Fight or flight?
It was time for Happy to make a choice, and between the two, he resolutely chose the former.
First, it was because Happy understood that if he dragged things out, he would fall into an even more passive and dangerous situation. Instead of fleeing because he was persecuted for his riches, it was better to use the unique terrain of Sky Demon Secret Cave to fight. Perhaps he would find a sliver of a chance to survive, and even if he died, it just meant that the conclusion of the quest would be brought forward.
Whoosh!
The old Dharma protector with the silver saber was very fast, and five seconds after Happy entered the other tunnel, he stepped into the extremely cold cave as well.
“Hmm?”
Right when he entered the ice cold world, the Dharma protector with the silver saber immediately noticed that the situation in this cave was completely different from the one in the other cave.
One was extremely hot, and the other extremely cold!
The former was alright. After all, he was used to being in an environment where he had furnaces burning at high heats around him, and it was not that much colder in that cave.
Besides, the unique qi cultivation of the mighty northern clan allowed them to be able to move at will in hot environments. That was why even when they fought against Fire Qilin, the hot flames that spread out from it had a hard time causing damage to them.
But the situation in the extremely cold cave was different.
Right after entering, the Dharma protector who had stayed for a long time in the snow plains in the north felt a chill that seeped into his bones. The skin that was exposed instantly turned red.
“This cold is something that will freeze a normal person’s blood and true qi, which will reduce their mobility. The evil cult truly has a lot of amazing genii to be able to create such an environment.”
Even though the Dharma protector was a little amazed, it was still difficult for any sort of environment to bring him down. His eyes were redirected to a trail of clear footprints on the ground in the extremely cold cave. He stopped scowling, and the wrinkles on his brow were no longer as prominent.
He was following a youngster at Moksha Realm. His foundation in martial arts was not enough, and if he entered such a dangerous place rashly, it would be very difficult for him to travel any distance.
“Hmph! I’d like to see where you can run.”
With one tap against the ground, the Dharma protector shot into the extremely cold cave.
Even though his speed was astonishing, compared to while he was outside, his speed in the cave was much slower. Still, with each step he took, he traveled several feet forward. He ran along the clear tracks and went after Happy into the tunnel.
Based on the density of the footprints, Happy’s movement speed had definitely been reduced by more than seven-tenths of its original!
Each three or so feet he took, he left behind a deep footprint on the ice, which made it difficult for the old Dharma protector to see him as someone who was pretty good at martial arts.
But that was how it worked in this place.
There was a faint smile on the face of the Dharma protector with the silver saber. His weapon had a layer of frost on it, which made him look even colder and more aggressive!
In his mind’s eye, he was able to see Happy’s true qi not circulating smoothly and making it difficult for him to flee.
But what made him puzzled was that even though he had followed the footprints for more than half a minute, he still had not discovered Happy.
The Dharma protector finally noticed that there was something off!
And there was indeed something off.
Based on the distance between the footprints left on the ground, Happy should not have been able to run quickly. The Dharma protector’s speed had been affected, but he was still several times faster than the youth.
Logically speaking, he should have long since caught up to Happy.
He turned his head around to look.
The Dharma protector scowled and finally noticed that he had been set up.
The entrance was nearby.
He had actually taken a huge circle based on the tracks on the ground.
“Brat, you sure have some skill with you. Not bad. It’s no wonder why you could snatch Heaven Crystal from Sword Sect…”
The disdainful look in the Dharma protector’s eyes faded away, and he looked around the area carefully. Soon, he saw a trail of faint tracks in a very inconspicuous place.
He followed after those tracks.
But he still returned to the same spot.
“Damn it!”
He was deceived again!
With fury in him, the Dharma protector could sense that the silver saber in his hand had become incredibly cold, and his palm had almost been frozen.
The extremely cold environment was much worse than the extremely hot cave next door. He had to constantly use up his qi, and even though he could replenish some of it by circulating his qi cultivation technique, it was met with a lot of resistance when he tried to use it.
Besides, as time passed, a bit of cold poison was slowly invading his body, and the depletion of his qi was gradually increasing. The Dharma protector was already having a hard time moving around the place.
If he continued staying here, his body might go through some degree of discomfort.
Just when the Dharma protector was about to go and find the exit to leave the place for a while so that he could heal his body, his ears twitched, and he heard a faint sound in a part of the tunnel not too far away.
Whoosh!
The idea which had just been born disappeared without a trace. The Dharma protector quickly rushed over without hesitation.
Right when he reached the mouth of the cave, a cold sword light rushed to the entrance. It was very dazzling.
There was not a single sound of wind or breathing, but the timing was impeccable. The speed at which Happy attacked with the sword and his timing of drawing his sword shocked even the Dharma protector.
‘He’s good!’
He cried out in surprise and flicked his wrist. Then, he swung his silver saber so closely to himself that it grazed his face, and he positioned it in front of himself to block a series of quick slashes that were so fast that it was dazzling.
Naturally, the Dharma protector did not know that ever since Happy mastered Nine Yang Divine Skill, his qi cultivation returned to the state of when it seemed that he had yet to begin training, which was why he did not notice beforehand that his actions were already in Happy’s control.
It was also the reason why he had to suffer through Happy’s quick strokes in a passive position.
Clinging sounds rose nonstop.
Happy’s quick slashes increased in speed because of the boost from the fourth-echelon Golden Gloves. With the damage from Seventh Sword and an Origin Leopard Pill, his damage exceeded thirty thousand points, and it was not at all inferior to the attacks from a martial artist at the peak of Inaction Realm.
The series of quick slashes might not have seemed like much, but the thunderous bangs that erupted later and the increasingly powerful sword glares violently destroyed the frost on the silver saber.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Frost flew everywhere!
The unexpected force might not have been able to numb the purlique of the Dharma protector, who had fought in wars for many years, but under the fierce and quick offense, he still temporarily lost his ability to counterattack.
The Dharma protector was forced back repeatedly, and when he sucked in a breath into his lungs, his true qi almost froze over!
When he fixed his eyes on his attacker, the youth unthinkingly pulled back his sword, turned around, and ran into the tunnel.
“Brat, where do you think you’re running?!”
The Dharma protector’s face was red with rage.
The mighty northern clansmen were short-tempered, and they could not tolerate even the smallest slight against them. Right now, he had been toyed around by a junior, and when they faced each other in combat, he was forced a few steps back. He did not even manage to counterattack! This was a first in the second half of the Dharma protector’s life.
The anger was stuck in his chest, and it nearly made him explode. There was no way he could endure it!
With a roar, he chased after Happy and went into the tunnel.
As anger burned in his heart, the Dharma protector did not notice that the speed at which they executed their qi cultivation techniques was actually about the same. In fact, when Happy turned around and left, he seemed to have a slight advantage in terms of speed, and his actions were a little smoother.
