You told Xue Que your speculation. He agreed that there was a good chance the space contained valuable treasures, but he was still recovering from his injuries and needed to remain behind to guard Cold Abyss Snow City. He advised you to wait until he had healed before taking you to search for it.
Xue Que's words made some sense, but your perception was exceptionally sharp. Perhaps you would not need to be gone for long before following the withered tree to that spatial node and bringing the treasures back. Therefore, you still intended to make the trip.
In the end, after Xue Que reported the matter to the Snow Emperor, he handed you an ice crystal key that emanated waves of chilling cold.
The instant you saw the key, your eyes gleamed with golden light. You recognized it—it was highly similar to the one Xue Qing had taken out in the Immortal-Demon Battlefield. If your guess was correct, this was the key to the Eight Gates of the Cold Palace.
Your guess was right, but this key did not belong to Xue Que. It had been left behind by the Snow Emperor before last, and the guardian it summoned possessed strength far beyond Xue Que's, having reached the Quasi-Emperor Realm.
With this item at your side, your safety was assured. However, according to the Snow Emperor, the key had to be returned after you came back, and unless you encountered a life-threatening crisis along the way, it was best not to use it.
After all, this was already part of the Cold Abyss Divine Palace's foundation. Every use meant one less remaining.
Had you not already been crowned, an ordinary imperial candidate would never have received such great attention from the Snow Emperor.
You also understood that it was