Chapter 101 - 100:Badly injured.

Chapter 101: Chapter 100:Badly injured.

Far away in the Northern Region, where endless mountain ranges stretched beneath a grey sky, the wind swept across a vast expanse of snow-covered wilderness.

Thick layers of snow blanketed the frozen earth, burying rocks and withered vegetation beneath a sea of white, while the jagged peaks in the distance disappeared behind swirling clouds.

The temperature was bitterly cold, and the howling wind carried a sharp chill across the desolate landscape.

Suddenly, the space high above the snowfields began to distort.

At first, the distortion was barely noticeable, resembling ripples spreading across the surface of an invisible lake.

The surrounding clouds twisted as the disturbance grew stronger, and a thin black fracture appeared in the sky with a sharp cracking sound.

The fracture gradually widened, its jagged edges twisting unnaturally as dark energy flickered around the opening, drawing nearby clouds into a slow spiral.

A figure tumbled out of the crack before it could widen any further.

The man wore loose grey robes that had been torn and stained with blood, while the mask covering his face was shattered, leaving only a few broken pieces clinging to its surface.

His body fell uncontrollably through the air, his arms hanging limply at his sides as the wind whipped his robes around him.

He made no attempt to slow his descent, and there was no spiritual energy beneath his to cushion the fall.

Behind him, the spatial fracture began to close.

The masked man continued falling toward the snowfield below, where the frozen ground rapidly approached.

BOOM!

He struck the thick snow with tremendous force, plunging deep into the white surface and sending a cloud of snow powder bursting outward.

The impact compressed the snow beneath him and cracked the frozen earth below, leaving a deep crater surrounded by uneven ridges of snow.

For a few moments, loose snow drifted back into the crater, gradually settling over the motionless figure at its center.

The wind swept across the impact site, carrying away the finer powder and revealing his torn grey robes, which were soaked with blood around his shoulders and chest.

One arm lay trapped beneath his body while the other rested against the snow, its fingers barely visible beneath the accumulating white layer. The man remained still as snowflakes gathered on his back and shoulders.

Without his spiritual energy to protect him, the freezing air seeped through his torn clothing, and his exposed fingers gradually stiffened against the ground.

Only the faint movement of his chest indicated that he was still alive.

After some time, his fingers twitched, pressing weakly into the snow as a strained groan escaped his throat.

"...Gah."

He attempted to move, but pain immediately spread through his limbs, forcing him to stop.

His bones felt as though they had been crushed, and his meridians were in no better condition after he had forcibly torn open the spatial fracture.

Even drawing a deeper breath made his chest ache, while the effort of gathering spiritual energy caused a sharp pain to run through his body.

His right hand had suffered the most damage. Blood continued to seep from the numerous cracks across his fingers, staining the snow beneath his palm red.

The darkness that had enveloped his hand was gone, leaving behind damaged flesh and trembling fingers.

Chen Yuan lay in the crater for several more breaths, trying to recover enough strength to move.

When he finally lifted his head, the remaining fragments of his shattered mask shifted against his face, and one piece broke free before tumbling into the snow beside him.

His bloodied face was deathly pale, and his eyes struggled to focus on the unfamiliar surroundings.

An endless expanse of snow stretched beneath the grey sky, bordered by distant mountains that rose like enormous frozen walls along the horizon.

The bitter wind continued sweeping across the land, and there was no sign of human habitation anywhere in sight.

Where am I?

Chen Yuan tried to sense his surroundings, but his spiritual energy was depleted, his divine sense weakened.

He couldn’t sense no more than 10 meters away from him. He could only determine that he had arrived somewhere extremely cold.

Chen Yuan slowly lowered his head onto the snow, looking listlessly toward the grey sky.

After resting for a moment, he tried to push himself up with his arms, but the moment he put weight on his right hand, a sharp pain shot through his body.

His arm gave way, and he fell back into the snow.

Gritting his teeth, Chen Yuan turned onto his side and tried again, dragging one knee beneath him as he struggled to rise.

His legs trembled violently, and before he could get into a kneeling position, he collapsed once more, scattering snow across the crater.

