Quick Travel to the Clouds

Chapter 797 Challenge Dungeon 52

Shortly after returning to the igloo hotel, Hou Fei and Chu Ya also returned one after another.

The three reunited in the lobby outside the suite, their expressions more somber than when they left.

Hou Fei spoke first, her voice low: "There are indeed players in the city, quite a few, who have spontaneously formed groups. There are currently three relatively clear temporary teams, each backed by a powerful figure."

She quickly reported the information:

"A group led by Shang Wu, who is the vice president of the 'Warhammer Guild.' His talents and skills are biased towards defense and team command, and he is said to be a fairly upright person."

"His team was the largest, about twenty people, mainly stationed near the barracks in the south of the city, and it seems that they have already made initial contact with the city's defense guards."

"The leader of the second group is 'Phantom Blade' Lu Qian, from the 'Shadow Dance' guild. She has a lone wolf style, but the members she recruits are all agile scouts or assassins. They are elusive and mainly operate in the West City Trading Market, as if they are collecting supplies and intelligence."

"The captain of the third team is Zhao Xilie, also known as 'Flame Star'. He is an elite member of the 'Burning Heaven' guild. He has a fiery temper and is extremely aggressive. His team is small in number but each member is fierce. They occupy an area in the north of the city and are somewhat like... ruling the land. They have had conflicts with the local residents."

Hou Fei and Chu Ya exchanged a glance: "Chu Ya and I have discussed it, and Shang Wu's team seems the most stable and most likely to participate in the city defense systematically."

"We plan to make contact tomorrow and try to join, at least to gain a formal status and a channel for intelligence sharing."

Yun Chu nodded and recounted in detail what she had heard from the old woman about the city's history, the Heart of Winter, and the prophecy of the ultimate ice tide fifteen days later, adding her own analysis.

This is a likely large-scale hidden defense/protection mission, with the core objective of protecting the city and the Heart of Winter.

Hou Fei and Chu Ya's eyes lit up after hearing this, but then they looked worried.

The scale and danger of this mission are clearly far greater than those of a typical hidden instance.

"Therefore, we must rely on the strength of local NPCs and other players," Hou Fei concluded. "It's impossible to defend a city alone. Yun Chu, what are your plans? Do you want to come with us to see Shang Wu?"

Yun Chu pondered for a moment, then shook her head: "You guys go first. I still have some things I need to confirm separately. As for Shang Wu, if you need my involvement or if there's a joint operation, please contact me anytime."

She didn't specify what she wanted to confirm. Although Hou Fei and Chu Ya were a little confused, based on their previous cooperation and trust, they didn't ask any further questions, but simply told her to be careful in everything.

After everyone returned to their rooms, Yun Chu quietly waited for the night to deepen.

At midnight, the entire ice and snow city fell silent, with only the howling wind and the occasional footsteps of patrolling guards.

Yun Chu changed into a pure black night outfit, concealing her aura to the extreme.

She took out a stealth talisman and gently patted it onto her body.

The talisman took effect, and her figure became blurred, like a drop of water merging into the shadows; her aura almost completely disappeared.

I opened the window, and the icy, biting night wind rushed in.

Like a weightless ghost, Yun Chu silently slid out of the room and climbed up the cold ice surface of the hotel's exterior wall, reaching the rooftop in a few leaps.

Our gaze was fixed on the tallest and most magnificent ice crystal building in the city center—the Ice Heart Temple.

Guards patrolled around the temple, but the intervals and routes had already been figured out by the Fire Iron Flying Ants.

Like a wisp of smoke in the dark night, Yun Chu moved swiftly through the shadows of the buildings, precisely avoiding patrols, and silently crossed the low ice walls on the outer perimeter, entering the temple grounds.

The interior of the temple was colder than the outside, with a pure and ancient chill permeating the air.

Huge ice pillars support the towering dome, which is inlaid with countless self-luminous ice crystals, casting a cool and soft blue-white glow like a starry sky.

The ground was smooth, mirror-like ice, reflecting the "starry sky" above.

The main hall was spacious, quiet, and solemn, with only a high platform in the center standing out.

The high platform was built of layers upon layers of seemingly unmelting ice, emanating a faint, visible mist.

Above the platform, inside an ice-blue transparent light shield, floats a... heart.

That is the heart of winter.

It is not made of flesh and blood, but rather resembles an artwork formed from the most extreme ice and some kind of eternal energy. It presents a perfect teardrop shape, with a translucent ice-blue color throughout, and inside it seems that countless tiny ice crystals and stardust are slowly flowing and flickering.

It pulsated slowly but powerfully, each pulsation spreading out a barely perceptible ripple of icy blue that blended into the surrounding air and buildings.

A vast, ancient, yet gentle and protective aura emanated from it, enveloping the entire temple and even the whole city.

Yun Chu held her breath, hiding in the shadow of a huge ice pillar at the entrance, and observed quietly.

The fire-iron flying ants were scattered throughout the temple, and no other living creatures or obvious magical warnings were found.

She moved her feet carefully, as if walking on clouds, without making a sound, slowly approaching the central platform.

Fifty meters, thirty meters, ten meters...

Just as she was only a few meters away from the platform, and could feel the surging yet restrained protective power of the Heart of Winter more clearly, a sudden change occurred!

Above the platform, directly above the Heart of Winter, the space suddenly rippled silently, like waves on water.

A tall, ethereal, semi-transparent figure slowly coalesced and emerged.

He was draped in an ancient robe that seemed to be woven from millennia-old ice and starlight, his long hair cascading down like an icefall, his face indistinct except for his eyes, which were crystal clear.

At this moment, those icy eyes were "gazing" at the location where Yun Chu was hiding. There was no anger or surprise in their eyes, only a deep indifference that seemed to see through everything, and... a very faint trace of weariness, as if they had been waiting for a long time.

A cold, hollow voice resounded directly in Yun Chu's mind, not through the air:

[A traveler in a foreign land... You possess a faint glow of 'order,' and an aura of 'reality' that seems out of place in this world.]

Yun Chu was shocked, realizing that she had been completely exposed.

She removed the talisman's effect, revealing her form, but remained highly vigilant, her stone statue skill poised to be unleashed.

She tilted her head slightly, looking at the illusory figure in ice robes, and cautiously asked, "Are you... the 'king' of this city? Or rather, the remnant of your will?"

"Yes and no." Wang Hun's voice remained cold and direct. "I am the fusion of the last will of 'Frost Oath Erus' and the protective laws of this city."

"My body has long since become the foundation stone of the city, and most of my power is used to maintain the Heart of Winter and the barrier."

"I leave this regret behind, firstly as a way of watching over things, and secondly... to wait for a glimmer of change."

His gaze seemed to pierce through the clouds, looking out at the endless cold night beyond the temple: "The 'Final Ice Tide' fifteen days from now is not a natural calamity."

"Its origin lies at the bottom of the extreme cold abyss in the north, where a 'permafrost core' has become unbalanced due to the loosening of an ancient seal. It is constantly absorbing the icy power of this world, transforming it into a destructive tide that periodically sweeps across the land."

"This will be the largest, and possibly the last—if it cannot be stopped, the core will completely erupt, and all things in this world, along with my city and heart, will ultimately return to eternal silence."