CH 58.1

F**k, That Monster (1)

The vast cave was deadly silent, with the smell of burnt flesh in the air.

The scorching fire destroyed the scarlet spell in the center, leaving nothing but a tattered and blurred pattern.

Shi An glanced around the room, his eyes indifferently passing over the charred bodies lying on the ground, and sighed with regret.

… It was only a pity that his former cave was changed beyond recognition with all this filthy blood.

The fire’s residual heat had already dissipated and the temperature inside the cave began to cool gradually.

Shi An put his hand to his mouth and breathed in the warm air before pulling the pink bunny gloves out of his pocket and putting them on.

According to the information provided by the human, his treasure should be in the auction house. He had also told him about all the settings and arrangements of the Bureau in the auction house, so it would be easy to get his treasure back.

Shi An stood still and thought about it.

Which way to get out of the mountain?

One was how he had entered this place: through the tunnels to the southern canyon where the exchange was being held.

Another path was the one he had taken the last time he had come to Aiwen, through the ruins of the Abyssal Rift and into the outer Aiwen Snowfield.

In terms of temperature, the first one was better.

It had been outrageously freezing the last time he was in the Aiwen Snowfields. Now that the mountains had been closed for over three months, it was hard for Shi An to imagine how cold it would be this time.

But…

If the mercenary’s words were correct, they had sent men to seal off the entire canyon and had twenty times as many people lined up outside than inside the cave. Other Academy students might recognize him, so it would be awkward to be seen if there were a confrontation…

And transportation was also a problem.

Shi An looked in the direction of the second road with great reluctance.

Sure enough… he had to endure the bitter cold all over again.

He stepped over the corpses on the ground, climbed with difficulty over the rubble, and followed the route he remembered, heading out of the cave.

Soon, Shi An was standing on top of the tundra of the Aiwen Snowfield.

The sky here was even gloomier than in the southern canyon, with white snow falling from the sky, gray color on all sides, with no visible boundaries. The air seemed frozen as if the whole world had forgotten this place and it was quiet.

AHHHHHHHH, so cold!

Shi An screamed in his mind.

He shivered and shrank back into his cotton clothes, somewhat regretting that he had struck too hard just now–how could he have burned the cotton clothes on the mercenaries together? At least peel it off first. It was such a waste. Hoo hoo hoo.

Shi An’s nose was red from the cold and the warm white breath he exhaled seemed to be frosted.

He took two deep and shallow steps into the snow and closed his eyes. Threads of magic were drawn from his body and woven into a great net, probing in every direction with a silent call.

Finally, a vast familiar silhouette emerged not far from the vast expanses of whiteness.

A skeletal horse’s tall form gradually became more apparent, its heavy hooves smashing into the ground and splashing snow foam. Ghostly blue flames burned within its large black eyes as it looked in Shi An’s direction.

Good, then the transportation will be this.

Shi An reached out and broke a rib from the skeleton horse’s body.

Good, the torch is available, too.

Skeleton horse: “…”

Demon insect: “…”

Black smoke: “…”

You must be the devil.

Shi An lit the torch, climbed onto the back of the skeleton horse, and patted its head with his hand. “Send me out of this mountain.”

The skeleton horse let out a neigh and swooped down, speeding up. If it wasn’t for Shi An holding the neck of the skeleton horse in time, he might have been blown down by the swift cold wind.

Shi An steadied himself and patted the skeleton horse underneath him with great relief.

“Wow. I didn’t know you regarded my command so much. How obedient.”

Demon insect: “…”

I guess it wants to send you, the demon, away for good.

The skeleton horse was perfect for running through the snow. It wasn’t afraid of the cold, wouldn’t get tired, and wouldn’t shy away from high slopes of gravel. It was simply the most efficient vehicle.

The scenery around him sped backward and the cold wind whistled with snowflakes like cold, sharp blades.

If Shi An’s torch had not been burning with dragon flames, it would have been extinguished.

Suddenly, the skeleton horse’s pace slowed abruptly.

It slammed its front hooves against the ground with some unease and grunted, looking very agitated.

Shi An was startled and raised his head from his hunched-up state to look not far away.

Eh? The smell of humans?

***

A group of twenty or so mercenaries entered from between the gorges.

“Why are we suddenly called to provide support from above? And even from this hell place? Did something happen in the cave?”

“It’s not clear. Anyway, they can’t be contacted anymore.”

That person was shocked. “But the people we arranged outside…”

“It was Mu Heng.”

Another mercenary interjected abruptly as he said through gritted teeth, “I don’t know what happened, but the news seemed to have been leaked. This guy broke out directly from the front of the southern canyon and wiped out most of our main force.”

“Besides, according to the information sent from our brothers in the auction house, Mu Heng seemed to have been wounded… even a fucking fatal injury.”

He spat and cursed viciously, “Fuck, that monster.”

The remaining few were stunned and somewhat incredulous. “What?”

A frontal breakout in such circumstances, even gaining the upper hand and wiping out most of their main force?

–How was that possible?

The mercenary opened a mouthful of yellow teeth and smiled. “However, now’s our chance.”

“We can take his life, taking advantage of his injury, understand?”

He rubbed the tip of his nose and continued, “Our people are holding back the support from the Bureau’s side. As Mu Heng is forcing his way into the enemy camp alone with wounds, there’s no better chance if we want to eliminate him… Reinforcements have also been sent to the southern side of the canyon. Meanwhile, we are responsible for advancing from here, attacking him from both sides.”

His eyes were sinister as he slowly said, “Mu Heng must die this time.”

In the past, they would not dare to clash head-on with this most powerful human being, but this time was different.

Mu Heng was not only injured, but he had also fought against the entire frontier team.

This time, it might be their only chance.