"The great heavens above, you’re alive!" he exclaid, bowing deeply. "We saw the blizzard. We saw the pillar of fire and those flashes of light. We thought the entire forest had been swallowed by the heavens themselves!"
Lin Mu raised a hand awkwardly, motioning for them to calm down. "You can relax now. The threat has been dealt with. The being behind it, the Great Ice Elental has been destroyed," he said simply.
The crowd erupted into cheers and applause, their voices echoing through the clearing.
"All hail the Wandering Righteous Blades!"
"All hail, Wandering Righteous Blades!"
Many of them began chanting the group’s na, praising their bravery and skill.
ng Bai, smiling ear to ear, joined in with the cheer, raising a fist toward the sky. Daoist Chu chuckled lightly, clearly amused by the enthusiasm, while Cattaleya smirked, her usual composed deanor breaking for a mont as she clapped along.
Little Shrubby gave a satisfied growl, the flas around his fur dimming slightly now that the danger had passed.
Elyon, however, maintained a calm expression, his golden eyes scanning the area as if expecting sothing else to happen. Monk Hushu stood silently at the back, his palms pressed together, murmuring a quiet prayer for the souls of any unfortunate beasts who might have perished in the chaos.
Once the excitent had settled sowhat, Lin Mu approached the supervisor. "How long have you been keeping the barrier up?" he asked.
"Since the mont we saw that storm rise over the treeline," the supervisor said, wiping sweat from his brow. "At first, we thought it was just another weather shift. Then the entire horizon turned white, and the air froze solid. We activated the array right away. It’s drained nearly half our stores of immortal stones, but it kept us alive."
Lin Mu nodded approvingly. "You did well. It might have saved your lives. The shards from the elental reached this far, but your barrier held strong."
The supervisor shuddered slightly, glancing at the faint cracks still visible on the barrier fra. "We heard them hitting the barrier walls. Sounded like steel striking against rock. I thought the camp would collapse any mont."
Daoist Chu crouched near the boundary lines, inspecting the remnants of the array. "These are well-made for a trade outpost," he comnted. "Not too advanced, but solid enough to keep away mid-tier immortal beasts or collateral damage from minor battles. Still, I’d suggest reinforcing them once you get new stones. The array core must be nearly burnt out."
While the array would not usually deplete this fast, the impact of the battle was simply too much. Even the passive chill from the Elental was enough to wear it down constantly.
"I’ll have it done at once, sir," the supervisor replied quickly.
Lin Mu gave a faint smile, then turned to look at the n and won still gathering around them. "You should all remain alert for the next few days," he warned. "We don’t know yet if there are more disturbances nearby. Sothing created that Greater Ice Elental, and until we find what caused it, there could still be danger."
Daoist Chu stored away a jade slip before folding his hands behind his back and added, "I’ve already sent word to Pale Dusk City. Reinforcents should arrive soon to investigate and assist. They’ll bring supplies as well."
That reassurance seed to ease the tension further.
The loggers nodded, whispering to one another in relief. A few even offered food and drink to the group, though Lin Mu politely declined for now. There was still too much uncertainty lingering in the air.
Before departing, Lin Mu decided to make a final inspection.
Closing his eyes, he released his Immortal Sense, allowing it to spread across the camp like a wave of invisible perception. He examined every corner, every heartbeat, every ripple of spiritual energy within and around the settlent.
There were no traces of hidden cultivators, no concealed presences or artifacts that didn’t belong.
The loggers were all ordinary spirit cultivators or low-level Immortals... too weak to orchestrate sothing as massive as summoning a Great Ice Elental. Lin Mu also noted that none carried the faint, telltale aura of corruption he had co to associate with mbers of the Ephera Sect.
’So it wasn’t them... or at least not directly,’ Lin Mu thought, frowning. ’If they were behind this, they’re covering their tracks better than before.’
When he opened his eyes again, the others were watching him silently. "No irregularities," he said at last. "They’re clean. Whoever caused this, they’re long gone by now."
Cattaleya crossed her arms. "Then we’re chasing a ghost. Figures."
"We’ll find them eventually," Lin Mu replied, his tone calm but firm. "For now, we make sure these people stay safe."
The group lingered a while longer to help stabilize the camp.
Monk Hushu reinforced the loggers’ morale with a few soothing chants, while Elyon used his qi to nd the worst of the barrier’s structural damage. While he wasn’t versed in formations like Daoist Chu, he could still do so repairs.
His life as a rcenary had taught him to be a jack of all trades.
Daoist Chu anwhile left behind a few modified talismans, simple enough for even mortals to activate in case of ergency.
When the ti ca to leave, the loggers gathered again at the camp entrance to see them off. "Thank you, heroes!" they shouted in unison. "The Wandering Righteous Blades will always be welco here!"
Lin Mu felt a twinge of discomfort at the title. He had never cared for glory or admiration. Still, seeing the hope in their eyes, he couldn’t bring himself to refuse it. He simply nodded, offering them a quiet smile before turning away.
The group departed, their figures fading into the forest mist.
Unknown to them, a pair of eyes were locked on them since the very start.
Far away, atop a lonely mountain ridge cloaked in fog, a lone figure watched them through narrowed eyes.
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