**Chapter 20: Blood in the Beast Mountains**
**Day 1 – The Entrance of Beast Mountain Range**
The sky above the **Beast Mountain Range** was a choking grey, shrouded in thick mist that smelled of rotting vegetation and dried blood. This wasn't a place for leisure; it was a killing ground. Thousands of years ago, this forest had been a battlefield for ancient gods, and their residual energy had mutated the beasts into monstrous hybrids.
A massive formation gate stood at the edge of the forest. Hundreds of teams gathered before it, their faces pale with a mix of excitement and terror. The new rules had been announced clearly: *Survive for three days. Collect ten beast cores. Kill or be killed. No rescue teams will enter.*
Chen Feng stood at the front of the **Void Sect** line. Behind him were Lin Yue (staff glowing softly), Kael (blue flames dancing on his fists), Sera (sword unsheathed), Mira (healing runes ready), and... **Yan Lie**.
The former Young Master of the Vermilion Bird Clan looked miserable. He wore a simple disciple robe instead of his golden armor, carrying a basic fire spear. The **Void Mark** on his forehead pulsed faintly, a constant reminder of who owned his soul.
"Stop shaking," Chen Feng said without looking back. "Fear makes you slow. And slow people die here."
"I'm not scared!" Yan Lie snapped, though his voice cracked. "I just... I've never fought alongside servants before."
"Today, you're not a master," Chen Feng said coldly, finally turning to face him. "You're bait. And if you fail, I won't need the beasts to kill you. Understand?"
Yan Lie swallowed hard and nodded. "Yes... Master."
"Good." Chen Feng looked at the rest of his team. "Our strategy is simple. We move fast. We don't fight unless necessary. We let other teams weaken the beasts, then we swoop in, take the cores, and eliminate any witnesses. No mercy. No hesitation."
"**Begin!**" the referee's voice boomed, echoing across the mountains.
The formation gate shattered. Hundreds of cultivators surged forward like a flood, disappearing into the dense fog.
"Move out," Chen Feng commanded.
---
**Deep Within the Forest – Two Hours Later**
The forest was eerily silent. No birds sang. No insects buzzed. Only the sound of snapping twigs underfoot broke the silence.
"We've seen three teams already," Kael whispered, wiping sweat from his brow. "All dead. Torn apart by something big."
"Not something big," Chen Feng corrected, stopping abruptly. He knelt beside a massive claw print in the mud. The earth around it was scorched black. "Something *ancient*."
He stood up, his eyes narrowing. "This track belongs to a **Shadowscale Tiger**, but it's been infused with dark energy. Someone is manipulating the beasts."
"Manipulating them?" Lin Yue asked, her grip tightening on her staff. "Why?"
"To thin the herd," a voice sneered from the trees above. "To make room for the real hunters."
Before anyone could react, five figures dropped from the canopy, landing in a perfect circle around Chen Feng's team. They wore black masks with silver moon symbols—the **Shadow Walkers** of the Shadow Moon Sect.
Their leader, a tall man with scars running down his arms, stepped forward. His cultivation base radiated dangerously: *Golden Core Level 4*. Higher than Chen Feng's current level.
"So, you're the famous Chen Feng," the leader mocked, twirling a pair of curved blades. "The boy who enslaved a noble and fooled an emperor. You look... ordinary."
"And you look like you skipped leg day," Chen Feng replied dryly. "Those muscles are all upper body. Very unbalanced."
The leader's eyes flashed with rage. "Kill them all! Leave the girl alive for Lady Frost!"
The four subordinates charged instantly, moving with unnatural speed, their weapons coated in green poison.
"Sera, Kael! Handle the minions!" Chen Feng ordered calmly. "Lin Yue, protect Mira. Yan Lie... burn anything that moves."
"On it!" Sera vanished in a blur of wind, her sword clashing against two attackers.
Kael unleashed a wave of blue fire, forcing the other two back.
Yan Lie, desperate to prove his worth, roared and thrust his spear. "**Phoenix Flame Burst!**" A torrent of fire erupted, incinerating the poisonous mist and pushing the enemies back.
But the leader didn't move. He watched Chen Feng with a predatory smile.
"You think your pets can save you? I'm here for *you*."
He lunged, his blades aiming for Chen Feng's eyes. The attack was fast, precise, and lethal.
Chen Feng didn't dodge. He raised one hand.
"**Void Grab.**"
An invisible force caught the leader's wrists mid-air, stopping his blades inches from Chen Feng's face.
"What?!" the leader gasped, struggling against the unseen hold. "How strong are you?!"
"I told you," Chen Feng said, stepping closer. "Your balance is off."
He kicked the leader lightly in the knee. A sickening *crack* echoed as the joint shattered. The leader screamed, dropping his weapons.
"Painful, isn't it?" Chen Feng whispered. "Now, tell me: Where is Lady Frost hiding? And what is she planning with Lin Yue's bloodline?"
