Proud Sword Soaring Clouds-Chapter 38 - 37: Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon

The main peak of Vendia Snow Mountain was cold and steep, and various Magical Beasts roamed its slopes. In such terrain, you would be lucky to exert even thirty to forty percent of your true strength. Ling Xiao suddenly found himself admiring those who had obtained the Vantia Holy Fruit in the past. ’What kind of courage and strength must it have taken to successfully pick it in such a hostile place?’

"Hey, Ling Xiao, do you even know where that thing grows?" Ye Wen Ni asked, trying to hold back her frustration. This was already their third day on the main peak. They had strayed close to the territories of a few Magical Beasts, but thankfully Ling Xiao had been quick to notice and lead her away. In fact, with many Magical Beasts, the higher their rank, the higher their intelligence. They rarely attacked humans proactively unless someone crossed their psychological boundaries or they perceived malicious intent. A Magical Beast’s perception was incredibly powerful; they could sense whether a human carried any malice or killing intent.

"Of course not! If I knew, we would have gone straight to our destination. Why would we be wasting all this effort wandering in circles?" The cold mountain wind had chafed Ling Xiao’s face, turning it a dark, bruised red. A muscle in his cheek twitched, and he added with a helpless look, "Did you really think I’ve been leading us around just to avoid Magical Beasts?"

"That’s exactly what I thought!" Ye Wen Ni said matter-of-factly. Her expression then turned dejected. "If we keep searching like this, who knows when we’ll ever find it."

Ling Xiao was also getting frustrated. The experience he had from searching for the Purple Blue Fruit in his past life was almost useless here. The Purple Blue Fruit favored the cold; the more pristine the environment, the more likely it was to appear. It was like a snow lotus, which also grew in cold places. If you were lucky, you might stumble right upon one. If you were unlucky, you could search for a long time and find nothing. Therefore, Ling Xiao could only rely on luck.

Ling Xiao looked up, breathing with some difficulty, and said, "We’re about three thousand meters from the summit. What do you say? Should we head up and take a look?"

Ye Wen Ni was also panting heavily. ’If I can make it out of this trip to Vendia Snow Mountain alive,’ she thought, ’my cultivation will increase by at least one or two levels.’

’One progresses fastest in the face of adversity. That saying is absolutely true!’

"Alright! If you say we go up, then we go up!" Ye Wen Ni had a resolute nature. Having endured so much hardship since childhood, she was not as delicate as the young ladies from noble families. Besides, she had a competitive streak and refused to show weakness in front of Ling Xiao, lest he look down on her.

Ling Xiao was about to smile—’Her personality is actually quite endearing,’ he thought—when a sudden sense of alarm struck him. He yanked Ye Wen Ni down, wrapping his arms firmly around her, and rolled toward the lower left. A few large boulders stood there, forming a deep crevice about one person wide.

"You..." Caught by surprise, Ye Wen Ni’s immediate reaction was to struggle. Over the past several days, Ling Xiao’s teasing, which was laced with genuine care, had already caused the girl who had known so much youthful sorrow to open her heart just a little. She had her guard completely down around him and never imagined he would suddenly assault her.

Just then, a spray of sand and gravel viciously pelted Ye Wen Ni’s back! The back of her head was struck as well, and the pain almost brought tears to her eyes. Any thought of struggling vanished instantly. It was suddenly crystal clear that Ling Xiao had just saved her.

Having dodged the attack, they heard a piercing shriek. The sound was so incredibly sharp it was deafening, making their eardrums ache.

Dazed and groggy, Ye Wen Ni heard Ling Xiao mutter excitedly, "Ha! Found it!"

Ye Wen Ni wanted to speak, but she was held tight in Ling Xiao’s arms. A strange feeling, mixed with the tension of a life-or-death situation, left her completely speechless.

The cliffside was steep, and in an instant, the two of them rolled to the crevice. Ling Xiao used all his strength to throw Ye Wen Ni inside, then dove in after her. He felt a piercing pain shoot through his calf as a powerful gust of wind nearly blew him back out.

