“The so-called Void Radiance Realm—what you call the Qi Condensation stage—is, in essence, the tempering of body and soul through heaven and earth’s spiritual energy, laying the foundation for Foundation Establishment. Although you have reached a pseudo–perfected state, your fundamentals are still flawed. I advise you to reach true Void Radiance Great Perfection before attempting to break through.”

  Li Han’s voice echoed within Yun Che’s mind, carrying a hint of helplessness.

  “Your innate talent was simply too poor. Over these years, I used the power of the Void Source to cleanse and refine you, yet only managed to elevate you to barely average aptitude. If my physical body were still intact, I might have been able to defy heaven itself and remake your destiny. But now…” He sighed softly.

  Yun Che sat cross-legged inside a naturally formed ice cave at the edge of the Ironwood Forest. Three bottles of ice marrow lay before him, radiating faint, ghostly cold light. He had been cultivating here for three days, stabilizing his pseudo–perfect Void Radiance cultivation.

  “There’s more,” Li Han continued, his tone turning stern. “Your offensive methods are far too limited. Aside from Minor Pull Technique, which you’ve mastered reasonably well, you lack any real killing moves. This will not do.”

  “It’s a pity that the techniques I command all require at least Foundation Establishment to cultivate. Break through as soon as possible. Once you do, I will pass on to you the Nine Nether Frost Prison Art.”

  “Nine Nether Frost Prison Art?” Yun Che’s heart stirred.

  “Indeed.” Pride crept into Li Han’s voice. “Even in the seventh-grade cultivation empire I once belonged to, this technique was considered top-tier. There is only one difficulty—cultivation requires a land of Extreme Yin Cold Veins. Without it, progress is slow. But once mastered, Frost Prison spiritual power is tyrannical beyond measure. More importantly, forming a Golden Core with this method increases success rates by thirty percent.”

  Yun Che pondered for a moment, then nodded slowly.

  “One more thing,” Li Han warned. “Do not store the Heaven-Defying Pearl in your storage pouch anymore. Wear it close to your chest and nourish it with body warmth. That way, even if you do not deliberately enter dreams, I can communicate with you at any time—and in critical moments, I can even help you instantly enter the dream realm.”

  Following his instructions, Yun Che took out the gray-white stone bead, threaded it with a thin cord, and hung it against his chest. The bead felt cool upon contact, but within a few breaths, it harmonized with his body temperature.

  He took a sip of cold marrow water that had been infused with the bead, closed his eyes, and began circulating his breath. The night passed in silence.

  At dawn the next day, Yun Che pushed aside the ice stones sealing the cave entrance. Pale light filtered in. The wind and snow had ceased, and the Ironwood Forest lay utterly still.

  He gazed toward the northern sky, lost in thought.

  With the Profound Frost Sect facing imminent disaster, and with secrets like the Heaven-Defying Pearl and Li Han’s remnant soul upon him, leaving the sect might truly be an opportunity rather than misfortune. Yet—

  Before the thought could finish, the Heaven-Defying Pearl in his chest suddenly trembled!

  In the next instant, a vast and terrifying fluctuation—like the might of heaven itself—erupted from the southwest! Even from thousands of li away, Yun Che felt his heart seize as his spiritual energy stalled for a brief moment!

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  “This is… Divine Transformation pressure!” Li Han’s voice sank abruptly.

  Almost simultaneously, an aged, indifferent voice—yet thunderous like a decree from the Nine Heavens—boomed across the skies of the entire Northern Domain wasteland:

  “I am Ling Xuzi of the Snow Region Alliance. Since the Profound Frost juniors have already been defeated, why not withdraw at once?”

  Wherever the voice passed, wind and snow reversed, clouds shattered!

  Yun Che’s expression changed drastically. He turned sharply toward the direction of the Profound Frost Sect. Though mountains and forests blocked his view, he could clearly sense the source of that world-destroying pressure—

  The Profound Frost Sect.

  The entrance to the Cold Abyss Secret Realm.

  The protective light screen was already shattered beyond repair. Of the eight Ice Soul Cold Jade Pillars, three had collapsed outright. The remaining five were riddled with cracks, the crystal cores atop them completely dimmed.

