The wind and snow cut his face like knives, leaving it stinging with pain. Xiao Yan carried the girl in red across the snow plains, his feet sinking to different depths with every step. He circulated his Origin Qi to its limit, forming an invisible barrier around himself to fend off the piercing wind and swirling snow.
The girl in his arms was cold, and her breathing was faint. Her injuries were clearly worse than he had imagined. Xiao Yan quickened his pace, following the faint fluctuations of energy deeper into the snowy mountains.
The farther he went, the colder it became. The Origin Qi in the air grew thinner and more frigid, but the fluctuations of energy became increasingly distinct.
Half an hour later, an ice cave hidden in a valley came into view. A thick layer of ice covered its entrance, giving off a faint white glow. It was clearly the source of the fluctuations.
Xiao Yan carried the girl into the cave, where a warmth washed over him, a stark contrast to the bitter cold outside.
Inside the ice cave was another world. Ice crystals emitting a soft glow studded the walls, and faint energy flowed through them. The warmth they gave off had made the cave a haven from the winds of the snow plains.
Such pure ice-element energy. Xiao Yan was inwardly astonished. Though gentle, the energy in these crystals was exceptionally pure, far surpassing any ice-element Origin Qi he had encountered before.
He laid the girl on a relatively flat patch of ice, removed his outer robe and wrapped it tightly around her, then began examining her injuries.
The girl was about sixteen or seventeen. Snow and blood stained her lovely face, and tiny grains of ice had formed on her long eyelashes. Even unconscious, she kept her brows tightly knitted, as though enduring tremendous pain.
The Origin Qi within her was in extreme disorder, and many of her meridians were damaged. A strange black energy even lingered in her dantian, steadily eating away at her vitality.
"It's the Blood Shadow Cult's sinister energy." Xiao Yan's gaze turned cold. This energy was exactly like the presence he had sensed from Blood Butcher and the Blood Shadow Cult Master, only much weaker. Clearly, she had been afflicted with some kind of vicious curse.
If the energy was not removed in time, the girl probably would not last much longer.
Without hesitation, Xiao Yan took out several healing pills and carefully fed them to her. Then he sat cross-legged, gently pressed his palm against her dantian, and circulated his Origin Qi, guiding the gentle power of the Green Lotus Core Flame slowly into her body.
Though the Green Lotus Core Flame was domineering, Xiao Yan's precise control made it unusually docile. Like a warm stream, it flowed slowly through the girl's meridians, constantly washing over and purifying the black energy.
When the black energy encountered the Green Lotus Core Flame, it was like ice and snow meeting the blazing sun. It sizzled as it steadily melted away and vanished. But the energy was exceptionally stubborn, clinging to the girl's meridians and dantian like maggots gnawing at bone, making it extraordinarily difficult to remove.
Xiao Yan concentrated completely, not daring to relax for an instant. He controlled the Heavenly Flame to purify the energy while guiding the pills' medicinal power to repair the girl's damaged meridians.
Time passed little by little. Within the ice cave, only the faint glow of the ice crystals and the sound of their steady breathing remained.
When the first rays of dawn shone through a crack in the top of the cave, Xiao Yan finally let out a long breath and slowly withdrew his hand.
Most of the black energy in the girl's body had been cleared away. Though a little remained, it was no longer a cause for concern. With proper care, it would dissipate on its own. Her breathing grew steady and deep, a hint of color returned to her face, and her brows gradually relaxed.
Xiao Yan wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling a wave of exhaustion. Clearing away that sinister energy had taxed his mind more than a full battle against an Origin Emperor expert.
He rose and walked deeper into the cave, studying the glowing ice crystals. Though the ice-element energy they contained was gentle, it carried an ancient, pure quality that reminded him of Su Muxue's ice-element Origin Qi, but it was purer and more profound than hers.
There's probably more to these ice crystals than meets the eye, Xiao Yan thought. He could sense that they seemed to be guarding something.
Just then, a faint sound came from behind him.
Xiao Yan turned and saw that the girl in red had awakened. Leaning against the ice wall, she watched him with large, clear eyes, curious and wary.
"Who are you?" The girl's voice was still a little hoarse, but her strength had returned.
"Xiao Yan," he said calmly. "I'm the one who saved you."
Only then did the girl notice the cyan outer robe wrapped around her and how much more comfortable she felt. The wariness in her eyes eased somewhat, and she nodded. "Thank you. My name is Ling Xue."
"Ling Xue?" Xiao Yan repeated her name. "Why were the people of the Blood Shadow Cult hunting you?"
At the mention of the Blood Shadow Cult, a trace of bone-deep hatred flashed through Ling Xue's eyes, and her fists clenched tightly. "They killed my clansmen, destroyed my home, and even wanted to capture me and take me back as a sacrifice to that so-called 'Lord of Darkness'!"
"A sacrifice?" Something stirred in Xiao Yan's mind. "Why did the Blood Shadow Cult want to capture you?"
Ling Xue took a deep breath, apparently trying to calm herself, then said slowly, "I come from the Ice Spirit Clan of the Snow Region Ice Plains. Our people are born able to communicate with ice-element energy, and we possess pure Ice Spirit Power. The Blood Shadow Cult said my Ice Spirit Power was one of the keys to opening the Gate of Darkness. They wanted to take me to Soul-Severing Cliff as a sacrifice."
"The Ice Spirit Clan? Ice Spirit Power?" Xiao Yan frowned slightly. "What does that have to do with the Gate of Darkness?"
