Chapter 1

The cold wind was like a knife, with the earth as its chopping board and all living things as its meat; the snow flew for thousands of miles, with the heavens and earth as its furnace, refining the world into silver.

The snow was about to stop, but the wind had not yet calmed.

In a deep, secluded valley, the snow was thick and white, and two young men were walking through it. They were not much older than sixteen or seventeen, and their bodies were already covered in snow.

The valley was uneven, and the thick layer of snow on the ground made walking very difficult. However, the two young men moved swiftly and nimbly, like fish in water.

"Zichen, are you sure you didn't make a mistake? We don't want to make a trip for nothing in this cold weather!" One of the young men suddenly spoke as they sped along.

"Don't worry, Zhaocan. I saw it with my own eyes; there's no mistake!" Zichen said confidently.

"That's good!" Zhaocan nodded.

The two sped forward, crossing valley after valley, as the snow grew heavier.

This valley was deep and remote, and in the cold winter, it was rarely visited, with all sounds of life stilled.

But on the same day, two more figures flew into the deep valley.

"Hehe, who would have thought that Zichen, known as the most cautious among the outer disciples, would also fall here!"

Both men were dressed in blue robes, with a layer of animal skin over them, very similar to the attire of the previous two.

"This is what they call knowing a person's face but not their heart, and the danger of making friends unwisely!" The other young man smiled coldly.

The two quickly disappeared into the snow.

As dusk approached and night fell, Zichen, who was leading the way, stopped.

"Have we arrived?" Seeing Zichen suddenly stop, Zhaocan's eyes sparkled with eagerness as he asked.

"Not yet, we still have one more day to go. Let's eat something, find a place without snow to rest, and continue tomorrow." Zichen shook his head, brushing the snow off his body.

Both had bags on their backs, and Zichen was taking out food from his.

"This Zichen, in such cold weather, I think we should hurry!" Zhaocan ate the dry food absentmindedly, hesitated for a moment, and finally spoke.

"What's the matter? Are you afraid someone will come and snatch it? Don't worry! This place is very remote; even fierce beasts might not find it. Otherwise, that snow ginseng wouldn't be occupied by a level-five fierce beast." Zichen grabbed a handful of clean snow from the ground and put it in his mouth, shivering from the bone-chilling cold.

"Be careful with everything. This is a five-hundred-year-old snow ginseng, after all. What if the ice bear suddenly wakes up from its hibernation and eats the snow ginseng?" Zhaocan said worriedly.

"That's unlikely." Zichen hesitated.

Although the probability of such an event was low, it wasn't impossible.

"Alright, let's go!"

To be on the safe side, Zichen didn't hesitate and decided to continue the journey, which also relieved Zhaocan.

Battling the cold wind and flying snow, the two moved forward again.

They hadn't walked for long when two figures appeared at the place where the two had previously stopped.

"They stopped here earlier. How dangerous, it's a good thing we were delayed by eating." Looking at the messy, deep footprints on the ground, both men's faces changed.

If they hadn't been delayed by eating, they might have been discovered.

"Let's slow down and wait for Zhaocan's signal!"

The night passed without incident.

The next morning, the sky was bright, the cold wind howled loudly, and the snow was even heavier.

Zichen and Zhaocan were already standing on a hilltop.

"Have we arrived?" Zhaocan's eyes were filled with eagerness.

"Yes!" Zichen nodded, a hint of excitement in his eyes. He pointed to the hill ahead and said, "It's right there. I found it by chance while searching for medicinal herbs. After crossing that hill and reaching the valley, we'll be there."

Both were outer disciples of the Lingwu Sect, and for years they had been striving to enter the inner sect. Now, a single snow ginseng could help them break through and enter the inner sect, where they could learn advanced martial arts and techniques, and gain more resources.

For the outer disciples of the Lingwu Sect, the inner sect was their goal. Now, with only one hill separating them from their goal, Zichen was very excited.

"Take out the soul-scattering powder now; we're about to set off." Zichen shouted, "I, Zichen, am coming to the inner sect of the Lingwu Sect!"

"Haha, I, Zhaocan, am coming too!"

Zhaocan laughed heartily, walking towards Zichen and extending his arms, as if to give a brotherly hug.

Zichen laughed and opened his arms.

