Ye Chen felt as if an invisible hand had seized him, his body stiffening abruptly with terror. Though his expression remained unchanged, the muscles in his face twitched uncontrollably as the slick, thick, mucous-covered crimson tongue traced a path across his cheek, sending waves of nausea so intense he nearly vomited.

Catching the faint glow of the firelight, Ye Chen gradually discerned the form of the seductive woman before him. A sickening churn rose in his stomach. The light illuminated what lay behind her: a serpentine body covered in fine, teal scales, thick as a water barrel, gleaming with a cold luster that made it appear unnervingly smooth.

Ye Chen’s heart spasmed. Gritting his teeth, he said coldly, "Who are you?"

The enchanting woman smiled faintly, glancing at him. "You truly haven't heard of me? No wonder you show no terror. Ah, what a disappointment, yet rather amusing. Let me tell you—have you ever heard of the Three Terrors of the Snow Domain?"

Ye Chen frowned. "No."

The alluring woman with the snake's body coiled around him, her crimson, forked tongue writhing in the air. Two sharp fangs were barely visible between her lips. "So you truly know nothing... Let me enlighten you. In the Snow Domain, there are many monsters, all captured long ago from the Dragon Abyss Valley of the Ancient World. Originally, we were ordered by the Goddess of Ice and Snow to guard the corpse of the Goddess of Light..."

"Among these monsters, the three most powerful are known as the Three Terrors of the Snow Domain..." She gave Ye Chen a charming look. "As for me, I am the Snow Demon, one of the Three Terrors."

Ye Chen’s expression shifted slightly. Looking at the devastating beauty of this woman’s face, he realized she was one of the most terrifying monsters in the Snow Domain. His mind raced, and he frowned, saying, "If I’m not mistaken, the Goddess of Light died a very, very long time ago. If you were assigned to guard her since then, such an immense span of time should have corroded your very essence, shouldn't it?"

"Immense?" The human-faced serpent woman couldn't help but titter. "I sense Chaos Power within you; you must be merely a minor God Emperor. Yes, for you, it would certainly seem immense. But when you reach the Epoch Realm, you will understand what 'eternal life' truly means."

Ye Chen knitted his brows but did not pursue the topic further. "Are you saying the corpse of the Goddess of Light is buried here?"

"Not at all," the snake-bodied woman shook her head, her expression momentarily innocent and regretful. "The confidant of the Goddess of Ice and Snow betrayed her and sealed the strongest among us within this Abyss of Dead Souls. The corpse of the Goddess of Light isn't here; it's inside the Divine Mountain... //No Pop-up Ads Full Text TXT Download"

Ye Chen glanced at her. In the firelight, the warm, amber glow illuminated her exquisite features. If one overlooked the hideous serpentine body, her sheer beauty and the faint, sorrowful melancholy in her expression were enough to captivate any man.

"Oh, by the way," the snake-bodied woman looked at Ye Chen with curiosity, "how did you get in here? With your meager strength, you shouldn't be able to enter this place. Did you overhear something and get sealed in too? No, that doesn't make sense—you’re so weak, I could crush you with one slap; there’d be no need to bother sealing you."

She appeared utterly innocent and curious, her dark eyes as beautiful as a star-strewn sea.

Ye Chen did not reveal the truth, his face remaining impassive. "Nothing much. The Bronze Supremes from the Chaos Realm arrived in the Snow Domain. During the great battle, the entrance to this seal was torn open, and I was swept inside."

"What?" The enchanting woman gasped. "You mean a Bronze Supreme from the Chaos Realm is here? Are you sure you aren't mistaken? No, according to the timeline, they shouldn't have reached the Ancient World this early. If they did, they would suffer annihilation by the Ancient World’s Heart of the World. At this time, they would only dare send emissaries to scout the path; for them to reveal themselves would take at least another million years."

Ye Chen looked confused. "What World Heart?"

"Never mind that," the seductive woman fixed her gaze on him. "Are you absolutely sure you didn't missee?"

"No." Ye Chen shook his head. "The Bronze Supreme didn't use the Ancient World as a stepping stone to reach the Snow Domain. Instead, they tore through the spatial barrier of the Snow Domain directly, by some unknown means, and slipped through." From the woman’s few words, he had already guessed the general reason for the situation. Thus, he concealed the fact that his own cultivation breakthrough had caused the Bronze Supreme to descend. Otherwise, this snake-bodied monster before him might instantly become enraged and swallow him whole.

No wonder the Bronze Supreme called him indebted to him—it turned out his breakthrough had ripped open the spatial barrier. With that achieved, his strength made him practically invincible across the entire Snow Domain. The corpse of the Goddess of Light was his for the taking. If a power of his caliber consumed and refined the corpse, his strength would soar, potentially allowing him to ascend to a level equal to the Goddess of Light herself!

