His companions noticed as much on their own, but before they could do anything, the wolves in front of them took this as their cue. They started to push forward, giving Red’s group less and less space to act.

At this point, there were already wolves reaching around Narcha and Eiwin, who were busy fighting the Lesser Ring Realm monster. If they were surrounded, then there was no question they would fall.

Rog and Rimold, who were a bit farther behind them, were already doing their best to keep them off the women, but in so doing, they were kept from attacking the stronger wolf. This only caused Narcha's and Eiwin’s situation to get worse, as they could barely keep the wolf at bay by themselves.

They needed help.

Red frowned. “Allen, with me!”

The young master nodded with a fearful expression. They charged forward towards Narcha’s left, coming face to face with a charging wolf. It jumped forward with a growl, hoping to bite the boy’s head off in a single motion. Red, however, managed to sidestep it and slash one of its legs off with his sword.

Allen, who was waiting behind him, took the opportunity to finish off the wolf with a stab on its throat. Their cooperation and movements were fluid, and neither of them took any time to ponder upon their dead enemy before moving onto the next.

Some soldiers were also fighting by their side, allowing the boys to focus on one wolf at a time. Red still had enough space to dodge and do his work, but it was getting harder and harder as the rest of the army was pushed in by soldiers from other directions.

In a matter of less than a minute, his greatest advantage would be gone, and it didn’t seem like the wolves were dying as quickly as they needed to. Red frowned and looked over beyond the river.

The situation with the Baron and the alpha had suddenly changed. There was now a thick white mist surrounding the wolf’s immediate vicinity, and the green light seemed to slow down whenever it passed through it. The image of the flying dagger became more distinct, and the boy could see it was starting to get covered in a layer of ice.

It was weakened, slower.

No longer inhibited by the annoyance of the magic weapon, the wolf could focus wholly on the Baron. The man was finding it harder and harder to dodge and keep himself alive.

Just as Red was considering what to do, he felt a strong fluctuation suddenly move across the battlefield towards them. He shivered.

“Narcha, Eiwin, look out!”

His voice reached them even over the chaotic battlefield. An enormous wolf suddenly soared over the rest of the combatants, reaching towards Eiwin with its extended claws. The younger woman didn’t have enough time to react, but Narcha jumped in front of her with her saber at the last second.

This time, the warrior wasn’t so lucky. One of the wolf’s claws dug into her shoulder, cutting through her leather armor like it was paper and piercing into her skin. Narcha flew back from the impact of the blow, crashing into Rog almost ten meters behind her.

Both of them were sent sprawling to the ground.

“Narcha!” Eiwin looked back in horror.

At that moment, though, the other Lesser Ring Realm wolf chose to attack. It lifted its claw, hoping to cut Eiwin apart, before it suddenly felt two stabbing pangs at its back.

It looked back in pain and anger, noticing Red and Allen stabbing their swords into its hind legs, to limited effect. The boy felt the temperature around him drop even further, and a sudden white mist blew outwards from its skin.

Red and Allen were sent flying back a few meters as their bodies were covered with a thin layer of ice. The boy shivered with his sudden drop in temperature, but his sect uniform did its work to keep his body from freezing over.

Then, all of a sudden, he felt another strong fluctuation appear around him. This one, however, he recognized.

He looked up, noticing Eiwin’s skin glowing with a silver light as she blocked the attacks of both Lesser Ring Realm wolves.

‘Again?’

Red wasn’t privy to all the details of Eiwin’s powers, but he knew for certain that she couldn’t use it again before both a long rest and using Goulth’s medicine to keep herself from dying. She had just used it yesterday against Narcha’s ghost, so how could she do it again so soon?

Red’s worries were proven correct, as he felt Eiwin’s fluctuation peak at a far lower level than he was used to. Her power-up this time was far weaker, and this showed itself against the wolves.

The woman barely had enough strength to keep the creatures at bay. The wolves left her no quarter either, pressing forward with their claws and teeth without hesitation.

Red frowned and looked around, assessing the battlefield.

Narcha seemed to be struggling to get up with her bleeding shoulder, while Rog was trying to reach for his bow again, separated in their clash. Rimold continued to throw his dagger at the approaching wolves, but even he was forced to stop attacking and use a barrier talisman as the monsters finally reached him.

The wolves were closing in from all sides, barely giving them enough space to breathe. Red couldn’t tell how the rest of the army fared, but even if they could kill the focused wolves, it might be too late for him and his companions by them.

Allen was also trying to recover from the white mist by Red’s side. For a second, the two boys seemed to be forgotten by the monsters as they stood laying at the back of the two Lesser Ring Realm wolves.

Red frowned, and he finally made a decision. “You have talismans, right?”

