"Don't overthink it, we don't know if it will be here later."
There were many spirit beasts and cultivators stronger than them. They couldn't possibly plot revenge against everyone who had ever wronged them; that would be too tiring.
If the conditions allowed, Chu Lingwei would certainly seek revenge, but she wouldn't dwell on it constantly, as it would affect her cultivation.
"Will we float outside the Ice Limit Cliff?" Huan Mao looked ahead. The temperature here wasn't as frigid as before.
"Probably not. I remember the direction, and we should be flowing inwards now." Chu Lingwei negated this. When she jumped into the cave, she had a sense of direction, but she wasn't sure if the current direction was still the same.
"But the temperature here isn't as cold as before." Huan Mao jumped to the front of the water bag and carefully sensed the outside temperature. After confirming, "It's true, the temperature seems to be gradually rising."
This underground river was very narrow, and Chu Lingwei couldn't sit up. "Then it's quite possible."
If they were heading outwards, Chu Lingwei would want to find an exit to leave. Instead, they needed to continue inwards.
Two hours later, Chu Lingwei could sit up, and the underground river had become increasingly wide.
Seeing a dark cave entrance on the side, Chu Lingwei jumped up without a second thought. She surveyed her surroundings. "As expected, the temperature here is warmer than before."
"Weiwei, we seem to be deep underground. I can't sense anything above us at all." Huan Mao hopped its small body, quickly darting around to scout everything.
"It should be."
Chu Lingwei nodded. The dark cave she stood on was also formed from ice accumulated over long years. Standing on it, a chill surged from the soles of her feet.
Even as a cultivator with spiritual energy protecting her body, this cold made her shiver all over.
The surroundings were the same, with thick ice formations everywhere. The entire dark cave exuded an endless chill.
Only the water in the underground river retained a little warmth.
"Let's go, there's no exit here." The surroundings were impenetrable, with no signs of anything to break through. Chu Lingwei tossed a small spiritual boat into the underground river. Where there was a river, there would eventually be a way out.
"How strange, there are living creatures here." Huan Mao crouched on the spiritual boat, looking at the underground river. Since they had jumped down, they hadn't encountered a single spirit beast.
This was the Ice Limit Cliff, there should be spirit beasts.
"It's not that we haven't encountered them, it's that there shouldn't be any here." Chu Lingwei's divine sense probed outwards, quickly hitting a soft barrier that repelled her.
There was a barrier here.
"Why isn't there anything here?" Feng Ming lay on the spiritual boat. It was so cold, she didn't want to move at all.
"We should know soon." As long as there was a barrier, it meant they weren't far from their exit.
Half an hour later, the bottom of the underground river became wider, and at the same time, a dense spiritual energy rushed towards them.
"It's spiritual grass."
This rich spiritual energy carried a fragrance. Chu Lingwei stood up, cautiously observing her surroundings. Wherever there was spiritual grass, there would be spirit beasts.
"Roar."
At this moment, an enraged roar shook the entire underground river.
"Ninth-rank spirit beast."
Chu Lingwei grumbled about her bad luck. She knew that such a rich spiritual grass would be guarded by no ordinary spirit beast.
"Weiwei, be careful."
Huan Mao had already set up several barriers to shield them.
A spirit-armored dragon beast appeared before them, its eyes filled with killing intent.
"The spiritual grass is about to mature, it definitely won't let us go." Huan Mao was very nervous. With a ninth-rank spirit beast, the three of them combined probably wouldn't be its match.
"If it won't let us go, why should we let it go?"
In a head-on encounter, only one could survive.
Chu Lingwei took out the Nine Phoenix Cry Fan from her spatial storage. If she couldn't win, she would have to rely on her magic artifact.
Upon seeing the item in Chu Lingwei's hand, the ninth-rank spirit-armored dragon beast's eyes flickered with apprehension. It was now a ninth-rank spirit beast and had extremely keen senses for danger.
The magic artifact in the hands of this human cultivator should already be considered divine-grade.
"If you don't want to die, move aside." Chu Lingwei held the spiritual fan, staring at the motionless spirit beast. Clearly, it had sensed the danger.
The ninth-rank spirit-armored dragon beast hesitated for a moment, then its eyes suddenly filled with killing intent. Even if it meant death, it wouldn't leave.
"Die."
Seeing that it didn't retreat but instead lunged at them, Chu Lingwei unleashed her attack. The surrounding ice shards flew towards them, and the underground river on the ground turned into ice, as if alive, surrounding them.
The Nine Phoenix Cry Fan could withstand a blow from a cultivator in the Sovereign realm. Chu Lingwei was not afraid of the immense spiritual power before her. She infused the spiritual fan with spiritual energy and struck towards the ninth-rank spirit-armored dragon beast.
With a "boom," the entire underground river began to shake.
This place might collapse soon.
The Nine Phoenix Cry Fan was a divine artifact; its power could turn this place into ashes.
"Huan Mao, go see what spiritual grass is ahead."
Even if she were to die, Chu Lingwei didn't want to die without knowing why.
"Roar."
The ninth-rank spirit-armored dragon beast fell heavily to the ground, its eyes widening. Two streams of spiritual energy burst from its eyes. Chu Lingwei quickly dodged. The spot where she had just stood had collapsed, and even the underground river beneath her feet had disappeared.
"Hmph."
The spiritual fan in Chu Lingwei's hand flew into the air and slowly enlarged.
Mystic Heaven Burning Fire.
Ten thousand streams of spiritual energy simultaneously struck the Nine Phoenix Cry Fan, which transformed into a phoenix and flew towards the spirit-armored dragon beast.
The spirit-armored dragon beast's body was directly slammed into the ground, and blood flowed out.
"Weiwei, it's not dead yet." Feng Ming stood on the ground, looking at the spirit-armored dragon beast that had burrowed underground. It looked greedily at its body. "Its body is a treasure. We're rich now."
The spirit-armored dragon beast, unable to move underground, trembled heavily. A sense of despair washed over it. It was already a ninth-rank spirit beast, invincible among spirit beasts, yet it couldn't escape this fate.
"Let's go."
This underground river was about to collapse. The blocked river water would soon flood this place and carve out a new underground river.
"Let's go, aren't we going to kill it?" Feng Ming's eyes widened. It wanted the scales from the spirit-armored dragon beast. If it made a magic artifact from its scales, it would be very powerful.
"Whether it lives or not depends on its own ability."
Chu Lingwei glanced at the ninth-rank spirit-armored dragon beast. When they met, one had to die; this was the survival mode of this world – it was either you die or I die.
If possible, she didn't want to kill it either.
Such a commotion here would soon attract others. Whether it could live depended on its fate.
Hearing Chu Lingwei's words, the ninth-rank spirit-armored dragon beast was stunned. It hadn't expected her to spare its life.
After speaking, Chu Lingwei quickly left with Feng Ming.