Chapter 1143: The Bear King's Dead End

Another half an hour passed. The sea of trees was quiet, and no more fireworks signals were being sent.

The forest had finally regained its peace.

“It seems the operation is over,” He Lingchuan said, stretching. “Whether humans or the White Bear King won, the encirclement battle appears to be finished. Time to go back to sleep!”

The rest of the night passed as usual, even the evening breeze was no longer boisterous.

Sleeping at this elevation, they could barely hear the chirping of insects on the ground, only the occasional squabble of monkeys in the trees.

In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the Chou hour, just one more hour until dawn. He Lingchuan opened his eyes and quietly slipped down the tree.

He had to answer nature’s call; he wasn’t an immortal who could go without food and drink.

Afterward, he walked to the stream to fetch a pot of fresh water.

The moon was bright and the stars sparse, casting a pale blue glow over the forest and stream.

As He Lingchuan was about to reach the stream, he suddenly heard a few low barks!

He immediately took cover behind a tree and peeked through the tall grass.

He made no sound on the pebbles, so the occupants of the clearing by the stream did not detect his presence.

On the gravel bank was a pack of giant wolves, numbering around twenty. Their leader was a black wolf the size of a lion, with fangs as long as short daggers, its fierce nature evident.

He Lingchuan found them strangely familiar.

Then he looked at their opponent: a white bear!

It wasn't pure white; the bear was covered in wounds. Its left eye was a mere bloody socket, several broken arrow shafts protruded from its body, and a palm-sized gash on its lower back continuously oozed blood.

One of its front paws had been severed, preventing it from touching the ground.

The bear squatted on a rocky hollow, panting like a bellows. He Lingchuan knew instantly that its internal injuries were severe; its lungs and vital organs were clearly heavily damaged, and the blood pooling beneath it was rapidly forming a small pond.

The wolves fanned out, encircling it.

The white bear glared at the black wolf leader. “What do you want?” it growled.

The black wolf shook its fur. “Hand over the Heart Scale, and I’ll let you go.”

Heart Scale? He Lingchuan narrowed his eyes. Could his luck really be this good?

“Traitors!” the white bear snarled. “Humans won’t spare you either!”

“This is all your fault for acting alone, insisting on descending the mountain for revenge, and bringing endless disaster to the mountain clan!” the black wolf said coldly. “I lost dozens of my offspring; taking your Heart Scale as compensation is perfectly reasonable!”

With a low bark, it signaled.

Two wolves, circling behind the bear, immediately tried to bite its hind legs and the wound on its waist.

The pack’s tactic was coordinated attack, designed to overwhelm the prey.

As it fought, the white bear warned, “You still can’t defeat me. Those who are wise will leave quickly.”

“You always run to this spot,” the black wolf said, patiently directing the pack’s assault and looking for the opportune moment. “Are you trying to hide in the grotto behind the waterfall? You have no chance.”

Grotto? He Lingchuan pricked up his ears.

The black wolf continued, “I never understood why you made us steal zircon from human towns. Only later did I realize you intended to bribe the Gold Spirit guarding the grotto!”

The white bear sneered, then suddenly snatched the smallest wolf with a backhand, pinned it against a rock, and with a gaping maw, bit its neck, twisting with all its might!

There was a sharp crack, like a firecracker, clearly audible even to He Lingchuan.

The wolf didn’t even have time to whimper before its head was torn off!

As the white bear twisted and moved, He Lingchuan finally clearly saw a dark, hard lump on its chest.

It wasn't clotted blood; it reflected moonlight, appearing lustrous.

A hard lump on its chest—yes, this was indeed the unique mark of the White Bear King.

So, the elites of the Julu Kingdom had virtually emptied their ranks, pursuing and cornering this great demon for days, yet it had still managed to escape?

After killing the wolf, the White Bear King roared, “You’re courting death! None of you will escape!”

From the conversation between the bear and the wolves, He Lingchuan understood this was an internal conflict within the demon lair.

When the White Bear King was at its peak, these wolf demons served as its vanguard.

Now that the White Bear King was injured and vulnerable, the pack sought to take advantage of its former superior.

So, the “Heart Scale” referred to that black hard lump?

The White Bear King dispatched an opponent with chilling swiftness.

Given its severe injuries, yet its strikes were still so swift, accurate, and ruthless, He Lingchuan could barely imagine the price the Julu Kingdom’s army and demon-slaying squad had paid to hunt this monster.

There was little idle talk among demons; disagreements invariably led to immediate combat.

The gravel bank instantly became a bloody battlefield.

The giant wolves’ fangs, sharper than ordinary blades, could not pierce the White Bear King’s hide. The toughness of its bear skin was not apparent from its appearance.

After several failed attempts, they could only target its wounds.

Under the lead wolf’s command, several wolves fearlessly charged forward to distract, while others circled around to gnaw at the bloody gash on the bear’s waist.

The lead wolf also attempted to unnerve the White Bear King, continuing, “I’ve already emptied your reserves in the grotto; there’s no point in you going in!”

The White Bear King’s ferocity erupted. It swung its paw, sending two enemies flying, and let out a pained roar itself, for the wolf it struck still held a large chunk of freshly torn flesh firmly in its jaws!

Two more wolf demons approached, spitting two wind blades toward the White Bear King’s eyes.

The White Bear King instinctively lowered its head, and suddenly a heavy weight appeared on its neck—

The black wolf had finally seized its chance, directly attacking its neck.

