CHAPTER 55: SILVER BACK.

That was why he couldn’t pinpoint the source of his fear-he feared none of them, yet he couldn’t move against them.

Nephis raised a fireball.

"Don’t attack," Gracie ordered.

Nephis hesitated. "Why?"

"He can’t attack us."

Gracie didn’t elaborate.

The skill she had used wasn’t simple. It implanted an emotion into the target’s mind. If her mastery were greater, she could have forced him to experience his worst nightmare, amplifying his deepest fears until he broke.

But for now, she could only instill a constant fear-one that lingered, gnawed at the mind, clouded judgment.

The only way he could break free was by experiencing a stronger emotion...rage, hatred, pain.

If they attacked him now, it could awaken those emotions, snapping him out of the effect.

The man clenched his fists. He knew this fear wasn’t his own. He wasn’t weak. He wasn’t afraid.

Yet...he couldn’t move.

If one of them had a single fatal skill, he could die before he even had a chance to fight back.

He made his decision.

He ran.

Through the jungle, without looking back, until exhaustion dulled the fear. He knew he could dispel it with time...but time was exactly what he didn’t have.

The group watched him disappear, stunned.

Nephis exhaled. "Should we continue hunting or retreat?"

Gracie smirked. "It’ll take him at least two days to recover. We’ll be long gone by then."

What she didn’t realize, however, was that she had underestimated the difference between their levels.

Harry let out a sigh of relief. He had been about to use the Soul Judgment Sword, though he wasn’t sure if it had made any difference. Still, the tension eased slightly.

He had already deciphered the attacker’s identity—or at least their backing. The use of the ice element confirmed his suspicions.

The attacker was from the Edward family. Based on the reactions of the others, Harry knew they were no less intelligent than him. They must have also figured it out and come to the same conclusion.

Well... Tyler was unique. He just didn’t care about this stuff.

At least now, the enemy was out in the open. A known threat was better than one lurking in the shadows.

But Harry’s hatred for the Edward family deepened. If he had enough power, he would have wiped their name from existence. Yet he knew this was just a stepping stone—there would always be similar threats. And unless he grew stronger, he would never be able to fight back.

There was only one solution—to become the strongest. Strength alone would allow him to ignore all external pressure.

"So, in this world, the answer to every question is absolute power."

The group retrieved the beast crystal from the bear and continued deeper into the forest.

Two men emerged from the shadows.

"They’re really outstanding individuals. At least, that girl... we need to make sure she joins us," the first man said.

"Hmm... it’s rare to find someone so cunning. But should we kill that guy?" the second man asked, pointing in the direction the elemental master had fled.

"We’ll lose track of these kids if we focus on him... but you’re right. We could earn their trust with a surprise."

"Let me handle it. I’ll kill him, then join you later," the second man said before disappearing into the shadows.

As the group ventured deeper, they noticed claw marks on trees and bones of various creatures scattered around.

"It looks like we’ve entered wolves territory," someone noted.

"Wolves have sharp noses," Eldrich warned. "Assume we’ve already been discovered."

Harry remained on high alert. His senses heightened. The last battle had made him feel the limits of his space element. Vague exhaustion crept in from overusing his abilities.

He guessed his barrier skill had a limit—it wasn’t something he could use indefinitely. It made sense. Power always had an origin, and nothing was truly limitless.

He smirked, imagining how Nephis would burn the entire jungle down with endless fireballs if her elemental power had no cap.

As he pondered this, a growl came from his right.

Then another from the left.

Then ahead.

And behind.

The group instinctively took positions—Harry, Gracie, Nephis, and Eldrich each faced a direction, while Tyler remained in the center, waiting for an opportunity.

Harry spotted red, glowing eyes in the darkness.

Four wolves surrounded them.

He activated Inspect.

[Silverback Wolf: Elemental Master Level 2. Injuries won’t stop them from feasting.]

From the description Harry could infer that either the wolf couldn’t feel pain or it had a healing-related element.

These wolves weren’t young. Wrinkled and weathered, they were in their last years.

He summoned his sword, channeling it with Qi. Using Serpent Stride, he dashed unpredictably to confuse the wolves before thrusting his blade at one.

The downside of Serpent Stride was that it barely worked against dumb enemies. The mere purpose of the skill was to deceive intelligence.

The wolf met the attack head-on without hesitation, its claws striking the sword and creating sparks in the air.

An overwhelming force pushed Harry back. But he had anticipated this. Instead of resisting, he let go of his sword, causing the wolf to lose balance due to inertia.

Summoning his Soul Energy, he tried to mask it beneath Qi—his rudimentary attempt at a Shadow Punch.

The wolf’s deep red eyes gleamed with experience.

When the punch landed on its long, silver back, it barely flinched. Harry hadn’t aimed for physical damage—but his real plan had failed too.

The wolf hadn’t even tried to defend against the physical strike. Instead, it had used all its strength to resist the soul attack.

Harry was in trouble.

A sharp claw tore through the air toward him with a rustling sound.

With no way to dodge, he summoned a barrier. But the moment the claw landed, the barrier shattered instantly.

The split second it bought allowed him to raise his arms in defense.

The claws dug deep, but with Qi reinforcing his Iron Body Technique, his flesh was far stronger than that of an average Elemental Master.

Seeing an opportunity, Harry unleashed a Soul Pulse before being flung ten meters back from the sheer force of the attack.

He still got a cut on his skin, but no blood flowed from it.

That didn’t mean it didn’t hurt—it still ached.

Lying on the ground, he heard a thud to his right.

He turned his head.

A large wolf lay there.

Wait... Did I kill it?

But then, looking up, he saw his true opponent still standing.

Somewhat dazed from the Soul Pulse, but not down.

Its silver back shone brilliantly, dispelling all dizziness.

Its eyes locked onto Harry.

But it wasn’t looking at him.

Its gaze was fixed on something beside him.

Its fallen companion.

Emotions in its eyes were palpable.

"Raze...Fury...Anger"

But all of them got hidden behind a creeping smile that sent a cold chill down the spine.