"I don't know." Ling Xue shook her head, a trace of confusion flashing in her eyes. "All I know is that three months ago, the Blood Shadow Cult suddenly invaded our territory. The clan leader and the elders all died in battle protecting me. I was the only one who escaped under my clansmen's cover, but they kept hunting me."
At this, tears welled in Ling Xue's eyes. She stubbornly raised her head, forcing herself not to cry.
Seeing the strength and hatred in her eyes, Xiao Yan could not help feeling a trace of sympathy. He understood the pain of losing one's home and loved ones. Back in Wutan City, the Xiao Clan had faced a similar crisis.
"The Blood Shadow Cult is indeed trying to open a spatial passage to the Domain of Darkness at Soul-Severing Cliff," Xiao Yan said gravely. "They need a Space Fragment and a special energy as keys. Your Ice Spirit Power is probably one of them."
Ling Xue's expression changed. "Then aren't they close to succeeding?"
"Not yet," Xiao Yan said. "I took the Space Fragment from them, but the Blood Shadow Cult Master is powerful, and he has gathered a great many followers. It probably won't be long before they find another way to open the passage."
"No, we can't let them succeed!" Ling Xue said excitedly. "If the fiends of the Domain of Darkness invade, the entire Great Thousand World will suffer! The ancient records of our Ice Spirit Clan describe the Calamity of Darkness in ancient times: living beings were plunged into misery, and bones piled up into mountains!"
Xiao Yan nodded. "I'm on my way to Soul-Severing Cliff to stop them."
Ling Xue looked at Xiao Yan, a trace of hesitation flashing in her eyes. Then she gritted her teeth. "Brother Xiao Yan, take me with you! I may not be very strong, but I know some secrets about spatial rifts and the Domain of Darkness. Maybe I can help!"
Xiao Yan studied Ling Xue. Though her presence was weak, she did possess a pure ice-element energy that resonated faintly with the crystals in the cave. Clearly, she was telling the truth.
Besides, another person meant another share of strength, and Ling Xue also knew some secrets.
"All right." Xiao Yan nodded his agreement. "But your injuries haven't fully healed. We need to rest here for a few days and wait until you've recovered a little more."
A hint of delight appeared on Ling Xue's face. "Thank you, Brother Xiao Yan!"
Over the next few days, the two rested in the ice cave.
Each day, Xiao Yan cultivated and consolidated his Peak Origin King realm. The rest of his time he spent studying the Origin Stabilizing Divine Stone and the Void Origin Stone Fragment, trying to find a way to destroy the Space Fragment completely.
Nourished by the cave's ice crystals, Ling Xue recovered from her injuries remarkably quickly, and the Ice Spirit Power within her grew ever purer. She often told Xiao Yan secrets recorded in the Ice Spirit Clan's ancient texts, mostly legends about the ancient war and the Domain of Darkness.
According to Ling Xue, when the fiends of the Domain of Darkness invaded in ancient times, they relied not only on spatial rifts but also on Darkness Nodes within the Great Thousand World. These nodes were the weakest points in the Great Thousand World's space, and the places where dark energy could most easily seep through. Soul-Severing Cliff was one of them.
"The Blood Shadow Cult chose to open the passage at Soul-Severing Cliff not only because the Space Fragment was there, but also because it's a Darkness Node," Ling Xue said. "To stop the passage from opening for good, we have to destroy the Space Fragment and seal the Darkness Node."
"How do we seal it?" Xiao Yan asked.
"The ancient texts say it takes two powers, one of 'ultimate yang and unyielding strength' and one of 'ultimate yin and purity,' intertwined with each other, to temporarily seal a Darkness Node," Ling Xue recalled. "For the power of ultimate yang and unyielding strength, perhaps your Heavenly Flame will do. As for the power of ultimate yin and purity..."
She looked down at her hands, a trace of uncertainty flashing in her eyes. "Perhaps we could try my Ice Spirit Power."
Something stirred in Xiao Yan's mind. The Heavenly Flame belonged to yang, and Ice Spirit Power to yin. Combined, the two might really be able to seal the Darkness Node!
"This may be the key to stopping the Blood Shadow Cult," Xiao Yan said gravely. "It seems we must get to Soul-Severing Cliff as soon as possible."
Ling Xue nodded. "My injuries are almost healed. I can leave whenever we need to."
Xiao Yan checked Ling Xue's condition. Although her Origin Qi had not fully recovered, she was no longer in serious trouble, and her Ice Spirit Power had grown purer, enough for her to protect herself.
"All right, we'll leave today."
Xiao Yan put away the Origin Stabilizing Divine Stone and the Void Origin Stone Fragment, while Ling Xue straightened her clothes. Then the two left the ice cave.
The wind and snow outside had stopped. Sunlight spilled across the snow plains, reflecting a dazzling light. In the distance, the snowy mountains looked like majestic, magnificent silver dragons beneath the sun.
"Soul-Severing Cliff is in the Northern Region. We need to leave the Snow Region Ice Plains first," Xiao Yan said. "I know a direction where we might find a path to the Northern Region."
"Mm, I'll follow your lead," Ling Xue said with a nod.
Without further hesitation, the two set off side by side toward the edge of the snow plains.
One bore a Heavenly Flame, the other Ice Spirit Power. Both young people carried a mission as they embarked on their journey to Soul-Severing Cliff across the vast snow plains.
The road ahead was still full of uncertainty and danger, but their eyes were full of determination and hope.
The shadow of Soul-Severing Cliff drew ever closer, and a great battle that would decide the fate of the Great Thousand World had quietly begun.