"Hold!"
Qi Yuanwu raised his hand sharply, his voice commanding.
"What's wrong, Brother Qi?" Li Feizhang asked, noticing the grave expression on Qi Yuanwu's face.
"Do you hear that?" Qi Yuanwu replied, his brows furrowed.
"Hear what?" Li Feizhang looked confused, as did many of the soldiers from Yun zhang and Lanlin Counties.
It wasn't until Li Feizhang silenced himself and focused that he caught the faint, rustling sound emanating from the depths of the canyon.
There was something—or someone—approaching, fast.
As the sound grew louder, more soldiers began to notice it too. It wasn't just rustling; faint, guttural growls accompanied it. The noises carried a cold, eerie quality that set them apart from the sounds of ordinary mountain predators.
"L-Leader Li… look over there! What's that?"
A soldier from Yunzhang County, gripping his shield tightly, pointed toward the darkness ahead.
