Chapter 169: Siberian Snow Wolves

Because the land around them was vast, the troops had been chasing and playing around as Yang Ling and Yuna were viewing the Illusory Crystal. They immediately came closer to the carriage when they heard the strange sounds coming from within. The nosy Hans took the front, scrambling toward the carriage.

“Brother Yuri, what is that sound, why does it sound so awful?” Fatso cried as he pulled open the carriage curtains. But other than Yang Ling and Yuna who were sitting cross legged, there was nothing suspicious within.

At the last second, Yang Ling had managed to slip the Illusory Crystal into his Space Ring. Yang Ling did not know the identities of the group of people dressed in black and was not ready to reveal the news that they had died at his hand. Furthermore, the content recorded by the Illusory Crystal was shocking, and he should not spread that around either.

“What sound are you talking about? Why didn’t I hear it?” Looking at the confused Hans, Yang Ling asked him, “Fatso, are you relapsing? Did you go and get yourself into trouble with some demon again?”

Seeing that the rest of the troop team was following Hans’ lead, Yang Ling again aimed a mental attack on the Magical Badge hanging from Hans’ neck. Instantly, the poor man hugged his head and wailed pathetically, just as he had done in the past.

The troop team took in Yang Ling’s serious expression and then Hans, who was holding his head and wailing. They looked furtively around, afraid of some unseen attacker. They couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary, other than that perhaps Hans had really gotten into trouble with something evil.

As before, Hans abruptly returned to normal, right about the time that the rest of the troop team were ready to give up. He recovered as quickly as the pain had come on!

“Hans, I heard in my hometown that those that were exceptionally fat would be like you, sometimes normal, but sometimes be in so much pain that they wanted to run into a wall!” After a moment, Yang Ling continued. “This illness might be serious, but as long as you become vegetarian, stay away from women and alcohol, and do not eat more than one bowl of rice every meal, your condition will become better after you persist for a number of years!”

Become vegetarian, stay away from women and alcohol, not eat more than one bowl of rice every meal, and he had to persist for a number of years?

Hearing Yang Ling say this, even Lia, Halalei and the rest nearly fainted, much less poor Hans!

“Hans, persist! I will provide you with mental support!” Yang Ling beamed helpfully. He patted Hans’ shoulder. Then he instructed the warhorses pulling the carriage to accelerate. After they had entered the Wilderness of Siberia, Yang Ling had found an opportunity to tame two of the warhorses pulling the carriage with his blood, which freed Orlando to take a more protective role. It had had the added benefit of increasing the horses’ speed and stamina.

This way, he could control the speed and direction of the warhorses’ advancement remotely, even if he was sitting in the carriage. No one from the newbie troop team suspected anything, as he had told them that these were old warhorses that were familiar with the route.

After freeing himself from Hans and Lia and confirming that they were a safe distance away, Yang Ling once again secretly took out the Illusory Crystal. He soon grasped the technique for activating the crystal with Yuna’s helpful guidance.

As it turned out, the Illusory Crystal required energy to record and replay its contents. The lower the energy, the duller the surface of the crystal would be, and the quality of the content it captured would be worse.

To activate the Illusory Crystal, he had to inject Magical Energy with consistent ripples and activate the Magical Space inside the crystal that stored the images and sounds. Activating the spell was not complicated, nor did he have to spend a great deal of Magical Energy, but it did require the operator to have a certain understanding of the Magical Elements. Otherwise, one would not be able to activate the crystal no matter how powerful their Magical Energy was.

Ever since he heard the explanation the sage level fighter, Elder Klive, gave about Magical Elements, Yang Ling had had a new understanding of magical spells. Even though his Magical Energy was not so powerful, his understanding of the Magical Elements was superior to that of a Magical Apprentice. He managed to master the technique for activating the Illusory Crystal after only trying it a few times.

After examining the footage several times, Yang Ling noticed that the Magical Beasts controlled by the Necromancer were a little bit different from average Magical Beasts. Even though they were unafraid of death, their movements were rigid and their reactions slow. They did not have any tactics when it came to battle, instead merely relied on their numbers and powerful battle abilities to make any progress. The feeling they gave off was not that of a high level Magical Beasts, but of individual lifeless puppets!

Perhaps if he encountered the Necromancer, he might be able to hold his own if he commanded his Magical Beast army well! He would have the advantage of an army with some will of its own, and with remaining instincts.

After examining the footage repeatedly and confirming the shortcomings and weaknesses of the Necromancer’s Magical Beast army, Yang Ling started thinking about his chances of victory, should he need to face off with them. The other party had the advantage in the number of the Magical Beasts and their individual battle abilities; Yang Ling had the advantage in the coordination between his various Magical Beasts, and his ability to quickly form an effective offensive and defensive strategy.

“Brother Yang, have you seen this Magical Beast?” Yuna asked Yang Ling with curiosity, pointing at the two-horned Magical Beasts with the greatest numbers in the projection.

