Chapter 178: The White Forest

The suspicious spot that Senior Liao mentioned was somewhere nearby. However, after spending half a day fishing at the Ice Lake, Lin Xiao found nothing unusual besides the fact that no spells could be used in the lake. He decided to take a stroll around the area to see if he could find anything else.

Seeing a group of cultivators preparing to leave, Lin Xiao got up and decided to follow them. When he reached the ice stone platform where fish were being cleaned, he mimicked the others, skillfully killing a few silver-tailed fish, then discreetly stored the remaining fish in his private stash's live storage area.

Despite wandering around with the crowd for half a day, Lin Xiao still found nothing out of the ordinary. By now, six days had passed since they first entered the secret realm, leaving them with only nine days remaining.

Reflecting on the places he had visited over the past few days, everything seemed quite normal—just typical parts of a secret realm. Even Senior Liao mentioned there was nothing wrong. The only slightly unusual place was the Ice Lake, where spells couldn’t be used to catch fish. So, Lin Xiao decided to return and take another look.

However, just as he broke away from the group and turned to head back, he suddenly noticed something darting toward him through the snow. The speed of the creature was so fast that his spiritual sense couldn’t even capture it before it was right in front of him!

With just one glance, Lin Xiao got a clear look at the creature leaping toward him. It was an odd-looking thing, translucent white all over, about fifty centimeters long, with a large head and slender limbs. Its appearance didn’t match any creature Lin Xiao had ever seen. If he had to describe it, the word "spirit" came to mind.

In that instant, Lin Xiao remembered what Yuan Zhiyun had mentioned on Seven Star Street in Yuanling City—she was looking for people to form a team to capture the Icefield Spirit in this secret realm. Could this be it?

But all these thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant. The next moment, Lin Xiao saw something seem to stretch out from his chest and, with a swift motion, snatch up the creature that looked like the Icefield Spirit.

Lin Xiao blinked in surprise, then quickly realized it was Senior Liao who had acted.

"Senior, what was that thing just now?" Lin Xiao asked.

From within the Soul Nurturing Pendant, Liao Pantuo’s voice transmitted into his mind, "You’ve got some incredible luck, kid. First time in an icefield secret realm, and you managed to encounter an Icefield Spirit! These spirits roam in extremely cold places, but they’re incredibly rare and very skittish. Back in the day, I traveled tens of thousands of miles to a frigid land and spent months waiting to catch one. Who would’ve thought you’d run into one that just came right to you… If I weren’t a spirit hidden in your pendant, surprising it, you’d have had a hard time catching it in this snowy land."

"So that little thing really was an Icefield Spirit?" Lin Xiao was astonished. "What use does this Icefield Spirit have?"

A semi-transparent hand reached out from Lin Xiao’s chest and handed him a small box. "One of my other soul fragments suddenly encountered a situation. You take this and see for yourself." After saying that, this fragment of Liao Pantuo’s soul fell into slumber.

Lin Xiao took the small box and, hearing that something had happened with one of Senior Liao’s other soul fragments, quickly asked, "What happened?"

But there was no reply from the senior. With no choice, Lin Xiao stored the small box in his private stash, intending to use the identification function to examine it later.

Using the identification function on the box within his stash, the first line of text that appeared was:

[A spirit rhinoceros seal box containing an Icefield Spirit. This seal box can seal various spirits.]

As for the Icefield Spirit itself, there was no further explanation. Presumably, this was because it was sealed inside the box. He would probably need to release the spirit and capture it directly in his stash to learn more.

However, Lin Xiao didn’t feel confident that he could recapture the lightning-fast Icefield Spirit once released, so he decided against it. Instead, he turned his focus back to heading toward the Ice Lake.

When he returned to the lake, the shore was still crowded with people fishing. However, Lin Xiao didn’t plan to join them this time. Instead, he decided to climb the large snow-covered mountain behind the lake.

It was only now that he noticed something peculiar—the cultivators fishing by the lakeside, though crowded, didn’t venture to the other end of the lake, where the snow-covered mountain loomed. Even though there were some spots on the mountain where they could have set up for fishing, not a single person had gone there.

The area around the Ice Lake was bustling with activity—people cleaning fish, newcomers arriving, others packing up to leave, and some setting up tents, preparing for a long fishing session. Using his stealth techniques, Lin Xiao easily slipped past the crowd and made his way to the other side of the snow-covered mountain.

The map marked this area as an empty snow-covered mountain, with nothing notable on it. However, after zooming in on the map, Lin Xiao discovered that one corner of the mountain was labeled with the word "Danger."

Yes, the map could zoom in, revealing intricate details and marking many features. Lin Xiao felt that the map had been worth every spirit stone.

After thinking for a moment, he decided to check it out. But before that, he placed a tracking talisman as a backup in case he needed to make a quick escape. Better safe than sorry!

As he approached the area marked as "Danger" on the map, Lin Xiao found himself facing a dense forest of white trees. The trees were entirely white, their branches and leaves as pale as snow. At first glance, Lin Xiao had mistaken them for barren trees covered in snow.

A cold wind howled through the trees, sending shivers down Lin Xiao’s spine. For a brief moment, he felt as if countless blood-red eyes were staring at him from within the forest.

