After flying a short distance lightly, the crossbow arrow only pierced the fur in the middle of the human-faced bear’s forehead before being stopped by the hard skull.
The human-faced bear didn’t care about such minor external injuries; all it had in its eyes at this moment was Zhao Ya.
It wished it could bite this guy who suddenly ambushed and caused one of its palms to break into two pieces.
But just then, a hand like carved from jade suddenly reached over at an angle and pressed directly onto the crossbow arrow.
Crack.
The crossbow arrow made of quintuple refined iron directly embedded into the human-faced bear’s forehead.
The human-faced bear’s eyes widened instantly, seemingly unable to believe the scene before it.
But at this moment, it had no choice but to believe.
Zhao Ya smiled and twisted the crossbow arrow in his hand, the arrowhead stirring fiercely in the brain matter of the human-faced bear.
The entire body of the human-faced bear trembled violently, and then the light in its eyes quickly extinguished.
No one can continue to survive when their brain matter is messed up.
Not even an exotic beast.
The giant body of the human-faced bear crashed to the ground.
Zhao Ya also landed lightly on the ground, and with a gentle tip of his toe, his whole person soared away.
Moments later, the sounds of bear roars and infant cries rose and fell in the darkness.
But in the blink of an eye, all sounds vanished.
Then Zhao Ya leisurely returned.
"All right, including those hiding in ambush in the darkness, all five human-faced bears have been taken care of now."
Jing Rou was greatly shocked.
He knew that this young expert who had been in the spotlight for the past few years was indeed very strong.
But he hadn’t expected him to be this strong.
A few human-faced bears with Meridian Opening Realm strength were like defenseless beings in front of him, easily dealt with like chopping vegetables.
"Do you have a knife?" Zhao Ya asked.
"Yes!"
Even if one isn’t skilled with a knife, for someone from the Jianghu, it’s essential to carry a sharp little knife when traveling.
When Zhao Ya took this knife over forty centimeters long from Jing Rou’s hand, he was surprised to find that regardless of the sharpness, flexibility, or workmanship, it was not inferior to the so-called divine weapons made by skilled craftsmen.
Seeing Zhao Ya’s surprise, Jing Rou proudly said, "Forging weapons is indeed a branch of mechanical science and is closely related to the making of mechanical crossbows."
"So for us of the Mechanical Sect, forging weapons is a minor matter that can be done as an afterthought, hardly worth mentioning."
Zhao Ya ignored Jing Rou’s boasting, lightly swung the short knife, and several snowflakes floating down from the air suddenly froze, then split into four equal pieces and were blown away by the wind.
Jing Rou was already somewhat numb.
He didn’t even think there was anything strange about it.
After all, Zhao Ya was already so strong, it’s only natural for his sword skills to be extraordinary as well.
Zhao Ya, holding the short knife, approached the human-faced bear’s carcass.
At this time, the human-faced bear’s carcass hadn’t frozen yet, making it the best time for dissection and searching for the meat field.
Soon, the carcass would freeze into a lump, making dissection much more challenging.
Though he had never dissected a bear, with his exceptional knife skills and experience, Zhao Ya smoothly dismembered the large bear carcass.
And he wasn’t disappointed with the result.
On this human-faced bear that initiated the ambush, Zhao Ya found a high-grade meat field.
It was a fresh, hot heart that continued to pulse slightly in his hand even after being removed.
For some reason, upon touching this heart, a strong sense of hunger suddenly welled up within Zhao Ya.
The feeling was like coming across a sumptuous feast after days of hunger.
Zhao Ya was slightly taken aback, then understood.
This was likely his Blood-to-Power Talent at work.
Aside from the mysterious dried fish found by the Wuyang Beach, all the dried meat was cultivated from the meat fields.
Many had thought of devouring the meat fields directly, but without exception, they failed in the end.
Because the meat fields of exotic beasts often contained potent toxins, directly consuming them would, if not deadly, lead to great trouble.
But such concerns meant nothing to Zhao Ya.
Yet considering Jing Rou was nearby, if he devoured a meat field raw in his presence, it was likely to shock him.
