By linking my account to the check-in system, I became a leisurely traveler.

Chapter 154 The Splendor of That Arrow [First Update!]

The air is so thin that when I breathe it into my lungs, I never feel like I have enough.

The wind, carrying ice particles, kept blowing.

The sun hung in the sky, its light bright but not warm. There was little sound except for the wind, making the place feel especially empty and still.

Ding Rui could hear his own heartbeat. He followed behind Li Younan, trudging down the thick snow. His gaze was fixed on Li Younan—the man before him was undoubtedly his true savior. Without Li Younan, he would surely have met his end on this snowy mountain.

At this moment, Li Younan acted as if he had merely helped an old lady cross the street, retrieved a badminton shuttlecock from a tree for a naughty child, or picked up some litter for a cleaning lady—casual and unperturbed. Ding Rui was still carrying Li Younan's oxygen cylinder.

He's fully recovered. He had been in a deep coma, but oxygen is truly amazing. Even when oxygen is scarce, as long as you slowly breathe in oxygen, the blood oxygen level rises, and he recovers. Although prolonged oxygen deprivation has undoubtedly caused some physical damage, at least for now, it doesn't affect his mobility. Despite still feeling unwell in many parts of his body, his life is saved for now. He needs to be taken to the hospital immediately for a thorough examination.

After recovering, Ding Rui naturally focused all his attention on Li Younan. In his spare time, he would naturally think about Li Younan.

The man in front of me is simply unbelievable.

Li Younan walked ahead, his steps very steady. His pace was neither fast nor slow; a quick glance at the road below allowed him to immediately plan the most efficient route. These details weren't anything earth-shattering or exaggerated, but this was a peak over 7 meters above sea level! And Li Younan didn't seem to be breathing any oxygen, appearing as if he were walking on hills in a plain.

Ding Rui no longer had the strength or energy to speak; otherwise, he really wanted to ask Li Younan how he trained to achieve such a level of physical fitness.

Ding Rui has just experienced a near-death experience. Although his physical functions recovered in a short time, he knows very well that many parts of his body have suffered damage from the lack of oxygen, making it impossible for him to embark on another mountaineering expedition anytime soon. However, this experience has actually given him a lot of experience and made him more respectful of nature. He is not discouraged at all; on the contrary, he is even more eager to conquer more mountains.

As the altitude gradually decreased and Ding Rui continued to breathe oxygen, his physical condition began to improve considerably, and his pace quickened slightly without him even realizing it. Li Younan, on the other hand, was ahead, constantly turning back to check on Ding Rui to ensure that nothing unexpected happened to him.

To be fair, Li Younan had climbed up through a crevasse, so he wasn't familiar with the route that led down from this side. However, the fact that they were able to climb up, given their physical condition, indicated that the route was indeed relatively easy and had a gentle slope. Before long, they returned to the spot where Li Younan had climbed up through the crevasse.

From their brief conversation, Ding Rui learned that Li Younan had climbed up from here. He stopped and hesitated for a moment, then said, "Wait a minute, let me take a picture." Li Younan turned around and nodded. Ding Rui took out his phone, reached his hand into the crevasse, and took several pictures from below. Then, somewhat incredulously, he said, "At this altitude, you still have the strength to climb such a rock face."

Li Younan chuckled and said, "I thought you guys climbed up from here too." Ding Rui couldn't help but click his tongue in astonishment. If Li Younan hadn't just saved him, and if he hadn't displayed such impressive physical strength with such a nonchalant attitude, he would have thought Li Younan was deliberately showing off. This statement sounded like a billionaire arriving at his destination in a private jet and saying to a millionaire next to him, "I thought you came here in a private jet too..." It was utterly blatant "let them eat cake!"

But he knew very well that Li Younan wasn't that kind of person. After all, Li Younan was someone who was willing to give his oxygen tank to others in such extreme conditions! Regardless of his physical condition, that choice alone made his humanity shine brighter than the sun. So an unbelievable thought began to form in Ding Rui's mind, and his expression gradually turned to astonishment—meaning that Li Younan might genuinely think that climbing a vertical rock face tens of meters high at an altitude of nearly 7 meters was just a minor matter of getting his clothes slightly dirty. The term "chosen mountaineer" popped into Ding Rui's mind.

Perhaps no one in this world is more outrageous than Li Younan.

He must be the child of the mountain god...

……

Ding Rui didn't need an hour of oxygen to wake up as Li Younan had imagined; in fact, he was able to move freely in just over 40 minutes. So, the time they had lost wasn't as much as they had thought. After regaining their mobility, the two descended very quickly thanks to Li Younan's planned route. Furthermore, Zhao Liang and Gao Yonghui, who were also in poor physical condition, managed to catch up with them after about two hours, and the four successfully reunited.

