The long procession struggled through the dense mountain forest.
Ahead, strange peaks rose steeply, layer upon layer, one range following another, with no end in sight.
Deep within the Jade Dragon Mountain Range, there were no established paths to travel by. The abundant spiritual energy in the mountains made vegetation grow rapidly; trails trampled out by wild beasts would vanish after a single rain.
Thus, the ferrymen leading the way had no choice but to use Magic Tools to carve out a passage through the dense forest.
Whenever one of them exhausted his Mana, a companion took over.
It was already the twenty-third day since they had entered the mountains. By their original plan, they should have nearly finished this stretch of the journey, yet they were only halfway through.
There was nothing they could do about it.
Not only had the party lost nearly forty members, but more than half of the Mountain-Quelling Rhinoceroses responsible for transportation had been killed or injured.
Most importantly, the latter half of the journey was the most difficult and dangerous.
To ensure their safety, the ferrymen leading the group could only slow their pace, lest they repeat the same disaster.
But as a result, the atmosphere in the party showed no signs of improving for days on end.
Many faces were marked by weariness and irritation.
For powerful cultivators, the hardships of travel amounted to nothing; trekking ten thousand miles was no great feat. The main problem was the immense mental pressure.
After that battle, the party had been on edge all the way, startled by the wind and frightened by the cry of cranes, treating every blade of grass and tree as an enemy. At the slightest disturbance, they went on full alert.
They feared the Great Demon would return.
As time