“Yes!”

  The deputy clapped his fists together with a shout, then dashed off, startling the man beside him. Yi turned — and shivered three times over. Standing there was the strategist, staring at him, awaiting orders.

  “Uh… old brother, how about you go buy us some latenight snacks?”

  “I… go buy… snacks?”

  The strategist blinked, baffled. Inside, his feelings were mixed — he was a veteran of the Guardian Squad, after all.

  “Yi, I may be weak — well, yes, very weak — but I’m not about to desert. I know you mean well, but isn’t this a bit obvious?”

  “Oh, don’t misunderstand. This is a very important mission!” Yi said earnestly. “Everyone probably hasn’t eaten enough. They’ve worked hard all day — after the battle, we should reward them. For logistics, you’re the one I trust most. Would you do us the honor? This is vital for morale!”

  “…I see. Alright!” The strategist thought it over, then agreed readily.

  “Oh, and put it on my tab.”

  “Got it! On credit… I know!”

  Halfway there, the strategist suddenly muttered, “Hah, he’s out of money, that’s why he sent me. Well, I am rich — tonight’s on me!”

  Back on the wall, with the strategist gone, Yi exhaled in relief. This wasn’t just about treating the troops — Qing had told him to look after the old fellow. Knowing what to do and when was part of their years of teamwork.

  Still, Yi knew in his heart: with only their squad’s strength, victory wouldn’t be easy. Even calling for allied help might not bring aid in time. And this enemy was no simple foe — especially with Master…

  “Ahem!”

  Just as Qing arrived, the elder (Zhǎngzhě，长者), drained of strength, was barely able to stand — yet still maintained her stance, tightly shielding the treasure in her hands.

  “Master (Shīfu，师父)!”

  Seeing this, Qing quickly withdrew one hand to support the elder into a seated position, then asked anxiously, “—Are you alright?”

  “No problem…”

  The elder let out a long breath, forcing out the words in a weak voice, then, after a pause, reminded her, “Be careful!”

  Qing scanned the surroundings. Clearly, the battle had only been temporarily eased — countless exotic beasts (Yìshòu，异兽) were still surging in from the perimeter.

  “What should we do?”

  The female general’s heart grew restless — she feared for her master’s safety, and for most people, this sudden appearance of such a large number of opponents would be a thorny problem. Obviously, relying on the formation alone could only hold the current situation; to win was far from enough.

  Meanwhile, on the city wall, Yi was staring intently at the situation, but gave no orders. The leader of the archery unit, having waited a long time without seeing any action, was puzzled and couldn’t help asking, “Brotherinlaw (dàjiěfū，大姐夫), do you think we can fire now? Big Sis’s (dàjiětóu，大姐头) formation is already active — this is the perfect time for us to act!”

  “—Wait…”

  Not long after answering his subordinate, Yi unexpectedly overruled his own order, drew his bow, and fired an arrow himself. This surprised everyone — the arrow flew as fast as Qing’s racing heart, streaking to the battlefield, passing precisely between the barrier and a bear’s paw, and burying itself deep in the ground.

  “Wuu—”

  The struck beast, a beartype with immense strength, had been about to attack. Yi’s sneak shot startled it badly — it licked its wound, tears welling in its eyes, and roared loudly…

  Then, with a whoosh, the arrow in the ground glowed, suddenly shot up, skimmed past the beast’s eyes, and flew back to the city wall into Yi’s hand.

  Startled again, the bear followed the arrow’s light back with tearfilled eyes, then glared fiercely toward the wall…

  “—Bows down! Stand by!”

  Yi ignored it completely, still wearing that domineering look. At his men’s prompting, he picked up the telescope to check again… and suddenly froze.

  Hey, what are you staring at me for? Keep it up and I’ll take you down!

  The bear’s gaze made Yi’s heart race, but he forced himself to appear calm. After a moment’s hesitation, he gave an unusual order, leaving the soldiers baffled.

  “Yes!”

  The archery leader, wearing a deeply puzzled expression, signaled his men to lower their weapons.

  “—Your captain… she’s going to add a secret art (mìshù，秘术)!”

  After giving the order, Yi looked at the enemy’s figure ahead and said with certainty, “—If she does, her stamina will be drained, which will affect the maintenance of the formation. If we attack rashly now, we might only injure our own.”

  Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Yi reviewed the situation — the arrow’s energy diminished with distance. For ordinary beasts, this level of power was enough, but for those few giantlike beasts, the effect would be minimal.

  “Everyone, conserve your strength and wait for the next move!”

  “Yes!”

  “Here comes the old man!”

  Soon after Yi’s order, the strategist came trotting up the wall, humming a tune, and asked lightly, “—We’ve won?”

  “No— hey… why are you back so soon?” Yi was surprised, blurting it out.

  “—The latenight snacks are ordered. I told them to deliver later, so I came back first,” the strategist replied with a grin.

  “But…”

  “—Come on, you think I’m a threeyearold?”

