Chapter 7 Northern Snow Mountains, The Opening of the Ice God's Ruins
In the northern dawn, the sky was an eerie, pale white. The cold wind no longer howled, but instead emitted whistling sounds like the low growls of wild beasts.
Two carriages were parked at the entrance of the Northern Junior Soul Master Academy, their bodies covered with a thick layer of frost.
"Everyone, get on the bus."
With a low shout from the teacher in charge, dozens of students dressed in thick winter clothes began to board the bus. Most of these children were freshmen who had just reached level ten this year and were preparing to obtain their first spirit ring; their faces were filled with excitement and nervousness.
Ye Feng and Ye Shaotian did not squeeze in with the students. Mingyue had her own carriage, and the two of them were sitting in the warm carriage, watching the Northern Border City gradually recede outside the window.
"Teacher, aren't we going to join the others?" Ye Shaotian asked, chewing on a piece of jerky.
Mingyue closed her eyes to rest, and said calmly, "The main force went to the 'safe zone' on the outskirts of the snow mountain. That's where the academy keeps its soul beasts, mostly docile herbivorous soul beasts or ten-year-old soul beasts that aren't very aggressive. Your target isn't there."
Ye Feng wiped the Thousand Chance Umbrella in his hand; the cool touch of the umbrella surface kept him calm: "The entrance to the Ice Mystic Realm is deep in the snow mountain?"
"That's right." Mingyue opened her eyes, a sharp glint in them. "That's a true no-man's land. No one but us can protect you. Remember, once you get off the bus, you'll no longer be students, but hunters, or… prey."
The carriage traveled for a whole day, and by dusk, the surrounding scenery had completely changed.
No longer a flat ice field, but a vast, undulating snow-capped mountain range, like sleeping silver dragons coiled on the earth. The air temperature had dropped to the point where water would freeze instantly; without special cold-weather clothing and the protection of soul power, an ordinary person probably wouldn't last a quarter of an hour here.
The carriage stopped at a mountain pass.
"Get off the bus, and you'll have to walk the rest of the way."
Mingyue jumped off the carriage first, followed closely by Ye Feng and Ye Shaotian. As soon as they got off, a biting gust of cold wind rushed into their collars, and Ye Shaotian shivered, quickly wrapping his snow wolf fur cloak tighter around himself.
"Come with me."
Mingyue didn't stop, her figure gliding across the snow like a swallow. Ye Feng and Ye Shaotian immediately circulated their soul power to keep up. After two months of hellish training, their physical strength and speed had made a qualitative leap, and they could barely keep up with Mingyue's pace while running in the deep snow.
After crossing two snow-capped mountains, it was completely dark. But in a canyon ahead, a faint blue light could be seen shimmering.
"We've arrived." Mingyue stopped and gestured for the two to be quiet.
Ye Feng lay prone behind the snow slope and looked down. He saw two groups of people standing in front of a huge ice wall in the center of the canyon.
On the left, a group of people wore dark green robes. The leader was a gaunt old man who leaned on a snake-head cane. Behind him were three teenagers, each with sinister eyes and a calm demeanor.
The group on the right was dressed in snow-white armor, looking like the uniform of some kind of regular army. The leader was a middle-aged strong man, followed by two children.
"Those are people from the Snow Demon Sect and the Northern City Lord's Mansion." Mingyue's voice rang in their ears. "The Snow Demon Sect is a reclusive sect in the Northern Territory. They are ruthless and skilled in using poison and control. The City Lord's Mansion is the elite of the Northern Territory City. Those two children should be geniuses that the City Lord's Mansion is focusing on cultivating."
"Even the City Lord's Mansion has come?" Ye Shaotian muttered to himself, "It seems there really are good things in this Ice Mystic Realm."
"Of course." Mingyue sneered, then stood up and unabashedly released her level 53 Soul King aura. "Let's go down too."
The appearance of the bright moon instantly attracted the attention of two groups of people below the canyon.
"Hmph, who do we have here? It's Fairy Mingyue." The gaunt old man from the Snow Demon Sect chuckled sinisterly, his voice as grating as fingernails scraping against glass. "What, is there no one left at the Northern Academy? Sending a weak woman like you with two immature brats to your death?"
