My strongest card was Jizan. The demonic weapon held a power even the King of Wolves could not completely overco. I had to stop Fenrir with nothing but this single club.
How?
Damn it. If I knew how, I’d be the regressor instead.
There was only one thing I could do.
I twisted Jizan diagonally, creating a barrier that stretched from Fenrir’s shoulder to his side, forcing him to shift his center of gravity if he wanted to pass.
This left him with two choices: either he would have to maneuver around Jizan to attack or charge through it and strike anyway.
If he had chosen the first option, I would have been in trouble. Even with the elixir’s enhancent, if I clashed more than twice with an overwhelmingly stronger opponent, I’d die. Maybe if Azzy or soone else intervened in ti, things would be different—but that was out of my control.
Instead, I gambled on Fenrir’s reckless ferocity.
“Keeng...!”
Without slowing at all, he crashed straight into Jizan.
The sheer force of his montum transford into a devastating impact, shaking Fenrir’s entire body.
At the sa ti, an equally violent shock struck .
His extended paw grazed my shoulder—
The mont the image burned itself into my retina, my vision blacked out.
A crushing pain spread across my back and ribs, forcing into violent convulsions.
When I ca to, I was sprawled upside-down, far from where I had originally stood.
I had anticipated this outco. I had reacted.
And I had won the psychological battle with Jizan.
But the difference in stakes was too great.
Fenrir had been willing to endure a re scratch, while his single strike had left my body broken.
Agony tore through my side like I’d been ripped open. My left arm had gone completely numb.
At the very least, I still held onto Jizan. But if Fenrir pushed the attack any further...
Whether I won or lost, my life would be the price.
“Woof! Woof woof!”
Azzy barked furiously as she lunged at him.
She clung to him, giving him no space to shake her off, attacking relentlessly.
“Fight !”
But Fenrir had wised up.
Now, he was using against her.
The mont a slight gap opened between them, he broke away and charged straight at .
Azzy, startled, scrambled to intercept him—
That was exactly what he wanted.
Fenrir twisted his head at the last mont, sending her off-balance before pinning her down.
“You’re useless now, dog. Without your ferocity, you’re nothing but a hindrance.”
“Woof woof! Don’t run away!”
If she let go, I would die.
Azzy realized this. Even as she lay pinned, she dug her claws into Fenrir, holding on for dear life.
But in that position, she couldn’t counterattack.
Fenrir, as if he had been waiting for this, imdiately slamd his paw into her face.
Thud.
Azzy’s body sank an inch into the dirt.
Still pressing down on her, Fenrir spoke.
“Humans turn dogs into tools. That is their violence. They want to make a dog—ta , use .”
“Woof! Woof! Kiing...!”
“If they want to use , they will have to surpass my violence first.”
Thud. Thud. Thud.
With every strike of his paw, the ground trembled.
Even as she was driven deeper into the earth, Azzy never let go.
She knew—if she did, I would die.
And Fenrir knew this too, so he kept attacking.
“Awooooo! Violence is not just for humans!”
Blood trickled from Azzy’s mouth.
Fenrir was about to strike again, rcilessly.
Jizan spun through the air.
Not an overwhelming attack, but enough to be an obstruction.
Fenrir lowered his body to dodge, giving Azzy just enough ti to shove him off and escape.
He had lost the advantage.
But Fenrir had figured out where Jizan had co from.
And he knew—I had nothing left to protect myself.
Panting, I locked eyes with him.
Between us, there was nothing left.
Fenrir bared his fangs and lunged.
“Yeah... This is what it ans to fight for survival.”
And then—
A hazy, ghost-like shadow suddenly appeared.
Two dagger-like blades snapped together—one aid at Fenrir’s head, the other at his throat.
Sensing danger, Fenrir’s tail bristled.
He yanked his body away midair, narrowly dodging the strike.
But Grull’s daggers elongated like serpents, leaving two red gashes across Fenrir’s body.
Blood splattered into the air.
“Grrrrr...!”
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
Fenrir growled as he bared his fangs at the unexpected intruder.
Grull, his ambush having failed, simply grinned.
“Politics, diplomacy, and all that nonsense—none of it suits . Fighting to survive? Now that, I can get behind. Simple. Straightforward.”
Grull of the Beast Faction.
The one who had justified his neutrality with logic, yet spent his ti loitering on the sidelines—had finally joined the battle.
What was with that smug attitude when he was late?
“You’re late...”
“You held out, didn’t you? You’re still alive.”
As he casually answered, Fenrir lunged at him.
A speed befitting the King of Beasts.
An attack so fast that ordinary internal energy cultivators would struggle to react.
But—
Grull simply vanished.
His form flickered and faded like an illusion, and Fenrir’s attack hit nothing.
“I have to pick my ground carefully against the King of Wolves.”
To call it speed didn’t quite fit.
No matter how agile soone was, they still needed to step on the ground, extend their legs.
But Grull—
He moved without lifting his feet. Without shifting his stance.
He simply slid.
And in that mont, he outpaced Fenrir.
“While you and the King of Dogs fought, I’ve marked every piece of land here. In this territory, I am the fastest.”
Grull stepped.
It was as if the earth itself propelled him forward.
One second, he was gone—
The next, he was behind Fenrir.
Fenrir spun to counter, but Grull had already predicted it, moving diagonally as he slashed with his daggers.
Common sense dictated that a re human could never match the King of Beasts.
But those who grasped reason could transcend common sense.