  True Person Han Jing coughed blood, seated upon one pillar alongside four other Core Formation elders. All five formed seals with trembling hands, frantically pouring spiritual energy into the pillars. Above each of their heads hovered a Natal Golden Core, its light flickering weakly as it struggled to maintain the final, paper-thin barrier.

  Beyond the light screen—high in the sky—

  A lone figure stood with hands clasped behind his back.

  He appeared no more than forty years old, with clear, refined features. He wore a moon-white robe embroidered with flowing silver patterns. No terrifying aura radiated from him—yet merely standing there, he seemed fused with heaven and earth itself. Wind and snow avoided him; even sunlight bent in deference.

  Ling Xuzi, Divine Transformation Ancestor of the Snow Region Alliance.

  He gazed down at the five struggling elders without joy or sorrow, speaking calmly:

  “Five hundred years ago, the Profound Frost Sect’s Ice Soul Void-Transforming Grand Formation shook the Northern Domain. Alas… times have changed.”

  He slowly raised his right hand.

  Above his palm appeared an ice-blue mountain, no more than an inch tall—crystal clear, within it flowing visions of endless snowfields and towering frozen peaks.

  “Go.”

  The mountain left his hand—and grew with the wind.

  In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a colossal ice mountain thousands of zhang high, spanning dozens of li, blotting out the sky itself! Its shadow engulfed the entire Profound Frost mountain range!

  The mountain descended slowly.

  Before it even made contact, the light screen below let out a strained crack, ripples surging violently across its surface!

  “Pff—!”

  The black-robed elder seated on the northeastern pillar collapsed first, vomiting blood. His Golden Core dimmed sharply as cracks raced across the pillar beneath him.

  “Junior Brother Han!” Han Jing cried out, eyes splitting with fury—yet powerless to help.

  The ice mountain crashed down.

  BOOOOM—!!!

  Heaven and earth shook!

  All five Ice Soul pillars erupted with blinding blue light, their runes flaring madly as they dispersed the impact into the sect’s mountain veins. For a moment, the land within a hundred li convulsed violently—ice peaks collapsed, avalanches roared like tidal waves!

  But in the end… it was not enough.

  Crack… crack…

  All five pillars shattered!

  The five Core Formation elders spewed blood simultaneously. Their Golden Cores dimmed completely—two even showed fine cracks on their surfaces, on the brink of shattering!

  The light screen broke.

  It scattered into countless ice crystals, drifting down like snow.

  Ling Xuzi withdrew the ice mountain and swept his gaze over the deathly pale faces below.

  “One incense stick’s time,” he said indifferently. “Leave—or die.”

  Han Jing struggled to his feet, wiping blood from his lips. He laughed bitterly.

  “Senior Ling Xuzi… must you truly exterminate us to the last?”

  Ling Xuzi offered no reply. He merely raised a finger and pointed to the sky.

  The clear heavens darkened as storm clouds gathered at terrifying speed.

  Within the clouds, lightning flickered—not ordinary thunder, but a ghostly blue light radiating absolute cold—

  Ice Calamity Heavenly Lightning.

  Within the Ironwood Forest, Yun Che stared at the distant vortex of thunderclouds barely visible on the horizon, his heart weighed down like lead.

  The Heaven-Defying Pearl against his chest grew warm. Li Han’s voice carried rare gravity:

  “Ice Calamity Tribulation Lightning… This Ling Xuzi intends to utterly destroy the Profound Frost Sect’s foundation. Kid—you’re still not far enough. Leave. Now!”

  Yun Che took a deep breath, cast one final glance toward the southwestern sky, then turned and sprinted northward.

  The wind and snow rose again, swiftly erasing his tracks.

  And thousands of li away, above the Profound Frost mountain range—

  The first bolt of ice-blue tribulation lightning tore through the heavens and slammed down.

  The land cried out.

  ?? A single Divine Transformation expert moves—and a sect falls.

  Is Ling Xuzi cruel?

  Or is this simply the natural law of the cultivation world?