Volume One: The Youth Enters the World Chapter Seventy-Nine: The Colossal Eye

The life force of the demon bear had faded completely. Fang Tian stepped forward and gently closed its eyes with his hand. Then, he gathered several blocks of ice stone to cover its body before turning around and leaving. Now it was time for him to prepare to depart from the snowy mountains.

As time passed, Fang Tian arrived once more at the frozen river he had crossed earlier. Strangely, the corpse of the giant serpent he had seen before was nowhere to be found. Perhaps it had been devoured by passing fierce beasts? Fang Tian could not be sure, but he had no time to dwell on it. Among these beasts, it was natural to both absorb the spiritual energy of the world and to prey upon one another, consuming flesh and spirit cores to grow stronger. Otherwise, they would not have pounced on Fang Tian as if he were a delicacy, even though he was human; the spiritual energy circulating within him was an irresistible lure to such creatures.

Leaping lightly across the river, Fang Tian proceeded as before, using the floating chunks of ice to make his way over. He thought to himself that, surely, there would be no more attacks from savage beasts.

But just as this thought flashed through his mind, a whirlpool suddenly formed on the surface of the river. Standing atop a drifting block of ice, Fang Tian wobbled precariously and, with no other choice, retreated to shore and fixed his gaze on the river.

After a while, a massive snake’s head emerged from the water, its icy crown even grander than that of the previous serpent. Its venomous eyes glared at Fang Tian with murderous intent.

“Are you here for revenge?” Fang Tian muttered to himself as he faced this even larger, mature white-scaled ice-crowned serpent. He realized that this was a fully grown adult, its power at the ninth tier of Spirit Gathering. The serpent he had slain before must have been its offspring; clearly, it had lain in wait, biding its time for his return. Judging by its gaze, it would not let him go easily.

Drawing his Frostfeather Sword, Fang Tian readied himself for the fight. This would be his first battle since his breakthrough, a chance to see how far his cultivation at the fifth tier of Spirit Gathering could take him.

The adult ice-crowned serpent slithered toward Fang Tian, its body slowly closing in on the riverbank. Suddenly, it opened its maw, gathering spiritual energy to form a massive icicle, which then shattered into dozens of smaller icicles, shooting toward Fang Tian like a barrage of sharp swords.

Fang Tian was taken aback. He hadn’t expected the serpent to wield spiritual energy in its attacks. Unprepared, he dodged hastily. Several of the icy projectiles ripped through his clothes, leaving wounds on his arms and body that began to bleed.

Examining his injuries, Fang Tian steadied his breath, forcing himself into a state of absolute calm. The speed of the serpent’s attack caught him off guard; even after employing his Windstride, he could not fully evade the assault. So this was the strength of a mature ice-crowned serpent—crossing the river unscathed would be impossible.

Seeing that its attack had landed, the serpent began gathering spiritual power for a second strike, opening its gaping jaws. But having suffered once, Fang Tian would not fall for the same trick again. Mobilizing his energy, his figure vanished from where he stood. He darted about before the serpent, never giving it a chance to lock onto him, all the while inching closer.

The great serpent’s head swayed, unable to keep track of Fang Tian’s movements, though its attack was ready to be unleashed. Frustrated, it lashed out at where Fang Tian had appeared, but each blow missed its mark.

Growing enraged, the snake swung its colossal head from side to side, hissing furiously. The walls of ice all around trembled as stones tumbled down. Then, it swept its mighty head across the area where Fang Tian stood, intent on crushing him with its armored scales.

Fang Tian could only dodge frantically, unable for the moment to find an opening to strike back.

As the serpent prepared another assault, Fang Tian realized that endless evasion would not save him. It was better to seize the initiative.

As the snake lunged, Fang Tian raised his sword to block, determined to meet the blow head-on. The serpent’s head hurtled toward him, jaws closed, smashing directly into the blade. Metal screeched against scale, sparks flying as Fang Tian braced himself and muttered inwardly at the hardness of the creature’s skull—killing it with a direct strike would be nearly impossible.

The impact forced Fang Tian backward until he pressed up against the stone wall. Digging in with one foot, he summoned all his spiritual power and pushed the serpent’s head away.

