NCCnovel Chapter 457 How to Escape
Chapter 457 How to Escape
Chapter 457
The situation in the woods was critical. Ye Yunzhou stood in the direction of the carriage's departure, single-handedly blocking the wolves. Without any worries, his attacks became more fierce, his sword blade dancing like a silver snake.
After just a few rounds, two wolves fell at his feet, their blood splattering the dry leaves. Seeing this, the rest of the pack's eyes flashed with alarm. Wolves are cunning by nature, and seeing their companions' tragic deaths, they were tempted to retreat and unconsciously inched back. However, the animal attractant powder in the air continued to stimulate them, making them restless. Although afraid, they were unwilling to leave and let out a series of unwilling low howls.
Ye Yunzhou was quite familiar with wolves. Living in packs, they were both united and patient, making them extremely difficult beasts to deal with. With just a few of them, it would be difficult to force them back. While the wolves, frightened by his fierce attack, temporarily held back, he quickly scanned his surroundings, plotting a plan for escape.
Turning his head, Ye Yunzhou saw the bonfires burning brightly around him. While wolves were naturally afraid of fire, these animals were quite intelligent and could nimbly avoid it, so they weren't particularly afraid. However, if burning wood were swept toward the wolves, the intimidating flames would surely scare them away.
But the dilemma he faced now was that he couldn't retreat even a single step - if he made the slightest movement, the pack of wolves that were watching him would pounce on him immediately.
While he was thinking this, several guards who had entered the forest to search earlier came out of the woods, supporting each other and staggering out with injuries all over their bodies.
Wild beasts crave blood, and the scent of blood instantly filled the air. Several wolves' noses twitched constantly, and low, excited howls emanated from their throats, clearly aroused by the strong smell of blood. The ferocity in their eyes intensified, and they were about to drop their guard and pounce again.
Seeing this, Ye Yunzhou waved slightly to the guards, indicating that they should go around to the side and gather behind him as soon as possible.
The guards who had previously gone deep into the woods saw the wolves lurking at the old site of the camp from afar as they passed through the dense forest. They all stopped in their tracks, their faces full of hesitation and fear.
Until they saw Ye Yunzhou waving, they exchanged glances. The injured guards gritted their teeth, enduring the excruciating pain from their wounds. A thought struck them: "We're going to die anyway, so we might as well fight this time!" Then, supporting each other, they stumbled and ran towards Ye Yunzhou.
Ye Yunzhou didn't dare to look back, for fear that any movement would provoke a counterattack from the wolves.
Only after the chaotic yet steady footsteps behind him stopped did he lower his voice and command, "Those who can hold on, grit their teeth and persevere! Disperse immediately and go to the campfire to get torches!"
These guards were all veterans of the battlefield. Although they had been attacked and mauled by the wolves due to a moment of carelessness, their years of training had enabled them to remain calm even when wounded. Upon hearing the order, they sprang into action without further ado.
The guard with a leg injury limped forward, and the one with bleeding arms used one arm to exert force, retreating in a fan shape in tacit coordination.
They hurried toward the campfire and gathered together around the crackling torches.
Ye Yunzhou's eyes were as bright as torches, and he signaled everyone to place the torches in front of them.
When the burning fire beams formed a fan-shaped barrier, the wolves began to growl anxiously. A few wolves dug the ground anxiously, with a mixture of ferocity and fear in their amber pupils.
Seeing the fire attack was effective, hope ignited in the guards' eyes. Without waiting for Ye Yunzhou's next order, they turned back and rushed to the bonfire, pulling out all the unburned firewood. Along the way, they also grabbed dead branches and stuffed them into the fire to make it burn more vigorously.
Soon, dozens of torches formed a wall of fire before the group, the dancing flames lighting the forest ablaze. The leader pawed at the ground anxiously, while the rest of the pack retreated repeatedly, their earlier ferocity suppressed by the flames.
"Retreat slowly and don't lose your composure!" Ye Yunzhou glanced at the guards' trembling wrists and knew that they were running out of strength.
The smell of blood mixed with the aroma of burning wood filled the air, stimulating the wolves to make more moves.
Suddenly, the leader wolf howled loudly towards the sky, the sound waves tearing through the night sky, and in response, the howling of wolves came one after another in the distance - the reinforcements of the wolf pack were approaching.
"There is a stream three miles to the left. Retreat in that direction!" Ye Yunzhou gave the order without hesitation, swung his sword to cut off the dead branches beside him and threw them into the fire. The fire immediately grew rapidly.
The guards immediately turned around, holding torches as they fought and retreated. The gravel under their feet kept slipping, and the footsteps of the wolves behind them were getting closer and closer.
A guard with a serious leg injury suddenly stumbled and fell. Ye Yunzhou turned around and pulled him up, while his sword forced back the wolf leader.
The leader wolf wasn't so lucky this time. It couldn't dodge, and Ye Yunzhou's sword pierced its eyes fiercely. The leader wolf shrank back in pain, letting out a shrill howl, and the front half of its body fell heavily to the ground.
Seeing this, Ye Yunzhou quickly drew his sword. While the wolf leader was still recovering from the shock, he plunged his sword into its other eye. This flexible sword had a slender blade, making it easy to carry. While it could cut through iron like mud, the wolf leader's stature and tough fur made piercing it completely difficult. Therefore, severely injuring its eyes, thus depriving the pack of its leader, was the best strategy at the moment.
Sure enough, when the wolves saw their leader injured, they immediately lost their composure and dared not move forward rashly.
Seeing this, the guards, without Ye Yunzhou's orders, threw their torches at the wolves. Some guards even threw their torches directly at the leader of the pack. Flames instantly ignited, and the leader rolled frantically on the ground, trying to extinguish the flames.
The wolves were so frightened by this scene that they retreated one after another.
Everyone no longer hesitated, supported each other, and walked quickly in the direction Ye Yunzhou said.
When they reached the stream, they could no longer hold on and fell to the ground exhausted. Fortunately, the stream formed a natural barrier behind them, so they no longer had to be on guard against wolves attacking from behind. Their tense nerves finally relaxed completely, and they collapsed into the mud.
Ye Yunzhou also breathed a sigh of relief. He glanced at the injured bodies of the people and then took out a packet of medicine powder from his pocket and handed it over: "Sprinkle this powder on the wounds and bandage them as soon as possible. There are many wild beasts in the forest. If we attract other beasts, it will be difficult to escape."
Everyone murmured thanks and trembled as they took the medicine packs. The moment the powder touched the wound, the intense stinging pain made them grimace. But in the blink of an eye, the bleeding wound healed at a speed visible to the naked eye. Everyone was surprised and delighted, and thanked Ye Yunzhou again.
Ye Yunzhou didn't respond, but simply turned his back, keeping his sword in hand as he watched his surroundings. The woods were eerily silent in the night, with only the gurgling of the stream, mixed with the heavy breathing of the crowd, echoing in the air.