At dawn, Lord Zhao Yun and his party left the city heading towards the Black Moon Altar, soon entering a vast forest.
Lord Zhao Yun suddenly stopped, his gaze fixed ahead. Between the twisted branches of the giant trees ahead hung vines, each one bearing suckers the size of an infant's palm, subtly wriggling.
"Let me do it!"
Aleia's Beast Ears twitched excitedly, her cheeks slightly flushed with agitation, making her look somewhat playful and cute.
However, before the words had fully left her mouth, Leah's Frost Sword Qi shot out like lightning, instantly freezing the vines within ten *zhang* ahead. Crystalline Ice Crystals rapidly spread along the vine veins, enveloping the Man-Eating Demon Vine and rendering it immobile.
She said with a hint of teasing amusement, "It's better for the little kitten to go chase butterflies."
Seeing this, Aleia's tail instantly puffed up into a fluffy ball, and she glared angrily at Leah.
Hands on her hips, she roared, "Who are you calling a kitten! Wait until I deal with these things, then see if you dare look down on me again!"
The Man-Eating Demon Vine struggled within the ice shell, emitting a "creaking" sound, but it eventually shattered into pieces of ice, scattering across the ground.
Just as Aleia was about to erupt, she saw Lord Zhao Yun lightly tap the ground with his spear tip, sending five pebbles flying up.
The pebbles shot out like meteors, accurately striking the Six-Eyed Poison Spiders lurking beneath the decaying leaves. The spiders instantly burst, their purplish-black Venom corroding into wisps of Green Smoke, and a pungent odor spread.
"One hundred *zhang* to the northwest," Lord Zhao Yun shook the Spider Silk from his Spear Tassel.
Upon hearing this, Ross's emerald-green eyes reflected the surrounding scene. He skillfully nocked an arrow, drew his bow, and shot towards the northwest.
The Emerald Arrow pierced through three ancient trees with fierce momentum, pinning a Shadow Wolf preparing to ambush onto the trunk.
"What excellent archery!" Aleia couldn't help but exclaim, momentarily forgetting her bickering with Leah. She walked forward and gently patted Ross's shoulder.
"I didn't expect you to be so skilled with a bow; you'll have to teach me sometime."
When the sun was high in the sky, the group entered the scorching Gorge. Scarlet rock walls towered into the clouds, riddled with honeycomb-like caves, from each opening of which flowed an amber substance resembling lava.
Nia curiously extended a branch to poke at the amber substance. The moment her branch made contact, the entire mountainside began to tremble violently.
Immediately afterward, tens of thousands of Fire Beetles poured out, rushing towards the group like a surging tide.
"Hold your breath!"
Lord Zhao Yun swiftly spun his spear in a circle, the Star Shattering Spear stirring up a storm.
Aleia understood immediately and hastily threw the poisonous mushroom powder she carried. Leah's Sword Qi timely blasted it into Poisonous Mist, which intertwined with the storm, forming a barrier. The Fire Beetle swarm crashed into the poisonous storm and immediately began falling like raindrops.
Nia picked up a carapace and was delighted to find that it could refract a seven-colored halo. She excitedly shouted, "Sister! This would make a beautiful hair accessory!"
She skipped over to Aleia's side, holding the carapace in front of her eyes, repeatedly saying, "Sister, look, look, it's so beautiful!"
Before she finished speaking, a heaven-shaking roar echoed from the depths of the Gorge. A Lava Golem several *zhang* tall slowly rose from the ground, magma flowing between its stone seams like surging Bloodline, radiating waves of intense heat. The Golem's appearance caused the surrounding temperature to rise sharply.
Just as Leah's sword edge was about to form frost, Lord Zhao Yun leaped into the air, stepping on the Corpse of a Fire Beetle. The Starlight bursting from the tip of the Star Shattering Spear was like a brilliant meteor, piercing the heat waves and heading straight for the Golem's forehead.
"Break!"
Lord Zhao Yun roared, his Spear Shadow like a white rainbow piercing the sun, accurately striking the Fire Essence Core located in the Golem's head.
With a loud crash, the Golem collapsed, Crushed Stones scattering like rain.
Lord Zhao Yun landed steadily on the ground, holding the pebble-sized Fire Essence.
Aleia immediately rushed forward with a waterskin, gently brushing the dust from his shoulders: "Lord, wipe your sweat and have some water."
Seeing this, Leah sneered and approached Lord Zhao Yun, enveloping the Fire Essence with her Frost Sword Qi.
"This item needs to be preserved in an Eternal Freezing Casket; some people using unorthodox methods probably wouldn't know that."
Aleia stamped her foot in anger: "Who are you calling unorthodox! You just know a bit of ice magic, what's so great about that!"
The two started a new round of arguing. Lord Zhao Yun shook his head helplessly, but watching them bicker like two children brought a touch of warmth to his heart.
At noon, the group stopped by the riverbank to rest. Aleia skillfully placed the prepared rock sheep leg over the fire, and the dripping grease hit the Flame, igniting an enticing aroma of char.
While turning the sheep leg, she hummed an unknown little tune, a tune carrying the unique rhythm of the Beast Race—cheerful and full of vitality.
Nia presented her treasure, sprinkling the scorching pepper powder she collected in the Gorge excitedly onto the meat.
"Sister, this will definitely taste great!" Nia said happily, her eyes curved like crescent moons as she revealed two cute little fangs.
Leah, however, sneezed three times from the choking spice. She frowned and looked at Nia with disdain.
