"Sis Shana!"

Shana turned to see Yun, Chestnut, Xu, and Ning running toward her.

"Yun! Chestnut…" A surge of joy flooded her heart at the sight of her companions, but it froze instantly.

Yun's hair was a tangled mess, caked with snow; Chestnut's face was smudged with dirt, hiding her delicate features; Xu's trousers were torn to shreds; Ning's left arm and shoulder were covered in blood. It was clear the four witches had just escaped a brutal fight—their opponents, of course, were werewolves. Shana saw their red-rimmed eyes and felt a chill in her gut.

"Where are Quan, Shui, and Mi Si?"

"Senior Sister… they were killed by werewolves…" Ning's voice cracked with tears.

Oh no!

Shana's heart ached like it was being torn apart. The sisters she'd laughed with that morning were gone forever.

Damn werewolves!

"I'll kill these beasts!" Overwhelmed by grief and rage, the witch was about to charge down the tower to slay every werewolf below.

"Sis Shana, don't be reckless! We don't have enough potions left!" Yun grabbed her sleeve.

Right…

Yun's reminder calmed Shana slightly. Her mentor's words echoed in her mind: Witches must not act on impulse, or they will only face greater failure!

She took a deep breath, forcing herself to steady, then asked: "Yun, how many potions do you have left?"

"We used all our antidotes. Each of us has one poison vial left."

"Good, give me all four! I'll hit them with another Green Rain of Doom and wipe these beasts out!" Shana's fierce declaration died on her lips as she stared at the square.

After a brief howl of agony, the werewolves had stood back up. Their fur steamed with green fumes, but they seemed otherwise unharmed. Their eyes glowed blood-red, like burning hellfire, as they raised their blades and resumed their assault on the Frostwall defenders. Meanwhile, many human soldiers had been burned by the poison rain, writhing on the ground in agony.

How is this possible? Shana was stunned.

She'd known diluting two vials into poison rain would weaken its potency, making it impossible to kill werewolves. She'd only intended to hurt them, to temporarily slow their attack and reduce her side's casualties. But she'd never expected the werewolves to be almost unaffected, while her own people suffered grievously.

"Why… why are the werewolves fine?" Shana couldn't understand.

"On the Blood Moon night, werewolves' strength surges, and their resistance to poison increases dramatically." Old Ray said slowly from beside her. "Not only will diluted poison not harm them, but even targeting a single wolf—if it's an ordinary werewolf, maybe, but elite werewolves can only be crippled, not killed, by poison."

Shana suddenly remembered the werewolf that had killed "Broken Sword" Sean in the Bear Woods beyond the wall!

The old scholar is right. Even without the Blood Moon, when I faced that elite werewolf, I could barely hit it.

It dodged my poison twice—it's definitely the cream of the crop!

I wonder if it's among the wolves below…

Shana glanced down at the square. The werewolves' attack grew more ferocious, and the Frostwall defenders were retreating steadily—their defeat was obvious.

"Sis Shana, do you still want the potions?" Yun asked.

Shana shook her head: "Since the poison rain can't stop them, keep the potions for yourselves to survive."

"Then what do we do now?"

"Our top priority is to minimize the defenders' casualties. Uh… we should retreat."

"Thank goodness you finally see sense." Old Ray sighed. "The werewolves are at their strongest under the Blood Moon. Fighting head-on is the worst choice—retreating is the only wise move."

"Old Scholar, where do you think we should retreat to?" Defeated, Shana's fighting spirit had faded.

"First, retreat to the Dungeon Fort! It's a base the Frostwall Legion built in advance to withstand enemy attacks. Its tunnels connect to the walls, towers, and snow woods. According to the legion's plan, if the Shield Fort is attacked by a strong enemy, everyone retreats to the Dungeon Fort to discuss next steps."

"Good, we'll do as you say. Retreat to the Dungeon Fort!" Shana was eager to find Fito, and the scholar's suggestion aligned perfectly with her own plan.

Under Shana's command, the five witches protected the scholar as they retreated from the tower to the Dungeon Fort's entrance in the square. Werewolves attacked them repeatedly along the way, and the witches used their poison vials to kill the beasts without hesitation. By the time they reached the entrance, they'd used all four potions.

Luckily, dozens of defenders were gathered at the entrance, fighting tenaciously to hold off the werewolves.

Looks like we won't have to fight anymore!

Shana was about to breathe a sigh of relief when she heard Ning's cry from behind.

"Sis Shana! Help!"

