Cultivation begins with ice harvesters

Chapter 7: Searching for the Beast

"Everything is ready except for the final touch. With three kinds of mid-grade first-tier talismans, as long as we don't encounter any particularly powerful mid-grade first-tier demonic beasts, we'll be more than capable of protecting ourselves."

After some deliberation, Tong Bingfeng finally felt somewhat confident about embarking on his new journey to the icy northern frontier to hunt monsters and gather spiritual herbs.

Of course, compared to other orthodox hunters, his biggest flaw is that he lacks an offensive magical artifact with sufficient lethality.

Therefore, the main target of this trip is low-grade first-tier demonic beasts with limited combat power but certain value. If they happen to encounter some mid-grade first-tier demonic beasts with unremarkable combat power, they can also be considered as targets.

As all things awaken, the morning mist hangs heavy.

The chill of the northern frontier was even more biting in the early hours of the morning. On the boundless ice field, a solitary figure had already bypassed the areas where the Chen family, the masters of Ice Spirit Island, had set aside some fixed production areas of spiritual items, and was exploring deeper into the ice field of the northern frontier.

Each fixed resource point was specially developed and constructed by the Chen family, and naturally, patrols would be dispatched to search for it at fixed times to ensure the safety of the resources and spiritual objects.

Any cultivator other than the Chen family who dares to spy on or steal spiritual items from resource points will surely face their furious retaliation.

"Although the monsters in the northern seas are not afraid of the cold, they still follow the habits of monsters. Therefore, they should first seek out some locations with relatively abundant spiritual energy."

Before this, Tong Bingfeng had always been content with the status quo, honestly earning some spirit crystals by diligently collecting spirit ice to support his daily cultivation.

To ensure his own safety, he acted with extreme caution, and his activities were limited to relatively safe areas. He never explored the depths of the Ice Domain alone. His limited knowledge of the activity range of spirit beasts and the patterns of spirit herb appearances came almost entirely from some widely circulated jade slips.

As the saying goes, "What you learn from books is never enough; you must put it into practice to truly understand." Only by personally searching can one comprehend the difficulty involved. After all, monsters are living creatures that can move around, not lifeless objects that can only take hits without fighting back.

"You've been taking care of your teeth for a thousand days, but now is the perfect time for your two pairs of molars to shine!"

Faced with this boundless expanse, where there was almost no sign of life or distinction, and in this situation that should have left everyone at a loss, Tong Bingfeng's face showed not a trace of distress.

Once he was certain that he had left enough of the Ice Spirit Island and that there were no other cultivators within a hundred feet, Tong Bingfeng decisively revealed his two pairs of flawless white front teeth.

"Buzz"

As a small amount of magical power was poured into his dantian, his two pairs of large teeth began to tremble slightly at a low speed. The thin spiritual power that permeated the cold wind transformed into wisps of light wind that actively swirled around his large teeth.

Through this flow, Big Teeth's keen senses can make a relatively clear judgment about the amount of spiritual energy contained in each wisp of wind.

Of course, the whole process wasn't too comfortable. In this freezing environment, Big Teeth was in a strangely uncomfortable state.

"Hmm, the spiritual energy contained in this stream of wind is clearly more mellow, and upon closer inspection, it seems to contain a slight fishy stench unique to those who have been mingling in deep silt for a long time."

This intense, widespread discomfort didn't last long. With the clear perception anchored by the two pairs of large incisors, a distinctly unusual and outstanding spiritual power was the first to reveal itself.

Tong Bingfeng's two pairs of large front teeth naturally wouldn't let such an opportunity pass by. He decisively locked onto them and carefully determined their general flow and source in order to facilitate tracking.

Based on his previous experience in ice harvesting, and his use of Big Teeth to track and search for high-quality spiritual ice, he concluded that Big Teeth's ability to lock onto ice-attribute spiritual power is still in its early stages, and not every search will be successful in achieving its ultimate goal.

Undoubtedly, this purposeful and guided search is far more efficient than Tong Bingfeng's aimless and aimless search.

With the help of his two pairs of large teeth locking him in place, Tong Bingfeng held a first-grade mid-level ice needle talisman in one hand, ready to be activated at any time.

The North Sea ice field may seem flat and open, but the dangers hidden within are far from being as calm as they appear.

After all, in the entire Northern Frontier Sea, the true masters of this place are not the cultivators who occupy the spirit islands, but the countless and diverse demonic beasts beneath the ice.

In the eyes of cultivators, every part of a demon beast is a treasure, which can be exchanged for spirit stones to obtain the cultivation resources needed. Conversely, the same is true in the eyes of demon beasts.

With abundant blood and energy, the physical body becomes even more translucent after being nourished by spiritual power. The cultivator's body is also a precious medicine that demonic beasts crave.

Therefore, every time a cultivator hunts a demon beast or gathers a spiritual herb, it is a journey on the edge of life and death, especially for cultivators like Tong Bingfeng who lack experience, are unprepared, and act alone.

"The stench of the mud is growing stronger, indicating that we are approaching an area suspected to be inhabited by a monster."

During the tense search, half an hour passed in the blink of an eye. After looking around and searching, Tong Bingfeng found no trace of the demon beast. A hint of doubt appeared in his big eyes. As for the trace of the spiritual medicine, there was no way he could find it.

Centered on his position, all that could be seen within a hundred feet was solid ice, which on the surface was no different from an ordinary ice field.

"Since Big Teeth can clearly detect the foul smell of mud, it means that there is a perfect camouflage on this seemingly flat and solid ice surface."

"Finding traces of lurking monsters based on the slightest clues is no easy task; we can only resort to some opportunistic and efficient methods."

After looking around with his naked eye but finding nothing, Tong Bingfeng, after some deep thought, came up with a common rule from the targeted beast-hunting jade slips he had read before setting off.

After all, he was alone and time was of the essence; he had to return within a day and did not have the strength to rest on the ice. Therefore, he had no choice but to make the corresponding decision.

"You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub; today, I'll use the Ice Needle Talisman as a price to search for the possible location of a demonic beast."

"Since this monster hasn't seized the opportunity to ambush someone, its direct combat strength shouldn't be too strong. Ice Needle, go."

With a pang of heartache and reluctance, Tong Bingfeng channeled his magic power into the first ice needle talisman in his hand, which was already in an activated state. Countless fine ice needles, as thin as cow hair, shot out with him as the core, under the control and guidance of his divine sense, and barely managed to shoot out within a radius of twenty feet.

This first-tier mid-grade ice needle talisman, which was originally intended to be used to fight against demonic beasts, completely dissipated in this way. Moreover, this kind of probing search cannot guarantee success; it can only save cultivators time in their search and greatly increase the success rate.