"That beast!" Ling Xiao grunted, pushing Ye Wen Ni further in. Ye Wen Ni quickly scrambled deeper inside. Although Ling Xiao had shielded most of her body as they rolled down the rocky slope, her back and legs still ached from the impacts. More than the pain, however, she felt the lingering fear of a near-death experience and the overwhelming relief of having survived.

"Was that the Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon?" During their downtime over the past few days, Ling Xiao had told her about the Magical Beast that guarded the Vantia Holy Fruit—the Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon. Having just heard him excitedly say he’d "found it," she asked the question subconsciously.

After she spoke, she saw Ling Xiao’s face contort. He was clenching his jaw and gripping his calf with both hands. Bright red blood seeped out from between his fingers. Only then did she realize he was injured, and a wave of panic washed over her. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Ling Xiao, are... are you okay?" At this moment, Ling Xiao was her entire pillar of support. ’Vendia Snow Mountain—it’s truly terrifying!’ Ye Wen Ni thought. ’If I can get out of here, I will never even think of coming back!’

"I’m fine. Just got grazed by that beast’s claws," Ling Xiao said, letting go of his leg. He rolled up his pant leg, revealing a mangled, bloody mess on his calf.

However, Ye Wen Ni, who by all rights should have been terrified, suppressed her fear. She took a waterskin from her pack and poured out the bone-chillingly cold water, her hands trembling as she cleaned the wound on Ling Xiao’s calf.

Ling Xiao clenched his jaw tightly, not letting a single sound escape.

Ye Wen Ni’s hands trembled, and she could feel the tension in the air. Forcing a smile, she said, "If it hurts, you can cry out. I... I promise I won’t laugh at you!"

"Hiss..." The cold water on the wound first sent a wave of numbness through Ling Xiao, followed immediately by a sensation like countless needles jabbing him, or a swarm of ants gnawing at his flesh. Her words made him want to laugh and cry at the same time. "My lady, could you... could you just hurry up, please..."

With a little "Oh!" of understanding, Ye Wen Ni took out the Golden Sore Medicine and poured it onto the wound. The gushing blood stopped instantly. She then took out a cloth strip and wrapped it tightly. Only then did she remember the Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon that had attacked them. She subconsciously glanced toward the entrance of the crevice, but what she saw made her hand tremble in fright. The bottle of Golden Sore Medicine slipped from her grasp and fell to the ground. She stammered, "Ling... Ling Xiao, it... it’s at the entrance, watch-watching us."

Ling Xiao rolled his eyes, a corner of his mouth twitching. "You’re just noticing now? It’s been watching us for a while!"

"Then why didn’t you say so earlier?" Seeing how calm and composed Ling Xiao was, Ye Wen Ni’s nervousness naturally subsided a great deal. Still, she couldn’t help but feel a healthy dose of fear and respect for this incredibly troublesome Flying Magical Beast.

Ling Xiao grimaced in pain as he finished dressing the wound. "Don’t worry," he said nonchalantly. "It can’t get in."

"But... but we can’t get out, either!" Ye Wen Ni frowned, her lips pouting slightly as she looked at Ling Xiao as if he were an idiot. ’Does this guy plan on spending the rest of his life in here?’ she wondered.

Ling Xiao leaned against the stone wall, took a deep breath, and said, "This gives us the perfect opportunity to study that ring. If it wants to squat out there, let it."

Ye Wen Ni rolled her eyes dramatically. ’I’ve never met anyone with such nerves of steel. Today has really been an eye-opener,’ she thought. She glanced subconsciously at the man-sized Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon squatting at the entrance and saw a vicious light in its pale violet eyes. It seemed to hold... a hint of mockery.

"Ling Xiao, it... it’s not going to use an elemental attack on us, is it?" As if on cue, the moment she finished speaking, the Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon outside abruptly spread its wings—a full four to five meters across. It held them out flat, then, with a powerful flap, sent a vicious blast toward the crevice.

WHOOSH! Outside, sand and stones were sent flying...

Countless visible blades of wind shot toward the two of them inside the crevice, blotting out the sky!