I work as a security guard at a cemetery, and I overhear the dead chatting about getting rich quick.

The wolf pack retreated quickly.

The pairs of eerie green eyes in the woods disappeared one after another, and soon only the rustling of leaves in the wind could be heard outside the camp.

The watchmen still carried their guns.

Jiang Zhaoye didn't move, staring at the forest for a moment.

"Gone?" someone asked in a low voice.

"Still nearby."

Master Lai picked up a pebble from beside his feet and threw it into the woods.

The stone hit the tree trunk and rolled into the bushes.

No birds flew, and no insects chirped.

Lin Zijing was unusually quiet.

Master Lai looked down at the beast-suppressing bell in his hand.

He had just rang the bell, and the wolves all lowered their bodies.

The bell didn't ring, but they could smell the scent of the piece of animal bone inside.

Perhaps the wolf king didn't know what it was, but it knew it was dangerous.

Jiang Zhaoye turned and walked back into the camp.

"Retract the cordon and gather the wounded at the back."

"The rest of you check your ammunition. We'll depart in ten minutes."

The person next to him paused for a moment, then asked, "Going into the mountains?"

"The beast-suppressing bell cannot be used in the camp."

Jiang Zhaoye looked at Master Lai.

Once the bell rings, before the wolf pack is dealt with, the nearby mutated beasts might swarm over first.

Master Lai put the copper bell back into the wooden box.

"Is there an abandoned logging camp to the west?"

"About 800 meters."

"Go there."

A dozen minutes later, the two men arrived at the logging site with six other people.

The logging camp had been abandoned for many years, with weeds growing up to knee-high and rotten timber piled haphazardly on the open ground.

The camp is nestled against a mountain wall to the north, surrounded by dense forests on the east and west sides, and accessible via an abandoned dirt road to the south, allowing for easy retreat back to the camp.

Jiang Zhaoye quickly assigned positions.

Two people guarded the southern escape route, while the other four hid behind piles of wood on the east and west sides to keep the ordinary wolves at bay.

The only ones truly used to capture the wolf king were him and Master Lai.

Master Lai opened his backpack and took out a folded animal trap.

The netting was made of twisted animal sinew and steel wire, with six pieces of black iron hanging from its edges. After the netting was laid into the weeds, it was covered with fallen leaves, making it almost invisible.

The two animal-binding ropes were hidden under the piles of wood on either side.

After arranging these, Master Lai drove four black nails around the open space and connected them with red thread, leaving several escape routes that could be sealed off at any time.

Jiang Zhaoye took off her coat, revealing the close-fitting armor underneath.

There were several scratch marks on the side of the armor, left from previous encounters.

He drew his narrow-backed longsword.

The blade was jet black, with only the edge gleaming with a cold light.

Master Lai glanced at it and said, "Remember to leave them alive."

"Make sure you don't get bitten to death first."

"Don't worry, I'm tough."

As soon as he finished speaking, a soft sound came from the woods on the east side.

Click.

The dead branch broke.

Everyone immediately turned towards the direction from which the sound came.

The bushes swayed gently, but no wolf was in sight.

The next second, a dark figure suddenly darted out from behind the woodpile on the west side and lunged at the calf of the person guarding the perimeter.

The gun barrel immediately dropped.

boom!

Gunshots rang out.

The wolf swerved sharply before he could pull the trigger; the bullet grazed its back and embedded itself in the mud.

Another wolf leaped up from the side and behind, its fangs aimed straight for the man's shoulder.

Jiang Zhaoye took a step forward.

The back of the knife struck the wolf's head.

With a dull cracking sound, the wolf flew sideways and crashed into the wooden stake.

Half of its face had collapsed, but it didn't run away after landing. Instead, it shakily stood up again.

Around the open space, pairs of eyes lit up.

The wolf pack had completed the encirclement.

The first few wolves roamed back and forth at the edge of the woods, while the wolves behind them hid in the shadows of the trees, occasionally revealing a section of their backs.

Jiang Zhaoye raised his hand.

"Gather together."

The six people on the perimeter immediately retreated to their designated positions.

The wolf pack didn't give chase immediately, but instead pressed forward for a short distance.