"I see..." the enchanting woman murmured, her expression distant as she seemed lost in thought. After a moment, she sighed softly. "If a Bronze Supreme has arrived here, the Snow Domain will cease to exist, unless... over this long stretch of time, that beast manages to break the barrier the Goddess of Ice and Snow placed upon the Goddess of Light's corpse, consumes it, and massively increases its power. Otherwise, there is absolutely no hope... Legend says the Bronze Supremes were bloodthirsty when they first rose to prominence; even if they later restrained themselves, their nature remains unchanged..."

"The Snow Domain," she sighed, an unutterable sorrow clouding her brow, "is likely headed for catastrophe."

Just then, the sound of footsteps approached from outside, followed by a male voice, rich with the magnetic appeal unique to men. A tall, slender figure emerged slowly from the darkness. "Xiao Lin, what are you doing here? Oh, a human."

Ye Chen’s body jolted, his gaze sweeping past the snake-bodied woman to look beyond her.

In the firelight's glow, a tall man in a silver-white robe stood silently in the shadow. Rain-like strands of blue hair draped gently over his shoulders. His soaring, blue eyebrows were sharp as daggers, radiating a cold battle aura, yet a smile that seemed to invite spring warmth graced his face, making him appear even more captivating.

...

The Divine Mountain.

Nine figures, men and women dressed in the uniforms of Snow Domain Emissaries, accompanied by ten male and female Snow Slaves, descended through a dark tunnel behind the main hall at the base of the Divine Mountain.

The tunnel sloped downward, a series of steps descending into the darkness. Ancient oil lamps lined the walls, casting a warm, amber glow upon the stone and everyone’s silhouettes.

Heaven and earth were silent, save for the sporadic sound of footsteps echoing emptily in the black passageway.

The Snow Slaves following the nine Emissaries were all Third Tier or higher. They moved silently, but their eyes darted around restlessly. This mysterious tunnel was entirely new to them; they had never even heard of it. They couldn't fathom why the nine Emissaries had brought them here, nor what their purpose was.

What worried them most was the fact that there were only nine Emissaries present. Where were the other three? Were they truly sent out to fight a powerful enemy, as they claimed?

What kind of enemy required three Emissaries to go together?

A heavy feeling settled in everyone’s heart, yet their minds inevitably drifted back to the sword-wielding woman they had fought on the snow slope earlier, sending a chill down their spines.

Behind them, at the entrance of the dark underground tunnel, a figure flickered into existence, ghost-like, before the opening. It stared down into the black passage for a moment of silence, then slipped inside, vanishing like a soft white cloud, making not a sound.

...

The Outer Perimeter of the Divine Mountain.

Sifigran and Xiu Mite shot forward like flying things, scaling the steep Divine Mountain directly. They shot skyward along the cliff face like mighty eagles, then flipped their bodies, landing on a ledge. Their flowing robes settled softly like drifting clouds, revealing a vast, snow-covered expanse before them. In the distance, amidst the white wind and snow, the hazy silhouettes of several magnificent palaces stood tall.

"The Emissary's palace is just up ahead," Xiu Mite pointed a hand.

"Mm," Sifigran nodded, gently setting down Ling, whom she had been clutching to her chest. As Ling’s feet touched the ground, his legs still felt shaky. The lightning-fast speed of the journey had left him dizzy and disoriented. After a long moment, he finally steadied himself.

"Wow..." The scene before him left him dumbstruck. "It’s so grand. The sky and the ground are pure white—it's so beautiful."

"Let's go," Sifigran led the way.

Moments later, they arrived before a magnificent ice crystal palace. Sifigran peered inside and frowned slightly. "Why is no one here?"

Xiu Mite paused, then walked to the entrance to check. Finding it indeed empty, he turned back to Sifigran. After a moment's thought, he said, "Perhaps the Emissary is occupied. I'll take you to see the other Emissary."

Sifigran simply nodded.

Xiu Mite led her and Ling around for several kilometers to another grand ice crystal palace nearby. Sifigran glanced at it and frowned. "No one here either."

Xiu Mite froze, disbelief crossing his face. He walked to the entrance and looked inside, confirming it was empty. His expression became strange. Since he had been appointed a Snow Slave, he had only ever seen an Emissary absent once—when they went out to quell a rampage by snow beasts. But he had never seen two Emissaries absent from the Divine Mountain simultaneously.

He looked back at the deserted snowy ground, his gaze stretching into the distance. A sudden, uneasy premonition struck him. "Wait here," he commanded, and his figure vanished into thin air.

Sifigran remained calm, merely frowning in deep contemplation. Ling stood behind her, looking around cautiously, not daring to speak.

Not long after, Xiu Mite returned, his face grim. "None of the Emissaries are here; I don't know where they went. This situation has never happened before—it’s unbelievable." *JRM