Thawing the Ice

"Seven-Colored Deer, do you have a way to break the Fairy Fish's ice spell?"

Seeing that the icy light surrounding Zhou He and his group was growing increasingly intense and their health bars were dropping faster and faster, threatening to freeze them to death at any moment, Xiao Fan was extremely anxious. He immediately turned to the Seven-Colored Deer beside him and asked urgently.

Faced with Xiao Fan's urgent plea for help, the Seven-Colored Deer merely raised its deer eyes and glanced at him indifferently, but remained silent and showed no intention of responding.

Although it was wary of Zijin, Pure-Blood Magic Beast, it would not transfer that wariness to the frail human in front of it.

If it weren't for the extraordinary bond between Xiao Fan and Zijin, ordinary humans would be nothing more than ants in its eyes. It wouldn't even bother to glance at them, let alone stop to listen to their pleas.

Xiao Fan was speechless for a moment, his heart filled with frustration and helplessness.

He was previously recognized as the strongest person in the Dragon Nation, a once-in-a-millennium genius since the invasion of the game <Cloud Sea>.

Ever since the server-wide battle ended, his name has resounded throughout the entire Blue Star, his prestige shaking all directions. Anyone who has ever been in the <Cloud Sea> world knows the mighty name of the Great God Jiu Chen. When people see him, they all bow down in respect and are filled with awe.

Who could have imagined that the Jiu Chen Zong Heng find himself in such a predicament after entering the perilous and unpredictable realm of Magic Beast?

Stripped of all his glory, he's practically just another face in the roadside.

Any random Magic Beast could cast a disdainful and contemptuous glance at you.

Xiao Fan felt a surge of resentment and anger welling up inside him, yet he had no way to vent it, leaving him feeling utterly powerless.

"We're still not strong enough."

Xiao Fan's expression darkened slightly.

His level hasn't even broken the 100 mark yet; according to the rules, he's not even qualified to set foot in the Magic Beast.

The fact that I can now freely roam the Monster Region is ultimately thanks to the influence of the Zijin.

"No matter what, your own strength is the most important thing."

Xiao Fan slowly lowered his eyes, his long eyelashes concealing all the complex emotions in them, and murmured a soft sentence.

But... so what?

Everything he has now is something he earned through his own hard work.

It's just that he hasn't been in the game long enough. Given time, Xiao Fan is confident that he can grow rapidly.

Seeing that the Seven-Colored Deer remained silent, the Zijin eyes perched on Xiao Fan's shoulder darkened slightly, and the dark eyes coldly swept over the Seven-Colored Deer standing in front of him, exuding a chilling and intimidating aura.

Then it raised its eyes, its slender fingertips lightly pointing in the direction where Zhou He and the others were trapped. Its voice was clear and cold, carrying an unyielding supreme pressure, as it gave a deep command.

"Take action and help them break free from the ice."

Upon hearing this, the Seven-Colored Deer paused slightly, a hint of surprise and hesitation flashing across its clear eyes. Its gaze shifted several times, concealing the complex emotions that were fleeting in its depths.

It raised its head to look at the noble Zijin, its posture respectful, yet carrying a hint of undisguised embarrassment, and lowered its head slightly to explain in a soft voice.

"Your Highness, please forgive my inability. Although I possess the wood element and have enduring vitality, I am not adept at breaking ice and cold. And those humans trapped..."

With a slight pause, as she was about to mention "the Fairy Fish burning its Life Crystal," a faint, almost imperceptible sigh and melancholy crept into Seven-Colored Deer's gentle tone. The subtle emotions were hidden in her warm voice, making them difficult to detect.

"This layer of ice is a unique technique activated by the Fairy Fish at the cost of her own life essence and by burning her Life Crystal. The power of ice is condensed in her soul, imprisoning all things, and is incomparably domineering. My wood element power can restrain ordinary Frost, but it is completely unable to shake this mutated ice seal created by sacrificing her life essence."

"Heh~"

As soon as the Seven-Colored Deer finished speaking, a chilling sneer swept across the room.

His Zijin eyes lowered slightly, a chilling aura spreading within them, the last vestige of patience in his eyes completely gone.

This Seven-Colored Deer is truly cunning, deceitful, and extremely slippery.

The Fairy Fish's ice element has only recently mutated from the water element, its foundation is shallow, and the element doesn't even have a grade; it's just the most common, low-level ice attribute power.

The Fairy Fish desperately burned its Life Crystal, but it was only by forcibly unleashing the ultimate power of its skill. Although it seemed powerful, it could not shake the level of the element itself, and its destructive power was limited.

Just look at the Bao Bao; although the ice element restricted her movements, it didn't cause her any real damage.

This is because the element itself is of too low a rank; otherwise, if the Fairy Fish had unleashed such a powerful skill, the Bao Bao would definitely have been greatly affected by the freezing effect.

