The West Ridge Snow Mountains are covered in snow all year round, like a silver dragon stretching across the horizon, majestic and awe-inspiring, cold and spectacular.

Jiang Yuebai rode a white crane, while Xie Jingshan mounted the sword spirit Huo Dou. The two arrived at the location Yun Shang mentioned, only to hear the continuous howls of wolves and the sound of explosions.

The terrifying sound of ice cracking reverberated through the sky, and an avalanche thundered down from the mountain top, rushing towards the ice valley between the two peaks below.

Yun Shang, Ge Yuchan, and two Foundation Establishment Martial Monks were surrounded by hundreds of wolves, locked in fierce battle.

A giant white wolf stood proudly on high ground, its green eyes filled with murderous intent, causing fear in anyone who saw it.

"You go down to help, I will resist the avalanche."

Jiang Yuebai said to Xie Jingshan, and they immediately split up.

"Everyone back off, let me handle this!"

Zheng!

The sound of the sword pierced the sky as Xie Jingshan shouted Jiang Yuebai’s usual call, sweeping up a wave of fire that pushed the wolves back in an instant.

Woof woof!

In the midst of the barking, one after another, fiery black dogs bounded out of the fire wave, fiercely slaughtering the wolves.

Xie Jingshan pulled two swords out of thin air, one of wind and one of fire, and charged at the White Wolf King.

Jiang Yuebai reached the mountainside, the mountains trembled, snow collapsed, like a roaring angry dragon wanting to smash into the earth and rivers.

"Yuchen, Little Green!"

A blue and a green ray shot out from Jiang Yuebai’s body.

The blue light scattered downward, turning into a shower of ice crystal dust, frantically absorbing the surrounding Ice Cold Qi, the ice crystals spreading and extending like snowflakes, forming an immense ice crystal prison above everyone’s heads.

The green light shot upward to confront the avalanche; from the small palace lantern, blazing flames erupted into a vast sea of fire, transforming the colossal snow into steaming mist as it thundered in.

[Burn burn burn]

The palace lantern trembled as it gradually shifted from green to red, with three black words condensing on it, exuding a murderous aura.

The green light was naturally Little Green, now advanced to a Spiritual Artifact, capable of changing its color based on its mood; it’s green when calm and red when angry.

Above the ice crystal prison, the thumb-sized Ice Armor Beetle King emitted a dark blue glow, having absorbed most of the Mystic Ice Qi from the Ice Soul Pearl, now ranking as a Sixth-Level Insect King equivalent to Early-Stage Golden Core.

For future advancements, it must absorb more superior ice attribute Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

Jiang Yuebai named it Yuchen, like Suchen of the Suchen Domain, both being synonyms for snow.

Chirp chirp!

Suspended in mid-air, Jixiang poked its head out from the vine basket at her waist, looking at the blazing flames above, it immediately ducked back in, staying put, only its nose twitching downwards incessantly.

[Can’t burn anymore]

The words on Little Green Lantern changed, the flames weakened, yet the avalanche continued.

Jiang Yuebai motioned for Little Green to retreat, extinguishing the flames, leaving the remaining snow to crash harshly on the ice crystal prison’s dome below.

Bang!

The air waves cleared, snowflakes filled the sky, with the resounding echoes gradually fading, as the world returned to peace.

Crack!

The ice crystal dome shattered, finally breaking into a rain of ice shards, drawing a blue trail as they flew back into Yuchen.

Yuchen and Little Green returned to Jiang Yuebai’s side, Yuchen wishing to return to the Lotus Platform Cave Heaven, while Little Green preferred to hang out outside.

Jiang Yuebai, with Little Green, descended to the ice valley below, filled with wolf corpses and rivers of blood, with scattered flames seemingly alive, leaping and dancing back onto the black dogs in front of everyone.

Shaking its body like shaking off water, the black dog shrank to the size of a kitten, bouncing into Xie Jingshan’s leg, only to emerge from his shoulder again, glaring fiercely at Jiang Yuebai.

"Damn it, that Wolf King got away." Xie Jingshan sheathed his sword, on his guard.

Yun Shang frowned, "That White Wolf King doesn’t feel right, too smart for a beast. It deliberately lured us here, plus I can’t sense any demonic aura on it."

Ge Yuchan looked up. Without Jiang Yuebai’s intervention to stop the avalanche, they would have been buried, unable to escape any time soon even if they survived.

"Amitabha Buddha, this matter is indeed strange. We must report back to the Vajra Platform, while you benefactors should leave quickly."

The two Martial Monks left first, Xie Jingshan asked Jiang Yuebai, "What should we do now?"

