Return to the Cliffside
Having reached the World Boundary several times.
Even before the town was established, they had set foot in this world as part of Expedition Team.
Anrui had a very accurate grasp of how long the journey would take.
On the morning of the fourth day, he brought Linsey to the Snowy Wasteland.
It has been almost half a month since Linsey left.
The earth was covered with snow, and a cold wind blew through the air from time to time, creating a deathly still scene.
"It's so cold..."
We entered the Snowy Wasteland in less than half an hour.
Anrui frowned and asked Linsey beside him:
"Was the temperature here the same when you came here to explore before?"
Anrui's unease was rapidly intensifying.
Based on Linsey's description, he thought the temperature changes here would bring some danger, but the current situation has far exceeded his expectations.
It's too cold! Not to mention humans or animals, even Devil Beast that have fused with Essence cannot survive here for long without resistance to cold weather.
Driven by concern, Anrui acted swiftly and urgently.
Before he could even ask a question, and just as Linsey was about to answer, Anrui jumped to the side of a pine tree covered in snow and slammed a powerful punch into it.
Click—
The pine tree instantly emitted a sound of being unable to bear the weight.
The collapsed object crashed onto the Snowy Wasteland, stirring up clouds of snow dust that severely obstructed visibility.
It took several seconds for the white object floating in the air to gradually fall.
Before Linsey and Anrui, the dry, lifeless heartwood of the pine tree was revealed to them.
Previously buried by heavy snow, the actual condition of the plants is still unclear.
The tree had actually been frozen long ago and then died.
"..."
Upon seeing this, Linsey realized that she had made a misjudgment.
His description of this Snowy Wasteland was that it was a desolate place with extremely low temperatures.
But this is still not accurate enough.
Linsey's Ice Badger Claw Pendant helped him resist the cold, which led him to misjudge the true threat posed by this Snowy Wasteland.
At this moment, Linsey put the [Ice Badger Claw Pendant] into her bag.
Once the protective effect of the ornament disappeared, the sweeping cold wave immediately returned to normal.
Linsey's estimate of the temperature here, which is around minus thirty degrees Celsius, is correct.
But in addition to the low temperature, the air was filled with a chilling cold that made the already frigid weather even more terrifying, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a cold, life-threatening forbidden zone.
"..."
Linsey lowered her head.
I will definitely continue to wear the [Ice Badger Claw Pendant] in the future.
He has no reason to give up the advantages he possesses.
But this experience also taught Linsey that in a new environment, she must pay attention to these details that are often overlooked due to the Game Player' skill level.
Reflect on this in your heart.
Linsey didn't make excuses to blame the equipment for the mistake, but frankly admitted his error. "Uncle Anrui, I'm sorry, this was my misjudgment."
"I have a good tolerance for cold weather, and I definitely will in the future..."
"It's nothing." Anrui shook his head, telling Linsey not to worry about it. "It's just that the temperature is a bit cold. The fact that you noticed the appearance of this Snowy Wasteland is a timely reminder for the town."
With that, Anrui led Linsey deeper into the Snowy Wasteland.
The two walked on.
It's the same route Linsey took to enter the Snowy Wasteland.
Not long after, they came across the snow pit that Linsey had dug while examining the body on the ground. Several days had passed, and the snow surface had been mostly filled with fresh snow, with only a small depression marking the spot where it had been dug.
Linsey raised this point.
Anrui immediately pointed to the nearest depression in the snow to confirm:
"Is the body we found earlier here?"
Linsey nodded.
Anrui immediately stepped forward and kicked the ground.
The Fifth Stage Warrior moved quickly and powerfully. The already fragile New Snow was quickly kicked into a cloud of white mist, revealing the back fur of a Fire Fox corpse below.
"Get up here!"
Anrui reached down, grabbed the Fire Fox by the back, and pulled the entire corpse out of the snow.
The Fire Fox's appearance before its death is incredibly lifelike.
The leaping motions during its escape, and the terror in its beastly eyes, all preserved the image of its final moments.
This thing is quite heavy.
But in Anrui's hands, it felt as light as a toy.
He held the corpse in his hand, stared at it carefully for a while, and his brows furrowed more and more.
"Well--"
Anrui sighed.
He tossed the Fire Fox's corpse aside, slamming it into the snow and stirring up a cloud of white dust. He then declared with certainty, "Sure enough, what killed this guy wasn't some ordinary cold current, but rather the change in the Essence contained within it."
This is consistent with Linsey's guess.
But Anrui's attitude when he spoke made Linsey certain that the other party had more specific means of detection.
He asked with some curiosity:
"Uncle Anrui, I found these bodies before, but I didn't have the corresponding examination methods. How did you manage to see the problem immediately just by holding them in your hand?"
Anrui immediately offered an explanation:
"All Awakened Ones, as long as they can elevate their skills five times to become Ascender, will naturally possess the same clear perception of Essence as I do."
Fifth Stage Ascender...
In this regard, Linsey's profile as a "Game Player" is quite clear.
As an Awakened One, his level has advanced from the initial Stage 1 [Newbie] to the current Second Stage [Game Enthusiast].
But let's talk about the Fifth Stage where Anrui is located.
It will probably take a long time of effort to achieve this.
"Is there no other way to acquire this ability?"
Linsey asked casually, expecting Anrui to shake his head in denial, but the other person nodded instead:
"There are other methods as well."
"Professions such as merchants, messengers, artists, or appraisers have an advantage in perception and can acquire the corresponding abilities in advance."
"..."
Okay, it's still a skill that Linsey can't acquire for the time being.
His Essence has already locked onto the Game Player.
It's worth considering combining perception skills with product identification skills in the future; there might be new prospects for development.
The two ended their conversation and continued their journey deeper into the Snowy Wasteland.
On the Snowy Wasteland, it would be inconvenient for Anrui to use the same method as before to take Linsey along.
With his exaggerated strength and speed, carrying someone across the snow would only make them look rather disheveled from the accumulated snow.
We are not too far from our ultimate goal.
The two then switched to walking and began to move forward through the thick Snowy Wasteland.
During this time, Linsey also took out a wooden plank and made a wooden sled for Anrui.
That night, the two who persisted in their journey reached the edge of the cliff and saw the Climbing to Heaven Vine that stretched downwards into the dark void.
The frozen Vines were exactly the same as when Linsey had left.
Anrui reaffirmed that the intermittent cold winds blowing from below indeed contained some kind of icy Essence influence. It was only because the Essence interference originated from the source itself, and the wind only had a subtle, indirect effect, that Linsey hadn't noticed it before.
"..."
The two stood on the edge of the cliff and looked down.
After a few seconds of silence, Anrui suddenly spoke up, "Linsey, just like before, wait for me here."
"I'll go downstairs for a bit and come back as soon as possible."
As he spoke, Anrui prepared to move down the Vines and enter the Black Mountain World.
But just then, Linsey called out to Anrui from behind:
"Uncle Anrui, I want to go down too!"