Chapter 9

Update Time: February 20, 2013

Mo Yu's strong hand tightly gripped a protruding rock, his feet braced against a depression, and his body pressed as low as possible to avoid the mountain wind. He panted slowly to recover his strength. To reduce the burden, he carried nothing but a dagger. Not knowing how long it would take to reach the summit, conserving energy was undoubtedly the wisest choice. But after a brief rest, he set off again.

Gradually, his breathing became more rapid. The higher he climbed, the more fierce and cold the mountain wind became, and the fog grew thicker. The rocks, perpetually shrouded in damp mist, were cold and slippery, requiring more effort to climb and greater caution in movement. A single misstep could result in a fatal fall. At this moment, Mo Yu's greatest enemy was the depletion of his physical strength. His muscles ached and tingled with fatigue, but he could only grit his teeth and persevere, conserving every bit of energy to maintain a relatively steady pace. However, his speed continued to slow.

As time passed, his fatigue grew heavier. The only solution was to rest and replenish his strength. But before climbing, to reduce the burden, Mo Yu had left his backpack and other items on a tree, carrying only the dagger. Without food, he could not replenish his energy. Continuing upward might lead to death. If he chose to descend, being careful, he could safely reach the foot of the mountain before exhausting his strength, rest, and then continue climbing after replenishing his food. The latter was clearly the more rational choice, but Mo Yu quickly dismissed it.

He had been in the mountains for seven days, and Mo Liang's injury required treatment within half a month for the best recovery. He had no time to start over! Mo Yu gritted his teeth, took a deep breath, and continued climbing. Time passed as he panted heavily. Another hour later, Mo Yu looked up. The fog was thicker here, and with his eyesight, he could only see a few dozen feet ahead. Beyond that, he could only see the vague outline of the mountain, which eventually disappeared from view. The summit was still far out of reach. A hint of disappointment flashed in his eyes. He tightly gripped the dagger in his right hand, inserted it into the rock wall, took a deep breath, and his pale face flushed abnormally. The wound on his shoulder throbbed with pain, clearly due to overexertion.

In such a dire state, with the increasingly steep terrain and the distant summit, others might have felt despair, but not Mo Yu. To survive until today, he had endured countless hardships. After escaping into the Four Seasons City with Mo Liang, he had silently vowed that no matter what, he would never give up the will to live before dying.

Before dying, a simple prefix, but it represented his unwavering will to live!

The mountain wind grew stronger, howling past his ears like the demonic screams of a fiend. The temperature dropped with the increasing height, making it even harder to withstand in the howling wind. The depletion of his strength made Mo Yu's body increasingly fatigued, but he could only keep climbing to promote blood circulation and maintain his body temperature. If he stopped, his body temperature would drop rapidly. If he rested too long, he might never be able to leave.

Mo Yu gritted his teeth, quickly moved his left hand, reached out to grip a protruding rock above, and pushed off with his foot while pulling the dagger out with his right hand. In the next moment, he could reinsert the dagger into the rock wall. But as he pulled the dagger out, his foot slipped, and his entire body's weight suddenly shifted to his left arm. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, but he was already weak, and his left arm had an old injury. In the crisis, Mo Yu's left arm instinctively tightened, but almost simultaneously, he let out a pained groan, his left arm suddenly went limp, and his body plummeted downward!

His face instantly turned deathly pale, and his eyes filled with deep fear, which then turned to boundless anger!

He had struggled to live until today, how could he die here!

Mo Liang was waiting for him. If he died here, how could he survive in this cold and cruel world!

Driven by this fear or perhaps the strange anger in his heart, Mo Yu let out a deep roar from the depths of his throat, like a dying lone wolf. His body and flesh suddenly trembled, and a faint warmth appeared, giving his weak and powerless body an astonishing burst of strength! In this roar, he tightly gripped the dagger and plunged it into the rock wall, the speed of his fall suddenly slowed. The dagger scraped against the rock wall, producing a grating sound, and he slid down another dozen meters. He then braced his foot against a protruding rock and used all his strength to stop his rapid descent. His arms, waist, and knees were torn, and blood dripped down.

The sound of stones falling below gradually faded away. Only then did Mo Yu let out a long breath. Since entering the Four Seasons City, he had never been so close to death. The feeling of life coming to an end brought a long-forgotten familiarity, but also deep fear. But as he regained his senses, he quickly felt the pain from his body and the profound fatigue. The sudden burst of strength seemed to have been exhausted in his struggle for survival, and the tearing of his shoulder wound brought unbearable pain. The continuous loss of blood, combined with his weak state, left him unable to continue climbing.

Although he had avoided falling to his death, it now seemed he could not escape death.

A forced, bitter smile appeared on Mo Yu's lips. Was he going to die?

His eyes were filled with unwillingness, but they gradually dimmed. He did not give up the will to live, but in this dire situation, he could not help but feel despair, staying here to await death.

