Return to the Shen Family (Please Bookmark and Vote)

With plenty of Gold Soul Coins on him, Shen Hanyu naturally did not make himself suffer. He hired a Double Horse Carriage that looked quite high-end and luxurious.

It cost a full fifty Gold Soul Coins, but it was worth every coin. The carriage interior was lavishly decorated; even the carpets and cushions were made from Snow Fox fur.

Snow Foxes were an extremely common type of Soul Beast in the Far North. They were numerous, generally possessing around Ten or Hundred Year Cultivation. No particularly powerful Snow Fox had ever appeared, so this species' fur was widely traded on the market. Many nobles from inland regions even purchased it specifically, which showed just how comfortable it was.

The carriage leisurely made its way south along the snow-covered road.

The Shen Family had not chosen to live on the outskirts of the Far North. Instead, they had settled in the warmer region near Element City. Though winters there were still somewhat cold, it was far better than the Far North, where winter reigned year-round.

As they gradually left the world of ice and snow behind, patches of green began to appear on the surrounding hillsides. Shen Hanyu, who had not seen green leaves for more than half a year, could not help taking a few extra looks.

It might not have been much to look at, but it was easy on the eyes!

The ice and snow on the road gradually began to melt, and the carriage picked up speed. The scenery outside the window swiftly receded, while even the wind carried a trace of warm, clinging moisture, no longer as dry and frigid as it had been in the Far North.

The Coachman was a burly middle-aged man. Soul Power fluctuations emanated from him, but he was at most a level twelve or thirteen Soul Master. Otherwise, he could never have afforded such a luxurious carriage.

The middle-aged man was quite talkative. From household gossip to frictions between major powers, he could chat about anything.

Shen Hanyu grew interested as well. After spending so long in the Far North, he had not properly spoken with anyone in ages. Anyone who did not know better might have thought he had an icy personality.

"Big Brother, has anything Major Event happened in Spirit Hall recently?"

Leaning by the window and watching the scenery outside, Shen Hanyu asked the middle-aged man in front.

The middle-aged man paused, then burst into laughter.

"There's plenty going on in Spirit Hall. For example, that Spirit Hall pope from a while back, what was her name... Bishadong, I think? She seemed to show off her strength in some kind of competition. Good heavens... young man, you might not know this, but that pope's ninth Soul Ring was actually red. They say it was a legendary Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring. It shocked quite a few people back then..."

"Also, Spirit Hall's pope seemed to have specifically taken in some disciple, and it was only announced recently. I didn't catch her name, but I heard she had big breasts and was really seductive..."

Hearing that, Shen Hanyu snorted with laughter, nearly unable to hold back a hearty laugh.

Fine, fine. Really seductive, huh? Isn't that Hu Liena, that White-Eyed Fox? It seemed the story had not progressed very far yet. Shen Hanyu calculated that by the time the protagonist group and supporting characters all appeared, he would already be quite strong. At the very least, he would be able to ignore ordinary threats.

After chatting idly with this amusing Big Brother for a while longer, night had slowly fallen.

The Far North and the regions affected by it not only became dark exceptionally early, but their temperatures also plummeted at night. Yet although darkness had fallen, visibility remained. Perhaps it was because of the aurora in the sky and the snow on the ground. Still, the atmosphere was inexplicably eerie.

When the carriage entered a mountain valley, Shen Hanyu, who had been resting with his eyes closed, abruptly opened them. Surprise flashed through his eyes. He swiftly lifted the window curtain and looked toward the forest in the distance, where something had drawn his attention.

Under the cover of dense shrubs and tree shadows, burly figures darted through the woods, closely following behind the carriage.

Shen Hanyu extended his Mental Power to its limit, but he could only make out their general appearance.

They looked like humans, yet their heads were somewhere between wolves and humans. Their bodies were covered in wolf fur, their hands full of claws, but they could walk upright like humans and were even organized with remarkable precision.

Wolf Bandits! The name flashed through Shen Hanyu's mind.

Wolf Bandits were descendants born from Gale Magic Wolves and humans. They were highly intelligent, possessed the Gale Magic Wolf's powerful attack strength and incredible speed, fed on humans, and were greedy for money as hell. Now that a pack of such Soul Beasts had targeted them, if he mishandled this, he and the Coachman would probably be dead tonight.

The Coachman had not noticed anything unusual at all. He was even humming some unknown tune with great interest as he calmly drove the carriage onward.

Shen Hanyu silently cursed his bad luck. There appeared to be twenty or thirty Wolf Bandits in this group. The leader even had barely reached Ten Thousand Years of cultivation. The others were quite ordinary: three had Thousand Year Cultivation, while the rest were merely cannon fodder with Hundred Year Cultivation.

Listening to the Coachman's relaxed, cheerful tune, Shen Hanyu no longer knew whether to call this Big Brother carefree or simply clueless...

Good thing he did not know. Otherwise, the carriage would probably already have been racing away at full speed.

A trace of mischief suddenly rose in Shen Hanyu's heart. He opened the window and casually asked, "Big Brother, do you know if there are any bandits or something around here?"

The Coachman's tune abruptly stopped. His entire body shuddered as though he had suddenly remembered something. Then he stiffly turned around and said in a trembling voice, "Little brother, this is my fault. It's all because Big Brother drank half a jin of horse piss this afternoon and forgot something so serious. Wolf Bandits have always appeared in this area, but look, we've already traveled so far. Those Wolf Bandits have probably eaten their fill and gone to sleep tonight. Don't worry. We'll be out of this forest in half an hour."

The corner of Shen Hanyu's mouth twitched. What a talent. He said irritably, "Big Brother, there's no need to keep going. We've been targeted by Wolf Bandits for a long time. They followed us the entire way, probably checking whether we were dangerous. If you go another two hundred meters, the two of us will probably be done for here."

The Coachman's whole body trembled. He swiftly pulled tight on the reins and looked ahead in terror.

Through the hazy moonlight, several figures could clearly be seen standing in the distance and waving. Night obscured their features, making their appearances impossible to discern, but they were barely visible as extremely tall and muscular.

The Coachman swallowed hard and said in a quavering voice, "Little brother, you... you're a Soul Master, right... Big Brother really can't do anything here... You know, I'm only a level twelve Soul Master, and my first Soul Ring is even white... Big Brother truly can't do anything... How about we write our last words first? Maybe we can leave a message for our families..."

Shen Hanyu rolled his eyes, then lifted the door curtain and jumped straight out of the carriage. "Big Brother, get inside the carriage. I can't guarantee your safety later. If it really comes down to it, run back the way we came. There are basically no Wolf Bandits behind us, and even if there are, they can't catch your two Horned Horses. Got it?"

"Got it! Brother, do your best! Big Brother will cheer you on..."

The Coachman nodded frantically, then scrambled into the carriage. He did not even dare poke his head out.

Shen Hanyu sighed helplessly. Then the Cold Sky Spear appeared in his hand, four Soul Rings rose beneath his feet, and an incomparably cold, sharp aura swept outward. In an instant, the nearby flowers and grass froze into ice...