Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

Lin Zhao knew very well that Gao Yuan had purchased many mid-grade and high-grade talismans from his own shop, which would make today much easier if used.

Gao Yuan chuckled, added a piece of firewood to the campfire, then took out a Fire-Separating Talisman from his robes and flipped it between his fingers.

The patterns on the talisman glowed with spiritual light in the firelight: "Have you done the math? Even with the three late-stage Qi Refining demon corpses, this batch of wolf demons is only worth a little over two hundred spirit stones when brought back to the market."

Low-grade talismans can be purchased with spirit fragments, a mid-grade talisman costs at least one spirit stone, and a high-grade talisman starts at ten spirit stones.

He flicked his fingertip, and the talisman floated back into his storage bag. "If I keep throwing talismans around, I won't earn much spirit stone this time. I should try to use talismans less in the future."

The campfire crackled as Gao Yuan's gaze swept over the team members' tents: "Besides, everyone is stuck at the threshold of the sixth level of Qi Refining, and they also need a certain amount of pressure to break through the bottleneck of the later stage of Qi Refining."

He patted Lin Zhao on the shoulder, "The path to immortality cannot be built solely by resources." He then changed the subject, "Of course, if it really comes down to a life-or-death situation, you still have to use the necessary talismans."

The next day, the morning wind on the wasteland was exceptionally biting. Chu Xin was still tasked with luring the enemy, and her dark green outfit stood out against the twilight sky.

However, the situation was different today. She made five trips back and forth, but only brought back more than twenty Wind Howling Wolves, most of which were old and weak.

"Something's not right." Gao Yuan frowned, his black battle suit fluttering in the wind. "The wolves have learned their lesson."

Chu Xin wiped the fine sweat from her forehead and shook her head, saying, "The remaining wolves have gathered around the wolf king and refuse to disperse."

Old Wu stroked his long, white beard, the array plate at his waist jingling: "Although demonic beasts are dull-witted, they still possess some intelligence."

Gao Yuan nodded in understanding, then turned to everyone and said, "That's it for today. Let's deal with the wolf demon, the usual routine."

At the same time, a special storage bag was tossed to Old Man Wu, who then led everyone to complete the collection of wolf skins and claws.

Using the storage bag given to him by Gao Yuan, he selected five wolf demon corpses and stored them in that special storage bag.

As dusk fell, the group retreated to their campsite, finding sheltered spots at the edge of the camp.

Old Wu set up a hidden magic array. The array plate was as black as ink, and as soon as it landed, it rippled with dark waves, enveloping the five wolf corpses.

As he changed his hand gestures, wisps of blood energy rose from the wolf's corpse, condensing in mid-air into five dark red pills that emitted an unpleasant, sweet-smelling odor.

Lin Zhao subconsciously narrowed his eyes, his Xuanlin robe shimmering faintly: "This... seems to be a demonic technique?"

Gao Yuan pressed down on his shoulder, his gaze calm: "This is a Blood Fiend Pill, made from the body of a wolf demon. It can be used to disrupt the minds of a wolf pack, driving them mad."

In the Cloud and Mist Mountains, there is no distinction between the righteous path and the demonic path; he pointed to the faint traces of demonic beasts in the distance, only the distinction between the human and demonic factions.

Old Master Wu put away the pills, his withered fingers gently stroking the array plate: "Young friend Lin, do you know that last year, the Qingfeng Market's statistics showed that 372 members of the demon-hunting team died in battle?"

He looked up at Lin Zhao, a trace of pain flashing in his cloudy eyes. "My son died in the wilderness five years ago."

Chen Jin, who had been watching silently from the side, suddenly spoke up: "My father died in the beast tide seventeen years ago." His voice was very soft, but it silenced everyone.

Chu Xin gently touched the wounds on her face, the ice-blue sword gleaming coldly in the twilight.

Li Hao slammed the giant shield heavily onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

For the first time, Lin Zhao truly experienced the rules of survival on this land.

Gao Yuan looked around at everyone, his voice low but clear: "Tomorrow, we'll go and meet that wolf king, and try to completely eliminate this pack of wolves by tomorrow."

As everyone returned to the campfire, Cheng Jin broke the silence, the bronze spirit-detecting disc in his hand gleaming faintly with golden light: "Just before returning to camp, I went to investigate again."

The wolf pack has sixty-four members remaining, and among them, there are indeed three at the late-stage Qi Refining level.

Gao Yuanxuan's black battle armor gleamed darkly in the firelight. He poked at the campfire, sparks crackling as he said, "Although there are many wolves, they are nothing to fear."

The only thing to watch out for is the wolf king and its two guards attacking at the same time. My plan is…”

His sharp gaze swept over the crowd. "Go around to the back, use the Dragon Trapping Formation to lock onto the Wolf King, and execute the decapitation. But I need two people to help me restrain the two guard wolves."

The Ice Soul Sword on Chu Xin's lap glowed with a faint blue light: "I am good at hit-and-run tactics, and I can keep one side occupied." The hideous claw mark on her face was even more pronounced in the firelight.

Lin Zhao had already drawn her Qingfeng sword. The blade was smooth and warm, reflecting her delicate features: "Count me in."

Gao Yuan looked at Wu Laodao, who had been silent all along.

The old Taoist stroked his long, white beard. "With the support of my formation, Li Hao's heavy shield defense should be fine. With Cheng Jin and Pharmacist Chen providing support from the side, the four of us can hold off the wolf pack for half an hour. I'm confident."

On the third day, everyone had gathered in the center of the camp. Gao Yuan took out a jade bottle, the bottle faintly emitting a blood-red halo.

He solemnly handed it to Pharmacist Chen: "This is a Blood Fiend Pill made from the blood essence of the wolf demon yesterday. It can disrupt its mind and drive it mad. I'll leave the rest of the arrangements to Pharmacist Chen."

He then took out a thick stack of talismans from his storage bag, their various colors of spiritual light swirling in the morning mist. "Here are one hundred and twenty talismans; please take what you need."

Gao Yuan distributed the talismans to everyone, his expression solemn. "If the plan changes, don't be stingy with the talismans; saving your life is the most important thing."

Lin Zhao took a stack of talismans, his fingertips touching the warm spiritual energy fluctuations on the talisman paper.

He looked up at the distant valley. The previous battles were just appetizers; today's battle was the real demon hunt.

This time, Wu Laodao chose a new location as the new formation site, while Gao Yuan, Chu Xin, and Lin Zhao rested and recuperated not far from the formation.

Cheng Jin then changed into a wolf skin stained with wolf blood, attempting to attract the wolf pack, but only a few old wolves fell for the trick until the sun was high in the sky.

It wasn't until noon, when the sun was blazing, that a deafening wolf howl suddenly echoed from outside the valley.

More than sixty Wind Howling Wolves surged in like a tide, but the wolf king and his guards were nowhere to be seen.

Old Wu's expression was solemn as he rapidly spun the array plate in his hand. He only activated the array when Cheng Jin entered its range. The white light screen of the array instantly rose up, barely trapping the thirty-odd wolf demons at the forefront. The array was powerless against the remaining wolf demons.

Li Hao gripped the giant shield tightly, emitting a dazzling spiritual light, drawing the attention of the wolf demons within the array's range. Cheng Jin watched as the remaining thirty-odd wolf demons outside the array frantically spewed wind blades. The array's light barrier fluctuated violently under the continuous attacks, and he quickly used the magical artifact, the bronze seal, to block some of the wind blades.

Just then, Pharmacist Chen flicked his wrist, and two Blood Fiend Pills transformed into blood-red streams of light, landing precisely in the center of the wolf pack outside the formation.