Finally, they breathed a sigh of relief and couldn't help but smile at each other, their faces filled with the joy of surviving a disaster and the lingering fear.
Mu Fengting didn't have time to brush the snow off his head and face, and only asked with concern, "Are you hurt anywhere?"
Mo Xi tried to move her stiff limbs. Apart from her back aching from being jostled around, she was not injured anywhere, which was extremely lucky.
She shook her head solemnly and said, "I owe my life entirely to you this time." She thought to herself: When Mu Fengting was clinging to the rock with one hand, he could have easily abandoned her to save himself, but he didn't. He truly is a good teammate.
Mu Fengting smiled and said, "I'm glad you appreciate it."
Mo Xi laughed, "Aren't you angry with me? It's all because I wanted to come see the snow lotus that we got into danger."
Mu Fengting shook his head and laughed easily, saying, "Miss Mu wants to see rare flowers, and the Mountain God of Shu Mountain is going to have an avalanche. How could I possibly be the one to blame?"
Mo Xi laughed from the bottom of her heart, thinking to herself: This cheeky mouth isn't entirely without charm.
Perhaps because they had gone through life and death together, the two of them abandoned their usual formalities and spoke to each other in a relaxed and casual manner.
Mo Xi was about to stand up and tidy herself up when, unexpectedly, she heard a soft "crack" and a section of snow beneath her suddenly collapsed. Mo Xi swiftly grabbed the dagger, trying to steady herself, but the snow around the dagger also crumbled.
Whether they fell into a crevice in the mountainside or not, the two continued to plummet. Soon, darkness enveloped them, and the cold grew increasingly biting, eventually becoming unbearably frigid. They fell faster and faster, the abyss seemingly endless…
Snowfield Ice Cave
( ) The two plummeted rapidly, and after an unknown amount of time, they finally plunged into the water with a splash. The water was incredibly cold, its chill penetrating to the bone.
Mo Xi wasn't a strong swimmer. Suddenly, she sank into the darkness, the icy water rushing to her mouth and nose, filling her with fear. Just then, she felt someone grab her shoulder and pull her upwards. Mo Xi knew that the worst thing about water rescues was when the person being rescued struggled in terror, desperately holding onto the rescuer and preventing them from moving freely, leading to a tragic situation where both could sink. Therefore, she forced herself to relax, letting Mu Fengting pull her to the surface.
Finally able to breathe freely, Mo Xi took a deep breath, but because she inhaled too forcefully, she choked on water and couldn't help but cough several times. At this moment, a warm and clear voice came to her ears: "Don't be afraid, relax, I'll take you ashore."
Feeling slightly relieved, Mo Xi, unable to discern directions in the darkness, could only choose to trust him.
The two swam for a while, but due to the extreme cold in the water and the fact that their escape from the avalanche had greatly depleted their strength, they swam slower and slower. Eventually, their senses became numb, and they could only force themselves to repeat mechanical movements.
Mo Xi didn't know how long he had been swimming when he felt completely exhausted. Just then, Mu Fengting excitedly exclaimed, "We've arrived!" Even with his profound skill, his voice trembled slightly due to the extreme cold.
She then felt Mu Fengting climb ashore, and a moment later she heard him say softly, "Give me your hand."
Mo Xi did as instructed.
Mu Fengting's hands were thick and strong. Mo Xi had just felt a great force coming at her when she was lifted out of the water. She thought to herself: The structure of this cold pool should be like the Water Cube, not a shallow beach.
This place resembled a cave. The two slowly groped their way through the darkness, finally reaching the edge. Mo Xi touched it lightly with his palm; it was smooth, hard, and incredibly cold, with a slightly sticky feel against his skin—undoubtedly an ice wall. They must have fallen into an ice cave inside the mountain.
She said softly, "We can only take it one step at a time now. We don't even know if we'll be able to find a way out."
Mu Fengting said, "Yes. The ice wall here is at least a hundred feet high, and it's so dark. There's no way we can climb it."
Both of them were seasoned veterans who had just escaped death in a thrilling ordeal. Although they were hungry, cold, and exhausted, they remained relatively calm.
As they continued along the ice wall, Mu Fengting always led the way. Mo Xi knew he was doing this to scout ahead, and she was very grateful.
