Cultivation begins with ice harvesters

Chapter 18: Encountering Danger

"hiss"

Before the harvesting of the ice flowers had even begun, a white snake, about the thickness of a little finger and crystal clear, lunged at his wrist with lightning speed.

This change was truly unexpected for Tong Bingfeng. After all, as a qualified cultivator, he had already exhausted all means of checking for hidden demonic beasts before harvesting them.

Furthermore, tempted by the first-grade superior ice flower, in order to ensure the integrity of the elixir as a whole, almost no effective defensive measures were prepared in advance.

Faced with such a sudden and unexpected attack, they were momentarily stunned and unable to respond effectively in the first place.

In the blink of an eye, the completely transparent snake, without any pause, successfully crossed the distance between the two.

Tong Bingfeng felt a sharp pain in his wrist, followed by a wave of numbness. His left hand, which had been attacked by the white snake, swelled rapidly, and black blood spots quickly gathered. All these symptoms indicated the highly venomous nature of the white snake.

"Firebird Talisman, Imperial Edict"

Under the dual torment of excruciating pain and poison, Tong Bingfeng's eyes widened in fury, and his initial fear vanished completely.

He immediately unleashed his only, and currently most lethal, mid-grade first-tier Firebird Talisman, and his pure mana surged forth from his dantian without reservation.

"Chirp, chirp, chirp"

Under the pull of magic, the Firebird Talisman suddenly shattered, and the Firebird spell sealed within it was released. A giant bird with wings spread and a diameter of over two meters appeared in the air.

Although the Firebird Talisman could not unleash its full power due to the natural suppression of the icy northern frontier, compared to the blurry fire snake that was summoned, the Firebird before them was truly a perfect embodiment of form and spirit.

Its sharp beak exuded a chilling aura, and under the fiery red light, it displayed even more murderous intent. Its claws, with red nails, were capable of piercing through gold and stone.

The firebird gracefully twisted its body in the air, and then, guided by Tong Bingfeng's divine sense, it transformed into a streak of fiery red light and headed straight for the white snake.

The firebird launched a surprise attack from the air, its red claws adjusting their angle from their original position, the sharp nails gleaming with barbs.

"hiss"

He was originally planning to use the snake's body to wrap around the left arm and inject the most venom into the cultivator's body in the shortest amount of time.

But when the white snake noticed the firebird's appearance, it immediately left Tong Bingfeng's left arm and returned to being a white streak of light, attempting to dodge.

"Ice Needle Talisman, go!"

Tong Bingfeng naturally couldn't just stand by and watch the white snake escape unscathed after its surprise attack. Enduring the excruciating pain in his left wrist and ignoring the rapid depletion of his mana in his dantian, he summoned two more ice needle talismans. Countless ice needles, as thick as cow hair, shot out across the sky.

Although the white snake is cunning, it is still just a demon beast with limited intelligence. Faced with such an all-round attack, it is impossible for it not to suffer any negative effects.

Although these ice needles are thin, they are, after all, made from a mid-grade first-tier ice needle talisman, which is already known for its lethality. With the added benefit of the icy weather in the northern border region, they are even more formidable.

When the ice needles land on the white snake's body, they can at least leave a small wound, and in some areas with relatively weak defenses, they can even leave penetrating wounds.

"I wonder if these antidotes have any effect in alleviating snake venom venom."

After casting three talismans in succession, Tong Bingfeng hurriedly swallowed a black antidote pill.

This kind of antidote pill is also purchased in the market, but its quality is slightly lower. It cannot even be called a spiritual pill; it is only slightly better than the antidote pills in the mortal world.

"In areas where venomous snakes are found, the chances of finding an antidote within a hundred feet are relatively high. At the very least, there should be herbs that can alleviate snake venom."

After the antidote entered his stomach, Tong Bingfeng could clearly feel a cool sensation spreading across his left arm, which alleviated the severe pain and numbness caused by the snake venom.

Unfortunately, due to the quality of the antidote pill itself, the cooling sensation was destined to be short-lived under the surging impact of the snake venom.

"Chirp"

With the time gained by the burst of ice needles that blocked the white snake's escape, the firebird let out a crisp cry, and its claws transformed into a streak of fiery red light, aiming straight for the white snake's vital spot.

As the saying goes, "Strike the snake at its seven-inch mark." No matter how the species of snake changes, the seven-inch mark is always its vital point, and this point will never change. This is the vital point of the entire snake species.

Its pair of sharp, long beaks were merciless, their target the snake's head. If they landed on it, the flames would surely cause a bloody scene.

"This snake venom is truly domineering. Apart from the Ice Flower, there are no other valuable spiritual items on this small island."

After searching, Tong Bingfeng found nothing of value. Instead, his entire left arm was rapidly swelling due to the snake venom, with patches of blood the size of a thumb. An increasingly strong, foul odor emanated from the area. His head was also beginning to be affected, causing him to become sluggish, dizzy, and sway, placing him in the early stages of unconsciousness.

"Ultimately, it was a lack of experience. If we can overcome this ordeal, we should learn from it. But I wonder if there will be a next time?"

"Since all of this started because of the Ice Flower, how can we just give it up to someone else?"

Before losing consciousness, looking at the white snake, which was also on the verge of death under the ravages of the firebirds, the anger in his heart finally eased slightly. He barely mustered his last strength and slowly walked towards the first-grade high-quality ice flower.

Before finally losing consciousness, he pulled it out, stuffed it whole into his mouth, chewed it hastily, and forced it into his stomach. Tong Bingfeng then completely lost consciousness.

A quarter of an hour later, the firebirds that had been ravaging the island were completely exhausted by the spiritual power contained in the talisman. They turned into a wisp of white smoke and vanished into the world without leaving a trace.

The once ferocious white snake had been cut into three pieces of different lengths and sizes, with a large amount of foul-smelling red snake blood splattered within a radius of several feet.

This ordinary little island, located on the icy plains of northern Xinjiang, has naturally returned to peace, and the scars of battle have been healed over time.

Hidden by the hurried vegetation, a dying cultivator collapsed on the island, attracting no attention from any other cultivators or demonic beasts.

Only the occasional rise and fall between the chest and abdomen represents a tiny bit of life, and the interval between each rise and fall is getting longer and longer.

In fact, this is the most cruel reality of the Northern Ice Region, and also a microcosm of the reality of the entire cultivation world. The confrontation and hunting between cultivators and demonic beasts is mutual.

Looking across the entire cultivation world, almost every moment, different cultivators in different regions and locations are losing their lives for various reasons.