Omen, Encountering an Enemy Again

His right hand closed like iron tongs, precisely gripping the nape of the Silver-Crowned Snow Fox. The fox let out a sharp, short whimper, its limbs thrashing futilely before going limp, its lively eyes filled with terror and despair.

Feeling the heavy, smooth-furred weight in his hand, Li Bufan swelled with a massive sense of achievement. The main goal of this trip had been exceeded! Two Silver-Crowned Snow Foxes, far more valuable than ordinary ones, could fetch enough resources for cultivation and might even draw some attention from the upper echelons of Lin Manor.

Yet, amid the elation, a sliver of doubt crept in.

"Too smooth... and too strange." Li Bufan frowned, scanning the larger, faster Silver-Crowned Snow Fox in his hand. "Snow foxes are rare to begin with, and Silver-Crowned ones are an even rarer breed. An ordinary hunter could spend months in these mountains and count himself lucky to stumble upon a single common snow fox. But I..."

He replayed the past half-month: entering the forest and easily bagging a common snow fox, then stumbling upon a Tiger Bear fight, narrowly surviving and killing the gray-clad Wu Ershijiu, retreating to break through in cultivation, and right after emerging, finding and capturing this even more precious Silver-Crowned Snow Fox with little trouble.

Short time, yet the haul was absurdly rich.

"When things are abnormal, there must be a reason!" Li Bufan's eyes flickered. "Something unusual must be happening deep in these woods to make these normally reclusive, cunning snow foxes—especially the Silver-Crowned variant—so active."

He looked at the trembling fox in his hand, a bold idea forming.

"What if... I follow it? No, let it lead the way." Li Bufan pondered. "The direction it fled wasn't random; it seemed to have a fixed route or a den. If something's off, near its den or where it's trying to go, there might be clues."

He wasn't greedy, but the path of martial arts balanced opportunity and risk. If some Heavenly Material or Earthly Treasure was emerging, or some other anomaly, it could be his chance to advance! Besides, understanding the forest's oddity would help him leave safely.

Decision made, Li Bufan didn't hesitate. He found a tough vine, carefully binding the Silver-Crowned Snow Fox's mouth and limbs to prevent bites or escapes without choking or injuring it too badly. Then, he gently set it on the snow.

Free, the fox instinctively struggled to stand, looking around in panic.

Li Bufan held his breath, suppressing all his aura, turning into a rock as he hung back, using the lightness of Spirit Monkey Three Leaps and the snow cover to track silently.

After struggling up, the Silver-Crowned Snow Fox spun in place, disoriented. Soon, as if sensing something, it grew restless, no longer heading for the open plains but limping toward a direction—the deeper, ancient, towering Primeval Forest. Its leg seemed slightly injured, slowing it down, which made tracking easier for Li Bufan.

Li Bufan's heart stirred. Something was off! The fox's behavior wasn't just fleeing home; it was being driven or drawn toward a specific spot.

He followed cautiously, keeping just enough distance to see the fox without being spotted. The deeper he went, the stranger the surroundings grew.

The chill in the air seemed sharper, not ordinary cold but an eerie, indescribable iciness. The snow deepened, the trees grew taller and denser, blocking the sky and plunging the forest into a dim twilight.

What alarmed him more was spotting multiple snow fox tracks along the way! They all headed in the same direction as his quarry!

"So many snow foxes, all going the same way?" Li Bufan's curiosity and caution peaked.

The tracking lasted about half an hour, taking him into uncharted territory. The trees here were terrifyingly ancient, some needing several people to encircle, bark cracked like dragon scales, branches twisted and hung with thick icicles and snow.

The lead Silver-Crowned Snow Fox slowed, finally stopping before a massive cliff face covered in thick ice and snow. At its base, a dark hole was faintly visible, like the entrance to some giant beast's lair or a natural crevice.

The fox paced anxiously before the cliff, whimpering lowly, as if wanting to enter but fearing something.

Li Bufan hid behind a huge ancient tree, observing closely. He noticed that the closer he got to the cliff, the stronger the eerie cold became. And a faint, strange fragrance hung in the air?

The scent was peculiar—cold, distant, and ethereal. One inhale made his slightly depleted blood energy stir faintly!

"This is..." Li Bufan's pupils contracted, his heart racing. He recalled records in miscellaneous books: near rare treasures, anomalies often appeared—biting cold or strange scents—attracting nearby spiritual creatures!

Could there be a rare Spirit Item hidden behind this cliff?

As his thoughts raced, a sudden change occurred!

Whoosh!

A sharp sound of something cutting through the air came without warning from his side and rear! The target was the tree he was hiding behind!

Li Bufan's scalp tingled! A deadly crisis washed over him like ice water! Without time to think, his body reacted!

Spirit Monkey Three Leaps erupted at full power! Instead of moving forward or back, he sprang like a startled monkey, limbs pushing off impossibly, leaping diagonally upward onto the trunk of the ancient tree beside him!

