CHAPTER 377: EPISODE 40.8 BAI TINGFENG’S IMPACTFUL OPENING NUMBER!

Who wouldn’t want to watch Bai Tingfeng in action?

The thought never occurred to Shen Yuan as he’d always been in the front row whenever Bai Tingfeng was "on the move" (yes, pun fully intended). But apparently, the demand was high.

Chairman Mao had barely finished saying his name when the ground around the pond cleared as if by instinct, opening a path for Bai Tingfeng. Even the guild masters, whose turn hadn’t come yet, quietly relocated to "inconspicuous" spots where they could watch him clearly while still pretending to hide from the monsters.

Lee Jinhyuk and his team also positioned themselves not far from their subject, each of them perfectly covering the angles of Bai Tingfeng.

Everyone is ecstatic about the chance of watching the combat abilities of an S-class sword master.

"Talk about eager, huh?" Shen Yuan commented, an amused smile adorning his beautiful face. He went with the flow and flew towards a nearby foliage, his eyes never leaving Bai Tingfeng.

Among the eyes watching him, Bai Tingfeng followed the stickiest of all and smiled.

"Hmmm. This is the part when I should be flexing my skills, right?" He uttered, looking at Shen Yuan.

The omega only pouted his lips, not responding.

Bai Tingfeng was amused by his husband’s tactful response. His lips formed into a thin line, but his eyes were bright and sharp.

Standing in the middle of the trail, Bai Tingfeng stayed still with his one hand holding the handle of his sheathed sword.

His breath was shallow and noiseless, making him seem like he was blending with his surroundings.

The wind whistled, and owners of the watching eyes all held their breaths as they heard a rustling from the uncovered woodland.

"Graaaauuugh!" Low beastly growls sounded before the monster revealed himself.

"Bai Tingfeng attracted a lively bunch. A pack of weremutts appeared! We are off to a great start!" Chairman Mao energetically said, just in time for 15 to 20 furry heads with anthropomorphic bodies and posture to emerge from the dark bushes of the forest.

They stepped out of the treeline like a single creature with many bodies—perfectly in sync, perfectly patient, perfectly hungry.

Other people felt goosebumps seeing such a big pack, but not Shen Yuan.

The celestial fox spirit from another world can’t understand why Chairman Mao was excited about these stick-thick fur monsters. He looked to the side, where a few meters away from him, Xia Jinhai was floating behind a thick tree branch.

"What is the deal with these malnourished two-legged dogs?" Shen Yuan asked a question which the male beta was willing to answer.

"Of all canine-type monsters in Howling Forests, the weremutts have the highest intelligence quotient. They stood like humans, used simple weapons and traps like humans, lived in small communities like humans, but their savagery and untamable bloodlust were the same as those of other animals. Hunters find it hard to face them because of their tricks and unpredictable monster movements."

Shen Yuan hummed, finally understanding the complexity of the situation. "Basically, my husband is facing an angry cult mob."

"That..." Even with his excellent intelligence that comes with his psychic ability, Xia Jinhai can’t respond to Shen Yuan’s analogy.

’Tricky and monstrous... cult members... That is oddly accurate.’ He just thought.

Xia Jinhai no longer bothered analyzing Shen Yuan’s analogy and instead focused on the brewing blood bath before him.

Seeing that Bai Tingfeng was as still as a dead tree, the group of intelligent monsters didn’t jump into the fray. Instead, they encircled Bai Tingfeng, watching him closely.

Shen Yuan noticed the sharp wooden spears that some members of the pack were holding, and he was lightly impressed. Although it was crude, it is indeed lethal, and the technical skills used to sharpen it are indeed a clear testament to this monster’s intelligence.

"Grah," The presumably alpha of the pack let out a low grunt, and in an instant, the wooden spears came shooting towards the motionless Bai Tingfeng.

They made a funny vibrating sound as they cut through the air.

"Good throwing force!" Shen Yuan praised. Even a B-class awakener with good physical ability will have a hard time dodging...

However... was Bai Tingfeng a B-class awakener?

"Haha," Bai Tingfeng let out a low rumbling sound. His grip on his sword tightened.

His black fringe swayed as the first wooden spear missed his face by a few centimetres by virtue of luck.

As for the others...

"Get a taste of Bai Family’s swordsmanship. White Tiger’s Vicious First Claw." Bai Tingfeng uttered under his breath; his words were in perfect sync with his actions.

He drew his sword from its sheath and didn’t miss a beat in parrying the raining wooden spear.

Every stroke of his white shining sword leaves a vigorous white light in the air.

