To corner a tiger, one had to trap it between a rock and a hard place. That was exactly what Ray was doing. Ashclaw was an old tiger; once he realized no help was coming, he would feel caged. And a trapped beast only needed the whisper of a devil to be lured to its own death.

At Ray's words, Ashclaw's expression darkened. 'He's not willing to help me. I expected as much. Our bond is strong, but not strong enough to make him sacrifice his freedom for me.'

Ashclaw realized he might not even have two months to prepare for a potential confrontation with a silver ranker!

Ray noticed his deepening distress and smiled inwardly. The time to throw the bait had come. Considering how desperate Ashclaw was, he was 90% sure he would bite it regardless of the risks involved.

"Father, you might think you have only two options. But what if I told you there's a third?" He said suddenly.

Ashclaw leaned forward and asked curiously, "What do you mean?"

"It's tied to the matter I wanted to discuss with you. Last month, I made a crucial discovery. There are three Spirit Fruits growing in the Dire Wolf Den." Ray said, "You know what Spirit Fruits are, right?"

"Yeah, I know." Ashclaw gave a curt nod.

Spirit Fruits were ranked as eighth-tier heaven-and-earth treasures. A single one could sell for several platinum bars in a big city. It it were to be auctioned in a proper establishment, it could earn more.

One spirit fruit was enough for an iron ranker to breakthrough two minor realms. It was half as effective for bronze rankers. They could leap across one minor realm by taking a spirit fruit.

Spirit Fruits were valuable because they weren't just useful for the weak. Even high rankers benefited from them. While they couldn't help them breakthrough a minor realm, they could enhance their soul quality, something no tamer overlooked.

"If I am understanding you right, you want to take them with my help?" Ashclaw said hesitantly.

"Correct. When I last saw them, they were a month away from ripening. By now, they shouldn't be far from ripening. If we strike tonight and wipe out the Dire Wolf Den, they'll be ours. And if you help me secure them, I'll split the fruits with you. One will go to me. One will go to you. We will auction out the last one and divide the profit equally between us later on.

"You will get the money to move to the royal capital while I will meet the requirement to become a protector of the beast hall! We father and son will become untouchable once we secure the spirit fruits. So what do you say? Are you in or not?"

This was the script Ray had crafted to kill Ashclaw after learning about the threat Ashclaw was facing.

Only the Dire Wolf Den was real. Everything else was a fabrication. Worth noting, he had learned of the den's existence from Torvin's memories.

"Son, I must say. Your words sounds pleasant to hear but Dire Wolves aren't easy opponents. The weakest of them are at least iron rank demonic beasts. There are bound to be stronger ones in the den. They can use ranged attacks, and they are extremely vicious melee combatants. Their hides are extremely tough, allowing them to survive attacks that would be otherwise lethal. They barely have any shortcomings. Among bronze ranked demonic creatures, they are considered the 7th Strongest. Even a group of bronze rankers, each with two bronze ranked battle companions, might not succeed in wiping a single den of Dire Wolves!"

Ashclaw wanted to know why Ray believed he could wipe them out with if he helped him.

"Father, I had a fortuitous encounter in the Tower of Enlightenment. My skills were strengthened. It's not impossible to pierce the defense of bronze-rank demonic creatures. They are as vulnerable to my skill as my flesh is to their attacks," Ray explained patiently.

So close...

He was so fucking close to baiting Ashclaw.

He could see it in his eyes.

Ashclaw wanted to agree with him, but he needed a push—a reason to believe it would work.

So Ray decided to work extra hard to give it to him.

Hopefully, he would bite the bait and sign his own death certificate.

"How strong have they become?" Ashclaw was asking about his skills.

"See for yourself." Ray let out a wisp of fire trickle out of his fingertips and jump into a nearby table. It was set ablaze.

In front of Ashclaw's eyes, the table turned to dust, all its components—even the metallic ones—burned away into nothing!

"So strong?" Ashclaw's mouth gaped, his eyes widening to the size of saucers; no, they flew open so much in shock it seemed like they would pop out of their sockets.

The strength of that skill was truly horrifying. The hides of Dire Wolves were tough but they could only be compared to steel in toughness. That fire even burned steel to nothing. It should certainly work against Dire Wolves.

Ray put out the fire. If he hadn't, it would have spread and burned down the entire house.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Ray said, gauging Ashclaw's reaction.

Ashclaw bobbed his head up and nodded as obediently as Ray had expected.

"What if I tell you that's just the tip of the iceberg? I have more to show," Ray said.

"What?" Ashclaw's gaze grew intense.

Ray summoned an azure wind blade and let it fly. Everything it came across was cut down. Seeing its might, Ashclaw was convinced.

"What do you need my help with?" he asked.

"I will lure them out. Help me trap them in one place with your rune of defence. I will prepare my strongest attack and then you lift the barrier. Wipe them out in one shot!" Ray said, his voice steady, his eyes sharp.

Ashclaw smirked faintly. "The skills you have shown me can be used on a larger scale?"

Ray nodded.

He was as calm as Ashclaw was shocked.

"Alright. I'll help you." Ashclaw was desperate, so he bit the bait. "When do we set out?"

Ray smiled. "Tonight."

He couldn't wait to kill him!

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