Level Seven Martial Artist

"Bows inside, spears out! Blades standby!"

"Take those axes and bring down some cover!"

…

Ye Feng called out commands, his face solemn and resolute, his succinct orders bringing a level of calm over the panicked hunters.

Hong! Hong! Hong!

Trees were quickly felled and dragged into a defensive arrangement; throughout the long history of Ye Family Village, their hunters had faced off against wolf packs many times, and the teachings of their ancestors showed today.

But Ye Feng could only hope. As long as he did his best, heaven willing, the Village Chief and the elders would come to their aid soon.

"Owooo~~~"

A loud howl approached as pairs of green eyes emerged from the forest, coldly examining the Ye Family hunters.

In the distance, a series of Howling Moon Wolves came into view, filling the forest as they stalked forwards towards the hunters, finally pouncing!

A bloody war had begun!

"Uncle Feng!"

Ye Tian howled miserably, dragged away unwillingly by Ye Ba, forcibly retreating back to the village.

Beside them, the running Ye Meng scolded him, "Stop yelling. Your life is no longer your own now. You belong to the village! We need your strength!"

"Yes, Ye Tian, you cannot let the Captain's efforts go to waste. You're the Ye Family's hope; you must be calm!" Ye Ba exhorted.

"For the Ye Family Village!" Ye Tian shook, trembling. Everyone—the captain, the other hunters, all of them—put their lives on the line to protect him and the village.

"Tian er, if you become a powerhouse in the future, you can bring us out of this poor land and we won't have to hunt anymore and we won't have to face this kind of danger!" Ye Meng added, turning a profound eye towards Ye Tian.

At these words, Ye Tian finally calmed down.

Of course!

For the sake of survival, all the villages in White Cloud Town had to hunt for food in the dangerous mountainous forest.

Everyone dreamed of leaving this poor and remote land!

I will become a powerhouse! Not just a Martial Master—I will surpass that realm! Ye Tian swore fervently to himself, his heart filled with desire for power.

Originally, he had only wanted strength for glory and respect, but now, he needed strength for the people of his village.

His heart and mind had been altered, and although it wasn't clear whether this was good or bad, it definitely shortened the time it would've taken for Ye Tian to accumulate true power.

After sprinting for two hours, Ye Ba, Ye Meng, and Ye Tian finally returned to the Ye Family Village.

As soon as they passed through the village gates, Ye Ba raised the alarm, shouting as he put Ye Tian down. "Village Chief! Wolf Pack! The hunters are surrounded by a wolf pack!"

With Ye Ba's True Qi, his clarion call filled the entire village.

Instantly, every villager poured out into the streets, several old figures among them rushing towards the gate with extreme speed.

"Wolf pack?"

"Not good. How many people will die this time?"

"My husband!"

The Ye Family Village fell under a dark cloud as many people came out in tears, already mourning the loss of their hunter brothers and fathers.

Lin Mei rushed over, letting out a breath of relief at the sight of Ye Meng and Ye Tian. She hurried forth, check Ye Tian from head to toe, terrified that he had been wounded.

Ye Shi was already by the gates, mustering the men. "Level Six and above, with me!"

"Ye Ba, Ye Meng, lead the way! What happened?" Ye Shi instantly turned, already leading the way into the forest.

Ye Meng hurriedly followed, unable to speak a word to his wife.

"Be careful!" Lin Mei called out, worried but unable to stop Lin Meng. The village was everyone's concern and everyone shared the burden; this was one of the sources of the village's strength.

Ye Tian turned and was about to follow his father, but Ye Ba pulled him back.

"Ye Tian, remember what your father said. Your life doesn't belong to you anymore. Stay in the village. The captain told me to give you this," Ye Ba coolly reminded him, placing a bloody heart in Ye Tian's hands before turning and following the chief.

"The Treasure Beast's heart!"

Ye Tian stared down dazedly at the bloody heart in his hand, his own heart deeply moved, tears dripping down onto his robe.

Ye Feng had prepared this priceless treasure for him?

"Uncle Feng!"

Ye Tian fell to his knees, the world blurring with his tears.

Who said men never cried?

"Tian er, don't worry—the Village Chief is on the way and your father will be fine. Cultivate diligently and when you grow stronger, you can help them," Lin Mei hurriedly said, thinking that her son was worried about Ye Meng.

"Grow stronger!"

Ye Tian's eyes flashed as he looked down at the heart in his hand and he jumped up, rushing towards his room.

"Tian er, don't rush." Lin Mei called out, her worry dissipating as Ye Tian headed home. Her son no longer occupying her mind, she turned and waited with the other villagers, ready to help the homecoming injured.

Everyone knew that the wolf pack meant there would be many casualties, and the women were already prepared with medicine and bandages and stretchers…

Ye Tian flew home, slamming through doors and rushing into his room.

Grow strong! Mother is right—as long as I'm stronger, I will be able to help them, Ye Tian thought, looking down at the bloody heart in his hand, his eyes growing bright.