After walking for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, they finally saw a glimmer of light coming through the distance, and both of them were immediately invigorated.
Driven by the light and their own will to survive, the two quickened their pace. Sure enough, the further they walked, the brighter it became.
Mu Fengting said, "The light inside the mountain indicates that there is an exit."
Mo Xi nodded and said, "I hope so."
Suddenly, a bright light shone from not far away, so bright that they could barely open their eyes.
Mo Xi quickly covered her eyes with her hands, stopped walking, and after adjusting her vision for a moment, continued walking forward.
Turning along the ice wall, a breathtaking view suddenly opened up before us. It was a huge natural ice cave.
Inside the cave, ice pillars, ice cones, icefalls, ice stalagmites, and ice flowers of various shapes sparkle and dazzle under the sunlight, forming a magnificent natural ice sculpture world that is mesmerizing.
The icefall cascaded down from the highest point of the ice wall, divided into five tiers, each resembling a frozen pool. Together, it looked like a miniature glacier, shimmering with a pale green light. Mo Xi thought it looked like a giant, slightly melting mint ice cream sundae. (Little Mo is truly extraordinary; she can associate everything with food…)
The ceiling was covered with icicles and stalagmites of all sizes, which refracted the sunlight and sparkled like diamonds. The edges of the large icicles were striped, like flowing water, forming this magnificent scene.
The ice flowers are even more peculiar, resembling magnified, irregular hexagonal snowflakes. Some are like spider webs condensed around the caves near the ice walls. Others resemble clumps of shrubs growing throughout the ice caves, taking root wherever they land and blooming everywhere.
The colorful icicles resembled solidified fountains, unexpectedly gushing forth from the ground.
Other colorful ice vortex tubes, ice grapes, ice crystal sheets, and so on are too numerous to mention.
Both of them marveled at the sight, but they couldn't take a closer look, as their immediate priority was to find an exit.
Further on, they found themselves facing a massive ice wall. It was about three zhang (approximately 10 meters) high, flat as a mirror, and completely transparent, with countless tiny cracks running through it. Sunlight filtering through shimmered with a faint, pale blue glow. It looked like a giant, thickened glass curtain wall. On the other side of the wall lay the vast expanse of sea and sky that the two longed for.
Mo Xi said, "Let's look for other readily available exits."
Mu Fengting nodded and began searching carefully.
Both men thoroughly searched the cave, only to discover with disappointment that this enormous ice mirror was likely their only exit. Visual estimation alone couldn't accurately determine the ice mirror's thickness, but it certainly wasn't thin. Both men's martial arts skills were significantly diminished compared to usual, so whether they could break through the ice mirror remained uncertain.
Therefore, Mu Fengting said, "Let's rest for a while and recover our strength. Then we'll try to break the ice wall together."
Mo Xi nodded. After a series of harrowing ordeals, she was utterly exhausted. Her clothes were cold and soaked, clinging to her skin, cold and heavy, making her extremely uncomfortable. Mo Xi found a spot on the thinner ice to sit down, and was just about to use her internal energy to warm herself when she suddenly noticed two drops of fresh blood on the ground. Surprised, she looked at Mu Fengting and saw that there were indeed traces of blood seeping from his palm. She quickly said, "Your hand is injured." She knew it must have been from when he was holding onto her with one hand and gripping the rocks with the other.
Mu Fengting dismissed it, saying, "This little injury is nothing to worry about."
Mo Xi said, "Come here. I'll bandage your wounds." She didn't like owing people favors, especially not the life-saving grace; she wanted to repay whatever she could.
Mu Fengting smiled and sat down next to her.
Mo Xi pulled a metal can about half the size of her palm from her pocket. Using a dagger, she scraped away the thick layer of sealing wax, unscrewed the can, and found the contents completely dry, without a trace of moisture. There was a small bundle of gauze, a small packet of salt, a small bottle of wound medicine, a needle and thread, and a tinderbox. This first-aid kit had saved her from countless desperate situations, and Mo Xi always carried one with her when she went out.
She first sprinkled some salt on Mu Fengting's palm, then thought for a moment and said, "Wait here, I'll go back to the cold pool and get some water to clean your wound." Although it was a minor injury, it would be terrible if it got infected.