The purple hollow armor on Yun Ling’s body disappeared as his eyes suddenly went back to normal. Sweat dripped down his temples as he panted heavily.

He was tired. Maintaining that form for several hours was incredibly exhausting and taxing to his body. He had long since wanted to take a rest but he continued to push his body to its limits to get further away from the Thousand Mountain Valley. He might no longer be at the place but his gut feeling was telling him that they were still within the Immortal Willow Tree’s grasp.

Such a feeling was still within him even now. His brief encounter with the Immortal Willow Tree had left a deep-seated fear in his heart. That might only be one of the Immortal Willow Tree’s branches but he was so frustrated that the only thing that came into his mind when he saw it was to run away.

His vision suddenly dimmed a little as he started to gradually lose strength all over his body. His hold on the wolf’s scruff weakened, but he was able to get ahold of him back before he accidentally released him.

Yun Ling’s body felt heavy. It had been a while since he overexerted himself like this. He couldn’t even remember the last time he was reduced to such a state.

“Are you okay?” the wolf asked, concern evident in its tone. He might not have known what kind of supreme art Yun Ling used but he knew that a powerful temporary boost of power like that would surely leave a burden to its user’s body. The fact that Yun Ling also wasn’t looking good helped solidify that knowledge of his.

Yun Ling didn’t reply. It was taking his all just to stay awake and not pass out. He didn’t have the luxury to give a response to the wolf.

A few seconds later, Yun Ling finally lost his consciousness. Despite pushing himself so hard, he had reached his limit. He released his hold on both the wolf and the Lion King Cub as he began to fall down to the ground from the sky.

The wolf was already prepared for this to happen. He quickly fetched his son mid-air and landed on all fours on the ground afterward. He then turned his attention towards Yun Ling who was about to hit the ground. He ran towards him and luckily situated himself below Yun Ling on time, making the latter fall on his back instead of falling to the ground.

The wolf would have continued their journey towards the Jin Empire while carrying both Yun Ling and his son, but he didn’t know where that place was. He didn’t know any place in this world except for the Thousand Mountain Valley.

He looked at the distance and saw that the sun was about to set. He should find a safe place where they could rest and spend the night.

He let out a sigh. So much had happened in just a single day. Early in the morning, he met Yun Ling who, although unwilling at first, helped him save his son. Then, he fell unconscious for several hours when he knew that his son was no longer in danger. Because of that, Yun Ling decided to save him as well and returned the Longevity Fruit to him so he could use it to heal himself back to normal.

Later on, they decided to leave the Thousand Mountain Valley because of the Immortal Willow Tree, only to encounter that human who tried to kill Yun Ling without any warning. After that human came five more humans in a group. It must have been because of all that commotion that they attracted the Immortal Willow Tree’s attention, resulting in it attacking them.

The wolf glanced at Yun Ling behind him. Even if Yun Ling helped them because he had any ulterior motive, the wolf was still grateful because if not for him, his son would’ve died.

The wolf started moving. First thing first, he should find a place where they could temporarily take shelter and rest for the night.

…

Bright rays of light entered the cave and shone upon Yun Ling’s face, waking him up. Yun Ling slowly opened his eyes as he groggily looked around him. He found himself inside a cave but he couldn’t see anyone there. Where did the wolf and his son go?

Yun Ling got up from his makeshift bed which was made of straws and leaves being clumped together. He then took out a bottle of True Essence Water from his storage ring. There were only a few amounts of True Essence Water left. It didn’t even reach half the bottle. Sighing, he finished all the remaining True Essence Water so he could recover spiritual energy faster.

He should’ve drunk it before he passed out. Maybe then he wouldn’t have reached that point. The idea honestly slipped his mind because he was too focused on getting far away from the Thousand Mountain Valley and by extension, the Immortal Willow Tree.

Yun Ling sat in a lotus position as he absorbed the spiritual energy in his surroundings. Thankfully, it was only inside the Thousand Mountain Valley that didn’t have any spiritual energy. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have known how to recover his spiritual energy especially after he finished drinking all the leftover True Essence Water he had.

“You’ve finally woken up.”

The rays of light shining upon him were blocked out by the arrival of the wolf. Yun Ling couldn’t help but be amused at the strange twist of fate. Yesterday, it was him who said that to the wolf but now, it was the wolf’s turn to say that to him.

Yun Ling opened his eyes and went agape at the sight of the wolf.

The weak-looking, skinny wolf that he was used to seeing was nowhere to be found. The one before him was the complete opposite of that wolf.

Standing before him was a huge wolf with white majestic furs on his body. The wolf had a pair of white pupil-less eyes and two pairs of sharp and huge fangs protruding from his mouth. There were several strange tribal tattoo-like symbols on his body glowing with white and bluish light. Anyone who laid a glance at the wolf would’ve been stunned by his beautiful yet intimidating appearance. All in all, the wolf looked otherworldly with his new appearance.

The Lion King Cub was right below the wolf, rubbing his face at the wolf’s foot.

“You… what kind of beast are you? I’ve never heard of a wolf like you before,” Yun Ling asked in amazement.

“That’s because I am not from this world. I am Snow Fang. A lesser beast that hailed from the upper realm. My kind are known as, Snow Wolf Deities,” the wolf, now named as Snow Fang, said with pride before it suddenly turned into a sad one, “though, I am the only one of my kind left.”