Artificial Glacier
Linsey's exploration was not a sudden whim.
It's not that he has some inexplicable hobby of cave exploration.
It was because, at the same time Linsey fell into this huge ice cave, the Task Bar on his Attribute Panel also updated!
[Icebound City]
Beneath the glacier lies a secret from a bygone era. Find and witness this long-sleeping ancient city!
[Quest Rewards: Hidden Map of the City of Frozen Ice, Ancient Gold Coin.]
"..."
"Linsey, are you out of your mind?"
Red was unaware of Linsey's new discovery.
The girl continued her analysis by following the line of reasoning that large-scale terrain exploration was not possible.
So, right there on that sheer cliff, she reached out and patted Linsey on the head. "We still have to go down to the bottom of Black Mountain."
"Isn't it a bit irrational to suddenly turn around in a place like this?"
Linsey only returned a knowing look:
"Hong, you know I have a lot of random abilities."
Hong immediately realized. "There's something down there?"
Linsey replied:
"That's right, and it should be a city."
"A city? You mean the place where humans gather and live, like that?" Red's tone was somewhat incredulous. "People can live in this godforsaken place? You can't be kidding me, can you?"
Linsey glanced at the word 'Frozen' written on the Task Bar: "I'm not kidding at all. There might be people there, or there might be no one there, but there's definitely something there!"
Hong was still skeptical. "Then let's go down and take a look."
Now that we know there are secrets hidden beneath the glacier.
Linsey certainly wouldn't miss it.
He crafted several daggers on the Workbench to serve as ice axes.
The two of them descended the vertical ice surface, and for Linsey, it even felt like she was back Climbing to Heaven Vine.
During the long and tedious descent, Linsey suddenly had another brilliant idea.
When he first entered the glacier, he checked the condition of the ice.
But below this location lies a Icebound City. Could there be something wrong with the glacier that seals it off? With that thought in mind, Linsey casually examined the ice wall in front of him as he descended.
[Ingredients: Ice cubes]
The ancient ice containing frozen air was not formed naturally.
[Adding it to beverages can make iced drinks, but aside from summer, its value is negligible.]
—Ancient ice.
—Not formed naturally.
One of these two descriptions rules out that this was created by Dragon Beast; the other confirms that the glacier here is not naturally formed.
Linsey's mind conjured up the scene she had seen on the ground.
How large is the glacier that encircles the entire Black Mountain?
"Tsk—"
Linsey curled her lip.
This is definitely not something you can guess by looking at it.
Moreover, he had some guesses about this Icebound City.
The Hidden Borderlands next door, which was originally the Elemental Realm, was utterly shattered in an ancient war.
Tens of thousands of years later, only that small area has been restored.
And Black Mountain World.
As the burial place of the Extinction Crown and the Righteous Walker, it must have been part of the battlefield at that time.
This city is buried beneath a glacier.
It was probably one of the places affected by that war! Linsey couldn't help but think of the title for those who had awakened to the Fifth Stage or higher— the Ascender.
The awakened beings before Fifth Stage were all just minor troublemakers.
However, once this boundary is crossed, the subsequent progress in abilities becomes exceptionally exaggerated.
This world has created a watershed-like name specifically for beings at this stage.
"Now that I think about it, it's quite fitting."
I was filled with emotion at this discovery.
Linsey didn't deliberately conceal the information like a character in a horror movie; she immediately told the girl beside her, "Red, the glacier here is probably man-made."
Red paused, her thoughts still lingering on the Sixth Stage Devil Beast she had encountered. "I don't think Sixth Stage Devil Beast could possibly have that ability, right?"
Linsey pointed to the girl's chest. "But in that ancient battle, you two, the peak of the Eighth Stage, both perished together. It's reasonable that some traces of it remain in this world..."
"Um?"
During the chat.
Linsey noticed a change below out of the corner of her eye.
The once bottomless, pitch-black cave was now filled with a hazy light!
brush--
Linsey immediately put away the torch.
Hong realized something. "Are we almost there?"
Linsey nodded in the darkness:
"That's right, be careful when you go down."
As they approached the bottom of the cave, Linsey and Red slowed down their movements.
As their positions continue to drop.
The hazy light below gradually became clearer.
What appeared in their field of vision was not a complete city, but a single sheet of ice, just like the glacier above.
But the difference lies in...
Some fluorescent bacteria grow on the ice here. Their crowns are shaped like half-open umbrellas, with wavy stripes and granular protrusions on the azure caps.
These special fungi provide light to this dark and gloomy region.
"Mushroom..."
Linsey didn't react at first.
But then he realized there was an unseen danger below.
Caves buried deep beneath glaciers, fungi that reproduce by spores, and fluorescent blue shapes.
When all these factors come together, it's impossible to find a place where you can feel at ease.
"Red, wait!"
Linsey grabbed the red figure beside her.
Under the girl's puzzled gaze, he made a mask out of brocade and a fully enclosed helmet out of Iron Ingot.
"The air down there might be something wrong, take these with you."
Linsey made sure the two of them were properly protected before continuing their descent.
When he arrived at the ground, he took out a torch and waved it. Sure enough, he could see some tiny particles in the air.
"It would be quite exhilarating to inhale this stuff."
Linsey murmured a sigh as she walked over to examine the fungi.
[Fungi: Illusion Ice Mushroom]
[Highly poisonous fungi that live in extremely cold conditions; consumption can cause intense hallucinations, followed by death during these hallucinations.]
[A rare and delicious mushroom, reasonably priced.]
"It's so fresh!"
Linsey picked a flower and looked at the crafting list.
[1 Illusion Ice Mushroom + 1 Acidic Decay Agent + 1 Lime Powder + 1 Water + 1 Glass Bottle = Ice Erosion Toxin]
[1 Illusion Ice Mushroom + 1 Frost Crystal + 1 Water + 1 Glass Bottle = Icebound Water]
[1 Illusion Ice Mushroom + 1 Flame Flower + 1 Water + 1 Glass Bottle = Adaptive Temperature Potion]
"I think I can synthesize Icebound Water now?"
Since everyone's here, there's no reason not to take the materials.
Linsey immediately began collecting the mushrooms, and in the process, she also obtained some Mushroom Spores.
Linsey has a helmet, mask, and a cape for protection from the airflow, so she's not too afraid of the environment.
However, just to be on the safe side, he sent Hong aside and put the girl in charge of guarding and keeping watch.
A few minutes passed, Linsey had collected quite a lot of Illusion Ice Mushroom.
Just as he was about to synthesize [Icebound Water], Red suddenly shouted to Linsey:
"Linsey, look here!"
The girl was supposedly keeping watch, but she was actually just spacing out out of sheer boredom.
Using the torchlight as a guide, she looked around in boredom and discovered an interesting fact.
Beneath the ice.
There appears to be a dark, indistinct object.
It was only because the distance was too great that Linsey and Red hadn't noticed it before.
"There's something frozen underneath the ice."
"Linsey, is this the frozen city you mentioned?"