"The window harbors the snow of West Ridge's thousand autumns, while the door docked a guest ship from Eastern Wu."

Du Fu's famous quatrain has been passed down through the ages, making the West Ridge snowy mountains renowned worldwide, but the line between romance and reality is as thin as a piece of paper.

The wind, frost, rain, and snow are constant, neither rejoicing over things nor lamenting the self. Whether it's the cruelty of reality or poetic expression depends entirely on one's state of mind.

At least, Li Yan and the others are not in the mood right now.

The cold wind howls, carrying ice particles.

It blows in their faces, causing a sharp pain like needles.

Li Yan stopped, shook off the snow accumulated on his sheepskin hat, and looked around.

The surrounding snow appeared as silver, the breath turned to ice, and towering cliffs rose on three sides, leaving only a narrow path meandering to the mountain's peak.

In the distance, atop the mountain, it seemed covered with an iron-gray ice shell, eternal snow forming ice crystal chandeliers hanging low.

Under the cloudy light, it emitted a mysterious blue glow.

"This is the Great Snow Bowl."

The Bai Family woman leading the way introduced.

These women, many pursued the Gu Poison Technique, but their aptitude fell short, leading to backlash, resulting in toxic sores on their faces.

In Great Chang Ancient City, they were highly guarded, dressed in white clothes, with white gauze covering their faces, threatening those who unveiled them with marriage or death.

And now, they have joined Shuiyue Temple, formally ordained, settled down, realizing the futility of superficial beauty.

Just like this woman, she had long abandoned her white clothes for thick cotton monk garments, displaying her toxic sores without concern, her whole face flushed from the cold.

She pointed ahead, stating, "The place we are heading to is on the east side of the snowfield, at a pass on Baisha Ridge, locals call it the Yin Yang Realm."

"Yin Yang Realm?"

Sha Lifei frowned and said, "Aren't we supposed to practice in Cave Heaven Blessed Land? Why does this name sound a bit off-putting?"

The woman chuckled softly, shaking her head, "This 'Yin Yang' doesn't refer to the underworld and the mortal world; it's because one side is the Tibetan Plateau, cold and dry, while the other side is the Shu Zhong Basin, warm and moist."

"The earth's Qi connects at Baisha Ridge, making one side clear and sunny while the other is foggy and cloudy, just like splitting into Yin and Yang."

"The changes in Earth Qi also have an impact, making the inside like an icy hell, yet containing a trace of life force, perfect for Miss Long to conduct seclusion."

Her voice was gentle with a smile, but she glanced frequently into the distance, unable to hide the concern in her eyes.

Sha Lifei was adept at reading expressions and immediately sensed something was wrong, quickly asking, "Is there a problem? We are all on the same side; no need to hide it."

The woman nodded, putting away her smile, and said, "Madam and Miss Long's plan was originally fine, but now there is a hitch..."

Li Yan looked around and quickly understood, "The weather?"

"Yes."

The woman replied solemnly, "Since the end of last year, the snow has been persistent. Madam was happy, saying Miss Long's method to refine her Lifebound Gu is better in colder weather, ensuring safety."

"But now, the climate anomaly persists, and it's still freezing, with the seasons in chaos. We don't know if the Gu Worms can be nurtured."

Sha Lifei was anxious upon hearing this, "What should we do?"

The woman remained silent, obviously unsure of what to do.

Li Yan looked into the distance, "Don't panic, let's check it out first."

Having said this, he led the group onward.

Due to continuous snow in Shu, the snow on the Great Snow Bowl had reached knee-deep, making walking difficult, and sometimes a cracking sound was heard.

Those were the ice shells beneath the snow.

The snow melts into streams, which freeze and expand, creating voids underneath, hiding deep gullies, and one could easily fall if not careful.

Fortunately, Li Yan activated his Divine Skills, allowing him to distinguish the scent of the soil beneath the snow, and led everyone away from danger zones.

After a long while, they finally reached a mountain hollow.

Standing in it, they saw that the stone Reception Pavilion had collapsed under the snow, with the remaining half a flying eave dropping long icicles.

Everything was desolate, as if life had been frozen.

They trudged up the snowy path, struggling to climb the ridge, and suddenly their view opened up to a peculiar scene:

Looking west, the skies were vast and magnificent.

Looking east, dark clouds loomed overhead, the mountain danced with silver snakes.

The whole sky was distinctly divided, as if gods were painting with clouds.

The group stood stunned for a long time, and the Bai Family woman leading them finally shook her head, "I've been here before, the Yin Yang Realm does have a strange view, but not as obvious as this, probably caused by a change in weather."

Li Yan looked around, "Where are the people?"

The Bai Family woman pointed to halfway up the opposite cliff, "Next to that ancient pine on the mountainside. Because the terrain is challenging, few rent and build houses, which keeps it serene, avoiding disturbance."

The group looked over and saw that the place was already covered in ice and snow, only through a small depression could it be barely inferred to be a grotto.

Sha Lifei frowned, "Since the beginning of the year, they haven't come out?"

"Don't worry."

The woman, knowing what he was thinking, explained, "Madam said refining the Lifebound Gu requires fasting with Turtle Breath Technique, conserving spirit and forgetting self, to nurture life from void."

"Miss Long has enough Mountain Spirit Powder to last until month's end."

Li Yan was puzzled, "With someone inside encased in ice, how do you determine Miss Long is okay?"

The Bai Family woman pointed at the old pine, "There's a hole in that tree leading directly to the grotto. Miss Long has Firefly Gu, releasing it at night, making it visible even from afar."

"Every first and fifteenth day of the lunar month, we come to check. Miss Long wakes up and sends a message to signal safety at night."

"Tomorrow is the fifteenth; barring unusual circumstances, Miss Long will notify us, probably reaching breakthrough time."

"Good method."

Li Yan couldn't help but praise.

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