Master Lai soon noticed that several of the wolves were sniffing the air.

They can smell the freshly turned soil and the lingering human scent on the animal traps.

A thin wolf approached the woodpile on the west side and used its front paws to push aside the fallen leaves.

A small section of the animal-binding rope was visible below.

"Don't let it touch the rope."

Jiang Zhaoye had already rushed over.

The skinny wolf turned and retreated.

It didn't actually want to destroy the rope; it was just testing people's reactions.

Jiang Zhaoye had only taken two steps when three wolves suddenly appeared from both sides.

One head lunges at the face, the other two bite the legs while the other two are close to the ground.

Jiang Zhaoye turned his head to avoid the fangs, and slammed the hilt of his knife into the first wolf's jaw.

His left leg then moved backward.

The second wolf missed its bite and charged past him. Jiang Zhaoye seized the opportunity, grabbed the fur behind its neck, and flung it to his right.

The two wolves collided in mid-air and tumbled into the pile of timber.

The third one has already circled around to the back.

Jiang Zhaoye did not turn around, but instead gripped the long sword in reverse and thrust it backward from under his arm.

The knife tip pierced the wolf's belly.

Blood flowed down the blade onto the back of his hand.

The wolf still wouldn't let go, its claws gripping his armor tightly.

Jiang Zhaoye raised his elbow and slammed it down.

The wolf's head slammed heavily into the ground, and finally, there was no more movement.

More wolves emerged from the forest.

Three of them pounced on Jiang Zhaoye, while the others bypassed him and headed straight for Master Lai.

They had realized that the real danger lay in the wooden box at Master Lai's waist.

"Ring the bell!" Jiang Zhaoye shouted.

Master Lai yanked out the beast-suppressing bell and flicked his wrist.

Ding.

The bell rang softly, yet it sounded as if it were pressed against one's bones.

The wolves at the forefront suddenly froze.

One wolf's forelegs buckled, and it fell straight into the mud. The other wolf lost its bearings, turned around, and bumped into its companion; the two rolled into a heap.

The wolf pack in the woods was thrown into disarray.

Some went around in circles, while others suddenly rushed off in the wrong direction.

The Beast-Suppressing Bell cannot control them; it can only temporarily interrupt the Wolf King's commands.

It won't take too long.

Jiang Zhaoye seized the opportunity to rush into the wolf pack.

The long sword parted the wolf's head as it lunged forward, and then the blade pressed down to sever the front leg of another wolf.

A burly gray wolf charged in from the side.

Jiang Zhaoye stepped on the wooden stake and leaped up, letting it rush past his feet.

Upon landing, his knee slammed heavily into the wolf's waist.

The gray wolf howled in pain, and before it could even roll over, it was grabbed by the back of its neck and thrown towards the pack of wolves behind it.

The previously tight encirclement was breached.

Suddenly, a wolf howl came from the north side of the mountain wall.

A giant silver-gray wolf leaped onto the pile of timber.

It was nearly half a body taller than an ordinary wolf, with a scar across its left eye on its forehead. The moonlight shone brightly on its silvery-gray fur.

As the howls rang out, the chaotic wolf pack began to regroup.

"The wolf king is there!"

Someone outside shouted.

Jiang Zhaoye looked up, drew his sword, and chased after them.

The silver-gray wolf leaped off the pile of wood and fled towards the mountainside.

Several wolves kept attacking from the side along the way, trying to block Jiang Zhaoye.

The first head had barely leaped up when its chest was slashed open by the blade.

The second one burst out from behind the fallen log.

Jiang Zhaoye stepped on its back, using the momentum to leap over the pile of wood, quickly closing the distance.

The silver wolf suddenly turned around.

The massive body crashed head-on, its wolf claws slamming heavily onto the blade.

Jiang Zhaoye's arm suddenly felt heavy.

Its fangs then bit down on the shoulder.

He turned his head to avoid it, and the hilt of his knife plunged hard into the silver wolf's belly.

The silver-gray wolf winced in pain but did not retreat. Its front paws scratched across his chest, leaving three new cracks in his armor.

Jiang Zhaoye grabbed the fur behind its neck and slammed it against a nearby tree trunk.

