It was still a snowland outside the mountain range, but this snowland wasn't the same as the one on the south side.
The fog was lighter here, because most of the fog had been blown into the mountains.
The temperature was even lower than it was inside the mountains. It seemed that sound itself could even be frozen here given how deathly quiet everything there was.
A black iron sword was flying soundlessly above the deathly quiet snowland, like a boat ready to cross the lifeless cold world.
The iron sword was really wide, so Jing Jiu could sit in the front with Bai Zao sitting behind him.
They had left the Cloudy Boat of the Center Sect and those swordsmen far behind them and out of their sights.
Under such a circumstance, any regular Cultivation practitioner's zhenyuan would be frozen so much that they would hardly be able use it properly, and their Spiritual Awareness would be blocked; as such, it would be difficult for them to ride the sword, and they would freeze to death in short order.
For some unknown reason, it seemed that Jing Jiu wasn't affected by the coldness. He sat on the sword with his legs crossed, his eyes closed, and the forefinger of his right hand pointing forward.
A faint but pure sword energy shot out from the tip of his finger, and ruffled by the cold wind, it formed an invisible cover in the shape of a half-circle, sheltering both Jing Jiu and Bai Zao.
Bai Zao tightened her Golden-Fire Bird coat around her whole body, only her eyes being exposed to the elements.
Looking at the figure in front of her, she blinked her eyelashes, but the frost on them didn't fall off; there was puzzled expression in her eyes.
In such a cold environment, even those elders in her sect wouldn't last long.
But Jing Jiu was merely in his initial state of the Undefeated; how could he have the ability to bring her here?
What was his finger doing? Was it some kind of sword instruction? Why could he withstand the attack of the coldness?
She might not be able to hold up for so long, if she wasn't warmed by the high temperature given off from that finger; and she would have no choice but use the Ten-Thousand Mile Seal to leave here.
Bai Zao 's assumption proved correct: What Jing Jiu was doing with his finger was indeed sword instruction.
If the elders of the Green Mountain had seen the scene, they would cry out in surprise.
He could employ the Six-Dragon Sword Style of Xilai Peak to such an amazing extent.
Compared to this finger, the fire-dragon Gu Qing and Xue Yong'er had employed by the Sword-washing Stream year ago was nothing.
…
…
The iron sword slowed to a stop.
Not a sound came from the surroundings, not even a breath of wind. Some cold fog appeared vaguely ahead in the distance of four or five miles, or maybe it was the clouds?
There was no animal on the ground, or to say it more accurately, nothing alive could be found on the ground here. They could see some frozen corpses of the snow foot monsters. Those snow foot monsters had six or five feet, of the lower states; but the fact that the monsters of the Snowy Kingdom could freeze to death here made one wonder just how terrifying the cold fog really was.
Bai Zao looked in that direction, wondering how long her Big Brother could last.
"Do you think he is still alive?" asked Jing Jiu.
Looking at the bamboo board that was still emitting a faint light, she said in a trembling voice, "He's still alive."
Jing Jiu asked, "Are you two very close?"
"Yes." Bai Zao stopped for a second and then continued, "We are like sister and brother."
Jing Jiu thought of that person in the Fruit Formation Temple. "Then, there is a good reason for coming here," he said after a moment of silence.
Bai Zao said seriously, "This is the matter of our Center Sect. It has nothing to do with the Green Mountain, why would you take the risk with me? It's too dangerous here, I think you should go back right away."
"It's okay. It's on my way anyhow."
Jing Jiu was very sensitive to the heavenly changes, so he knew full well, without even calculating, that this journey was not so dangerous for him, but it was very much so for this young woman behind him.
"I suggest that you leave here by using the Ten-Thousand Mile Seal right now," Jing Jiu said.
Of course, Bai Zao wouldn't believe what Jing Jiu had just said.
Who would be on the way to come to such a dangerous environment?
She reached her hand out to hold onto those two hard objects, thinking that she would give him one no matter what, if he was in real danger, to save his life.
"How far away?" Jing Jiu asked.
Bai Zao answered, "It's just ahead, about…four miles."
Jing Jiu looked at the place where there was a patch of either cloud or fog.
Bai Zao was somewhat mystified.
