Stranger Danger

Chapter 502: Children of the Frost

The strange tiger was as big as a calf, and it had a deer’s horn, a tiger’s head, a goat’s body and an ox’s tail. It looked like it was carved from the prettiest indigo crystal, translucent and blue, and there were a couple of crystalline children running on top of its back and playing with each other. They looked incredibly happy.

“The Children of the Frost?!”

Ye Qing narrowed his eyes slightly. He turned around and raced straight toward his room without hesitation.

The Children of the Frost was a Disaster-class Stranger. Together with the Snow Maitreya, they were known as the Disastrous Frost and Snow. It shouldn’t need to be said, but they were terrifying existences. When the Snow Matreiya appeared, a terrible snowstorm lasting several months would descend upon the world. When the Children of the Frost appeared, hundreds of kilometers of land would transform into an icy hell.

Obviously, this wasn’t a Stranger he could handle at his current level. If he hadn’t refined the Purple Sun Trueflame yesterday, their very first clash would’ve resulted in some injuries. He wouldn’t die, but it wouldn’t be fun trying to purge the energy of a Disaster-class Stranger from his body.

That was also why he needed to run back to his room now. Although his Purple Sun Trueflame was a supreme flame of yang, its current quantity and quality were ultimately subpar. It could nullify a casual attack with ease, but it was nowhere strong enough to do battle against the Children of the Frost. His flame was nothing compared to the Fire God Moth’s.

The children playing on top of the tiger giggled when they saw Ye Qing run. Maybe it was because he triggered their predatory instincts, or maybe they loathed the fact that he possessed a power that was the complete opposite of theirs, but they abruptly charged him in unison. A terrible chill immediately spread toward him from every direction.

Ye Qing flicked a single wisp of Purple Sun Trueflame at the children, causing them to let out a strange cry and evaporate into nothing. The terrible chill also receded in an instant. However, they soon reappeared on top of the tiger’s back, giggling and playing like nothing had ever happened.

Although its name was Children of the Frost, its true body was the strange tiger. The frost children were just frost spirits the tiger Stranger conjured. So long as it was still alive, the frost children would never die.

Blocking the frost children with the Purple Sun Trueflame bought him about a breath’s time. That was enough for him to escape back into his room.

As soon as he stepped inside, he saw Yi Pin hugging himself tightly and shivering like a leaf at a corner. The interior had already been coated in ice, though it melted as soon as it made contact with his red hot aura.

Yi Pin felt like crying. One moment it was a frozen hell, and next it was a molten purgatory. It was fire and ice at its worst.

Ye Qing too realized that he had screwed up and hurriedly dialed down the Purple Sun Trueflame emanating from his body. When only a single wisp of flame resided on his palm, the room temperature quickly decreased until it was just right.

Yi Pin let out a sigh of relief and asked, “Is it the Children of the Frost?”

“Yeah.” Ye Qing nodded. Yi Pin’s correct guess didn’t surprise him considering the old Taoist’s wealth of knowledge and experience.

“The Children of the Frost, huh. Yesterday it was the Fire God Moth, and today it’s the Children of the Frost. The ice and fire treatment, eh? Earthly Sovereign’s Coffin sure knows how to play with its victims!”

Yi Pin sneered audibly before letting out another sigh. “Thank goodness you refined the Purple Sun Trueflame last night, or today’s going to be another hell.”

“I guess,” Ye Qing replied distractedly. He was worried that the Children of the Frost would try to force its way into their room because of him. That would be very bad.

Thankfully, the room ultimately proved itself reliable. The Children of the Frost lingered outside their door for a moment but eventually left the area.

After the Stranger was gone, Ye Qing finally let out a sigh of relief. Then, he sighed. “A shame.”

“What about?” Yi Pin asked, puzzled.

Ye Qing shook his head. “It’s nothing.”

He was lamenting over his wasted Incense of Misfortune, of course. If the Stranger that was to be their trial was anyone but the Children of the Frost, then maybe it would’ve been fine. However, the Children of the Frost was notorious for freezing hundreds and hundreds of kilometers of land as soon as it made its appearance. There was no way his three Incense of Misfortune were still burning.

