692: Battle to the End

Battle to the End

Suddenly, a shadow passed through the trees before taking shelter behind one of them.2

"Haah, haah, haah, damn it. How much longer can I keep this going?"

Panting hard, Ming Yue peeked out of the tree trunk, wiping the sweat and dirt off her face. She was in a ragged state, exhausted from the constant running and fighting, having to be watchful of her surroundings. If she didn't move, she'd be surrounded and that was a situation no one would like. 

"Damn it, another one is coming."

Leaping away from the tree, she escaped just before it was destroyed, broken by the swing of a Frostflame Bear! 

In that moment, the cultivator charged forward, stabbing Blood Moon into the beast's arm before slicing it off with the Black Blade. But she didn't go any further, running off when the opportunity came. 

"They're relentless, it's just one after another. How many have died at this point?"

Thinking to herself, Ming Yue kept her eyes open, looking for another place to hide and recover.

Xiao Yin and Hei Yue were nowhere to be found, most likely acting independently. The duo did what they could to buy her some time to rest. They may not be a match for a Frostflame Bear but all they needed to do was to confuse the beasts for a bit. 

However, even they were not enough to slow down the Frostflame Bear King. 

Just as Ming Yue fled the scene, it arrived, seeing its injured kin. It growled, staring in the direction she had gone, and ran off after. With its size and thundering steps, it was hard to miss and the beast didn't try to move quietly. 

The beast wanted its target to know that it had not given up yet. 

And then it stopped, looking around before sniffing the air and then the ground. Something was amiss, her scent seemed to have stopped here. Despite that, she was nowhere to be found. It was as if she had vanished from thin air. 

But little did the beast know, she was very close to him. 

Leaping out from the trees, Ming Yue stuck from above stabbing both swords into the beast's back! It roared out in pain, trying to throw her off as it rose to its hind legs. Pulling them out, the cultivator ran off, leaving while the Frostflame Bear King writhed in pain. 

It took no more than a minute to recover from the shock, baring its fangs before giving chase. 

There was no doubt in Ming Yue's mind that she could escape, and leave the Frostflame Bear's territory with her life. She could've avoided all of this trouble if she left but this was a challenge, one with a reward she was not willing to miss out on. 

Even as she ran and fought, the cultivator took every chance she could get to harvest as much as she could. Whether it was the cores of those beasts or the natural treasures, Ming Yue took everything and placed it into that jar. 

Those little shards of Abyssal Ice grew and kept growing as it was constantly fed. 

"I still need more. If I can kill that giant Frostflame Bear, it's probably equal to dozens of them", she estimated. 

But saying it was far easier than doing it. 

"A full-powered strike isn't enough to kill it but I doubt I have the strength or even the power for a head-on fight. But all these little ambushes are barely getting me anywhere. I have to trap it somehow."

Glancing over her shoulder, she saw a faint shadow of the Frostflame Bear King, hellbent on catching her. 

She looked around, trying to think of something as she kept her distance from the great beast. 

"I can't use the trees, they'll just shatter to pieces. Everything here is just ice, there has to be something around here that can stop it!"

There was another group of Frostflame Bears waiting for her up ahead. Rather than fight, Ming Yue suddenly flew up past the trees and avoided the group altogether. At this rate, conserving her strength seemed like the better option. 

But as she flew up, something caught her eye. 

"Is that..?"

She suddenly flew towards it, deeper into the beat's territory. Her eyes widened as she realized what it was.

"This is another black pond! Elder Wo Long was right, the Mountain's Ink exists here too!"

Landing at the edge of the pitch-black pond, she saw bits of ice floating into the middle. 

"Abyssal ice!"

Leaping over the surface, Ming Yue reached out and grabbed the shards, quickly placing them into the glass jar. But her joy was short-lived as dissonant roars echoed out, growing louder as the bears came for her. 

However, an idea came to mind. 

"Water and lightning..."

The cultivator circled around the pond, letting her scent spread around before ascending. As she climbed high, it grew colder but she ignored the discomfort. But once Ming Yue reached a good height, she stopped.

Looking down, all that she could see was the black pond and so she raised both hands up high. 

"I've only got enough strength to do this once, have to make the most of it."

Furrowing her brows, she concentrated, doing two things at once. 

On the left hand, a Wind Lance manifested above her, growing larger and then condensing over and over again. On the right, there was nothing forming over her hand but the clouds above her started to gather. 

As the seconds passed, they stirred up, darkening as sparks flashed within them. 

Churning ominously, the clouds then gave way to a spear of wind and lightning, forming within its depth. It crackled constantly, growing brighter and stronger.

Gritting her teeth, Ming Yue was straining herself, trying to maintain both techniques with what little strength she had left. Despite that, she stared down at the black pond, waiting for the right moment. 

She watched as the Frostflame Bears gathered around the pond, looking at their surroundings in confusion. Among them, the giant one was there, taking a look around as well before looking up. Its eyes sharpened like daggers as it stared at the skies.

And then their eyes met. 

But it was far too late for the beasts to escape. 

"Storm Lance: Mortal Lightning."

Her left hand fell first, sending the Wind Land down before sending the spear of wind and lightning after it. What happened next occurred in almost a split second. 

When the Storm Lance came, it crashed into the surface of the inky pond, causing it to burst out. Little droplets of black water flew up into the air, scattering all over the beasts. And then the spear followed right after, the shockwave from the Storm Lance caused it to erupt into a thousand tendrils of lighting. Each one coursed through the air, reaching for every little droplet. 

In that moment, it reached all of the beast's body, shocking them numb and running wild internally. Most if not all of them fell to the ground, convulsing in pain. One or two had even died. 

Ming Yue floated down before suddenly, falling to the ground, and dropping to a knee. She looked at the scene, watching the inky water turn to steam from the heat. Barely hanging on to her consciousness, she stumbled forward, leaning against a tree. 

Reaching into her spatial ring, she took a pill out and consumed it, letting the warm energy spread into her body. It was far from enough to heal her but she only had a few, all of which were gifts from the Medicinal Elder.

"Hoooh, haaah, I... I still need to take out their cores", she muttered.

Forcing herself forward, she used Blood Moon like a cane, moving from one Frostflame Bear to the next, killing them and harvesting the core.

But then she heard a weak growl from behind her. 

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