Chapter 8: Hiking with the Ice Queen
The "Twin Peak Mountains" lay a hundred kilometers north of River City. It was a rugged, untamed wilderness where the concentration of Spiritual Qi was higher, leading to denser forests and stronger beasts.
A sleek, black armored off-road vehicle tore through the muddy trail leading to the base of the mountains.
Inside, Ye Feng sat in the passenger seat, eating a bag of chips. Su Qing was driving.
"Do you treat every mission like a picnic?" Su Qing asked, glancing at the chips. Her hands gripped the steering wheel with perfect precision.
"Energy is important," Ye Feng crunched a chip. "Besides, we are technically on a date."
Su Qing slammed on the brakes, causing the car to drift around a sharp corner. "This is a business expedition. If you call it a date again, I will leave you here to walk."
"Understood, Boss."
Ye Feng looked out the window. The trees were massive here, their leaves shimmering with faint green light.
"We're close," Ye Feng said, his tone turning serious. "The coordinates I have point to a valley between the two peaks. The Chen family should be there already."
"The Chen family dispatched their 'Black Tiger' mercenary squad this morning," Su Qing said, her eyes cold. "Led by Chen Hu, a Stage 8 Body Refiner. He's brutal."
"Stage 8..." Ye Feng muttered. That was strong. Stronger than Butler Liu. But Ye Feng wasn't afraid. He had the Astral Thunder Sword and the Blood Weaver Gloves.
"Park here," Ye Feng pointed to a hidden alcove of rocks. "We walk the rest of the way. The engine noise will alert them."
They got out. Su Qing had changed from her business suit into a tight white tactical bodysuit that highlighted her curves but allowed for maximum movement. She carried a sleek, silver longsword at her waist.
Ye Feng checked her status.
[Target: Su Qing]
[Cultivation: Qi Condensation Stage 1 (Stabilized)]
[Weapon: Frost-Moon Sword (Mid-Grade Spirit Weapon)]
[Current Mood: Anxious but determined.]
[Secret (White): She packed extra sandwiches because she was worried you wouldn't bring food. She is pretending she didn't.]
Ye Feng suppressed a grin. The Ice Queen had a soft side.
"Let's move," Ye Feng whispered.
They moved silently through the dense forest. Ye Feng took point, using his Eye of Truth to spot traps.
[Warning: Tripwire ahead. Connected to a Claymore Mine.]
"Stop," Ye Feng signaled. He pointed to a thin, nearly invisible wire stretched across the path. "Chen family welcome mat."
Su Qing nodded, impressed. "Good eyes."
They bypassed the traps and climbed a ridge overlooking the valley.
Below them, a large excavation camp was set up. Dozens of men were digging into the side of a cliff. A heavy, muscular man with a scar across his bald head was shouting orders—Chen Hu.
"Faster, you dogs!" Chen Hu roared, cracking a whip. "The Young Master wants the Spirit Stones by sunset!"
Ye Feng scanned the cliff face.
[Target: Cliff Wall]
[Composition: Granite, Dirt.]
[Secret (Gold): This is a decoy. The Chen family's geologists made a mistake. The true entrance to the Spirit Mine is 500 meters to the east, hidden behind a waterfall illusion.]
Ye Feng almost laughed out loud.
"They're digging in the wrong spot," Ye Feng whispered to Su Qing.
"What?" Su Qing looked at him. "How do you know?"
"Trust me," Ye Feng grinned. "Look at the energy flow. It's stagnant there. But look over there." He pointed to a roaring waterfall further down the river.
"That waterfall... the mist is too thick," Su Qing analyzed. "It's an Illusion Array?"
"Exactly. A natural one. That's where the goods are."
"So what do we do? Sneak past them?"
"Sneaking is boring," Ye Feng said. "And risky. If they see us entering the real mine, they'll follow us and trap us inside. We need a distraction."
"A distraction?"
Ye Feng pulled a small, round metal ball from his pocket. It was the core of the Cyber-Wolf he had destroyed. He had salvaged it. It was unstable.
"I'm going to throw this into their ammo dump," Ye Feng said. "When it goes boom, we run for the waterfall."
Su Qing looked at him like he was crazy. Then she smiled. A rare, genuine smile.
"Do it."
Ye Feng infused a strand of Qi into the unstable core. It began to hum and glow red.
"Fire in the hole!"
He hurled it with all his strength. The metal ball sailed through the air, arching over the trees, and landed squarely in the tent marked with hazard symbols.
Three seconds later.
KA-BOOM!
A massive fireball erupted in the Chen camp. Tents were blown away. Crates of explosives detonated in a chain reaction.
"Enemy attack!" Chen Hu screamed, drawing a massive battle axe. "Find them! Kill them!"
Chaos ensued. The mercenaries ran around like headless chickens, firing blindly into the forest.
"Now!" Ye Feng grabbed Su Qing's hand.
They sprinted. Thunder Step and Su Qing's Frost Glide technique made them blurs in the forest.
They reached the waterfall in seconds.
"Jump!" Ye Feng shouted.
They leaped off the bank, straight into the roaring curtain of water.
Instead of hitting rock, they passed through a shimmering barrier.
They landed on dry, smooth stone.
They were inside a massive cavern. The air here was thick with sparkling blue dust—vaporized Spiritual Qi. The walls were studded with glowing blue crystals.
Spirit Stones.
Thousands of them.
"My god..." Su Qing breathed, her eyes wide. "It's a High-Grade vein. This... this is worth billions."
Ye Feng looked deeper into the cave.
[System Warning: Guardian Beast Detected.]
