Chapter 269: Run!

But it wasn’t enough. He still hadn’t severed the lotus. If this stalemate continued, his internal energy would eventually run dry, and he would be turned into an ice sculpture.

He looked at the transparent lotus in his hand, which provided a sliver of warmth, then at the true lotus growing there. A light flickered in his eyes.

Using his internal energy to envelop the transparent lotus, he thrust it toward the stem of the true lotus.

The moment the transparent lotus touched the stem, the latter began to melt like snow meeting fire. The transparent lotus was melting as well.

By the time the two-finger-wide stem had melted down to a mere half-finger’s width, the transparent lotus had vanished completely.

Only Yun Huizhou, being the closest, could see that the transparent lotus had melted into a dew-like substance, which was then absorbed by the true lotus.

Yun Huizhou took a deep breath, his internal energy surging through his body. He twisted in mid-air and swung his saber with all his might, hacking at the remaining sliver of the stem.

Lian Li stood by the shore, watching tensely. He knew that if Yun Huizhou failed to harvest the lotus with this strike, they wouldn’t get another chance.

The temperature in the cavern was plummeting. Both he and Yun Huizhou had exhausted a massive amount of internal energy; they couldn’t afford to stay any longer.

No matter how much energy-restoring medicine he carried, it would take half an hour to recover without meditation. Given their current rate of consumption, they wouldn’t last that long.

A screech rang out once more as the ice on the underground lake shattered from below.

The giant monster had reappeared.

Lian Li immediately lashed out at the monster with his whip.

He had always been able to project his internal energy, though not very far; however, with his recent surge in power, he could now strike from a distance. As he swung, a silver afterimage slammed heavily against the monster’s hide.

The monster’s advance faltered for a split second. In that window of opportunity, Yun Huizhou successfully severed the stem. He immediately enveloped the true lotus in his internal energy.

At that moment, he realized the true lotus was no longer emitting extreme cold; it could be touched like an ordinary flower.

The lotus had reached full bloom, and within its seedpod, a single crimson seed had condensed.

It was the only seed in the entire flower.

However, the temperature in the cavern continued to plummet—even faster than before.

Looking down, he saw the stem that had supported the lotus, along with all the leaves on the lake’s surface, beginning to dissolve. They turned snow-white in an instant before transforming into a frigid mist.

Within a single breath, Yun Huizhou felt the temperature drop even further.

Even the giant monster, which could burst through ice, began to move sluggishly in the extreme cold. He didn’t dare linger. The monster could rely on its physical hide to withstand the cold, but he and Lian Li could not; they were burning through their internal energy just to survive.

He swung his saber at the charging monster, forcing it back before landing next to Lian Li.

Yun Huizhou sheathed his blade across his back, and Lian Li quickly pulled out a pouch to store the lotus.

Without a word, the two bolted toward the tunnel.

Behind them, the monster pursued relentlessly.

The transparent lotus, which could have easily bypassed the creature’s defenses, was gone. In this freezing subterranean space, killing the beast was impossible. Furthermore, their internal energy was nearly spent; they had no intention of fighting if they could simply flee.

Yun Huizhou pulled Lian Li along as they sprinted through the tunnel. Having practiced dual cultivation, their internal energies complemented each other, allowing them to move even faster than Yun Huizhou could have on his own.

But the monster had been driven into a frenzy, and its speed matched theirs. It barreled through the passage; had the tunnel not been so sturdy and reinforced by ice, they would have been forced to dodge a constant rain of falling debris.

Lian Li managed to pull a bottle of energy-restoring pills from his robes. He crushed the vial and caught the four pills within.

Swallowing one himself, he shouted, “Yun Huizhou, open up!”

As soon as Yun Huizhou complied, Lian Li flicked a pill into his mouth.

He tucked the remaining two into his sleeve to use once the first dose wore off. Since they couldn’t stop to meditate, the medicine’s effectiveness was severely diminished. Between the freezing cold and the frantic sprint, their internal energy wasn’t actually replenishing; the pills merely slowed the rate of depletion.

Upon reaching the exit, Yun Huizhou turned and struck the tunnel walls with his saber.

The entrance shuddered, and a shower of rocks came down. While it didn’t cause a total collapse, it was enough to hinder the monster’s pursuit.

Yun Huizhou pulled Lian Li out of the tunnel, his saber leading the way. The moment they emerged, they were met by horse bandits patrolling the area.

Without hesitation, they lashed out with their free hands.

Their weapons, bolstered by powerful internal energy, cut through the nearby bandits with ease. The men stood no chance and were cut down instantly.

Bandits further away managed to survive, as the duo didn’t dare linger to silence the witnesses. The giant monster was still hot on their heels.

They quickly oriented themselves and headed toward their hidden supplies.

Given the circumstances, they were likely to be hunted by both the bandits and the monster for some time. Being without food would only add to their troubles.

Their stash contained a good amount of dry rations; they had left them behind earlier, fearing the dampness of the underground lake would spoil them. Reclaiming those supplies would make their flight much easier.

If they couldn’t reach them, they would have no choice but to abandon the stash and look for an opportunity to raid the bandits’ supplies.

The problem was, there was no guarantee they would run into bandits who were actually carrying provisions.

They raced toward their cache. They hadn’t even made it three hundred meters from the cave when the monster burst out of the entrance behind them.

Their emergence coincided with the arrival of nearby bandits drawn by the commotion.

Some had heard their comrades shouting about intruders, while others were simply investigating the noise, as two people had just rushed out from here.

Unaware of the danger, the bandits instinctively attacked the monster the moment they saw it.

To their surprise, the creature ignored them, its focus entirely on Yun Huizhou and Lian Li. It only struck out ruthlessly when someone directly blocked its path.

Even these brief distractions allowed Yun Huizhou and Lian Li to put more distance between themselves and their pursuer.