Chapter 298: The Word

The convoy raced across the vast plateau; outside the windows, the landscape shifted from the desolate Gobi to rolling meadows, and the distant peaks of Snow Mountain grew clearer and more sacred in the thin air. The air was thin and biting, carrying the pure scent of earth and ice.

Xia Wan sat inside the vehicle, watching the scenery blur past, her mind rising with the altitude—gradually shedding the trivialities of the mundane, becoming empty and focused. Occasionally, she glanced through the rearview mirror at the figure in the vehicle behind, eyes closed in quiet rest—Qin Feng. Thinking of her sister's earth-shattering words—"Bring a man home"—her ears still warmed slightly, but more than that, she felt absurdity. Linking Qin Feng to such worldly romantic ties was itself… a desecration. He was more like a mountain, an ocean, a law—distant and absolute.

After days of trekking, the convoy reached the edge of the designated coordinates. Beyond this point, vehicles could not proceed; they had to walk. The squad members, all elite, swiftly packed essential gear and supplies, abandoned the vehicles, and marched deeper into these ancient mountains, seemingly forgotten by modern civilization.

The terrain was more complex than anticipated. Jagged rocks, bottomless ice fissures, unpredictable local weather, and an ever-present magnetic anomaly that disrupted all electronic devices made the journey fraught with challenges. Without Qin Feng's precise coordinates and some… inexplicable guidance (Xia Wan could feel a faint, compass-like pull deep within her Bloodline), they would have long been lost in this vast mountain expanse.

The Tactics Captain carefully chose their route based on experience and the fading readings from their instruments. The Geologist continuously recorded the strange geological formations around them; the rock textures and mineral distributions here defied all known geological principles.

Xia Wan walked near the center of the formation. Her physical condition far surpassed ordinary humans; this level of trekking posed no strain. She focused more on sensing the environment, especially the ancient energy field—similar to Kunlun Mountain's, yet far more subtle. The atmosphere here was calmer, yet also… more hostile.

"Watch your step—ahead is an Ice Tower Forest. The structure is unstable," the Tactics Captain warned.

As the squad carefully navigated the labyrinthine Ice Tower Forest, evolved over millennia from glaciers, sudden chaos erupted!

"Hum—"

A low, ear-splitting hum erupted without warning—seeming to rise from deep within the earth, or directly from the void itself! Instantly, the crystalline Ice Towers around them began to violently tremble, their surfaces cracking with countless fine fissures!

"Bad! Avalanche? Or ice collapse?" someone cried out.

"Not ordinary physical vibration!" Xia Wan's face changed. She felt an extremely violent, destructive energy surging from beneath the ground, violently clashing with the region's previously tranquil energy field!

"On guard!" the Tactics Captain roared. The squad members quickly clustered, seeking cover.

But the expected ice or snow collapse never came. Instead, dozens of dark shapes erupted from the cracks in the Ice Towers!

These shadows were not physical—they were twisted humanoid forms forged from dense darkness and bone-chilling cold. They had no faces, only hollow eye sockets burning with pale blue flames, emitting silent shrieks as they swung claws made of shadow, surging toward the Exploration Squad like a tide!

"Open fire!" the Tactics Captain ordered without hesitation.

Energy weapons flared, striking the shadow figures precisely. Yet high-energy beams capable of shredding alloy armor only dimmed and momentarily dispersed their forms—before they instantly reformed, their speed barely affected.

"Physical and energy attacks are ineffective!" the tactical expert quickly assessed, voice tinged with tension. These creatures exceeded their understanding.

One squad member failed to dodge—a shadow claw swept across his arm. His thick protective suit tore like paper; three deep, bone-exposing wounds appeared instantly. Worse, the flesh around the wounds turned black-blue and necrotized before their eyes, spreading a chilling cold!

"Fall back! Form a defensive circle!" the Tactics Captain's eyes bulged as he directed the squad to retreat while fighting. But the shadow creatures multiplied—pouring from ice fissures and rock shadows on all sides, endless as the sea.