Twock! Twock! Twock!

Every time his blade makes contact with the wooden spear, the people nearby swear that they can feel a vibration coming from the air.

Beautiful, swift and strong. The Bai Family’s sword art is in full display.

In no time, the valley of wooden spears disappeared, leaving just dust.

"Perpetual Light... now that’s an overpowered aura."

One of the guild masters—an A-class swordsman himself—couldn’t stop the mix of awe and jealousy bleeding into his voice.

As an awakened swordsman, the best he could do was coat his blade with solid mana to make it sharper, heavier, deadlier. That alone took years of training.

But manifesting a true sword aura, one with special attributes?

Impossible for anyone below S-class.

And that impossibility made watching Bai Tingfeng feel unreal. No—unfair.

Among all the sword auras he knew, Perpetual Light wasn’t just strong.

It was the kind of ability that turned monsters into dust and mountains into rumours.

With it, Bai Tingfeng could cut through anything! Everything! Which swordsman doesn’t want that?!

The guild masters could only watch in excitement as Bai Tingfeng graced the battlefield with his overwhelming swordsmanship.

"Grah!" Seeing that Bai Tingfeng effortlessly dealt with their attack, the group of weremutts instantly realized that they were at a disadvantage. They are savage and bloodthirsty monsters, but they are also smart.

The alpha of the pack made a guttural signal, and a group of old, emancipated members of the pack haphazardly threw themselves at Bai Tingfeng.

Shen Yuan watched it unfold from the higher ground and was tremendously impressed.

These monsters know tactics! What the fuck?!

The celestial fox spirit’s view on monsters was flipped upside down, seeing the weremutts do a smokescreen tactic in their monstrous way.

"Shit. I feel myself rooting for the weremutts." He uttered in a not-so-quiet voice, earning a side glance from both Chairman Mao and Xia Jinhai.

They looked at him as if he were crazy.

Shen Yuan shrugged his shoulders. What? Who hates a success story of an underdog? (no pun intended)

But contrary to Shen Yuan’s feeling, the story of this pack of weremutts still descended to tragedy.

Ten old weremutts dropped to the ground, each lacking a head. Bai Tingfeng’s long sword harvested their life without any problem.

"Graaaagh!" The alpha saw this and growled fiercely.

It must have thought that since the quantitative attack did not stop the man, then a more powerful attack should work.

The alpha, being the strongest and fastest weremutt on the pack, taunted Bai Tingfeng. It jumped in front of the man, then it side-stepped when it noticed the man lifted his weapon.

It was clearly an intelligent monster... It’s such a pity that Bai Tingfeng’s strength doesn’t bend to weremutt’s measly intelligence.

It growled threateningly at Bai Tingfeng, exerting its dominating presence.

"Graaa—" Only its life was briefly cut short by Bai Tingfeng’s sword.

It happened so quickly and cleanly that Shen Yuan is positive that the alpha weremutt didn’t realize its death.

"Hooo," A guild master let out a loud exhale as if he’s been holding his breath.

"Master Bai’s skills are top-notch... It’s the first time I felt bad for monsters," Another guild master whispered.

Shen Yuan’s sharp hearing picked up that whisper and couldn’t agree more. It was a one-sided slaughter.

"The special attribute of Bai Tingfeng’s Perpetual Light Aura makes it a sure-kill technique," Xia Jinhai said, his voice weighted with awe—and fear. "And that’s what makes it terrifying. People fear anything that guarantees their death."

Shen Yuan instinctively took a sharp exhale. That is a chilling yet accurate realization, and for a moment, he thought he was lucky that the bastard in question was in love with him.

He went back to watching his husband, eager to see whether Bai Tingfeng would chase the weremutts who ran away.

But to his and everyone’s surprise, Bai Tingfeng promptly sheathed his sword and asked Lee Jinhyuk.

"Did you manage to capture that from all angles?"

Lee Jinhyuk felt a cold touch running through his spine when his eyes met with the still-murderous gaze of Bai Tingfeng.

"H-huh?"

"The shooting. Are we done?" Bai Tingfeng asked more straightforwardly.

Lee Jinhyuk looked around his staff, and they gave them an okay sign. "W-we successfully recorded the fight, but won’t you be chasing after the weremutts?"

A dark smirk curved on Bai Tingfeng’s lips. "No. I’m following my husband’s example—let the prey go once, so we can torment them without guilt the next time they dare get in our way."

"Oh," Lee Jinhyuk’s heart skipped a beat. He really had a bad feeling now.