Zong Shen stood with both hands in his pockets.
He waited for the crimson countdown digits hanging above the pitch-black sky, glaring like a massive wound, to finally reach zero.
[00:00:01]
[00:00:00]
The instant the digits vanished completely—
All sound fell silent.
The howling wind, the faint clinking of ice shards, the low hum of engines, the heavy breathing of warriors...
Every sound was instantly extinguished.
Time itself seemed to have its throat seized by an invisible giant hand.
The blizzard hung suspended in midair, and the scattered ice crystals froze like diamonds.
Even the baleful black mist coiling around Lilia's fingertips was locked into twisted patterns.
This was absolute spacetime stasis.
Then came an announcement devoid of any emotional fluctuation, yet utterly impossible to resist.
The announcement was like a cold steel stamp.
It was branded directly into the minds of every surviving lord.
Every character that appeared carried the oppressive force of rules, each one utterly clear.
[Global Announcement: The third phase of the Northern Frontier Trial, "Frost Era," has officially begun.]
[Current Trial Temporal Sequence: Day 61 (time within the Eternal Night Domain)]
[Core Objective Changed: Counterattack the Eternal Night Core.]
[Final Objective: Thwart the Night King's ultimate strategic intent.]
[Phase rules have been updated as follows:]
[Rule One: Eternal Night Node Campaigns]
[Nine core energy nodes of the Third Order have appeared within the Eternal Night Domain, forming the cornerstone of the Night King's power system.]
[Node classifications and characteristics:]
[Low-Order Nodes (3): Located along the edges of the Shattered Icefield, guarded by frost-throat behemoths and legions of the Unmelted Ones.]
[Destruction Reward: 30 million base points, Low-Order Divine Remains Fragment ×1.]
[Mid-Order Nodes (3): Located at Lake of Eternal Silence, Frostsong Peak, and the core region of the Final Slaughter Rift. Guarded by ancient frost