Chapter 166 - 165: Snow Woman

Chapter 166: Chapter 165: Snow Woman

Everyone looked at Li Qing.

Li Qing hadn’t killed a single Pollution Body on their entire journey; he seemed as weak and unassuming as an ordinary person.

But he could perform Divination and had great stamina, always walking at the front of the group with Feng Ling. Because of this, the Hunters had tacitly assumed he was a Support Type Card Holder.

No one would have guessed he was an Alien Species.

Just as Feng Ling, when she first met Li Qing, could never have imagined an Alien Species would send her a red envelope.

Li Qing said, "I did some research online. This forest Maze is likely constructed with elements primarily from Slavic Mythology. In Slavic Mythology, there’s a type of Monster called a Zima. They usually take the form of beautiful, slender women who lure people away during heavy snowstorms. Once a curious person follows them into the mountains, they are frozen solid by their icy breath. Zima enjoy consuming human corpses and will freeze-store any leftovers for later."

When Li Qing finished speaking, a chill ran down everyone’s spine.

Even Feng Ling felt extremely unsettled.

She thought this was a horrible way to die. It would be a mercy for The Queen Mother of the West to just rip out her heart and guts by comparison.

Besides, The Queen Mother of the West only killed people; she didn’t eat them.

If she were frozen by this Monster called Zima, then had her flesh and bones dissolved into mush and sucked dry, Feng Ling felt that not even her Nest Card, with its supreme Life Force, could bring her back.

"The name Zima translates to ’winter.’ Some translated versions of folktales also call them Snow Demons or Snow Women." Li Qing glanced around before continuing, "There are a lot of Ice Cones here. I suspect there’s more than one Snow Woman. Everyone, be careful."

The figure of the Snow Woman appears in the myths and legends of many cultures, though her appearance often varies drastically from region to region.

Xu Yiming said, "It would be great if we knew what this Monster looked like. That way, we could warn the other Hunters."

He turned to the Hunter behind him. "Little Hai, can you use your ability again?"

Little Hai looked troubled. "My ability reads the residual images stored in a brain. These corpses don’t have brains..."

The inside of one corpse was pulp.

The other was nothing but a thin layer of skin.

Xu Yiming’s request was simply asking too much of Little Hai.

The group remained where they were, hesitating to move forward.

Not wanting to waste any more time, Su Yuqing tightened the straps of his pack and plunged into the Maze without a word.

"Old Su?... Hey! Old Su!" Xu Yiming hurried after him. "Wait for me!"

Within just a dozen steps, the figures of Su Yuqing and Xu Yiming were quickly swallowed by the wind and snow.

Feng Ling glanced at the remaining Hunters. "Alright then. Anyone who wants to enter the Maze, follow me. You’re responsible for your own life or death."

She turned and walked into the Maze.

Li Qing and Huangfu Miaomiao, along with the Cat Spider and Cat Owl, all followed her.

Inside the Maze, a bone-chilling cold instantly enveloped Feng Ling.

The blizzard was so intense she could barely open her eyes. It was then that she truly appreciated the benefit of wearing a mask—it blocked the wind.

Feng Ling glanced behind her and saw that three Hunters had followed her in. Her feelings were complicated—

’What are you all even hoping to gain?’

’Are you really that selfless and noble?’

Seeing Feng Ling standing frozen in place, the Hunters who had entered thought she was moved. They raised their fists in a gesture of encouragement, their expressions resolute.

Feng Ling: "..."

To be honest, she was a little impressed.

She knew herself well. Her fervent search for Ye Zheng’s whereabouts was perhaps ten percent about patriotism and national duty, and twenty percent about saving lives and helping the injured.

The other seventy percent was because she saw a reflection of herself in Ye Zheng’s plight.

If she allowed Ye Zheng to become a Pollution Body, Feng Ling would feel a sense of rage, as if she’d been defeated by the Alien Species.

So, rather than saving Ye Zheng, it was more like she was pitting herself against the Alien Species.

Her motives were far from being as pure as these Hunters’.

Feng Ling caught up to Su Yuqing and Xu Yiming.

The two were still arguing—one stubbornly insisting on finding Ye Zheng, the other complaining about his poor physical condition.

Feng Ling walked up and interrupted their conversation. "Three Hunters came in voluntarily."

Xu Yiming paused. "...That should be Liang Jiaqin and Zhu Yu, right? They promised to help me find him. Who’s the third one?"

Curious, Xu Yiming turned his head to look, finally making out the three Hunters gradually approaching through the blizzard.

The expression on his face froze. He stared blankly for a moment before snapping out of it.

Because of the three people who had entered, he only recognized one: Liang Jiaqin. The other two were strangers.

Zhu Yu hadn’t come in.

’Did he back out at the last minute? Scared off by the corpses in the Ice Cones?’

Xu Yiming subconsciously wanted to ask Liang Jiaqin, but he opened his mouth and then closed it again. He felt he had no right to question him.

’A friend helping out is a kindness. If they don’t want to help anymore, I just have to accept it. After all, this is a matter of life and death. It’s only natural to have second thoughts.’

Xu Yiming took a silent breath, trying his best to adjust his attitude.

"...Let’s reintroduce ourselves," he said with a smile. "I’m Xu Yiming, from Jinnan City."

The group exchanged brief introductions.

Of the three Hunters who had come in—two men and one woman—besides Xu Yiming’s friend Liang Jiaqin, the other two were named Wu Wei and Wen Xiuyan.

The weather was so cold that even standing still to talk was painful. They exchanged only a few words before continuing deeper into the Maze.

The blizzard was fierce.

The terrain consisted of rolling slopes, unlike the dense woods of the forest, so there was no cover whatsoever. The heavy snow pelted them squarely in the face, and their eyelashes and eyebrows were soon caked with frost.

Xu Yiming made a grim joke to lighten the mood. "At this rate, I’ll freeze into a popsicle long before we even meet a Snow Woman."

Feng Ling squinted at the sky. "It’s getting dark. We need to find a shelter from the wind to spend the night as soon as possible."

In this part of Daling Forest, sunset was very late. In June, the sun wouldn’t go down until around 8:30 PM.

They had set out at noon and had already been wandering for the better part of the day. To continue exploring Zone B, they would have to wait until sunrise tomorrow.

But where could they find shelter here?

Xu Yiming looked around and vaguely saw a patch of woods down the slope.

He asked Feng Ling, "What about the woods?"

The woods weren’t a great choice, as there was a high chance of unknown creatures lurking within, but Xu Yiming couldn’t find a better option.

At least the wind and snow would be lighter in the woods.

Just as Feng Ling was about to agree, Huangfu Miaomiao tugged gently on her sleeve and pointed in the complete opposite direction.

The sky was already dimming, and with the swirling snow, visibility was poor. Feng Ling didn’t know what Huangfu Miaomiao wanted her to see, so she bent down and asked, "What is it?"

Afraid of being overheard, Huangfu Miaomiao mouthed two words to Feng Ling: "Safe. House."

Feng Ling’s heart stirred. She looked at Li Qing, her eyes seeming to ask, ’Will a safe house even work in a Maze that’s already been breached?’

As if reading her mind, Li Qing nodded at her.