Gao Wu: I became the minor villain that the protagonist was about to destroy.

In the Green Grassland Secret Realm's dense forest, the thick canopy almost completely obscured the afterglow of the setting sun. Only scattered spots of light pierced through the gaps, sprinkling onto the haphazardly lying wolf demon corpses. The air was thick with an overwhelming stench of blood.

"Pfft!"

Chu Yu flicked her wrist, and the longsword, gleaming with a cold light, was precisely pulled from the throat of a wolf demon, leaving a trail of blood.

"Huff...huff..."

Chu Yu was slightly out of breath, her high chest heaving, and beads of sweat appearing on her smooth forehead. After looking around and confirming that there was no more sound, she finally relaxed, propped her long sword on the ground, and let out a long breath of exhaustion.

"Phew... That was close. When I was surrounded by so many demonic wolves, I really thought I was going to die here today."

Mo Ling, standing to the side, deftly wiped the blood off her short blade with the wolf demon's fur. Hearing this, she looked up, revealing a pretty face still showing lingering fear: "Who says otherwise? This pack of wolves came too suddenly, and there were so many of them. They were also very coordinated and fierce. They were much more difficult to deal with than those clumsy demon sheep we hunted before."

"We really have to thank Xiao Yi and Lin Yue this time."

Yun Ni's voice carried a hint of lazy laughter. She walked to Xiao Yi's side and naturally nudged his arm with her elbow, her beautiful eyes sparkling with mischievousness.

"Especially you, Xiao Yiyi, those few moves at crucial moments were so fast and accurate. Such physical abilities aren't something an ordinary E-level meridian type can cultivate. Come on, tell your sister honestly, what meridian do you have?"

Xiao Yi was somewhat embarrassed by her sudden closeness and direct question. His cheeks flushed slightly, and his eyes darted around, unable to meet her gaze. His throat felt dry. Could he really say that his meridians were naturally the opposite of ordinary people, a rare reverse meridian type, and that his true meridians were even an SS-level converging meridian type? If this secret were to be revealed, who knew what kind of trouble it would cause?

"Yun Ni".

Lin Yue's calm voice rang out. While checking the blade of his longsword, he said without looking up, "Everyone has their own secrets and unavoidable circumstances. Why pry?"

Yun Ni, however, seemed to have discovered something interesting. Instead of restraining herself, she took another half step forward, almost touching Xiao Yi. A faint, sweet fragrance wafted into Xiao Yi's nose. Her voice was low and alluring: "But... I'm very curious, you know. The more I'm told not to ask, the more I want to know. What should I do?"

Warm breath brushed past his ear, and Xiao Yi's heart began to race involuntarily. His blood seemed to rush to his head, and his mind went blank, leaving only one thought: This is simply... far too... incredibly... difficult. Using this to test cadres.

Just as Xiao Yi felt his mental defenses were about to collapse, Yun Ni, like a light butterfly, gracefully stepped back a few paces. Seeing his flushed face and flustered appearance, she couldn't help but burst out laughing, her face full of a mischievous grin.

"Alright, Yunyun, stop teasing Xiao Yi."

Looking at this scene, Chu Yu shook his head helplessly and smiled, "Everyone, hurry up and pack up the spoils. It's getting late, and we must leave this area before dark. Lately, my dad has been nagging me every day, saying that the secret realm is becoming more and more dangerous, and that I must be careful and go home on time. I'm so tired of hearing it."

Mo Ling nodded in deep agreement, packing the useful magical wolf materials into her bag while complaining, "Xiao Yu, you're alright. My dad is even more outrageous. He almost wouldn't let me go out to train. He said the spirit crystals in the family storeroom are piled up like a small mountain, isn't that enough for your cultivation? Why do you have to go out and risk your life? Honestly..."

Lin Yue sheathed his longsword, his expression grave. He glanced at the corpses of the wolf demons scattered on the ground and said in a deep voice, "Chu Yu, Mo Ling, your father's words are not without reason. Recently, too many students have indeed died in the secret realm. Although the official records all show that they died at the hands of demons, don't you think that this number of deaths... is a bit too abnormal? There's probably more to this than meets the eye."

He had barely finished speaking—

"Aaaaaah—!!!"

A heart-wrenching scream, filled with despair and pain, suddenly pierced the brief silence from the depths of the dense forest!

"alert!"

The five men's expressions changed simultaneously. They instantly formed a simple defensive formation back-to-back, drawing their weapons once more and warily scanning the surrounding dark woods. Lin Yue frowned, listened intently for a moment, and quickly pointed in a direction: "The sound is coming from the three o'clock direction, not far away!"

The group exchanged glances, all seeing the surprise and determination in each other's eyes. Without the slightest hesitation, the five of them exerted their strength simultaneously, their figures darting out like cheetahs, rushing towards the direction from which the screams came. Their steps were light and swift, making almost no sound on the thick layer of fallen leaves.

As they passed through a dense thicket of bushes, the sight before them made the five men's hearts sink!

In a small clearing in the woods, the scene was utterly gruesome. Three mangled human corpses lay on the ground, limbs and torsos scattered everywhere. Only two wounded, ragged men remained, back to back, making their final struggles. Their weapons were dulled, their bodies covered in deep, bone-revealing claw marks, and they were almost completely soaked in blood.

Surrounding them were seven extremely bizarre demonic wolves! These demonic wolves were larger than ordinary wolf demons, their eyes flashing with an ominous, murky red light, and thick saliva dripping from their mouths.

What's most chilling is that they seem to have completely lost the sense of pain! A man's longsword had clearly pierced the neck of a demonic wolf, almost severing its head in half, but the wolf seemed completely oblivious, still frantically attacking; another demonic wolf had its abdomen ripped open, its intestines dragging on the ground, yet it still launched its attacks tirelessly with stiff, puppet-like movements, like a zombie wolf crawling out of its grave!

In addition to the strong smell of blood, the air was filled with a nauseating, eerie odor, like that of a rotting corpse.

Lin Yue shouted, "Everyone, be careful!"

As he spoke, Lin Yue took the lead and quickly rushed towards the seven demonic wolves. Just as the demonic wolves were about to end the man's life with a bite, Lin Yue suddenly swung his right fist.

"Bang--!!"

This punch sent the pouncing wolf flying, the powerful force causing the wolf's body to cave in before it crashed heavily to the ground.

However, to Lin Yue's astonishment, the wolf's body was clearly twisted and folded in half, a situation in which no creature could survive. Yet, the wolf, which had just been knocked away, stood up again in the same twisted and folded manner.