The Howling Lion Beast let out an anguished wail as it saw the body of the last cub falling to the ground. When it turned to face Gu Lingzhi, its eyes were bloodshot as its attacks became angrier and more frequent. Even with her Sparrow Wing movement technique, Gu Lingzhi could hardly escape the attacks. Unable to dodge one of the attacks, she was thrown towards the entrance of the cave.

“Be careful!” Gu Lingzhi could not help but cry out a warning as she pulled herself up, seeing the crazy look on the Howling Lion Beast as it fought Qin Xinran.

Although she was angry that Qin Xinran had brought her to such a dangerous place, the return of the Howling Lion Beast was truly an unexpected occurrence.

“Rest assured, this Howling Lion Beast is not as tough as the Cloud Cat Beast I faced before,” Qin Xinran gave Gu Lingzhi an assuring smile as she happily engaged in battle with the Howling Lion Beast.

Before Gu Lingzhi could relax, Qin Xinran was thrown against the wall by a swipe of the Howling Lion Beast’s claws.

“Roar!” With a furious roar, the Howling Lion Beast did not even pause as it charged towards Qin Xinran.

Compared to Gu Lingzhi, it hated Qin Xinran more as she was the one that killed its three children!

How could Gu Lingzhi be assured?

Seeing Qin Xinran get beaten multiple times by the Howling Lion Beast, until fresh blood started dripping from the corners of her mouth, Gu Lingzhi had wanted to curse but refrained from doing so.

Even though she barely knew Qin Xinran, she was not one to abandon her companion and leave.

Before Qin Xinran could be dealt another blow, Gu Lingzhi retrieved an Attack Scroll from her Storage Ring and threw it at the Howling Lion Beast. The Attack Scroll was a seal containing a single blow’s worth of spiritual energy from a Martial Practitioner.

“Swish…” The Attack Scroll transformed into a surge of icicles that were three inches long and they rained down onto the Howling Lion Beast’s back. Numerous blood streaks, as thick as a several fingers suddenly appeared on the beast’s back.

“Roar…” The Howling Lion Beast cried out in pain as it twisted its head, and a scream was directed at Gu Lingzhi. When Gu Lingzhi threw the Attack Scroll, she was already prepared for a counterattack and managed to dodge the attack even in her lethargic state.

The scream hit the wall behind where Gu Lingzhi previously stood and left a large hole in the wall.

“Lingzhi, don’t bother about me. Leave!” Qin Xinran dragged her injured body and struggled to call out.

“How can I leave without you?”

Gu Lingzhi retrieved yet another Attack Scroll from her Storage Ring and threw it at the Howling Lion Beast.

She only had three of these Attack Scrolls in her Storage Ring and it was given to her by Gu Rong for emergencies. She did not think that she would use two of them in one seating. Analysing the state of the Howling Lion Beast, she doubted that she would be able to kill it even after using all three Attack Scrolls.

“Quick, leave while you can. Don’t bother about me, I will not blame you!” Qin Xinran exclaimed in distress as she pressed a hand against her injured chest. She desperately tried to ward off the repeated attacks by the Howling Lion Beast that once again rained down on her.

“I already said that I will not leave you behind!” Gu Lingzhi persisted. She retrieved the last Attack Scroll from her Storage Ring and flung it at the Howling Lion Beast.

Numerous rocks of differing sizes fell from the sky, slamming down onto the Howling Lion Beast’s head. Although it had hurt the Howling Lion Beast, it was not enough to stop its attacks on Qin Xinran. It was obvious that it wanted to take revenge for its dead children even if it meant giving up its own life.

Left with no choice, Gu Lingzhi could only draw her Fenglin Sword and stand beside Qin Xinran, hoping to reduce some of the pressure on her.

Despite this, the two girls were no match for the Howling Lion Beast.

Slowly, Gu Lingzhi sustained numerous injuries.

“Lingzhi, please leave!” Qin Xinran once again pleaded for her to leave. Her voice carried a desperate cry.

Gu Lingzhi was so absorbed in defending the attacks from the Howling Lion Beast that she had no energy to reply. Gritting her teeth, she focused on activating the fire energy within the Fenglin Sword in hopes of injuring the beast.

Seeming to believe that Gu Lingzhi was in the way of its revenge, the Howling Lion Beast pounced onto Gu Lingzhi after giving one last swipe at Qin Xinran.

Both of them did not expect the sudden change of events and in a split second, Gu Lingzhi could only try her best to gather all the spiritual energy in her to block the attack.

Gu Lingzhi coughed out a mouth full of blood as her vision went black. She tried to stay conscious as she used the Sparrow Wings movement technique to narrowly avoid the next wave of attacks from the Howling Lion Beast.

“There is still time for you to leave now!” Qin Xinran shouted once again to Gu Lingzhi.

“I don’t have the energy to leave now even if I wanted to,” Gu Lingzhi laughed coldly. The last blow she had sustained from the beast had dealt a significant damage to her shoulder. It felt as if her shoulder would crumble to pieces at any moment.

Qin Xinran’s eyes shone with curiosity as she asked, “Why didn’t you leave just now?”

Gu Lingzhi laughed bitterly, “What would happen to you if I had left? Even though we barely know each other, but I treat you as my friend. I am not someone who will leave my friend behind just to save my own life!”

She would not let go of anyone that had harmed her, but similarly, she would not let down anyone who had treated her well.

No matter what Qin Xinran’s intention was, as long as Qin Xinran did not harm her, she will always treat her as a friend.

“You are…really different from what I had imagined.”

Hearing what Qin Xinran said, Gu Lingzhi was slightly confused as she saw Qin Xinran retrieve a bunch of Attack Scrolls from her Storage Ring and threw them all towards the Howling Lion Beast. The different attacks from the Attack Scroll combined to create a myriad of colours before her very eyes.

Of course, if Gu Lingzhi herself was not favored in the Gu Clan had possessed three Attack Scrolls, how could Qin Xinran not have any? 

The Howling Lion Beast had believed that it was just about to kill these two human beings in front of him but never expected that just before he could take his revenge, the one that killed its children would suddenly give out such a massive attack. In a moment, it could do nothing but cry out in pain. Its golden fur was stained red within seconds.

Qin Xinran continued to attack, retrieving a club that was half the length of a human body and pounced at the beast.

The anguished cries emanating from the Howling Lion Beast caused Gu Lingzhi to be momentarily stunned. She stood in a daze for a moment before remembering that she should help.

It was like releasing a hatch as Qin Xinran’s attitude changed from being beaten to one that beat others. Coordinating her attacks between using the Attack Scroll and pouncing at the Howling Lion Beast, her fierce deposition made a shiver run down Gu Lingzhi’s spine.

Eventually, the ferocious Howling Lion Beast was beaten to death by Qin Xinran’s club and Attack Scrolls. It let out one last cry of indignance before falling silent. Gu Lingzhi fell to the ground as she looked at Qin Xinran who was still holding her club, out of breath. She suddenly felt a feeling of lightness overcome her.

They had really defeated the Howling Lion Beast.

To be accurate, it was Qin Xinran that killed it. If she did not remember wrongly, Qin Xinran was only a Level Eight Martial Student.

However, just by observing the attacks of this Howling Lion Beast, it was clearly a second-order middle grade demon beast. Even with the help of numerous Attack Scrolls, this was a fight that was still way above their league. It was simply unbelievable that they had managed to conquer it.