The white ape led the troop of monkeys, rushing out of the werewolf encirclement at a breakneck pace. Whenever blocked, he sliced through with his blade creating a bloody path.
With still over twenty miles from the Cloud Mist Mountain Range and werewolves chasing from behind, the white ape couldn't afford to stop even for a moment. Hanging from the back and acting as a rearguard, he protected the group as they sprinted forward.
Halfway through, a sudden heatwave struck, sweeping past. After a brief moment of chaos, the monkeys continued forward, rushing into the mountain range.
No one paid it any attention.
The monkeys leapt through the underbrush, and the white ape followed closely. He furrowed his brows, a strange trepidation striking his heart at the thought of the hot wind before entering the mountains.
Something wasn't right!
By then, the pursuers had disappeared, and though the troop of monkeys had run far, the white ape's sense of foreboding suddenly intensified, his expression growing terribly grave.
I hope I'm just overthinking!
Otherwise...…
?
While lost in thought, the white ape suddenly caught a glimpse of something crimson from the corner of his eye. Taking a closer look, his pupils shrank to the size of needlepoints.
"Come back!"
"Stop... quickly, stop!"
The white ape cried out in panic, but the leading scouts continued their frantic run, completely oblivious.
The white ape's face instantly flushed with urgency. Rushing to stand up, he sprinted to the front of the troop.
The two scouts continued to run swiftly.
The white ape blocked their path and shouted fiercely, "Stop... I told you to stop, did you hear!"
"Why stop, the werewolves will catch up soon!"
"Escaping is most critical!"
"Get out of the way!"
At this life-or-death moment, the monkeys actually disobeyed the commands.
Furious to the point of trembling, the white ape kicked them away one by one, then, grabbing them, turned their heads toward the horizon.
The sky above was ablaze, a huge plume of smoke rising, enveloping the visibly hot waves.
Frantic, the white ape held the stunned scouts and roared, "Open your monkey eyes and look! What is that? Do you want to lead all the monkeys to death?"
At this point, the monkeys also stopped, all in a panic and completely at a loss.
The white ape felt panic too but couldn't show it, for he was now the backbone and the sole guide for the monkeys.
Now, with the wildfire devouring the forest and werewolves lurking behind, the monkeys had reached a dead-end.
But it was precisely this pause that made them miss the best chance to escape the mount.
By the time the white ape finally made up his mind to lead the monkey troop in a desperate break out, the wildfire, fanned by a hurricane, swept over them quickly from a distance.
"Ah!"
"Save me!"
"White ape!!!"
The troop of monkeys fell into utter chaos amidst the flames, scrambling in all directions. Fortunately, the white ape was close by, breaking off a large tree limb to sweep away the flames, providing them a momentary respite from the crisis.
However, the surrounding fires raged wildly, driven by the mountain winds, and once again enveloped the monkeys in the center.
"Don't panic, get the little ones to the middle!"
The air was filled with the stench of char, the monkeys were silently desperate, with only the white ape still shouting, holding a burning large tree, sweeping across to carve a makeshift path outward for the troop.
He roared loudly, "Run... get out that way!"
This roar exploded like thunder in the ears of the monkeys, startling them awake; they then instinctively followed the path he had created.
Huff... huff...
Suddenly, the fire surged from both sides, once again surrounding the monkeys, burning fiercely and much hotter than usual.
And this was just the periphery; the fire's origin had to be even more terrifying.
The white ape dared not imagine further, focusing solely on clearing a path for the monkeys, though his strength was finite—he wasn't a god and couldn't keep going forever.
He couldn't remain unscathed in the fire either.
By then his body hair had been singed off, leaving him slick and the monkeys no better off.
Some of the smaller monkeys were already showing signs of dehydration and unconsciousness. No matter how protective he was, they were ultimately too frail.
"Don't stop..... cough... run!"
The white ape coughed violently, feeling as if his throat was burning up. The tree branch he held swung with much less force than before.
The fire raged fiercely.
The space left for the troop of monkeys was getting smaller and smaller.
Three meters...
One meter...
Bang~
The werewolf swooped in fiercely, and the white ape's eyes widened in fury, "Ahhh... open the way!"
Boom!
Perhaps heaven hadn't closed all paths for monkeys; this time when he swept his gaze, he surprisingly found a crevice hidden in the fierce flames.
A glimmer of hope for life reignited in his heart, "Quick...quick... take cover... cough cough... get inside!"
His throat was torn and blood clots were spat out as the white ape lifted monkeys one by one, throwing them into the crevice.
Only after all his companions had taken cover did he get up, dragging his body, which had been scorched and flayed, into the crevice while exhaling a breath of scorching air.
...
The sudden quiet was terrifying.
And there was a horrifying fluctuation of demonic energy.
Not good!
The white ape shot up, twisting his severely wounded body around to see a werewolf, dressed in a spotted green monk's robe and holding a flaming double-edged cloud halberd, coldly watching him.
When he saw the werewolf's face, the white ape stiffened, his blood feeling like it had frozen, "Saber...Saber Wolf...Saber Wolf Sect leader!"
Hisss~
Irrepressibly, the entire troop of monkeys inhaled sharply.
Even in the midst of a sea of flames, they felt a chilling cold, as if their very souls had frozen.
It was him!
It was him!
The one who had hunted their kind for hundreds of years, whose hands had killed their ancestors.
That monk's robe.
That fiery cloud halberd!
Both were the troop's unforgettable, never-ending nightmare.
It really was fate playing tricks on monkeys; having just escaped the sea of flames, they delivered themselves into the wolf's grip, and this time the troop was truly doomed.
Not just the monkeys were in despair; even the white ape had given up resisting.
The leader of the Saber Wolf Sect was too powerful, so powerful that you saw no hope for life, only to close your eyes and wait for death, with no other choice.
Unless...
A miracle occurred!
In the crevice, the leader of the Saber Wolf Sect sat cross-legged, coldly watching this group of monkeys that had suddenly burst in.
If it had been any other time, without a second word, he would have ended them with a single strike.
But not now, for he was wounded, and the demon that had injured him was still wandering nearby; moving now would reveal his position.
He couldn't make a move.
These damned monkeys!
Let them live a while longer.
Once I've healed...
"Haha...haha...you... are definitely dead!"
Just as his thoughts were scattering, a triumphant laugh suddenly sounded from afar, and the leader of the Saber Wolf Sect's expression tightened, instantly turning unsightly.
"Hahahaha!"
"Leader of the Saber Wolf Sect... save me!"
The brash-faced man kept shouting and gloating, utterly unaware that he had drawn the attention of the demon that was now rapidly approaching this location.
As the presence neared, the leader of the Saber Wolf Sect hidden in the crevice could no longer hold back, and, mounting the blazing flames, soared into the sky.
Outside the sea of flames.
Watching the figure of the leader of the Saber Wolf Sect floating in the air, the brash-faced man laughed triumphantly, "Hahaha...how about that, are you scared now!"