Chapter 332 - 289: [Operation Defrost], The Shery Mountain Raid
Chapter 332: Chapter 289: [Operation Defrost], The Shery Mountain Raid
Just a moment ago, for a fleeting instant, a silhouette so immense it defied comprehension had forced its way into his collapsing Perception. This was not the Ice Dragon God Candela to whom he offered his faith day and night, but a more ancient, purer, terrifying existence that carried a cold capable of freezing the very source of his soul.
It coiled within the void of his consciousness, every one of its scales flowing with an azure radiance that could freeze all creation. Its mere presence caused the mark of Candela, branded deep in the Priest’s soul, to let out a wail, as if under an unbearable burden.
It cast down not the pity or wrath of a Deity, but a gaze that was cold and indifferent, as if looking down upon a speck of dust.
That gaze pierced through his fervent faith, staring directly into the wretched insignificance at the very bottom of his soul.
"How could this be..."
His cracked lips moved unconsciously. A hoarse, airy sound, wrapped in bloody foam, escaped, filled with incomprehensible bewilderment and the violent tremor of his shaken faith.
"My Lord... but..."
The bald Priest tried to find the familiar silhouette of his Deity within his consciousness, seeking a sliver of sanctuary.
But he discovered that before the more magnificent, colossal shadow of frost, Candela’s phantom image seemed so dim, distorted, and even... weak.
However, before any more emotions could well up within him, a dull, piercing sound rang out abruptly.
SQUELCH!
The bald Priest’s burly body suddenly arched upward, as if being dragged by an invisible giant hook.
He looked down in disbelief, his murky pupils instantly shrinking to pinpricks.
A hooked dragon claw, formed from pure ice and as thick as a siege spear, was bursting out from his chest and abdomen, carrying with it dripping, uncongealed dark-red blood and shattered fragments of internal organs.
He had been impaled by the terrifying ice claw and was suspended high in midair, like a fish speared by a harpoon!
Agonizing pain erupted within him like a volcano, instantly washing away the numbness brought on by the terrifying pressure and jolting him briefly back to "lucidity"!
His vision blurred and swam from the agony and Blood Loss, but the bald Priest, clinging to his last shred of life, forced himself to follow the massive ice claw that pierced his body, laboriously turning his eyes toward its source—
The other end of the ice claw was connected to the figure clad in Crystal Armor.
His arm was held aloft, and the power of frost was extending from it to form this fatal claw.
And those eyes—
The bald Priest’s breathing stopped completely.
In his view, those were no longer human eyes.
They were two frozen, ice-blue stars, as clear as a vast and cloudless sky.
They held not a trace of bloodlust, nor the satisfaction of vengeance—only an indifference so profound it could freeze the soul.
They were identical to the eyes of the Frost Giant Dragon’s phantom he had glimpsed before his consciousness faded—the one that surpassed Candela!
Fear—an unprecedented, primal fear born from the instinct for survival—drowned him, along with his utterly shattered faith.
He wanted to scream, to demand answers, to invoke the name of his lord, Candela, and utter one final curse.
His cracked lips parted in a futile attempt to speak, but his throat could only produce the gurgling rattle of a broken bellows as blood flooded his windpipe. "Ghk... ghk..."
He saw his own reflection in those icy eyes—a pathetic wretch, impaled by an ice claw, about to dissipate completely.
The next moment, the giant frost claw piercing his body suddenly erupted with a bone-chilling light!
A series of minute cracking sounds instantly radiated outward from the ice claw.
Dark red blood, writhing organ fragments, gnarled muscles, thick bones...
In an instant, all of it lost its warmth and vitality. The completely frozen bald Priest, along with the very ice claw that impaled him, suddenly disintegrated!
Fine, glittering ice dust, like the purest crystal powder, filled the air. It swirled silently in the biting wind before scattering and vanishing without a trace.
Jon slowly retracted his arm. Not a single drop of blood stained his crystalline Arm Armor, only a lingering chill that refused to dissipate.
