The cold wind howled, rampaging across the plateau.
Ji Xinghuo rode on Qing Hong’s back, looking around, only to see an endless expanse of raging wind. The ground was covered in frost, and every mountain peak within sight, whether near or far, was blanketed in snow, shrouded in frosty mist—a harsh yet magnificent sight.
"Huff..."
He exhaled a breath of warm air, rubbing his hands together to bring a hint of warmth and muttered, "This damn weather!"
It had been ten days since he left Sky Falling Cliff, entering the middle of "Fog Moon." The weather was getting colder, with temperatures around minus ten degrees Celsius even during the day.
Low temperature was actually okay, but the wind was too strong.
The bone-chilling wind felt like knives against the skin. Unfortunately, disguised as a Highlander, his armor provided no warmth. The only sowhat useful thing was a bear skin cloak, which could only cover half of his body, and his beard was already full of frost.
Although his robust physique ant he wouldn’t fall ill, it was still extrely uncomfortable.
"Damn it, I’m being blown into an idiot."
Ji Xinghuo complained, wrapping his cloak tightly around himself, and directed Qing Hong to search in a different direction.
Electromagnetic induction continued, scanning the terrain and activity within a five-kiloter radius. As the weather grew colder, many beasts and monsters preferred not to venture out, or they began hibernating. When they were immobile, differentiating the magnetic fields beca a level more difficult, requiring extra care.
In the past few days, he had found quite a few monsters. Those he could kill, he did, and he had acquired so spiritual origin energy.
But he had still not found a Gale Beast.
Night was getting longer, with Star Night dwindling to less than two hours. It was inconvenient to move around at night, so the ti available for searching each day also decreased.
As a result, his efficiency had dropped significantly.
By evening, Ji Xinghuo still had nothing to show for his efforts. As the golden glow was about to disappear over the horizon, he decided to find a place to camp for the night.
The night was even colder than the day, with temperatures dropping to minus twenty degrees Celsius.
"And this is only Fog Moon," Ji Xinghuo shook his head, "Frost Month and Cold Month to follow will definitely be even colder."
As he was searching for a suitable place to camp, sothing suddenly struck him, and he had Qing Hong walk a few kiloters forward.
In the distance, a tribe located at the foot of a high peak appeared in his view.
This tribe was small, with a population not exceeding ten thousand. The houses, built with stones and logs, were quite exquisite and well-planned, built against the mountain and neatly arranged. Outside the tribe, there was a circle of stone walls about fifteen ters in height, which didn’t offer much defense against the many Alien Races on the plateau as they could easily climb over, but even a wall could provide a sense of security.
Ji Xinghuo’s gaze pierced through the cold wind, clearly observing the inhabitants of the tribe.
"Horned people!"
"No wonder this tribe looks different."
The Horned people were one of the Alien Races on the Bloody Plateau, not few in number, but their racial talent wasn’t as good as Highlanders and the Biao Clan, and they were also less ferocious, so they were in a weaker position.
The most distinctive feature of this race was that everyone had a pair of horns on their head, with various shapes—straight, curved, spiral, and all sorts of bizarre forms.
Their skin was primarily gray, blue, or purple, and regardless of gender, everyone had facial hair. Their legs had three joints, and they had a short tail. Both their hearing and vision were excellent, and they were agile, with most having pursued the evolutionary path of speed and assassination.
The Horned people worshipped the Star God "Elk Prophet" and were mostly of a peaceful nature.
They were also willing to interact with other races.
At Sky Falling Cliff, Ji Xinghuo often encountered Horned people, so he had so understanding of them.
"Maybe I can find so information about the Gale Beast."
Ji Xinghuo thought for a mont, then decided to try his luck at this Horned tribe, "Even if I get no information, I could at least spend a warm night in the tribe."
He dismounted Qing Hong, letting it shrink and tuck itself into his waist pouch.
Since disguising himself as a Highlander, he usually rode Qing Hong, but whenever he encountered others, he would have Qing Hong hide ahead of ti.
Ji Xinghuo stepped over the frost, braving the cold wind towards the Horned people’s tribe.
Night had fallen completely, and lights were lit in the tribe. As he approached the stone wall, still a hundred ters away, people on the wall began to shout loudly.
"Stop!"
Ji Xinghuo looked up as several horned heads peeked over the wall, illuminating the area below with their torches, faces full of vigilance.
"Highlander, what is your business here?" asked a male Horned person.
"Passing by, seeking shelter."
Ji Xinghuo intentionally lowered his voice, responding briefly in a deep tone.
Before leaving Sky Falling Cliff, he had already mastered the Highlander language.
It was a branch of his university major, the Xinyalar Language, which he learned with ease. However, he still lacked fluency in accent and colloquial habits, so he pretended to be reticent, speaking as little as possible to avoid detection.
The language of the Highlanders was not completely uniform either, having developed many dialects with significant differences, so even a mispronunciation wouldn’t be readily identified.
The Horned people spoke a variant of the Xinyalar Language, so communication was possible.
"Highlander, the Cangye Tribe does not welco you," declared a Horned person on the stone wall, "You have ten breaths to leave, or don’t bla us for being inhospitable."
Several guards brandished their weapons.
"Hmm."
Ji Xinghuo gritted his teeth, sowhat resigned.
His blood-red tattoo made him appear as a devout follower of the Bloodthirsty Red Emperor, and since Horned people were often slaughtered by such followers, they naturally wouldn’t easily allow him inside.
In fact, he could have avoided trouble by changing his appearance, but the paint used for his disguised tattoos had seeped into his skin and wasn’t easy to wash off. Having to disguise himself again after leaving the tribe would be too troubleso, so he had just co to try his luck.
