At that moment, inside the reconnaissance room of the Superhuman Headquarters, a man in uniform ran in panic toward an elderly officer.
Messenger: Commander!
Commander: What's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry?
Messenger: Our department in charge of assigning mission levels made a mistake! We just discovered that the mission to subjugate the demon wolf, originally classified as F-rank, has been upgraded to D-rank due to its evolution! We only just managed to update the record...
The messenger was panting heavily, but his voice was loud and clear.
Commander: Directly upgraded to D-rank?! What are you people even doing?!
The commander slammed the table hard, making the messenger flinch in fear.
Commander: Forget it... The important thing now is — did anyone accept the mission before you changed it?
Messenger: Yes, sir. It's been taken... by one F-rank and one who just advanced to E-rank.
Commander: Damn it... Notify all relevant units immediately! Dispatch any team capable of killing a demon wolf!
The commander's face darkened. A battle between F-rank and D-rank... Even he wasn't confident those two could survive.
Messenger: Yes, sir!
The messenger dashed out of the room at lightning speed.
---
Meanwhile, deep in the Spirit Mountain, Lim He leapt up and struck the demon wolf's forehead with his enhanced fists.
Smack!
The impact forced the demon wolf to lower its head. It glared back at Lim He with furious, glowing eyes.
Lim He: !?
Sensing something wrong, Lim He pushed off the beast's body with both feet and leapt back toward Xuan Lan.
Lim He: Its skin is too damn tough!
Xuan Lan: I told you not to act recklessly!
Demon Wolf: ROAR!!
Before they could finish talking, the demon wolf charged at them.
Lim He: Watch out!
He shoved Xuan Lan aside and dodged in the opposite direction.
Lim He: Leg enhancement!
The muscles in his arms shrank while those in his legs expanded. In the next instant, Lim He dashed forward at high speed.
Xuan Lan also rose to her feet, gripping a dagger tightly as she charged at the beast.
Bam!!!
Lim He's knee smashed into the demon wolf's waist, while Xuan Lan's dagger slashed a shallow cut across its left leg.
Demon Wolf: ROAR!!
The wolf swung its massive tail, sweeping toward the two humans who had hurt it.
Bang! Bang!
Unable to dodge in time, Lim He and Xuan Lan crossed their arms to block, but the impact sent them flying into nearby trees.
Lim He: Cough!
Blood trickled from Lim He's mouth, and Xuan Lan beside him wasn't much better—blood seeped from the corner of her lips.
Xuan Lan: Lim He! Let's retreat!
Lim He: Huh?! Why?!
Xuan Lan: I've done plenty of F-rank missions, but I've never seen an enemy this strong! This demon wolf is—
Lim He: Look out!
He sprinted toward her and pulled her away.
Xuan Lan: What are you doing?!
Her cheeks turned slightly red as she found herself in Lim He's arms.
Lim He: Running for our lives! Now finish what you were saying!
Lim He ran while holding her, tension hidden behind his voice.
Xuan Lan: Tch... I mean this demon wolf may already be above F-rank—maybe even higher.
Lim He: But how long can we keep running?!
Xuan Lan: Until reinforcements arrive. I'm sure headquarters has already realized something's wrong.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Heavy footsteps echoed from behind. Xuan Lan glanced back—the demon wolf was closing in fast.
Xuan Lan: Move to the side, now!!
Lim He: Huh? Okay!
Though confused, Lim He obeyed.
Crash!!!!
The demon wolf's claws smashed into the tree where they had been standing moments before.
Lim He: If that hit us, we'd be having tea with the King of Hell right now...
Both of them were pale with shock. Even Xuan Lan, who had faced countless missions, couldn't hide her fear.
(I need to spread my energy evenly...) Lim He thought, his eyes gleaming sharply.
(If I enhance both my vision and speed... maybe I can handle it.)
---
Meanwhile, back at a construction site, Wei Tian suddenly stopped working. He stood still, a drop of sweat running down his temple.
Wei Tian: ...
He looked uneasy, unsure why a sense of dread had just washed over him.
Rui: What's wrong? Why'd you stop? Are you finally going to answer my question?
(Why do I suddenly have a bad feeling...) Wei Tian thought.
Rui: Hmph, guess not...
Rui gave him a faint glance and said nothing more.
---
Back on Spirit Mountain, Xuan Lan charged again, sword in hand.
Demon Wolf: ROAR!!
The wolf swung its claws from right to left.
Step!
Xuan Lan leapt into the air, narrowly avoiding the strike, and thrust her sword downward.
Whoosh!!!
The demon wolf leapt back with astonishing speed, dodging the attack completely.
Xuan Lan: Lim He!!!
Lim He: On it!!
He jumped from a tree, plunging a dagger straight into the wolf's left eye.
Demon Wolf: ROOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAR!!!!!
The wolf howled in agony, thrashing wildly. Lim He held onto the dagger as tightly as he could, but the violent shaking threw him off—sending him flying toward Xuan Lan. The dagger was ripped out in the process.
Thud!
Lim He hit the ground face-first beside Xuan Lan and quickly got back up.
Lim He: Your knife! (Damn, that hurt! My face...!)
He tossed the weapon back to her, and she caught it.
Xuan Lan: Let's keep pressing the attack!
Lim He: Got it!
The two of them squared off against the demon wolf, who now glared at them with burning fury.
Demon Wolf: ROAR!!
Lim He: It's coming!
In an instant, the beast lunged forward, jaws wide open.