24: Icefield

“In the Star Sea, there are also extraordinary beings that possess energy crystals. There is no [Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy] in the Star Sea like there is in the Great Wilderness, so I wonder how they condense energy crystals.”

“There are too many unknowns.”

Lost in thought,

Qin Jin turned around and quickly walked towards the Deep Driller.

“Even with the aid of Votive Power, I am still too weak,”

he muttered to himself.

“It’s not just my strength; my knowledge, vision, insight, and status are all too weak.”

“If I had a certain level of support in the Federation, I could even organize a specialized large-scale team for research. Who knows how much efficiency could be improved?”

“I need to constantly improve myself to achieve my initial vision.”

“Fortunately,”

“there’s still plenty of time.”

He exhaled a long breath, his eyes firm, and he clenched his fist slightly: “In this short time since entering the Great Wilderness, I have already gained a lot. What I need to do now is to transform all of this into the foundation for my own growth.”

“One day,”

“all problems will be solved easily.”

His hand gripped the protrusion on the Deep Driller. With a push, he climbed up several times and returned to the cockpit.

With a slight thought, his professional panel appeared.

“These three professions constitute my current strength.”

“In the time to come, besides cultivating, I can also try some things to see if I can trigger the generation of a fourth profession.”

The Deep Driller charged forward in large strides.

Qin Jin began a new round of cultivation.

The steadily increasing numbers on the panel possessed a unique charm, serving as the best medicine to boost motivation.

Only through arduous cultivation!

…

Qin Jin completely entered a state of arduous cultivation.

This time, besides taking time each day to return to the Mining Star to check if anyone was looking for him, he even stayed in the Great Wilderness at night.

The secret medicines and incense purchased from the platform gradually arrived. Apart from necessary rest, he devoted himself wholeheartedly to his cultivation.

Before the Great Sun rose, he was already operating his Breathing Method to temper his physique. After nightfall, he began practicing his Visualization Method to sharpen his spirit.

The Deep Driller followed its route, drawing closer and closer to the location of the great battle that had been summarized.

During this period, Qin Jin encountered many fierce beasts.

As a Martial Artist, martial combat was essential. He no longer used the Deep Driller to fight enemies but personally engaged in battle, tempering himself in true, fierce clashes.

Of course,

if he encountered an opponent whose strength disparity exceeded his imagination, he wouldn't stubbornly resist to the end. He would either use Votive Power to conceal himself and retreat, or he would pilot the Deep Driller, using all his methods to swiftly kill the enemy with a thunderous strike.

Along the way, Qin Jin even saw some rare fruits and exotic treasures. He picked the fruits and recorded the locations of the treasures.

In this short journey, his gains were immense.

The primitive survival environment and pure cultivation undisturbed by others cleansed his mind, making it even purer.

Having been in the Great Wilderness for a long time, Qin Jin's appearance was somewhat disheveled, but his eyes grew brighter and brighter, and his spirit, energy, and vitality continuously ascended.

On the seventh day after departing from the Si Huo Tribe,

with the Deep Driller standing beside him, Qin Jin set up a charcoal fire and took out the fierce beast meat he had hunted, preparing a wilderness meal.

The burning of primitive wood produced a unique aroma.

The meat chunks were constantly turned, seasoned, and the charred aroma of the barbecue was tantalizing.

Qin Jin directly used his hands, grabbing the roasted meat and devouring it. While feeling satisfied, his gaze turned towards the direction the Deep Driller was facing.

“I haven’t seen any fierce beasts for more than half a day.”

“Most fierce beasts act on instinct and will choose to flee directly when they sense danger.”

“The battle between those two terrifying beings likely cleared out a safe zone.”

“This direction should be correct.”

The final route summarized from the memories of the four individuals could only be considered roughly complete.

Within the Great Wilderness, the geographical environment was complex, and there were no obvious markers. Even though Qin Jin's speed was faster than those fleeing tribesmen, it still took him a considerable amount of time to search in reverse.

However, he was not impatient; he remained calm.

Because, every day, he could feel his own progress.