Zhao Liang and Ding Rui didn't have time for sentimentality. They rested briefly, exchanged a few words, and then continued their descent. Before dark, all four of them returned safely to camp. It wasn't too late yet. After a short rest and packing up their equipment, they discussed their options before nightfall and decided to continue descending a bit further. The altitude at this location exceeded 5000 meters, which was quite high for Ding Rui, who had just returned from a near-death experience. He had just used supplemental oxygen, which had raised his blood oxygen saturation, but if he were to sleep in such an environment for the rest of the night, his blood oxygen saturation would fluctuate wildly, like a rollercoaster, and his body would definitely suffer further damage. Therefore, they needed to hurry down while Li Younan's oxygen tank still had some oxygen left.

However, the route they continued on was one that Li Younan hadn't taken before; they were heading in a different direction. Zhao Liang was certainly much more familiar with this place than Li Younan, so Li Younan had no objections and followed Zhao Liang and the others down. But just as they passed a narrow path at the bottom of a cliff, Li Younan suddenly stopped. He frowned, narrowed his eyes slightly, and looked upwards.

Zhao Liang didn't notice Li Younan's movement as he walked forward. It was Ding Rui, who had been watching Li Younan closely, who suddenly saw Li Younan stop and asked, "What's wrong, Brother Li?"

The next moment, Li Younan suddenly reached out and grabbed Zhao Liang. Zhao Liang was stunned for a moment, then turned his head in confusion: "What's wrong?" Gao Yonghui followed Li Younan's gaze and looked up, then showed a puzzled expression—he couldn't see anything unusual.

Li Younan said, "Wait a moment, it's not safe." Zhao Liang hesitated for a moment, then looked in that direction as well... but he didn't see anything strange either. Li Younan knew very well that it wouldn't be easy to explain to them. When he got here earlier, he suddenly felt a pang of fear, and when he looked up, his gaze immediately locked onto a bare, protruding rock above.

The next section of the path, after passing the cliff ahead, was a continuous, serpentine descent. After that heart-pounding feeling, Li Younan was almost certain that even the slightest movement could cause the rock to collapse. As they descended the serpentine path, no matter how far they went, there was a chance they would be hit by falling rocks. Li Younan estimated that the protruding rock was about forty or fifty meters away.

Li Younan immediately had an idea. He said, "Wait a moment," and then took off his backpack. He had brought a seemingly useless piece of equipment—the American hunting bow. This bow was originally intended for defense against wild animals, but it unexpectedly proved useful in this situation. When Li Younan took out the bow, the three people present were stunned: "What's going on? Do you need to bring this kind of equipment for mountain climbing?"

This bow was custom-made by Li Younan. Although it's an American-style hunting bow, its draw weight is much greater than that of ordinary hunting bows, reaching 80 pounds. Li Younan didn't bring many arrows, but each one was designed for hunting large predators, so the arrowheads were made of specially made high-strength steel and were quite heavy.

Li Younan calmly took out a specially made arrow, slowly nocked it onto the bow, then gently exhaled and slowly drew the bow, the arrowhead gradually rising.

All three of them held their breath simultaneously.

The next moment, Li Younan loosened his right hand, and with a loud "bang," the arrow, like a beast breaking free of its restraints, trembled and shot out of the air with astonishing force.

He didn't aim at any precise target with this arrow, but instead drew the bow to its fullest extent, hoping to unleash the strongest impact in a single strike.

The arrowhead struck the rock face with a dull, deafening thud. Then, boom—! The entire mountainside shattered as if detonated; boulders crumbled, rock layers collapsed, and debris rained down! The fragments of rock fell like rain, some tumbling and tumbling down the winding path, plummeting to the bottom of the mountain.

However, it was clear to everyone that a single arrow could not have shattered the mountain. The real reason was that the rock face was already on the verge of collapse, needing only the final external force to trigger it.

Li Younan's arrow was the last straw that broke the camel's back.

Looking at the terrifying scene before them, which resembled a landslide and earthquake, Zhao Liang and the other two turned pale and felt a chill run down their spines.

The thought that if Li Younan hadn't stopped him, and he had rashly walked down that narrow, winding path, he would have been caught in the catastrophic collapse of the rocks, with nowhere to hide.

The group gasped in shock, a chill running down their spines as if doused with ice water, leaving them speechless for a long time.

Li Youran slowly put away his bow and arrows. Looking at the rock wall again, the trembling feeling he had just experienced had completely disappeared, and he was certain that there was no danger or hidden danger.

(End of this chapter)