Icebound City

Alchemy Material: Icebound Water

[An alchemical catalyst condensed from the essence of cold, operating at extremely low temperatures; an essential item for crafting certain high-level potions.]

[A special alchemical catalyst, of moderate value.]

Linsey took out her alchemy table and created a [Icebound Water].

However, the subsequent crafting of this thing involves potions such as [Icy Dragon Breath Potion] or [Lich Transformation Concoction]. The required materials are even more unheard of, like [Glacial Cold Spring] and [Vengeful Soul].

"There's definitely no hope now."

Linsey quickly put these things away before coming to Red's side:

Is something frozen down there?

Linsey bent down and lowered the torch as much as possible, and sure enough, she saw what Red had mentioned.

The refraction of light in the ice makes it hazy and indistinct, but there is indeed a dark, indistinct thing there.

"Um..."

Linsey looked up at the cave above her.

The falling ice shards caused quite a commotion, so now we can use pickaxes to clear a path.

brush--

The light from the Meteorite Pickaxe flickered in the glacier.

With a few clangs, it broke open the ice below, revealing some black stone with obvious artificial traces.

Analyzing only from the top, it looks like the top of a building.

"Is there a building below?"

Linsey glanced at the [Icebound City] on the Task Bar and immediately called to the girl next to her:

"Hong, come here, let's dig down together."

"But keep the sound as low as possible."

Linsey and Red started to work.

They dug down the black spire, and the top of the building gradually came into view.

Below is a tall black tower.

The deep black stone is solemn and dignified, while its sharp shape also reveals a unique dynamic beauty.

In the past, the spire here may have pointed directly to the Stellaris in the sky.

But now it can only lie dormant deep within the glaciers buried underground, sleeping alongside its ancient history.

Dig downwards from the top of the tower.

The upper part of the Black Tower has been completely frozen, and the interior space is also filled with ice.

However, after descending another forty or fifty meters, the color of the glacier that had sealed it off began to fade.

"This color..."

Linsey stopped using his pickaxe and casually deactivated his cold resistance. The cold air immediately made him shiver. "Sure enough, it's a bit colder up here than up there."

Hong asked curiously, "So, further down, the temperature will rise, and there might not even be any glaciers left?"

Linsey raised the Meteorite Pickaxe again. "We'll only know the answer to that once we go down there."

The two continued digging downwards, this time just over 10 meters, when an open-air observatory was revealed in the black ancient tower, and its internal structure was clearly displayed.

"You can go in now!"

Inside the completely frozen tower, it's impossible to see anything due to the ice filling it.

From here on, the interior of the tower has been unfrozen!

Linsey pulled out the radar and scanned the area before leading the way, jumping inside.

"Red, put the pickaxe away, let's go through the inside."

The two carefully entered the tower from the observatory.

Although there isn't a large amount of glacier filling the indoor space, the temperature here is still very low, with some glassware covered in frost and even cracked from the cold.

This tower is clearly not a place for living.

It is constructed entirely of dark black stone, both inside and out. From the top to where Linsey and his companions were, the height of each floor inside the tower is between 3 and 5 meters, increasing as you go down.

What you can see inside the building.

It also consists of all sorts of strange instruments that have absolutely nothing to do with daily life.

After descending two more floors of the cold, damp staircase, Linsey and Red were stopped by a frozen door.

The door was engraved with some strange and unusual runes.

There may have been a flow of Essence on it originally, but after countless years of wear and tear, its former function has long since disappeared.

Linsey easily opened the door and saw the floors below.

There was almost nothing there, just an empty hall with a solitary platform in the center, topped with a crescent-shaped recess.

"Like..."

Seeing this scene, Linsey thought of the Lighthouse in the Hidden Borderlands where the Ancestor Spirit Core was placed.

The structure here is somewhat similar.

Unfortunately, the groove was empty, indicating that the core had already been removed.

Further down the tower, something truly eye-catching finally appeared.

This floor served as a library, with many scrolls on the shelves. Linsey walked over and randomly picked one up and opened it.

Due to the special circumstances, these scrolls were not damaged.

But the text above...

"Hmm, I still don't understand!"

Something was written in unfamiliar characters, and there were also constellation-like patterns drawn in it.

Linsey wasn't sure if these things would come in handy in the future.

However, considering it part-time work as an archaeologist, he first stuffed these scrolls into his bag, obtaining a total of 127 scrolls of [Unknown Ancient Texts].

"..."

"Linsey, it seems there's no ice left outside!"

Just then, a red voice came from below.

While Linsey was collecting Ancient Literature, the young girl couldn't stand the loneliness and went down to the floor below first.

Upon hearing the sound, Linsey quickly went downstairs.

Red stood at the edge of a stone window.

Almost half of her body was sticking out, with one leg raised and swaying incessantly.

It wouldn't be surprising if this guy fell down in the next second.

"..."

This pose is extremely seductive.

Linsey had the audacity to lift Red's other leg as well.

Then he had the urge to throw the guy out like he was taking out the trash, but he resisted.

What's the situation outside?

Linsey went over and saw that, just as Red had said, the glacier had disappeared at this depth.

Instead, there is a hemispherical space held in place by a glacier.

Linsey first looked down.

The Black Tower was still dozens of meters below them, and they were roughly in the middle of it.

Turning our gaze into the distance, the glacier that seals this place resembles a semi-transparent dome.

Some spheres shimmering with green light are hung on top of the glacier, providing the city with eerie lighting.

"Um?"

At this moment, Linsey's Attribute Panel changed again.

He opened it and took a look.

Not only the [Icebound City] quest has been completed.

Even the Map Skill seem to have unlocked an overview point, bringing the entire city into the scope of exploration.

However, these are all pieces of information that Linsey is currently valuing.

Because within this ancient, frozen city, hundreds upon hundreds of dangerous Red Dot are active! "Could there be some strange creatures here?"

Linsey took out her binoculars and peered into a street in the distance where Red Dot were moving.

Sure enough, a creature with a human appearance but strange fleshy growths on its body was slowly walking around there.

"The Revivalist..."

Linsey immediately recognized the other person's identity.

He dragged Red back into the Black Tower.

The movement was so forceful that the momentum even caused the two of them to sit on the cold floor.

Linsey turned to look at Hong, who looked completely bewildered, and said in a tone that was both surprised and helpless, "Hong, I have some good news."

"It seems we've stumbled into the base of those Revivalist by accident!"