The wind and snow were gradually cut off behind them, while the stairs beneath the fissure were cold enough to pierce bone. Chen Wuya stepped onto the first icy stair, and a faint tremor traveled up through the sole of his foot, as though something deep below was awakening.
He raised a hand, and Misaligned Force slowly seeped from his palm, pressing against the rune pattern beside him. The ice surface glimmered faintly before dimming again. The system silently returned a response: [Rune pattern not activated. Path is safe.]
Bai Zhi followed half a step behind him, her fingers constantly resting on her sword hilt. She lowered her head to glance at the fetal-protection talisman. Its blue light still pulsed steadily, with no sign of anything amiss. Mo Feng walked at the rear, his mechanism pack cracked open. A miniature spider had already crawled out and was slowly moving along the ice wall ahead, its feelers scanning every inch of the structure.
"There are three pressure plates ahead," Mo Feng said in a low voice. "Avoid the line down the middle."
Chen Wuya nodded, shifting his steps toward the edge on the right. Every step was tested before he put his weight down. He knew this place would not let them descend so easily. The quieter it was, the deeper the danger was hidden.
The stairs continued downward, and the ice walls on either side gradually became as smooth as mirrors, carved all over with ancient runes. The air grew colder and colder; every breath became a white mist that condensed into fine frost hanging from their eyelashes.
After roughly a hundred steps, the space ahead abruptly opened up.
A massive hidden chamber appeared before them. Its dome soared overhead, thick ice coated all four walls, and at the center,