Chapter 394: Underground Ice Cave
As the two of them ventured deeper into the gorge, the surrounding soul beasts became increasingly sparse, as though there was a great danger ahead. However, both of them knew this was due to the presence of the Death God's influence.
A few minutes later, Ning Bei controlled the ice bird to slowly land before a gray mist.
"This should be it, right?"
"Yes, Second Young Master."
Ning Bei was certain that the Death God trial location was hidden within the mist because he had been constantly scanning the area with his spiritual power. Yet, even with his 99th-level Extreme Douluo cultivation, his spiritual power couldn't extend more than three meters into the mist. He couldn't think of anyone else, apart from a god, who could achieve such a result.
"Do you need me to accompany you inside?"
Ah Du pointed to the mark on his forehead and replied objectively:
"No, Second Young Master, I've been here once before, and with the mark on my forehead, there shouldn't be any danger. As for you, I can't guarantee anything."
Although Ning Bei was very strong, this was the domain of a god, and it would be his own choice if something happened to him. However, if Ning Bei got involved, Ah Du would feel guilty.
"Alright, then. Go ahead. If the trial takes too long, I'll head back first. Be careful."
"I understand, Second Young Master. If it really takes a long time, you can return first. There's no need to wait for me."
Ah Du nodded and didn't see anything wrong with this. Holding his magic scythe, he slowly entered the gray mist. Ning Bei once again extended his spiritual power to probe inside, but once again, it was like the spiritual power had sunk into the ocean, unable to go any deeper.
After a while, Tian Meng's voice sounded in his mind with a sigh:
"You lucky little brat, this should be the Death God's domain, right?"
"Yeah, the gap between people can sometimes be bigger than the gap between humans and dogs. Some people live for millions of years and never even touch the hem of a god's clothes, while others step outside and have a divine position fall on their heads. How pathetic."
Ning Bei sighed dramatically, but he couldn't hide the wicked grin on his face. His words almost caused Tian Meng to lose control—how many times had he been treated as fodder, unable to even touch the hem of a god's clothes, let alone achieve what some people had?
"Your words are so comforting!" Tian Meng responded with a deep sigh.
"Of course! How else would I have two girlfriends? Some people have lived for millions of years and are still treated as food by women!"
"Pfft!"
Tian Meng almost spat blood into Ning Bei's consciousness sea. Life had already been difficult enough as an insect. Couldn't they stop exposing certain things?
While Tian Meng was catching his breath in anger, and Ice Empress was quietly laughing to herself, the three of them suddenly heard Snow Empress's exclamation.
"Ice God, look over there! What is that?"
"Hm?"
The three of them followed Snow Empress's gaze and saw a small worm with a milky white, earthworm-like body. The worm stuck its head out for a moment and, seemingly sensing Ning Bei's gaze, quickly darted back underground. If it weren't for the small hole it left behind, the worm would have seemed like it never appeared.
"Isn't that just a Frigid Ice Worm? These creatures are everywhere in the extreme north…"
Tian Meng was about to mock Snow Empress, as the Frigid Ice Worms in the extreme north were even less useful than the Ice Silkworms. Tian Meng's species had a mental attribute talent, while the Frigid Ice Worms only had one advantage: their ability to withstand the cold.
However, after thinking about their current location, Tian Meng swallowed his words.
"Wait a minute, why are there Frigid Ice Worms here?"
Hearing Tian Meng's exclamation, Ning Bei immediately understood where the problem lay. Frigid Ice Worms only lived under the ice layers. Without the ice, they would die. So, the presence of this creature could only mean one thing—there was an ice layer nearby or very close to this area.
"Let's go and see what's going on."
Curious, Ning Bei, along with the three great kings of the extreme north, approached the hole where the Frigid Ice Worm had just popped its head out. They could feel cold air seeping out of the hole, indicating that there was definitely ice present underground.
In other places, Ning Bei could easily use his spiritual power to check what was beneath him, but this place was close to the Death God Trial location, and everything seemed to be suppressed. So, the only option was to rely on their eyes to discern the presence of ice layers below.
"Ning Bei, what do you think?"
After a brief moment of contemplation, Ning Bei decided to investigate further.
"Let's go down and see. Since it's near the Death God trial location, if there's something underground, it must be important."
"Alright, leave it to me."
Before Tian Meng could speak, Ice Empress, unable to resist, stepped forward. If anyone was the king of digging tunnels, it would be Ice Empress, who was a scorpion-type soul beast. Using her spiritual power, she solidified her form and quickly dug a large hole at the location where the Frigid Ice Worm had appeared.
"It really is ice."
Looking at the exposed cold ice beneath the dirt, everyone felt a surge of excitement. Ice Empress, now aware of the effect, worked even harder, digging at an astonishing speed of ten meters per second.
After a while, an ice tunnel leading deep underground appeared in front of Ning Bei. Without hesitation, he jumped into it and quickly arrived at the end of Ice Empress's excavation. A sudden sense of unease struck him.
"Ice God, look! It's so huge inside!"
Ice Empress's surprised shout attracted Ning Bei, who hurried toward the direction of the sound. When he arrived beside her and looked around, he saw that this was clearly an underground cavern. The ice tunnel was enormous, stretching endlessly, and the ceiling was covered with sharp ice spikes that were nearly twenty meters long, indicating that the place had formed a long time ago.
"Ning Bei, I have a feeling that there's a great secret buried here. We can't miss anything."
"Mm, you're right. Let's split up and explore. This place is huge, and we need to look for any clues."
Ning Bei nodded in agreement with Tian Meng's words and asked Snow Empress to come out of the consciousness sea as well. The two of them gathered their forms and began to explore separately.
Neither of them objected. A fat silkworm and a woman with snow-white hair slowly materialized before them.
"Alright, I'll check over there."
Tian Meng pointed northward and began wriggling toward that direction. Snow Empress didn't contest him, turning and drifting toward the south.
Ning Bei looked at Ice Empress and said:
"I'll head east, you go west."
"Okay."
Since the area was so vast, splitting up was the best and most time-efficient option to ensure they didn't miss any details.
As Ning Bei ventured east, he noticed that the ice path underfoot was quite rugged, suggesting that this place wasn't intentionally made by anyone. But since he'd arrived underground, the sudden feeling of unease in his heart wouldn't lie. Ning Bei even suspected that this place might be connected to the former Ice God.
This made him even more cautious, as he continuously scanned the area with his eyes, hoping to find something unusual.
After walking for several kilometers, Ning Bei finally noticed something unusual on an ice wall, or rather, the corpse of some kind of creature.
(END CHAPTER)
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