She didn't know how Jing Jiu had done it; but she was well aware that Jing Jiu could ride the sword easily in the fog at a high speed, and he was calm and composed all the way, devoid of any panic expression.
Yet, as they were close to finding her Big Brother, why did he appear hesitant?
Jing Jiu said, "It's the actual boundary of the Snowy Kingdom over there. Even the swordsmen of the Heavenly Arrival wouldn't go there without a good cause."
Startled, Bai Zao realized that they had already gone so far.
The Snowy Kingdom, of course, was the most formidable place for the human Cultivation practitioners. It was more so than the Underworld.
More importantly, the situation was quite odd, and they didn't know what the extremely cold fog actually was.
Besides, the original location of her Big Brother was here. How could they have come to such a distant place?
Jing Jiu didn't intend to stop here after giving an explanation.
The iron sword kept on flying forward, and soon it covered a distance of four miles, arriving in front of the patch of the cloud and fog.
The snowland suddenly sank from here, forming a precipice.
It was enshrouded by the cloud and fog, so it was impossible to find out how deep the precipice was.
The scenery was quite beautiful, though it was too cold to appreciate it.
The cliff walls enshrouded by the cloud and fog showed some movement that was vaguely perceptible.
Bai Zao pointed her finger at a spot.
Jing Jiu stood up and rode the sword downward.
The scene on the cliff wall became clearer after the cloud and fog dispersed aside.
The bald rocks were everywhere, without any snow; once in a while, they could see some skins shed by the snow worms and the limb bones that the snow worms hadn't digested completely.
The iron sword flew to one of the cave entrances.
The bamboo board became brighter as they got closer. It looked like the magic treasure of the Center Sect didn't make a mistake, and Luo Huainan should be inside the cave; but they didn't know if he was still alive.
A gust of strong wind suddenly rose from the bottom of the cliff wall.
Enormous cold fog and countless snow flurries shot out from the holes on the cliff wall.
The peaceful and picturesque cloud and fog were twirling at an unimaginable speed, instantly breaking into innumerable pieces blocking the sunlight; as a result, it became dark and gloomy.
In the holes where the cold fog shot out, one could vaguely perceive some white glows, which should be the eyes of the snow worms.
This was indeed a terrifying scene.
The iron sword bobbed in the midst of the strong wind.
Bai Zao's face looked ashen. She held onto Jing Jiu's waist belt firmly to prevent herself from falling off the sword.
Jing Jiu didn't seem to have noticed these scenes. He focused on driving the sword calmly, breaking through the attacks of the wind and snow, getting closer to the cave entrance.
Suddenly, he grunted once, releasing the fingers on his right hand.
The cold air had abruptly invaded her body. Bai Zao's body turned stiff instantly, so she couldn't hold onto his waist belt anymore.
Jing Jiu spun his head in a sudden manner, looking at a distant place in the deep end of the wind and snow, his pupils exuding a bright sword light.
A moment earlier, an extremely strong will power had swept this patch of the cliff wall from a distance of thirty thousand miles away, and it happened to pass him by.
At that moment, even Dao Heart trembled slightly.
He perceived a threat he had never experienced.
The owner of that will power was a powerful opponent he had never encountered, even in his previous life.
He employed his Sword Pill without hesitation to release his own sword will.
But he realized immediately that his response had a flaw.
His Sword Awareness and Sword Heart were the same as those in his previous life, but his Cultivation state was very low at the moment. In comparison to the person three thousand miles away, his existence was like an ant.
He shouldn't put up a resistance at all.
Jing Jiu thought that the opponent was probably not interested in an ant.
Yet, his released sword will would definitely draw that person's attention.
It wasn't narcissistic; it was because Jing Jiu believed that his opponent could recognize him without any doubt.
What happened in the next moment was exactly as expected.
The unimaginable powerful energy was coming from a far distance in the north.
The powerful energy from three thousand miles away had landed precisely on Jing Jiu!
Jing Jiu shook off the bracelet on his left wrist, and threw it and Bai Zao, whom was wrapped by the bracelet, toward that cave on the cliff wall, and then he fell off the flying sword.
He was instantly swallowed by the wind and snow that had suddenly sped up their twirling movement like a powerful whirlpool.
