Not in the Same League

At the gorge entrance, Mu Bai stood his ground before the Gloom Wolf Beast, head high, commanding an icy force that transmuted into a creeping frost across the creature's four limbs.

Just as a flicker of relief began to form on his face, a cold realization hit him: the beast's stride had only slowed by the barest margin. The Ice Vine might as well not have existed — it was still closing in.

*It's not working??*

He froze.

His Ice Vine could lock three or four people in place without effort. At the very least, he'd hoped it would buy his classmates a moment to collect themselves. But the Gloom Wolf Beast's limbs were far stronger than anything he'd accounted for — the white tendrils of frost hadn't given it a moment's pause.

**Crunch!**

One massive paw stamped through the ice, and the beast kept walking.

Its target was Mu Bai. The front leg rose high above him — and came crashing down.

**BOOM—**

A shockwave tore outward, hurling rocks and dust in every direction — and sending Mu Bai sailing five or six meters through the air.

He hit the ground with nothing to break his fall, tumbling over and over until the world went dark. He didn't get back up.

"Mu Bai!"

Zhao Kunsan sprinted to him, and his stomach dropped. Mu Bai's clothes had been shredded to ribbons, his skin lacerated and raw from the storm of gravel.

He Yu, who had only just managed to steady herself, looked up at the scene and froze like a helpless infant — dropping to her knees, unable to stop crying.

Her sobbing seemed to irritate the Gloom Wolf Beast. It turned toward her, each step carrying cold contempt. A creature like this had no room for mercy toward the weak — Mu Bai was already soaked through with blood, and no one wanted to imagine what fate awaited the small, trembling He Yu.

"Damn it, run!" Zhang Xiaohou was nearly out of his mind.

He clenched his jaw and sprinted toward her again, desperate to drag her out of the beast's line of sight.

"Monkey, are you trying to get yourself killed?!" Not far away, Mo Fan's composure cracked the instant he saw what was happening.

*Mu Bai's stunt just now was pure stupidity.* One person alone could never move a Demon-Beast that outclassed them not by one tier but by many. Lucky for Mu Bai, this Gloom Wolf Beast wasn't purely bloodthirsty — if it had meant to kill with that strike, there would have been nothing left of him.

"F— Fire Burst!!"

Through the chaos, Zhou Min had bitten her lip nearly to bleeding before she finally managed to Release her Fire Element skill.

A fireball hurtled toward the beast. In her panic, her aim was off — it struck near the creature's feet rather than its body, and a stray blaze erupted beside the Gloom Wolf Beast, bathing its deep-blue fur in flickering crimson.

The beast didn't spare the flames a glance. It kept walking toward He Yu and Zhang Xiaohou.

"Foul beast — taste my Lightning Seal!!"

Xu Zhaoting roared and threw himself forward, violet arcs of electricity crackling all around him.

At his command, they lashed out like whips across the beast's body.

Each arc found its mark. Each strike made the Gloom Wolf Beast convulse — until at last its legs locked up, and a deep, pained growl tore from its throat.

Those cold green eyes swung directly to Xu Zhaoting.

**"AHWOOOO!!"**

The beast threw its maw wide open and bellowed straight at him.

A violent gust erupted in an instant. The gorge entrance was already thick with loose sand and rock — the sheer force of the roar swept them up like a surging earthen dragon, barreling straight for Xu Zhaoting.

"Sanpang!" Xu Zhaoting saw it coming and screamed.

Wang Sanpang let out his own startled yelp — then moved.

"Earth Wave: Shift!!"

His wide frame dropped low with surprising speed, both hands plunging into the ground.

The sand and gravel beneath him answered. The moment his palms sank in, the earth began to ripple — like a stone dropped into a mirror-still lake, sending rings spreading outward across its surface, except the surface was solid ground.

The ripple surged outward across the gravel-strewn terrain and became a rolling earth wave that materialized directly in front of Xu Zhaoting. It shunted him clean sideways — five or six meters — out of the path of the debris that would have torn him to pieces.

Xu Zhaoting had his eyes shut tight. When he opened them and found himself standing somewhere entirely different, disbelief and relief broke across his face at once. He turned to Wang Sanpang and gave him a slow, deliberate thumbs-up.

Wang Sanpang grinned. Even he hadn't expected that Release to work out so perfectly.

"Don't be afraid, everyone — there are enough of us!" Xu Zhaoting had found his moment, rallying the group with the bearing of a natural leader. "If everyone casts their magic together, we can bring this One-Eyed Demon Wolf down!"

"Link your Star Trails!" Wang Sanpang added, voice booming. "Lightning Seal has a paralysis effect — the One-Eyed Demon Wolf can barely move right now. Everyone counter-attack while we have the chance!"

Just as Wang Sanpang said, the beast stood frozen in place after taking the Lightning Seal, muscles spasming over and over.

It was exactly the lifeline they needed. One by one, students who had steadied their nerves began running their Star Trails.

"Light Radiance: Purify!"

"Ice Vine: Frostbind!"

"Water Domain: Dissolve!"

"Earth Wave: Shift!"

"Fire Burst: Scorch!"

Seven or eight students of different elements completed their spells in rapid succession. Each released a different effect, all converging on the Gloom Wolf Beast at once.

Still paralyzed in place, it took the barrage from every angle and let out a howl of pain.

"Fire Element — Fire Element, keep it up!" Xu Zhaoting had stepped fully into the role of commander, still feeding Lightning Seals into the beast even as he shouted. "We've got the One-Eyed Demon Wolf pinned — Fire Element, burn it down!"

*Fire was the damage dealer.* Light Radiance had left the beast temporarily blinded, and with multiple Ice Vine casts layered one atop another, both its hind legs were now fully encased. This was the moment for Fire to pour on the scorching damage.

Zhou Min's lips were bitten through — but this time the Release was clean, precise, complete. Flames ignited across the Gloom Wolf Beast's back and spread. The beast's howl pitched sharper and more desperate.

**"AHWOOOO— AHWOOOO—"**

And then, just as it seemed like their combined assault was actually working —

Two roars, in rapid succession.

Two simultaneous storms of debris erupted at once — one sweeping toward Xu Zhaoting and Wang Sanpang, the other tearing toward the three students who had been sustaining their spells.

The twin waves cut through the group like blades. Students went down in swathes, skin split, flesh laid open.

The brief flicker of hope they had managed to kindle —

Gone, in an instant.