Chapter 17: The Wolf Charge and the Weaved Shield’s Test
The howl was followed by more—dozens of them, echoing through the western woods, sending chills down Lin Yue’s spine. The disciples tensed, their hands tightening on their weapons, but no one ran. No one flinched.
“Archers, ready!” Elder Mu shouted.
The archers pulled back their bowstrings, their arrows glowing with faint qi—fire runes, Master Liu had enchanted them to burn on impact. The woods rustled, and then they emerged: a pack of dark qi wolves, their fur black as tar, their eyes glowing red. There were more than a dozen—twenty, maybe thirty. Lin Yue’s heart sank. The prisoner had lied, or been lied to. This wasn’t a small pack—it was an army.
“Shields up!” Lin Yue yelled.
The disciples pushed their qi forward, and the linked shield flared to life—brighter now, the dragon qi weaving between them like a net. The first wolf lunged, its claws slamming into the shield. The impact sent a tremor through the line, but the shield held. The wolf yelped, falling back, and an archer’s arrow hit it in the shoulder. It fell, thrashing, then went still.
“Hold!” Lin Yue shouted, weaving more dragon qi into the shield. A second wolf charged, then a third—their claws scraping against the shield, their teeth snapping at the disciples’ legs. The shield flickered, a crack forming near Chen’s shoulder.
“Chen, breathe!” Lin Yue yelled, rushing to his side. He pressed his palm to Chen’s back, sending a surge of dragon qi into the shield. The crack sealed, and the shield brightened again. “Don’t let the fear break your qi!”
Chen nodded, his face sweaty but determined. “I won’t!”
The wolves kept coming, their bodies piling up in front of the shield. The archers fired steadily, their arrows cutting down wolf after wolf, but the pack didn’t slow. A wolf broke through the archer line—slipping past an arrow, lunging at a young archer’s throat. Lin Yue moved without thinking, summoning a small shield in his hand and slamming it into the wolf’s side. The wolf yelped, and the archer shot it in the head.
“Thank you,” the archer whispered, her voice shaking.
Lin Yue nodded, turning back to the shield line. His dragon qi was draining fast—each weave, each repair took more than he’d expected. His hands shook, his vision blurring, but he kept going. The wolves were thinning—half of them lay dead or dying—but the worst was still to come.
The Enforcers.
A loud, cold laugh echoed through the woods. “Impressive, Lin Yue. But you’re just getting started.”
The wolves fell silent, backing away from the shield line. A group of figures stepped out of the woods—black robes, their faces hidden by hoods, their hands glowing with dark qi. The Black Robe Enforcers. There were five of them, each taller than the last, their auras heavy with power.
The leader stepped forward, pulling back his hood. His face was scarred, his left eye replaced with a black stone that glowed with dark qi. “I’m Hei Feng,” he said, his voice like gravel. “Lord Xiao sends his regards. Hand over the codex, and I’ll make your death quick.”
Lin Yue stood, his sword drawn, his dragon qi flaring. “You’ll have to kill us first.”
Hei Feng laughed, raising his hand. Dark qi swirled around him, forming into a blade. “With pleasure.”
He lunged, the dark blade slicing through the air. Lin Yue pushed the disciples back, summoning the linked shield forward. The blade hit the shield with a crash, and the ground shook. The shield flickered, cracks spreading across its surface.
“Hold on!” Lin Yue shouted, pouring every last bit of his dragon qi into the shield. The cracks slowed, but they didn’t stop. Hei Feng pushed harder, his face twisting into a snarl.
“I’ll break you!” he roared.
The shield shattered.
The force of the impact sent Lin Yue flying, his back slamming into a tree. He gasped, blood pooling in his mouth. The disciples scattered, some falling, some running. Hei Feng stood over him, the dark blade hovering above his chest.
“Any last words, boy?” Hei Feng sneered.
Lin Yue looked up, his vision blurry. He saw Chen, picking up his sword, rushing toward Hei Feng. He saw Xiao Yu, firing an arrow at Hei Feng’s back. He saw the archers, rallying, their arrows glowing.
Slow. Steady. Strong.
He closed his eyes, focusing on his dantian. What was left of his dragon qi hummed—faint, but alive. He thought of his father, of the prisoner’s family, of the disciples who’d trusted him. He thought of the fail-safe technique, the one the prisoner had mentioned. The one that required sacrifice.
He opened his eyes, his hand flying to the jade pendant around his neck. He pulled it off, clutching it tight. The pendant glowed, and a surge of dragon qi exploded from it—more than he’d ever felt, more than he could control. But he didn’t need to control it. He needed to give it.
“Now!” he shouted, throwing the pendant into the air.
The dragon qi wrapped around the disciples, around the archers, around Xiao Yu and Chen. It weaved into their qi, strengthening them, healing their wounds. The disciples stood, their swords glowing, their shields reforming—stronger now, brighter.
Hei Feng stared, his mouth hanging open. “What… what have you done?”
Lin Yue pushed himself up, his body aching, his qi almost gone. But he smiled. “I’ve given them hope.”
The disciples charged. Xiao Yu’s arrow hit Hei Feng in the shoulder. Chen’s sword sliced through his arm. The Enforcers, outnumbered, outmatched, fell one by one. Hei Feng tried to run, but Lin Yue stepped in front of him, his sword raised.
“It’s over,” Lin Yue said.
Hei Feng laughed, blood dripping from his mouth. “No. It’s never over. Lord Xiao will come for you. He’ll merge with the Dark Dragon. He’ll burn this realm to the ground.”
Lin Yue drove his sword into Hei Feng’s chest.
Hei Feng fell, his body dissolving into dark qi. The remaining wolves ran, vanishing into the woods. The clearing fell silent, save for the disciples’ heavy breathing, the crackle of burning wolf bodies.
Lin Yue collapsed to his knees, his sword falling from his hand. His qi was gone—completely. He felt empty, weak, but alive. Xiao Yu knelt beside him, her hand on his shoulder.
“You did it,” she said, her voice breaking. “You saved us.”
Lin Yue shook his head. “We did it. Together.”
Elder Mu walked over, his face grave but proud. “The Enforcers are dead. The wolves are gone. But Hei Feng was right—Lord Xiao will come. He has the Azure Dragon Pearl. He’ll be looking for you.”
Lin Yue looked up at the moon, which hung low in the sky, almost dawn. He thought of his father, still trapped in the Shadow Palace. Of the prisoner’s family, waiting in the northern village. Of the fail-safe technique, hidden in the codex.
He was weak now. His qi was gone. But he wasn’t done.
Slow. Steady. Strong.
He pushed himself to his feet, leaning on Xiao Yu for support. “Then we’ll be ready for him. We’ll train harder. We’ll find allies. We’ll save my father. We’ll stop Lord Xiao.”
The first light of dawn broke over the woods, painting the sky in shades of pink and gold. The disciples cheered, their voices loud, their spirits high. Lin Yue smiled, looking at them—at their faces, their hope, their resolve.
The fight wasn’t over. Not by a long shot. But for now, they’d won.
And that was enough.