At the bottom of Wolf Fang Mountain, within the spirit vein, the Ma Family's head and the Li Family's head flew in rapid pursuit, one after the other.
They had already unleashed their strongest movement techniques to the fullest, yet these two Rank One Martial Monarchs still couldn't catch up to Chu Feng — they couldn't even catch a glimpse of his back.
"Damn it, how is this guy so fast?"
Neither family head had anticipated this, but they didn't panic. After all, this was a dead end. If they kept chasing, capturing Chu Feng was only a matter of time.
But things weren't as simple as they imagined. When they finally reached the end of the passage at full speed, they found no trace of Chu Feng whatsoever. He had vanished as if he'd never been there, leaving behind not a single mark.
However, at that moment, neither family head had any mind to wonder where Chu Feng had gone. They were completely captivated by the scene before them.
It was a square-shaped cave, and its walls were not the ordinary rock found within the spirit vein, but rather something that looked like a cross between crystal and ice.
Yet this substance was neither crystal nor ice — it was an extraordinarily rare material known to the world as ice crystal.
Ice crystal was an incredibly durable substance, one of the finest materials for forging weapons. It was exceedingly scarce and immensely valuable. Here, however, ice crystal had been used to construct a vast square-shaped great hall, and at the very center of this peculiar hall sat a single object.
It was an egg — an enormous egg more than ten meters in diameter, formed entirely of ice crystal. The colossal egg lay peacefully in the center of the great hall, wreathed in layer upon layer of visible pale blue luminescence, radiating a kind of heaven-and-earth energy that any martial cultivator could clearly perceive.
"A treasure! This is the treasure of this place! Containing such tremendous energy, it's a once-in-an-age marvel of heaven and earth. Five hundred years of waiting by my Ma Family — it was all worth it!"
In that moment, the Ma Family's head was beside himself with excitement. He strode forward in great leaps, arriving before the enormous ice crystal egg in the blink of an eye, and reached out to claim it.
*Hummm—* But the instant his palm made contact with the egg, a violent burst of power erupted from within. Caught completely off guard, the Ma Family's head — a Rank One Martial Monarch — was sent hurtling backward.
*Crack crack crack!* At the same time, thick fractures began to appear across the surface, spreading at astonishing speed until they covered the entire ice crystal egg. Finally, with a thunderous crash, the egg shattered into countless fragments.
"Brother, be careful! Fall back, quickly!!!" The Li Family's head's expression changed drastically, and he shouted in alarm.
Because at that very spot where the ice crystal egg had been, a towering figure several meters tall now stood. It was a phoenix — a phoenix composed entirely of ice crystal.
Though this ice crystal phoenix was not particularly large in size, it radiated an extraordinarily powerful aura, possessing the strength of a Rank One Martial Monarch. But that wasn't the most critical thing. What was truly critical was its incomparably noble bearing — a single glance at it sent a tremor through one's very soul, making one instinctively want to kneel in reverence, as though it were a sacred, inviolable existence.
"Brother, this is the treasure we came for! How can we possibly retreat? Help me take it down together! The energy contained within this creature will surely bring prosperity to both my Ma Family and your Li Family — ushering in an era unlike any before!"
Where the Li Family's head felt fear, the Ma Family's head burned with excitement. He showed no intention of retreating; instead, he unleashed the full, unrestrained aura of his Rank One Martial Monarch cultivation and shot toward the ice crystal phoenix like an arrow from a bow, engaging it in battle.
"ROAR~~~~"