Chapter 471 - Standoff
Chapter 471
Standoff
The snow and winds might have stopped but the layer of snow taller than a house was a huge obstacle to the three tribes. Everyone suffered.
In the end, the three chiefs decided to take a risk– travelling along the king beast’s tracks.
Yesterday, the beast had appeared nearby and the snow had stopped this morning. These tracks did not have much snow and the existing layer of snow had been compressed. There was a long path shaped like a ‘U’.
Walking on this path was a lot easier. Other than the knee-high layer of snow, there had been no obstacles. They just had to be alert of the king beast’s appearance.
After confirming the direction, they walked on king beast tracks whenever they could. If there were no tracks, they had to brave through the snow. The Flaming Horns were still fine since they were strong and have high endurance but everyone else suffered.
“More tracks in front,” said Zheng Luo as he stared ahead. “Not recent though, the snow layer is knee-high, it’s been here for some time.”
If there was snow, that meant the king beast hadn’t been here in awhile. This was good news.
But what if it cries again? Will we all freeze to death?
At this moment, their gaze fell subconsciously on Shao Xuan once again.
Not just the three chiefs. After the beast regarded the entire entourage, it looked at Shao Xuan and even leaned nearer.
Shao Xuan’s limbs were ice cold. It was his first time so close to a king beast. No one knew if the beast would rage and kill them all.
When the beast leaned closer, everyone retreated back but Shao Xuan stood his ground. To him, retreating was useless plus the beast’s target seemed to be him.
It looked down, leaning over until it was less than ten meters away from Shao Xuan. The difference in size made Shao Xuan suspect that he might not be large enough to block one of the beast’s nostrils.
Within its ice eyes, Shao Xuan saw lines like snowflake patterns on its eyeball. Its pupils constricted into a dagger-like glare like a master thinking over a decision. There was no strong emotion.
Pfftttt—-
The beast exhaled again.
A cloud of white mist blasted into his face. Shao Xuan’s face stung from the cold as a layer of ice formed. This was just one breath, yet Shao Xuan looked like he’d been tossed into the freezer.
“Shao Xuan!”
Zheng Luo was alarmed and about to come over when he saw blazing totemic patterns appearing on his body.
Shao Xuan focused on his totemic power, weathering the frost with all his might.
The fight between ice and fire was obvious on his body. Red flames broke off pieces of ice and the totemic patterns seemed to chase away the frost.
He forced all chills out of his body with totemic power.
Shao Xuan only hoped the beat would not unleash its cry on them. He could withstand one breath but not a roar. If it were easy, the entire cave of Fox tribesmen would not have died.
He focused on leveling the energy in his body, radiating a neutral energy to avoid provoking the beast. He stared into its eyes. Although it was cold and seemed emotionless, there were still traces of feelings that would help Shao Xuan decide what to do next.
Immediately, the beast’s pupils constricted even more. It backed its head away and stood taller, still glaring at Shao Xuan.
The narrow scales on its head perked up slightly as it moved, bristling its icicle-like spikes. It looked as if it was wearing an icicle scarf now. A sign that it was about to attack.
“RUN!” roared Shao Xuan.
The temperature around them fell quickly, the knee-high layer of snow was as troublesome as mud and threatened to trap them all. It severely limited their movement. Even if they wanted to run for their lives, they could not run out of its range of attack.
They were slow! Too slow! Barely one-tenth of their normal speed!
How?!
As Zheng Luo ran, he saw Shao Xuan still standing there in his peripheral vision. He was about to pull Shao Xuan away but before he could approach, the beast had already opened its jaws.
A current stronger than a tornado, paired with extreme cold, was blasted right at Shao Xuan.
He’s done for.
That was what Zheng Luo thought. At this moment, Zheng Luo was filled with regret. If he acted sooner, could he have yanked Shao Xuan out of the way in time?
No one could stand against this beast in that cave. Images of the frozen bodies in the Fox cave flashed across Zheng Luo’s mine. All the frozen bodies, the shattered pieces…
Boom—
A huge explosion sent Zheng Luo flying backwards. Everyone nearby was also thrown out in a second.
The two tall walls of snow flew into the air in huge chunks, snow was tossed about everywhere. Some pieces broke into crumbs and fell as snowflakes, spreading everywhere.
On the white, snowy piece of land, the icy beast looked down on the tiny humans as if it was the king of all beings on this piece of icy lands.
In front of it, a fireball blasted into the air. Flames roared and twisted, scattering in the icy winds but were focused back again to form a shape. It faintly resembled a human silhouetted.
Between the grey skies and the white lands, in this snowy world, a force of fiery red stood before the white beast.