Recoiling, the adult ice-crowned serpent coiled itself and stared silently at Fang Tian, as if realizing that it could not easily win. It turned its head to the side, the icy crown atop it trembling. Waves of spiritual energy began to ripple from the crown. Fang Tian did not understand what it was attempting, but at this moment, the voice of Elder Tian echoed in his mind: “Little Tian, finish it quickly. It’s calling for its mate—it’s a male, and if its partner arrives, you won’t stand a chance.”

Fang Tian nodded, his gaze growing grave. He fixed his eyes on the serpent’s tail—there was an old saying: strike a snake at its seventh inch. He wasn’t sure it would work, but he had to try. Observing carefully, he locked onto the serpent’s weak point, and as it continued to call for its mate, he surged forward, spiritual energy roaring around him like a gale, making straight for the serpent’s vulnerable spot.

The adult serpent tried to move, but Fang Tian was too swift. He appeared right at the precise location, driving his Frostfeather Sword upward into the snake’s body.

“Did I succeed?” Fang Tian exclaimed in delight.

The serpent screamed in agony as the blade pierced its flesh, writhing and thrashing wildly. Fang Tian did not withdraw his sword. Instead, with a powerful tug, he tore a long gash along its body, blood gushing forth. He leapt back to avoid the spray as the serpent rolled over, its head crashing to the ground and falling still.

Moments later, another giant serpent arrived. Seeing its mate slain, it charged at Fang Tian in a frenzy. Armed now with experience, Fang Tian dodged and sought his chance to strike. But this female serpent seemed to know how the male had been killed, guarding her vulnerable spot carefully.

Seeing no easy opening, Fang Tian planted his sword before him and summoned his Windstride to its utmost. Spiritual energy flowed to his feet, and he muttered softly, “Point of Frost, Instant Arrival.”

This move combined the third form of the Mystic Frost Sword Art, which focused on rapid, pinpoint attacks, with the Windstride technique. It was Fang Tian’s first attempt to merge the two.

Seeing Fang Tian standing unmoving, the mother serpent attacked at once. But just as its strike was about to land, Fang Tian vanished. The serpent looked back to find Fang Tian’s sword already embedded in its body.

It howled in pain, just as the male had, thrashing and rolling madly. As before, Fang Tian yanked his sword, ending the serpent’s life.

Staring at the two ice-crowned serpents lying dead before him, Fang Tian’s gaze remained calm, even cold. Life and death are ruled by fate; he could only say that they had met the wrong opponent.

He stepped forward, extracted the spirit cores from both serpents, and stored them in the sword’s inner space.

Approaching the riverbank and preparing to leap across, a sudden, fierce wind arose behind him. Within the gale, an overwhelming chill pressed in. Even with his spiritual power shielding him, Fang Tian shivered uncontrollably, his whole body seized with cold.

He tried to turn to look behind him, but found himself utterly unable to move—he was completely immobilized. He called out to Elder Tian, but received no answer.

Above and behind him, a rift opened in the sky, slowly widening. A gigantic eye appeared, suspended in the air, gazing down at Fang Tian. Strangely, after a single glance, the eye vanished, and the force that had bound Fang Tian dissipated. The world returned to stillness.

Testing his limbs, Fang Tian found he could move again. He turned quickly, but saw nothing unusual. He called out to Elder Tian, who replied, “Little Tian, I think our connection was just severed for a moment.”

“Elder Tian, it was more than that—I couldn’t move at all, I don’t know what happened.”

“Could it have been someone manipulating the forces of heaven and earth, imprisoning and isolating the very space? That’s not something an ordinary being can accomplish.”

“You mean, Elder Tian, there’s an extremely powerful presence in these mountains?” Fang Tian was astonished.

“It’s possible. On this continent, such abilities are exceedingly rare. It seems these mountains conceal some hidden secret.”

“Could the commotion just now have drawn its attention?”

“Whether or not that’s the case, Little Tian, you must leave at once.”

“Yes, I understand.” The shock of what had just transpired was overwhelming. One unexpected event after another, all seemingly endless—Fang Tian wanted nothing more than to leave this place immediately.