofeng’s eyes did not fade in the slightest.

"Unlucky beast, today is not the day for this venerable one to die."