books44 Chapter 408 Holy Mountain
Chapter 408 Holy Mountain
Gu Yang scratched his head and looked at the dragon and the rat, both of which were still blue, in confusion.
After he and Hu Qing woke up, the blue color on their bodies had faded. Why did these two little guys still maintain such a funny look?
"Could it be that you're eating in different places? But you two are being too ridiculous."
Gu Yang muttered, squatting down and pinching Xiao Zi's blue scales, "Hey, Xiao Zi, the color of your little thing is quite unique."
Xiao Zi let out a wronged "woof" and rubbed her head against Gu Yang's thigh.
The originally majestic purple scales have turned into this earthy blue. How can it survive in the dragon circle?
The rat man next to him had an even more mournful look on his face. His already wretched features, coupled with his blue-gray fur, made him look like a rat soaked in dye.
Hu Qing picked up the remaining roots of the Ice Dew Flower on the ground, examined them carefully for a moment, and then put them into his storage ring:
"I'll keep this. Luckily you didn't eat it. When we get back to the Central Region, I'll have Elder Xia see if I can cultivate it."
Hearing the conversation between the two, Xiao Zi was so anxious that he kept spinning around, slapping the ground with his tail, splashing up a piece of ice chips.
The rat man also scratched his head and head, pulling out a tuft of his blue hair from time to time to check, fearing that the color would never fade.
Hu Qing sniffed the lingering medicinal fragrance in the air, then looked at the two little guys with a strong medicinal smell, and said, "What's going on?"
"The medicinal power in your bodies has not been fully refined yet. Too much remains. It will naturally recover after some time."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Zi and Nezumi immediately pricked up their ears and hope rekindled in their eyes.
Xiao Zi tentatively pressed his paw on the ice and was pleasantly surprised to find that the biting cold had turned into cool and comfortable.
The rat-man also jumped and slid on the ice, squeaking excitedly.
"It seems that it's not entirely without benefits." Gu Yang smiled and rubbed Xiao Zi's head, "At least I won't have to be afraid of the cold anymore."
Xiao Zi was relieved a little, but she still licked her discolored scales with a look of disgust.
The Rat People have already started to figure out how to use this new feature——
For example, go treasure hunting in dangerous areas on the snow-capped mountains that you didn’t dare to go to before.
Xiao Zi and Shu Ren jumped excitedly for a while. Shu Ren suddenly remembered something and hurriedly took out the storage ring he found in the pile of armor from his arms. He held it in both hands and presented it to Hu Qing.
"Sir! I found this over there!"
The rat man puffed out his chest as if to seek credit, although it looked particularly funny with his blue-gray fur.
Hu Qing raised his eyebrows and took the ancient storage ring.
He didn't expect to actually find something in this cave. After all, the ice dew flower was precious enough.
The surface of the ring is engraved with fine patterns. Although it is very old, the exquisite workmanship can still be seen.
He gathered a trace of spiritual power at his fingertips and easily broke the remaining spiritual imprint on it.
As his spiritual sense probed into the storage space, Hu Qing's expression changed from expectation to disappointment.
The items inside had long since decayed into ashes, and would turn into powder and float away with the slightest touch.
"What a pity," Hu Qing shook his head, "It must be because it's too long ago."
Seeing this, Xiao Zi immediately bit Gu Yang's trouser leg and dragged him deeper into the cave.
The rat man followed behind, his round blue body rolling on the ice like a ball. Hu Qing smiled and slowly followed.
After passing through the short passage, the scene before him made Gu Yang's eyes light up -
In a corner of the cave, various natural treasures were neatly stacked: crystal snow ginseng, minerals emitting cold air, several bottles of sealed spiritual liquid, and even several ancient books made of special materials.
Although some medicinal herbs have rotted, most of them are well preserved.
"This white bear is really a boy who brings wealth!" Gu Yang couldn't help but sigh.
Hu Qing walked forward and carefully examined each item.
He picked out a few snow ginsengs with intact medicinal properties, a few pieces of high-quality cold iron ore, and the bottles of spiritual liquid, and put them one by one into the storage ring.
Although those ancient books are very old, they are made of special materials and are intact.
"Well done." Hu Qing rarely showed an approving smile, patted Xiao Zi's head, and nodded to the rat man, "I'll give you a reward after we get out of the snow mountain."
Xiao Zi raised his head proudly, although his blue scales made him look unimpressive.
