CHAPTER 1332: CHAPTER 1333: THE ABANDONED VILLA

After walking for a short while, the group saw the remains of a ruined mountain villa standing atop a thin layer of snow on the cliff. Feng Yuan curiously inspected the nearby steep cliff walls and said,

"What a pity—it’s such an environment, abandoned like this."

"This place... feels like the kind where you might soak in a hot spring and accidentally fall off the mountain."

Looking at the cliff in the distance, Yang Hongzhi’s face turned grim as he remarked. Building a hot spring here was certainly daring, though visitors daring enough to come here would probably have nerves of steel.

"That shouldn’t happen, right?"

Although he said this, Feng Yuan couldn’t help but hesitate as he walked toward the edge of the cliff. He looked down and found that beneath the so-called precipice was a relatively steep slope. Letting out a sigh of relief, he said,

"See? Like I said, it couldn’t be that thrilling. Besides, if it were truly a cliff, where would the hot spring come from?"

Seeing the slope, Yang Hongzhi scratched his head in embarrassment. He had overthought things. Mainly, the area near the edge seemed quite elevated, making it appear from their earlier vantage point on the road as though it were perched atop a sheer cliff.

"The real danger is above. The rock face here is too steep—if an avalanche were to occur, it could bury this entire place directly."

Looking up at the adjacent rock face, Feng Yuan commented. However, even though he said this, he added that such concerns were relatively easy to address. Whether through a barrier or some other screen, an avalanche could be repelled with ease. At worst, they might be temporarily trapped. As long as the villa had Spirit Beasts with Legendary-level strength or above, there was really nothing to worry about.

"Let’s go check it out. Who knows, this place might have some interesting Ghost Series Spirit Beasts."

Feng Yuan playfully slapped Xiao Ji and said with a mischievous grin. Long Boduo sniffed the air and remarked,

"Nope, there’s no sign of any Ghost Series Spirit Beasts ahead—it’s just an ordinary abandoned villa."

"Uh..."

Looking at Long Boduo, Feng Yuan felt a bit awkward. He had forgotten that Long Boduo was a Ghost-type Divine Beast—it would certainly be the most attuned to the presence of any Ghost Series Spirit Beasts nearby.

Arriving in front of the abandoned villa and examining its worn exterior, Feng Yuan exclaimed in surprise,

"It actually looks pretty decent, and there’s no serious damage either."

Knocking lightly on the door, Feng Yuan found that the wooden door was quite sturdy—it wouldn’t fall apart from a simple push. Veronia glanced around and commented,

"That’s not unusual at all. This place hasn’t been abandoned for long. Up until recently, it must have been well maintained. But should we just blast the door open?"

Looking at the tightly locked door, Veronia asked. Agunas gave her a speechless glance and said,

"You all should hold back a bit. Regardless, this is someone’s property. It’s fine if you’re just messing around here, but demolishing the door?"

"Haha, you’re right, I guess. But then, how do we get inside?"

The door was locked, and the surrounding windows were all intact with their locks secured. Without causing damage, there seemed to be no way inside. Seeing this, Agunas swished its tail and said,

"Fine, I’ll help you."

If it didn’t step in, it had a feeling Feng Yuan might resort to other methods to get in—with who knows what consequences... With a sweep of its paw, a Space Gate opened directly. Seeing the two closely positioned Space Gates suddenly appear up close, Yang Hongzhi marveled,

"I didn’t think Divine Beasts could achieve this!"

Normally, Space Gates couldn’t open both ends at such a close distance, as the resonance of spatial forces between them would destroy the gates instantly. Furthermore, a Space Gate couldn’t typically open directly inside a building.

Unless there was explicit permission, countermeasures to disrupt Space Ultimate Techniques would completely skew spatial coordinates, making it impossible for a Space Gate to open.

However, since this villa was abandoned, there naturally weren’t countermeasures preventing spatial intrusion. Otherwise, even for Agunas, opening a Space Gate here wouldn’t be simple.

"This is... quite lavish."

Walking through the Space Gate into the villa’s interior, Feng Yuan marveled at the luxurious decor. The craftsmanship had the refined vintage style of Drochkar nobility. Perhaps the original investors in this villa were nobles themselves?

"Those flowers are still blooming?"