I should start refining the Profound Yellow Qi, Ye Qing thought to himself. With the Purple Sun Trueflame to protect him, the Children of the Frost couldn’t threaten him with its frost powers. In that case, he might as well use this opportunity to refine the Profound Yellow Qi he collected and improve his strength.

Ye Qing flicked a wisp of Purple Sun Trueflame to the floor. It didn’t disappear even though it was resting atop the stone floor. Then, he adopted a meditative stance and began cultivating.

Time passed little by little. When Ye Qing had absorbed and refined his third wisp of Profound Yellow Qi, the chill outside the room began fading slowly. It meant that the Children of the Frost was gone. So, Ye Qing opened his mouth and inhaled the wisp of Purple Sun Trueflame on the floor down his gullet.

As soon as he retrieved the Purple Sun Trueflame, Yi Pin stretched his back and let out a huge yawn, asking, “Is it done?”

“What do you think?” Ye Qing smirked. “Did you have a good night’s sleep, brother?”

“I wasn’t sleeping.” Yi Pin sipped some wine to wet his throat. “I was just taking a nap.”

... That’s still sleeping, bro. Don’t think you can fool me just because I don’t read a lot of books.

“Anyway, I need to discuss something with you. Huo Linglong already suspected something last time. If she sees that we’re unharmed again, then she will definitely know that something is amiss.”

“That’s simple.” Yi Pin produced three silver needles out of thin air and pierced three major bodily points: Shenfu, Huangting and Yunhai. The blood immediately drained away from his face, his eyes glazed over, and his aura nosedived in the blink of an eye. Right now, he looked like a man on his deathbed.

“Not bad, brother.” Ye Qing was impressed. Even with the strength of his spirit, he was unable to tell that Yi Pin was faking it. It really looked like the old man was on his deathbed.

Yi Pin lifted his head a little higher. “Heh. This is the Three Needles Soul Sealing Art. Do you want to give it a try?”

“Thanks, but no thanks. I have my own ways.” Ye Qing morphed his body and aura to mimic that of a gravely ill man. Once his disguise was complete, he went to the door, opened a tiny gap, and waited patiently for Sun Xuanzhen, Huo Linglong and Yue Juejiang to show up.

This time, the trio took around half a teatime to show up, and they all looked a little weaker than normal. Sun Xuanzhen and Yue Juejiang looked as pale as a ghost, and Huo Linglong was wearing a dark red mask on her face.

“Haha, why do you both look like you’ve had your vitality sucked out of your body? Did you do something while I wasn’t looking last night?”

Huo Linglong teased them when she noticed their pale complexions, “I can be your partner if you’re that lonely.”

“Thanks, but no thanks,” Sun Xuanzhen replied in an emotionless voice.

Prod all you want, but I will never tell you that I’m pale because I was shitting all day yesterday.

Yue Juejiang too grunted with an annoyed look on his face. He didn’t know why, but he was supremely unlucky last night. When he drank water, the liquid somehow got caught between his teeth. When he ate, he somehow choked on his food. When he meditated, he somehow dozed off and wasted his time, and even when he was cultivating, he somehow screwed up his qi circulation and wasted even more time and effort. The memory alone made him feel like punching a hole in the wall.

That wasn’t even the worst thing that happened to him. He was in the middle of cultivating when suddenly, he thought of Huo Linglong and suddenly found himself drowning in uncontrollable lust. Unable to concentrate in the slightest, he had no choice but to produce a large jar and jump inside.

The large jar was a Strange Artifact filled with the Frost Spring of Far North. It was a kind of spring that could only be found in the far north, and it was extremely cold to put it mildly. He was hoping to cool down his body and his mind with its iciness. However, not long after he entered the jar, the Children of the Frost appeared and froze the Frost Spring of Far North faster than he could blink. As a result, he was trapped inside the block of ice and unable to move a single muscle. It was easily one of the most excruciating experiences of his life. If he wasn’t as tough and vigorous as he was, he could’ve easily frozen to death.

Huo Linglong’s teasing might have been harmless, but Yue Juejiang couldn’t help but think that she was making fun of his misery.

“Why are you wearing a mask today, Fire Princess?” Sun Xuanzhen stared at her mask and asked curiously.

Huo Linglong giggled. “I feel like playing the mysterious woman today. If you’re curious, we can... interact with each other tonight. What do you say?”

Huo Linglong walked up to him and drew circles on his chest.

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