His ice-blue eyes swept over the scattering ice dust as if brushing away an insignificant mote. He then turned to the few remaining cultists who were still struggling desperately under the firepower of the Mechanical Bodies.
He raised his hand, issuing more precise attack commands to the Mechanical Bodies to wipe out the last of the remnants.
After confirming that he was the only living being left in the entire stronghold, he fired a trail of light into the sky. A moment later, the sound of beating wings rapidly approached.
"RAWR—"
Big Mimi folded its broad, feathered wings. Its heavy body slammed onto the frozen earth, kicking up a spray of ice shards.
It looked even more ferocious than before.
Heavy, Rune-inscribed Battle Armor covered its muscular body. Two small cannons, gleaming with the cold light of metal, still bore the faint red traces of an Energy overload. The aerial bombardment just before the main battle had been fired from these very cannons; as an air-to-ground strike, they were exceptionally effective.
The experience was utterly novel for the big cat. After landing, it was still curiously prodding the two cannons with its tail, seemingly puzzled as to why such small objects could unleash such powerful attacks.
Rosalind’s figure, meanwhile, slid gracefully from Big Mimi’s broad back. Frost-white Scale Armor clung to her slender frame, shimmering with a spectral, cold light under the pale sky, like frozen moonlight.
She tapped the ground with the Crystal Wood Staff she held. The tip silently pierced the hardened earth, and a few visible wisps of frosty air snaked down the staff like living serpents, quietly merging into the cracked soil.
"Master, I have arrived."
Jon wasted no time on pleasantries, his gaze fixed on the buildings that the Mechanical Bodies’ precise firepower had reduced to ruins.
"Rosalind, scan the stronghold for any valuable supplies. I’ll go round up the Mechanical Bodies."
"Yes, Master."
This was the operational procedure Jon and she had long agreed upon: Jon would clear out the Eternal Frost Sect strongholds, after which she would use the Crystal Wood Staff forged by Claudio to sense valuable supplies. They would pick out anything useful, grab it, and run, never lingering. Jon called this the "Shery Mountain Search-Strike-Withdraw."
And though Rosalind didn’t know why Jon seemed vaguely nostalgic when he uttered that phrase, she faithfully carried out her duty, using the Magic Staff in her hand to expand her Perception Power.
The silver-haired woman closed her eyes and focused. Beneath her hood, her silver eyelashes cast subtle shadows in the pale light of the sky.
The Crystal Wood Staff in her hand hummed softly. At the point where its tip pierced the frozen earth, the visible wisps of frost no longer dissipated like living snakes. Instead, they condensed and sank downwards, like countless sentient, icy roots, plunging deep into the frozen ground and spreading silently toward the ruined Eternal Frost stronghold ahead.
Wherever they passed, any material properties, residual Energy traces, or even strange "auras" concealed by ice, snow, and death were captured, identified, and fed back into her mind by this cold, pure Perception Power.
Soon, she made a discovery.
Rosalind opened her eyes, a faint light flashing in the silver-gray depths beneath her hood.
She turned toward Jon, her cool voice cutting through the biting wind.
"Master, there seems to be something in the ice layer beneath us."
Jon, who was directing several Mechanical Bodies to revert to their "box" forms, immediately turned his head.
"Where?"
Rosalind raised her hand, pointing to an inconspicuous depression at the edge of the ruins.
The frozen earth there had been blasted open by the shockwave from an earlier explosion and was now covered again by shattered ice and snow, forming a shallow pit.
"There."
"The pulsation beneath the ice is very faint, but its structure is abnormal. There’s a... viscosity from residual Energy. It feels like... some kind of deliberately sealed underground structure."
Jon looked in the direction she pointed with her slender, pale finger and also perceived a subtle sense of dissonance.
This caused the corners of his mouth to lift slightly.
"A score on our very first strike. It seems our luck is pretty good."