The light flashed in Sifigran’s eyes; she seemed to have expected it, showing no surprise, merely nodding before murmuring, “You know where the forbidden grounds on the Divine Mountain are, don't you? The place where you Snow Slaves are forbidden to go.”

“What are you planning?” Xiumit looked at her warily.

“Nothing much, just taking a look. Maybe they are there,” Sifigran glanced at him and said coolly.

Xiumit shot her a wary look, remained silent for a moment, then conceded, “Fine, I’ll take you.” He turned and led the way toward a majestic structure.

Sifigran followed a few steps behind him, then her expression suddenly changed. She whipped her head around to gaze at the distant space behind her, her pupils contracting to pinpricks. “This flood-like aura… Bronze Supreme!”

Ling, behind her, paused momentarily and followed her gaze, seeing in the far reaches of the sky a figure sweeping toward them like a torrent, black hair whipping wildly, howling as it rushed in their direction.

Snow Domain, Abyss of Dead Souls.

Ye Chen stared at the tall, silver-white robed man and stammered, “…A man of the Snow Country?”

The handsome man also saw Ye Chen. He was first slightly surprised, then, after taking a closer look, realization dawned, and he smiled, “You are a human from the ancient world outside the Glacier Corridor, aren’t you?”

Ye Chen noted his phrasing, frowned slightly, and nodded, “That’s right.”

The handsome man beckoned to the seductive, snake-human woman beside him. The seductive woman coiled her body, winding back behind him, her serpentine body covered in fine blue scales threading through his back to rest on his other shoulder, looking back at him with an expression full of respect and dependence. “Mike, weren’t you sleeping? Why have you come?”

Mike smiled, reached out to caress her beautiful hair and cheek, and said gently, “I sensed traces of spatial fluctuation here, so I came to investigate. I didn’t expect an outsider human to have entered.” As he spoke, he turned back to Ye Chen, smiling. “You don’t need to be nervous; we won’t harm you. You must be wondering why there would be a Snow Country person like me in this place.”

Ye Chen was silent for a moment, then spoke, “Indeed. I also want to know why you don’t call me an Abyss Demon.”

Mike exchanged a look with Xiaolin, the snake-human woman, both recognizing the amusement in the other’s eyes. He looked up at Ye Chen and smiled, “The reason I was sealed here is because I know the secret that you humans from the ancient world are not Abyss Demons.”

Ye Chen stared at him for a moment, then suddenly let out a breath, saying slowly, “If I haven’t guessed wrong, you must have been the first Snow Slave cultivated by the Snow Domain Envoys—and the strongest among several generations of Snow Slaves!”

Mike’s eyes flickered. “How did you know?”

“A Snow Slave who came to kill me told me.” Ye Chen ignored his suddenly sharp gaze and smiled faintly, “If you don’t mind, perhaps you could share this secret with me? Since we can’t leave here anyway, I’d really like to hear it. It must be quite a story.”

Mike scrutinized him for a moment before his pupils gradually relaxed. He smiled and gently patted the thick scales on the back of Xiaolin’s head, signaling her not to act rashly. Upon hearing Ye Chen’s words, Xiaolin’s gaze had already sharpened with icy killing intent, as if ready to devour Ye Chen at any moment.

“This story is indeed quite good,” Mike sighed lightly, a faint shadow of sorrow and melancholy crossing his handsome face as he gazed into a patch of inky darkness, speaking slowly. “When I awoke one day from the pitch-black ice coffin, I possessed twelve streams of peak power within me, which propelled me from the position of the tenth Snow Slave to the very first—and an unprecedented first Snow Slave at that!”

“At the time, I was almost beside myself with joy, speechless with gratitude. But later…” He paused briefly here, a flicker of agonizing light crossing his eyes, “During an accident, I discovered a secret: those invading humans from the outside were not the Abyss Demons the Envoys claimed; they were humans just like the Envoys, from the very same world.”

“I was shocked, but I didn’t make a scene. Later, I met Xiaolin, and only then did I learn the origin and purpose of the entire Snow Domain world.” He tilted his head to look at Xiaolin. Xiaolin’s gaze softened with tenderness. He reached out to stroke the scales on her neck, sighed softly, and murmured, “I later learned that the Snow Domain was a world created by the Goddess of Ice and Snow to house the corpse of the Goddess of Light. Furthermore, the Goddess of Ice and Snow dispatched eighteen of her most trusted confidantes to guard it, and captured fierce beasts like Xiaolin from the outside world to serve as guardians. Over the ensuing years, for unknown reasons, five of the eighteen confidantes perished, leaving only thirteen.”

“Thirteen?” Ye Chen sounded puzzled. “The Snow Domain Envoys seem to be only twelve.”