The tree trunk trembled, and withered leaves fell in a flurry.

The silver-gray wolf opened its mouth and bit back.

Jiang Zhaoye used his elbow to hold its jaw in place, and then slashed it from below with his long knife.

With a bloody gash cut open in its abdomen, the silver-gray wolf howled and rolled down the slope.

Just as Jiang Zhaoye was about to give chase, Master Lai's shout suddenly came from behind.

"Not it!"

The silver wolf was injured, but the surrounding wolf pack remained under control.

They are still attacking in waves.

The silver wolf's howl was just to attract attention.

What truly changed the direction of the wolf pack was the low growl interspersed between the short howls.

Master Lai looked in the direction of the sound.

An inconspicuous gray-black wolf stood in the middle of the pack.

It was of average size, missing a piece from its left ear, and its back fur wasn't very thick.

When the beast-suppressing bell rang, the other wolves were thrown into disarray to varying degrees, but it kept its head down and moved slowly, using its companions for cover.

Each time it trembled slightly in its throat, the nearby wolves would change direction.

The true wolf king always hides within the wolf pack.

Master Lai pointed his finger.

"That one's missing an ear!"

The gray wolf with the missing ear also raised its head at that moment.

It and Master Lai made eye contact from a distance of more than ten meters.

The next second, the wolf king charged straight at him.

Two wolves leaped up from the front, blocking Master Lai's view.

He unfurled the copper coin thread on his wrist, and the red rope instantly taut, wrapping around the wolf's left foreleg.

Master Lai then pulled on the slingshot.

The wolf lost its balance and crashed into its companion.

The one-eared wolf king crawled under them.

The gray shadow swept across the ground and arrived in front of Master Lai in the blink of an eye.

The wolf's claws struck his wrist, where he was holding the bell.

Master Lai hurriedly withdrew his hand, but his shoulder was unable to avoid the attack.

The sharp claws tore through the clothes, bringing down a piece of flesh and blood.

He staggered backward, the beast-suppressing bell flew out of his hand and rolled into the pile of fallen leaves.

As soon as the bell stopped, the wolf pack immediately resumed its normal activity.

More than a dozen wolves launched a charge at the same time.

"Protect the bell!"

Jiang Zhaoye turned around and charged back.

Several wolves blocked the middle.

He slashed open the shoulder of the first wolf with his sword, but as soon as he took a step, a sharp pain shot through his thigh.

A wolf emerged from under the pile of wood and bit his leg.

Jiang Zhaoye smashed the wolf's head with the hilt of his knife.

Once, twice.

The moment the wolf released its grip, he kicked it away.

Master Lai no longer cared about the beast-suppressing bell.

A wolf lunged at his throat.

He sidestepped, the copper coin thread looping around the wolf's leg, and used the wolf's forward momentum to pull it to the side.

The wolf's head slammed heavily into the wood.

The wind picked up again behind them.

Master Lai pulled out a black nail and hammered it into the soil with his backhand.

The red thread attached to the end of the nail suddenly taut.

The wolf that pounced from behind crashed into the line, rolled over, and landed at his feet.

More wolves surrounded them.

The one-eared wolf king stood on the periphery, his gaze never leaving the beast-suppressing bell hidden among the fallen leaves.

It let out a short, low growl.

The two wolves immediately rushed towards the copper bell.

Master Lai tried to stop them, but his trouser leg was grabbed tightly by another wolf, and he fell to the ground.

Jiang Zhaoye finally returned in triumph.

The knife tip pierced the wolf's neck from behind, pinning it to the mud.

He drew his knife and pulled Master Lai up from the ground.

"Can you still move?"

"I only got a shoulder hit, it's not like my leg is broken."

Master Lai spoke casually, but his face had already turned pale.

The two people stood back to back in the center of the logging camp.

The six people on the periphery were held back by another group of wolves and could only hold their positions, unable to get close at all.

The one-eared wolf king hid behind the pack and did not continue the attack.

It's waiting for them to bleed out, waiting for them to run out of strength.

"That beast has more patience than a human."

Master Lai took a breath.

Jiang Zhaoye's hand holding the knife remained steady.