This way of dying, compared to falling to his death, might be even more cruel! Mo Yu turned his face slightly, thinking with a touch of mockery. But at that moment, a small patch of green appeared in his field of vision. His dim eyes suddenly burst into a fiery glow, a desperate yearning for life in the midst of despair! Upon closer inspection, this small patch of green was a type of moss growing on the rock wall, surviving on the moisture brought by the fog, much thicker and juicier than the moss he usually saw.

Mo Yu's stomach immediately rumbled.

For someone who had struggled to survive since childhood, determining whether a type of moss was toxic was simple. Often, these unassuming things could serve as food and provide a significant amount of energy. Perhaps it was a stroke of luck in his dire situation, but this small patch of moss was non-toxic and close enough to reach with his arm. Mo Yu tried to suppress his excitement, took a deep breath, and waited for his weak body to gather some strength. He extended his left hand to the moss, and the pain from his shoulder wound intensified, but he failed to pull it out by the roots, only managing to grab a handful of thick moss leaves.

But at this moment, Mo Yu was no longer shocked by the moss's surprisingly developed root system. The full, cool, and sticky liquid on his hand instantly doubled his hunger! He didn't bother to clean the moss leaves, swallowing them whole and chewing vigorously. Surprisingly, the moss was not bitter; the abundant juice was slightly sweet and very tough, requiring a lot of chewing to break down. The cool, sticky juice flowed down his throat into his empty stomach, carrying the chewed moss, but instead of reducing his hunger, it made it worse. However, he chewed slowly and carefully, knowing that this was the only way for his body to quickly absorb the energy.

After the first mouthful, he immediately grabbed another and put it in his mouth. The small patch of moss was eaten in seven or eight bites, and although his hunger was still present, it had significantly decreased. A faint warmth began to spread in his stomach, a sign that his strength was slowly recovering. The healing speed of his bleeding wounds also seemed to have increased.

Mo Yu's eyes grew brighter. He knew that he finally had a chance to survive. Moss rarely grows alone, and since there was a patch here, there must be more nearby! If he could find them, he could gradually recover his strength and even continue climbing!

Perhaps because of the food, Mo Yu's resistance to the cold improved. After resting for a while and regaining some strength, he moved cautiously in the direction of the moss. It seemed his luck had turned. Soon, he found another patch of moss, which he ate, and then continued in that direction.

After half an hour of stopping and moving, Mo Yu had eaten seven or eight clumps of moss, and his hunger finally disappeared. The substance in the moss seemed to greatly accelerate the healing of his wounds. In a tingling sensation, he could almost feel the rapid growth of flesh and blood, an astonishing effect. But at that moment, the rock wall to his left suddenly disappeared. Mo Yu was momentarily stunned. When he used the dagger to see the other side of the rock wall, his face froze. The rock wall suddenly became as smooth as a mirror, as if cut by a sharp blade. The moss grew densely on the rock wall, extending into the fog and disappearing into the distance. The humidity in the air also suddenly increased.

Mo Yu frowned, then realized what had happened. During his climb, his direction was not a straight line upward; he adjusted his path based on the changes in the rock wall. Over time, this had led him far from his initial climbing position. Additionally, he had been moving horizontally along the direction of the moss, and now he had reached the other side of the mountain, between two peaks, as if cut by a heavenly sword. Below was the surging Cloud River. The river's steam and the surrounding fog had created this unique moss, allowing Mo Yu to escape his dire situation.

But at that moment, he suddenly looked up, and his eyes lit up with joy! Indeed, the moss extended upward, and he didn't know where it ended. Mo Yu already knew that this moss had an incredibly developed root system, making it extremely difficult to pull out, deeply embedded in the rock, and strong enough to support an adult's weight! This meant he could use the moss to climb upward!

Mo Yu took a deep breath, calmed his excitement, and inserted the dagger into the rock wall with his right hand. Then, he grabbed a clump of moss with his left hand and began to move slowly. He braced his foot against a clump of moss, and with a slight effort, it held firm. He gradually released his right hand, transferring his entire weight to the moss. The dagger was nearby, and if anything went wrong, he could grab it before falling.

But it turned out that his caution was unnecessary. Hanging from the moss, it remained firmly attached to the rock wall, not budging at all. He tried to apply a bit of force, confirming that the moss was strong enough to support his climb, and his joy grew. He pulled out the dagger, placed it on his body, grabbed a clump of moss above, and used his feet to push himself upward. Even though he was cautious, his speed was much faster than before. After climbing a few dozen feet, the moss continued to grow upward, and his speed gradually increased.

On the smooth, knife-like rock wall, thick clumps of moss grew densely. Mo Yu pressed his body against the wall, using his limbs, like a giant gecko, crawling into the thick fog toward the summit of the mountain!

He had a vague feeling that this time, he would definitely reach the summit!

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[Third chapter of the day! The new book has risen to third place on the list, thank you all for your support! Let's keep pushing forward! Request for favorites, red votes, and donations!]

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