The two walked on the snowy ground for nearly half a day. The surroundings were still a vast expanse of white, and they found themselves wandering in circles.
The north wind howled, making their clothes flutter. The surroundings were deathly silent, save for the occasional sound of strong gusts of wind that echoed through the desolate mountains, their mournful cries more terrifying than any ghost.
Ye Ziling scanned the surroundings. The cold wind whipped her cloak, and a bone-chilling cold enveloped her. A sense of foreboding rose within her.
"Does it feel like we're going in circles?" Her gaze swept across the area, and she noticed that the footprints in the snow were gradually disappearing, everything returning to its original state.
"Ling Xi." She stopped, looking back at the vanishing footprints. Gripping the vine on her wrist, she called out to the man beside her.
Sensing Ye Ziling's halt, Ling Xi turned back. With a flick of his robe, he half-knelt, scooping up some snow into his palm. His brow furrowed.
He took down a medicinal pouch from his waist, examining it closely. Suddenly, he frowned.
"Strange, could we really be lost?"
"But the map clearly indicated we were heading southwest. I'm sure I never deviated. Could we be trapped by something?"
Their eyes focused on the medicinal pouch.
He had intentionally made a few small holes, letting the medicinal powder scatter along their path. His purpose was to determine whether they were lost or caught in a loop of illusions. Now, looking at it, he was certain it was an illusion formation.
"I scattered some medicinal powder on the path," Ling Xi said, grabbing some snow and sniffing it carefully. Indeed, he detected no trace of the powder.
They exchanged a glance, both showing surprise, and then understanding dawned: "An illusion?"
The surrounding scenery was continuously reverting to its original state. If they continued walking, they would only loop back to the same place. The scenery was all illusory, a so-called illusion formation. Only by breaking this formation could they escape the snowy landscape and return to reality.
At that moment, a world-shattering dragon's roar erupted around them, shaking the entire snow-capped mountain.
Shortly after, the white mountain peaks suddenly cracked open, and a colossal dragon burst forth from the mountain, circling in the sky.
Its body was silver-white and crystal clear. Its scales shimmered with a luminous glow, and thick white mist billowed from its gaping maw.
Its tail swayed, stirring up a tempest. Accumulated snow was swept away from all directions. The dragon raised its head and roared, its voice majestic and powerful, shaking the heavens.
"Not good, an avalanche," Ye Ziling's expression turned grim. She quickly pulled Ling Xi back, but it was too late.
The wind raged, and snowflakes flew. Accumulated snow poured down on them from all directions.
Ye Ziling looked around and realized she was in a basin-like terrain, surrounded by snow-capped peaks stretching for miles. Rolling waves of snow cascaded from the sky, leaving them with nowhere to hide.
Ling Xi's face also showed a grave expression. He waved his sleeve, attempting to draw a talisman to break the formation, but the talisman proved utterly ineffective.
The dragon roared furiously in the sky, its massive dragon eyes sweeping over them. A chilling killing intent made them both tremble.
However, after a moment, the silver dragon plunged into the clouds and vanished instantly.
Ye Ziling looked up at the sky. Just as she was about to turn, a massive white shadow swooped down towards her!
A powerful force knocked her down. She tumbled into the snow, rolling a couple of times.
Snow gas entered her windpipe, choking her into a coughing fit. When she regained her senses, she saw a figure lying amidst the swirling snow.
She looked at the other end of the vine, where Ling Xi lay with his eyes tightly shut, his lips pale, and his face smeared with blood.
Ye Ziling's face contorted in horror, and the vine on her wrist tightened further.
She could only pray that Ling Xi would hold on; otherwise, she would also perish.
She struggled to her feet and walked towards him, squatting down to check his nostrils.
There was a faint breath. He was still alive, it seemed.
Before she could recover, the silver dragon continued to swoop down at her with incredible speed, reaching her in the blink of an eye.
She dodged to the side and shot hundreds of bee needles from her sleeve.
They flew towards the silver dragon, but instead, they only enraged it. The silver dragon let out an angry cry, twisted its body, and drew an arc in the sky, its eyes filled with fierce killing intent.
With the avalanche imminent, Ye Ziling was extremely anxious. This time, she had to end it quickly, or both of them would be buried on the snow mountain.
"Ling Xi, wake up." She squatted down, grabbing his sleeve and calling to him. Seeing him open his eyes, she breathed a sigh of relief and helped him up with all her might. "How are you?"
"Can't die," Ling Xi forced himself to sit up, breathing heavily. A smile appeared on his pale face.
Ye Ziling withdrew her hand from his back and found it
covered in blood. She was stunned.
So much blood, and he was fine?
Supporting each other, they slowly moved forward.
The silver dragon pursued them relentlessly, showing no intention of giving up.
Ling Xi felt anxious. He was at his limit. He looked at the person beside him, a faint weariness etched on her brow.
He feared they would truly die in this illusion formation today.
The silver dragon attacked again. Ye Ziling quickly took out her silver hairpin, transforming it into a silken net, which she used to entangle the dragon's horns and pull with all her might.
The silver dragon lost its footing, deviating from its original path, and brushed past them. Ye Ziling quickly gathered her celestial energy and struck the silver dragon's spine with a palm.
The silver dragon cried out in pain, fell to the ground, rolled a few times, and plunged into the snow mountain, becoming still.
The avalanche stopped abruptly, and a small path appeared before them.
"The formation is broken, Ling Xi, let's go." Ye Ziling retrieved the demon core, helped Ling Xi up, grabbed his arm, and supported him on her shoulder. They stumbled towards the path.
As they stumbled along, she found the person on her shoulder growing heavier, as if losing all signs of life.
Her forehead was beaded with sweat, and her face had turned even paler, her entire face contorted.
"Ling Xi, hold on." After walking for an unknown time, she found the breathing of the person leaning on her growing weaker. She was essentially dragging him along.
The vine in her hand dug into her wrist, causing pain. She could clearly feel her own celestial energy draining away continuously.
After walking for so long, her legs were numb, yet she still saw no end to the path.
"Ling Xi, we're almost out, promise me, don't die yet." Ye Ziling dragged his heavy body, crawling forward with difficulty.
If he died, her own life would be over.
With her great revenge unavenged, how could she be willing to die here?
Snowflakes fell on her, and Ye Ziling's cheeks had long since frozen. Her eyes were blurry, and her vision was hazy.
Ling Xi heard her voice, opened his eyelids, and moved his pale lips. He couldn't resist teasing, "Miss Ye, your feelings for me are beyond repayment. If we survive, I will offer myself to you…"
"Shut up, I don't want your life." Ye Ziling gritted her teeth, feeling a surge of annoyance. If that were the case, it would be better to die… No, she couldn't die yet.
Seeing the anger on her face, yet still seeing her desperately dragging him along, Ling Xi felt a warmth rise within him. A faint smile touched his lips. "Being with me, has it been difficult for you?"
He knew he wasn't lacking in talent. Although he hadn't obtained a suitable celestial position, he wasn't so incompetent as to cause her hardship.
"Not difficult, just exasperating." She muttered a curse lightly and continued to drag his body.
Ling Xi's smile deepened. He leaned on her shoulder, allowing her to drag him.
After walking for an unknown duration, a stone door appeared before them. The snowy landscape behind them instantly transformed into lush greenery. Sunlight poured down, trees swayed in the breeze, and the sound of cicadas reached their ears. The chill in the air vanished without a trace.