The Manuscripts Returned

The matter concerning the Elephant Armor Sect was handled faster than Nan Feng had anticipated.

When he arrived at the foot of the Elephant Armor Sect's mountain gate, Huyan Bao was already standing at the entrance waiting for him.

The old man was noticeably thinner than when we last met at the teahouse. His eyes were sunken, his cheekbones were prominent, and the wrinkles on his face drooped, making him look listless. Behind him were two disciples, one carrying a stack of manuscripts and the other carrying a wooden box.

Upon seeing Nan Feng, Huyan Bao bowed deeply without saying a word. He bowed much lower than he had done at the teahouse last time, his forehead almost hitting his knees.

"Immortal Master, all the manuscripts are here, seventeen copies, not one missing. The box contains a list of Soul Tool that the Elephant Armor Sect obtained from the Spirit Hall."

Huyan Bao straightened up, his throat dry.

"The manual on Iron Armor Forging Technique is also ready; it's on the second shelf of the box."

Nan Feng took the manuscript and flipped through it, scanning it with his Treasure-Appraising Spirit Light; no pages were missing. He stored the manuscript in his Tower Spirit Space and glanced at Huyan Bao.

"The Holy Dragon Sect withdrew, you know that, right?"

Huyan Bao's face turned even paler.

"Understood. That kid Zhao Sihai is faster than a rabbit. I was waiting for him to bring his men to meet me when I heard he had already submitted a pledge of goodwill to the Immortal Master."

He sighed.

"I've finally figured it out. These days, relying on yourself is better than relying on anyone else. Immortal Master, the Elephant Armor Sect is truly convinced this time. You said you wanted to annul the engagement, and you did. You said you wanted to hand over the gifts, and you did. You said you wanted to form an alliance, and I'll have someone deliver the alliance agreement to the Heaven Dou Royal Academy this afternoon."

Nan Feng nodded and didn't say anything more.

He patted Huyan Bao on the shoulder. The old man almost stumbled from the pat and had to grab the door frame to steady himself.

"Keep your men in check. If I run into the Elephant Armor Sect crossbowmen on the road again, it won't be as simple as just handing over a few manuscripts."

Huyan Bao readily agreed.

Nan Feng turned and left. Behind him, the Old Huai muttered to itself inside the tower.

"This old man is truly frightened this time. But speaking of which, the manual on Iron Armor Forging Technique is a good thing. I'll have Shifang take it and forge a few handy pieces of equipment."

"Take care of things in the Far North first."

The Nan Feng left the territory of the Elephant Armor Sect, Shrinking the Ground to an Inch beneath its feet and heading straight north.

The further north you go, the darker it gets. The trees along the official road change from broad-leaved forests to coniferous forests, and then to bare, frozen shrubs.

Finally, even the bushes were gone, leaving only pebbles and a thin layer of snow.

The Old Huai fell silent inside the tower. The immortal tree branches retracted, remaining silent for a long while before speaking.

"There's the aura of Soul Beast about three miles to the left. A pack of four Icefield Wolf, around level 30. Should we go around them?"

"Need not."

Nan Feng didn't stop, releasing the power of the Tower Suppression. The four Icefield Wolf that had just poked their heads out immediately shrank back, tucked their tails between their legs, and disappeared.

After traveling north for another hour, when it was completely dark, we arrived at the entrance to the Ice Valley.

A figure stood at the entrance to the valley.

Her short, emerald-green hair fluttered in the wind and snow. She wore a thin, emerald-green outfit and crossed her arms over her chest. Her feet had sank into the ice beneath her feet, indicating that she had been standing there for some time.

When Ice Empress saw Nan Feng approaching, his face first lit up with joy, then tightened again, and he pursed his lips.

You're late.

"We took a detour on the road and finished up the matter concerning the Elephant Armor Sect."

Nan Feng walked up to her.

"What's taking so long? I've been standing here for almost two hours!"

Ice Empress complained, but her eyes had already glanced at his back. Nan Feng took out three jars of strong liquor brewed by Huo Wu from the Tower Spirit Space. The mouths of the jars were sealed with sealing wax, and the character "fire" was stamped on the body of the jars.

Ice Empress's scorpion-like eyes lit up immediately, and he reached out to grab it.

Nan Feng hid the wine jar behind his back.

"Advanced Valley. Where is Snow Empress?"

Ice Empress rolled their eyes.

"She's brewing tea inside. She heard you were coming, so she started brewing it three days in advance, saying things like 'strong liquor hurts the stomach, you have to drink tea with it.' Don't you think she's just bored?"

Despite her initial disdain, she quickened her pace as she turned to lead the way, her scorpion tail swaying behind her.

Once inside the Ice Valley, the temperature was actually warmer than outside. The ice on the valley walls shimmered with a blue light, the aura of the Far North Origin.

Snow Empress sat beside the ice platform, with three rough earthenware bowls in front of her and a pot of tea steaming on the stone stove. When she saw Nan Feng enter, she raised her chin slightly, her expression unchanged, but Nan Feng noticed that she threw an extra handful of tea leaves into the teapot.

"They've arrived."

Snow Empress's hands were very steady as she poured the tea.

"They've arrived."

Nan Feng placed the three jars of wine on the ice platform, then casually took the teacup and took a sip. The tea was slightly bitter at first, but the aftertaste was sweet and warm.

Ice Empress had already broken the clay seal on a jar of sake, and upon taking a sniff, their eyes lit up as if they had found a treasure.

"This liquor is strong!"

She didn't even use a bowl; she just grabbed the jar and took a big gulp. After finishing, she let out a loud burp and wiped her mouth.

"Huo Wu's skills have improved; it's even more intense than the last time she brought it."