  The strategist chuckled. “I know you mean well, but with the enemy at the gates, how could I hide away? I may be weak… but I’m still of some use. I’ve eaten more salt than you’ve eaten rice. Besides, even if it’s to the last moment, I’ll stand with everyone to defend our home and our people!”

  He looked seriously at the starry sky, stroking his beard. Seeing this usually idle, selfpreserving elder so reliable at a critical moment, the younger ones couldn’t help but feel respect — this was the resolve a Guardian should have.

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  “—That’s…?”

  Suddenly, the strategist seemed to notice something. “Isn’t that our captain’s secret art?”

  “Mm! That’s right.”

  Yi nodded, sighing. “She’s decided to take a risk. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen Qing’er so impulsive… I hope she can buy us some time.”

  “Time?”

  The strategist glanced at Yi, puzzled. “—Didn’t we not report to the Alliance for reinforcements? What are we waiting for?”

  “Mm… well — I don’t know!”

  Yi shrugged, meeting the strategist’s eyes with a mix of confusion and resolve. “Qing told me so — I think it’s Master’s will. Let’s wait a bit longer!”

  The two stroked their chins, gazing into the distance, hoping for a miracle…

  “Secret Art — Thunder Fang (léiyá，雷牙)!”

  On the battlefield, the enemy army had arrived and was preparing to encircle — though most hung back, hesitant.

  But the bear was already turning, ready to vent its rage. Its face twisted, it slammed both paws against the barrier, light and sound flashing — danger was here!

  Qing’s eyes were full of killing intent, yet she stayed calm, one hand pressed to the barrier, unmoving. The light at her brow flashed faster; she placed her other hand at the glowing point, drew it to her chest, and chanted — the stance for preparing a secret art.

  Green currents of electricity flared over her body, growing brighter and stronger with the rhythm of the light.

  “Wait…” A weak but familiar voice interrupted her — Master!

  “—No, can’t wait!”

  Murmuring to herself, Qing held her stance, defying the voice. “Forgive me, Master! This time your disciple must be rude…”

  Since childhood, Qing had obeyed the elder’s every word. This defiance was perhaps unavoidable — for nearby was a beast even she could barely handle: the Giant Monster (jùguài，巨怪). The timid bear could be ignored.

  The Giant Monster was a beast that should not have appeared here. There was no retreat — only allout attack, for the best defense was offense!

  With glowing fingers, Qing traced an elegant curve in the air. The green aura from her body merged into the current, surging in two directions — one linking with the thunderclouds above to strike down, the other plunging into the earth to erupt like bamboo shoots after rain. The twin currents bit into the enemy like rows of teeth…

  In an instant, beasts large and small fell in droves, including the gleefully pawing bear. The situation suddenly looked brighter.

  “Beautiful!”

  On the wall, Yi clapped in delight.

  “I say, Yi…”

  The strategist, oblivious to the mood, asked a question even he found silly. “—I’ve never understood: why have I never seen our captain use a special skill (juéjì，绝技)?”

  Special skills were abilities Guardians could use only with their exclusive weapons — like the archers’ earlier. Easier to learn than secret arts, they grew stronger as the Guardian advanced, and at third stage could rival a secret art of the same level.

  “I’m… not too sure!”

  “What? You two grew up together — and you don’t know? Aren’t you curious?”

  “Maybe it’s because of her saber. Qing has loved swordsmanship since childhood, so she’s hardly touched a bow, even though we’re famous for it. Master never forced her, and passed all the martial arts manuals to her…”

  “—Awoo!”

  A massive roar shook the area, cutting off their chat. Yi and the strategist looked toward the sound.

  A huge, grayfurred, silverbacked beast stood on the battlefield, seemingly the leader. Far from weakened by the earlier attack, it looked fiercer, its silver back gleaming in the moonlight, eyes glowing an unnatural purple. It pounded its chest and roared, shattering the night’s stillness.

  “That’s—!”

  Their pupils dilated in shock. Why was such a beast among the enemy?

  In Guardian (shǒuhùzhě，守护者) territory lived many exotic beasts (Yìshòu，异兽). Occasionally, attacks occurred — usually from provoked “false corruption” or rare mutations during evolution. But largescale, sustained, proactive assaults like this were almost unheard of — let alone a Giant Monster (jùguài，巨怪) that existed only in enemy ranks and could match a grandmasterlevel Guardian.

  “Old brother, do you think this could be a conspiracy?”

  “—Giant Monster!”

  Yi (Yì，毅) was still mulling it over when he turned to consult the strategist (cānmóu，参谋). But the older man suddenly trembled, leaning against the wall, blurting the name in alarm.

  A moment later, the strategist regained his composure, straightened his posture, and said, “Mm! What you said is very possible — by normal reasoning, this can’t be explained!”

  “Oh… the enemy pretended to retreat, then slipped these beasts in during the chaos, hoping to infiltrate our ranks and strike back. Classic diversionary tactics!”

  A chilling thought struck Yi, worry rising until it felt like smoke was coming out of his head.