[Target: Crystal Rock Serpent (Stage 2 Demonic Beast - Equivalent to Qi Condensation Stage 5).]
"Don't celebrate yet," Ye Feng drew his sword. "The landlord is home."
From the darkness, two glowing yellow eyes the size of car tires opened.
HISSSSS.
A massive serpent, its scales made of jagged blue crystals, slithered into the light. It was twenty meters long. Its aura was suffocating.
"Qi Condensation Stage 5..." Su Qing gripped her sword, her knuckles turning white. "Ye Feng, we can't fight this. We need to run."
"Run where?" Ye Feng pointed behind them. "Chen Hu will figure out the trick soon. If we go back, we fight an army. If we stay, we fight a snake."
"The snake is worse!"
"Not necessarily," Ye Feng scanned the serpent.
[Target: Crystal Rock Serpent]
[Weakness: It is currently shedding its skin. The scales under its jaw are soft. Also, it is extremely attracted to 'Spirit Pheromones'.]
Ye Feng looked at Su Qing.
"Su Qing, do you have that bottle of 'Rose Spirit Perfume' in your bag?"
Su Qing blinked, confused. "Yes? Why?"
"Give it to me. And get ready to freeze its tail."
"Are you going to perfume the snake?!"
"Trust me!"
Su Qing threw him the small glass bottle. Ye Feng caught it.
"Hey, Slither-Brain!" Ye Feng shouted, stepping forward.
The snake roared and lunged, its mouth wide enough to swallow him whole.
Ye Feng used Thunder Step to dash to the side. He threw the perfume bottle at a cluster of stalagmites near the wall.
Smash.
The scent of concentrated Spirit Flowers exploded in the air.
The snake stopped mid-lunge. Its tongue flickered. To a Spirit Beast, that smell was like high-grade catnip. It turned its massive head toward the stalagmites, ignoring Ye Feng.
"Now! Freeze it!"
Su Qing didn't hesitate. She channeled her Qi. "Frost Art: Glacial Bind!"
She thrust her sword into the ground. Ice spikes erupted from the floor, encasing the serpent's tail and lower body, pinning it to the ground.
The snake shrieked and thrashed, but the ice held for now.
"The jaw!" Ye Feng shouted.
He jumped.
He soared into the air, aiming for the soft white skin under the serpent's jaw.
The snake snapped its head back to bite him.
Ye Feng spun in mid-air.
"Thunder Flash!"
The Astral Thunder Sword cut deep.
Blood—blue and glowing—sprayed out. The snake roared in agony, thrashing so hard the cave shook. Stalactites began to fall from the ceiling.
"It's not dead!" Su Qing yelled. "It's too big!"
The snake, enraged, ripped free from the ice. It coiled back to strike, its eyes glowing red with berserk fury.
Ye Feng landed and stumbled. He was out of position.
"Watch out!" Su Qing dashed in front of him. She raised an Ice Shield.
BANG.
The snake rammed the shield. The ice shattered. Su Qing was thrown backward, slamming into the wall. She coughed up blood.
"Su Qing!" Ye Feng's eyes went red.
He looked at the snake. He looked at the massive pile of raw Spirit Stones on the wall.
An insane idea formed.
"System! Can I absorb raw Spirit Stones directly?"
[Warning: Raw absorption is dangerous. 50% chance of body explosion.]
"And the other 50%?"
[Instant Qi replenishment and temporary power boost.]
"Good enough odds."
Ye Feng punched the wall. He grabbed a fist-sized High-Grade Spirit Stone.
He crushed it in his Blood Weaver Glove. The pure energy liquidized.
He swallowed it.
BOOM.
It felt like he swallowed a grenade. His veins bulged. His skin turned red. Steam poured from his ears.
[Energy Overload! Cultivation temporarily boosted to Qi Condensation Stage 1!]
Ye Feng roared. The pain was excruciating, but the power... the power was intoxicating.
The snake lunged again.
Ye Feng didn't dodge. He caught the snake's fangs with his bare hands.
"Get... down!"
With a roar of pure strength, Ye Feng lifted the twenty-meter serpent... and slammed it into the ground.
CRASH.
The cavern floor cracked. The snake was stunned.
Ye Feng jumped onto its head. He reversed his sword, pointing the tip down.
"Die."
He drove the blade through the snake's skull, pinning it to the rock.
Lightning exploded from the wound, frying the beast's brain instantly.
The massive body twitched once, then went still.
Ye Feng collapsed on top of the carcass, panting like a dying dog. The temporary boost faded, leaving him drained.
"Ye Feng..." Su Qing limped over, clutching her side. She looked at the dead monster, then at him. Her eyes were filled with shock and... awe.
"You're insane," she whispered. "You actually ate a raw Spirit Stone."
"It tasted like blueberry," Ye Feng wheezed. "Would not recommend."
Su Qing laughed. It was a weak, pained laugh, but it was beautiful.
She sat down next to him, leaning against the dead snake.
"We did it," she said. "The mine is ours."
"Yeah," Ye Feng closed his eyes. "Now we just have to figure out how to carry a billion credits worth of stones home."
Outside the waterfall, faint shouting could be heard. Chen Hu had found the entrance.
Ye Feng opened one eye.
"Round two?"
Su Qing drew her sword, her eyes hardening.
"Let them come. This is Su territory now."
[Ding!]
[Mission Update: The Guardian is Dead.]
[New Objective: Defend the Mine until reinforcements arrive.]
[Time limit: 30 minutes.]
Ye Feng groaned and stood up.
"No rest for the wicked. Let's go welcome our guests."