Quick Travel to the Clouds

Chapter 618 I am a Rabbit-Eared Clan 36

Yin Yan walked slowly, his footsteps crunching on the deep snow, each step steady and powerful, leaving clear imprints.

Yun Chu, who was being led by him, struggled through the snow, her fox fur coat sweeping across the snow and covered in snowflakes, so heavy that it almost tripped her.

In the snow ahead, Shadow Hunter and his two trusted guards, who also exuded an icy aura, stood silently like rocks that had long since blended into the background.

Yin Yan stopped in front of them.

"Is this the place?" Yin Yan's voice was deep, without a trace of questioning. It seemed he was only asking for confirmation.

“Yes, Master. Location confirmed.” Shadow Hunter’s voice was extremely low, almost carried away by the wind. He pointed very discreetly to a depression not far away, deliberately disguised and concealed by a large amount of ice, snow and frozen soil.

Silver Flame Melting Gold's pupils swept almost imperceptibly across the disguise, its gaze seemingly able to pierce through the thick snow and see what was hidden deep within.

He nodded slightly, then seemed to remember the "package" in his hand, and pushed Yun Chu forward, but did not completely let go of her: "Keep an eye on her."

"Yes." A fully armored guard immediately stepped forward and stood beside Yun Chu like a cold iron pillar, an invisible and heavy pressure descending upon her.

It cut off any slim chance of her escaping into the cold wind—moreover, she was now struggling to even stand, and the heavy fox fur felt more like a gentle shackle.

Yin Yan ignored Yun Chu and walked towards the disguise point.

Shadow Hunter and another guard immediately followed, and the three of them quickly and methodically began to remove the surface camouflage.

The sound of the pickaxe breaking through the frozen soil and ice was exceptionally jarring in the silent mountain wind.

Soon, an irregular, narrow mine entrance that jutted deep into the mountain was exposed.

The cave entrance was pitch black, and inside were piles of ore that shimmered with an impure, dark metallic luster.

Yin Yan stood at the cave entrance, peering inside for a moment, his molten gold pupils revealing no emotion. He raised his hand, his fingertips almost imperceptibly tracing a wisp of icy energy.

Yun Chu was enveloped by the cold wind and could only squint, looking into the distance through the gaps in the fox fur.

Yin Yan walked back to Yun Chu's side, his gaze sweeping over her pale face beneath the fox fur coat.

Yin Yan commanded, "Go, put all the ore into your space."

Yun Chu obeyed the order and put all the ore into her spatial storage.

Yin Yan was very satisfied; this space was quite useful.

Beside the mine entrance, after confirming that all the ore had been stored in Yun Chu's space, Yin Yan's golden beast eyes swept over the group, and he ordered them to return.

The group began their journey south, heading straight for the distant Tiger City.

The ski slopes were winding and rugged, the mountain wind whipped up ice chips, and the biting cold seeped into your bones.

Yin Yan walked at the front, then suddenly stopped, listening intently to the sounds in the wind—this was not a patrol or guard posture, but a deliberately created disguise.

To conceal this clandestine mining operation and avoid alerting his tribe to the existence of the mineral source, he needed to create the illusion of a "normal hunt" on his return journey.

The time for the hunt has come.

Silver Flame's molten gold pupils instantly locked onto the commotion behind a pile of rocks ahead—several snow deer were munching on moss with their heads down, completely unaware of the approaching danger.

He calmly raised his hand to signal everyone to stop, like an experienced predator silently slithering closer.

Yun Chu was held back in place by the guards and could only observe the scene in fear through the gaps in her fox fur coat.

Yin Yan's muscles tensed abruptly, and the next second, he shot out like a streak of silver light! His hand, covered in Xuanbing claw armor, lashed out with lightning speed, and a dull cracking sound echoed in the air.

A large, muscular stag fell to the ground, its blood instantly staining the snow crimson, the pungent stench of blood spreading with the cold wind. There were no superfluous movements, only a precise strike, as if it had been rehearsed a thousand times.

The guards quickly stepped forward to process the prey, and the Shadow Hunter skillfully put the deer carcass into the animal skin bag he carried.