"Never!" the leader spat, biting down on something in his mouth.
*Cyan foam* bubbled from his lips. Poison suicide pill.
"Fool," Chen Feng muttered. He slammed his hand onto the leader's chest. "**Void Devour: Toxin Extraction.**"
Black flames engulfed the leader's torso. Instead of burning him, the flames pulled the poison *out* of his system, absorbing it into Chen Feng's palm. The leader coughed, the cyan foam vanishing, his life saved against his will.
"You don't get to die yet," Chen Feng said coldly. "I need answers."
He tightened his grip on the leader's soul energy. The man screamed as his memories were forcibly extracted, flowing into Chen Feng's mind like a river.
*Images flashed:*
*A secret cave deep in the mountains.*
*Lady Frost standing over a ritual circle.*
*Dozens of captured female cultivators with star-like markings.*
*"The Starlight Bloodline will awaken the Frozen God..."*
Chen Feng's eyes turned pitch black with fury.
"They're capturing girls with spiritual affinities," he growled. "And they plan to use Lin Yue as the final sacrifice to break the seal on the Frozen God."
Behind him, the battle had ended. Sera and Kael stood over the unconscious bodies of the subordinates. Yan Lie was panting heavily, his robes singed but intact.
"Master," Yan Lie said cautiously. "What do we do?"
Chen Feng released the leader, letting him collapse to the ground, alive but mentally broken.
"We change the plan," he said, his voice dripping with killing intent. "We're not hunting beasts anymore."
He turned to Lin Yue, his expression softening slightly.
"We're going hunting for a goddess. And when we find her... I'm going to make her wish she stayed frozen forever."
Suddenly, the ground shook violently. A deafening roar echoed from deeper within the mountains, so loud it blew the leaves off the trees.
"**That**," Chen Feng said, looking toward the source of the sound, "is our ride."
From the mist emerged a colossal beast—a **Shadowscale Tiger** the size of a house, its scales shimmering with dark energy, its eyes burning with red fire. It wasn't attacking randomly; it was guarding something.
"A mutated King Beast," Kael whined. "Level 6! We can't fight that!"
"We don't have to fight it," Chen Feng smirked. "We just have to steal it."
He looked at Yan Lie. "You said you wanted to prove yourself? Ride the tiger. Distract it. Lead it straight to the cave where Lady Frost is hiding."
Yan Lie's face went pale. "R-ride it? Are you crazy? It'll eat me!"
"If you succeed," Chen Feng promised, "I'll remove one layer of the Void Mark. You'll regain 10% of your free will."
Yan Lie's eyes widened. Freedom. Even a little bit of it was worth dying for.
"Deal!" he shouted.
He charged at the giant tiger, screaming wildly and unleashing every ounce of his fire energy. "**HEY! OVER HERE, UGLY!**"
The tiger roared, turning its attention to the annoying fly buzzing around it. It charged after Yan Lie, smashing through trees and rocks.
"After them!" Chen Feng commanded. "Stay close. The chaos is our cover."
As the team sprinted after the rampaging tiger and the fleeing Yan Lie, Chen Feng felt the Void Flame in his dantian roar in anticipation.
*Let the games begin,* he thought. *Tonight, the mountains will run red with blood.*
---
**Inside the Secret Cave – Moments Later**
Lady Frost stood before the ritual circle, her silver hair flowing despite the lack of wind. Around her, twenty terrified young women huddled together, their spiritual energy being drained by the glowing runes on the floor.
"The final ingredient is missing," she murmured, checking her crystal ball. "The Starlight Girl has not arrived yet."
Suddenly, the entrance to the cave exploded inward. Dust and debris filled the air.
Through the smoke, a massive tiger burst in, followed by a frantic Yan Lie and a calm Chen Feng.
"Target acquired," Chen Feng announced, his eyes locking onto Lady Frost. "Hello, darling. Did you miss me?"
Lady Frost's eyes widened in shock, then narrowed into slits of pure ice.
"You... You survived the assassins? Impressive. But foolish. Now you've delivered yourself right to my altar."
She raised her hands, and the temperature in the cave plummeted instantly. Ice spikes shot up from the floor, forming a fortress around her.
"Kill them all! Sacrifice their hearts to speed up the ritual!"
Dozens of shadowy figures materialized from the walls—more Shadow Walkers, stronger than the ones outside.
Chen Feng cracked his knuckles, black flames erupting around his entire body.
"Lin Yue, secure the hostages. Everyone else... kill everything that moves."
He stepped forward, facing Lady Frost alone.
"And you, my dear. You and I have a date with destiny."
Lady Frost smiled, a cruel, freezing expression.
"Come then, Void Sovereign. Let's see if your fire can melt my eternal winter."
The two powers collided, sending a shockwave that nearly collapsed the entire mountain.
---
**To be continued...**