The Scarlet Snowfield, Blood Stains the Ice and Snow Manor

Ice and Snow Manor, Central Inn, second-floor superior room.

The room was not small, roughly a hundred square meters. Its overall color scheme was a rather dim red and black. After all, this was the Far North, and darker colors could help retain heat.

By now, they had lit the fireplace along the room's north wall.

As the flames in the hearth continued to burn, the temperature in the room gradually rose.

"Crackle, crackle."

Listening to the sounds from the fireplace, Luo Zixi spread out his senses and carefully inspected the room. Only after confirming that it was safe did he lie down on the soft dark-red bed and look up at the thick ceiling.

Meanwhile, Hu Liena was crouched beside the fireplace, continuously feeding it firewood. The fiercely burning flames gradually softened her originally stiff body.

The temperature here was cold, but the people here were even colder.

Beneath the pristine white snow lay not only the earth, but also skeletons laden with sin.

Luo Zixi had actually guessed that an inn capable of operating at the edge of the Far North could not possibly be run by decent people, but he had not expected them to take things this far.

What Ice and Snow Manor? Bone Manor would have been a more fitting name.

However, Luo Zixi did not want to dwell on such matters. So long as these beasts did not provoke him, he could not be bothered to care about their filthy dealings.

Knock, knock, knock!

Just then, someone knocked on the door. This little slave, Hu Liena, obediently went to open it.

"Hello, this is the banquet you ordered. Please inspect it."

The person delivering the food was not an inn attendant, but a lecherous-looking, pale and gaunt middle-aged man with a rat-like mustache, pushing a dining cart.

When he saw Hu Liena's face, a trace of barely perceptible greed and excitement surfaced in the depths of his dark eyes.

Yet at that moment, the greedy excitement in his eyes abruptly froze, replaced by disbelief in those deep-set eyes.

He then looked down at his chest. At some unknown point, a sharp blade condensed from ice had pierced his heart!

There was no twist at all. He simply fell straight backward.

Thud!

The dull sound echoed through the corridor, and Hu Liena's brown-black eyes were filled with shock and confusion.

At some point, Luo Zixi had also arrived at the doorway. Looking at the dishes still steaming with heat, a chill entered his dark pupils.

"Throw him and all these meat dishes out the window."

As he spoke, Luo Zixi took the remaining three vegetable dishes from the tray, while Hu Liena still looked somewhat dazed.

Seeing her like this, Luo Zixi did not indulge her. Still, she was his servant now, so he merely rewarded her with a flick on the forehead.

Bonk!

"Ow!"

Hu Liena clutched her head in pain, but Luo Zixi's emotionless voice immediately followed.

"If you want to get a good rest tonight, you'd better move faster."

With that, Luo Zixi said no more. He placed the remaining vegetable dishes on the table, then took out a massive roasted skewer of a third-tier magical beast from his System Space, one as thick as his calf, which he had stored on the Dou Qi Continent.

As an old saying put it rather nicely, bigger was better—one skewer was enough to fill you up.

His System Space was an absolutely static space. Even if something were stored inside for a hundred years, it would not lose the slightest bit of energy.

It was just that he had not stored much magical beast meat. At present, he only had three cooked cows and six tigers left. If he did not ration them, there would be nothing left to eat in the future.

Looking at the large meat skewer in Luo Zixi's hand, roasted golden and crispy, Hu Liena could not help but drool.

Bang!

After Hu Liena threw the dishes and the man out the window and quickly shut it, she immediately returned to sit in front of the fireplace.

Though she did not have any roasted skewers, she still had plenty of dry rations in her Storage Soul Tool that could restore stamina.

Warming them by the fireplace would make them much more comfortable to eat.

But just then, a golden, fragrant meat skewer covered in seasonings appeared before her.

Hu Liena was clearly stunned when she saw it. She raised her eyes to look at Luo Zixi, who had somehow appeared behind her.

"Starting tomorrow, you'll follow me into the Inner Far North to hunt soul rings. I can't say for now when we'll be leaving, so eat well today. You might not get another chance in the future."

Luo Zixi had been used to wandering alone, and having Hu Liena, this extra burden, with him now left him somewhat unaccustomed.

"M-Master, aren't you eating?"

Hu Liena stared at the fragrant skewer before her, practically drooling with desire. But she also understood that she was at his mercy now. No matter how badly she craved it, she did not dare reach out and take it directly.

"Mm. Once you've eaten your fill, go rest. I still have matters to handle."

As he spoke, a short blade condensed from extreme ice appeared in Luo Zixi's hand. Its edge gleamed with dazzling sharpness under the firelight.

He then left the room with light steps.

Hu Liena looked at Luo Zixi's departing figure, then at the roasted skewer in her hand, as all that had happened over the past two days surfaced in her mind.

Thinking carefully about how everything had started, it seemed that they had been the ones to interrupt him while he was absorbing a soul ring. Moreover, they had coveted the Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone that might or might not have existed in his possession.

Hu Liena (Slave) Favorability +5%, Current Favorability: 5%

At that moment, six or seven burly men clad in thick fur-lined winter clothing were already seated in the central inn hall. Their eyes brimmed with greed and lechery.

"Why isn't Old Eight back yet? Didn't we agree that once that young couple was drugged unconscious, we'd slaughter the man for drinking meat, then play the woman to death before eating her? What's taking so long?"

The middle-aged burly man at the head of the group, with a deep knife scar across his face, had eyes full of viciousness and lust.

"Hehehe, no need to worry, Boss. Old Eight is probably carrying them over right now."

This burly man's eyes were full of lewd amusement. He had clearly seen Hu Liena's true appearance when she was walking around. Calling her the finest of the finest would not be an exaggeration!

But just then, one of the middle-aged men who had already been sitting there spotted a familiar figure.

"Hm? Isn't that brat—"

However, before he could finish speaking, an icy-blue flash instantly pierced his throat.

Splat!

Scarlet blood sprayed out like a fountain before the eyes of the other burly men. Immediately afterward, several more cold flashes stabbed into the throats or hearts of the rest.

Before they could even react, they were all dead.

"Ice Bear Avatar!"

The tall middle-aged man at the head was the only one who had reacted in time and dodged Luo Zixi's attack. Drawing upon his extensive experience in battle, he instantly underwent Martial Soul Possession, transforming into a giant bear roughly three meters tall.

"Fourth Soul Skill, Ice Bear's Fury!"

"You'll pay for the lives of my brothers!"

Seeing so many of his brothers killed, the middle-aged man's eyes turned bloodshot with rage.

Yet Luo Zixi's eyes remained utterly cold in the face of his fury.

"Frost Tree, skewer him to death," he murmured softly.

Just as the other man lowered his body and charged at Luo Zixi, a Frost Tree covered in razor-sharp ice spikes burst from the ground, piercing directly and precisely through his heart.

"AAAAHHH!!!!"

His agonized, shrill scream rang throughout Ice and Snow Manor. The frosty branch impaling his heart continued to extend, while the pain in his eyes gradually gave way to numbness. In the end, his powerless hands drooped down as he helplessly felt his life slipping away bit by bit.

After finishing all this, Luo Zixi turned his gaze toward the young man at the front desk.

The receptionist had already collapsed to the floor in terror. Reflected in his fear-filled black eyes was an icy-blue dagger glinting with cold light.

Things are going to get intense from here on out. Please stop accusing me of padding the story—I really haven't padded anything. Some things need to be set up first, or I won't be able to write what comes later. Please go easy on me.