Xia Wan stood within the defensive circle. Her Bloodline Power activated spontaneously, forming a faint, warm aura around her. The shadow creatures seemed to fear her—when attacking, they instinctively avoided her direction, instead turning their fury more wildly on the other squad members.

But she couldn't protect everyone! Watching her comrades struggle under the eerie attacks, accumulating new wounds, Xia Wan grew frantic. She tried channeling energy to strike—the blazing beams inflicted greater damage, prolonging the shadows' disintegration—but their numbers were too great! Her attacks were like trying to bail out the ocean with a cup.

"Mr. Qin!" Xia Wan couldn't help but glance at Qin Feng, who had stood silently aside, as if detached from the battle.

Qin Feng still had his eyes closed, seemingly deaf to the carnage around him.

Just as a shadow creature broke through the gunfire, its claw poised to tear open the Geologist's throat—

Qin Feng opened his eyes.

No earth-shattering aura erupted. No dazzling energy radiated.

He simply, calmly, spoke one word to the surging tide of shadows:

"Disperse."

His voice was quiet, yet carried the essence of cosmic law—an unchallengeable force of order.

His word became law!

The instant he spoke, time seemed to freeze for a breath.

Then, before the stunned eyes of every squad member, the dozens of snarling shadow creatures—like snow melting under direct sunlight, or smudges erased from a drawing—froze mid-motion, then silently, rapidly disintegrated from the edges, dissolving into primal black specks that vanished into the air.

The Ice Tower Forest, moments ago filled with deafening roars and imminent peril, now sank into deathly silence.

Only the muffled groans of wounded squad members and the lingering, fading chill in the air proved the brief, eerie battle had not been an illusion.

The squad members exchanged glances, faces filled with dazed shock and awe. They stared at the man who had spoken but one word—and erased every monster—eyes brimming with reverence, even… a trace of fear.

What… kind of power was this?

Xia Wan exhaled in relief and hurried to the most severely wounded soldier. The black-blue necrosis on his arm was still spreading; the chilling energy clung like a parasite, relentlessly destroying life.

Qin Feng walked over, glanced at the wound, then extended a finger and lightly brushed the air above the blackened area.

A trace of energy—more refined and tranquil than what he'd used to heal Xia Tian—flowed in.

The black-blue necrosis receded like a tide. The dead tissue halted its spread, then began to visibly wriggle and heal. The chilling energy was utterly purged and cleansed.

The soldier felt a warm current flood his body—the agony and cold vanished instantly, replaced by an indescribable comfort. He stared in shock at his nearly restored arm, mouth agape, speechless.

The Tactics Captain drew a deep breath, stepped forward, and bowed solemnly to Qin Feng: "Mr. Qin, thank you for saving our lives!" His voice still trembled.

Qin Feng gave a slight nod in response. His gaze returned to the depths of the mountains—the core of the Energy Anomaly.

A young squad member, gazing at Qin Feng's calm profile and recalling the miraculous scene moments ago, whispered to his companion, voice laced with lingering dread and complex emotion:

"My god… these damn things… are really a menace…"

His voice was low, but in the silence, it clearly reached everyone's ears.

Qin Feng, who had turned to continue forward, paused slightly.

He did not turn back. His flat voice drifted on the wind, clear to all:

"The word 'menace'… is not right."

Everyone froze.

Qin Feng slightly turned his head, his gaze seeming to sweep over the ancient, weathered mountains. His tone remained unchanged, yet carried an unspoken weight:

"They are merely… Tomb Guardians who have lost their way."

With that, he did not pause, continuing toward his predetermined path.

The Exploration Squad remained rooted in place, pondering the immense meaning hidden in those words.

Tomb Guardians? Whose tombs did they guard? And why… had they become the terrifying, destructive creatures they had just been?

Xia Wan watched Qin Feng's retreating figure, then glanced at the surrounding crystalline Ice Towers, which seemed to hold boundless sorrow. Her desire to uncover the truth grew more urgent.

The secrets hidden in this land ran far deeper than she had ever imagined.