Chapter 335: Buying Time

Xie Yan is also here?!

Yuan Yao raised her eyes to look around, but the heavy snow was swirling all around, making it very difficult to see a person's silhouette clearly.

"Yao Yao, what are you looking at?" Ying Wuji noticed Yuan Yao's distraction and asked.

Yuan Yao came back to her senses, she buried the news that Xie Yan might appear nearby deep in her heart, and replied: "I am observing whether any snow beasts will appear around."

"How many snow beasts are there in this Heavenly Snow Mountain Range?!" Cang Li couldn't help but sigh upon hearing this, "By the way, what do these snow beasts usually eat?"

Yuan Yao was also curious.

"These snow beasts are omnivorous spirit beasts; they usually feed on some spiritual plants of the Heavenly Snow Mountain Range, and..."

Before Ying Wuji could finish speaking, a rustling sound came from not far away, as if something was approaching.

"What sound is this?" Cang Li's expression changed in alarm.

"They are Flying Heaven Golden Eagles!" Ying Wuji looked up and saw, in the snow-filled midair, a flock of golden eagles flapping their wings and flying, their whole bodies like small mountains, several times larger than ordinary birds.

Ying Wuji immediately pushed Yuan Yao and Cang Li against the wall, lowering his voice to instruct: "Stay close, don't let them notice you."

Yuan Yao and the two nodded.

Soon, the flock of Flying Heaven Golden Eagles did not notice their three figures, flying overhead.

After the Flying Heaven Golden Eagles left, they then relaxed.

Cang Li asked doubtfully: "Ying Wuji, aren't these Flying Heaven Golden Eagles also very formidable?"

He felt that Ying Wuji's actions seemed to be becoming increasingly cautious.

"They are not weak." Ying Wuji said calmly, "Have you not noticed that the spiritual energy in the Heavenly Snow Mountain Range is a bit richer than elsewhere?"

Yuan Yao raised her eyebrows slightly, "Could it be that because the spiritual energy concentration here is high, the spirit beasts here are generally stronger?"

Ying Wuji nodded.

Immediately afterward, he told them about several powerful spirit beasts that might appear in the Heavenly Snow Mountain Range.

"Snow beasts are numerous, with extraordinarily keen sense of smell, strong attack power, and they are very united. It is likely that we have already been listed as attack targets by the snow beasts; if our scent leaks, they will surely come after us. Therefore, in the Heavenly Snow Mountain Range, the most troublesome are the snow beasts."

Cang Li said: "It seems we will have to wage a prolonged battle against these snow beasts."

"Let's rest a while." Ying Wuji noticed they still had injuries and said.

"Okay."

This snowstorm lasted unusually long.

Time came to evening, and the wind and snow gradually ceased.

The three of them continued on their journey.

During this period, Yuan Yao no longer heard the 250 System broadcast any progress updates on the strategy against Xie Yan.

For three consecutive days, it did not snow again.

Yuan Yao and the two others marched continuously for three days; during this time, they cautiously evaded the snow beasts' pursuits and successfully shook them off.

Yuan Yao looked at the familiar snow-covered path ahead and couldn't help but say, "Huh, I feel like we were here yesterday."

Cang Li blew out a mouthful of hot air from the cold, "I have this feeling too."

Ying Wuji, upon hearing this, took out the map drawn by the Eldest Senior Brother, frowned and examined it for a moment.

Cang Li, seeing him look at it for so long, reached out and took it to have a look.

"How is it?" Yuan Yao leaned over to glance at it a few times and asked.

"This place is a blank white expanse; I really can't tell which point on the map this corresponds to." Cang Li frowned tightly, handed the map to Yuan Yao, and asked, "You take a look?"

Yuan Yao, upon hearing this, took the map and said, "Wait a moment."

Having said that, she lightly tapped her toes and leapt toward the nearby snow mountain ahead.

In the blink of an eye, Yuan Yao had already stepped onto the snow mountain peak as if walking on flat ground; standing here, gazing far into the distance, she could clearly see the surrounding mountain ranges undulating and the terrain treacherous.

She focused intently on the vast expanse of land beneath her feet, constantly comparing it with the map tightly held in her hand.

The more she observed, the tighter her brow furrowed.

As if she had discovered some important information, she turned her head to look at Cang Li and Ying Wuji waiting below on the mountain, and shouted loudly, "Third Senior Brother, Youngest Senior Brother, hurry up! There's a situation here!"

Cang Li and Ying Wuji, after hearing this, exchanged a glance, then headed toward Yuan Yao's direction.

After they reached the summit, Yuan Yao held up the map to show them, then pointed to a line on it and said, "This was originally the road we were supposed to take, but now you see over there, the originally narrow road is blocked by two small snow mountains; last night we didn't notice, we took a fork and then looped back to the original road."

"Third Senior Brother, Youngest Senior Brother, take a close look."

Cang Li and Ying Wuji scanned the surroundings and discovered that not only was one road blocked, but almost the entire mountain path was sealed off by accumulated snow, forming a tight encircling barrier.

It is quite obvious that this could hardly be a coincidence or natural phenomenon; it is highly likely that someone with ulterior motives deliberately did this, aiming to prevent them from following the correct route marked on the map.

Cang Li frowned tightly, "Only we and the Flower Sect have the map; could it be that Hua Chengyan and his group did this?"

Ying Wuji said, "Hua Chengyan would not likely resort to such clumsy tactics openly."

"Who then could it be?" Cang Li asked.

Somehow, Yuan Yao's mind suddenly conjured up the image of a person.

Could it be…

Lu Xiangxiang?!

Ying Wuji raised his head and said, "Let's first go to the original blocked route to investigate the situation."

Yuan Yao and Cang Li nodded.

The three of them headed together toward the position of the road blocked by the two small snow mountains; soon they leapt up and arrived behind those two small snow mountains.

"Look!" Cang Li's eyes narrowed as he pointed to the faint footprints still visible on the ground, and there were not a few of them.

Ying Wuji analyzed, "It seems a group arrived here before us and deliberately blocked this place, in order to…"

Yuan Yao's face slightly changed, "Buying time!"

The three exchanged a glance.

Let's go.

They went forward together.

After about two hours, they again encountered the same situation.

Just as they were about to leap up and cross the snow mountain blocking the road——

Be careful!

Yuan Yao's expression changed abruptly; she immediately swung her long sword, swiftly and accurately blocking the countless icy, bone-piercing arrows shooting from ahead.

"It's an ice-arrow formation!" Yuan Yao's eyes narrowed slightly, "Just wait a moment; let me break its formation eye!"

She flickered away, thrusting her sword into the stone wall; in an instant, it seemed as if an invisible force erupted within the wall, and the endless stream of ice arrows, as if losing support, vanished without a trace in the blink of an eye.