  The “enemy” here referred to an ancient race that had been at odds with the Guardians for thousands of years — the Lich Clan (Wūyāo Zú，巫妖族). In recent decades, the two sides had maintained a fragile truce, but just days ago, the Liches had suddenly broken faith and launched a war.

  “You’ve got a head for strategy, kid. It’s not impossible — after all, their ties to exotic beasts are very close.”

  Though the strategist could no longer remain entirely calm, he still agreed, then lowered his head in thought. “But according to earlier battle reports, the frontline army really did repel the enemy. That guy was defeated — they lost their trump card. Just pulling tricks like this won’t make much of a splash! I think even if they’ve set things up in multiple places, it may not amount to much — and besides, that might not even be a Giant Monster. Maybe it’s just a local beast that’s lived too well and grown too big.”

  “No, strategist — come look at this!”

  Yi, peering through the telescope at the battlefield, cut him off urgently. “Something’s definitely wrong!”

  “Hm?”

  The strategist followed, taking his time to look — then his hand shook, and the telescope slipped from his grasp, clattering to the ground. Fortunately, it was specially made and didn’t break. This scope worked equally well by night or day, with ultrahighdefinition, longrange zoom, and multiaxis stabilization.

  Looking flustered, the old man froze for a moment, then picked it up again, glanced through it, and said, “Mm, there’s definitely something fishy…”

  “Communications team! Report this to the Alliance immediately, and alert all city Guardian Squads to be on guard!”

  With the strategist’s agreement, Yi didn’t hesitate — he issued the order at once.

  “—But I still feel… something’s off — no, the color’s wrong…”

  At that moment, the strategist steadied himself, rubbed his eyes, and stared again and again.

  “How so?”

  “Think about it — this Giant Monster is the enemy’s main force, and with such a massive body, how could it possibly slip past our checkpoints without a sound? Besides, the one that nearly cost me my life before was this very Giant Monster, so I remember it well. Its eyes don’t look quite the same as this one’s — especially the color. Could it be that the creature from the Exotic Beast Research Institute (yìshòu yánjiūyuàn，异兽研究院) escaped and just happened to pass through here? That one’s from the Exotic Beast King Kong family (jīngāng kē，金刚科), right?”

  The Research Institute was a department under the Exotic Beast Administration (yìshòu guǎnlǐjú，异兽管理局), specializing in all kinds of studies on exotic beasts — including, but not limited to, improving training efficiency, enhancing abilities, shortening evolution time… and, in recent years, the increasingly frequent phenomenon of abnormal evolution.

  As mentioned before, the exotic beasts living within the Guardians’ barrier were mostly in a normal state, and were called “wonder beasts” (qíshòu，奇兽). Among them, some with outstanding abilities could evolve under the Guardians’ training — or on their own — into a stage known as “spirit beasts” (língshòu，灵兽).

  Spirit beasts not only understood human nature but were also brave and skilled in battle, fighting alongside the Guardians to repel enemies and providing great help.

  By contrast, when the enemy’s exotic beasts evolved to this stage, the Guardians called them “monsters” (guàishòu，怪兽) — those with eyes glowing red, or even purplishred, bore the mark of a monster.

  The Giant Monster was the highest rank among them — manic, ferocious, violent — the main force in war. The process of an exotic beast evolving into a monster, this abnormal evolution, was also called “corruption” (hēihuà，黑化).

  “Old brother, you’re overthinking it — impossible!”

  Yi smiled confidently, the corners of his mouth lifting, and replied firmly, “On my way back just now, I happened to run into two old acquaintances from the Administration. We chatted about the Institute’s situation — they didn’t mention any anomalies. Besides, the Institute has only one Giant Monster, pitiful as it is, treated like a treasure and under strict surveillance. And the Institute’s monsters all have specific markings — this one doesn’t seem to have any!”

  “But the look in this Giant Monster’s eyes really isn’t quite the same as the one I encountered. Something feels off about it now — especially the eye color, it’s a bit…”

  “—Bah! With your weak eyesight, you’ll always find fault with the color… To me, it looks just like those other monsters. How could they all be exactly the same?”

  Yi knew most of the strategist’s secrets, so he spoke with easy confidence, grinning as he teased. But reality could be cruel.

  “@#￥%……&*”

  The two on the wall started bickering again — one rambling on with theories, the other interrupting and refuting.

  From afar, Qing cast them a glance, shook her head helplessly, and continued to press both hands upward, fully supporting the formation — for at that moment, the Giant Monster was pounding the barrier with all its might…

  “Not good…”

  Suddenly, Yi felt a chill down his spine, as if he’d received some signal. Almost instinctively, he looked at his girlfriend on the battlefield, lips trembling, and gave her a smiling nod.

  “—Ah, old brother, thinking too much about these things is a headache. Let’s talk later!”

  “But this…”

  The strategist kept his head down, still mulling over the puzzle he couldn’t solve. At that moment, Yi suddenly waved to him, face full of thoughts, and ran off on his own…