Qian Duoduo had made many mistakes. Trading in the Frozen Wastend was his worst.

  He crouched behind a flipped wagon. His short legs shook. He held a small, heavy iron box. It contained thirty-two Ultimate Magic Crystals. Each crystal was the size of a quail egg. They emitted a faint, blue light.

  He bought this haul from a bck-market miner in the Eastern Archipego. The cost was four thousand gold coins. Selling them in the Imperial Capital would triple that.

  Now, he would likely become wolf feed along with his goods.

  The Frost Wolf pack surrounded the caravan. Grayish-white fur shifted in the snow. They covered the surrounding pins. There were at least three or four thousand of them.

  The caravan originally had forty wagons. Fewer than ten remained upright.

  The mercenaries were gone.

  Qian Duoduo gnced through the gap under the wagon.

  The Iron Eagle Mercenaries were a top-twenty group in the North. The leader was a Silver-rank swordsman. Qian Duoduo paid six hundred gold coins for their protection.

  Now, the leader’s upper torso hung from a wagon hitch. A wolf had taken the lower half.

  Eight mercenaries remained alive. They huddled in a circle behind the st wagon. They were covered in blood. Some had lost their weapons.

  A Frost Wolf lunged from the left. A young mercenary blocked it. His sword pierced the wolf’s shoulder. A second and third wolf followed. They dragged the young man down. He stopped moving after two cries.

  Qian Duoduo gripped the box tighter.

  His finger touched a hidden groove at the bottom. Inside was a specialized detonation crystal. Opening the groove and injecting mana would blow up the thirty-two crystals in three seconds.

  The explosion radius was fifty meters.

  He would die, but he would take the wolves with him.

  It was better than being eaten alive.

  Sweat covered Qian Duoduo’s face. It mixed with snow and dirt. His lips trembled. His finger traced the edge of the hidden groove.

  "Boss Qian! Run! We can't hold them!" a mercenary shouted.

  Run where? Wolves were everywhere.

  Qian Duoduo gave a bitter grimace. He pressed the groove slightly.

  ——

  Ten kilometers away, at Bck Wind Fortress.

  Lin Yuan stood on the ramparts. He studied the system panel.

  Snow hit his face. He ignored it. Rows of numbers lined the screen. A red warning fshed at the top.

  [Estimated Arrival of Tier 3 Winter Beast Tide: 9 hours 12 minutes]

  He needed one hundred Basic Magic Crystals. He had thirty-four.

  He was sixty-six short.

  Nine hours remained. Less than half a day.

  Karl stood three paces behind him. A rough cloth wrapped his stump. The old butler huddled in the wind. He said nothing, but his feet shifted constantly.

  Lin Yuan swiped the panel to the left.

  A new icon lit up: [Area Scan]. Small text sat below it: Detects abnormal energy fluctuations within a 15km radius.

  He tapped it.

  A gray map expanded on the panel. A red dot marked Bck Wind Fortress. Gray areas represented the Frozen Wastend.

  To the north, dense yellow dots appeared at the map's edge. That was the gathering beast tide. The system used an ellipsis for the count.

  Lin Yuan ignored them.

  He focused ten kilometers to the southeast.

  A cluster of blue dots appeared there. Blue meant resources. The brightness was intense. The system bel read:

  [High-Concentration Magic Crystal Energy Source. Quality: Ultimate. Quantity: 30+]

  Lin Yuan’s hand stopped.

  Over thirty Ultimate Magic Crystals.

  One Ultimate Crystal equaled five Basic Crystals in system value. Thirty equaled one hundred and fifty Basic Crystals.

  He only needed sixty-six.

  Lin Yuan zoomed in on the map. Yellow dots crowded the blue cluster. The system bel read: Frost Wolf Pack. Estimated count: 3,000 to 4,000.

  The blue dots were shrinking.

  Someone was trapped. That person carried exactly what he needed.

  Lin Yuan exited the map.

  "Karl."

  The old butler stepped forward. "Young Master?"

  "Leave twenty Berserkers to guard the fortress. The rest follow me."

  Karl blinked. "Where are we going?"

  "Ten kilometers southeast. Someone is feeding wolves with a box of Ultimate Magic Crystals."

  Lin Yuan walked down the stairs. His steps were steady.

  "Those crystals are mine."

  The Berserker square gathered at the gate. One hundred and eighty Heavy Berserkers formed the fnks. Fifty Precision Steel Crossbowmen stood at the rear. Steel boots hit the stone floor in perfect unison.

  Lin Yuan walked to the front.

  "Forced march."

  The sound of cshing armor erupted. Two hundred and thirty soldiers moved forward. They moved at double the normal pace. They required no warm-up. They began at full speed the moment the order was given.

  Karl was lifted again. A Berserker threw him over a shoulder.