Thud!

A powerful arrow slammed into the trunk where he'd been hiding, the shaft quivering, embedded inches deep! If he'd been a hair slower, he'd have been pierced!

"Huh?" A surprised grunt came from the forest, tinged with disbelief.

Li Bufan, heart pounding, clung to the trunk. That arrow's timing, power, and accuracy far surpassed Wu Ershijiu's! Definitely an expert!

"Who's there? Sneaking around shooting arrows!" Li Bufan barked, straining to sense the attacker's position.

"Hmph, not slow on the uptake." A cold voice replied, accompanied by crunching snow. A figure emerged from the dense woods.

The newcomer wore a gray fur coat too, but of finer quality, with a lean build and sharp, eagle-like eyes. He carried an ancient-looking longbow with a cold gleam and a long saber at his waist. His style resembled Wu Ershijiu's, like an upgraded version. But his aura was steady and heavy, far beyond Wu Ershijiu's.

More importantly, a clear "Wu" character was embroidered on his collar!

Wu Family! And judging by his presence, he was at least at Minor Success in Muscle Tempering, maybe even Major Success! But he likely wasn't here for Wu Ershijiu; he must have sensed the anomaly here and stumbled upon Li Bufan.

"Hmph, not slow on the uptake." The Wu expert's voice was icy, his gaze locking onto Li Bufan like a hawk as he stepped out. He didn't attack immediately but sized Li Bufan up, his eyes holding not just killing intent but also barely concealed grief.

"Few people venture this deep into the mountains to hunt in this bitter winter," he said slowly, his voice low and strained, as if carrying immense pain. "My brother Wu Jiang and I, both Wu Family guards, came hunting together, agreeing to meet yesterday. But he... after going to scout an area the day before, never returned..."

His voice trembled slightly, his fingers on the bow white from tension. "I searched everywhere he might have gone, only finding signs of a struggle and drag marks... and this." He pulled a broken wooden token from his chest, a blurred "Wu" carved on it.

"This is the badge of a formal Wu Family guard. Now, the man's gone, only the token remains, and it's broken... He... he must have been killed!" Wu Hai looked up, eyes bloodshot, hatred surging like a tide. "Wu Jiang was impatient and reckless, not exactly accomplished, but he was at Initial Muscle Tempering, close to Minor Success! Ordinary beasts couldn't touch him! Whoever killed him in these mountains isn't some common hunter—it's a martial artist!"

His gaze cut like a cold blade across Li Bufan: "That arrow I just shot wasn't at full strength, but it wasn't something a mere Skin Tempering cultivator could dodge easily. Your evasion, speed, and timing—clearly you're at Muscle Tempering, at least Minor Success! Within dozens of miles, I can't find anyone else with that strength who'd be here at this time!"

Wu Hai's voice rose, like a wounded beast's roar echoing through the silent forest: "Boy! Tell me! Did you kill my brother Wu Jiang?!"

The murderous intent pressed down like a physical force, almost suffocating.

Li Bufan's nerves were taut to the breaking point. He knew there was no peaceful resolution. The man's arrival was coincidental, but his logic was clear. He took a deep breath, suppressing the faint ripple of sympathy from the man's grief, and let his own blood energy surge, meeting the bloodshot eyes without flinching. Jungle law—survival of the fittest. Since the man had decided, explanations were useless.

He neither admitted nor denied it, simply setting the bound Silver-Crowned Snow Fox gently on the snow behind him, adjusting his breath, and replying coldly: "In the mountain hunt, arrows and blades have no eyes; life and death are up to fate. If someone wants to kill me for treasure, they'd better be ready to be killed in return."

In this moment, under these circumstances, that was as good as a direct confession!

"So it really is you!!!" Wu Hai's eyes were instantly consumed by boundless grief and raging fury. He let out an earth-shaking roar, and the blood energy around his body erupted violently, his aura surging several times stronger than before, sweeping up the snow on the ground like a gale. "Fine! A fine 'life and death by heaven's will'! Then today, I'll make you taste what that 'heaven's will' really feels like!"

"The blood debt for my brother Wu Jiang will never be settled! I, Wu Hai, will take your head today to honor his spirit in the heavens!"

Before his words had even faded, Wu Hai abruptly slung his longbow over his back, and with a sharp clang, drew the gleaming long blade from his waist. The blade trembled, humming as it cut a bone-chilling arc of light through the dim forest.

He stomped hard on the ground, blasting a shallow crater into the snow. Like an enraged mad tiger, carrying overwhelming hatred and the strength of a cultivator at the peak of Minor Muscle Tempering—just one step away from Major Muscle Tempering—he charged straight at Li Bufan. His speed was blinding, his blade howling through the air, clearly far surpassing his younger brother Wu Jiang in cultivation, driven by a relentless, death-or-glory resolve.

In an instant, battle erupted.