"How did it just disappear all of a sudden? Did it enter the ice layer? This place is way too weird!" King Victor Zhao exclaimed in shock.
"It probably did enter the ice layer. These Ice Beasts seem to be an extremely clever type of Nether Beast—they can sense danger and directly merge into the ice. The Mystic Ice here is unbelievably hard, even tougher than metal or iron," Evan said.
"No way, how could any ice layer be that tough? Even Mystic Ice shouldn't be this hard! Let me try and see if you're right," the Beast King said.
He raised his massive bronze hammer, the muscles on his face tightening, and smashed down with all his might. When the hammer struck the ice, the whole ground shook—Evan and King Victor Zhao nearly lost their balance.
But the Beast King himself was sent flying into the air by the rebound force, his bronze hammer falling from his hand as he involuntarily spat out a mouthful of blood.
After Evan and King Victor Zhao glanced at him, they immediately asked, "Are you alright? Now do you believe us?"
The Beast King looked a bit pale. After wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, he walked over to where he'd just struck. One glance left him dumbfounded—the ice layer had shattered, but only in a spot less than a meter wide.
He was a demigod-level powerhouse—he knew exactly how terrifying his own strength was. If he smashed a mountain with this hammer, it would be reduced to rubble in an instant. But here, this ice layer barely cracked, and he was the one sent flying, wounded by the backlash. Damn it, what kind of monster ice is this?
Actually, this was perfectly normal. This is a world of ice and snow, and they've entered the Coldflame zone, which suppresses one's strength. At this moment, the Beast King's power was only at late Nether Emperor level—maybe not even that.
Of course, none of them realized their own cultivation was being suppressed by the environment. If they'd known, they wouldn't have been so shocked. Evan was in the dark too; if the Emerald Immortal Empress Jade were here, with her vast experience, she might have sensed it right away. In places like this, even demigods can be reduced to mere emperors.
Evan said, "Let's go. This place is seriously strange—we have to get through this area. We haven't even seen a shadow of the Heart of Frostflame yet. I don't know if it's inside an Ice Beast or buried in the extremely cold, ultra-hard Mystic Ice."
"The Heart of Frostflame is always found inside Mystic Ice, but wherever it appears, there's always a powerful Ice Beast guarding it. These Ice Beasts are so strong, they've shattered all our expectations. If they ever wanted to rule the Netherworld, the whole realm might've become their territory by now," King Victor Zhao said.
"You're way too naive. You're a city lord—can't you use your brain? They're just Ice Beasts, not Demonic Beasts or Nether Beasts. They can only live in places this cold, with snow and ice everywhere. If they ever left, they'd probably die right away," Evan shot King Victor Zhao a look and said.
The Beast King burst out laughing when he saw King Victor Zhao get shut down. Even though both of them were suffering from the cold, they couldn't help but laugh.
The three of them kept moving forward, and the colder it got, the more it felt like their blood was about to freeze. Their speed slowed down a lot. King Victor Zhao couldn't help but say, "Is there even an end to this? If this keeps up, we might die from the cold before the Ice Beasts even get us."
For demigod-level experts like us, coming here is basically pointless. This damned cold is torture. If I could blow this hellhole to pieces with one strike, I'd do it without blinking!
The Beast King glanced at King Victor Zhao and said, "If this keeps up, it's honestly unbearable. Looks like we can't keep up with Young Master anymore. Who would've thought the Netherworld had a place this cold? After living so long, we feel like frogs in a well right now."
"If you two can't handle it, just head back and wait for me somewhere you can manage. Watch out for blizzards and Ice Beasts, though. I have to find the Heart of Frostflame before I leave—this cold doesn't bother me much, so don't worry about my safety," Evan said.
The two of them were half-dead from the cold, while Evan just shrugged it off like it was nothing—talk about a total face-slap. They honestly couldn’t figure out what kind of freak he was, to have such monstrous strength and not even flinch at the cold.
Without another word, the two of them quickly retreated. Staying here another minute was torture. In just a few breaths, they were gone—and at that moment, heavy snow began to fall from the sky.
Evan didn’t leave or move forward. He just stood there, quietly watching the snowflakes drift down, because something about them felt off—each one shimmered with a strange ice-and-snow energy, a power forged from heaven and earth itself. If only he could harness it; this whole world would be a treasure trove of energy.
That thought made him suddenly think of Shadow, the Bloodshadow Berserker Lion. He wondered if Shadow could absorb the ice-and-snow power inside these snowflakes. If he could, his strength would skyrocket.
With a thought, he immediately summoned Shadow. As soon as Shadow appeared, he shivered all over. "So cold! Boss, what is this place—why is it so freezing? You’re not planning to freeze me to death here, are you?"
"Cut the nonsense. Check if you can absorb the ice-and-snow power in these snowflakes. This is natural energy—it could really help you out!" Evan said bluntly.
"I can absorb it, but it'll be a bit tricky. I'll need your help when the time comes," Shadow replied honestly.
"What realm have you reached now? You absorbed so much blood energy during the Immortal-Beast War—you should be way stronger than Goldwing by now!" Evan asked.
"I've already reached late Immortal Emperor, but breaking through will still take some time. Maybe this ice-and-snow power is the perfect opportunity. Boss, who knows—I might ascend to the God Realm before you!" Shadow said.
"No way, you really might ascend to the God Realm? The God Realm is insanely dangerous—if you go, I'd seriously worry about you," Evan said, stunned by Shadow's words.
"Boss, I can just enter your body and wait for you to cross the God-Tribulation. Then we can ascend together. But it'll use up a lot of your fire element," Shadow said.
"Tell me, how do I help you?" Evan asked.
"It's freezing here, mainly because of the ice-and-snow power. In this place, everyone's strength gets suppressed—some people might even drop two whole realms. If I absorb this ice-and-snow power, my body will turn into Mystic Ice, so you'll have to use Heavenfire to melt it off me," Shadow said...