An Encounter

The cold wind howled, and heavy snow weighed down the mountains.

A figure traversed the winding mountain road.

With Matthew's current physical condition, he is not afraid of ice and snow even in the coldest weather.

He casually swung his sword, killing a maddened beast.

This was the fourth wild animal he had killed on the mountain.

"Strange, why are there so many wild animals here?"

According to the records in "Distribution of Demonic Plants in the Great Snow Mountain", only a small number of wild animals should appear here.

"No wonder there's been so much more animal meat in the cafeteria lately."

"However, as long as I don't go deep into the mountains, I should be fine with my current physical condition."

Matthew shook his head, not dwelling on the matter any further.

He quickened his pace, hoping to find the snow berries before nightfall.

This type of snow fruit is not often picked.

This is because this fruit typically grows on snow silver trees.

The Snow Silver Tree was covered in thick white snow, and its branches and leaves were numerous and complicated, making it difficult to find.

But Matthew is different; he can use the system to search.

What was originally a refining system was used by him as a detection radar.

At that moment, Matthew walked into a snow-silver forest.

Amidst a series of information prompts, he quickly focused his gaze on a thick, snow-silver tree.

It was a place where branches and leaves intertwined, covered with a layer of white snow, with only a small part of the snow berries showing at the bottom.

If it weren't for the system notification, Matthew wouldn't have noticed.

【Name: Snowberry】

"Found it!"

Just as Matthew was about to go up and pick the snow berries...

Suddenly, he sensed a subtle fluctuation in the air around him.

Since he fused with the bloodline of the Flame Devourer, his senses have become much sharper.

He discovered a creature lurking behind a large tree not far away.

Name: Grayrock Beast

"It's a magical beast!"

The "Winter Realm Monster Compendium," refined in Luke's room, contains a record of this Gray Rock Beast.

This magical beast is agile and likes to ambush enemies from the shadows; it is even stronger than the Bloodclaw Beast.

The gray rock beast realized it had been exposed, so it stopped hiding and pounced directly at Matthew.

"This is a perfect opportunity to test my combat power after fusing with the Bloodline of the Flame-Eating Wyvern!"

Matthew didn't use "Vine Growth," but instead met the attack head-on with a punch.

"Boom—" A muffled sound rang out, and the Gray Rock Beast was slammed away.

The next moment, Matthew lowered his body, suddenly exerted force with his feet, and leaped up.

"boom--"

Using the momentum of his forward charge, Matthew threw a punch, slamming it heavily onto the Gray Rock Beast once again.

Immediately afterwards, another punch!

Two punches!

Three punches!

……

Matthew threw a dozen punches in a row, all of which landed solidly on the Gray Rock Beast.

At this moment, the gray rock beast lying on the ground, its bones shattered inch by inch, had already lost its breath.

Matthew let out a breath. "It's solved."

Looking at the mangled gray rock beast on the ground, he suddenly felt a pang of regret.

According to the "Winter Realm Monster Compendium", the fur, skin, bones and other parts of this gray rock beast can be used to make witchcraft items.

However, after his rampage of vandalism, the value will likely be significantly reduced.

"I hit too hard just now and didn't control my strength well."

"Never mind, I'll just throw it at the market and sell it later."

Without much hesitation, Matthew darted to the tree bearing snowberries.

Then he leaped up and instantly climbed onto a thick branch.

"Shh, shh—", the branches and leaves swayed, and the snow fell.

Matthew quickly picked the snowberries from the tree.

"Got it!"

The snow berries have a smooth and moist texture, and feel like a cool pebble to the touch.

Matthew put the fruit away; he wasn't in a hurry to leave the snowy mountain.

Instead, they continued their search among the nearby Snow Silver Trees.

About half an hour later...

After a thorough, systematic search, Matthew found a total of five Snowberries in the vicinity.

He weighed the fruit in his hand.

"This should be enough!"

"We need to hurry back and prepare for the bloodline activation ceremony!"

However, just as Matthew was preparing to pack up and return to the school's headquarters...

Suddenly, a familiar, sharp voice rang out.

"Hey, isn't this Matthew?"

Following the sound, Matthew saw a thin man with two huge crab claws on his body slowly emerging from behind a large tree.

"Jack..."

"Come here to collect potions?" Jack asked with his usual憨厚 smile. "I didn't expect we'd meet again so soon."

"There have been a lot more wild animals roaming the Great Snow Mountain lately. Your small frame must be in danger here. Would you like to come along?"

Through systematic observation, Jack's physique is still four points.

However, seeing that he could complete the bloodline activation ritual simply by returning to the base, Matthew did not want to linger any longer.

"Next time, definitely next time."

Just then, Jack's gaze swept over Matthew's right hand and he suddenly noticed the snow berries on it. A hint of greed flashed across his face.

"Don't be in such a hurry to leave, you've been hiding in the dorm the whole time."

"Now that you've rarely shown your face, why don't we catch up?"

Matthew didn't speak, just stared coldly at him, his left hand hidden behind his back, ready to unleash the power of "The Growth of Vines".

"Why are you staring at me like that? Am I going to eat you?"

"I know this place very well, how about I show you around?"

After saying that, Jack slowly approached Matthew, his expression calm and composed, as if he were in complete control.

Just as Jack approached, he suddenly caught sight of the corpse of a monster lying not far away.

"Gray Rock Beast?" Jack stopped in his tracks. He followed Matthew's gaze and saw a bloodied and mangled monster lying under a large tree.

"You...did you kill him?"

"Otherwise what?"

Jack remained silent, looking Matthew up and down, seemingly lost in thought.

When his gaze shifted back to Matthew's right hand, he noticed upon closer inspection that it still bore dried bloodstains, and his face immediately returned to its usual憨厚 (honest and simple) smile.

"So you had something urgent to do? Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Go ahead and do what you need to do. We'll talk again when we have time."

Matthew then gave a meaningful smile.

"Not catching up anymore?"

Jack's smile remained unchanged. "Next time."

"Okay, next time, I'll definitely catch up with you properly!"

Watching Jack's departing figure, Matthew's heart grew heavy once again.

Although he didn't fight this time, he knew that Jack wouldn't give up so easily given his personality.

Moreover, the presence of so many wild beasts, including even magical beasts, on the outskirts of the Great Snow Mountain hints at something strange.

Matthew felt that the Winter Realm was becoming increasingly dangerous, and that a novice like him was like a small boat adrift at sea, which could be capsized by a huge wave at any moment.

"but……"

Matthew looked at the snow berries in his hand and suddenly smiled.

"So what?"

"As long as I keep getting stronger, I will definitely be able to control my own destiny."

Matthew quickly collected the corpse of the Gray Rock Beast and strode down the snow-capped mountain.