Chapter 16: The Annihilation Mountains

Night.

Within the Snowstone Castle of the Xueying Domain, in the study.

Dongbo Xueying sat behind his desk, while Zong Ling and Tong San were seated casually.

“Xueying, you summoned us?” Tong San asked, puzzled.

“Today, I visited the Grand Magician,” Dongbo Xueying said. “He agreed to accept Qing Shi as his direct disciple, but he made two demands—either fifty thousand gold coins, or the heart of a Silver Moon Wolf King. If we fulfill one of these, Qing Shi’s apprenticeship will be secured.”

“Fifty thousand gold coins?” Tong San’s eyes widened. “That’s outrageous! Your uncle Zong, my master, and I risked our lives countless times in our youth, yet we never accumulated much treasure. Only after your mother became pregnant did we have an unexpected windfall. Otherwise, how could your father afford the noble title and the Snow Eagle Domain? And now he just demands fifty thousand gold coins?”

Such a sum was staggering. Even a Meteor Knight would struggle to gather that much wealth.

Your parents, during their adventuring days, were among the rare few who had good fortune. Adventurers usually ventured into extremely dangerous places, where the death rate was high. Your parents were lucky to survive, allowing them to purchase their noble title and domain. Moreover, adventurers were all fearless and ruthless, which was precisely why the nobles of Yishui City, despite knowing how wealthy the Snow Eagle Domain was, never dared to covet it.

“The heart of the Silver Moon Wolf King is even harder to obtain,” Zong Ling frowned. “If it were just a lone fourth-tier magical beast, with your current strength and our support, we might have a chance. But the Silver Moon Wolf King commands a massive pack of wolves… and that pack can be even more terrifying than the Wolf King himself.”

The Wolf King alone wasn’t the real threat—it was the pack.

That was why, although the Silver Moon Wolf King was merely a fourth-tier magical beast, its corpse was worth as much as that of a fifth-tier beast.

“I plan to enter the Destruction Mountains,” Dongbo Xueying said.

“No!”

“That’s too dangerous!”

Both Tong San and Zong Ling were alarmed.

What was the Destruction Mountains?

It was the largest mountain range in the entire world, spanning four provinces. Countless magical beasts lived within, even transcendent beings. Over generations, the human empire had been unable to completely eliminate this enormous threat. In fact, the empire’s main military defenses were stationed around the mountains! The army frequently conducted large-scale exterminations along the outer edges, which was why low-tier magical beast meat could be purchased outside.

That was why first, second, and third-tier magical beast meat was relatively cheap. From the fourth-tier onward, prices skyrocketed. Only the most elite soldiers could hunt fourth-tier beasts.

“Even the army only conducts large-scale sweeps within the outermost three thousand miles of the mountains,” Zong Ling added. “Even Silver Moon Knights and Title-Bearing Knights avoid entering the Destruction Mountains. There’s little gain in the outer three thousand miles, and deeper within, you might encounter terrifying magical beasts at any moment!”

“Exactly,” Tong San chimed in. “Back in the day, your master and I never even considered venturing deep into the Destruction Mountains. If you’re planning to hunt a fourth-tier magical beast, you might not be so lucky. You could run into fifth or even sixth-tier beasts—and then you’d be dead!”

They were both very concerned.

The Destruction Mountains?

They were the ultimate stronghold of humanity’s greatest enemy—the magical beasts. Entering them was a gamble with one’s life.

“You didn’t let me finish,” Dongbo Xueying smiled. “I do plan to enter the Destruction Mountains, but I’ll only be staying within the outermost three thousand miles. Hunting magical beasts is secondary. My main target is the Scimitar Alliance!”

“The Scimitar Alliance?” Zong Ling and Tong San’s eyes lit up.

Because the army frequently swept through the outer three thousand miles, the stronger magical beasts had long retreated deeper. Usually, only lower-tier beasts remained in large numbers. Each sweep was essentially a massive battle between the army and lower-tier magical beasts… and lower-tier beasts were always replenished, with more pouring out from the deeper parts of the Destruction Mountains.

That outer three thousand miles had claimed countless human soldiers, but it had also forged many powerful warriors within the army.

“The Scimitar Alliance? These bandits hide in the Destruction Mountains, but they also dare not go too deep—they’re also in the outermost three thousand miles,” Zong Ling nodded lightly. “Moreover, the leader of the Scimitar Alliance, Gai Bin, is a Meteor Knight. He’s known for his greed and must have accumulated a great deal of treasure. And the treasure in their hideout is likely even greater. But attacking them won’t be easy.”

“Enemy is visible, we are hidden. Uncle Zong, how do you think my strength compares to Gai Bin’s?” Dongbo Xueying asked.