He lay still for several breaths before attempting to move again, but his limbs had grown increasingly unresponsive.

His fingers dug weakly into the snow, his arms shaking as he tried to lift himself, only for his strength to give out once more.

"...Damn it."

His voice came out as little more than a whisper.

Chen Yuan tried to raise his head, but his vision had begun to blur.

The grey sky above him slowly faded from view as his eyelids grew heavier, and despite his attempts to remain conscious, his body finally gave in.

His arm slipped into the snow, and he collapsed motionlessly at the bottom of the crater.

Within moments, Chen Yuan had completely passed out, leaving his bloodied body exposed to the bitter winds.

Not far from the impact site, a dense forest stretched along the foot of the mountains, its tall trees bearing thick layers of snow.

Their branches swayed, occasionally releasing showers of white powder whenever a strong gust passed through.

Among the trees, a woman suddenly stopped walking.

She wore a thick, pale-blue fur cloak fastened at the neck with a silver clasp, its long hem brushing against her boots as she stood between the snow-covered trunks.

Beneath it was a fitted white robe embroidered with faint patterns resembling frost-covered branches, while a dark-blue sash held several small pouches and a jade ornament at her waist.

Her long white hair was tied into a high ponytail with a silver hairpin shaped like a snowflake, and a pair of fur-lined gloves covered her hands.

A narrow sword rested at her hip, its scabbard wrapped in blue cloth.

She turned toward the distant snowfield, her brows drawing together.

"That spiritual energy fluctuation just now... What was that?"

She had been making her way through the forest when an overwhelming surge of spiritual energy swept across the area.

Her eyes brightened slightly as a thought crossed her mind.

"Could a treasure born from heaven and earth have appeared nearby?"

After briefly considering the direction of the fluctuation, she adjusted her cloak and continued through the forest, moving between the snow-laden trees toward the open field beyond.

However, after passing another line of trees, she suddenly stopped.

A huge crater had appeared in the middle of a snowfield.

Its edges were jagged, with large chunks of frozen earth exposed beneath the displaced snow.

The surrounding ground had been flattened by the impact, and scattered patches of dark red stained the white surface near its center.

The woman stared at the scene in confusion.

"What is this?"

She approached cautiously, keeping one hand near the sword at her waist.

When she finally reached the edge and looked down, she discovered a man lying at the bottom of the crater, his grey robes torn and stained with blood.

She fell silent.

After awhile, she simply stared at him before slowly shaking her head.

Then, beneath the cover of her cloak, she brought her hands together and began calculating something with her fingers, her lips moving faintly as she muttered to herself.

"No. Absolutely not."

She took a step back.

"I can’t afford to meddle in something I have no connection to. Whatever happened here has nothing to do with me."

She nodded firmly, as though trying to convince herself, and bowed several times to the sky.

"Yes, I’m being evil. I’ll ignore him and leave. I can’t help everyone in the world, can I?"

After saying that, she turned away from the crater, only to stop after taking two steps.

"I really can’t help everyone..."

She repeated the words more quietly, then glanced over her shoulder.

The man remained motionless below, with several broken fragments of his mask scattered beside his head. His face was pale, and the blood around his body had begun to freeze in the bitter cold.

The woman hesitated before looking more closely at him.

She could still sense traces of terrifying spiritual energy that lingered around the crater, and that had made her reluctant to approach.

Yet the man lying at the bottom of the crater had no spiritual energy fluctuation whatsoever.

She narrowed her eyes, trying to sense him more carefully, but nothing...

"Could it be his spiritual energy is depleted?"

She made a guess, and slowly, she swallowed her words, "But he’s handsome though..."

But...

’Appearance is secondary, trouble aversion is the most important one!’

She nodded again, and looked at him for another moment before finally turning away.

This time, she walked several steps farther into the forest before stopping beneath a snow-covered tree. She closed her eyes and clenched her gloved hands together, her expression twisting as she struggled with herself.

After a long sigh, she turned around.

"...I hope he’s not a bad guy, or else I’m inviting myself trouble."

With those words, the woman reluctantly made her way back toward the crater.