Having cultivated for a thousand years, the Seven-Colored Deer possesses a rich and pure wood element that is inexhaustible. Dealing with the Fairy Fish's ordinary ice element, which is still in its infancy, will not be difficult at all.

But just now it pretended to be helpless and deliberately made excuses, clearly hiding its incompetence and deliberately giving a perfunctory answer.

How dare a mere Magic Beast try to outsmart her and play tricks in front of Zijin!

His Zijin eyes suddenly darkened, and a chilling killing intent surged in his dark pupils, causing the surrounding air to freeze instantly.

A terrifying pressure, originating from the depths of its bloodline and surpassing all living beings, locked onto the Seven-Colored Deer in front of it, like a mountain pressing down, sealing off all its escape routes.

This was no ordinary pressure; it was the absolute suppression of a lower-level being by a higher-level bloodline. It was domineering, fierce, and left no room for argument, causing the Seven-Colored Deer's spiritual energy to stagnate instantly. Its limbs and bones were imprisoned, and it could not even muster the slightest thought of resistance. All that remained in its heart was a bone-chilling cold and extreme fear.

Zijin's voice was deep and cold, devoid of any emotion, yet carrying a deadly killing intent, echoing throughout the entire area.

"Since you're useless, there's no need to keep you around."

The moment the words left his mouth, the Seven-Colored Deer's fur stood on end, its limbs went limp, and its massive body trembled uncontrollably.

It truly felt that the oppressive force locking onto it was becoming increasingly terrifying, like a sword hanging from the heavens, ready to crash down at any moment and crush it to ashes.

A huge wave of panic suddenly surged within it, and it completely lost its composure.

Zijin was right; his natal wood element could indeed break the Fairy Fish's ice seal.

But why should it save these humans?

These humans are not only weak, but also greedy; their current predicament is entirely their own fault.

If they had been more cautious, they would have realized that their strength was far from being worthy of a level 300 Magic Beast.

Besides, removing the Fairy Fish from its frozen state is no easy task; it requires expending most of its power.

Why should it waste its power on a group of greedy, complete strangers?

That's why the Seven-Colored Deer lied; it simply didn't want to save people.

Unexpectedly, its little scheme was seen through by Zijin at a glance, which directly angered this Pure-Blood Magic Beast with unfathomable strength.

"Your Highness, spare me! Little Deer knows she was wrong!"

The Seven-Colored Deer dared not slacken its pace any longer. It quickly suppressed all its aura, lowered its massive head, and respectfully prostrated itself on the ground. Its voice trembled uncontrollably, filled with fear and regret.

"Your Highness, I wasn't deliberately hiding my abilities! This Fairy Fish's mutated ice element may seem ordinary, but due to its Life Crystal, it actually contains a trace of extremely cold and destructive power, subtly suppressing my wood-type vitality!"

"I lied because I was afraid that when I unsealed those humans, I would be affected by the power of annihilation. I really didn't mean to deceive you."

The Seven-Colored Deer hurriedly tried to explain, desperately trying to salvage the situation, fearing that it would be killed by itself in the next second.

Zijin coldly glanced at the Seven-Colored Deer lying prostrate on the ground, his eyes showing no emotion whatsoever.

Although it was young, Magic Beast beasts possess inherited memories, so how could it not see through the Seven-Colored Deer's clumsy excuse?

Wood represents life and vitality, while ice represents death and desolation; although the two are mutually destructive.

However, a mere newly born mortal-level ice power is simply no match for a wood-type spirit beast that has cultivated for a thousand years.

What the Seven-Colored Deer said was nothing but self-deceiving sophistry.

"Heh~"

In a word, it is cold and sharp, devoid of any warmth.

"Do you really think I know nothing?"

His Zijin- gold eyes were cold and aloof, covered with a thin layer of frost, showing no emotion whatsoever, only an innate dignity and imposing aura that swept across the surroundings.

She slightly raised her jade-like finger, and with a gentle flick of her slender, white fingertip, a wisp of deep, noble purple lightning suddenly leaped out.

There was no earth-shattering momentum, nor any sky-shattering power. It quietly lingered around her fingertips, its light flowing gently and seemingly harmless. Yet, the power lurking within was terrifying—a terrifying pressure capable of tearing the heavens and earth apart and crushing all things.

The Seven-Colored Deer, which had been bowing its head to the side, suddenly bristled with fur, its pupils contracted sharply, and its eyes were instantly filled with extreme fear and terror.

At this moment, it could clearly sense the destructive power hidden deep within this wisp of purple lightning. If the other party had a single thought, it would be instantly annihilated, leaving no trace of its body.

"Heavens... Heavenly Lightning, it's definitely Heavenly Lightning."

The Seven-Colored Deer was greatly alarmed.