"You little brat, can't you be gentler!"
Lord Zhao Yun smiled as he sharpened a branch, skewering Fire Beetle eggs and roasting them over the fire. Soon, the eggs emitted the fragrance of matsutake mushrooms.
"I wonder if the Lord is well," Lord Zhao Yun paused suddenly, his hand holding the cracked, crispy egg. Memories of beacon fires overlapped with the Cooking Smoke before him, as if he were back on that war-torn battlefield, the sounds of shouting and horses' hooves echoing in his ears.
Aleia took the opportunity to offer the golden-brown roasted sheep meat to his lips, her eyes filled with anticipation: "Lord, try this."
Leah's Ice Cone, however, "coincidentally" knocked down the branch, and the piece of meat landed perfectly onto an ice dish held up by her sword edge.
"Hmph, trying to curry favor with the Lord isn't that easy."
Leah looked at Aleia with Provocation, a hint of smugness on her lips.
Ross silently gnawed on a salt-roasted mushroom, then suddenly shot three Arrows towards the river surface. The Emerald Arrows trailed streams of light as they plunged into the water. When he pulled them out, they had impaled three Silver Shuttlefish with Scales of crystal.
The startled fish leaped out of the water, transforming into translucent Elves in the rainbow light and scattering away. Seeing this, Nia immediately chased after the fattest one for half a *li*.
After eating their fill, the group continued their journey and arrived at a swamp area. Just as Aleia spotted several Swamp Crocodiles lurking in the mire and was about to launch a surprise attack, the entire swamp suddenly solidified into Ice Crystals—Leah had used her Frost Sword Qi to freeze the crocodiles beneath the ice layer.
Aleia was so angry her tail bristled, and she glared fiercely at Leah: "All you know is using ice magic to steal the spotlight!"
Leah ignored Aleia's anger. She walked up to Lord Zhao Yun and whispered softly, "I'll take the night watch tonight; I have something interesting to show Lord Zhao Yun..."
Late at night, taking advantage of her turn on watch, Leah quietly approached Lord Zhao Yun, her voice kept extremely low.
"Lord Zhao Yun, this is the interesting thing."
As she spoke, Leah carefully took out a small, square box from her inner pocket. The box was wrapped in black cloth, embroidered with silver Runes.
Lord Zhao Yun raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of curiosity in his eyes.
Before he could respond, Aleia appeared from nowhere, hands on her hips, looking thoroughly annoyed.
"Hmph, being so secretive, what good thing could you possibly have!"
Saying that, she leaned closer, trying to see what was inside the box.
Leah glared at Aleia and hid the square box behind her back.
"You clumsy oaf, you only know how to cause trouble, go away!"
Aleia was not deterred. She stepped forward, reaching out to snatch the box.
"I insist on looking!"
The two struggled over it, and the box swayed in their hands, looking as if it were about to fall.
Lord Zhao Yun, quick of eye and hand, reached out and steadily caught the brocade box, shaking his head helplessly.
"Stop fooling around; settle down for a bit."
Aleia and Leah finally stopped their actions, standing separately and turning their heads away from each other.
After a moment, Aleia couldn't suppress her curiosity and secretly glanced at the square box in Lord Zhao Yun's hand, muttering softly.
"Lord Zhao Yun, I think she's just trying to show off deliberately; it's probably just some useless little trinket."
Leah immediately became furious upon hearing this.
"What do you know! This is a treasure I worked hard to obtain; you ignorant person wouldn't understand its value at all!"
Lord Zhao Yun looked at the two, feeling extremely helpless.
"Alright, stop arguing. Since Leah treasures it so much, it must have something special. Let's open it and see."
Leah shot Aleia a triumphant look, took the brocade box from Lord Zhao Yun's hand, and slowly opened it.
Inside the box lay a shard of crystal emitting a faint blue light. Stars seemed to flicker and swirl within it, and faint wisps of Magic Power Fluctuation leaked out.
"I obtained this by chance during an adventure."
Leah's voice carried a hint of pride.
"It is said to be a relic from ancient times, capable of sensing the strength and direction of surrounding magic fluctuations, which is very helpful for exploring mysterious Ruins and treasures."
"Tch, that's all? It doesn't look that impressive."
Although Aleia was putting on a brave front, she couldn't stop staring at the crystal shard.
Leah ignored Aleia's words; she gently picked up the crystal shard and muttered something under her breath.
Suddenly, the crystal shard shone brightly, blue light surging out like a tide, and the Runes within the light began to flash rapidly. Immediately after, the shard emitted a rapid buzzing sound, and the frequency of the light's flashing increased faster and faster.
Aleia was startled by the sudden change and instinctively hid behind Lord Zhao Yun.
"What's happening? Is there danger!"
Leah also frowned, a hint of tension flashing in her eyes.
"It seems the power of the Black Moon Altar is already affecting this area; it's stronger than we imagined."
Lord Zhao Yun's expression turned grave. He gripped the Star Shattering Spear tightly, the cold glint of its tip faintly visible in the darkness.
"Don't be afraid, I am here."
Lord Zhao Yun's voice was still reassuring.
"You two go rest; we have to keep moving tomorrow. I will take the night watch."
Watching the two walk towards the temporary camp, Lord Zhao Yun's gaze returned to the unknown darkness in the distance. He straightened his back, and the Star Shattering Spear in his hand trembled slightly.
"Where my spear points, there lies the way out!"