Allen seemed surprised. “T-Two, yes…”

“Here, take it.” The boy handed over his omnidirectional shield to the young master. “I need you to help Eiwin. Use everything you have at your disposal.”

Allen seemed hesitant. “B-but what are you…”

“Just do as I say!” Red cut him off. “Our lives might depend on it!”

The young master put on a resolute expression and nodded.

Now that Red thought back at it, perhaps they were too naïve to think they would be able to retreat with no issues. Still, the boy didn’t expect the wolves to show such focus towards killing him and his sect members, but considering they were controlled by a cultivator, perhaps they should have expected it.

The smarter choice would have been not to fight at all, but now that they were here, there was no other way out.

Red didn’t pay attention to Allen any longer. He needed to trust the young master to do his part, or they would all die, anyway.

The boy picked up the Wind Bestowment talisman from his pouch before plastering it against his own arm and chanting. The talisman took a few seconds to activate, during which it emitted a lot of Spiritual Energy which caught the attention of both wolves and humans around the battlefield.

The two Lesser Ring Realm wolves looked back in a hurry, seemingly having learnt their lesson from yesterday. When they saw the energy flowing in Red’s hands, they didn’t hesitate and immediately charged at the boy.

Red frowned, unsure on whether he had enough time for the talisman to activate before moving. Thankfully, however, his companions were quick to react.

Eiwin jumped forward and grabbed one of the wolves by their tail, pulling it back. This still left one, however, which jumped at the boy with its open maw.

Red tried to dodge to the side, but he didn’t know if he would have enough time for it. Suddenly, Allen’s figure came charging from his side against the wolf’s head with his sword, altering its trajectory just enough for Red to get out of the way.

The boy didn’t look back and started to run. Every wolf in his vicinity started to charge at him, drawn by this beacon of sudden Spiritual Energy. By this point, however, the talisman had enough time to activate, and Red felt a sudden surge of familiar Spiritual Energy surround his body.

The boy pushed against the ground with his leg, soaring over the attacking wolves. They tried to jump and reach him in the air, but Red managed to weave past their attacks with the help of the wind surrounding his body.

He landed on the ground again behind the wolf’s forces and right in front of the river line. The river was at least five hundred meters in width, and Red doubted he could make his way over in a single jump like the Baron.

However, there was no hesitation on his steps as he jumped forward, led by pure instincts. He made his way over the river as far as he could, but just as he expected, it was barely one fourth of the way through. It looked as if he was about to crash down onto the water, but just as his feet were touching the river’s surface, he felt himself step onto something solid.

Red pushed against it, and he was once more soaring through the air. The same scene repeated another three times, as the boy seemed to step on something invisible that offered him support and impulse. Two second later, he was nearing the alpha and the Baron.

From seeing this wolf fight, he learned a fundamental difference between monster in the Lesser Ring Realm and those in the Greater Ring Realm. Those at the Lesser Ring Realm could use Spiritual Energy to a certain degree, but they resembled children trying to familiarize themselves with a complex tool. They didn’t have the expertise to do more than rough and simple tricks with it.

This wolf, however, was the opposite. It weaved Spiritual Energy around its body like a protective barrier, a mist of ice that slowed down anything that entered in range. Every single one of its steps and attacks seemed to be filled with Ice Spiritual Energy, evident by the layer of thick ice everywhere its claws pass through.

Only now did Red recognize how dangerous what he was about to do was. Still, he didn’t stop.

He finally reached the two hundred meter range of the wolf and felt its overwhelming fluctuation. Yet, he didn’t feel the signs of anyone else around it. He needed to get closer.

Red landed on the other side of the river and charged towards the wolf. His approach was not unnoticed by the monster. It turned around and let out a growl at Red before sending out a breath of white mist through his gullet in the boy’s direction.

The spout moved at such incredible speeds that Red knew he couldn’t dodge it, even under his improved state, and it seemed so strong that he knew no talisman in his possession could block it. Such a casual motion from this creature was more than enough to kill a mortal like him.

“It’s your time to pull through!” Red shouted.

These words of his were but a gamble, yet if that person cared so much about their mission, then they would save him. It was their only choice. It was the boy’s only choice too.

Suddenly, a bright orange barrier appeared in front of Red, blocking the mist in front of him. This allowed Red to continue approaching the wolf, and a few seconds later, he felt it.

A fluctuation behind the wolf, near the tree line, so faint the boy could miss it if he wasn’t looking for it. Yet he knew it, this was his target.

He pulled back his arm in a single motion and threw his sword in the direction of that fluctuation.

“Follow my sword!” Red called out again.

His attention, of course, was never to hit this other invisible fluctuation.

As soon as Red’s sword left his arm, a tornado of fire struck the very location he was looking at.