Its fangs, longer than those of common wolf demons, were like sharp cutting blades, capable of easily piercing even the hide of a giant rhino demon.

It aimed for the White Bear King’s carotid artery; by rights, that bite should have created four round holes, with blood spurting out.

Furthermore, after a giant wolf bites its prey, it would typically thrash its head wildly to enlarge the wound.

However, the Heart Scale on the White Bear King’s chest seemed to flash faintly. The black wolf’s teeth slipped on the unusually slick bear hide, as if it were trying to chew a rubber ball!

At such a critical moment, it missed its opponent’s vital spot.

The White Bear King reached out a paw to swipe, but the black wolf immediately leapt away.

The battle on the gravel bank, with blood splattering and roars echoing, lasted for a quarter of an hour.

The White Bear King looked on the verge of collapse, yet to He Lingchuan’s surprise, its residual power in battle was formidable. Even with its severe injuries, it managed to kill six wolves.

The remaining wolves dared not approach, merely circling erratically and launching occasional sneak attacks.

Seeing this, the lead wolf also began to have second thoughts.

When two more wolves tragically fell to the bear’s claws, the black wolf finally gave up. With a long howl, it led the pack in a hasty retreat.

Though the Heart Scale was valuable, one needed to be alive to claim it.

The White Bear King had not yet reached its breaking point; the wolf had come too early.

Unbeknownst to them, the White Bear King had been waiting for the exact moment the pack turned to leave. Its one remaining eye flashed with ferocity as it let out a silent roar, then launched a sudden charge!

He Lingchuan couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.

This divine ability was strikingly similar to the Bailong people’s “As Shadow Follows,” instantly covering several zhang and appearing behind the enemy before they could react!

As soon as the White Bear King pinned the black wolf, it unleashed its full power, savagely tearing at its neck and back.

The two behemoths instantly became entangled in a fierce struggle, fur flying and blood splattering, a gruesome sight.

The White Bear King had only one paw left, but its five claws, each three inches long, were firmly embedded in the black wolf’s flesh as its massive maw ripped at an artery.

Half a quarter of an hour earlier, the black wolf had done the same to it; half a quarter of an hour later, the White Bear King returned the favor.

The black wolf’s hide was not as thick as the bear’s. The White Bear King’s desperate assault could shatter boulders; how could the black wolf’s flesh and blood possibly withstand it?

He Lingchuan watched as blood gushed from its neck, staining the ground’s pebbles crimson.

Other members of the pack rushed forward to rescue their leader, all biting at the White Bear King. But the latter ignored them, stubbornly holding on to the black wolf.

Soon, the black wolf let out a wretched yelp, like a dog.

The pack completely covered the White Bear King; from He Lingchuan’s vantage point, not even a speck of white fur was visible.

But it still wouldn’t release the black wolf.

After another quarter of an hour, the black wolf was finally pinned to the ground.

Once it fell, it could not rise again.

Only when the black wolf was completely still did the White Bear King release its grip and turn its attention to the other wolf demons.

However, seeing their leader dead, the pack lost all will to fight. With a few whimpers, they tucked their tails and scurried into the jungle.

Only the White Bear King remained, sitting on the ground, panting like a bellows riddled with holes.

It was indeed riddled with wounds, completely drenched in blood, its fur’s original color unrecognizable.

Its old wounds were already severe, and the battle with the wolf pack had added fresh ones. He Lingchuan had just witnessed a wolf demon extract a bloody kidney from a gash on its back and devour it in a few bites!

The vital spot behind its abdomen was also shredded.

At that time, the White Bear King was preoccupied with killing the black wolf, completely unable to deal with the rest of the pack, and could only passively endure their bites.

As it slumped to the ground like a human, He Lingchuan noticed that the Heart Scale on its chest was also half dislodged. He wondered which cunning wolf in the pack had seized the opportunity to try and pry loose the treasure.

It was a pity they hadn’t managed to dislodge it.

After the battle, the stream bank was littered with wolf corpses, and the stones and leaves were stained with blood. The White Bear King had won a tragic victory; though still alive, it hardly looked like a victor.

It sat on the ground, panting for a long while, before finally struggling to its feet and stumbling upstream into the small creek.

Such a rotund bear, yet it walked so unsteadily, as if it might collapse at any moment.

He Lingchuan recalled the black wolf’s words that the White Bear King often came to this spot.

The small creek was shallow, its water level barely reaching a person’s calves. The White Bear King, pursued to desperation by the Julu Kingdom, had still insisted on coming here. Perhaps it was indeed heading to the “grotto” the black wolf had mentioned.

He followed the White Bear King for about seven minutes, the sound of water growing steadily louder. Rounding a pile of massive boulders, he saw white streaks against green rock, and shattered droplets splashing into a deep pool.

Indeed, there was a waterfall.

He Lingchuan had previously observed this waterfall from afar, atop a giant fir. Now, up close, the solitary pool, deep ravine, and the whispering pines in the forested valley presented a remarkably beautiful and wondrous sight.

But the massive bear walked directly into the waterfall, its body swaying from the torrent’s impact, yet it persistently pressed onward.

The stream water instantly turned crimson.

What lay behind the waterfall?

He Lingchuan waited only a few breaths before jumping into the pool and entering the waterfall himself.

The bear was already on its last legs; even if it turned to ambush him, it wouldn't be able to defeat him.

In this season, the waterfall’s volume was immense, and the impact of the water was faintly painful. However, He Lingchuan was proficient in Wave Cleave and had weathered giant ocean waves; a mere waterfall above a pool was of no concern to him.