Mingyue landed in front of the ice wall with Ye Feng and Ye Shaotian, tapping her palm lightly with her folding fan, and said casually, "Old ghost Kumu, your mouth is still so foul. These three ugly ducklings are the 'geniuses' of your Snow Demon Sect this generation? They all look like they're about to die."
"You!" A young man behind the withered old ghost was furious and was about to step forward, but was stopped by the old man.
On the other side, the middle-aged strong man from the city lord's mansion was much more polite, cupping his hands in greeting to Mingyue: "Teacher Mingyue, how have you been?"
"Commander Tie, you're too kind." Mingyue nodded slightly in return.
Ye Feng stood behind Mingyue, silently observing the two groups of people. The three youths from the Snow Demon Sect had soul power fluctuations around level twelve or thirteen, clearly having already obtained their first soul rings. They were probably here to seek opportunities or hunt higher-level soul beasts. The two children from the City Lord's Mansion looked about his age, with soul power fluctuations at the peak of level ten. They were likely here to obtain their first soul rings, just like him.
"What are you looking at, you country bumpkin?" The Snow Demon Sect youth who had just tried to rush up glared fiercely at Ye Feng and said in a low voice, "Be careful not to lose your life once you enter the secret realm."
Ye Feng remained expressionless, simply replying, "Mind your own business."
"Now that everyone's here, let's open the secret realm," the withered old ghost said impatiently. "I don't have time to sit here in the cold wind with you."
Mingyue and Commander Tie exchanged a glance and nodded.
The three stepped forward at the same time, each taking out an irregularly shaped, ice-blue token from their pockets.
"go!"
With a low shout, the three tokens flew towards the huge ice wall at the same time, accurately embedding themselves in the three grooves on the ice wall.
"Boom!"
The earth began to tremble, and snow fell in a soft patter. On the ice wall, ancient patterns began to light up, bursting forth with a dazzling blue light. Then, the once indestructible ice wall rippled outwards like water, gradually forming a bottomless blue vortex.
An extremely ancient, cold wind, carrying a wild and untamed aura, blew out from the vortex.
"The secret realm has opened, but you only have three days." A greedy glint flashed in the old ghost's eyes as he turned and shouted to his disciples, "Go in!"
The three disciples of the Snow Demon Sect immediately leaped into the vortex and disappeared instantly.
"Let's go too." Commander Tie waved his hand, and the two men from the City Lord's Mansion followed closely behind.
Mingyue turned around, looked at Ye Feng and Ye Shaotian, and her expression became more serious than ever before: "Remember what I said before, come out alive. I'll be waiting for you outside."
"Don't worry, teacher." Ye Feng gripped the Myriad Manifestations Umbrella tightly in his hand.
"Let's go, Fatty."
Ye Feng took a deep breath and took the lead towards the blue vortex. Although Ye Shaotian's legs were trembling, he gritted his teeth and followed.
The moment his body touched the vortex, Ye Feng felt a strong dizziness, as if his entire soul had been pulled out of his body. All around him was a chaotic blur of light and shadow, and the roar of the wind filled his ears.
This sensation lasted for about ten seconds.
"Bang!"
Ye Feng felt himself fall heavily onto the hard ground. Ignoring the pain, he immediately rolled to his feet, the Thousand Chance Umbrella instantly opening as he cautiously looked around.
"Hiss... It's so cold."
Ye Shaotian's voice came from the side, and the chubby boy was rubbing his bottom as he got up from the ground.
Only then did Ye Feng see the scene around him clearly, and he couldn't help but gasp.
This is a world entirely made of ice and snow. The sky is not white, but a deep purplish-blue, with three enormous moons hanging in the air. On the ground are huge icicles, strangely shaped, some like trees, some like monsters, arranged in an intricate pattern, like a labyrinth of ice crystals.
The temperature here is tens of degrees lower than outside. If it weren't for the special cold-weather clothing that Mingyue gave them, they would probably have frozen to death instantly.
"Boss, it's so quiet here..." Ye Shaotian shrank back in fear.
Indeed, it was eerily quiet here; there wasn't even a sound of wind, only the faint sound of their feet on the ice.
"Be careful, the quieter the place, the more dangerous it is," Ye Feng whispered. "Teacher Mingyue said that this is the place where the Ice God fell, and most of the soul beasts here are mutated species with extremely strong aggression."
The two cautiously explored forward.
