The weather was frigid. After a simple breakfast, he returned to his room to put on soft snowboarding boots, dressed in cold-weather gear, and equipped himself with a mask, hat, and goggles before heading out to the village slope carrying his snowboard.

He was out to scout the terrain, because yesterday his junior sister mentioned wanting to snowboard off-piste.

Snowboarding off-piste means leaving the designated trails of a ski resort and heading into the wild for a freeride. It's a relatively dangerous sport. But his junior sister had watched many such videos and felt that it looked elegant and intense—exactly the feeling she craved.

While studying abroad, Wu Yanjun had also experienced backcountry snowboarding and had bragged about it to his junior sister the day before. As a result, Ye Yuxuan was even more intrigued and insisted that Xiaowu take her to try it.

Xiaowu was knowledgeable and even prided himself on being a snowboarding expert; he was well aware of the dangers of this sport.

After all, his junior sister was also a Tier Two Sorcerer, so if she wanted to snowboard off-piste, they could. However, a suitable route needed to be found first, one he could test out in advance to ensure no significant issues before bringing her along.

For such a route, the natural snow track should have thick snow layers, sparse trees, and not too steep an incline, while also being long enough to be both safe and enjoyable. Thus, he left Ice and Snow Village heading north, aiming to reach a higher altitude first to better observe the terrain.

The temperature was still very low at this time; since he was only scouting and testing the route, he wore cold-weather gear rather than professional snowboarding attire. Yet as he walked, he noticed two people seemed to be trailing him.

The mountain forest wasn't his private property, so he couldn't stop others from taking the same route. At first, Xiaowu didn't pay much attention, and quickened his pace toward the nearest high point.

Once he sped up, the two individuals matched his pace, cornering him on the mountain's summit from the left and right. In front of Wu Yanjun was a gentle snow-covered pine forest slope, behind him a steep cliff.

Feeling uneasy, Wu Yanjun secured his feet in the snowboard bindings and asked, "Are you two here to snowboard as well? Why don't you have sleds?"

The two were men, one of whom appeared to be a foreigner—Zeng Hongye and Xiaosi. At the time, Xiaowu was unaware of their identities.

Zeng Hongye was the one who spoke first: "You're Wu Yanjun, aren't you?"

Instantly sensing something amiss, Wu Yanjun reflexively responded, "What do you want?"

Zeng Hongye replied, "Come with us, we have some questions for you."

Wu Yanjun shook his head and said, "Who are you to just demand I go with you? Get out of my way! Don't disturb my snowboarding..."

Zeng Hongye said, "That's not up to you!" He gestured and, astonishingly, a snow dragon swirled up from the mountain top, winding its way toward Wu Yanjun.

Wu Yanjun did something unexpected: he leaped backward, spun in the air, and astonishingly jumped off the cliff.

Below the cliff was a steep snowy slope, about seven or eight meters from the cliff top. It was a scene commonly found in extreme sports videos; a wrong move would be fatal.

Landing his board on the snowy slope, Wu Yanjun sped down the mountainside, triggering a minor avalanche along the way.

He figured there was no way the two could follow him, but after glancing back from a distance, he saw they had leapt off the cliff as well. Zeng Hongye in particular maintained speed, appearing to slide effortlessly despite not having a snowboard.

Normally, traversing such deep snow on foot would be slow, so Xiaowu realized they must be experts. For reasons he couldn't comprehend, his mind seemed muddled, unable to think clearly. Fear kicked in, urging him to escape.

Had it been someone else, they might have been caught by Zeng Hongye long ago.

Wu Yanjun hadn't exaggerated to his junior sister; he truly was a snowboarding expert, highly proficient with a snowboard. Originally a sports major, he had trained specifically in ice and snow events overseas. With his Tier Two Cultivation, his agility was now even better.

This allowed him to outdistance Zeng Hongye after a long downhill sprint.

Despite the speed of snowboarding, one disadvantage is having to remove the board and walk uphill. When Wu Yanjun encountered an uphill section, Zeng Hongye, initially left behind, began closing in.

Zeng Hongye ascended faster, seemingly able to slide even while on foot. Fortunately, Wu Yanjun quickly reached the top and began sliding downhill, distancing himself once again.

The terrain from their starting point to the Wulong River was mainly downhill, so Wu Yanjun weaved through the mountains, with less time spent running uphill and more time quickly snowboarding downhill.

To evade his pursuers, Xiaowu manipulated the landscape to head northward toward the Wulong River.

Thus, although Zeng Hongye never lost sight of him, he couldn't catch up either.

After a long chase, they reached the Wulong River. From a high vantage point, Zeng Hongye watched as Wu Yanjun, carrying his board on his shoulder, raced across the frozen river, crossing the national border, forcing Zeng Hongye to stop and rest.

Zeng Hongye relied on his Magical Techniques and Divine Techniques to maintain such a fast pace on foot in the snow. But his Divine Power wasn't limitless, so at this point, he had to catch his breath.

Far more exhausted was Xiaosi, who fortunately could follow the clear trail left through the snow. He didn't catch up with Zeng Hongye by the riverbank until dusk.

Wu Yanjun, now on the other side of the Wulong River, was also exhausted and needed to rest. He found a hidden spot to observe the activity on the riverbank.

Zeng Hongye and Xiaosi met up at the river bank, preparing to cross the Wulong River. On the other side, Wu Yanjun no longer had the advantage of snowboarding terrain, as the further north they went, the steeper it became.

Just then, a snowstorm hit, forcing Zeng Hongye and Xiaosi to find shelter. They waited until the storm stopped the next day to cross the river, but Wu Yanjun had already fled eastward...

Soon after crossing the Wulong River, night fell, and another snowstorm hit the mountain. Wu Yanjun quickly found shelter to avoid freezing to death.

Using his snowboard as a shovel, he dug a snowhole at the base of a tree for shelter and survived the night, although his snowboard was damaged.

The next day, he headed east rather than going up north, crafting a sharpened stick as a walking staff and weapon. He walked a long way before finally feeling he had lost his pursuers.

By then, he was utterly exhausted and famished. Luckily, he came across a herd of roe deer. With his last ounce of strength, he managed to hunt down a small one and set up a simple camp, kindling a fire to skin and roast the meat for a bit of sustenance.

He was grateful to have a windproof lighter and a Swiss Army knife with him.

He spent another night there, then set out southward, carrying leftover deer meat and crossed the Wulong River back into the Eastern Country, hoping to find a village where he could report to the authorities.

However, after a full day of walking, he still hadn't come across a village.

Even seeing a road would do, as it should lead him to a town or village. Still, there was nothing but boundless snowfields as far as the eye could see... By the afternoon, he could no longer hold out and had to find a tree hollow to rest.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw the figure of He Kao.

**

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