Cunning Dog

As the flickering crimson light broke through the grave soil, dozens or even hundreds of shadowy figures appeared, their bodies swaying. The sudden release of a strong, pungent stench was so intense that it made people dizzy and nauseous.

Although Zhang Wei's reaction wasn't as severe, he still felt extremely uncomfortable. A murderous aura enveloped his face, and he only felt better after a wave of energy dispelled the stench.

Just then, another wolf howl rang out from among the graves.

The next moment, pairs of blood-red lights began to flash rapidly on the two hillsides.

The points of light, trailing behind them in dark shadows, moved and leaped with ease among the chaotic graves.

From Zhang Wei's quick glance, he could see dozens of shadowy figures rushing toward him from the mass grave in front of him. Behind the hundreds or thousands of mounds of earth in the mass grave, scattered shadows emerged from under the mounds and merged into the previous shadows, rushing toward him.

A wolf howl?

He's wandered into the wolf den of the mass graves.

In a fleeting glance, Zhang Wei could see that these wolves were quite different from those he had seen online and in zoos. They were excessively large, and their heads were somewhat deformed.

But he wouldn't just stand by and watch the beast start to run.

He had his reasons for daring to land in this valley, in this obviously strange mass grave!

In the next instant, his robes billowed, and the blood-red aura transformed into blades, darting and surging before his eyes as Zhang Wei's palms moved.

Amidst the bursts of blood-red light, low moans echoed, but those wolves that survived the blood-red cleavage strangely disregarded their companions and showed no fear, charging towards Zhang Wei like madmen.

Zhang Wei frowned slightly, and his blood-red robes moved according to his thoughts, once again separating into a blood-red aura that transformed into blades of light and swept towards the wolf pack rushing towards them.

"Aww~"

But this time, the bloodthirsty effect of the sweeping attack was not as good as before!

A sudden howl caused the previously fearless wolf pack to retreat and leap. Zhang Wei's sword flashes, which he had used to predict their movements, mostly missed. Although a few unlucky wolves were still hit in the body or even in the claws, they obeyed orders and limped away quickly in the direction away from Zhang Wei.

But apart from a very few wolves that had lost three claws and were no longer able to move, the others, even those with broken legs and split in two at the waist, struggled to dodge his barrage and retreated further away.

However, this retreat actually gave Zhang Wei more room to maneuver.

The severely wounded wolf monsters were quickly cut apart again by the swirling crimson blade light, their heads severed and their waists cut off, killing them completely.

As the nearby targets began to thin out, more of the blades were freed up to chase after the wolves fleeing down the hillsides on both sides.

A series of chopping sounds accompanied by a flurry of wolf fur flying everywhere.

In the end, the wolf pack, which had charged forward with great courage, could only leave behind a pile of corpses and leave the flat area at the bottom of the valley, returning to the hillsides on both sides.

Their swaying red eyes were fixed on the living person who had intruded into their nest below.

It hovered, bared its teeth, and let out a low growl.

The wolves on both sides of the hillside gradually retreated from the initial grave, but although they retreated, they did not completely leave Zhang Wei's sight.

After their initial probing and disastrous failure, the wolf pack became like seasoned hunters, roaming the outermost edges of the territory and beginning to wear down their prey's patience!

These wolves were not only excessively agile, but their intelligence and ability to obey orders truly surprised Zhang Wei.

At that moment, he felt as if he were facing not a pack of wolves among graves, but dozens or even hundreds of elite soldiers!

As Zhang Wei unleashed his murderous blade of light, the wolves scattered in that direction. However, the wolves that had already circled around to other directions would quickly approach. After Zhang Wei changed direction, new wolves would gradually approach, while those that had approached earlier would quickly move away.

Their tugging and pulling was just like that of a couple in love.

But their goal was to get married, while Zhang Wei and the wolves were trying to kill each other!

Moreover, according to Zhang Wei's observation, the vitality and agility of these wolves were excessively vigorous, to the point that they exceeded the scope of wild animals!

No, they weren't all wolves; to be more precise, not all of them were wolves!

Having opened his eyes and gained basic night vision, Zhang Wei was able to see the beasts struggling against him in the midst of their life-or-death struggle, thanks to the faint light provided by the moonlight and the malevolent energy.

These things in front of you, although they look like wolves and roughly resemble wild wolves, after observing them for a while, you will find that most of them are dogs, with only a few wild wolves mixed in.

These dogs are enormous; even most mastiffs are not as robust as them.

Not only did its once innocent eyes turn scarlet, but a hideous tumor also grew on its forehead, which should have been smooth and shiny from being rubbed by its owner.

Its ridiculously large size and deformed forehead were covered in messy fur. Its thick, unusually canine limbs were sharp and shiny as it ran, exuding a chilling aura.

After seeing these characteristics and thinking for a moment, Zhang Wei understood.

He hadn't just been unlucky enough to run into a pack of wolves; he'd stumbled upon a pack of monsters that roamed the graveyards and fed on corpses—red-eyed dogs, or rather, corpse-digging dogs.

These monsters are basically domestic dogs that were abandoned by their owners due to various accidents, either by force or by choice. When they were stranded in the wild and could not find enough food during famine years, they were forced to search for food in graves. After eating the first corpse, they became addicted to it and eventually transformed into these monsters called corpse-digging dogs over the years.

The quantity of these items varied depending on the circumstances at the time.

In years of plenty, when every household has surplus, scavenging dogs are naturally less common. However, in times of war or famine, when faced with large numbers of corpses and scarce food, domestic dogs that have lost their owners and food sources will gradually transform into these things, eventually becoming a strange horde that roams the graveyards at night.

The Meteorological Bureau's "Complete Collection of Monster Records" includes a brief introduction to the Corpse-Digging Dog.

These corpse-digging dogs are enormous, ferocious by nature, have a blood tumor on their heads that is as hard as iron, bloodshot eyes, and an extremely sensitive nose that can smell the odor of dead bodies dozens of miles away.

With their sharp teeth and claws, they can dig holes in earthen graves. Once they find a coffin, they smash the coffin lid with their heads, then drag the corpse out, gut it, and gnaw it into a skeleton.

If they encounter a lone, vulnerable human, they will often become ferocious, pouncing on them and tearing them to death before devouring them.

Because these dogs eat carrion year-round, they reek of death, and their teeth are laced with cadaver poison. If a living person is bitten by one, they will almost certainly die.

In ancient times, the best coffins available to the poor were nothing more than "three-inch cypress planks." These planks would be easily broken by a red-eyed dog bumping into them.

Therefore, this type of thin coffin is also commonly known as "dog bumping head".