However, the intense gaze he felt quickly shifted away from his position. Seeing this, Lin Xiao let out a small sigh of relief. It seemed that they hadn't detected him, and his concealment technique was still effective.

This white forest behind the snow mountain, adjacent to the Ice Lake, was something Lin Xiao had heard about while in Yuanling City. It was rumored to be one of the most dangerous places in the entire Icefield Secret Realm. The forest was said to be teeming with ferocious beasts far more vicious than the common ones that roamed the rest of the secret realm.

These beasts were mostly white in color, blending perfectly with the snow-covered trees and landscape. On top of that, something within the forest seemed to interfere with spiritual senses, making it difficult for cultivators to detect the beasts until it was too late.

Many cultivators who had ventured into the forest hadn't made it out in one piece. Those who did escape had spent hours risking their lives only to come back empty-handed. Over time, most people began avoiding the white forest altogether. That's why the cultivators at the Ice Lake preferred to crowd around the lakeside rather than venture to the snow-covered side of the mountain.

The ferocious beasts within the forest rarely left its boundaries, so it had become a place to be avoided. But now, Lin Xiao felt that there might be something hidden here, something important. After all, according to the unwritten rules of secret realms, the most dangerous places often guarded the most valuable treasures.

Perhaps the cultivators who had entered before simply didn't recognize the value of what was hidden within. There could be something here that would help him find a way to rescue those trapped in the Ice Cave.

With that thought in mind, Lin Xiao decided to venture deeper into the forest. Quietly and cautiously, he slipped into the dense woods.

As he progressed, Lin Xiao quickly noticed that his spiritual sense was indeed being disrupted. Some areas were only mildly affected, while others were heavily interfered with, causing his detection range to fluctuate unpredictably. At times, he could barely sense anything ahead.

Once, he nearly stepped on a beast that was lying in the snow, hidden from view. He had only been alerted to its presence when it suddenly snorted in its sleep. After that close call, Lin Xiao became even more vigilant, carefully avoiding any creatures he encountered.

The beasts within the forest were all of the Huadan stage, equivalent to the Foundation Establishment stage for cultivators. Lin Xiao recalled Senior Liao’s explanation about the different stages of demonic beasts. The Huadan stage was followed by the Gudan stage, which was equivalent to the Golden Core stage for cultivators. Above that was the Tongyuan stage, which was equivalent to the Nascent Soul stage, like the Silver Frost Python he had encountered before.

Lin Xiao had once asked about the Huaxing stage, or the Transformation stage, for beasts. Although Senior Liao had been surprised by the question, he explained that the Huaxing stage was a particularly advanced level for demonic beasts. It wasn’t about transforming into a human shape, as Lin Xiao had initially thought, but rather, it involved the beast transforming into the most superior form of its own bloodline. Senior Liao’s explanation made Lin Xiao think of it as refining and perfecting the best genes within a beast’s lineage.

With that in mind, Lin Xiao suddenly thought of Xiao Luan. He wondered if, when Xiao Luan reached the Huaxing stage, it might transform into the ultimate form of a Luan bird, thanks to its trace of Luan bloodline.

He found himself looking forward to that possibility. And suddenly, he felt a pang of homesickness. By now, he had been away from home for more than ten days. He wondered how his father was doing, whether he was balancing work and rest, and how his grandparents' health was holding up. When he returned, he planned to find something that could strengthen their bodies and extend their lives. No matter what, he was going to convince them to cultivate with him, whether they wanted to or not.

They might say they didn’t want to because they didn’t want to trouble him, but Lin Xiao knew better. His grandparents had lived hard lives, yet they took pleasure in their efforts. They were the kind of people who lived life to the fullest. No one who truly loved life would want to cut it short.

He also wondered how everyone back at the sect was doing. Were they progressing well in their cultivation?

Had Fuzi been too caught up in cooking lately, and had it affected his cultivation?

Jiang He was out on his own—had he written any letters back?

And what about Yigao's private school? Was it doing well?

Tie Tou had been the slowest to advance in cultivation among them, and Lin Xiao hadn’t had the chance to encourage him. Was Tie Tou feeling disheartened?

The more he thought about Shouxiu Village and everyone there, the more Lin Xiao found himself eager to return. This was what homesickness felt like. He had never experienced it in his previous life, but now, on his first trip away from home, he was tasting it for the first time.

The feeling of wanting to return home was overwhelming.

As Lin Xiao continued to move stealthily through the white forest, avoiding the lurking beasts, his mind was focused on one thing: solving this mystery quickly, rescuing the trapped people, and then leaving the secret realm as soon as it opened again. After that, he would head straight home.

Yes, he had already decided that he wouldn’t try to make the most of this trip by completing all his tasks before returning. He no longer cared about things like the Heartstone or building connections. That could wait for next time.

Even if it cost more to make a second trip, it didn’t matter. After all, it wasn’t as if he couldn’t afford it. What were two thousand spirit stones compared to the desire to return home?

He could always mine more spirit stones if needed.

But nothing was more important than going home!

After more than two hours of slow and cautious movement through the beast-filled white forest, Lin Xiao finally reached the deepest part of the woods.

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