Chapter 175

"The best is yet to come."

Pan gritted his teeth.

His heart had been too eager just now, causing him to waste much of his strength early on; to reach the very peak of the snowy mountain, he must slow down.

Yet he was confident he would make it to the summit.

If Lu Fang continued at this pace, Pan believed he could never reach the peak, for the higher one climbed the snowy mountain, the stronger the influence of extreme yin energy became.

This extreme yin energy affected even the Luo Sha clan to some degree, let alone a human like Lu Fang.

Thus, Pan began climbing at his own rhythm, never lifting his head.

He should be catching up to the Marquis of Wenguan soon!

Hasn't he caught up yet?

I suspect the Marquis of Wenguan is about to give out.

As time passed, Pan's mind grew increasingly agitated; finally, he couldn't help but look up—and his eyes nearly popped out.

There was no sign of Lu Fang on the mountain's cliff face.

The Luo Sha had excellent eyesight; he was certain Lu Fang wasn't there. What was going on? Had he climbed too fast and accidentally fallen?

Thinking this, Pan instinctively looked downward.

He didn't see Lu Fang, but he locked eyes with a Snow Luo Sha below—she was seventh-rank third-tier, hadn't specially cultivated her body, and thus climbed slowly.

"Where's the Marquis of Wenguan? Did he fall?"

Pan called out.

The Snow Luo Sha shook her head and nodded upward with her lips: "He's already reached the summit. Didn't you see?"

"What?! He's already reached the summit? That's impossible! In such a short time, no one could climb to the peak—he must have fallen! Snow Princess, you're joking!"

Pan shook his head repeatedly, refusing to believe it.

The Snow Luo Sha rolled her eyes. "Do you think I'm joking? If the Marquis of Wenguan had truly fallen, wouldn't there have been some noise?"

"Still, I understand how you feel. When I first saw him climbing faster and faster toward the summit, I was shocked too."

"You and I both know the higher you climb, the more severe the intrusion of extreme yin energy—but he's felt no effect at all. It's unbelievable."

"I'm surprised, yet not entirely unexpected."

"You don't know this Marquis of Wenguan from the Great Zhou. Back in the Seventh-Rank Small Upper Realm, I spent some time with him—he's always full of surprises."

"At first I thought he was reckless, but gradually I realized he's the type who plans everything in advance; if he had no confidence, he'd never agree to a contest with you."

"Once he agrees to a contest, he will win."

"But…" Pan's mood sank; he couldn't speak for a long while.

The Snow Luo Sha smiled gently. "Actually, you've done quite well—your opponent is just the Marquis of Wenguan. His deeds are legendary; in the Seventh-Rank Small Upper Realm, he single-handedly slew three seventh-rank third-tier demonic clansmen."

"One of them had just gained an ancient divine technique."

"Losing to him isn't shameful at all."

Pan nodded solemnly. "Right now, I'm no match for the Marquis of Wenguan, but in the future, I'm confident I'll surpass him."

The Snow Luo Sha suddenly laughed. Seeing Pan look at her, she sighed and shook her head. "Don't misunderstand—I'm not mocking you. When I first met him, I said exactly the same thing in my heart."

"Back then, I hated him. I swore I'd cultivate hard and become stronger than him as soon as possible."

"Even after our relationship improved, when I left the Seventh-Rank Small Upper Realm, I still trained diligently."

"But now, seeing him again, clearly he's grown much stronger."

"I suddenly have a feeling that the gap between his realm and mine will only widen further."

Pan hurried to comfort her. "Snow Princess, you're overthinking it. With your cultivation talent, if you train hard, you'll surely catch up to the Marquis of Wenguan soon."

"I hope so."

The Snow Luo Sha gave a helpless smile and couldn't help saying: "It's strange—why is this happening? He's clearly bound by Heaven's Dao, yet his realm advanced too quickly."

They continued talking.

Both of them reached the summit.

When Pan saw that Lu Fang had truly reached the summit, he sighed. "I lost. No wonder he's the Marquis of Wenguan—I accept this defeat wholeheartedly. But I'll train harder. I believe one day I'll surpass you."

"I believe you can."

Lu Fang replied vaguely, then took the storage bag from the Snow Luo Sha—it held the materials Pan had wagered.

The Snow Luo Sha looked toward a cave entrance in the distance. "Marquis of Wenguan, that's where we'll cultivate this time. Do you want to see the other side of the snowy mountain, or go straight in?"

Lu Fang didn't hesitate. "You two go in first. The scenery here is quite nice—I happen to have a recording talisman. I'll go see the other side of the mountain."

The Snow Luo Sha nodded, warning: "Marquis of Wenguan, remember—never descend from the other side of the snowy mountain. There are many unknown places there, and they're dangerous."

"We don't need to risk it; cultivating here is perfect and completely safe. But if you descend from the other side, I can't guarantee your safety."

"I'm quite fond of my life. Don't worry—I'll be back soon." Lu Fang said, then immediately vanished into the distance.

This snowy mountain was larger than he'd imagined.

Even moving at full speed, Lu Fang took a full hour to reach the cliff on the other side.

This place was strange—flight was impossible for long.

Once airborne, one's strength drained rapidly.

Yet even standing before the cliff and merely glancing at the distant corner, Lu Fang was stunned: multicolored snow peaks shimmered everywhere, stretching endlessly.

A quick glance revealed roughly a hundred snow peaks of identical size, differing only in color.

Truly miraculous!

The interior of these snow peaks held such a dazzling structure; just one look made one sense their mystery.

How had this formed?

Unknown lands and unknown dangers—these stirred curiosity, compelling one to peer inside and discover what lay there.

Demon Heart: "This place must be rich in heavenly treasures. Too bad your power isn't enough yet—if it were, you could go treasure-hunting. Don't listen to the Luo Sha clan's warnings—they're just scaring you."

Lu Fang nodded. "There's certainly some scare-tactic in it, but there are also unknown dangers here. For risks with unstable factors, I have no interest in exploring them for now."

"By the way, weren't you eager for me to win that material from Pan? What is it? Don't you owe me an explanation?"