Snow Empress shook her head and pushed another bowl of tea in front of Nan Feng.

"Don't just drink alcohol, have some tea first."

The three sat in the Ice Valley, and after a few rounds of drinks, the Ice Empress couldn't stop talking. She leaned on the Snow Empress's shoulder, clutching a wine jar, and chattered on about what had happened in the Far North over the past six months.

They say the foul air rising from the northern cracks is getting thicker and thicker, and that the Icefield Wolf of the Far North have migrated more than thirty miles south.

She also said that a ten-thousand-year-old Ice Armor Bear had its essence eroded by turbid energy and came to the valley entrance begging her for help. She spent half a month of her cultivation to keep the bear alive.

"The Far North used to be so lively."

When Ice Empress drank his third bowl, his voice lowered, and his scorpion tail drooped on the ice, poking it repeatedly.

"Icefield Wolf were digging burrows outside the valley entrance, snow rabbits were running all over the ice plains, and there were also Ice Armor Bear and Frost Python everywhere. Later, the Abyssal Aura seeped in from the north, and most of the Soul Beast fled. Only the Snow Empress and I were left guarding this Ice Valley, with nowhere to go."

She took another swig of wine, her scorpion eyes narrowing.

"The crack in the north is getting wider and wider, and the power of me and Snow Empress is waning. The crack you sealed last time is now opening up again."

Nan Feng put down his teacup.

"The gate to the Abyssal Outer Domain is at Jialing Pass, and there's also a rift in the Far North; these two are connected. I've sealed off the gate at Jialing Pass, and I've also dealt with the watchdogs in the Far North rift—they're behaving themselves now."

"But the roots underneath weren't completely blocked. The foul air seeped in along the earth's veins, causing problems at one end and problems at the other."

Ice Empress lifted his head from Snow Empress's shoulder.

Didn't you shut it down once before?

"Last time, only the surface was sealed; the underlying layers weren't reinforced."

Nan Feng used his Treasure-Appraising Spirit Light to glance northward. The dark purple aura in the direction of the crack was a layer thicker than last time.

"The purpose of this trip is to completely block the roots. I used a method at Jialing Pass: channeling Immortal Power down from the crack's entrance, all the way to the depths of the earth's veins, sealing off the entire passage of turbid energy."

Ice Empress stared at him for two breaths.

Are you alone?

"I have a tower."

Nan Feng flipped his right hand, and the phantom of a nine-story Bronze Tower emerged from his palm. The azure-gold Immortal Mark on the pagoda's body lit up for a moment, and the surrounding wind and snow were forced back half a foot.

Ice Empress's scorpion-like eyes gleamed in the tower's light. She opened her mouth to say something, but Snow Empress suddenly spoke up.

"Ice Empress, you can't help. The concentration of turbid air at the bottom of the crevice is too high. Your essence isn't fully stable yet; going down there will cause problems."

Ice Empress opened her mouth halfway, then swallowed her words. She glared at Snow Empress Snow Empress, who ignored her, holding her teacup.

The Nan Feng has erased the pagoda's shadow.

"Snow Empress is right. I can go down myself. You all stay up here and help me stabilize the seal at the valley entrance, making sure the foul air doesn't leak out from the side."

He glanced at Ice Empress.

"Your original energy has only recently recovered, don't overexert yourself."

Ice Empress slammed the sake jar onto the ice platform, causing a few drops of sake to splash out.

"Who's showing off! I'll stay up there, okay?"

She paused, then suddenly pulled something from her bosom and tossed it over.

Nan Feng reached out and caught it. Looking down, he saw a thumb-sized, ice-blue bead containing a Far North Origin, so cold it was almost painful to the touch.

"Far North Cold Marrow, I collected it."

Ice Empress turned their face away, refusing to look at him.

"It's very cold down there. Take this; if you can't take it anymore, crush it to keep warm for a while. Don't overthink it. I'm just worried you'll die down there, and then Snow Empress and I will have to go through all the trouble to get you out."

Snow Empress chuckled.

Ice Empress's ears turned red, and he turned to glare at her.

"Why are you laughing!"

Nan Feng stored the Cold Marrow into the Tower Spirit Space and stood up.

The sky outside the Ice Valley was completely dark, and the wind and snow, mixed with fine ice shards, stung his face. He glanced north, at the direction of the crack, where the dark purple color resembled ink dripping into water.

It will probably take me three days to descend into the crevice.

Nan Feng tightened her sleeves.

If I don't come up in three days, come back and look for me.

Ice Empress opened their mouths, but finally managed to utter a single sentence.

"Three days it is. If you don't come up in three days, I'll—"

She thought for a long time before adding a sentence.

I'll drink the rest of the wine, I won't leave you a single drop.

Nan Feng chuckled and turned to walk towards the crack.

Snow Empress called out to him from behind.

"Nan Feng."

He turned around. Snow Empress stood at the entrance of the Ice Valley, her long silver hair blowing in the wind. Her face was the same as usual, but her voice was half a degree softer than usual.

Three days. Don't be late.

Nan Feng waved his hand, Shrinking the Ground to an Inch in one step and then a hundred steps in another, disappearing into the wind and snow.

Old Huai's voice drifted from inside the tower, his tone unusually serious.

"You only scratched the surface of that thing at the bottom of the crack last time in the Far North. This time, pouring Immortal Power deeper might completely disturb what's pressing down underneath."

"So we have to be quick."

Nan Feng didn't stop. The crack behind the Ice Valley was already in sight.

It was a huge chasm that stretched across the ice field, from which dark purple turbid air surged up, and its fishy and rusty smell could be smelled from afar.

He tightened the red hair around his left wrist, took a deep breath, and jumped.