So Zhao Ya first wrapped the heart in a bundle, then went into the darkness to dissect the other four bear carcasses.
In these four bear carcasses, Zhao Ya found two more meat fields, specifically a bear liver and a bear gall.
Three high-grade meat fields from five human-faced bears, this harvest even left Zhao Ya a bit stunned.
Is it just good luck, or is the Human-faced Bear’s level high?
Otherwise, how could the drop rate be so high?
Jing Rou didn’t mind Zhao Ya looting the spoils of war.
He even turned a blind eye to Zhao Ya naturally pocketing the short knife after dissecting the bear’s corpse.
It’s just a short knife; it might be a valuable weapon outside, but it’s nothing special to the Mechanical Sect.
"The smell of blood here is too strong. It will probably attract Snow Wolves and other Exotic Beasts soon. It’s not suitable for camping anymore. How about we keep moving and find a better spot to camp ahead?" Jing Rou suggested.
"Alright!"
Zhao Ya naturally had no objections.
In such harsh environments, it’s most important to follow the advice of professionals.
Quickly.
Jing Rou packed up everything useful from the campsite and continued forward.
By this time, the snow was falling even heavier.
Every step was extremely difficult.
Jing Rou murmured to himself, puzzled, "Strange, logically speaking, though it’s cold in the Northern Realm at this time of year, it shouldn’t be snowing this heavily."
"Could the climate have changed?"
Jing Rou was filled with doubts.
Especially since the Human-faced Bear, which should be in the far northern region, suddenly appeared before the Great Snow Mountain, making Jing Rou feel something was off.
But since they were already here, even if they were uneasy, they had to press on.
Fortunately, with this mysterious expert by his side, even if they encountered danger, it should be manageable.
After marching forward for quite a distance, Jing Rou finally found a suitable campsite.
The previous tent was no longer usable.
Fortunately, Jing Rou was well-prepared and had brought a spare.
After setting up the tent and lighting the stove, Jing Rou’s pale face gradually regained some color.
"You rest first, I’ll take the night watch," Zhao Ya said.
Jing Rou didn’t refuse.
Having been up most of the night, he was indeed exhausted, so he nodded and lay down to sleep.
Soon, he fell into a deep sleep.
Zhao Ya sat by the fire, listening to the increasingly violent wind outside. After a moment of silence, he took out the Meat Field of the Human-faced Bear from his pack.
Even though some time had passed, these three chunks of Meat Field were still warm, and even the heart continued to faintly beat.
Zhao Ya placed it near his mouth, hesitated for a moment, and then took a bite.
Unexpectedly, there was no rank smell, only an overwhelming aroma of meat.
With just a few bites, he swallowed the heart, and Zhao Ya felt as if a scorching sun had risen in his abdomen.
Soon, his Spleen and Stomach talents began to fully activate, converting the fiery Qi Blood into essence.
Then, his Blood-to-Power Talent continuously transformed this essence into Cyan Dragon True Power.
This process lasted a long time, far surpassing the experience of consuming dried meat.
After a full hour, Zhao Ya slowly opened his eyes, a hint of joy flashing in them.
Because in just this short time, the True Power within him had surged dramatically, and his once empty meridians now felt substantially filled.
"Panel!" Zhao Ya murmured in his heart.
Name: Zhao Ya. Age: 21. Remaining Lifespan: 11082 (+232 days) years
Skills: Eight Vajra Longevity Skill (Returning to the Essence 51%)
Wind-Slaying Saber Technique (Extraordinary to Saint)
Immovable Ming King Fist (Returning to the Essence 99%)
Stepping on Snow Without Leaving Traces (Extraordinary to Saint)
Spirit Turtle Hibernation Technique (Returning to the Essence 99%)
Great Stone-Throwing Hand (Peak Performance 99%)
Golden Body Armor Technique (Returning to the Essence 99%)
Planting Lotus in Fire (Returning to the Essence 99%)
[Brain Unlocking Progress: 18%]
Just a single Human-faced Bear heart had increased Zhao Ya’s lifespan by several hundred years.
Moreover, his brain unlocking progress had instantly increased by ten percent.