A Quick Test of One's Ability

Chen Guan exhaled a breath of white vapor, which crystallized into ice in the biting wind.

He glanced down at the snow beneath his feet; the drifts had already risen past his knees.

Every step here demanded several times more effort than walking on flat ground.

“Miss Guan,”

Chen Guan turned his head and asked,

“You just said you’re going to retrieve your sister’s body. Where exactly in the Northern Territory is that place?”

Guan Jinyue walked on his right side, the howling wind tossing her silver hair into disarray. She lifted a hand to tuck a few strands behind her ear and replied,

“The Ice Crystal Sanctuary.”

“It’s deep within the Northern Territory, one of the strongholds of the Demon Clan,” she added, “and also the power center of the entire Ice Soul Bear Tribe.”

“Judging by the name, it must be heavily guarded. Why would they keep someone there?”

Chen Guan was puzzled. These were details never described in the books; to him, this was an unfamiliar world.

“It was Baal who helped me back then.”

Guan Jinyue snapped a dry branch buried under the snow.

“He told me that the ten-thousand-year cold jade beneath the sanctuary could seal life force, ensuring Xiao Heng’s body wouldn’t decay or rot before I found her soul.”

“With Baal’s abilities, forcibly borrowing a place like that wasn’t difficult.”

Chen Guan silently called out Baal’s name in his mind, but his consciousness met only dead silence—no response at all.

Probably spying again.

“So, as the price for borrowing the place, you have to do tasks for the Demon Clan?”

Chen Guan pressed on. Back in Rust Harbor, Guan Jinyue was already working on behalf of the demons.

“There’s no such thing as a free lunch.”

Guan Jinyue nodded, not denying it.

“The Demon Emperor agreed to Baal’s arrangement. They took in Xiao Heng’s body and placed me with the Bear King.”

“As for this time, to bring back the soul, the Bear King demanded I join the siege on Demon City as repayment.”

Chen Guan stared ahead at the rolling snowdrifts.

“And then you abandoned the demon coalition besieging Demon City at a critical moment to dive into the tower and retrieve your sister’s soul?”

“So, you’re a traitor now?”

Chen Guan had already guessed how the story would unfold.

“I don’t care about who controls Demon City. I only care about Xiao Heng. But yes, I did break my promise to the Bear King.”

She paused.

“The Demon Clan values promises above all else.”

“Maybe the Bear King, confident in his status and wary of Baal, won’t act against me. But his underlings—those small demons who don’t know the full story—definitely won’t let this go.”

“By now, the word has probably spread.”

Chen Guan understood. That meant they would only encounter minor enemies along the way—nothing to fear.

They would just plow straight through.

The two continued trudging through the snowstorm.

The snowfield stretched endlessly, the horizon lost in a gray haze.

“If you can open spatial portals, why not just teleport directly to the sanctuary’s entrance?” Chen Guan suddenly asked, turning to her.

Guan Jinyue followed behind patiently.

“Can’t do that.”

“The sanctuary’s underground is embedded with special spirit mineral veins, which constantly emit intense magnetic fields that severely disrupt the stability of spatial laws.”

“If we’re not careful, we could be torn to shreds by spatial turbulence.”

She explained in detail.

Chen Guan nodded in understanding. Guan Jinyue, back when she was still in school, was probably a top-tier academic achiever.

As they spent more time together, she turned out to be far less aloof than she usually appeared. On the contrary, she was quite approachable—answering every question straightforwardly, which created an intriguing contrast.

Suddenly, a burning heat spread outward from his palm.

This power brought him an entirely new sensory experience.

He could clearly detect the various emotions mixed in the air within several kilometers around him.

The strongest among them was murderous intent.

These hostile feelings stood out in the snowy white landscape like beacons.

"Miss Guan."

Chen Guan slid his hand into his pocket. "We might have to deal with some trouble before we can continue."

Guan Jinyue immediately stopped and scanned the surroundings. Apart from the howling wind and snow, she saw nothing.

"What’s going on?"

She lowered her voice to ask.

"Someone’s watching us."

Chen Guan pointed to the left front.

"There’s a squad over there."

Then he gestured to the right and directly ahead.

"Two more squads."

"People—or rather, monsters—from three directions... are closing in on us."

He summed up.

Guan Jinyue furrowed her brow and closed her eyes. Her vast mental power silently surged outward like a tide.

Ten seconds later, she opened her eyes.

"There’s no spiritual energy fluctuations in my perception."

"It’s emotion," Chen Guan said, pointing to himself. "The monsters can hide their spiritual energy, but they can’t hide the killing intent in their hearts."

Looking at his confident expression, Guan Jinyue recalled the terrifying scene not long ago at the tower’s base, when half of Chen Guan’s body had undergone a horrifying transformation.

This was probably the kind of ability granted by such high-level power—she quickly figured it out.

"What do you plan to do?"

She chose to trust Chen Guan.

He brushed off his coat.

"Since they’ve already set the stage, it would be rude to just walk away."

He turned, facing the silent snowy forest to the left front.

"Perfect timing—I need to stretch my legs anyway."

"Let’s go say hello to these hospitable hosts."

Chen Guan started walking forward.

Guan Jinyue said nothing to stop him, trailing half a step behind.

She also needed a real fight to assess Chen Guan’s current combat strength.

As fellow Baal’s followers and peers with similar experiences, she couldn’t help but harbor a secret streak of competitiveness.

Two kilometers away, deep within the snowy forest to the left front, more than a dozen tall white figures crouched beneath thick snow.

This was an elite scouting squad of the Ice Soul Bear tribe, their fur perfectly blending with the surrounding snow.

"Left wing has spotted the target."

"Confirmed: Guan Jinyue and an unfamiliar human male."

The lead bear whispered.

"They haven’t detected our presence and are moving steadily straight ahead."

A few minutes later, the bear’s face tightened.

"Captain," a nearby scout whispered, "something’s wrong."

"They’ve changed course, heading straight toward our forest!"

"Prepare for battle."

The black bear no longer hesitated.

"As soon as they enter thirty meters, engage immediately."

Chen Guan stepped lightly on the soft snow, the crunch beneath his feet sounding crisp as he moved forward with ease.

The black mark on Chen Guan’s right hand grew hotter by the second, while the murderous intent emanating from the bear clan hidden in the snowy forest ahead surged uncontrollably.

These negative emotions flowed into Chen Guan’s body through an invisible medium, transforming within his meridians into a peculiar fuel he could summon at will.

This fuel didn’t conflict with his gray energy. In other words, if this were a game, he’d now have three bars glowing on his forehead.

His power system seemed to drift further away from humanity.

Yet, this continuous influx of energy was intoxicating, much like the feeling at the bottom of a tower.

Chen Guan even felt the cold wind lose its bite. He wasn’t sure if his mind had been corrupted, but at least, for now, he felt good.

Guan Jinyue remained a silent observer.

She sensed a subtle change in Chen Guan’s aura — a shift so slight it brought a faint sense of oppression even to her.

They were less than sixty meters from the edge of the snowy forest.

Chen Guan showed no sign of stopping.

Fifty meters.

Forty meters.