After walking about a few hundred meters, a slight "click" sound suddenly came from ahead.
Ye Feng suddenly stopped in his tracks, holding the Thousand Chance Umbrella horizontally in front of his chest: "There's something here."
"Where?" Ye Shaotian summoned his Frost Sword and looked around nervously.
"above!"
Ye Feng suddenly looked up and saw a huge, transparent spider, like an ice sculpture, hanging upside down on a massive ice pillar above him. Its eight compound eyes flashed with a bloodthirsty red light, staring intently at them.
"It's a hundred-year-old Ice Crystal Demon Spider!" Ye Feng recognized the soul beast at a glance. "Little Fatty, spread out!"
Before the words were even finished, the Ice Crystal Spider had already spat out a white spider web, which quickly enveloped the two of them.
Ye Feng slid to the left, the Thousand Chance Umbrella spinning in his hand, its edges like sharp serrations, instantly severing the few spider silk threads that were drifting towards him.
Ye Shaotian reacted quickly, rolling to the right to dodge and then unleashing a blast of cold air at the spider web, freezing it in mid-air.
"squeak--!"
Seeing its sneak attack fail, the Ice Crystal Spider let out a piercing screech, its eight long legs leaping forward like a cannonball as it pounced on Ye Shaotian. It had realized that this fat man was easier to bully.
"Do you think I'm someone easy to bully?!"
Ye Shaotian, having been tempered by the hellish training of the past two months, advanced instead of retreating when faced with the charging demonic spider, his Frost Sword gleaming brightly.
"Frost Slash!"
Although it lacks soul skills, this is simply a slash imbued with soul power, and its power is considerable when enhanced by the cold air of the North.
"clang!"
The sword blade struck the spider's forelimb, producing a metallic clang, leaving only a white mark.
"Its shell is very hard!" Ye Shaotian exclaimed. The huge impact made his hands go numb, and he slid backward several meters.
Just as the demonic spider was about to give chase, a silver figure suddenly appeared from the side.
"Take this!"
Ye Feng held the Thousand Chance Umbrella, which had now folded into a sturdy long staff. Using the momentum of his run, he struck the demon spider hard on the abdomen—the weakest point of its carapace.
"Bang!"
This powerful strike sent the spider flying through the air, crashing into an ice pillar and scattering ice shards everywhere.
"Strike while the iron is hot! Little Fatty, freeze its legs!" Ye Feng shouted.
Ye Shaotian understood immediately, and his soul power surged into the Frost Sword. The tip of the sword touched the ground, and an ice shard spread rapidly along the ground, precisely freezing the four hind legs of the demon spider that had just landed.
The spider struggled desperately, but Ye Shaotian's ice, though not sturdy enough, was enough to restrict its movements for a second.
In a battle between masters, a second is enough.
Ye Feng had already rushed in front of the Demon Spider. He suddenly opened the Thousand Chance Umbrella, and the tip of the umbrella pierced out like a spear, pointing directly at one of the Demon Spider's eyes.
"Pfft!"
Green liquid splattered, and the demonic spider let out a shrill scream. Its body convulsed violently a few times before it lay still. A faint yellow halo rose from its corpse—the mark of a hundred-year soul ring.
"Huff... huff..." Ye Shaotian plopped down on the ground. "That scared me to death. This thing is harder than Brother Zhao Gang's fist."
Ye Feng flicked the blood off the tip of his umbrella, but remained vigilant: "This is just the beginning. This is only a demonic spider that's a little over a hundred years old. Let's go. We can't stay in one place for too long; the smell of blood will attract more things."
The two quickly left the battle scene and continued their journey deeper into the secret realm.
Unbeknownst to them, three disciples of the Snow Demon Sect were coldly watching everything from an ice cliff several kilometers away.
"Senior brother, those two kids actually killed a hundred-year-old Ice Crystal Demon Spider. Their teamwork was quite good."
"Hmph, just lucky." A sinister glint flashed in the eyes of the leading youth. "Elder Kumu said that if we meet in the secret realm, we don't need to be polite. There aren't enough resources in this secret realm to begin with, so it's always good to have a couple less competitors."
"So when do we make our move?"
"No rush." The leading youth sneered, "Let them scout ahead for us. Once they and the soul beasts have fought to the death, we'll be the ones to 'stalk the cicada'."