In the black throat of the ice tunnel, Mu Qingyan led the way, one hand wrapped around Cai Zhao's, the other lifting a night pearl high above his head. The pearl's glow was thin, but it was enough to pick out the path ahead. At every fork he pressed a strip of cloth to the air, reading which way it stirred, then left a mark before moving on. Cai Zhao stumbled behind him, worse off even than the plump Jin Baohui at her side. She could not stop seeing it: Qian Xueshen's severed head rolling to a stop at her feet, his face still locked in terror. She had already retched against the ice wall once, tears falling one after another, her palm scraping raw against the wall as she fought to stay upright. This was the first time in her life she had watched a friend die. Somewhere in the dark, it occurred to her how unlike her aunt she truly was. Cai Pingshu had never feared the unknown, only craved it. A bottomless cave would have sent her in eagerly, torch raised. A storm at sea w...
Everyone froze as the chaotic battle at the mouth of the ice cavern above them turned dire. Zhou Zhiqin drove his longsword into the ice wall with one hand while using the other to steady the swaying Dongfang Xiao. Hu Tianwei, fighting two White Fur Hous alone, struggled to hold his ground, barely fending them off. From below, Mu Qingyan couldn't bear to watch any longer. "Don't fight them mid-air! Get to the ground first!" Hu Tianwei and Zhou Zhiqin understood at once. No matter how formidable the White Fur Hous were, they remained four legged beasts of flesh and blood. Surrounded by several top tier fighters of the Martial World, they wouldn't necessarily hold the advantage. But the current situation was different. The White Fur Hous' padded paws and sharp claws let them move effortlessly along the icy walls, while the humans found themselves at a disadvantage. Zhou Zhiqin twisted his right hand, pulling his sword slightly out of the ice wall, then chan...