Jiang Yuebai examined the wolf corpses, all ordinary Demon Wolves, the strongest being at Late-Stage Foundation Establishment. The White Wolf King earlier, she had swept a glance, possessed Late Mid-Stage Golden Core strength.

Chirp chirp!

Jixiang suddenly jumped down from Jiang Yuebai’s waist, sniffing around the snow.

Yun Shang watched Jixiang curiously, while Ge Yuchan withdrew her arm from Yun Shang’s hand, indicating she was fine, just bitten on the arm by a Demon Wolf.

Jixiang sniffed for a while and then ran deeper into the Ice Valley. Jiang Yuebai tilted his head, signaling everyone to follow.

The four followed Jixiang, trekking through the heavy snow. After half an hour, they reached the central area on the west side of the Ice Valley. Jixiang jumped up and dived into the snow.

A moment later, Jixiang emerged from the snow with a head full of snow, chirping at Jiang Yuebai.

"There’s something down there, Little Green!"

Little Green flew over Jixiang’s head, its lantern sides bursting with ghostly flames, spitting out two tongues of fire downward.

Chirp!

Jixiang jumped in fright, caught by Yun Shang with quick reflexes, who held it protectively in her arms and retreated.

"Good Jixiang~ don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid~"

In an instant, Little Green burned away the upper layers of snow, revealing the bluish ice beneath, which remained unmelted and unafraid of the fierce flames.

Xie Jingshan glanced and said, "This is Ten Thousand Years Mystic Ice, extremely hard, ordinary weapons can’t break it open..."

Bam!

Before Xie Jingshan could finish speaking, Little Green rammed the ice layer, forcing open a gap.

Ice shards fell inward. Xie Jingshan twitched at the corner of his mouth, "Your Little Lantern is really sturdy."

Little Green continued downward, its phosphorescent light gradually receding, revealing a deep and spacious area below.

Jiang Yuebai looked to Ge Yuchan, "How’s the injury?"

Ge Yuchan replied, "I’ve taken some medicine, it’s much better now, don’t worry about me."

"Then I’ll go down first, Xie Jingshan will guard the rear, everyone be careful."

Jiang Yuebai conjured a layer of Protective Gang Qi and cautiously slid down through the broken opening, descending over a hundred feet before touching the ground in a patch of darkness.

Piercing cold stabbed like needles into his body. The phosphorescent light from Little Green illuminated a small area, and Jiang Yuebai vaguely saw shadows within the surrounding ice layers.

Yun Shang and Ge Yuchan quickly descended, and after Xie Jingshan landed, he tossed a round pearl into the air, illuminating the entire cave as bright as day.

Chirp chirp!

Jixiang, frightened, buried its head into Yun Shang’s embrace. The group scanned the surroundings, with a chilling sensation washing over them.

In the ice layers were sealed various corpses, both human and demonic, entwined by blood-red tree vines. The vines pierced into the chests and the back of the necks of the corpses, slightly trembling.

"Are all these corpses ’alive’?" Yun Shang asked quietly.

Ge Yuchan and Xie Jingshan went to inspect either side. Ge Yuchan noted, "There’s still a breath of life, though it’s very faint."

Xie Jingshan, knowledgeable and experienced, pointed at the vines, "That’s the Undying Vine, which likes to parasitize on demonic beasts or humans. It can sustain a gasp of life, as long as the vine doesn’t die, it can keep the soul of a dying person fixed in the body, unperished. This thing is already quite rare in the Earth Spiritual Realm."

Jiang Yuebai nodded at the smashed ice wall before her, "Look here, doesn’t this shape resemble a wolf?"

Inside, there were already withered vines, and the outline within the ice wall indeed resembled a wolf.

"Yun Shang, what are you doing?"

Suddenly, Yun Shang crawled into the ice wall, and Jiang Yuebai asked nervously.

"I found something."

Yun Shang separated the withered Undying Vines below, picking out a few peanut-sized insect husks.

"These seem to be Life Revival Gu shells."

"There’s a corpse over here."

Ge Yuchan’s voice came through. Jiang Yuebai quickly went over, seeing Ge Yuchan squat before a desiccated, frozen male corpse, turning his face towards them with a dagger.

On seeing that face clearly, Jiang Yuebai’s pupil contracted.

"Qing Nangzi! This is Qing Nangzi, the one my master was chasing in the North Sea, I’ve seen his portrait!"

Awoooo—

A sudden wolf howl echoed from outside. The frozen male corpse suddenly opened his eyes and gaped, launching a blood vine straight at Ge Yuchan’s face.