The tall, thin man was still holding one end of the tripwire, but his gaze was fixed on Fang Zhen, his brow deeply furrowed.
"Who are you? And what's with that bizarre outfit?"
"And what is that thing you're riding? Why are you in the Land of Rest?"
"If you don't start talking, you're not walking out of this forest."
Fang Zhen sneered.
"It's not your place to ask who I am. First, let
teach you so manners!"
He brandished his spear and charged forward.
The tall, thin man was furious.
Though the tall, thin man was unsure of Fang Zhen's origins, he spoke with a condescending, interrogative tone.
Fang Zhen had noticed it too.
'This kind of person won't understand a thing until you beat so sense into them.'
Fang Zhen quickened his pace, rapidly charging toward the tall, thin man.
The tall, thin man roared, tossing aside the tripwire. He reached into a leather pouch at his waist and pulled out a translucent, crystalline object that resembled a small animal figurine.
The object was about the size of a finger, made of a material that looked like glass or even solid water. It was shaped like a wild wolf, quite finely carved. It resembled the Tiger Talismans used by ancient armies, only this one was whole.p>The tall, thin man held up the object, muttered a few words, and abruptly threw the carved "crystal" wolf forward.
As the crystal wolf was thrown into the air, a stream of cyan light swirled across its surface before erupting into a brilliant flash.
Before Fang Zhen's very eyes, the crystal wolf rapidly expanded in mid-air. In an instant, it transford into a real wolf, its body shimring with a cyan glow. It looked like a hologram, yet it had substance, like a living creature.
The mont the "crystal" wolf landed, it glared nacingly at Fang Zhen, kicked off the ground, and lunged at him.
Fang Zhen was startled.
'Crystal Bone!'
In that instant, he understood. So this was a Crystal Bone.
By then, the "crystal" wolf was already pouncing on him.
The wolf was massive, far larger than a normal one. It was nearly six feet long, and its back reached above a man's waist.
He had no idea how much it weighed, but taking a direct hit from that pounce would be devastating.
The wolf bared its ghastly white fangs at Fang Zhen.
Fang Zhen remained fearless in the face of danger.
He had only been surprised because he'd never seen a Crystal Bone before.
But when it ca to a real fight, he wasn't afraid.
With a flick of his wrist, he brought his spear up horizontally before him.
His full plate armor didn't hinder his fighting ability in the slightest.
Spear in hand, he anchored it with his right hand and guided it with his left. After a slight adjustnt to his stance, he executed a fierce fundantal thrust.
The spear shot out like a swift, silver-white python, aid straight for the Crystal Bone Wild Wolf's abdon.
There's a saying about wolves: "a head of copper, a back of iron, and a waist of tofu," which is to say their belly is their weak point.
Fang Zhen didn't know if the saying held true for a Crystal Bone Wild Wolf, but it was never a mistake to aim for the stomach first.
The spear tip flashed like lightning, striking the Crystal Bone Wild Wolf's flank in an instant.
Fang Zhen felt the impact through his spear. It was like piercing tough leather armor—there was resistance, but he could break through.
He put more force into it, driving the spear tip deeper.
The Crystal Bone Wild Wolf let out a cry of pain, just like a real animal.
Even a Crystal Bone Wild Wolf could feel pain. It twisted in mid-air, trying to wrench its belly off the spearhead.
But Fang Zhen's enhanced senses had already predicted the Crystal Bone Wild Wolf's attempt to escape.
His spear was like a relentless shadow of death, tracking the Crystal Bone Wild Wolf's every twist and turn.
A soul-stealing thrust. The Crystal Bone Wild Wolf had just wrenched itself free, but before it could even land firmly on the ground, the spearhead had already plunged into its neck.
The Crystal Bone Wild Wolf let out a wretched howl, its neck pierced clean through.
The feedback from the spear didn't feel like killing a creature of flesh and blood. It was more like piercing through many layers of thick parchnt, or perhaps a heavy-duty tire, where the resistance was uniform throughout.
It seed the Crystal Bone Wild Wolf had no true weak points; its entire body was ford of energy.
But even as a being of energy, it was still susceptible to physical attacks.
The Crystal Bone Wild Wolf was pinned to the ground, struggling frantically. But Fang Zhen held the spear as steady as a mountain. The wolf's struggles were useless. The cyan light flowing over its body began to dim, and its form grew faint, turning transparent.
Before long, the Crystal Bone Wild Wolf's light faded completely.
Fang Zhen felt the resistance from the struggling wolf vanish through his spear. In the next mont, the wolf disappeared, and the finger-sized Crystal Bone Wild Wolf figurine fell from where the creature's heart had been, landing in the dirt.
"My Crystal Bone!" the tall, thin man cried out, shocked and heartbroken. He lunged forward as if to snatch the Crystal Bone Wild Wolf figurine from the ground.
Fang Zhen swept his spear backhanded. At this range, the shaft of the weapon struck the tall, thin man across the neck.
The tall, thin man could summon a Crystal Bone Wild Wolf, but his own physical strength was rather weak. He was knocked to the ground by the blow and imdiately fell silent, enjoying the sleep of a baby on the forest floor.
Seeing this, the short, stout man behind them let out a furious roar, pulling out a Crystal Bone figurine of his own and hurling it at Fang Zhen.
This man's Crystal Bone figurine was a wild boar, roughly the sa size as the wolf's.
As the figurine flew through the air, it rapidly transford into an enormous wild boar, shimring with the sa cyan light.
This boar was even larger than the wolf, over six and a half feet long, with sharp tusks and a savage face. It let out a terrifying squeal before its hooves even touched the ground.
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