690: Headfirst Into Danger

Headfirst Into Danger

"Hm, I must be getting close to it now."1

Just as the sibling duo returned home, Ming Yue seemingly reached her destination. Landing down with Xiao Yin and Hei Yue, she took a look around before taking the map out.  Her eyes moved from one side to the other, eventually stopping at the far east of the Xue Mountains. 

"It should be here..." she thought to herself, "...the Frostflame Bear's territory."

Compared to the rest of the mountain range, the scenery was vastly different. Everything was covered in ice, from the trees to the ground, even the falling snow had become shards of ice. 

Everything seemed to be devoid of any life. 

And yet, there was a particular atmosphere that she could not ignore.

It was tense and heavy, the cultivator felt stares on her body. Looking up, there were small shadows circling around the trio's location like vultures. 

"Hm, interesting."

Turning her attention back to the surrounding area, she unsheathed both the Black Blade and Bood Moon before slowly making her way through. The Dusk Lily Pin was active, creating a round barrier around the group. 

"I just have to fight them one by one", she muttered, "I need to kill enough to grow the Abyssal Ice and then the corpses can go to Xing Hou."

With that in mind, she kept her eyes open and her senses sharp. 

There was nothing but frozen trees and a field of ice as she wandered through the beast's territory. 

"Where could they be?"

She looked around, searching for some sort of movement before finally, she came across one. The sound of torn flesh and chew cut through the falling ice as the group hid behind a tree and watched. 

Just barely peeking out from the tree, Ming Yue watched as not one but three of them shared a giant carcass. Some sort of horned deer it would seem. 

"Three of them? But they've suffered a few injuries. Some gashes and bruises but nothing major." 

The trio of bears didn't seem too concerned with their surroundings, too busy feasting on their catch to care. 

"Should I go for it?" 

One was troublesome enough but going against three would be considered suicide by most people. However, she was no stranger to taking risks not when the reward was worth it. Determined, Ming Yue readied herself to move. 

But then she felt something amiss. 

Suddenly, Hei Yue backed into her, staring at the rear with a growl. In response, there was a loud thud as something growled back. Ming Yue spun around to see the corpse of another horned deer, freshly killed. 

A shadow grew, as a fourth Frostflame Bear rose up, standing on its hind legs before suddenly roaring out. And then roars echoed out all across the territory, joining together into a fearsome cry. 

The Frostflame Bear then dropped back down on all fours, glaring at her while snorting. It suddenly raised one of its paws and swiped at her!

She rolled away, avoiding the attack before calling for the rest of her group. 

There was no time to think as the beast gave chase. And the three from before followed after them. 

"Shit, it called for the others as well!"

She glanced behind her, seeing the giant bear practically sprinting after her. Unlike the others, it was far large, 1.5 times at least. If that weren't enough, it opened its mouth and released a horrifying Frost Breath. 

The icy flames nearly touched her despite the distance between them. And the energy emanating from those flames was unlike anything she'd seen. Instead of the blue flames, they were white ones and it was clear that these flames were far worse. 

She watched everything get coated with another layer of ice before the beast just smashed right through, shattering those trees into hundreds of pieces. 

"Ah damn, what do I do now? I can't run forever but can I even kill this one bear, let alone the rest that is coming? How could this have happened? 

Suddenly, she noticed another Frostflame Bear in front of her, roaring out before getting ready to strike her down. 

"No choice but to fight is it?"

Suddenly her demeanor changed as Pale Moon activated, both blades whistled as her speed skyrocketed. Suddenly vanishing, the beast revealed a surprised face as it looked around for her. 

A second later, blood sprayed out of its limbs as it cried out in pain. With the tendons and muscles cut, it couldn't stand anymore and fell to the ice. And then, her figure suddenly reappeared, already passing the crippled beast. 

"I can't kill it quick enough but at least they can't chase me."

Unfortunately, that was just the first one. Ming Yue came across another wall. This time, there wasn't just one but three of them now. And all of them were sprinting toward her from the front.

Gritting her teeth, she took one look at Hei Yue and Xiao Yin. 

"Stay close to me and watch my back."

If the only way out was to fight, she'd claw her way out if she had to.

As she faced this danger, Xing Juren and Xing Hou stood in front of their father, presenting him with the pelt of the Frostflame Bear that had been defeated before. He grabbed it with both hands, looking back at them and listening to their story. 

Both their mother and grandfather stood to the side, listening as well. 

And by the end of it, they were quiet, slowly digesting the story. And then, their mother spoke.

"So during the initiation, there was a Frostflame Bear that the two of you alongside that Ming Yue took down?" she asked.

The both of them nodded. 

"Oh, wow. And you plan to use this to stop the Elders from trying to marry you off?" their grandfather added.

Xing Hou stepped forward. 

"All of you know why the Elders want to me to get married. With this, won't I be able to decline them all? If they were to find out that the Princess has defeated a Frostflame Bear?"

"No, those old coots wouldn't give up, After all, you didn't defeat it alone but with help. If anything they might try to spin it in their favor", her mother responded. 

"But... this is a Frostflame Bear? What else can be done then?" she questioned. 

Her voice was a bit quiet, perhaps a little helpless in terms of tone. Hearing her, their father sighed, putting the pelt down on his desk. 

"Your mother is right. Even if it is a Frostflame Bear that you brought back, they won't be dissuaded. Think of how long our clan has reigned over the others. If they couldn't overpower us with strength, they'll try to snake their way through our ranks", he explained. "As your father, I'd love to just toss them out but as kind, it's my word against many others. That includes the Noble Clans as well, even they want to marry their spawn to you. Even the ten-year trial will only delay it by so long."

He said this with a helpless expression, balling his hands into fists. But then he looked up and turned to Xing Juren. 

"If she had the backing of Ming Yue, they may turn tail. A third party that they have no influence over, if she decided to intervene, they'd be helpless to stop her."

But his son just sighed. 

"I asked but she did not join us. Rather she had gone East and if I'm not wrong, she went off to hunt more Frostflame Bears", he answered. 

Both the parents and their grandfather had some shock on their faces before their father, stood up. 

"Did she really go there?" he asked, taking on a dark tone. 

"I'm... I'm not sure but I believe so. Why? What is it?" 

Xing Juren looked confused but by the sound of his father's voice, it could not be anything good. His father sat down, rubbing his temple before speaking. 

"It's hunting season for the Frostflame Bears but there was a report that the Frostflame Bear King awakened."

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