At this moment, Feng Yuan noticed that the flowers in nearby pots remained in full bloom. Despite the doors and windows being tightly shut, the internal temperature was almost identical to the outside. Not to mention the absence of caretakers—the flowers should have long withered.

"Are you sure there aren’t any Ghost Series Spirit Beasts here?"

Glancing suspiciously at Long Boduo, Feng Yuan asked uncertainly. If there were no Ghost Series Spirit Beasts casting illusions, then what was going on with these flowers? However, no illusion could directly affect him either.

Scratching his head, Feng Yuan stepped forward to examine the white blooms. At first glance, the flowers resembled the Baiyu Flowers from the Amu Tree’s canopy. But upon closer inspection, they were evidently a completely different species—the petals here held tiny ice crystals. These crystals weren’t a result of the ambient temperature but seemed intrinsic to the flower itself.

Qi Chen brought the three small Spirit Beasts into the villa. The creatures trembled and huddled together after leaving the warmth behind. Ah Mu, having shrunk its size, followed them in. Seeing the pitiful state of the trio, Ah Mu waved its hand, and the Seistal Stele enveloped them once again.

Under its verdant glow, they no longer felt cold, and the three little ones regained their energy. Ah Mu approached them and, raising its head, looked at the now smaller-sized Ah Mu. The Flower Leaf Tree Three Spirit Beasts circled around it, with Bonbon Leaf attempting to climb onto its crown. Unfortunately, given Ah Mu’s shrunken stature, there were now only spots for one or two creatures to perch.

A gently restraining Bonbon Leaf from climbing onto its crown, Ah Mu patiently spoke to them. However, the mischievous trio wouldn’t heed Ah Mu’s lectures and darted about freely.

Qi Chen reluctantly stepped forward to assist Ah Mu in teaching the unruly little ones. Dou Yanlan, holding Cotton, stood off to the side observing for a while and then gently patted Cotton, whispering something to it before placing it on the ground and heading over to assist.

Standing not too far away, Cotton flicked its tail and meowed unhappily. Belusir wanted to approach to help but hesitated, unsure if the little trio would recognize its Spirit Beast identity.

However, as Belusir drew closer, the wild Flower Leaf Tree Three Spirit Beasts suddenly froze, curling up into a trembling ball. Qi Chen looked around suspiciously and spotted Belusir in the distance, feeling speechless. What’s up with these little guys? They were practically a Divine Beast detector—whenever a Divine Beast, even in human form, came near, they would sense it instantly.

"The floor isn’t rotting, though."

Stomping lightly, Feng Yuan examined the surroundings and remarked. Perhaps it was due to the quality materials used in the construction, but apart from the discarded fabrics strewn about, everything seemed merely old without much damage.

"Let’s go check out other areas. Hmm? A snowstorm, now of all times?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Feng Yuan noticed something outside the window and walked over to see the world blanketed in white. Surprised, he exclaimed,

"It’s summer, isn’t it? Plus, Honite Snow Mountain isn’t situated on an icy plateau or anything—how could this weather happen?"

"It carries traces of an ultimate move’s energy, but doesn’t quite feel like it."

Swishing its tail, Agunas commented. The snowstorm outside seemed strange. If it was caused deliberately, the energy signature of a Spirit Beast’s technique didn’t seem evident. Moreover, there weren’t Spirit Beasts like Yognot here, nor any special types of creatures. As for the possibility of another Divine Beast’s doing? It seemed unlikely. Without an explicit purpose for hiding its presence, Agunas would be able to sense a Divine Beast nearby.

Yet, Agunas hadn’t detected any Divine Beast in the vicinity. Trying to obscure one’s tracks wouldn’t warrant summoning a snowstorm either.

The snow pounded against the windows, sending echoes indoors. The villa’s temperature seemed to drop steadily. Feng Yuan scratched Xiao Ji’s neck and said,

"It’s such a shame that your flames don’t produce any heat. Otherwise, we could use them to warm up."

Xiao Ji’s Nether Flame and Fire of Death were both types of flames devoid of actual heat. Their burning effect was primarily tied to their soul-disintegrating and decay properties, making them unsuitable for warming.

Belusir waved its hand, summoning numerous tiny sparks to float in the air. The glow illuminated the villa, darkened by the snowstorm, and slightly raised the room’s temperature.