"The water is perhaps too deep."

Feng Luochen wiped the water from his face.

His goal was simpler than the others; the book directly informed him that he was seeking a Martial Art technique.

According to the indications in the book, the Martial Art was hidden under the water.

Feng Luochen searched through several water sources in the mountains but found nothing.

In the end, only the Cold Water Pond before him remained; the pond wasn't large, but it was very deep, and the water was bitterly cold. Once a person entered, their body temperature would drop dramatically, making it impossible to withstand for long.

Feng Luochen could only use Gang Qi to protect his body to last a little longer, but having recently formed the Wuji Seal, the Gang Qi inside him was limited.

As he submerged deeper, the Gang Qi depleted more rapidly.

After about a quarter of an hour, he felt his lungs might burst and had no choice but to resurface.

Feng Luochen trembled beside the Cold Water Pond; once his hands and feet regained some feeling, he found some flint, ignited a pile of dry grass, and warmed up.

This was no way to proceed; even if he was given five more days, or even ten days or half a month, he couldn't go down.

Feng Luochen pondered while surrounded by the forest; before and after dawn, he found some wild fruits that had been nibbled by monkeys, he bit into them— the fruits were astringent and bitter, but he didn't spit them out and gulped them down.

His days in the mercenary group had turned Feng Luochen from a pampered young master into an adaptable mercenary; he was just a bit worried about his sister Feng Bailing.

His delicate sister, after entering the mountain, how could she endure such hardship?

After dawn, he attempted to enter the water again, but even during the day, the water in the Cold Water Pond was bone-chillingly cold; he managed to go just a few dozen meters deeper than at night before he had to return to the shore.

Just as Feng Luochen was at his wits' end, he smelled a fragrance, which made his stomach rumble.

He looked around—how could there be the smell of alcohol in such deep mountains and old forests? He was alert, his nostrils flaring as he tracked the source of the scent.

Soon, he discovered a dilapidated barrel, with the fragrance of alcohol wafting from it.

Feng Luochen leaned over the barrel, gathering his courage he licked a small taste and with that small lick, he felt every pore in his body open, and the depleted Gang Qi inside him surged like floodwaters bursting from a dam, his cold body instantly warmed.

Feng Luochen's eyes shined bright, he picked up the dilapidated barrel, drank all the alcohol inside, and with this gulp, a fire ignited within him. Without hesitation, he plunged into the Cold Water Pond.

As the alcohol burned in his belly transforming into abundant Gang Qi, he submerged using the Gang Qi to protect his body, going deeper until he reached the absolute bottom of the Cold Water Pond. The bottom of the pond was dimly lit, much like nighttime. Feng Luochen groped through the muddy lake floor and found something that felt like a shell.

By then, the alcohol in his belly was nearly depleted, so he kicked off from the bottom and surged out of the Cold Water Pond.

Finally, the treasure was in his hands.

He examined the shell-like object he had just acquired.

In a secluded spot in the forest, Feng Bailing also breathed a sigh of relief.

Of course, the alcohol hadn't appeared out of thin air, but was a portion of Monkey Wine Feng Bailing had sneakily taken from the Medical Cabin and brought to Feng Luochen.

Hong Xuan and Feng Luochen were not strong in actual combat experience. In Dacang Mountain, the chances of them finding treasure by themselves were very slim, so Feng Bailing could only secretly assist them.

With their respective treasures, during the next Competition Among Ten Countries, they would both be better able to protect themselves.

Feng Bailing then looked at her Medical Cabin. Due to the limited space in the first aid kit, she stored some medicinal herbs and goods, which were not convenient to keep at the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce, in the Medical Cabin.

Over time, the Medical Cabin was filled with supplies and more than ten new barrels of Monkey Wine.

Hong Xuan and Feng Luochen were close to her, so it didn't take much effort for her to find their whereabouts, but she had not found Dongfang Yong and Xiaojin.

Before noon, after Hong Xuan and Feng Luochen found their respective treasures, they thought about it and decided to descend the mountain first.

It wasn't that they didn't want to help others, but Dacang Mountain was just too vast, they lacked food and finding their companions might not necessarily be of help.

Feng Bailing did not go down the mountain, she was still searching for the whereabouts of Dongfang Yong and Dugu Xiaojin.

Half a day quickly passed, and Feng Bailing still hadn't found any traces of them. She tried communicating with the trees and plants of Dacang Mountain. After detailed communication, she finally discovered that the last known locations of Dongfang Yong and Xiaojin were both near the mountain's summit.

Could it be that the things they were searching for were all at the summit?

Feng Bailing looked up at the summit of Dacang Mountain.

Last time, Feng Bailing did not go to the summit. This time, entering the mountain during the late autumn and early winter, temperatures at the summit were lower, and there had just been a recent snowfall, covering the summit mostly in snow.

In cold conditions, the vitality of flowers and plants was weak, and some vegetation might even freeze to death, which explained why she couldn't communicate with the trees in that area.

In the 22nd century, Feng Bailing had marched under extreme conditions, so she knew that human consumption would be greater in snowy environments, and moreover, there was no source of water or food above.

According to the feedback from the plants, Xiaojin and Dongfang Yong had gone to the summit at least a day and a night ago and had not come back down, which was not a good sign.

Feng Bailing moved towards the direction of the summit without hesitation.

While Feng Bailing was looking for the two, Hua Wushang, who had returned from the foot of the mountain, also sensed that something was amiss.

He accounted for the number of Dacang Monkeys and discovered that, aside from the seven or eight Dacang Monkeys injured by vines earlier, several monkeys were missing.

The missing ones were all those who had carried food to the summit. They hadn't returned not just today, but also those from yesterday, and the astute Hua Wushang had determined that those two monkeys had been killed.

He casually plucked a leaf and blew through it.

Atop Dacang Mountain, dozens of monkeys gathered towards his location. After assembling the Dacang Monkeys, Hua Wushang headed towards the summit.

At the foot of Dacang Mountain, a horse carriage was parked. It had been two days and three nights since Feng Bailing and the others entered the mountain.

"Just now, I saw Nalan Yan'er descend the mountain. Several horse carriages from the Crown Prince Mansion transported some wooden barrels."

The dean had been secretly monitoring the activities on the mountain.

As soon as the dean spoke, Dugu Wu immediately thought of the last time Feng Bailing entered Dacang Mountain, she seemed to have also brought back some liquor.

At that time, Feng Bailing had given a pot of liquor to Princess Yong'an. After drinking that pot, Princess Yong'an's strength had dramatically improved, breaking through the Gang Qi that had been sealed in her body for many years, congealing into a Wuji Seal, and even advancing two levels.

However, last time, he and Feng Bailing had not yet wed, and he didn't investigate the origin of the liquor. This time it was different.

What's hers, hmm, is his.

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