Oh no! Another werewolf!

Shana spun around to rescue her companion, but a flash of cold light caught her eye—a wolf blade was thrust toward her face.

Crap!

She leaned back sharply, the blade scraping past her cheek. She could feel the cold of the steel against her skin.

"Die!"

Shana planted one hand on the ground, kicked upward, and hit the gray-furred werewolf in the jaw, sending it flying.

The gray wolf landed, rolled, and jumped back up, swinging its blade at her again.

I need to save my last potion for emergencies!

Shana still had one poison vial left, but she didn't want to use it yet. She dodged the wolf's attacks, trying to recall other spells to use against it.

I'll use the Soul Binding Curse!

Shana knew spells from multiple classes, but she was unfamiliar with anything outside her witchcraft. As she tried to remember the Dream Weaver's incantation, the gray wolf stumbled to the right, crashing through the Dungeon Fort's entrance railing and falling to the ground.

What happened?

It's been shot!

Shana saw a man standing ahead with a longbow—Du Sanyuan, the Frostwall Legion's famous archer.

"Sis Shana! Take the old scholar into the Dungeon Fort! I'll hold them off here!" Du Sanyuan shouted.

Shana was about to reply when another scream rang out nearby. She turned to see a sharp wolf blade pierce Ning's chest.

"Little Ning!" Shana's heart felt like it was being torn apart. Filled with shock and rage, she instinctively hurled her last vial of venom. The green liquid arced through the air, hitting the black wolf square in the face.

As the werewolf fell, Shana ran to hold Ning in her arms.

"Hold on, Ning! I'll get the antidote!" She fumbled at her waist.

Weird—didn't I put the antidote here? Where did it go?

Panic set in when she couldn't find it, her fingers trembling with urgency.

No! I remember having three antidotes left! Where are they?!

Hurry! Ning is badly hurt—if we wait too long, even the antidote won't save her!

Shana was frantic, but she couldn't find the antidotes anywhere.

"Sis Shana! Get inside! The Iron Shield Gate is closing!" Du Sanyuan urged her.

"No! I have to save Ning!" Shana set Ning down, searching every inch of herself.

"Sis Shana, run! The werewolves are coming! If you don't get in now, it'll be too late!" Yun ran over, grabbed Shana's arm, and pulled her back. Xu and Chestnut lifted Ning's body and carried her toward the Dungeon Fort.

"Ning needs treatment right now! It's too late if we wait!" Shana cried. Can't you remember the antidote's time limit, Yun?

"This isn't the time to save her! The werewolves could attack at any moment! We have to get into the Dungeon Fort first! Otherwise, we'll lose Ning and you too!" Yun pulled Shana back with all her strength.

Seeing Ning being carried into the Dungeon Fort, Shana had no choice but to follow.

"Seal the gate!" Once all the witches were inside, Du Sanyuan gave the order without hesitation. The massive hexagonal Iron Shield Gate began to descend slowly.

Shana watched snow dust fall from the gate's edge, while Du Sanyuan and the defenders stayed outside fighting. She shouted: "Hey! What are you doing out there? Get in!"

"Sis Shana, you go on! Protect the old scholar! We'll hold the Dungeon Fort to the death!" Du Sanyuan yelled.

He pulled his bowstring again and again, arrows flying through the air and hitting werewolf after werewolf. But the werewolves were unnaturally resilient—they didn't fall when shot, only paused briefly before yanking out the arrows, ignoring the bleeding wounds, and charging forward again.

Are werewolves on the Blood Moon night all demons that feel no pain?!

As the Iron Shield Gate lowered, swallowing Du Sanyuan's figure, Shana suddenly remembered the scene in the Bear Woods: "Broken Sword" Sean, who'd stayed behind to cover her escape, had been torn apart by werewolves.

The Frostwall defenders are all tough men—they'll fight to the death for honor and duty!

It's warriors like Sean and Du Sanyuan who built the Frostwall Legion's glory!

But tonight… the glory of the wall…

The Iron Shield Gate closed completely, cutting off the shouts and sounds of battle outside.

Shana sighed and turned to look at Ning, who lay quietly in Chestnut's arms, her eyes closed.

She remembered that Ning was two years younger than her, always willing to be her "little follower." Shana loved being called "Sis Shana," but she knew most people did it out of politeness—only Ning had truly looked up to her as an older sister.

Yet at this critical moment, she'd lost the antidotes, unable to save her loyal little follower.

The usually tough witch couldn't hold back anymore. Tears streamed down her face.