  The old butler’s cry was lost in the wind.

  ——

  Qian Duoduo pressed the hidden groove.

  The mercenary line colpsed.

  The st three men were dragged down. Howls filled the snowy pin. Frost Wolves swarmed forward over the bodies of their pack.

  Only a flipped wagon protected Qian Duoduo.

  A massive Frost Wolf stepped out from the pack.

  Its fur was pure white with a faint blue ice-crystal sheen. It stood nearly two meters tall at the shoulder. Its paws left steaming craters in the snow.

  The Wolf King.

  A Silver-rank monster. The leader of the pack.

  The Wolf King lowered its head. Its vertical pupils locked onto Qian Duoduo. It opened its mouth. Scraps of meat hung from its fangs.

  Qian Duoduo’s hand shook. His finger gripped the groove.

  Three seconds. Once he pushed it, everything would end.

  "I, Qian Duoduo, lived forty-three years. I made money my whole life, but I can't take a single cent with me..."

  His teeth chattered. Tears ran down his face.

  The Wolf King coiled its hind legs.

  Qian Duoduo closed his eyes.

  He pushed the groove.

  The Wolf King lunged.

  A bck shadow cut through the snow.

  A giant axe spun through the air. It sliced through the snowfkes. It smmed into the Wolf King’s head. The dull sound of metal hitting bone echoed.

  The Wolf King was thrown sideways. It tumbled ten meters across the snow. it smashed into the wreckage of two wagons before stopping.

  Qian Duoduo’s finger froze on the groove.

  His eyes widened.

  A bck line approached from the north.

  It wasn't refugees. It wasn't mercenaries.

  It was a row of giants in bck armor.

  They had no fgs. No shouts. No drums.

  Over two hundred giants walked through the snow. Their footsteps created a heavy vibration. It drowned out the wolves' howling.

  A man walked behind the giants.

  He wore a bck coat. The wind whipped his hem. He was much shorter than the giants, but he walked at the front. His pace was calm.

  Qian Duoduo let go of the groove.

  "Imperial Army?!" He leaned out from the wagon. His voice cracked. "Help! My lord! Help me! I am Qian Duoduo, Great Deacon of the Merchant Alliance! I have money! Save me, and I will pay any price!"

  The young man in the bck coat stopped.

  He looked at Qian Duoduo from thirty meters away. Then he looked at the iron box.

  He walked over.

  The wolves did not attack immediately. The Wolf King struggled to get up. The rest of the pack circled and growled.

  The young man crouched in front of Qian Duoduo.

  Qian Duoduo saw his face. He was young, maybe seventeen or eighteen. But his eyes were different.

  "What is in the box?" the young man asked.

  "Ma... Magic Crystals... Ultimate grade..." Qian Duoduo stammered. He quickly added, "My lord, which legion are you from? Which Imperial Legion? I surely know your General—"

  "Not an Imperial army," the young man interrupted.

  "I can save you."

  He reached out. He pointed at the box in Qian Duoduo’s arms.

  "The box of crystals belongs to me."

  Qian Duoduo’s face twitched.

  Thirty-two Ultimate Crystals. Cost: four thousand gold. Resale value: twelve thousand.

  "My lord, this... can we negotiate? I can give you cash. Plenty of gold—"

  The wolf pack became restless. The Wolf King climbed out of the wood scraps. Half its skull was crushed, but it lived. It spat out bloody foam and growled.

  The Frost Wolves began to gather.

  Qian Duoduo pressed against the cold wagon. Sweat dripped from his chin.

  The young man did not rush him. He did not repeat himself. He just crouched there with his hand extended.

  The wolves closed in.

  Thirty meters.

  Twenty meters.

  Qian Duoduo swallowed. He pushed the box forward.

  "Deal."

  The young man took the box. He weighed it with one hand. Then he stood up. He turned to the silent armored square behind him.

  He snapped his fingers.

  "Get to work."

  Two hundred and thirty soldiers moved at once.

  Qian Duoduo hid behind the wagon. He peeked out. His mouth remained open from the shock of the deal.

  A second ter, his eyes widened further.

  The first row of Berserkers charged into the pack.

  They didn't advance in formation. They charged.

  Axes rose and fell.

  A Frost Wolf’s head and half its spine were severed. It flew through the air.

  Qian Duoduo stared. The speed, power, and ck of hesitation from the armored giants were beyond his understanding.

  Three wolves lunged at one Berserker. They bit his arms and legs. Dents appeared in the armor. Blood seeped through the gaps.

  The Berserker looked down at the wolf biting his forearm.

  He used the axe in his other hand to chop off the wolf's head.

  The one on his leg didn't let go. He simply dragged the two wolves forward as he continued walking.

  Qian Duoduo slid back three inches. His head hit the wagon board.