Exile received a shock as he reached the snow-laden hills where the wolf packs had lazily rested before. It now resembled a battlefield with many players grinding the furious wolves whose numbers had grown by several times. It was also apparent that new variations had appeared. As many of them were much larger than before.

'I guess those must be adults then...' Exile sighed as he glanced at several players fleeing for their lives. There were no wolves in sight who were being lazy. Instead, they actively patrolled the hills and joined fights that were much further away than their previous aggro range.

Exile groaned when he realised the gravity of the Council's vote. It was clear that these mobs were too strong for newly ascended players. Although it would not affect his Pantheon much, thanks to their rapid growth, it was still a major concern. 'The vote was to affect all mobs in Valheim's sphere of influence. So what's waiting for us down below now?'

He had to consider the possibility that something new and stronger would have appeared there as well. The only consolation was that it would help to slow down anyone who was ahead of them. Exile scanned the crowd of red and blue players before him. They resembled a wall that was trying to stop the wolves from getting closer to the city. 

Every now and then he would spot a player launching a sneak attack on someone from the opposite faction in the Civil War. However, their own allies would often scold them for it since they were already struggling to keep the wolves at bay.

Off to the side, he spotted Aeri with the entirety of Kaleidoscope, holding off ten wolves. But their situation did not look great either, despite Aeri being level 9 like himself. 'I guess I can't expect this to be easy then...' Exile frowned as he finally found Clay and everyone else doing what they could to push back the wolves in their own area.

He quickly sprinted towards them, alarming some weaker players in the back as he rushed past. However, nobody seemed to want to try their luck with him, as they swiftly made a path for him to reach his team.

"Clay! Dodge!" Exiled roared as he dove forwards with his shield raised. 

To Clay's credit, he reacted quickly to Exile's warning and jumped to the side. Just in time for a wolf's jaws to snap shut where he had been standing. The wolf glared at him angrily, but in the next moment, it was sent tumbling through the snow as Exile's shield collided with the side of its large body.

[You have attacked Divine Wolf (Adult). Divine Power Check in progress...]

[Enemy Endurance 21... Your Endurance 40... Your Divine Power is superior...]

[You have dealt -20 HP to Divine Wolf (Adult)]

Exile frowned as he analysed the report that came in. He could understand why they were struggling with so many of them, as they were definitely stronger than before. However, it should not be enough to overwhelm so many players like this.

"Exile! Don't let them claw you!" Clay screamed as a different wolf lunged at Exile.

However, Old Un shot it with an arrow as it was mid air. Interrupting its attack in the process. As it slid through the snow close to Exile, he quickly bashed it with his shield and followed up with an attack from his axe.

[You have dealt -20 HP]

[You have dealt -30 HP]

'It seems like I should be able to deal with them pretty quickly...' Exile frowned before he remembered that this species excelled in Speed. The memory came too late as another wolf leapt over its comrades, who were struggling to get to their feet. Unfortunately, he was unable to get his shield up in time as a heavy paw clawed at the side of his face!

The blow sent Exile sprawling until he slammed into Leggy, who quickly stabilised him. A deep frown crossed Exile's face as he focused on the damage report that he had just received.

[You have received -22 HP]

Exile cursed as he realised why all of the players were being so wary. The report indicated that the wolf had a Speed of 45 in total. It was bound to cause insane damage to anyone who had not been raising all of their stats or focused on Speed.

"Exile! Do you have anything that can deal with this?" Clay roared as he swung a battleaxe down on a wolf's head.

Exile quickly glanced at the number of wolves and how they were spread out before shaking his head. "They're too far apart for Cleansing Flame to be effective. Even if I take out a few, they'll just fill the gaps back up!" 

His reply caused looks of despair to appear on all of their faces. 'If we can't even handle these, then how can we take the risk of going back to the ruins?' Exile sighed as he tried to figure out a plan of action. However, there was nothing they could do in this situation. It would be best for them to retreat and discuss the matter. Either way, he would have to put searching for the second fragment on hold until the Pantheon could stand their ground against these enemies.

Otherwise, the exploration was likely to turn into a massacre. He spotted other players slowly sneaking away, obviously deciding that the threat of the wolves was too great for them to deal with. In the distance, he even spotted Kaleidoscope performing a rehearsed retreat in a formation to protect their weaker members.

"Everyone! Fall back to Valheim!" Exile shouted as he blocked another wolf but failed to land a counter strike. "Protect yourself as best as you can, but don't chase after them! Just get back to the city!"

Clay nodded at Exile's judgement call with a serious expression, while the new members looked relieved. Even Beans was amongst them despite what she had faced before alongside Exile. The only one who looked unhappy was Winter, but she could only follow the crowd unless she wanted to become a light snack...