Treading on Snow Without a Trace

Before Fang Mushan could finish, Li Haomiao cut in. "In Jade Capital, you might perhaps rank among them, but you would still be far behind. There are countless prodigies in the world. With your current ability, remember not to be arrogant or impatient."

Fang Mushan glanced at Li Haomiao and said nothing more.

Xu Yunfan did not care in the slightest. Most of his attention was immersed in cultivation. He discovered that each round of practicing the Crimson Training Cloak Hammer increased his proficiency far more efficiently than mining.

But he had not neglected the mining skill either. On this Eight Hundred Li Barren River Ice Field, that skill had played a vital role in giving them a relatively comfortable place to rest. As for the others who had fled, if they could not keep warm in time and lacked a shelter that could block the wind and cold, then even if they had entered the martial path, their chances of survival would be extremely slim in this harsh environment, where the temperature difference between day and night was immense and midnight temperatures could even drop to more than ten degrees below zero.

Fang Mushan, who was sitting nearby and slowly turning the roasting meat, seemed dazed. After quite some time, his expression calmed once more.

"That day, my father said some things to me. Now, I finally understand a little of it. He must have anticipated this."

Li Haomiao nodded and praised him. "Great General Fang wielded troops like a god and was also exceptionally perceptive about the situation at court. To endure in silence, he had no choice but to resort to this measure. Mushan, you need not feel wronged. Once we pull that Bewitching Woman down, the day will come when you can hold your head high. When we leave this Eight Hundred Li Barren River, come with me. I'll take you to meet someone. He will give you the answers you want."

Fang Mushan fell silent for a moment, then nodded without saying anything further.

Xu Yunfan really wanted to say something, but when he saw Li Haomiao's expression—like he would refuse to teach him martial arts if Xu Yunfan so much as opened his mouth—he could only smack his lips and continue practicing the Crimson Training Cloak Hammer.

He had not yet reached his physical limit. Every time, he only stopped after exhausting himself completely.

When it was time to rest, under Li Haomiao's murderous glare, Xu Yunfan calmly swallowed a Grain Avoidance Pill and ate another twenty jin of bear meat. Only then did he turn his back, form the Lin Word Seal with his fingers, and silently recite the Highest Good is Like Water Heart Mantra. Gradually, his mind entered a state that was neither empty nor not empty.

'You formed a hand seal and practiced the Lin Character Secret once. You seemed to gain an insight, but upon careful contemplation, gained nothing. Your Lin Character Secret proficiency seemed to have increased.'

'You...'

The prompts on the Attribute Panel did not surprise him. Over the past dozen days or so, the panel's notifications had been more or less the same whenever he cultivated the Lin Character Secret.

However, he could clearly feel that after each session of cultivating the Lin Character Secret, he could practice for longer the next time.

After a long while, Xu Yunfan opened his eyes. His expression was full of exhaustion, but his gaze brimmed with delight. He could clearly tell that he had persisted in cultivating the Lin Character Secret for at least one minute longer than yesterday.

He turned over and fell into a deep sleep.

Early the next morning, when the eastern sky had only just begun to pale, Fang Mushan was already busy outside the cave. A simple grill had been set over the blazing campfire, and the remaining bear meat sizzled over the flames. Fat dripped into the fire with crackling pops, releasing an enticing aroma.

The three sat around it and feasted heartily. Only when their bellies were round and full, unable to hold another bite, did they finally stop in satisfaction.

All three were martial artists with enormous appetites. After they had devoured the two adult brown bears and the cub without restraint, only a few strips of meat remained, which they hung up to dry in the wind as rations.

Xu Yunfan put on the stitched bear-hide clothes and gave them a light sniff. "What a pity. If we had another two days, the strange smell of the bear hide could have been completely removed."

Hunting was not an especially advanced skill, but it covered a wide range of knowledge. Even the tanning of animal hides had simple, crude methods, allowing them to temporarily escape the threat of the cold.

With bear-hide boots, bear-hide clothes, and the rock sheep and yak hides they had hunted earlier, Xu Yunfan stood in the biting Cold Wind yet felt warmth suffusing his body.

Li Haomiao stroked the thick bear-hide garment draped over himself.

"If it were in Jade Capital, and properly tanned, it could sell for at least two hundred taels of silver."

"You may have a hard time returning to Jade Capital in this lifetime."

Li Haomiao gave a cold snort, a strange light flickering in his eyes.

"One day, I will pull that Bewitching Woman down."

Ignoring Li Haomiao, Xu Yunfan walked out of the bear cave and looked up at the darkened sky, where snowflakes drifted down in a fluttering swirl.

"It's snowing."

Fang Mushan's expression tightened. "We need to pick up the pace. Winter has arrived. If we cannot get out before the heavy snow seals off the mountains, then even a first-stage martial artist would likely perish in this Eight Hundred Li Barren River Ice Field."

"But there's good news too. With this snowstorm, all traces of our journey here will be covered."

Li Haomiao's expression relaxed slightly. "As long as those mystifying people from the Directorate of Celestial Observations aren't leading the pursuit, we can consider ourselves free."

The two did not dare delay any longer. Xu Yunfan swiftly hoisted Li Haomiao onto his back, wind gathering beneath his feet as he raced forward.

Over these past days, hurrying as fast as they could, they had already traveled more than six hundred li.

The two were agile and nimble. Many perilous peaks and deep ravines that ordinary people would struggle to cross were as easy as level ground to them, and they climbed over them with ease, saving a great deal of time.

"If we keep at it in one go, we might be out by dawn tomorrow."

"Dead?"

Zhang Shuyang's face instantly darkened like ink. He stared fixedly at Xu Yun's corpse. The horrific state of the body made his lips press tightly together, and for a long while, he could not speak.

Xu Yun had followed him for many years. As his personal guard, he had survived countless bloody battles unscathed, yet he had unexpectedly lost his life here. Zhang Shuyang's heart was filled with both fury and grief.

One cripple, one who had merely reached minor completion at the first stage, and one household servant—it should have been a sure thing.

Zhang Shuyang slowly crouched down, his gaze lingering on Xu Yun's face for a long time.

He slowly rose to his feet. The armor on his body clashed together with a crisp clanking sound that was especially piercing in the silent snowfield.

The goose-feather snow falling from the sky did not even touch his body. Within three inches of him, it rapidly vaporized, turning into wisps of water vapor that dispersed.

The surging blood energy within his body was roiling violently, making the temperature around him incredibly high. He was like a volcano that could erupt at any moment, suppressing endless rage and frustration.

Xu Yun had been his sworn companion on the battlefield. The two had fought side by side for years and understood one another perfectly. Zhang Shuyang had always held great hopes for him.

Suppressing the churning emotions in his heart, he walked step by step beneath Li Miaoyun, who stood atop a massive boulder.

Li Miaoyun wore a thin gauze robe. Amid the vast snowfall, she resembled an ice fairy. The frozen land and snowy sky around her blended with her serene temperament, as though none of the world's cold could come within an inch of her.

Zhang Shuyang dropped to one knee in a standard half-kneeling salute, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness and caution. "Li Sima, they are likely still inside. Now that we have lost the person skilled in tracking, and with the heavy snow covering everything, tracking them will likely be as difficult as climbing to the heavens."

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