Is this really a Game?!

Chapter 1165 Ambush

As Reign and the others entered the forest, they were all on edge as the dense trees loomed over them, their branches twisting at weird angles, the bushes forming dense areas that were difficult to traverse, and very easy to hide in.

The further in they went, the darker it became as it was more and more difficult for the sun to shine through the dense canopy of the forest.

"They will definitely use the forest against us, we cannot afford to underestimate the wolves just because we managed to defeat that one pack and its Alpha, not to mention that if any of them have stealth capabilities, they will be very difficult to notice."

"Don't forget that we are in a forest, even though it's a bit doubtful, but if there are wolves that can use powers that can manipulate plants, they can make an entire area of the forest our enemy," Beast added from the side, causing Reign and the others to nod at him.

"I hate forests like this," Mia muttered under her breath, her icy magic swirling around her fingertips, ready to unleash a deadly frost at a moment's notice.

"Me too," Jin agreed, his fists crackling with electricity. "Too many places to hide, and you can never tell where the next attack is going to come from."

"They're watching us," Beast whispered, his voice low and tense. "I can feel it."

"Of course they are," Reign replied, his gaze never leaving the shadows. "They know we're coming. They're waiting for the perfect moment to strike."

Suddenly, a low growl echoed through the forest. It was distant, but it sent a chill down their spines.

"They're testing us," Shadow said, his voice barely above a whisper. "They want us to feel cornered, but we need to stay calm."

The growling grew louder, more frequent. It came from all directions, reverberating off the trees and making it impossible to pinpoint where the wolves were hiding.

"We're being surrounded," Wolf muttered, his eyes glowing with a faint, chaotic light as his grip tightened on his sword. "Get ready."

Reign signaled the group to stop. They formed a defensive circle, each member facing a different direction, weapons raised and charged.

"Come on, then," Tank growled, banging his shield with his fist. "Show yourselves!"

For a few tense moments, there was only silence. Then, in a blur of motion, wolves lunged from the shadows. These weren't ordinary wolves—these were shadow-infused beasts, their fur as black as night, their eyes glowing with a crimson hue. Their bodies were larger, and more muscular, and their movements were unnaturally fast.

It was as if the darkness of the forest itself had twisted them into something far more dangerous.

"Here they come!" Reign shouted as he slashed through the air, his sword cutting cleanly through the first wolf that lunged at him. Black lightning crackled from his blade, burning the beast from the inside out.

Wolf met the attack head-on, his chaos flames flaring to life as he swung his sword in a wide arc, engulfing three wolves at once in a burst of fiery destruction. The creatures yelped and howled as the flames consumed them, their bodies disintegrating into ash.

Mia conjured a thick wall of ice, blocking a group of wolves from flanking them. She followed up with a blast of frost, freezing the wolves in place before shattering them into pieces with a swing of her sword.

They were confused, the wolves had powers that could allow them to hide perfectly well, so why would they suddenly attack them like this?

Why would they sacrifice their largest advantage, which was stealth, to just mindlessly charge at them?

They found out a mere moment after 'killing' the 'wolves'.

They disintegrated, turning into shadows and scattering into the air as Reign and the others widened their eyes upon sensing several mana signatures and presences that appeared around them.

Wolves charged out, only being noticed the moment they attacked. The previous wolves were mere manifestations of their ability, avatars made out of shadows that were sent to confuse Reign and the others.

The wolves came out of nowhere.

Reign barely had time to react before the first of the real wolves lunged at him from the side, its crimson eyes gleaming with a hunger for blood. The wolf was faster and stronger than any they had faced before. It collided with Reign, and for a split second, he was thrown off balance. Instinct kicked in, and he twisted his body midair, narrowly avoiding the sharp fangs that aimed for his throat.

But the wolves didn't attack alone. More surged from the darkness, their forms almost indistinguishable from the shadows that clung to the trees. The first wave of attacks had been a diversion—a clever, calculated move to make them act and create a false sense of security.

Now, the real predators had arrived, and they were in their element: the dark, oppressive forest that cloaked them in mystery and gave them an advantage.

"Ambush!" Reign shouted, his voice cutting through the chaotic sounds of battle.

"Get back!" Tank roared as he raised his shield just in time to block a powerful swipe from another wolf. The impact sent a shockwave through his body, but he held his ground, teeth clenched from the force. He could feel the intensity behind each blow—these wolves were unlike any they had faced before.

Mia screamed as one of the wolves leaped toward her. With a sharp movement of her hand, she conjured a barrier of ice, but the creature slammed into it with such force that cracks immediately spiderwebbed across the surface. The beast's claws tore at the ice, and Mia knew the barrier wouldn't hold for long.

"They're stronger than the ones before!" Mia shouted, desperation creeping into her voice as the wolves attacked with relentless fury.

Wolf, engulfed in chaos flames, swung his sword wildly to fend off the onslaught of wolves surrounding him. His flames lashed out like whips, setting the surrounding trees on fire. For a brief moment, the flames illuminated the dark forest, revealing more wolves lurking in the shadows, waiting for their chance to strike. His flames incinerated one, but two more appeared in its place.

"They're everywhere," he growled, his eyes narrowing as he realized the gravity of their situation.

Shadow, usually calm under pressure, found himself in a precarious position. A wolf had tackled him, and though he'd managed to plunge one of his daggers into its side, it still snapped and snarled as it tried to pin him down. Shadow twisted his body, using the wolf's momentum to flip it over before he disappeared into the shadows, only to reappear behind another beast.

His movements were fast, and fluid, but he was outnumbered, and even with his speed, he couldn't kill them all.

Reign quickly regained his footing, his mind racing to understand the situation. They had walked straight into the wolves' trap, and now they were surrounded by a pack far more intelligent and dangerous than the ones they had fought before. The wolves weren't just attacking—they were coordinating, waiting for openings, forcing Reign and his team into a defensive stance with no time to regroup.

Suddenly, multiple flashes of light appeared near the group, and the situation was suddenly changed.

Four people appeared near Tank, and immediately moved on the offensive, tackling the wolves that were charging while Blackie and the Flood Dragon were summoned by Beast, and they quickly attacked as well.

The aura of a superior bloodline was quickly felt by Blackie, which caused the wolves that were nearest to him to slow down and falter for a moment, only to be attacked by Blackie, whose body turned into a blur as black lightning discharged around him.

As for the Flood Dragon, the aura that was coming from him was equally devastating to the wolves, who were attacking with their Alpha coordinating them from afar. The aura coming from him and Blackie was alone to make them weaker, to actually make them falter and stop for a moment, and that was all they needed to turn the tables on the wolves.

Beast didn't summon the wyvern even though its bloodline was almost as strong as the bloodline of the other two. The reason for that was simple, the wyvern was simply not as good at controlling the size of its body as the other two, thus summoning it in the forest at this moment wouldn't have been beneficial to them at all.

With the two powerful beasts joining the fray, and Tank's four generals attacking, the entire battle took a turn as Reign and the others quickly pushed back the wolves and started slaughtering them, causing them to quickly retreat, turning into shadows and disappearing into the forest.

"Dammit, we should have done more to keep them here, to slaughter more of them." Reign said with an angry scowl as he stared at the forest and the darkness present deeper inside it.

He and the others knew that this would definitely not be the last time they saw the wolves, after all, their powers made them perfect for ambushes, and if Reign and the others were to come across a different pack, they were certain this pack would quickly appear as well.