"Is the animal trap still there?"

"It won't step in by itself."

"Then force it in."

Master Lai stared at the beast-suppressing bell a dozen meters away and whispered a few words.

Jiang Zhaoye frowned after hearing this.

Are you sure?

"If we keep dragging this out, we'll really end up having it as our midnight snack."

After Master Lai finished speaking, he suddenly pushed Jiang Zhaoye aside and staggered toward the beast-suppressing bell.

The wolf pack reacted immediately.

Three wolves pounced on him from different directions.

Master Lai used a copper coin thread to block one end of his body, but his back was also struck by a wolf's claw, causing him to fall to the ground.

He pushed himself up from the mud and continued forward.

The one-eared wolf king finally took a few steps forward.

It still didn't approach, but instead sent two ordinary wolves to check the ground near the copper bell.

After confirming there were no red lines or nails, a wolf lowered its head and bit at the bell.

Master Lai suddenly stretched out his leg.

Instead of trying to snatch the bell, he kicked it away.

The copper bell rolled along the ground through the middle of the wolf pack, heading straight for the one-eared wolf king.

The wolf king instinctively moved aside.

Jiang Zhaoye rushed out at the same time.

With a sweeping motion of his longsword, he forced back the wolves blocking his path and pounced straight at the wolf king.

The wolf king turned and retreated.

Jiang Zhaoye slashed at its hind leg, forcing it to dodge to the north.

To the left is a pile of timber, to the right is a red line, and behind them is a trap net.

The wolf king sensed something was wrong, stopped abruptly, and turned to pounce on Jiang Zhaoye.

The blade grazed its back.

The wolf king had already crawled under the knife and bit Jiang Zhaoye's left arm.

The fangs pierced the gaps in the armor.

Jiang Zhaoye did not pull his hand away. Instead, he took a step forward and pushed the deformed armor into the wolf king's mouth, jamming its upper and lower jaws.

The wolf king shook its head frantically.

Jiang Zhaoye was dragged to the ground, his back slammed into a wooden stake, and his long sword flew out of his hand.

The wolf's claws followed closely, reaching for his chest.

He bent his knee and slammed it hard into the wolf king's belly.

The wolf king did not give in.

Jiang Zhaoye gave it another thumbs up.

This time, the wolf king's fangs finally slid off his armor.

Jiang Zhaoye rolled over and pressed down on it, grabbing the fur behind its neck with one hand and locking its neck with the other.

The wolf claws tore through the armor on its shoulders and back, and blood quickly seeped out.

Jiang Zhaoye still didn't let go.

The man and the wolf rolled into the mud, scattering the nearby timber.

The wolf king wanted to bite his throat.

Jiang Zhaoye then used his elbow to hold down its lower jaw.

The wolf king tore at his waist and abdomen with its claws.

He then pressed his knee down on its back.

No one can completely gain the upper hand.

The wolves around them began to approach.

Master Lai has retrieved the beast-suppressing bell.

He wiped the blood from his ear and shook it violently.

Ding!

The wolf pack's steps faltered.

Master Lai then shook the gong a second time.

Ding!

The effects of the beast-suppressing bell pressed down layer by layer, causing the one-eared wolf king's body to pause briefly.

It can't be controlled by a regular ringtone.

However, continuous stimulation will still have an impact on it.

At the same time, Master Lai's right hand, which was holding the bell, began to tremble.

All I could hear was a sharp buzzing sound.

Jiang Zhaoye seized the opportunity, flipped over and pushed the wolf king into the trap.

The wolf king quickly regained its senses, kicked its hind legs fiercely, and almost broke free from his grasp.

Master Lai gritted his teeth and rang the bell again.

The third tone is deeper than the first two.

A fine crack appeared on the surface of the copper bell.

Master Lai heard a loud bang in his ear, blood flowed down his earlobe, and his vision went black for a moment.

The one-eared wolf king froze.

Jiang Zhaoye used all her strength to push it into the weeds.

The animal trapping net laid underneath suddenly tightened.

The black iron weight bounced up, and the network cable quickly wrapped around the wolf king's limbs.

It fell heavily to the ground.

"Close the net!"