This is not the end.

Silver Flame continued to roam the snow track, and successively hunted down two snow eagles and a lone wolf.

Each hunt was deliberately kept within a "reasonable" range: bloodstains and footprints were quickly covered up, and the number of prey was neither too many nor too few, just like an ordinary winter hunt.

Silver Flame's golden gaze swept over Yun Chu from time to time, and his deep voice commanded without any warmth: "Take the prey with you; this is for the tribe's winter supplies."

This explanation perfectly concealed the true intentions, and any passing tribesman would mistake the mining trip for a successful hunting expedition.

The group struggled through the wind and snow; the hunt's bounty slowed their pace but also provided a natural shield.

As dusk approached, the outline of Tiger City was already faintly visible in the distance—the massive ice rock walls stood majestically in the twilight.

Yin Yan finally slowed down, signaling the team to rest for a moment.

Yun Chu huddled in the fox fur coat, the wind whispering and the faint sound of silver flames in her ears, her fear undiminished.

The majestic city gate of Tiger City, built of huge ice rocks, stood imposingly in the twilight, with two rows of bear-clan guards in heavy leather armor and holding long spears standing solemnly on both sides.

The afterglow of the setting sun reflected a cold, orange-red luster on the ice wall, but it did nothing to dispel the clamor and solemnity gathered beneath the city gate.

The heavy city gate slowly opened with the muffled sound of the winch, creaking as it crushed the ice and snow.

Yin Yan's tall figure appeared first in the shadows of the doorway, his silver-gray fur shimmering with a molten gold-like luster in the last rays of light. He held Yun Chu, wrapped tightly in a white fox fur, in his arms like a fragile trophy.

Yun Chu developed a low-grade fever due to days of fatigue and the onslaught of wind and snow. She was in a daze, her cheeks were flushed abnormally, and her breathing was somewhat rapid. Half of her face rested weakly on the cold breastplate of Yin Yan, and her eyes were tightly closed.

Shadow Hunter and the other guards followed closely behind, carrying bulging animal skin bags on their shoulders. Inside were the spoils of Silver Flame's "hunt"—the stench of blood from snow deer, snow eagles, and lone wolves mingled with the biting cold of the snow.

As soon as the group crossed the solid threshold of the city gate, a figure that was equally tall but exuded a completely different sinister aura blocked their way.

It's a black tail.

He was dressed in a magnificent and exquisite black patterned fur coat, his arms crossed, deliberately blocking the main road leading to the inner city.

On that face, which bore a resemblance to Yin Yan but was even more stern, hung a mocking smile, and its dark red vertical pupils gleamed with ill intent in the setting sun.

"Yo, isn't this our diligent Silverflame?" Blacktail drawled, his voice full of feigned intimacy and real provocation. "Leading a hunting party out in this blizzard?"

He sniffed dramatically, his gaze sweeping over the prey on the guards' shoulders, his tone suddenly turning cold, "Quite a haul! A snow deer, two snow eagles... tsk, and a lone wolf?"

"Captain Silver Flame is indeed skilled, but... is it worth personally leading a team and taking so long to get these little gadgets? The patrols in the city have become lax."

His words pointed directly at Yin Yan's "negligence of duty".

The guards immediately tensed up, especially Shadow Hunter, whose grip on his weapon tightened subtly. The atmosphere at the city gate froze instantly; even the guards instinctively held their breath, their eyes darting furtively between the two equally matched captains.

Yin Yan stopped in his tracks.

The golden beast eyes calmly looked at Black Tail, its gaze as deep as an abyss, without the slightest ripple, as if the other party were merely an insignificant stone by the roadside.

His arm, which was holding Yun Chu, remained motionless. His voice was deep and magnetic, yet so cold it could freeze the air.

"Winter is approaching, and stockpiling food for the winter is of paramount importance. Though the hunt may be small, it comes from the depths of the snowfields, far better than some of the 'warriors' in the city who only know how to boast and reap the benefits without effort." Silver Flame's tone was flat, yet every word was like a knife, precisely piercing Black Tail's reputation for laziness.