Entering the Mountains

Fang Mushan did not pause in the slightest. Striding forward, he charged straight at the overseer.

Using his shoulder as an axis, he sank his waist and hips. His body drew taut like a great bow, then shot forward in an arrow step. He was so fast that a faint whoosh of tearing wind could be heard as he sprinted.

In an instant, Fang Mushan crashed into the chest of the unsuspecting overseer, whose face had only just shown a look of terror.

Crack! Crack!

A string of crisp, teeth-grating bone-cracking sounds rang out. The overseer seemed to be made of paper as he was sent flying far away. He landed on the ground without moving, his life or death unknown.

Some of the mine slaves taking the chance to flee were equally stunned. It was hard to believe that such a seemingly lean body could send an overseer weighing over two hundred catties flying.

"That seems to be Fang Wen's son."

"Fang Mushan, son of Grand General of State Fang Wen. I've heard of him. At only sixteen, he could lift a thousand catties. His Divine Power is unmatched."

Someone nearby exclaimed, a hint of delight entering their voice.

"Maybe we can escape if we follow him!"

"What tremendous strength. He's only at Minor Accomplishment in Tendon Tempering, yet he can unleash such power. Truly, a tiger father has no dog son."

Li Haomiao sighed.

Xu Yunfan pressed his lips together.

Down in the mine, with no concrete benchmark for strength, he had only beaten weaklings like Cui Ye despite having reached minor accomplishment in the Crimson Flame Copper Body Art and entry level in Fleet Foot.

But compared with Fang Mushan now...

He felt eager to try.

It seemed he could dodge that, and it should be easy.

Fang Mushan also seemed to have noticed long ago that people were following him. He glanced back at Xu Yunfan and the others, a trace of provocation in his eyes, and raised his chin.

The meaning was obvious: if you have the guts, follow me.

Watching his figure race into the mountains, Xu Yunfan did not hesitate in the slightest. He immediately broke into a sprint and chased after him.

The group quickly left the battlefield, one ahead and the other behind. The shouts of battle gradually faded until they could no longer be heard. Before long, only a small handful of fairly skilled people could barely keep up.

Xu Yunfan looked back. They were already far from the mining area. The Black-Clad Death Soldiers led by Lian Yuanzhang were powerful, practically beating the overseers down one-sidedly.

Unfortunately, Zhang Shuyang was so composed that he must have a backup plan.

Seeing this, Li Haomiao said leisurely, "Thinking about what's happening at Ningguta?"

"I really want to see who wins and who loses."

Xu Yunfan kept his gaze fixed on the rugged terrain ahead. His feet landed precisely, his movements agile, and he did not dare let down his guard in the slightest. Running at such high speed required complete concentration.

Masters of the External Three Harmonies of Tendons, Bones, and Skin could easily slice through the air with every gesture, each movement carrying the force of wind and thunder. This was especially true when Zhang Shuyang and Lian Yuanzhang exchanged blows with their weapons. Every swing produced a terrifying whoosh through the air, leaving people shaken.

Human strength could actually reach such heights.

"Since that Bewitching Woman has a plan, she certainly would not have sent Zhang Shuyang alone. There are probably archers lying in ambush all around, with at least several experts of the same level backing him up. Perhaps even a Flesh Refining Realm expert could be there.

"If they only have Lian Yuanzhang's group, they'll likely die beneath a rain of arrows. Even if they can block the arrows, External Three Harmonies martial artists have yet to cultivate inner force, and their stamina is limited. They may simply die of exhaustion."

Li Haomiao analyzed, "Given that Bewitching Woman's vicious nature, it is entirely possible that she sent a top expert. Lian Yuanzhang will most likely fall here."

The Flesh Refining Realm came after the External Three Harmonies of Tendons, Bones, and Skin. From the outside inward, one tempered strength from one's flesh and blood. Only after gaining inner force could one be called a true martial arts master.

It was the mark of the extraordinary.

"However..." Li Haomiao changed the subject. "There are too many forces behind the mine slaves at Ningguta. No one knows whether some old monster might suddenly emerge. That would make for quite a show. Unfortunately, you and I are old, weak, crippled, and sick. We can't stay."

Xu Yunfan said, "Who are you calling old and weak? You're the crippled one, don't drag me into it."

After a pause, Xu Yunfan asked, "Who is that General Lian attacking Ningguta for?"

Li Haomiao fell silent for a moment before slowly saying, "For me, most likely."

"Then why didn't you acknowledge him?"

"If I were with him in that situation, I'd die even faster."

Li Haomiao said it coldly, and Xu Yunfan felt a pang in his heart.

Although after spending these past days with Li Haomiao, Xu Yunfan knew the man was not purely kind-hearted, he still possessed compassion.

But this compassion was indeed somewhat hard for Xu Yunfan to accept.

Lian Yuanzhang was fighting desperately for him, only to be coldly abandoned.

"You think I'm heartless?"

Li Haomiao naturally knew what Xu Yunfan was thinking. Seeing that Xu Yunfan said nothing, he seemed to think of something and tugged at the corner of his mouth, but he did not speak again.

After resting for a while, Fang Mushan brushed the mud from his backside and got up to continue onward.

Xu Yunfan did not waste any time either. He rose and followed closely behind.

Fang Mushan moved extremely quickly. A single step of his covered the distance of four or five ordinary steps. Though the roads along the wilderness ridges were rugged, he traversed them as though walking on level ground, without slowing in the slightest.

The four or five people beside them who were still somewhat skilled looked at one another. At last, someone spoke.

"The farther we go into the Eight Hundred Li Barren River Ice Field, the colder it gets. We're all lightly dressed. If this continues for long, even if the Mining Supervision Office doesn't catch us, we'll freeze to death in this wasteland."

Another person shook his head. "Going to Ningguta means death too. But in the Eight Hundred Li Barren River, there is always a chance to survive. If we stay here..."

He looked at the footprints they had left behind. They were all muddy and extremely conspicuous. Once the Mining Supervision Office caught its breath, there was a high chance they could track them down.

The group stopped hesitating and chased after Xu Yunfan and Fang Mushan.

In a place like this, sticking together always gave one a much greater chance of survival than being alone.

By the time dawn began to brighten and the rising sun emerged, even the snow-covered ridges had been dyed with a layer of glittering golden light.

At a sheltered Mountain Hollow, Fang Mushan stopped. He found a spot out of the wind and sat down, then turned to look at Xu Yunfan, who was carrying Li Haomiao on his back. He raised his chin.

"The world is vast. Why do you keep following me?"

At this point, only Xu Yunfan still followed Fang Mushan closely. Everyone else had completely fallen behind, their whereabouts unknown.

Xu Yunfan said, "I think this is the most convenient route for escaping the mine."

As he spoke, Xu Yunfan glanced at the Fleet Foot proficiency notifications flooding his field of vision.

'You have used the exertion method of Fleet Foot day and night, running along rugged mountain paths. Your steps have become increasingly nimble, and Fleet Foot proficiency has increased significantly.'

'You have sprinted again and again, crossing mountains and rivers, precisely controlling your breathing rhythm. The force of your push-offs has grown stronger, and Fleet Foot proficiency has risen.'

'...'

There were more than forty Fleet Foot proficiency notifications in his field of vision. At this rate, he would only need three to five days to bring Fleet Foot to minor accomplishment.

Fleet Foot primarily tempered the tendons. If both his skin tempering and tendon tempering reached minor accomplishment, his strength should surpass that of ordinary minor accomplishment martial artists by a fair margin.

Fang Mushan's gaze passed over Xu Yunfan and settled on Li Haomiao on his back.