Soft clouds drifted lazily across the pale sky above the adow, and from them, snow fell in a steady, gentle curtain. The flakes descended slowly, each one distinct, dissolving upon contact with the ground before layering into fresh frost.
Everything looked incredibly real.
The snow beneath Grey’s boots crunched when he shifted his weight. The air was crisp and biting, seeping into his lungs with a sharp chill. Even the faint sting on his exposed skin felt authentic.
It was as if he had truly stepped onto a boundless snowy plain.
The captain appeared beside him and gave a satisfied snort.
"Isn’t it good?" she said proudly. "I snagged this from an old fellow so ti ago. At first, I didn’t believe what he said about it... but now?" She lifted her chin slightly. "Now I’m convinced."
Her expression was one of pure accomplishnt, as though she had just displayed a rare treasure she had personally crafted.
Grey did not respond. His gaze remained fixed on the horizon.
Seeing his silence, the captain sighed lightly and decided to explain.
"This is a spatial world fragnt," she began. "Sotis, when the power of the heavens becos excessive and when they attempt to let down blessings, laws such as space and ti are disturbed. When that happens, fragnts of the world can split off."
She gestured toward the snowy expanse around them.
"And that," she said, "is what this is."
Grey’s eyes flickered faintly.
"World fragnts are not the sa," she continued. "Each one contains different dominant laws. So are ruled by ti distortions. So by elental extres. This one..." She lightly stamped her foot into the snow. "This one is governed by space. Or more specifically... this was the space and ti before it was ripped apart from the world."
"When the heavens interfered with spatial laws, a part of the world separated and beca this fragnt. Its usefulness is limited. It can only form this snowy domain. But its concealnt ability..." Her lips curved slightly. "Is quite excellent."
She turned to look at him directly.
"Unless soone searches extrely carefully, they won’t detect anything abnormal. To outsiders, this area is unchanged. As if nothing happened at all."
Grey listened quietly.
In his heart, he nodded.
What she said was partly plausible.
However...
The part about "the heavens letting down blessings" did not sit well with him.
It might not be true. After all, in this cruel and callous world where even gods where nonchalant, the heavens would definitely not rain down so random blessings. If anything, it might even be a curse.
Grey slowly walked toward the edge of the snowy field.
At exactly three hundred ters, the snow abruptly stopped.
Beyond that boundary, the ground returned to its original blood-red color. The sky beyond remained heavy and oppressive, filled with crimson mist and a suffocating gloom.
The contrast was jarring.
Inside the fragnt, peaceful snowfall.
Outside, ruin and desolation.
Only this circular domain was different.
Yet to the eyes of others, this snowy field did not exist. Neither did Grey or the captain. From the mont the blue adow expanded, they had vanished from the red wasteland as though swallowed by thin air.
The captain appeared behind him again, rubbing her nose casually.
"Of course," she said, "the heavens aren’t entirely fair."
Grey turned slightly, listening.
"They left flaws in world fragnts. They’re usually called curses." She shrugged. "Every fragnt has one."
"This one’s curse isn’t too absurd, fortunately. It only requires living offerings whenever it’s activated."
Grey turned around fully.
Even in his injured state, even with his aura unstable and his body barely holding together, his gaze was cold and sharp. As well as decisive and unwavering.
The captain burst into light laughter when she saw his expression.
"Don’t worry, Grey," she said, waving her hand dismissively. "I ca prepared."
Her eyes glead faintly.
"I already sacrificed so lives to the snow adow so ti ago."
She flicked her finger.
The snow in several spots ahead began to tremble.
Slowly, several frozen bodies rose up from beneath the surface.
They were preserved perfectly.
Their expressions were vivid—so filled with disbelief, others twisted in horror. One still had its mouth slightly open, as if frozen mid-scream. These were clearly the final emotions etched into them before death claid them.
Grey only glanced once.
Then he looked away.
Frost had already consud most of their bodies. Ice crystallized along their veins, visible beneath translucent skin. The cold was not rely external, it had devoured them from the inside out.
Soon, they would fully dissolve.
Returning to snow.
"We have four days," the captain said calmly. "After that, the sacrifices will be completely consud."
She turned and walked toward the center of the adow before sitting down cross-legged upon the snow as if it were a soft cushion.
"Use this ti wisely."
The aura of her Late-stage Foundation Establishnt cultivation beca subtly apparent. Though she restrained it, the surrounding snow faintly lted and refroze in cycles around her, unable to fully resist the heat concealed within her body.
Grey said nothing.
He walked a fair distance away from her and sat down as well.
Snow fell gently onto his grey hair, resting on his shoulders and eyelashes. It gathered along the strands, forming thin lines of frost.
He did not brush it away.
He closed his eyes and entered deep ditation.
The red stains across his clothes and face stood out starkly against the endless white. Blood had soaked into the fabric, dried in so places, fresh in others.
In this pure snowy world, the crimson was very striking and had a demonic charm to contrast it.
So distance away, the captain opened her eyes and glanced toward him.
She did not ask about the broken divine from earlier.
She did not ask what he had provoked.
She knew better.
Grey was in an extrely fragile state.
The only reason he stood upright before her was willpower.
He was putting on a bold front.
’Ah, little Grey,’ she thought silently. ’You really went ahead and courted death.’
Her gaze softened slightly.
’Thankfully, I arrived in ti and managed to help you escape. I even confused the thing chasing you.’
Her eyes narrowed faintly.
’It shouldn’t be able to find you... at least not for so ti.’
With that thought, she slowly closed her eyes again.
A few locks of hair slipped loose and fell across her face, partially covering her expression as she entered cultivation.
Snow continued to fall.
Inside the fragnt, ti seed peaceful. However, outside, sothing in the red mist stirred.
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