"We don’t know... we don’t know where he is now... Sob... sob..."

By the end, she was sobbing uncontrollably.

’Lured the wolves away?!’

Everyone’s heart tightened at her words.

"What happened? Did you run into wolves? Did they attack you?" Tang Bin’s expression changed as he pressed for details.

It was no secret that wolf packs roamed Cangshan, but they rarely attacked humans unless threatened or under extraordinary circumstances.

Deng Lei’s brow furrowed. "The wolves charged you?"

"Y-Yes."

Wiping her tears, the young woman recalled the events in a broken voice, still thick with fear. "We were collecting samples when we suddenly heard howling very close by. Then, several wolves burst out of the woods."

"They... they were acting strangely. They didn’t approach slowly. It was like... like something had spooked them. They just charged us out of nowhere!"

"We were terrified. We turned and ran, and they chased after us... My senior said we should split up. He threw some food out of his backpack, shouted, and ran west, trying to lead the wolves away..."

"But... but two of the wolves kept chasing me and the professor..."

"We ran for our lives, not paying attention to where we were going, and then... then we tumbled down this steep slope..."

’A frightened wolf pack?’

Tang Bin and the rescue team members exchanged bewildered glances.

What could have terrified a wolf pack so much that they’d act so erratically and charge at humans?

But when Yang Qi and Deng Lei exchanged a look, they both realized they were thinking the same thing.

There weren’t many things in Cangshan capable of scaring a wolf pack into a panicked frenzy.

A sounder of wild boars might make them wary, but it was unlikely to frighten them to this extent.

The clouded leopard, Caiyun, could take down a lone wolf with a stealth attack, but charge and terrify an entire pack?

She couldn’t do that.

After ruling those out, the only remaining possibility...

...pointed to the hidden danger the Forest Police had been wary of but had never been able to confirm.

The unknown, powerful beast lurking deep within Cangshan, whose presence Caiyun had sensed before!

’Did it show itself?’

’Or did it drive off the wolves, indirectly causing this disaster?’

Yang Qi remained silent.

Deng Lei, on the other hand, took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his shock and anxiety to regain his composure.

"Let’s focus on the rescue!"

"Captain Tang, leave a few people to look after the student. The rest of you, follow me to find Professor Yu."

"Advisor Yang, please have your dogs help track the scent."

"Understood," Tang Bin replied instantly.

"Bai Wan, Hu Zi, Leopard, go find him!" Yang Qi gave the order directly to the three police dogs.

Bai Wan, Hu Zi, and Leopard were already raring to go. At the command, they immediately lowered their heads and started sniffing, barking softly as they charged toward the steep slope the young woman had pointed to.

Half the team immediately followed them.

The rock-strewn slope was even more treacherous. But guided by flashlight beams and the three dogs, the group quickly found the unconscious Associate Professor Yu Chengbang at the bottom of the slope, behind a thicket of bushes near a few large boulders.

He was lying on his back, a visible impact wound on his forehead. The blood had already clotted, his face was ashen, and his breathing was shallow.

The medics rushed forward to administer first aid, checking his pupils and pulse, bandaging the wound, and immobilizing his neck.

After a preliminary examination, the team doctor spoke to Deng Lei and Tang Bin with a grave expression.

"The victim has suffered a blow to the head, possibly a concussion or even a more severe intracranial injury. He’s also lost a lot of blood. We need to get him out of the mountains for professional medical care immediately!"

Without a moment’s hesitation, Deng Lei gave the order. "Captain Tang, take half the team and the medics. Escort Professor Yu and the student out of the mountains immediately. Get them to the hospital as fast as you can."

"Xiaozhang, Xiaowang, you’ll accompany the escort. Maintain open communications and ensure their safety along the route!"

"Yes, sir!"

The two young Forest Police officers who were called out acknowledged the order at once.

Soon, half the rescue team split off. They fashioned a makeshift stretcher, carefully lifted the unconscious Professor Yu, and helped the injured female student. Guided by their flashlights, they started back the way they came.

They watched the group’s figures disappear into the darkness.

Deng Lei, Yang Qi, Tang Bin, and the remaining rescue team members and Forest Police officers did not feel any sense of relief.

Another student was still missing, his fate unknown—and he had disappeared while luring away a pack of terrified wolves!

Deng Lei turned to Yang Qi, a hopeful look in his eyes. "Advisor Yang, your Beaked Eagle flies high and can see for miles. Can you have it search from the sky for any sign of the other student? Even a general direction would help!"

"I’m afraid that’s not possible."

Before Yang Qi could answer, Tang Bin shook his head and offered a professional analysis. "Captain Deng, while the Beaked Eagle is the ’King of the Sky’ and has exceptional eyesight, that’s primarily during the daytime."

"Their night vision is actually about the same as a human’s, maybe even worse in some respects than certain nocturnal raptors."

"In a pitch-black forest like this, spotting a person on the ground—who might be down or hidden—from high up is virtually impossible."

"And having it fly low to search is too dangerous. It could easily crash into a tree."

"He’s right," Yang Qi agreed, knowing it was true.

’Although Qi Zai is my Guardian Beast, and his intelligence is far beyond that of a normal Beaked Eagle—not to mention he regularly eats Spirit Rice Balls, which have enhanced his physique—the inherent limitations of his vision aren’t so easily overcome.’

’Trying to find someone in a forest this dense at night... it’s asking the impossible of him. And the risk is just too high.’

"Then what do we do?"

Deng Lei’s brow was furrowed, his voice tight with anxiety. "We don’t have a specific location, and Cangshan is huge. With just the few of us left, searching the mountain is like looking for a needle in a haystack."

Searching at night, with a spooked wolf pack still out there, and even...

Deng Lei didn’t finish the sentence.

Yang Qi didn’t say anything either.

’The unknown beast that intimidated Caiyun is the biggest threat.’

’Though the chances of it attacking a person are slim.’

Tang Bin’s lips were also pressed into a thin line, his expression grim.

As an experienced rescue captain, he knew just how dangerous and inefficient it would be to blindly expand the search area under these conditions.

The darkness, the difficult terrain, the threat from the wolves...

Each factor was enough to turn the rescue mission itself into a gamble.

The group fell silent.

No one said a word.

Yang Qi’s mind raced.

’Relying on manpower and regular dogs is too inefficient.’

’What about asking Caiyun for help?’

’Clouded leopards are nocturnal. Her vision and hearing are far superior to a human’s at night, and she knows the forest.’

’But she’s a solitary hunter. Her search range is limited...’

Just as they reached an impasse, the atmosphere heavy with tension...

"COO-COO-WOO~ COO-COO-WOO~~~"

A low, unique, and strangely rhythmic call suddenly echoed from the woods, not far above and to their side.