Fenrir, who had barely sustained any wounds against Azzy, was now accumulating injuries.
‘Even daggers imbued with internal energy barely cut him... If he were a normal wolf, I would have sliced him to pieces.’
Even as he pressed the attack, Grull remained tense.
Had his opponent been human, he would have decapitated ten n by now.
Yet Fenrir, despite being slashed, remained defiant, his fierce eyes locked onto Grull.
‘He doesn’t flinch from pain. He doesn’t fear injury. That’s a problem.’
For the briefest mont, Grull’s assault let up.
And in that instant—
Fenrir lunged like a lightning bolt.
Grull instinctively used his ground manipulation to evade, teleporting thirty ters away—
Yet he staggered the mont he landed.
Even with that split-second escape, Fenrir’s claws had grazed him.
‘If not for my technique, I wouldn’t have been able to keep up. If I wasn’t in tune with reason... I’d be nothing but a at shield.’
And even that might not be enough.
“Awooooo!”
Grull's Ground Leveling technique allowed for rapid short-distance movent, but it required pre-marked terrain, making it unsuitable for long-range escapes. He had prepared about 500 ters of ground—aning the battle had to be decided before he exhausted his domain.
Yet, the gap in raw power was undeniable.
Coating his entire body in internal energy, Grull slashed at the charging Fenrir.
Fenrir instantly lowered his body, slipping inside the strike’s range.
Grull attempted to knee him upward, then slam him down midair—but Fenrir was faster.
The wolf’s jaws clamped down on his knee.
It was common knowledge that a wolf’s bite was powerful.
Grull, startled, unleashed a surge of energy to shake him off before using Ground Leveling to retreat.
Cold sweat trickled down his back.
‘Crude, unrefined, and yet... its sheer force alone is overwhelming.’
And then—Fenrir’s head snapped toward him.
He lunged without hesitation.
Grull’s spine went rigid.
It was his third ti witnessing Ground Leveling, and in that brief exchange, Fenrir had already adapted.
He was now predicting where Grull would flee.
Grull braced for impact—
“Woof woof woof!”
Azzy suddenly appeared, biting Fenrir.
Fenrir imdiately grabbed her fur and slamd her into the ground.
But in that split second, Grull had already launched forward, forcing Fenrir to retreat several steps.
‘Without the King of Dogs, this fight would be impossible. Now I see why no one dares fight without her.’
At least Grull could fight in this chaos.
Other warriors of the Beast Faction were locked in battle with the wolves.
Baskerville and the High Priest had engaged the regressor.
This was the best opportunity I’d get.
I forced my trembling body to rise.
The pain was excruciating. My head spun.
But the elixir’s effects were undeniable.
My limbs moved fluidly, almost unnaturally so.
Tomorrow was going to be hell.
While the battle raged on, I retrieved Jizan.
Ti to prepare my final trap for Fenrir.
The fight continued.
With Ground Leveling boosting Grull and Azzy attacking relentlessly, Fenrir was gradually being pushed back.
Whenever he focused on one, the other struck from his blind spot.
The coordinated assault began leaving its mark.
But we all knew.
‘We’re missing a decisive blow! At this rate, the fight will never end!’
I couldn’t read their thoughts, but Fenrir and Azzy likely felt the sa.
That was why Fenrir had tried to use as bait against her earlier.
Yes.
We lacked an attack powerful enough to tear through fur and pierce deep—an attack that could bring down even the King of Beasts.
A supre principle, a devastating spell, or an artifact like Tianying.
And Jizan... was in my hands.
It had to be .
“Wolf. Accept your defeat.”
He had used as bait before, hadn’t he?
Now it was my turn.
I had to lure Fenrir in.
“You are the King of Beasts, the embodint of their ferocity... But you know it, don’t you? Humans already rule this world.”
Fenrir’s ears twitched.
He had taken human form to communicate with us.
I used that to my advantage and kept talking.
“A single pig beastman who grasped reason is nearly matching you in battle. Even without internal energy, humans could create spells or weapons to strike you down.
One city’s military force alone is as strong as your entire pack.
If a nation’s king marched with his army, your wolves would be wiped out in an instant.”
The battle briefly paused.
Fenrir, despite the more imdiate threats, locked his eyes onto .
“If you can’t win, then surrendering is an option too.
Azzy might seem like an idiot, but she’s actually quite wise.”
“Woof? Idiot?”
“Yes. Being an idiot is how she beca man’s best friend.”
Azzy’s tail stopped wagging as a confused question mark seed to float over her head.
Then, Fenrir bared his fangs and snarled.
“You’re telling to run just because they’re strong? To keep my fangs hidden, my claws sheathed?
Human, is that what you do? Do you suppress your ferocity?”
“No. I don’t have to. [N O V E L I G H T] I am human.”
If human strength was superior, then it was my strength.
And in a way, I had already surrendered, just enough to survive.
“But you are a wolf.
No matter how hard you try, you will never surpass humanity.
Survival should co first.
If living ans pulling out your fangs and clipping your claws—if abandoning your ferocity keeps you alive—then isn’t that the better choice?”
“Then—”
Fenrir stomped the ground.
Too fast.
Grull and Azzy both failed to react in ti.
The King of Wolves darted straight at , his body low, his movent sleek and deadly.
“Then make !
Rip out my fangs!
Cut off my claws!
Tear away my ferocity and ta !
If you can break my violence—
Then turn into your dog!!”
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