Lightning element is inherently powerful, let alone top-tier Heavenly Lightning.

He'd probably die instantly if he even touched a trace of that Heavenly Lightning.

More importantly, once the Heavenly Lightning strikes, the Pure-Blood Magic Beast Magic Beast front of you must have undergone Lightning Tribulation, and its strength must be at least at the growth stage. This is the most terrifying aspect.

The Seven-Colored Deer dared not harbor any more illusions. Its limbs trembled, and it collapsed heavily to the ground, its body shaking uncontrollably. Its flower-covered antlers drooped slightly, and it hurriedly raised its hooves and thrashed about in a panic, its posture extremely humble and fearful.

"Your Highness, spare me! Your Highness, spare me!" The Seven-Colored Deer's voice trembled, filled with sobs, pleading for mercy with every word.

"This little beast knows its mistake! I was too cautious. I will immediately unfreeze those humans. I beg Your Highness for mercy and forgive this little beast this time. I will never dare to harbor evil thoughts or disobey Your Highness again!"

Although Xiao Fan was worried about Zhou He and the others, he remained silent throughout, without saying a word.

He was already somewhat used to this kind of scene.

In the world of Magic Beast, the hierarchy of bloodlines, the difference in strength, and the level of power are the most absolute laws, allowing no room for luck or sophistry.

Whether it was the Bao Bao before, or this self-important Seven-Colored Deer before them, they were all the same.

Relying on one's own cultivation, one takes chances and deliberately hides his secrets and plays tricks in front of the strong. Until he truly faces the pressure of death and glimpses the fierce murderous intention, he will never bow his head and admit his mistakes.

His Zijin eyes flashed coldly, his expression unwavering. His clear, cold voice, carrying an unyielding authority, suddenly fell. "Then what are we waiting for? Go and unseal it immediately."

As soon as she finished speaking, the purple lightning swirling around her fingertips suddenly crackled, tiny sparks of electricity leaping in all directions, the purple light growing even more intense, and the chilling pressure of the lightning surged once more, causing the surrounding air to tremble slightly from the electricity.

That pent-up power was like a thunderbolt ready to strike, as if it would burst forth at any moment and shatter all the illusions and stubbornness before it.

Under such Thunder shock, the Seven-Colored Deer was already terrified out of its wits; how could it dare to delay even for a moment or play any tricks?

It quickly composed itself, not daring to hesitate, raised its head and hoof, and a layer of warm and gentle seven-colored spiritual light instantly spread around its body.

A colorful halo spread out in layers, and gentle spiritual energy flowed out like water, quickly spreading across the entire frozen land.

The extreme cold that had previously imprisoned everyone instantly lost all its power as it was dissolved by its original wood element.

The thick layer of ice covering everyone was visibly melting away.

The hard ice wall first became transparent and brittle, then began to peel away finely from the surface, melting and dripping water, and wisps of cold air quietly dissipated. The people who had been stiff and frozen in place like ice sculptures gradually regained their flexibility, and their tense limbs slowly relaxed.

The seven-colored spiritual light slowly swept over everyone's body, thoroughly penetrating their skin, dispelling the remaining icy spiritual energy, and completely breaking the ice seal.

In just a few breaths, all the ice that had been imprisoning them melted away, turning into tiny water droplets that fell to the ground and quietly seeped into the soil.

"Call--"

The first few players to be unsealed gasped for breath, their long-frozen chests finally expanding as cool air rushed into their lungs, carrying with it the thrill of surviving a close call.

They had been frozen by the Fairy Fish, their consciousness trapped within their bodies, unable to move or perceive anything, as if they had fallen into an endless, frigid hell, filled with despair yet powerless to escape.

Now that they were free again, a wave of tingling and numbness washed over them, and their bodies were ice-cold, yet they could not hide the wild joy and lingering fear in their eyes.

Following that, the rest of the people who were frozen were also unfrozen one after another.

An atmosphere of relief and survival enveloped everyone.

Someone slowly moved their stiff neck and wrists, making slight clicking sounds at the joints, dispelling the stiffness throughout their body.

Some people raised their hands to touch their bodies, feeling the warmth they had regained, and breathed a long sigh of relief.

After regaining their senses, some people looked up at Xiao Fan's Zijin Bao Bao and the lingering Zijin lightning at his fingertips, their eyes filled with deep awe and gratitude.

Before long, under the influence of the Seven-Colored Deer's wood element, the once lifeless, frozen land was finally restored to life.

After doing all this, the Seven-Colored Deer quickly withdrew its elemental power, obediently lowered its body again, pressed its head tightly against the ground, and dared not look directly at the Zijin, carefully trying to please it.

"Your Highness, I have already unsealed these humans."

Seeing that no one had died, Xiao Fan finally breathed a sigh of relief and was about to speak when a desperate voice came from not far away.

"Why?"