After eating and tidying up, Qin Jin boarded the Deep Driller and continued his journey.

After traveling for about half an hour,

Qin Jin stopped operating his Breathing Method as the mining machine's alert sounded.

The Deep Driller's scanning module had been continuously active, gathering information about the surroundings.

Now, upon entering this area, the surrounding temperature had dropped.

He stopped cultivating, piloted the Deep Driller, and focused his mind.

Continuing along the planned route, accompanied by the scanning module's alerts, the surrounding temperature dropped lower and lower. Some plants even had white frost on them.

Undoubtedly…

This was the influence of extraordinary power.

After advancing approximately five more kilometers, the Deep Driller moved forward another step, and suddenly, Qin Jin clearly perceived a spiritual pressure assailing him.

That feeling was similar to when he practiced his Visualization Method daily.

Bearing the pressure, and tempered in spirit, Qin Jin advanced fearlessly.

The surrounding temperature dropped further.

Vaguely, Qin Jin heard fierce roars, and before him, a gigantic beast that seemed to blot out the sky appeared intermittently.

That was caused by the spiritual pressure.

Qin Jin's mind was clear, unafraid of these illusions, and he continued forward.

After advancing several hundred more meters,

with a slight thought, Qin Jin used Votive Power to protect his spirit. The pressure sharply decreased, and all illusions dispersed, like the clouds parting to reveal the sun. His gaze fixed on the front, and suddenly narrowed.

What met his eyes was an ice plain!

This was originally a wilderness, with trees standing tall and vegetation growing abundantly, but at this moment, within a certain range, everything was frozen beneath ice crystals, as if transformed into vivid, lifelike specimens.

“It seems that the two Great Suns in the sky might have been obstructed in some way. For the Great Wilderness, they only functioned like a normal sun.”

“Otherwise, even if this was a remnant of an extraordinary being, it should not have been able to form this ice plain in the face of the sunlight cast by the Great Sun Golden Crow.”

This was the first thought that came to Qin Jin's mind.

His gaze followed the ice plain, finally focusing on its center.

There, an ice mountain stood.

The ice mountain was situated there, its upper ice crystal clear and transparent. Buried beneath the ice crystal was an incredibly massive beast, its body coiled in a twisted posture.

It was the Three-Headed Strange Python!

“Its corpse really remained here.”

Qin Jin felt excited and observed carefully.

The Three-Headed Strange Python's body was covered in wounds, its scales shattered, and its flesh and blood mangled. Even the blood that gushed out was frozen within the ice crystals, creating a somewhat gruesome scene.

At the foremost part of the python's body,

its three python heads were either low or high, resting together, each with a different, ferocious expression.

The only thing they had in common was…

The top of all three python heads had been cut open, with gaping holes and bloody flesh.

It looked as if they had been intentionally damaged, and something had been taken from within the python heads.

“It’s the crystal cores.”

Qin Jin instantly guessed.

“It seems that the Horse-bodied Human-faced God took its crystal cores after slaying it.”

“All three python heads have wounds. Did it cultivate three crystal cores?”

Having figured this out, Qin Jin didn't feel discouraged.

When he set out, he had already prepared for the corpse to be taken by the Horse-bodied Human-faced God.

But the battle of such beings was extraordinary; their blood dripping onto plants could create exotic treasures, and Qin Jin had come precisely for those.

“The blood, flesh, bones, and scales are all here.”

“A great harvest!”

With a slight thought, Qin Jin removed the Votive Power's protection over his spirit.

Without the Votive Power's protection, the diminished pressure increased again. In Qin Jin's spiritual world, the Three-Headed Strange Python, buried in the ice crystals before him, seemed to come alive. Its python body coiled upwards, soaring to the sky, and its python heads lowered, staring directly at Qin Jin, their gaze extremely cold.

Spiritual pressure swept over him.

Though the dragon dies, its might remains.

Dragon species possess dragon might. Even after their demise, their corpses still contain a suppressive aura.

This Three-Headed Strange Python, having shown signs of transforming into a Flood Dragon, also possessed this characteristic.