After eating the heart, he would break through to Level Seven Martial Artist, and with his mastery of the Thundering Palm, he could strike with the strength of a Level Eight Martial Artist.

In all of Ye Family Village, there were only five Level Eight Martial Artists—three hunters and two retired elders.

 If I had the strength of a Level Eight Martial Artist, I could help Uncle Feng and the others! And so without another thought, Ye Tian shoved the heart into his mouth.

Little White stared at its young master with curiosity, wondering why he would eat such a bloody thing.

Hong!

As he swallowed the Treasure Beast's heart, Ye Tian felt as if a ball of fire burned within him, flowing like lava through his body.

And this lava moved through his six principal meridians, rushing towards his undeveloped seventh.

I cannot fail! Ye Tian screamed to himself.

The tempestuous lava flowed according to Ye Tian's wishes, pounding forward again and again and widening the opening to the seventh principal meridian.

And just like that, Ye Tian broke through to Level Seven Martial Artist.

But some of the liquid fire was still left over and Ye Tian decisively used it towards opening his eighth meridian.

Unfortunately, the fire no longer held enough energy and the opening to the eighth principal meridian only stood half-open, still undeveloped.

Ye Tian felt some disappointment but couldn't spare the time to overthink; his eyes fell open as thick and powerful True Qi filled him, a roar rumbling out of his lungs.

"Late Stage Level Seven Martial Artist. The Treasure Beast's heart gave me more than a single level—does the Yellow Martial Spirit allow me to absorb more energy?"

Ye Tian was somewhat puzzled, but he could spend no time wondering as he rushed out of the house.

He had dallied long enough, and another life could be saved with every minute earlier he arrived.

Ye Tian couldn't leave through the gates, so he climbed over the walls and hid from his mother.

Once in the forest, Ye Tian soon returned to the familiar road, running at peak speed. After breaking through to Level Seven Martial Artist, his peak speed was comparable to Ye Ba's, and an hour and a half later, he returned to the battlefield.

Thousands of Howling Moon Wolves surrounded the Village Chief and the others, the humans fighting ferociously against the furious beasts, a river of blood flowing by their feet.

With the aid of the Village Chief and the elders, the Ye Family hunters were no longer in such desperate straits, but they were still outnumbered. Even the Leven Ten Martial Artist Village Chief couldn't singlehandedly end the war. In order to protect the other hunters, he had waded forward and was facing a section of the wolf pack on his own, besieged on all sides.

Too many! Even if the hunter team survives, too many lives will be lost, Ye Tian thought, stunned by the wave of countless wolves. He waited for a moment, observing, as rushing in would simply be courting death.

He looked around, searching for a way out.

Uncle Feng said that the wolf I killed was a Golden Howling Moon Wolf. Ye Tian pondered— normal Howling Moon Wolves were Level Five Martial Artist beasts, but the Golden Howling Moon Wolf was a Level Seven Martial Artist beast, a Wolf King that could command an entire wolf pack, far more terrifying than a lone Level Ten Martial Artist.

Since they came for revenge, there must be a Wolf King commanding them from the shadows. I just need to kill the Wolf King and the wolf pack will scatter!

Ye Tian's eyes gleamed. The wolf pack was powerful but it still had a fatal weakness—with the Wolf King dead and no one to command the pack, the alphas would refuse to cooperate and the wolf pack would scatter, resolving the crisis.

The Ye Family Martial Artists also knew about this weakness but they were surrounded, utterly unable to hunt for the Wolf King.

The beast was very cunning, hiding away in the shadows, hardly visible at all.

And the truth was that the wolf pack was too big and finding a single wolf amongst thousands was almost impossible since the Wolf King looked identical to every other wolf.

The only difference was the Wolf King's larger size and a tuft of golden hair beneath its neck.

The Golden Howling Moon Wolf that Ye Tian had killed was still a baby. It was small and only a Level Five Martial Artist, easily mistaken for a normal Moon Wolf even with Ye Feng's experienced eye.

If he had known, Ye Feng never would've dared to touch the beast.

And so, finding the Wolf King would be incredibly difficult.

Ye Tian carefully climbed up a big tree, looking down at the wolves below.

As a Level Seven Martial Artist, Ye Tian's eyes were sharp and he swept them back and forth over the wolf pack.

Ye Tian's eyes narrowed as he locked onto a particularly large Howling Moon Wolf, one twice the size of the wolves by its side.

The big wolf was constantly barking out calls and Ye Tian's fine eyes could make out a cluster of golden hair on its neck.

"You!" Ye Tian jumped down, carving a path straight for the Wolf King, his eyes burning.

Even though the Wolf King was surrounded by its pack, Ye Tian showed no fire, moving with utter confidence.

"Ye Tian?"

"Ye Tian, come back! Don't go!"

"Ye Tian!"

As soon as the villagers caught sight of Ye Tian, they cried out with shock and worry.

Village Chief Ye Shi, Ye Feng, Ye Ba, and Ye Meng all shouted, distracted.