Chapter 22: Chapter 22: Black Crystal Guardian Wolf
The Black Crystal Guardian Wolf did not attack immediately.
It stood behind the altar, its body half-formed from black light and half-covered in crystal armor. Unlike ordinary beasts, it carried an aura that felt connected to the altar itself. Every breath it took made the runes beneath its paws pulse.
Qin Yuheng could feel the difference.
This was not simply a monster.
It was a trial.
The Tower had accepted their offering and created a guardian to judge whether they deserved the hidden reward.
Qin Mo looked at the wolf, then at the narrow cave ceiling.
"Can we choose the survive option?"
Qin Yuheng answered, "Only if we cannot win."
"That is not the answer I wanted."
Qin Yuchen stepped beside Qin Yuheng. "Its armor is crystal-type. Similar to the lizard’s spine nodes?"
Qin Lian narrowed her eyes. "The joints are better protected. Eyes and under-throat may be weak points."
The Guardian Wolf lowered its head.
A Tower message appeared before all of them.
[Guardian Trial begins in ten seconds.]
Qin Yuheng immediately gave orders.
"Qin Mo, stay behind the altar and use formation disruption only when it charges. Do not waste mana."
"Understood."
"Qin Lian, do not engage head-on. Target eyes and rear legs."
"Yes."
"Yuchen, stay with me. We break its rhythm first."
Qin Yuchen nodded.
The countdown ended.
The Guardian Wolf vanished.
Qin Yuheng’s pupils contracted.
Fast.
Too fast for its size.
It appeared in front of Qin Yuchen almost instantly, claws descending toward his chest.
Qin Yuheng moved before thought fully formed.
His sword intercepted the claws.
Clang!
The impact pushed him back.
Qin Yuchen reacted quickly and retreated, but the wolf followed with a second strike.
Qin Lian’s dagger flew toward its eye.
The wolf tilted its head, dodging the dagger, but that brief motion broke its attack chain.
Qin Mo activated a flash mark.
Black light burst beneath the wolf’s paws.
The wolf paused for less than half a breath.
Qin Yuheng used that opening.
He stepped in, thunder flowing through his arm, and slashed across the wolf’s shoulder crystal.
The blade left a crack.
Not deep, but real.
The Guardian Wolf turned toward him.
Its blue flame eyes locked onto Qin Yuheng.
A pressure spread through the cave.
Qin Yuheng felt his skin tighten.
This beast recognized the main threat.
The wolf charged again.
Qin Yuheng did not retreat far.
If he allowed the wolf to control the cave freely, Qin Mo would be in danger. He needed to keep the guardian’s attention.
The Black Thunder Pattern Sword flashed repeatedly.
Claw met blade.
Crystal struck thunder.
Each exchange sent sparks across the cave.
Qin Yuheng’s body grew warmer as the Primordial Thunder Emperor Body circulated more actively. This was the strongest enemy he had faced since entering the Tower. The pressure forced his body talent to adapt, refine, and respond.
But he still held back from fully releasing it.
Not because of outside observers—there were likely none here in the hidden mission cave—but because he needed to train control. If he relied on overwhelming bursts every time danger rose, he would build bad habits.
Power had to be mastered, not merely used.
The wolf suddenly opened its mouth.
A black crystal spike shot out like an arrow.
Qin Yuheng tilted his head.
The spike grazed his cheek and struck the wall behind him.
"Ranged attack!" Qin Yuchen warned.
Three more spikes formed around the wolf.
Qin Mo’s face changed.
"Bad."
The spikes shot toward different targets.
One toward Qin Yuheng.
One toward Qin Yuchen.
One toward Qin Lian.
Qin Yuheng cut his spike apart.
Qin Yuchen blocked with difficulty, his Defensive Talisman flashing.
Qin Lian avoided hers, but the spike exploded against the wall and sent fragments into her shoulder.
She grunted but remained standing.
Qin Yuheng’s eyes cooled.
The guardian was targeting the team.
He took out a D Grade Defensive Talisman and threw it toward Qin Lian.
"Use it."
She caught it and activated it immediately.
The Guardian Wolf lunged toward her, trying to exploit her injury.
Qin Yuheng stepped harder.
Thunder flashed beneath his feet.
This time, he released more speed.
He appeared beside the wolf and struck its ribs.
Crack!
A crystal plate shattered.
The wolf was knocked sideways.
Qin Yuchen seized the moment and pierced the exposed gap.
The wolf roared.
Qin Lian, despite the injury, threw her second dagger into the wolf’s left eye.
This time, it hit.
Blue flame flickered violently.
The Guardian Wolf retreated for the first time.
Qin Mo shouted, "Altar runes are changing!"
Qin Yuheng glanced down.