In a few steps, Zhaocan reached Zichen, and a cold light flashed in his laughing eyes. His hands, which were supposed to embrace Zichen, emitted a faint white light.

This was true qi.

"Boom!"

In an instant, a sudden change occurred. Zichen didn't have time to react and was hit by a powerful force, falling backward onto the hilltop, leaving a human-shaped imprint in the thick snow.

Zhaocan's sneak attack instantly injured Zichen.

"Spit!"

A mouthful of fresh red blood spewed out, and Zichen's face turned pale.

"You!"

Zichen looked at Zhaocan, wanting to say something, but at that moment, a cold light flashed in Zhaocan's eyes. He darted forward, gathering true qi in his body, and struck Zichen's dantian with a palm.

"Spit!"

A sound like a burst of air echoed, and a surge of true qi ravaged Zichen's dantian and meridians. Zichen's meridians were damaged, and his dantian was destroyed.

It was too fast, too quick for Zichen to react.

After the sneak attack, Zhaocan quickly followed up, completely incapacitating Zichen. During this time, Zichen only managed to say one word: "You."

Zichen began to cough up blood, his eyes lifeless. The true qi he had cultivated for years was now destroyed, and he was completely ruined.

And the person who had done this to him was his friend, his brother!

The previously ruthless Zhaocan suddenly showed a hint of guilt and said softly, "Zichen, don't blame me."

"Why?"

Zichen lay on the ground, his eyes filled with despair and disbelief. He couldn't believe that Zhaocan, whom he considered a brother, would betray him.

"Because he wants to find a patron and thrive in the inner sect!"

At that moment, a voice echoed from the hillside. Two figures appeared and quickly reached the hilltop.

"You came quite early." Seeing the two, Zhaocan said coldly.

"Hehe, we were supposed to wait for the signal, but we saw you take action from below, so we came up." One of them laughed.

"Patron? Isn't entering the inner sect enough?" Zichen's face was filled with despair and regret. He regretted bringing Zhaocan and regretted being friends with him, treating him as a brother.

"Of course not. Apart from more resources, inner disciples are almost the same as outer disciples, with conflicts and disputes."

Zhaocan's guilty eyes had turned calm, and he said indifferently, "My original goal was to enter the inner sect, which was my aim. Without any accidents, I would have entered the inner sect in two years, but your snow ginseng has advanced my goal by two years."

"There are open and hidden struggles in the inner sect, and many disciples die mysteriously. If I enter the inner sect, I might have to be cautious for a few years to find a patron. But your snow ginseng is useful to Senior Brother Wang Xiong, who can protect me, saving me a few more years."

"Saving a few years, not worrying about being plotted against, and being able to focus on cultivation—such a huge benefit, in exchange for your death. Do you think I would refuse such a selfish good deal?" A cruel smile appeared in Zhaocan's eyes.

Zichen's eyes were filled with pain, "I found the snow ginseng, and I called you. You betrayed me. I trusted you wrongly."

"Correct! In this world, no one can be trusted. Sometimes even blood relatives can harm you, let alone friends. Today's incident is a lesson, but unfortunately, you will never learn from it!" Zhaocan said coldly.

Zichen didn't speak. His life was over, all because he had trusted the wrong brother.

"Let's go!"

Looking at the despairing Zichen, Zhaocan's face was only filled with a cold smile.

"Go? You're just letting him off with a destroyed dantian. There are fortuitous encounters in this world. If he encounters one, he might still recover." One of the young men said mockingly.

"You're right, we must cut the grass at the root!" Zhaocan turned back, his eyes filled with a cold killing intent.

"Zhaocan, we are brothers." Zichen's heart was completely cold, like ice.

"Correct, brothers are to be betrayed when there's profit." Zhaocan's eyes showed no mercy, only a cold killing intent.

"Spit!"

A cold light flashed, and a short dagger pierced Zichen's chest, piercing his heart. Fresh red blood flowed from his chest, soaking his clothes.

Zichen's eyes suddenly widened, filled with a lifeless gray, and his breathing stopped instantly.

His life force dissipated.

Zhaocan coldly pulled out the short dagger and kicked Zichen off the hilltop.

"Let's go!"

Wiping the blood off the short dagger with snow, Zhaocan turned and walked down the hill.

Zhaocan's cold and ruthless nature made the two men shiver involuntarily. They exchanged glances and saw fear in each other's eyes.

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