Yang Ling looked more closely and realized that the Magical Beasts under the man in black’s control could be split into three groups.

There was a fierce bear-like beast with two horns protruding from the head and half inch long, sharp claws. At first glance, they looked like they were the Violent Earth Bears described in the Magical Beast Knowledge Guide, but Yang Ling felt that there were several differences upon closer inspection.

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There was a Gryphon-like flying monster, but each had a line of sharp spines growing out of their backs. Other than close combat skills, they could also spew balls of purple flame, making them a little different from an average Gryphon.

Finally, there were large alligator-like creatures. They were fast as lightning and could spew out mists of poisonous vapor. Yang Ling did not know what those monsters were.

The Magical Beast Knowledge Guide recorded many of the Magical Beasts’ appearance and abilities, but Yang Ling could not find any information regarding these monsters at all.

Just who was this so-called Necromancer, and what were these Magical Beasts?

As Yang Ling pondered, prepared to rewatch the recording for the hundredth time, he heard Orlando and his horse in the distance. Orlando was shouting something. As he came closer, Yang Ling understood.

“Wolf attack! Retreat! Snow Wolves ahead!” screamed Orlando as he thundered back to the group.

Orlando had not quite finished his sentence when waves of wolf howls came to them on the wind, getting closer. Yang Ling sent a few Horned Bee Beasts out to scout the area, only to see a horde of a hundred calf-sized Snow Wolves appearing on the horizon, pelting toward them with surprising speed. In front, the leading wolf.

According to the description in the Magical Beast Knowledge Guide, the Snow Wolves were mid level Magical Beasts that lived in packs. They were very strong, fast as lightning, and were naturally adept at ice element magical spells. As they usually appeared in sizeable packs, they rarely faced danger from other Magical Beasts, and hunters stayed away as well.

“Stop at the top of this hill and set up defenses!” Yang Ling commanded, steel in his voice. He could see the horses spooking already, and knew he needed to take control.

It would be foolish to try to outrun the swift Snow Wolves on level ground. There was no point in trying to run away. Better to stand their ground and fight the pack off.

The lead wolf issued a long howl which was echoed by several other Snow Wolves. The Dragon Slaying Troop Team trembled, taking in the wolves’ bloodthirsty eyes, their muscular, powerful limbs, and their long white fangs. The troop team huddled closer together unconsciously.

Could it be that he had to expose his abilities and summon his Magical Beast army to protect them?

Yang Ling looked from the advancing wolves to the poorly named Dragon Slaying Troop Team, all shaking in their boots. But then, Yuna came to his aid.

“Brother Yang, let me do it!” She had seen Yang Ling crease his brows, and understood his intentions. Rather than Yang Ling exposing his powers and blowing his cover, Yuna clenched her staff tightly and moved toward the front of their little group. She murmured quietly, and conjured fire Magical Elements in the sky above them, which danced excitedly.

“My god, what massive Magical Energy, Miss Yuna! Are you a Great Spellcaster?” Hans gawped.

“Oh Yiblis, what are we afraid of, let’s fight it out with them!” yelled Lia.

…

The longer the incantation of a Spellcaster, the greater the power of the magical spell they released. Seeing that the ripples of Magical Energy in the air far exceeded their imaginations, the fledgling troop felt emboldened, as if they saw some hope for their escape.

The troops were in awe, but Orlando, who knew of Yuna’s power, did not pay too much attention. He busied himself by carefully spreading snake venom on his weapons, and the weapons of others. He made sure to convey how careful each fighter would need to be, as the venom would kill them as easily as the Snow Wolves.

In the eyes of Fatso and Lia, the appearance of over a hundred Snow Wolves was akin to the arrival of an envoy of death, but to Orlando, this group of Snow Wolves were not even worth a mention against Yang Ling. These hundred Snow Wolves might not even be enough as an appetizer if Yang Ling summoned his Magical Beast army at the right moment.

“Brother Yuri, do not be afraid, I’ll protect you!” Hans cried. He watched as Yang Ling sat placidly behind the protective barrier made by Orlando and Yuna. He made his way behind Yang Ling. The small hill was very steep in three directions, and the Snow Wolves would not be able to scale the slope very quickly. The position behind Yang Ling was definitely the safest spot on the battlefield.

Yang Ling smiled calmly and said, “Hans, I have heard that Snow Wolves would be able to climb mountains or even fly through the air like a Gryphon when they are a dozen years old. I’ll entrust my back to you. I believe that you would not be worried by a hundred flying Snow Wolves, given your powerful abilities!”

A hundred flying Snow Wolves?

Now Hans’ legs were really shaking. He believed Yang Ling completely, and saw the terrifying Snow Wolves in an even more frightening light. He practically teleported behind Yang Ling, who marveled at how thick the fat man’s skin truly was.