The altar beneath the wolf glowed brighter, sending black light into its damaged armor.
"It can recover through the altar," Qin Yuchen said.
Qin Yuheng immediately understood.
This was the real test.
They could not slowly wear it down unless they disrupted the altar.
"Qin Mo, can you interfere?"
Qin Mo stared at the runes.
"Maybe. But if I touch it wrong, the altar may explode, curse us, summon more wolves, or all three."
"Best option?"
"Give me one minute."
"We may not have one."
Qin Mo took a deep breath and moved closer to the altar.
Qin Yuheng and Qin Yuchen stepped forward to block the wolf.
The Guardian Wolf, sensing Qin Mo’s intention, became more aggressive. It charged repeatedly, using crystal spikes and claw strikes to force openings. Qin Yuheng’s arm went numb from blocking. Qin Yuchen’s sleeve was torn open, leaving a shallow cut across his forearm.
Qin Lian moved despite her shoulder injury, harassing the wolf’s blind side.
Every second felt longer than it should.
Qin Mo crouched beside the altar, fingers moving rapidly over the runes.
"This is old," he muttered. "Very old. Why is a first-floor altar using this kind of pattern?"
"Qin Mo!" Qin Yuchen shouted as the wolf tried to leap past them.
Qin Yuheng’s eyes flashed.
He released a stronger burst of thunder.
His sword struck the wolf mid-leap, forcing it down.
The impact shook his bones, but he held firm.
Qin Mo finally pressed three fingers onto separate rune points.
"Found it!"
The altar light flickered.
The healing energy around the Guardian Wolf weakened.
A Tower message appeared.
[Altar support disrupted.]
[Guardian recovery reduced for 60 seconds.]
Qin Yuheng’s eyes sharpened.
"Finish it within sixty seconds."
The team moved as one.
Qin Yuheng no longer conserved as much strength.
The Primordial Thunder Emperor Body circulated through his limbs, violet-gold arcs faintly flashing beneath his skin. His sword attacks became faster, heavier, and more precise.
Qin Yuchen followed his rhythm, targeting cracks.
Qin Lian attacked the blind side and rear leg.
Qin Mo used the last of his mana to trigger small disruptions beneath the wolf’s paws.
The Guardian Wolf fought fiercely.
It bit toward Qin Yuheng’s neck.
Qin Yuheng raised his left arm, letting a Defensive Talisman absorb the bite. The talisman shattered, and the force still tore his sleeve and bruised his forearm.
But the wolf’s mouth remained open.
Qin Yuheng remembered the Stone Lizard.
Mouth interior.
He stepped in instead of retreating.
His sword pierced upward.
Violet-gold thunder exploded.
The Guardian Wolf convulsed, but it did not die.
Its remaining eye burned brighter, and its claws tore toward Qin Yuheng’s chest.
Qin Yuchen shouted and struck its leg.
Qin Lian’s dagger entered its throat from the side.
Qin Mo activated one final formation mark.
The wolf froze.
Only for a breath.
Qin Yuheng twisted the sword with both hands.
The blade broke through the skull.
The Guardian Wolf shattered into black crystal light.
The cave fell silent.
A Tower message appeared.
[Hidden Mission Completed.]
[Black Crystal Guardian Wolf defeated.]
[Evaluation increased.]
[Rewards pending final settlement.]
The team stood frozen for a moment.
Then Qin Mo collapsed backward onto the ground.
"I officially hate hidden missions."
Qin Lian sat beside the wall, pressing a hand to her injured shoulder.
Qin Yuchen exhaled deeply.
Qin Yuheng withdrew his sword.
His own hands trembled slightly from the impact, but his eyes were bright.
The guardian dissolved completely, leaving behind several items.
[Black Crystal Guardian Core x1]
[Black Crystal Fang x2]
[Black Stone Trial Mark x1]
[Hidden Altar Reward Chest x1]
Qin Yuheng stared at the final item.
A reward chest.
Not academy-made.
Not trial-zone artificial.
A true Tower hidden reward chest.
His heart beat heavier.
This was exactly what Primordial Origin Evolution was meant for.
He stored the chest without opening it.
Then he looked at his team.
"We leave the cave now. Rest at the entrance."
Qin Mo raised a weak hand. "Best order you have given all day."
They left the altar chamber slowly.
Behind them, the ancient black runes dimmed one by one.
But as Qin Yuheng stepped out of the cave, a message appeared only before his eyes.
[Unknown Origin interference detected.]
[Hidden Altar Reward Chest has been marked.]
[Primordial Origin Evolution compatibility increased.]
Qin Yuheng’s gaze deepened.
The Tower had noticed something.
Not enough to stop him.
But enough to react.