It was still a snowland outside the mountain range, but this snowland wasn't the same as the one on the south side.
The fog was lighter here, because most of the fog had been blown into the mountains.
The temperature was even lower than it was inside the mountains. It seemed that sound itself could even be frozen here given how deathly quiet everything there was.
A black iron sword was flying soundlessly above the deathly quiet snowland, like a boat ready to cross the lifeless cold world.
The iron sword was really wide, so Jing Jiu could sit in the front with Bai Zao sitting behind him.
They had left the Cloudy Boat of the Center Sect and those swordsmen far behind them and out of their sights.
Under such a circumstance, any regular Cultivation practitioner's zhenyuan would be frozen so much that they would hardly be able use it properly, and their Spiritual Awareness would be blocked; as such, it would be difficult for them to ride the sword, and they would freeze to death in short order.
For some unknown reason, it seemed that Jing Jiu wasn't affected by the coldness. He sat on the sword with his legs crossed, his eyes closed, and the forefinger of his right hand pointing forward.
A faint but pure sword energy shot out from the tip of his finger, and ruffled by the cold wind, it formed an invisible cover in the shape of a half-circle, sheltering both Jing Jiu and Bai Zao.
Bai Zao tightened her Golden-Fire Bird coat around her whole body, only her eyes being exposed to the elements.
Looking at the figure in front of her, she blinked her eyelashes, but the frost on them didn't fall off; there was puzzled expression in her eyes.
In such a cold environment, even those elders in her sect wouldn't last long.
But Jing Jiu was merely in his initial state of the Undefeated; how could he have the ability to bring her here?
What was his finger doing? Was it some kind of sword instruction? Why could he withstand the attack of the coldness?
She might not be able to hold up for so long, if she wasn't warmed by the high temperature given off from that finger; and she would have no choice but use the Ten-Thousand Mile Seal to leave here.
Bai Zao 's assumption proved correct: What Jing Jiu was doing with his finger was indeed sword instruction.
If the elders of the Green Mountain had seen the scene, they would cry out in surprise.
He could employ the Six-Dragon Sword Style of Xilai Peak to such an amazing extent.
Compared to this finger, the fire-dragon Gu Qing and Xue Yong'er had employed by the Sword-washing Stream year ago was nothing.
…
…
The iron sword slowed to a stop.
Not a sound came from the surroundings, not even a breath of wind. Some cold fog appeared vaguely ahead in the distance of four or five miles, or maybe it was the clouds?
There was no animal on the ground, or to say it more accurately, nothing alive could be found on the ground here. They could see some frozen corpses of the snow foot monsters. Those snow foot monsters had six or five feet, of the lower states; but the fact that the monsters of the Snowy Kingdom could freeze to death here made one wonder just how terrifying the cold fog really was.
Bai Zao looked in that direction, wondering how long her Big Brother could last.
"Do you think he is still alive?" asked Jing Jiu.
Looking at the bamboo board that was still emitting a faint light, she said in a trembling voice, "He's still alive."
Jing Jiu asked, "Are you two very close?"
"Yes." Bai Zao stopped for a second and then continued, "We are like sister and brother."
Jing Jiu thought of that person in the Fruit Formation Temple. "Then, there is a good reason for coming here," he said after a moment of silence.
Bai Zao said seriously, "This is the matter of our Center Sect. It has nothing to do with the Green Mountain, why would you take the risk with me? It's too dangerous here, I think you should go back right away."
"It's okay. It's on my way anyhow."
Jing Jiu was very sensitive to the heavenly changes, so he knew full well, without even calculating, that this journey was not so dangerous for him, but it was very much so for this young woman behind him.
"I suggest that you leave here by using the Ten-Thousand Mile Seal right now," Jing Jiu said.
Of course, Bai Zao wouldn't believe what Jing Jiu had just said.
Who would be on the way to come to such a dangerous environment?
She reached her hand out to hold onto those two hard objects, thinking that she would give him one no matter what, if he was in real danger, to save his life.
"How far away?" Jing Jiu asked.
Bai Zao answered, "It's just ahead, about…four miles."
Jing Jiu looked at the place where there was a patch of either cloud or fog.
Bai Zao was somewhat mystified.
