Even if the Wei Group eventually ended up claiming victory over the Red-Eyed Skeletal Ghouls, it would have to be through a difficult battle that pushed the party members to their limits.

Judging from what he had heard about Nuo Qianling’s personality, Zhao Yunxiao was fairly certain that she would never give up on the slimmest chances of melting the black ice at that point, believing that they had already gone too far to leave without even trying.

The rest of the party were extremely loyal to Nuo Qianling as well. As long as Nuo Qianling had come to a decision, they would likely follow her lead.

Considering that, it was unlikely that they would give up even if he did not reveal the method to melt the black ice. He could see them wasting their time and effort, trying all sorts of means while fully exposing themselves to the assault of other enemies that passed by the area.

And should he reveal the method to melt the black ice, nothing else he said would matter. Regardless of the amount of caution that he tried to throw out, all of it would surely fall on deaf ears.

Of course, he would still have to caution them regardless, even if it was just to safeguard his own interests.

Only by doing so would nobody be able to put the blame on him should things go awry, for the onus would then be on Nuo Qianling’s party. If they chose such an option despite having received an explicit warning in advance, then they only had themselves to blame.

And being blamed was one thing, but the lives of the party were also at stake!

The last thing Zhao Yunxiao wanted was for a participant under his watch to end up dying in the Four Symbols Mystic Realm, for the sake of both camaraderie as well as his rewards as an observer!

Zhao Yunxiao quickly came to a conclusion.

Ultimately, whether he should tell them of the method depended on the likelihood of the Wei Group surviving what was to come.

That said, calculating the probability of that was easier said than done.

He closed his eyes to think through all the different native creatures that had ever been spotted in the Blacksnow Tundra.

This might not be a popular location among participants, but it was still a region that had existed for centuries within the Four Symbols Mystic Realm. Therefore, the encounters recorded over the years were numerous enough to form a long list.

Not just that, but there would also be different reports from participants regarding each type of opponent, some complementary and others contradictory. All these had to be reconciled in order to eliminate any noise data.

Zhao Yunxiao was not someone who enjoyed taking chances.

Since it was unclear what exactly would be attracted by the release of energy from melting the black ice, he would simply have to consider possible countermeasures for every single creature that had ever been reported in the Blacksnow Tundra!

As if that was not enough, countermeasures still had to be tailored to the ones actually executing them.

Not only would he have to think of the strengths and weaknesses of each possible opponent, but he also had to match them against the strengths and weaknesses of each member of the Wei Group, as well as consider the various means at their disposal.

Even though he had already done in-depth research on both the Four Symbols Mystic Realm and the participants under his watch, this was still not an easy task by any measure.

Most observers would not have bothered going this far, but Zhao Yunxiao was different.

He understood that each successful case under his belt meant potentially greater rewards. Even if these rewards were not immediately apparent, his accomplishments would still add up over time and leave an impression on Fei Weng, and that could already be considered a reward in and of itself.

Thankfully, even though this was a difficult task that could not be accomplished in a short amount of time, Zhao Yunxiao had one thing going for him at least.

Time was on his side.

The Wei Group was currently preoccupied with handling the Red-Eyed Skeletal Ghouls, so no matter how much they wanted to do so, there was simply no way that they could go about melting the black ice pyramid right now.

And without a doubt, this battle was not going to end anytime soon.

***

The final bar of the Spiralhorn War Tune trailed off into the distance, quickly replaced by the howling of the black snowstorm.

Originally holding her flute to her lips, Zhuang Chan’s hands fell limply to her sides, revealing a complexion that had turned as pale as a ghost’s.

Despite the freezing environment, she was completely drenched in sweat, causing her long black hair to be stuck to her face in an unkempt manner.

The Spiralhorn War Tune had an enormous energy consumption rate, and was definitely not meant to be used for long.

But at the same time, Zhuang Chan understood just how important it was to winning this battle.

Not wanting to let her comrades down, she had truly overexerted herself this time, forcing herself to push on even after she had long reached her physical limits.

And as soon as she saw the last skeleton crumble into the black snow, all the tension and adrenaline that had been helping her hold on left her all at once.

Thud-!

Zhuang Chan fell to her knees and bent forward, using her hands as support while closing her eyes to take deep breaths. At the same time, she pulled out a spirit stone to absorb the energy within.

She was not the only one who had overexerted herself either.

“Damn these crazy skeletons! And damn those people for not warning us about them beforehand!” Nuo Qianling cursed as she allowed herself to fall back into the snow, lying face up on the ground.

Even through the heavy snowstorm, she could see that the sky above had lit up once more. Without realising it, they had fought through the entire night!

“It’s finally over now, right?” another member asked nervously while looking around them, unable to shake off the feeling that the skeletons could rise once more.

“It should be over,” the final member of the party replied. “It has to be!”

Nuo Qianling quickly sat up and looked around.

She could still see the numerous bones scattered all over the black snow, proof of the long and difficult battle that they had just undergone.

None of the skeletons were moving anymore.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Even though they had to lose Shu Yifei in the process, they had finally managed to tide over the crisis!

They had won!

She turned her head to look at the black ice pyramid still standing tall in the near distance.

Now, they were back to square one.

They might have gotten rid of the skeletons, but they still had to figure out a way to extract the wooden sword.

The question was... how?

As though having read her mind, a message came through from the sect administrators at this very moment.