“You’re far stronger than him. I can hold my own against him for a while, but against you… if you truly go all out, I wouldn’t last long,” Zong Ling said with a bitter smile.

Normally, Dongbo Xueying was already at the peak of the Meteor Knight tier.

When he unleashed his power, it surged to the level of a Silver Moon Knight!

His spear techniques were nearly at the level of a master, and his cultivation techniques were passed down from the “Frost Knight” Gu Yuanhan!

“Your only weakness is lack of real combat experience,” Zong Ling continued. “Although you execute dangerous criminals in our domain, you’ve had too few life-or-death battles. And our sparring matches are just that—sparring matches.”

“I understand,” Dongbo Xueying said. “That’s why this trip to the Destruction Mountains… while searching for the Scimitar Alliance’s hideout, I’ll surely encounter many magical beasts, which will give me a chance to train.”

“Finding the Scimitar Alliance’s hideout won’t be easy.”

Zong Ling was concerned. “Along the way, we’ll encounter magical beasts repeatedly… and there’s even a very small chance of running into some powerful beasts.”

Although in the outer three thousand miles, transcendent-level or sixth-tier beasts were unlikely to appear, fifth and fourth-tier beasts occasionally did. When the army conducted sweeps, these beasts would retreat early upon sensing danger. But for someone like Dongbo Xueying adventuring alone, such powerful beasts could easily lie in ambush and strike.

“I probably won’t be that unlucky,” Dongbo Xueying said. “Besides, my spear techniques are quite defensive—I have confidence in my ability to survive.”

“And if we don’t go to the Destruction Mountains… how else can we earn fifty thousand gold coins?” Dongbo Xueying shook his head.

Want to avoid risks?

A Meteor Knight could serve as a bodyguard for a noble family, which was safe, but the annual salary was only three to five thousand gold coins. To earn tens of thousands of gold coins, one must take great risks.

“Fine,” Zong Ling said. “I’ll go with you. At least I’ve been to the outer three thousand miles several times before.”

“You’ve been there, Uncle Zong?” Dongbo Xueying’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Yes,” Zong Ling said. “After your parents bought the Snow Eagle Domain, I trained alone and went to the outer edges of the Destruction Mountains to hone myself.” As a royal of the Serpent Clan, Zong Ling had his own pride. He had always wanted to break through to the Meteor tier and had pushed himself hard.

“When you go to the Destruction Mountains, listen to your uncle Zong and don’t be careless,” Tong San advised.

…

After preparations, five days later at dawn, Dongbo Xueying and Zong Ling set out with a hundred soldiers.

The drawbridge of the castle had already been lowered.

“Brother, come back soon!” Qing Shi ran to the edge of the hilltop and shouted loudly, with Tong San standing beside him.

“Qing Shi, don’t worry. Be a good boy and listen to Uncle Tong,” Dongbo Xueying, already far away, replied.

“I will.”

Qing Shi nodded heavily, though his heart was reluctant.

Since childhood, he had never been separated from his older brother for long. This time, his brother was going away for ten days or even half a month.

He didn’t know that Dongbo Xueying was going out to earn tuition for him.

…

Dongbo Xueying’s cavalry unit traveled easily and by evening had already reached the edge of the Destruction Mountains, over nine hundred miles away.

The soldiers began setting up camp.

They started cooking dinner.

“Old Yang.”

Zong Ling and Dongbo Xueying were with a bearded man named Yang Cheng, a Terra Knight loyal to the Dongbo family and the captain of this hundred-man unit.

“Tomorrow morning, Lord Dongbo and I will enter the mountains,” Zong Ling said. “This place will be left to you.”

“Don’t worry, Master Zong, Master Dongbo,” Yang Cheng assured them. “I’ll handle this small task perfectly. But you two must be careful. Back when I was in the army, I did participate in sweeps of the outer regions of the Destruction Mountains. But those were large-scale military operations. I’ve never gone alone. And the magical beasts there charge fearlessly, like a storm… of the comrades I enlisted with, only three or four out of ten survived to retire. The rest died in the Destruction Mountains.”

Dongbo Xueying nodded.

The Destruction Mountains were indeed a forbidden zone. Only the army and desperate bandits dared to enter the outer regions. As for deeper within, even fewer dared to venture.

…

Early the next morning, just as dawn was breaking.

Dongbo Xueying, with his weapon case on his back, and Zong Ling quietly entered the Destruction Mountains on foot. Riding was impossible in the Destruction Mountains, and even a slight noise from a horse might attract terrifying magical beasts.

“Lord Dongbo, be careful,” Captain Yang Cheng and the other soldiers watched with concern as the black-clad youth and the silver-haired serpent man walked away, disappearing into the dark forests of the Destruction Mountains, until they were completely out of sight.