Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Lin Yu kept his eyes fixed on the movements of the wolf pack, unable to spare a glance to check on Qing Mo’s condition. He only managed to ask with concern,

"Are you okay?"

No response came from behind him for a long time. A sense of foreboding washed over Lin Yu. Seizing the moment while the gray wolves still lingered about five meters away on the open ground, he quickly turned his head to assess Qing Mo’s state.

Qing Mo sat on the snowless patch beneath a tree, where the thick canopy and branches had blocked most of the falling snow. Her face was twisted in pain, and despite the freezing cold, beads of sweat glistened on her smooth forehead.

Her hands cradled her left ankle gently, her body curled tightly from the agony. Soon, as if sensing something, she lifted her tear-filled eyes and met Lin Yu’s gaze—complex and unreadable.

The pure black pupils of Qing Mo’s eyes contracted slightly. Instinctively, she tried to hide her injured foot, but the slightest movement sent a sharp, searing pain through her ankle, forcing her to freeze.

Realizing she had gone from being a minor burden to a massive liability, Qing Mo visibly panicked. She reached out and clutched the hem of Lin Yu’s clothes, her eyes brimming with desperation and pleading. Her voice trembled as she begged,

"Don’t leave me behind."

Lin Yu turned away without expression.

Faced with the relentless advance of six gray wolves, he let out a weary sigh and muttered under his breath,

"I must’ve owed you in a past life."

Hearing this, Qing Mo felt both wronged and guilty, her tears flowing uncontrollably.

Qing Mo’s sudden injury drove home an old saying for Lin Yu:

Plans never survive first contact with reality.

With the wolves tightening their encirclement, Lin Yu swiftly devised a Plan B.

Keeping his eyes locked on the largest and strongest of the gray wolves, he spoke to Qing Mo without turning,

"See that gray wolf to your left?"

"The biggest one."

Qing Mo wiped the icy tears from her cheeks, her voice still shaky from crying.

"I see it."

Lin Yu continued, his gaze unwavering,

"That’s most likely the alpha of this pack."

"If we want to survive, we have to kill it."

"If it dies,"

"the pack will scatter, and we’ll have a chance."

Qing Mo’s sobs quieted. She stared at the imposing wolf, confusion and helplessness written across her face.

"What’s your plan?"

Lin Yu shook his head.

"No plan."

"Just brute force."

"While I’m not bleeding too much and my limbs aren’t frozen stiff yet, I have to take the initiative and kill it."

"If we keep dragging this out, we’re dead."

Qing Mo’s lips, pale from the cold, parted slightly. She understood what Lin Yu meant.

He was going to fight the wolf.

Which meant he couldn’t protect her anymore...

After a long silence, Qing Mo’s voice turned resolute.

"Go."

Then, softening, she added quietly,

"Be careful."

Qing Mo wasn’t one to ignore the bigger picture. She knew keeping Lin Yu by her side would only lead to both of them dying.

Though she understood the danger of losing his protection, she also recognized this was their only option.

With Qing Mo’s reluctant approval, Lin Yu didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he crouched down and dug a few fist-sized stones out of the frozen ground, placing them beside her. He sighed in frustration.

"Use them sparingly. The ground’s too hard."

"I can’t get any more."

Qing Mo nodded, treating the stones like precious treasures as she gathered them onto her lap.

Having done all he could to ensure her safety, Lin Yu stood up, took a deep breath, and gripped his makeshift knife tightly. Limping, he advanced toward the largest gray wolf.

Wolves were known for their cunning and intelligence.

They recognized the human male as a formidable threat and had no intention of engaging him directly. Instead, their focus shifted to the vulnerable woman beneath the tree.

Every time Lin Yu moved toward the alpha, it retreated, maintaining a careful distance of about a meter and a half—close enough to react and attack, but far enough to evade.

And with each step Lin Yu took toward the alpha, the wolf pack’s encirclement shifted, drawing the other wolves closer to Qing Mo.

Each time this happened, Lin Yu had no choice but to retreat a few steps to keep the wolves from reaching her.

The stalemate only worsened their predicament.

Lin Yu knew they couldn’t afford to wait, but the alpha’s precise distance control left him no opening to strike.

Trapped between protecting Qing Mo and attacking the alpha, Lin Yu was stuck in a deadly tug-of-war.

After what felt like an eternity, Lin Yu made another move toward the alpha.

The wolves adjusted their formation again, inching closer to Qing Mo.

When they were less than three meters away, Lin Yu finally saw his chance. A ruthless glint flashed in his eyes as he lunged at the alpha.

One move triggered them all.

As Lin Yu moved, so did the pack.

They had been eyeing the human woman hungrily, and now, like Lin Yu, they seized their opportunity, closing in on Qing Mo rapidly—less than a meter away.

Qing Mo huddled helplessly under the tree. Three wolves surrounded her, and the two remaining stones in her hands were nowhere near enough.

Terror left her limbs weak. Even if she tried to throw the stones, they’d have no force behind them.

Though she knew Lin Yu was in the middle of a critical moment, the primal fear of death overwhelmed her. She couldn’t stop herself from crying out to him,

"Lin Yu!"

Her scream pierced Lin Yu’s ears like a knife.

He had no choice but to abort his attack on the alpha and turn back to save Qing Mo.

In his haste, Lin Yu lost his footing while pivoting. With a heavy thud, he crashed into the snow.

Time seemed to freeze.

Every pair of eyes locked onto Lin Yu—or more accurately, onto the crimson knife that had flown from his grip.

The alpha and Lin Yu both stared, wide-eyed.

Lin Yu scrambled to get up and retrieve his weapon.

But the alpha was faster.

Before Lin Yu could react, the wolf pounced, its jaws aiming straight for his throat.

"Lin Yu!!!"

Everything happened in an instant. Qing Mo tried to push herself up on trembling limbs to help, but it was too late—she barely had time to finish screaming his name.

Her shrill cry echoed through the forest as the alpha landed on Lin Yu. But it didn’t succeed in tearing out his throat—Lin Yu barely managed to block with his arm.

The wolf's jaws clamped down fiercely on Lin Yu's arm, its sharp fangs piercing through the padded coat and sinking deep into his flesh.

Tasting blood, the alpha wolf felt certain of its victory.

Past experience had taught it that in such bitter cold, every wound on its prey would hasten death's frenzied approach.

All it had to do now was wait patiently.

But...

Something felt off.

A flicker of suspicion crossed the gray wolf's blue eyes—it saw none of the familiar fear in the eyes of the human beneath it.

Instead, there was a madness, a ferocity, as if...

this prey still believed it could turn the tables.

The next instant.

Lin Yu's hand, hidden beneath the snow, suddenly lashed out, gripping a sharp, fist-sized rock. With all his strength, he drove it down onto the alpha wolf's skull.

"YOWL!!"

The gray wolf howled like a beaten dog as the rock struck the back of its head.

It instantly released its grip, instinct screaming at it to flee.

But Lin Yu wasn't about to let it escape.

He seized the thick fur at the wolf's neck, pinning it down, and rained blow after blow upon its skull with the rock, relentless as a storm.