In the photo, a bewitchingly beautiful fox girl was lying on a bed, fast asleep. A glistening thread of drool hung at the corner of her clear, delicate lips, and she looked utterly content in her sleep.
She had long, curved eyelashes, snowy white skin, a dainty high nose, and a beautiful, delicate oval face. Most of all, the two cute ears on top of her head twitched slightly in her sleep, making her look like a sleeping puppy.
She was wearing a tight red dress that showed off her smooth, lotus-root-like legs, long and alluring. She didn't like sleeping under a blanket, so everything was in full view.
This was the "ugly photo" Gwen had secretly taken while the fox girl Yenji was asleep.
She had meant to use it as blackmail material to tease the fox girl, but Gwen had never imagined that even asleep, the fox girl would still look this gorgeous, with not a single bad angle.
No matter which angle the photo was taken from, her beauty was absolutely breathtaking.
Seeing Kai's stunned expression, Gwen gave a dry laugh. "Well? My cousin's girlfriend is gorgeous, isn't she?"
"So give up already."
But the moment she said it, Gwen felt something inside her crack.
Were those words meant for Kai, or for herself?
Kai's face went pale, but she still forced out a smile. "It's fine. She's only his girlfriend, not his wife."
"That just means I still have a chance, right?"
"And think about it. If he didn't have a girlfriend, I'd have to compete with a whole bunch of people."
"But now Lucian only has one girlfriend, so I just have to compete with one person. Hahaha."
Hearing Kai's words, Gwen's eyes widened, and waves crashed through her heart.
You can do that?
"Awooo!!"
A sharp wolf howl rang out from the distant mountains, echoing between the peaks.
...
Deep in the mountains.
A dark, secluded cave was piled high with all kinds of mechanical parts, a chaotic mess with faint arcs of electricity flickering and crackling through it.
A savage Benwolf was bent over, swinging its claws as if sorting through the machinery.
Click...
A noise came from behind it. Benwolf's hearing was incredibly sharp, and it instantly leaped into the air, dodging the bullet fired from behind.
It spun around at once and let out a terrifying roar.
"Oh no!" Wes's face changed dramatically. He hadn't expected Benwolf to hear even the sound of him pulling the trigger.
"Roar!" Benwolf howled and exploded with shocking force, lunging forward like a cannonball.
That violent impact sent the whole group flying off the cliff.
The wind screamed past their ears in wild bursts, the fierce gale making it nearly impossible to keep their eyes open.
Wes squinted, his face ashen, thinking it was over.
From a fall that high, they'd probably be smashed to pieces.
But suddenly, two green flashes streaked through the air.
Before he could react, he found himself wrapped in a tough vine, and then he and Grandpa Max landed safely on the ground.
"Ah!" The moment Wes got a clear look at the creature, he was scared out of his wits.
A completely green monster stood there with a single eye and tentacles all over its body. Several vines from beneath its feet were tightly wrapped around the mountainside as it looked down at him.
"You're safe now." After rescuing the two of them, Wildvine drew his body back in.
Then he shot out a rubbery vine, grabbed a rock at the top of the mountain, and launched himself upward like a spring.
Wes glanced at Grandpa Max.
"Uh, haha... I'll explain later." Grandpa Max laughed awkwardly.
...
By the time Wildvine made it back to the mountaintop, Stinkfly was already locked in battle with Benwolf.
The moment everyone had fallen off the cliff, Lucian had immediately turned into Wildvine to save Grandpa Max and Wes.
Meanwhile, Ben had transformed into Stinkfly. After seeing Grandpa was safe, he flew back to the mountaintop and started fighting Benwolf.
"Hey, big dumb wolf, look over here!"
As he shouted, Stinkfly spat out a huge glob of disgusting slime.
Benwolf was agile enough to dodge it easily, then sprang forward and slammed Stinkfly to the ground with one swipe.
Bang.
Stinkfly crashed onto the ground, baring his teeth in pain.
"Awooo!" Benwolf stretched out its claws, about to finish off the filthy bug.
Suddenly, several green spikes shot up from underground.
Benwolf froze for a split second. Before it could react, those "spikes" shot upward and turned into tough vines, wrapping Benwolf into a "green rice dumpling."
"Got you." Wildvine burst out of the ground. Those vines were his tentacles.
"Roar!"
Benwolf's mouth split into four petals like a blooming flower, releasing purple ultrasonic waves.
Wildvine raised an arm to block, but the powerful ultrasonic blast still forced him back two or three steps.
"Cuz, I'm coming to help!" Stinkfly shouted as he prepared to charge in.
Beep beep!
The Omnitrix on his face suddenly began flashing.
Thump!
A crimson flash burst out, and Stinkfly turned back into Ben.
"Roar!"
A wolf always goes after the weakest target.
Benwolf was no exception.
It decided to take out the frail human first, then deal with Wildvine slowly.
"Awooo!" Benwolf dropped to all fours like a real wild wolf and lunged straight at Ben.
Wildvine lashed out with several vines, all of them striking Benwolf's body.
Benwolf roared angrily, enduring Wildvine's attacks as it swept out a claw. Its sharp wolf claws slashed across Wildvine's hand like lightning.
Wildvine winced in pain and instinctively pulled his hands back.
Benwolf immediately seized the chance to rush at Ben, raising its thick arm. Every bristling strand of wolf fur was clearly visible under the moonlight.
In his panic, Ben hurriedly raised the Omnitrix.
Screech!
The dagger-like wolf claws slashed hard across the replica Omnitrix, sending bright sparks flying.
"Ben!"
At that moment, Grandpa Max arrived, dual pistols in hand, firing streams of blue laser blasts.
Wes had also climbed back up and was repeatedly pulling the trigger on his hunting rifle.
Realizing the situation had turned bad, Benwolf immediately charged into a nearby cave. Wildvine shot out his vines and moved to chase after it.
Boom!
Inside the cave, Benwolf lifted a huge boulder and sealed the entrance, blocking Wildvine off.
Wildvine gave a cold snort and was just about to pierce through the boulder when Wes stopped him.
"Don't chase it, kid. Yenaldooshi has already fled into the volcano. Who knows what kind of ambush it has waiting in there," Wes said.
The surrounding mountains were all volcanoes. They were ancient and had long gone dormant, but Yenaldooshi's arrival seemed to have awakened them again.
At that moment, no one noticed that Ben's Omnitrix had quietly shifted to a yellow glow...