She didn't know how Jing Jiu had done it; but she was well aware that Jing Jiu could ride the sword easily in the fog at a high speed, and he was calm and composed all the way, devoid of any panic expression.
Yet, as they were close to finding her Big Brother, why did he appear hesitant?
Jing Jiu said, "It's the actual boundary of the Snowy Kingdom over there. Even the swordsmen of the Heavenly Arrival wouldn't go there without a good cause."
Startled, Bai Zao realized that they had already gone so far.
The Snowy Kingdom, of course, was the most formidable place for the human Cultivation practitioners. It was more so than the Underworld.
More importantly, the situation was quite odd, and they didn't know what the extremely cold fog actually was.
Besides, the original location of her Big Brother was here. How could they have come to such a distant place?
Jing Jiu didn't intend to stop here after giving an explanation.
The iron sword kept on flying forward, and soon it covered a distance of four miles, arriving in front of the patch of the cloud and fog.
The snowland suddenly sank from here, forming a precipice.
It was enshrouded by the cloud and fog, so it was impossible to find out how deep the precipice was.
The scenery was quite beautiful, though it was too cold to appreciate it.
The cliff walls enshrouded by the cloud and fog showed some movement that was vaguely perceptible.
Bai Zao pointed her finger at a spot.
Jing Jiu stood up and rode the sword downward.
The scene on the cliff wall became clearer after the cloud and fog dispersed aside.
The bald rocks were everywhere, without any snow; once in a while, they could see some skins shed by the snow worms and the limb bones that the snow worms hadn't digested completely.
The iron sword flew to one of the cave entrances.
The bamboo board became brighter as they got closer. It looked like the magic treasure of the Center Sect didn't make a mistake, and Luo Huainan should be inside the cave; but they didn't know if he was still alive.
A gust of strong wind suddenly rose from the bottom of the cliff wall.
Enormous cold fog and countless snow flurries shot out from the holes on the cliff wall.
The peaceful and picturesque cloud and fog were twirling at an unimaginable speed, instantly breaking into innumerable pieces blocking the sunlight; as a result, it became dark and gloomy.
In the holes where the cold fog shot out, one could vaguely perceive some white glows, which should be the eyes of the snow worms.
This was indeed a terrifying scene.
The iron sword bobbed in the midst of the strong wind.
Bai Zao's face looked ashen. She held onto Jing Jiu's waist belt firmly to prevent herself from falling off the sword.
Jing Jiu didn't seem to have noticed these scenes. He focused on driving the sword calmly, breaking through the attacks of the wind and snow, getting closer to the cave entrance.
Suddenly, he grunted once, releasing the fingers on his right hand.
The cold air had abruptly invaded her body. Bai Zao's body turned stiff instantly, so she couldn't hold onto his waist belt anymore.
Jing Jiu spun his head in a sudden manner, looking at a distant place in the deep end of the wind and snow, his pupils exuding a bright sword light.
A moment earlier, an extremely strong will power had swept this patch of the cliff wall from a distance of thirty thousand miles away, and it happened to pass him by.
At that moment, even Dao Heart trembled slightly.
He perceived a threat he had never experienced.
The owner of that will power was a powerful opponent he had never encountered, even in his previous life.
He employed his Sword Pill without hesitation to release his own sword will.
But he realized immediately that his response had a flaw.
His Sword Awareness and Sword Heart were the same as those in his previous life, but his Cultivation state was very low at the moment. In comparison to the person three thousand miles away, his existence was like an ant.
He shouldn't put up a resistance at all.
Jing Jiu thought that the opponent was probably not interested in an ant.
Yet, his released sword will would definitely draw that person's attention.
It wasn't narcissistic; it was because Jing Jiu believed that his opponent could recognize him without any doubt.
What happened in the next moment was exactly as expected.
The unimaginable powerful energy was coming from a far distance in the north.
The powerful energy from three thousand miles away had landed precisely on Jing Jiu!
Jing Jiu shook off the bracelet on his left wrist, and threw it and Bai Zao, whom was wrapped by the bracelet, toward that cave on the cliff wall, and then he fell off the flying sword.
He was instantly swallowed by the wind and snow that had suddenly sped up their twirling movement like a powerful whirlpool.
