Lin Jin nodded. “That’s all for this skill. Now that you understand it, why don’t you try it out!”
Shang’er had that exact idea in mind. Invoking the spell, she pointed at a nearby rock before performing Object Manipulation on it.
Spellcasting required a combination of comprehension and practice, without which failure was inevitable. Lin Jin was awed by Shang’er’s incredible comprehension level, but he was even more shocked by her understanding of how spells worked.
On her first attempt at Object Manipulation, that rock levitated slightly in the air.
Shang’er continued to practice the skill, and soon, on her fifth try, she managed to lift the rock up by at least three feet.
Amazing!
With the Demonic Transformation in hand, Lin Jin obviously wanted to learn it as well. But as a technique dedicated to monsters, humans like him couldn’t possibly benefit from it. The hurdle of learning to convert demonic energy into mana was something Lin Jin couldn’t overcome.
Hence, even if he possessed cultivation and spell techniques, Lin Jin could only teach them to pet beasts and monsters. He couldn’t learn them himself.
At the moment, humans could only cultivate their blood pacts and relevant spells. When it came to offense moves, they still had to rely on their pet beast.
After ceaseless practice, in less than half an hour, Shang’er managed to familiarize herself with the skill. She could lift weighty rocks and manipulate objects at will. As Lin Jin watched on the side, he was suddenly reminded of ancient swordmasters. The secret behind the flying swords was probably the Object Manipulation skill, which allowed blade wielders could cut and slash at their enemies from a distance away.
However, no more flying swords existed today. But flying rocks were everywhere.
At that moment, Shang’er left the cave and pointed at a tree several feet away, its trunk having the diameter of a bowl. Lifting her finger, the tree was uprooted instantly.
“Drop!”
Shang’er swept her finger down. Like a sharpened blade, the tree swiftly pierced into the ground with a loud boom!
Lin Jin’s rough guess placed the tree at around a hundred and fifty kilograms in weight. To be capable of performing the skill up to this level within an hour of learning it, Shang’er’s ability to master spells was truly frightening.
No one was more excited than she was. Unable to conceal her delight, Shang’er turned around and prostrated before Lin Jin. Although Lin Jin wasn’t able to learn it himself, he still felt a sense of achievement.
“Master Lin, Shang’er wants to head to Mount Zoroku right now,” Shang’er said with a firm look in her eyes. She was obviously attempting to avenge Little Nine, who was hurt the monster over at the mountain. If she hadn’t learned this spell, she would never have considered venturing back to that place as she still had to look after her sisters. What’s more, she had nothing to fight the dreadful monster with.
But now, with a new trick in her arsenal, she had to carry out her revenge.
Lin Jin didn’t stop her.
Truth be told, he wanted to visit Mount Zoroku as well. While monsters were still around in this world, most of them were hidden deep inside the mountain, making it difficult for anyone to track them down. This was a convenient opportunity to increase his knowledge and at the same time, Lin Jin could assess the extent of Shang’er’s abilities.
Possibility of danger?
Non-existent.
If Shang’er could flee the place with her sisters, that must mean the monster at Mount Zoroku wasn’t all that terrifying. Also, he had Xiao Huo and Goldy with him. If a one-on-one brawl didn’t work, they could gang up on the monster.
Mount Zoroku was about eighty miles from their current location. After Shang’er instructed Little Five to look after the litter, she got onto Xiao Huo’s back and departed with Lin Jin.
Deep into the night, an enormous wolf sped through the forest. It was an uninhabited land so they didn’t really worry about being seen.
Shang’er wondered why Lin Jin carried that rooster wherever he went. Lin Jin explained, “If these two got into a fight, Xiao Huo might not even be able to beat Goldy.”
Covering eighty miles of mountain path on foot would probably take an entire night, but with Xiao Huo in his great wolf form, it took less than thirty minutes for them to reach the destination.
Mount Zoroku was a mountain shrouded by other mountains.
One had to go past hill after hill to reach the mountain itself, and the entire place was densely packed with trees. Barely any humans visited this place during daytime, never mind in the wee hours of the morning.
“What kind of monster was it?” Lin Jin suddenly asked.
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Staring at the pitch-dark mountain up ahead, Shang’er answered, “It was a wolf!”
A wolf?
Being social animals, wolves generally moved in packs.
Lin Jin asked if Shang’er was sure she saw only a lone wolf.
“It was just one. The wolf had a strong build but his transformation skills were below mine so he’s in a half-human half-wolf state. He knows how to control the wind, and that was probably why we lost the last time.” Shang’er was obviously still bitter about their defeat. Though, Lin Jin would arguably feel the same way if someone hurt his little sister like that.
In the outer region surrounding Mount Zoroku, they could still see wild beasts roaming around. But as they moved deeper into the woods, the frequency of beast sightings dwindled rapidly, until finally, no more creatures could be seen around.
However, this only meant that they were getting closer to the wolf demon.
Xiao Huo had returned to his usual state. Sensing danger around, he let out a low growl. Goldy remained composed as ever, paying no mind to his surroundings. If Lin Jin wasn’t clutching onto him for dear life, he might have jumped off at some point during their journey in search of worms to feast on.
“We’re here!”
Shang’er pointed to a cave up ahead.
At a glance, the cave was surrounded by bare rocks. It was evident that this was a natural formation that had been around for eons. The cave’s entrance wasn’t huge but it was pitch-black and was listed with the skeletons of wild beasts, which added a gory feel to this already creepy place.
Lin Jin felt uncomfortable from the very moment they arrived at this place as if something had been watching their every move the entire time.
No doubt, it was most probably the wolf demon.
In the wild, running into a pack of wolves would be considered by many as a terrifying encounter. But what was more frightening than a wolf pack, was a lone wolf.
They were much more ferocious, much more dangerous, and far more cunning than a wolf pack working together.
According to Shang’er, this wolf demon here had always been alone.
There was a brief moment of silence. No one spoke. Only the sound of leaves rustling in the night breeze could be heard.
But all of a sudden, the sound of the wind got louder.
Perhaps noticing something off, Xiao Huo growled in a specific direction. With Lin Jin’s approval, he abruptly pounced over, disappearing into a dark area within the forest.
The sound of combat resonated.
With her agile reflexes, Shang’er leaped up onto a ten-foot-tall tree. Levitating a massive rock nearby, she smashed it viciously into that general direction.
Lin Jin didn’t move.
He would never personally enter a death match like this one. After all, melee combat wasn’t his forte.
His task was to observe from the sidelines, strategize, and issue commands.
Strong winds picked up the sands and stones from the ground.
Xiao Huo was swept up by a terrifying gust of black wind, forcing him to transform into his great wolf state. No matter how strong the wind was, it couldn’t sweep the enlarged Xiao Huo away.
Meanwhile, the tree on which Shang’er stood was hacked away by an invisible force. She moved nimbly along the tree branches, ceaselessly hurling rocks and tree branches at her target. Using her bright mind, she even started using large rocks to block incoming attacks.
Up ahead, a huge patch of trees fell with loud continuous cracks, followed by waves of bestial roars.
They were obviously engaged in a heated battle.
Fixing his eyes in that direction, Lin Jin could see the level of destruction brought about by the fight. And thanks to a large number of fallen trees, he had a clearer view of the battlefield.
With the aid of moonlight, Lin Jin could see a two-meter tall humanoid beast.
Shang’er’s previous description turned out to be accurate. This wolf demon was half-human half-beast. It could walk upright like a human and had four limbs but its body was covered in fur and it had the head of a bloodthirsty wolf.