People on both the east and west sides simultaneously tightened the rope.

The trap net tightened further and further, the steel wire digging into the wolf king's fur.

The wolf king paused for only two seconds before standing up again.

Click!

A network cable was ripped off.

It dragged half a hunting net and turned to rush into the woods.

Master Lai swung out the beast-binding rope and lassoed its hind legs.

The rope tightened instantly.

Before he could even steady himself, he was dragged down and slid off the muddy ground.

"Jiang Zhaoye!"

Jiang Zhaoye lunged forward and grabbed the rope.

The two men still couldn't stop the wolf king; they were dragged and knocked over a pile of timber, their palms quickly becoming raw and chafed from the rope.

The woods were now in sight.

Jiang Zhaoye suddenly freed one hand and wrapped the rope around a thick wooden stake next to him.

The wooden stake was pulled forward and tilted.

The wolf king finally slowed down.

Master Lai got up, pressed the last black nail onto the rope, picked up a stone and smashed it down heavily.

a bit.

Two times.

The black nail was completely embedded in the ground.

The wolf king was pulled down by the taut binding rope and was still struggling frantically.

Two more sections of the animal trap broke.

Jiang Zhaoye pounced on it and pressed its back down with his knee.

Two henchmen seized the opportunity to rush over; one locked the wolf's front legs, while the other put an iron muzzle over the wolf's head.

The wolf king suddenly swung his arm, knocking the man down.

Master Lai has already arrived in front of it.

He crouched down and pressed the cracked beast-suppressing bell onto the wolf king's forehead.

"Don't move."

The wolf king stared intently at him, letting out a low growl.

Master Lai gently shook his wrist.

The final ring of the bell rang against the wolf king's skull.

Its body suddenly tensed up.

The strength to struggle finally dissipated.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Jiang Zhaoye tightened the gag, while the others wrapped the animal-binding rope around the animal's limbs and added two more locks to the iron buckle.

The gunfire around them gradually subsided.

The remaining wolves reappeared at the edge of the woods.

Dozens of pairs of eerie green eyes stared at the wolf king, who was pinned to the ground.

People on the perimeter raised their guns.

Jiang Zhaoye picked up a long knife from the ground and stood in front of the iron cage.

The wolf king raised his head.

The muzzle locked its teeth, but it couldn't lock the low growl in its throat.

The sound was very short.

The wolf pack at the edge of the woods quieted down.

A moment later, the wolf at the front began to retreat.

Then came the second head, and the third head.

One by one, the wolves retreated into the darkness, without fighting or charging again.

Master Lai looked down at the wolf king.

"Even though they've been arrested themselves, they still know how to protect them."

The wolf king looked up at him, his gaze showing no sign of subjugation.

Master Lai smiled.

"It's okay, there's still plenty of time."

Jiang Zhaoye sat down on the wooden stake, tore off a piece of his clothes, and used it to tie up the wound on his leg.

Are you sure you can tame it?

"Not now."

"Then why did you go through all that trouble to capture him alive?"

Master Lai patted the iron cage.

"Take him back first. Whether he can be tamed is a matter for later."

The wolf king seemed to understand and suddenly rammed into the cage door.

The iron cage made a loud noise.

Master Lai took a half step back and covered his still bleeding ear.

"He certainly has quite a temper."

The group packed their belongings, lifted the iron cage, and prepared to return to the camp.

After taking only a few steps, the wolf king suddenly stopped struggling.

It slowly raised its head and looked into the depths of Black Locust Ridge.

His body lowered down little by little.

The sound in my throat has changed too.

It's no longer anger, but more like a warning after encountering some kind of danger.

Jiang Zhaoye followed its gaze.

The depths of the mountains were pitch black.

The next second, a deep roar came from afar.

The sound traveled a great distance, yet it shook the leaves of nearby trees.

The wolf king in the iron cage suddenly tensed up, its limbs bracing tightly against the bottom of the cage.

The smile on Master Lai's face disappeared.

Jiang Zhaoye looked at him.

"What is it afraid of?"

Master Lai gazed into the depths of Black Locust Ridge and remained silent for a moment.

"It seems this operation is going to be troublesome."