The rat man rubbed his little paws and began to imagine what benefits he could get.
After all the resources in the cave were plundered, everyone was preparing to return along the original route and continue heading deeper into the snow-capped mountains.
Suddenly, Gu Yang stopped and listened attentively——
"Listen, is there a sound of wind?"
Hu Qing and others stopped and saw Gu Yang walking towards a smooth ice wall and tapping it lightly with his fingers.
The ice wall gave off a hollow echo, completely different from the solid rock walls around it.
"It's empty here!" Gu Yang turned around excitedly, "There's wind coming from inside!"
Hu Qing stepped forward quickly and placed his palms on the ice wall.
Sure enough, a cool breeze blew through the gap and brushed across their fingertips. The two looked at each other and began to search for the mechanism in tacit understanding.
"Get out of the way." Hu Qing signaled everyone to step back, and pushed hard against the ice wall with both hands.
The ice wall remained motionless, with only a few wisps of dust and broken ice falling from overhead.
"Let's go together!" Gu Yang called out.
Xiao Zi used his head to push it up, and the rat man used his shoulders. With the combined efforts of the four, the thick ice wall finally creaked and slowly opened a gap.
In an instant, the dazzling sunlight penetrated the gap like a sharp sword, making it impossible for everyone to open their eyes.
Before they could adjust to the sudden light, the piled snow outside suddenly collapsed and poured down like a waterfall!
"careful!"
Hu Qing only had time to shout this before the four of them were swallowed up by the surging snow waves.
The cold snow pressed against my body, and the world instantly fell into a silent white.
The biting cold wind whistled past, blowing up fine snow particles that hit everyone's faces.
Fortunately, they had all refined the ice dew flower, and the cold air flowing in their bodies made the severe polar cold become comfortable and pleasant.
Hu Qing stood in the snow, which was already up to his waist.
He looked around, his gaze quickly fixed on the towering mountain in the distance—
It is the tallest mountain in the entire snow-capped mountain range. Its peak is hidden in the clouds, and its entire body is covered with ice and snow that never melts, shining golden in the setting sun.
"Holy Mountain." Hu Qing said softly, with a complicated look in his eyes.
Gu Yang brushed off the snow on his body and grinned, "I didn't expect that we would hit upon something unexpected. Going through that cave actually saved us a lot of detours."
Xiao Zi crawled out from the snow pile and shook off the snow on her body.
Its scales had returned to their purple color, but still had a faint blue hue around the edges.
The rat man also trudged through the snow with difficulty, and his round body became a burden at this moment.
"Let's keep going," Hu Qing took the lead and started walking. We must reach the foot of the mountain before dark."
The journey was surprisingly smooth, without encountering any wild animals or emergencies.
As the sun set, the four of them finally stood at the foot of the holy mountain.
Looking up, the steep mountain walls looked as if they were cut by a knife or an axe, with every inch of rock covered with white snow, emitting a faint blue light in the twilight.
"We'll set up camp here today." Hu Qing took out a few sharp short knives from his storage ring and handed one to Gu Yang. "Cut some more branches."
The two quickly set up a simple tent between several spruce trees.
Xiao Zi used dragon breath to dry the branches, while the rat man flexibly set up several simple early warning traps around the tent.
Although it may not be of any use, at least he was busy and sweating, so he did something.
When night fell completely, the four of them were already sitting around the campfire in the tent.
Hu Qing took out a piece of marinated bear meat and roasted it over the fire. The sizzling sound of dripping fat was particularly clear in the silent snowy night.
"We'll go up the mountain early tomorrow morning." Hu Qing turned the barbecue. "The dangers on the Holy Mountain are far greater than what we've encountered before."
Gu Yang nodded and wiped his hands with snowflakes: "I always feel that the white bear and the thing behind the ice wall are guarding something."
Xiao Zi suddenly raised her head, her purple vertical pupils staring straight outside the tent.
Hu Qing and Gu Yang immediately became alert, but after using their spiritual sense to investigate, they found nothing.
"What's wrong?" Rat Man asked nervously.
Xiao Zi tilted her head in confusion, and finally just let out a low hum and lay back on the ground.
It was late at night and everyone was fast asleep.
Only outside the tent, on the snow, a strange set of footprints appeared at some point.
The footprints were enormous, each step sinking deep into the snow, yet strangely, no sound was made...