The upward staircase was not particularly long. Under normal circumstances, it certainly would not have been difficult to climb.
But at this moment, it left the common folk struggling to take each step.
For every step upward, the chill around them deepened. Before they had even covered half the distance, the bone-piercing cold had already made them tremble from head to toe.
"O-old man... can you... can you make it? Don't... don't force yourself..."
Even wrapped in several layers of clothing, the young man could not stop shivering.
The old man glanced back at him, then shook his head. "It's fine. This old man can still walk. You lot, though—if you can't hold on, go back down early. Don't freeze yourselves sick and lose your lives here."
Hearing this, the young people who were already having trouble walking felt rather embarrassed.
Even an old man advanced in years could endure this bitter cold, while they, the young ones, had gradually lost their fighting spirit beneath the assault of the chill and begun to think of retreating.
"I'll say it again: if you can't walk, don't force it. Go back honestly."
When the old man spoke again, his words carried far more force than they had in the cave dwelling.
Some of the young people who could no longer endure the cold slowly withdrew from the group.
By the time they emerged from the underground passage and reached the upper level where they had originally lived, only five people remained in the group.
The temperature here was already extremely low. Every rock and clump of soil was covered in a layer of frost. It was not hard to imagine that if Yun Xiwu had not moved them underground earlier, every one of the common folk would surely have died by now.