[To melt the black ice, you can use the red flames in the eye sockets of the Red-Eyed Skeletal Ghouls. However, it is best not to do that. The moment the ice starts melting, it will release a storm of energy that will draw in enemies from all over Blacksnow Tundra. It will be almost impossible for your party to last long enough to get what you want.]

That was it for the message.

But that was all the information that she needed as well.

Red-Eyed Skeletal Ghouls, eh?

So, that was the name of the enemies that they had struggled so much against.

Truthfully, she had been rather exasperated by her party member for having lured these skeletons over, but now it would appear that this was just the river of fate leading them towards their inevitable destination!

Nuo Qianling slowly stood up before walking over to pick up one of the skulls scattered across the snow. Peering within, she could indeed see a small flame burning in each of the eye sockets.

It was a cold flame, devoid of any warmth.

However, she still felt her body heating up upon seeing it, largely owing to the excitement that was starting to well up from within.

It was best not to melt the ice and get the treasure that they had found after going through such difficulties?

What a joke!

Now that they had already come this far, there was absolutely no way that she would leave without even giving it a shot!

The sect administrators said that enemies would come from all over Blacksnow Tundra?

Well, let them come!

There’s no reward without work, no victory without effort, and no battle won without risk.

In order to obtain great treasures, how could they be afraid of taking risks?

From the moment her party agreed on targeting the Blacksnow Tundra, they had already been prepared to face any enemy that came their way!

If it was something that they could handle, they would sweep it away without hesitation.

If not, then that was just their bad luck.

In their eyes, cultivation had always been about challenging the heavens and going against fate.

Without at least giving it a try when such an opportunity was laid out in front of them, how would they ever be able to stand out in this world?

And how would they ever dream of catching up to the core disciples, who were like stars shining high up in the sky?

If she could be contented with living a life of mediocrity, then she would not have chosen to step upon the arduous path of cultivation in the first place!

“Did all of you get the message?” Nuo Qianling asked calmly.

“Mm.”

“Yes.”

“I got it too.”

“What do you think?” Nuo Qianling continued, this time turning her attention away from the skull in her hands to look into her party members’ eyes. “Are you up for it?”

Seeing the look on her face, all her party members responded in the exact same manner – with a grin that might have exposed their current state of exhaustion, but clearly depicted their excitement at the same time.

“I thought so,” Nuo Qianling let out a similar grin. “Quickly rest up and recover your energy then. Let’s find out which one is stronger – the power of the Blacksnow Tundra, or the power of our determination!”

***

“Energy expenditure and movements tending towards zero, but their vitals are recovering. Nuo Qianling’s party is likely to have escaped danger,” Zhao Yunxiao reported matter-of-factly.

While Deacon Que and the rest of the sect administrators felt relieved upon hearing that, Zhao Yunxiao could not help but feel his heart beating faster.

He kept an eye on the Wei Group’s jade tablets, which indicated that they were completely stationary at the moment.

Yes, it was only natural that they would want to rest and recover after a hard battle. However, as long as they did not leave the area, there was still a good chance that they had yet to give up on the black ice.

Zhao Yunxiao had expected as much, especially since he had decided to let them know of the method to melt the black ice.

However, he was still hoping for that slim possibility of them choosing rationality over emotions, deciding to give up on the black ice to seek safer rewards in the Four Symbols Mystic Realm.

If only they could exhibit such a level of self-control, it would definitely make things a lot simpler for him!

As for now, he could only wait and see what their decision would be after they had fully recovered.

Then again, no matter how nerve-racking the wait was, it was still a brief respite where he could finally afford to let his mind rest a little.

***

“It’s all clear. It would appear that they have truly given up on chasing after us,” Lou Guanlai reported as he returned to his group.

“That’s good to hear,” San Wanfan nodded. “Come, have some food.”

After escaping from Trident Lake, the Mo Group had continued to run for half a day before they finally came across this river that cut through the woods.

Utterly exhausted from battle and all the running, they had decided to set up camp here to rest for the night.

The night had come and gone.

However, none of them could sleep with a peace of mind.

Even before the first light of dawn shone down upon them, all six members had already gotten up, and were now gathered around a large campfire that they had set up along the banks of the river.

No words were exchanged among the party members as they sat around the fire, silently chewing on the grilled fishes that they had gotten from the river last night.

The sound of the river flowing and the fire crackling came together to form a melody of serenity, a huge contrast to how yesterday had gone for them.

It was a brief respite that they welcomed from the bottom of their hearts.

But at the same time, they could not help but feel mixed emotions about their current situation.

There was a gloomy atmosphere in the air, though that was probably only natural as well. After all, not only had they lost a battle, but they had also ended up being chased around for such a long time.

Encountering a core disciple’s group the first thing after entering the Four Symbols Mystic Realm – how unfortunate!

“Are we really going to let them get away with this?” Lou Guanlai was the first to break the silence.

“Of course not,” San Wanfan answered without hesitation. “We definitely need to find a way to make them pay. We need to let them know that we, disciples of the Black Tortoise Sect, are not mere pushovers!”

As he spoke, San Wanfan could feel rage welling up within him.

Not only losing a battle but also being chased like a dog for half a day – he could already imagine all the mocking comments that awaited them after leaving the mystic realm, and just thinking about the upcoming humiliation made his blood boil.

Sometimes, words were capable of doing far more damage than swords.

He had spent years building up a reputation for his party, and there was absolutely no way that he would allow all his efforts to be destroyed by a single crazy bitch’s desire to show off.

Even if it meant resorting to cheap tricks, they had to think of a way to turn the tables on Quan Hui’s party!