Grey knew this and decisively drew the wandering fragnt back into his sea of consciousness, allowing it to sink into the depths where it belonged.
The four days were almost over.
He did not waste a single breath of the remaining ti. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the cold ground and focused entirely on recovery. The injuries he had suffered were not rely physical; so wounds ran deeper, hidden within his ridians and spirit pathways. With steady breaths, he guided spirit power through his body, repairing torn channels and stabilizing the violent fluctuations left behind from his breakthrough.
Ti passed quietly.
Another day slipped by.
The bodies frozen within the snow adow began to change. Thin cracks spread across the ice encasing them, and frost slowly lted away under an unseen force. Yet the corpses themselves did not reappear. They did not rot. They did not collapse.
They simply dissolved.
One after another, the frozen figures lted as though they had always been nothing more than condensed frost. Flesh, bone, and blood all turned into clear water that seeped soundlessly into the ground before vanishing entirely.
When the final body dissolved, the snow adow trembled faintly.
Its vast, wintry expanse began to shrink. The endless snowy plain folded inward as if the world itself were being drawn into a single point. The falling snow ceased. The biting cold retreated. Within monts, what had once felt like a boundless frozen domain reduced itself into a small, palm-sized adow resting quietly on the ground.
The captain stepped forward, bent slightly, and picked it up with surprising care. Without ceremony, she placed it into her storage bag.
Silence returned.
Grey slowly rose to his feet.
As he stood, a brilliant glint flashed across his eyes, sharp, controlled, and far steadier than before. The aura around him felt different now. Fuller. Denser.
After fully healing, his forty-three spirit perforations roared to life within his body. Spirit power surged through them like rivers breaking through newly carved channels. The energy coursed through his limbs, strengthened his bones, and settled deep within his dantian.
His entire body felt saturated and filled to the brim.
A powerful fluctuation erupted from him instinctively. The unmistakable aura of the Foundation Establishnt Realm spread outward in a heavy wave, pressing against the surrounding air.
Grey’s eyes narrowed.
Almost imdiately, he restrained it.
He forcefully suppressed the aura, compressing it back into himself before it could travel too far. Now that the snow adow was gone, there was no concealnt shielding them.
In this world, there were tis when one had to display strength. To intimidate, to deter, and to make enemies hesitate.
But there were also tis when survival depended on silence.
This was one of those tis.
They were in a foreign place. A hidden place. A place that did not belong to them.
If sothing stronger sensed his breakthrough, the consequences could be disastrous.
The captain finished storing the adow and turned toward him.
For once, the usual mischievous glimr in her eyes was absent. The playful smirk and the teasing tone was all gone.
In its place was solemn resolve.
Grey understood.
The "big thing" she had ntioned earlier was about to begin.
A soft wind swept across the barren land, lifting faint dust into the air and causing the captain’s long hair to flutter behind her. She did not react dramatically. Calmly, almost absentmindedly, she lifted a hand and tucked the loose strands behind her ear.
Then she spoke.
"We will soon be off to do the big thing that I ntioned earlier."
Her voice was steady.
"Since the ti is right, I’ll tell you what I didn’t tell you before."
Grey listened without interrupting.
"In the levels of cultivation, there is the Body Refinent Realm—which includes the Qi Accumulation Realm, the Foundation Establishnt Realm, and the Spirit Core Formation Realm.
"Above that is the Spirit Transformation stage—which consists of the Nascent Soul Transformation Realm and the Soul Ascendancy Realm.
"Beyond those are the Soul Tribulation Realm and the Ascendancy Realm —stages ant only for high-level cultivators."
She paused briefly, her gaze sharpening.
"And beyond even that... lie the Immortal Realms."
Her tone grew heavier.
"Very few have ever reached that level."
Grey remained silent.
"This world that we are in," she continued slowly, "is the divine consciousness of a being who once stood in the Immortal Realm."
The air seed to grow colder.
"Her body is long dead. Her soul has perished. Yet her divine consciousness remains, lingering, struggling to survive."
She looked toward the distance.
"Most people do not even know this place exists. It lies hidden in the depths of the sea and opens only once every few thousand years."
Her expression darkened.
"This place is extrely dangerous. The area we are in now is rely a small corner compared to the whole of it."
Her eyes shifted back to Grey.
"However, if we want to rapidly increase our cultivation and prepare for what cos next... we must co here at a specific ti and obtain the item I’ve been seeking."
She exhaled softly.
"I won’t hide it from you anymore. From this point onward, the chances of dying are infinitesimally high."
There was no exaggeration in her voice.
"But if you survive..." she continued, "the rewards you gain will not be less than the danger you face."
She slowly turned toward the distant giant head looming on the horizon.
Its two open eyes stared outward coldly, indifferently, as though everything before it were nothing more than dust. The re thought of all its eyes opening sent a silent chill through the air.
If that happened, this entire place would descend into chaos.
Grey did not respond imdiately.
He stared at the distant giant head, feeling the weight of the captain’s words settle over him.
After a long mont, he turned toward her.
"I am looking for Roxanne." His voice was calm, but beneath it lay unwavering resolve.
The captain looked at him. Then, slowly, she smiled. It was not a playful smile, neither was it teasing.
It was gentle.
Grey had accepted.
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