Mike nodded. “That’s right, but there was one more person—the Grand Envoy, the most powerful among those eighteen. This person always guarded the corpse of the Goddess of Light and never ventured out, so there is no record of him, and no one knows of him. I only learned of him by chance, and in doing so, I also discovered the reason for my sudden surge in strength…”

Ye Chen gazed at him intently.

Mike stared at the dark sky, a hint of pain on his face. “It turned out they made me stronger because they saw that my innate talent was low and I couldn’t cultivate to a very high level. So, they directly elevated me and then sent me into the depths of the Divine Mountain to shatter the barrier surrounding the corpse of the Goddess of Light.”

“What?” Ye Chen was startled. “They wanted you to break the barrier around the Goddess of Light’s corpse?”

“Indeed.” Mike lowered his head to look at Ye Chen, his gaze tinged with mockery. “The most insidious part wasn’t even that. In fact, they had already rebelled, intending to devour the Goddess of Light’s corpse, and had been trying to find a way to crack the barrier. I was essentially a bomb they manufactured to deplete the barrier’s strength. When I lost all my power, my body would become food for the Grand Envoy.”

“He eats humans?” Ye Chen was stunned.

Mike chuckled. “Human bodies are made of flesh too. If you can eat chicken, pork, or beef, why not human flesh? Most people just don’t have the courage. When I learned this news, I immediately tried to escape, but before I got far, I was detected and sealed here.” He couldn't help but sigh here. “Fortunately, killing me was also difficult for them. Although they could kill me, if I fought with all my might, I could severely injure or even kill one of them. So, they didn’t dare take the risk.”

Ye Chen couldn’t help but let out a light sigh. Though only fragmentary words, it was easy to imagine the terrifying nature of those events.

Mike smiled at Ye Chen. “The story is finished. Was it decent enough?”

“Just a bit tragic,” Ye Chen looked around the pitch-black space. “Is this a sealed world? Is there a way out?”

Mike and Xiaolin exchanged a look, smiles blooming on their faces. Xiaolin teased Ye Chen, “We have been sealed for countless eons, wasting countless efforts, yet we cannot leave. If there were a way out, there is one, but we cannot achieve it.”

“What way?”

“The first way is for the Snow Domain Envoys to personally open the seal entrance, and then we can leave,” Xiaolin stated the simplest method, then continued with a laugh, “There is another way: if the entire Snow Domain world collapses, the seal entrance is connected to the Snow Domain world, so it will naturally collapse too, and we can get out.”

Ye Chen frowned, suddenly thinking of the Bronze Supreme. If he went to the Divine Mountain, fought a great war with the Snow Domain Envoys, and took the Goddess of Light’s corpse, would he, on a whim, destroy the Snow Domain world?

Mike saw him frowning and seemingly deep in thought. His eyes flickered, and he said nothing more, only showing a look of pity in his gaze. Suddenly, his expression froze, and then his eyes shot out fierce light, staring intensely at Ye Chen, his white pupils like burning flames, flashing with intense heat.

Xiaolin saw his unusual look and asked curiously, “What is it?”

“There’s a way!” Mike’s excited voice trembled uncontrollably.

Xiaolin’s eyes lit up, then she froze. “What way?”

“A way to leave!” Mike stated firmly.

Xiaolin pondered for a moment, then followed his gaze, and suddenly, an idea struck her, causing her to cry out in joyous realization, “That’s right! How did I not think of that? If it can be done successfully, we will definitely be able to leave!”

Ye Chen watched the two of them staring at him, light shining in their eyes, giving him goosebumps and making his scalp tingle. “What are you two going to do?”

Mike’s smile was cold yet handsome. “Nothing much.” He stepped toward Ye Chen, “I’ve thought of a way that allows all of us to leave this place.” His tall frame approached Ye Chen and looked down at him. “You are still only at the Divine Emperor realm. If I can help you break through, the energy sensed during that breakthrough can open a channel to the Time Realm, directly tearing apart the entrance to the sealed barrier. Then, all of us can get out!”

Ye Chen was momentarily stunned. “You want to help me break through the realm?”

“Exactly!” Mike looked at him excitedly. “Those sealed in here have all hit cultivation bottlenecks and find it extremely hard to advance. But you are different; you are only a Divine Emperor. With my power, helping you break through would be as easy as turning my hand!”

Ye Chen’s heart hammered wildly. Although he knew that with his own strength, breaking through from Divine Emperor to Epoch Realm wouldn't take long, he hadn't expected such a good fortune to fall into his lap. Suppressing the heat in his heart, he appeared to ponder, then shook his head, saying, “That won’t do.”

We agreed on three chapters yesterday. Whew, I’ve finally finished writing this. Time for sleep, whew.