If you won’t welco , then forget it.
Ji Xinghuo said nothing more, turned around, and walked away.
Just as his figure was about to rge into the darkness, a voice ca down from the wall: "Guest from afar, please feel welcod at the Cangye Tribe, please co in."
Ji Xinghuo looked back and saw that the speaker was a female Antelope Horned person.
She was shorter than the others of her tribe, just over 1.6 ters tall, with twin spiral horns on her head lying against the sides of her skull, dressed in a simple fur robe. Although her age couldn’t be determined from her face alone, the snow-white beard on her chin indicated she was no longer young.
"Prophet."
The Antelope Horned guards around her were very respectful, but their faces were filled with confusion.
"Open the gates," ordered the Antelope Horned Prophet without explanation, waving her hand for the guards to open the city gates.
After speaking, her figure disappeared.
Soon, the large door beneath the stone wall opened, and Ji Xinghuo entered the tribe under the wary gazes of the Antelope Horned guards.
"Highlander, follow ," the Antelope Horned person who had just refused him said in a deep voice, "The Prophet has instructed to arrange a place for you to stay overnight."
"Thank you," Ji Xinghuo nodded.
He sized up the other, noting that the Antelope Horned person was quite strong, probably just having advanced to the Fourth Rank not long ago. Clad in well-fitting leather armor with two oddly shaped daggers at his waist, he moved with barely a sound, evidence of his Shadow Blade or Flying Steps profession.
As he walked through the Cangye Tribe, Ji Xinghuo noticed it was unlike other tribal settlents on the plateau.
The most obvious difference was its cleanliness.
Stone slabs paved the ground and were frequently swept. The houses on both sides were orderly, with no refuse in front of any door. The tribe had both drainage and sewage systems underground, and various plants and trees were planted along the streets to create small parks, where lots of young Antelope Horned children gathered to play happily.
Although it didn’t look prosperous, it was very comfortable, and the atmosphere in the tribe was relaxed.
The Antelope Horned who led the way was popular, recognized by many.
"Bai Mang!"
"Uncle Bai Mang."
The Antelope Horned they encountered greeted him with smiles but imdiately froze in shock upon seeing Ji Xinghuo behind Bai Mang.
So of the Antelope Horned began to scream and ran away in a panic.
Others imdiately drew their weapons and asked sharply, "Bai Mang, what’s going on? Why did you bring a Red Emperor follower into the tribe?"
"It’s the Prophet’s command," Bai Mang explained.
When they heard it was the Prophet’s wish, the fear in the Antelope Horned’s eyes lessened a bit, but they still watched Ji Xinghuo warily, eyes full of hostility.
In contrast, so of the young Antelope Horned children, plucking up their courage, approached to observe Ji Xinghuo.
There were even so who threw pebbles at him.
Bai Mang was startled and quickly stopped them. Noticing that Ji Xinghuo didn’t beco angry and his expression didn’t change, Bai Mang breathed a sigh of relief.
They soon arrived in front of a two-story stone house, and Bai Mang said, "This is the only inn in our tribe, intended for hosting guests from Alien Races. You’ll be staying here tonight. Both lodging and als require paynt."
Ji Xinghuo nodded.
Bai Mang led him into the inn, where guests from Alien Races had already checked in, so of them eating in the hall.
Upon seeing Ji Xinghuo enter, their expressions shifted subtly.
"Welco, honored guest!"
The inn’s owner was an old Antelope Horned person with a weathered, husky voice, sporting a pair of straight, long horns but no change of expression upon seeing Ji Xinghuo. He even offered Ji Xinghuo a warm smile.
"Uncle Gen, I’m leaving this highlander to you," Bai Mang handed him over with a few instructions and left, apparently reluctant to interact with a Red Emperor follower for too long.
The Antelope Horned known as Uncle Gen took everything in stride, swiftly arranging a room and dinner for Ji Xinghuo.
As soon as he closed the door to his room, Ji Xinghuo looked at the simply yet warmly decorated room and laid down on the bed, feeling quite comfortable. He washed away the filth that had accumulated over ten days, donned his armor again, just as Uncle Gen personally delivered a fragrant plate of roasted at to his room.
"Please enjoy your al," Uncle Gen said after bowing, about to leave.
"Wait."
Ji Xinghuo called out to him. Uncle Gen’s expression stalled, but he imdiately regained a smile and asked respectfully, "Is there anything else you require, guest?"
"Gale Beast."
Ji Xinghuo uttered just one term, but it was enough to convey his intention.
He took out a silver True Dragon Coin worth a thousand from his purse and tossed it to the Antelope Horned person standing at the door.
Uncle Gen caught the True Dragon Coin and his face lit up with joy, but then he looked troubled, shaking his head and saying, "There indeed are Gale Beasts near our tribe, and many of our youth go out in search of them. However, I haven’t been up the mountain for many years and cannot guide you."
Ji Xinghuo said, "Find soone for . I’ll pay."
"Alright."
Uncle Gen agreed to his request, and though he seed reluctant to part with the True Dragon Coin in his hand, he returned it to Ji Xinghuo, who didn’t take it back, saying, "Keep it."
"Praise your generosity!" Uncle Gen left gleefully.
Ji Xinghuo had just finished his dinner when soone knocked on his door. The innkeeper arrived with another Antelope Horned person—it was Bai Mang, whom he had seen earlier.
"Highlander, I know where to find Gale Beasts, but I can’t take you there," Bai Mang got straight to the point as soon as he entered the room.
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