Chapter 67: The Wolf's Shoulder Tap

That unknown weight suddenly making contact not only cut off my voice mid-sentence, but also instantly raised a dense field of goosebumps all over my body.

Because.

There was only us in this place; Old Master Chen was currently examining that completely dead old wolf, and Qilin was at least one or two meters away from me. It was simply impossible for her hand to be resting on my shoulder!

My body felt as though it had frozen solid; I did not dare to make a single movement.

At that moment, using the corner of my eye, I glanced toward my own shoulder and was shocked to see a pair of furry paws.

A wave of dread surged through my heart.

Damn it!

Have I... have I actually encountered a wolf resting its paws on my shoulders?

Subconsciously, I looked in Qilin's direction, only to discover that on her shoulders, there were also two furry wolf paws.

Even behind her head, the flickering shadow of a furry wolf head was visible.

At that moment, I finally understood why Qilin had asked me in a voice of extreme terror just a moment ago what one should do if a wolf rested its paws on their shoulders.

It turned out...

It turned out that she was now truly, genuinely experiencing a wolf resting its paws on her shoulders.

I could see that Qilin was trembling all over, her face as pale as paper, not daring to move a muscle.

Absolute silence.

I began to ponder when these two wolves had arrived and why I hadn't sensed anything prior to this.

However, realization dawned upon me very quickly.

Snow!

Heavy snow.

That was right; it was the heavy snow filling the sky that had dulled our senses. Combined with the fact that both of our attentions had been entirely captured by the dead old wolf, we had failed to notice these two wolves quietly approaching our sides.

In the end, it led to us being ambushed by these two wolves resting their paws on our shoulders...

At that moment, Old Master Chen abruptly halted his movements. With his back turned to us, he calmly spoke, "Neither of you move."

Immediately, I felt a gust of hot breath blowing continuously against the back of my neck, carrying a foul, gamey stench within the warmth.

"What... what should we do?" Qilin's body trembled like a sieve in the wind, and she was on the verge of crying.

Old Master Chen said in a low, deep voice, "Don't panic. Wolves are creatures that aim for a kill with a single strike. As long as you don't turn your head, you won't expose your vulnerability."

"O—Okay!" Qilin swallowed hard and spoke in a low voice.

Old Master Chen said at that moment, "Sanqi, back when we were at the hunting grounds, I taught you what to do when you encounter a wolf resting its paws on your shoulders, didn't I?"

I gave a soft hum. My head remained completely still, but my hand slowly slid down toward the dagger at my waist...

Old Master Chen had indeed taught me at the hunting grounds that there were two methods to deal with a wolf resting its paws on your shoulders.

The first method was to use a dagger or a knife. Wolves were known for having bronze heads, iron bones, and tofu waists. When it crouched upon your shoulders, although it was hunting you, it simultaneously exposed its own soft underbelly—its waist. At that moment, all you had to do was draw your blade and drive it fiercely into its waist...

Once you did that, the wolf would essentially be crippled for the most part.

The second method was to use leverage. If you did not have a knife or a dagger, the first step was to slowly spread your legs apart, then gently bend down to lift the wolf onto your back. Lowering your head, you would look for the wolf's other two paws from between your legs, and with swiftness, precision, and ruthlessness, grab those two paws, hoist the wolf directly upward, and rapidly fling it away.

Both of these were indeed practical methods for dealing with a wolf resting its paws on your shoulders.

And the method I had chosen to use was clearly the first one.

Gripping the handle of the dagger at my waist tightly with my right hand, I took a deep breath.

Perhaps Old Master Chen had already anticipated something, otherwise he wouldn't have specifically instructed me to bring a knife before we came out. And as for me, although I knew this old man wearing a straw hat was somewhat strange, I never expected... that I would encounter such a terrifying scenario myself.

Slowly drawing the blade with a reverse grip and holding it firmly in my hand, I kept taking deep breaths.

Huu, huu, huu! After all, no matter how much theoretical knowledge one possessed, actual practice always felt somewhat different.

Blood had already begun to seep from the shoulder where the wolf paw rested. My hand was trembling at that moment—violently trembling. There was no helping it; this was a normal human reaction.

I had no choice but to grip it harder.

Three seconds later, guided entirely by my intuition, I drove the knife fiercely into the wolf behind me...

Squelch!

I felt the blade in my hand pierce into flesh without meeting any resistance.

"Awoo!" A shrill, miserable screech rang out from behind my back.

However, I had no time to hesitate. I jerked my head down, grabbed those two paws, and violently heaved the wolf upward...

The very instant I finished doing all this, Old Master Chen whipped his head around, raised his hunting rifle, and fired a shot directly toward Qilin's head.

Bang!

The gunshot echoed.

All sorts of fluids splattered wildly in every direction, and some even splattered across my face.

My eyes widened as I stared at Old Master Chen. Just as I thought Old Master Chen had killed Qilin, a headless wolf carcass slid down from beside her...

I turned my head to look.

Qilin's eyes were vacant and her body was trembling... and the wolf on her back was thoroughly, irrevocably dead.

Subsequently, her eyes rolled back, and her body went completely limp, collapsing onto the snow-covered ground...

Old Master Chen calmly watched this scene unfold, then unhurriedly reloaded his rifle and took aim at the other wolf, which I had thrown off and was currently struggling desperately to crawl away.

With a muffled bang.

That wolf whimpered softly and slowly breathed its last.

...

Having finished everything, Old Master Chen slung his hunting rifle over his shoulder and let out a long breath.

I felt my legs grow extremely stiff, making even a single step difficult.

Old Master Chen patted my shoulder with one hand and chuckled, "Sanqi, how does it feel?"

"I... I..." I wanted to speak, but nothing came out.

Without a word, Old Master Chen hoisted the unconscious Qilin onto his shoulder and, grabbing my arm with his free hand, walked back toward the cabin.

I could still feel my hands shaking.

After Old Master Chen laid Qilin down properly, he said calmly, "Sanqi, go outside and wash yourself off with the snow!"

"Okay!"

When I finished washing and walked back into the cabin, I saw Old Master Chen smoking a cigarette.

Seeing me enter, Old Master Chen tossed a cigarette over to me and smiled, "How do you feel now?"

I had to admit that after scrubbing myself with the snow, I felt a warm glow all over my body.

Lighting the cigarette and taking a deep, heavy drag, I asked, "Um... Old Chen, did you... did you know this would happen all along?"

Old Master Chen was momentarily stunned.

Then he smiled and asked, "Sanqi, how did you know I knew beforehand?"

"Before we went out, you specifically told me to bring a knife."

"Ah, right! Spot on." Old Master Chen held the cigarette between his lips. "I did guess a part of it, but... the reason I didn't tell you beforehand is actually..."

Before Old Master Chen could finish, I interrupted, "I know. Your idea, Old Master Chen, was to test whether I could handle a wolf resting its paws on my shoulders all by myself!"

Hearing me say this, Old Master Chen was taken aback at first, then nodded. "That is indeed true! But Sanqi, actually... there is yet another method to deal with a wolf resting its paws on your shoulders."