The Purgatory Calamity
Chapter 332 - 312: Divine Object, Heart of Winter!_1

Chapter 332: Chapter 312: Divine Object, Heart of Winter!_1

"No..."

Pang Jian was in a daze.

He confirmed over and over again, learning that outside the Ice Tribe’s territory, The Frozen Land, there had never been any other Fragment Land worlds before.

The intruders who had poured into The Frozen Land were either misled into the Mysterious Fog, suffering the hardships of being lost and drifting before inadvertently breaking in.

Or, they were guided by some force, making use of a special compass device, and also came through the vast Mysterious Fog.

Anyway, they did not come from another Fragment Land that was adjacent to The Frozen Land.

The elders of the Ice Tribe also said that in the remnant soul consciousness of the entrants, there was no memory of related Fragment Lands.

"Absolute Sky Forbidden Land, The Frozen Land, and even the Thunderbolt and Flame Fragment Land, might have previously existed in different areas within the Mysterious Fog. Because of The Observer, a grand era that occurs once every hundred thousand years, they were pulled together by some force," he mused.

Images suddenly filled Pang Jian’s mind.

He sensed that perhaps there was a power that could even dominate over the God Spirits, influencing and even controlling the Mysterious Fog, causing the four Fragment Lands to be located in one place.

"We are almost there,"

the Ice Halberd said excitedly, pointing to the towering glacier ahead, "The seven elders have been waiting for this day for a very long time. Distinguished guest from far away, please be sure to solve our puzzles!"

Gazing at the summit of the glacier, Pang Jian’s heart was shaken, and his gaze fell upon the huge Ice Crystal heart.

As the bird drew closer, the Ice Crystal heart in his view gradually enlarged, and he felt the "Heart of Winter", indeed pulsating with a rich Divine Consciousness.

The thin cold fog emitting from the "Heart of Winter" gradually covered the Ice Castle at the mountain peak, and from afar, he could no longer see the Ice Tribe people kneeling in worship.

Only the six sky-piercing huge ice pillars, the altar surrounded by the pillars, and the dazzling and brilliant "Heart of Winter" were visible.

"Shrill!"

Slim and translucent ice ridges fleetingly appeared on the edge of the "Heart of Winter," with cold light flowing within the ridges.

Smaller crystal fragments sparkled with divine light like stars, seeming to contain extreme cold mysteries.

Pang Jian strained his eyes to see, but his vision could not penetrate to the core of the "Heart of Winter," only seeing clusters of very dense white fog, wrapping around something even more complex and mysterious.

"I hope I’m not targeted by an Ice Demon,"

he thought with caution.

He suspected that the soul consciousness of an Ice Demon was still inhabiting the heart of the "Heart of Winter," and while drawing from the blood and souls of myriad Alien Tribes, it was also influencing the entirety of The Frozen Land.

"Bee King, what should we do if we are targeted by an Ice Demon?"

Pang Jian communicated quietly.

The Bee King immediately replied, "If you can’t confuse Him or convince Him that you are His follower, then lead His Divine Consciousness into your Sea of Consciousness. If His Divine Consciousness is not strong enough to be within my ability to consume, we will be able to erase His will."

"If He’s too strong, then both you and I will die."

Its tone also seemed quite helpless, "I am still too weak, awoken for too short a time to have captured enough Divine Consciousness. Otherwise, facing such a thing that only contains His Divine Consciousness, I would not find it difficult."

Pang Jian said, "Then we can only proceed with caution and see how things unfold."

"Master, there have been changes in the Absolute Sky Forbidden Land, you should take notice," reminded the Bee King.

A strand of Pang Jian’s mental will fell upon a golden bee insect, and he immediately saw Zhao Yuanqi controlling a wine gourd, having already taken flight from the lake.

Above the gourd stood Dong Tianze, Qi Qingsong, Zhuang Yuyan, Zhou Qingchen, and Zhao Yuanqi, five people in total.

"Let’s go to that Ice Fragment Land, I guess Pang Jian is there."

Zhuang Yuyan looked at everyone and said, "No one knows what Alien Tribes might be in that fragmented land full of ice peaks we don’t know about. I’ll ask you one more time, have you really decided?"

If they stayed in the Absolute Sky Forbidden Land, they would face the uncertainty of whether Fu Wangchen had been corrupted by an Alien God.

The level eight Ice Armor Eel Dragon had retreated into the lake and had not shown itself again, posing no great threat for the moment.

If they didn’t leave and stayed in the Absolute Sky Forbidden Land, they would just have to be a bit careful; they wouldn’t die right away.

However, if they really went to another completely unfamiliar Fragment Land, who knew what they would encounter.

"Compared to Fu Wangchen, I have more faith in Pang Jian."

Qi Qingsong snorted, holding the Blue Dream Sword in front of his chest, "This kind of arrogant guy like Fu Wangchen, if he’s been contaminated by an Outer Realm Alien God, he will kill everyone in the Absolute Sky Forbidden Land."

"Sister, each additional day we stay in the Absolute Sky Forbidden Land brings more risk."

"I’ve made up my mind; we must find Pang Jian as soon as possible!"

Qi Qingsong declared his position.

"I don’t have anything to think about. If Pang Jian says there is a problem with Fu Wangchen, then there must be a problem!" Zhou Qingchen snorted and complained, "Zhao, please don’t suck me into the gourd again without saying a word next time!"

"Hmm."

Zhao Yuanqi responded indifferently.

Dong Tianze, still grievously injured, had a deathly pale complexion after some adjustment. He said, "I have no choice, as a Divine Guard has already set his eyes on me. I can’t stay even if I wanted to."

"Spirit Condensation Realm?" Zhuang Yuyan asked earnestly.

"It feels like it," Dong Tianze nodded.

"No wonder you hastily called me to leave that forest," Zhao Yuanqi looked surprised, frowning, "Right in that forest?"

"He must be in the forest; I instinctively sensed the danger," said Dong Tianze, drooping his head, his face dark and gloomy, "I have lost Black Iron Mountain and have been seriously injured. If I don’t leave, he will easily kill me and strip away my Phoenix Seal."

"You sure are loyal,"

Qi Qingsong praised.

"Huh!"

A golden bee insect suddenly appeared.

It stopped in front of the gourd and, looking up at the five people on it, said, "Don’t come over yet, the situation in The Frozen Land is too complicated. If you came with the wrong aura, you would be slaughtered by the Ice Tribe."

The group was stunned for a moment and then immediately began to question anxiously.

"Pang Jian, what’s happened to you?"

"Are you alright?"

"The Ice Tribe? What is that group?"

Pang Jian informed them truthfully about what he had seen and heard in The Frozen Land, prompting Zhao Yuanqi, who was controlling a gourd, to stop.

After a pause, he added, "You all stay in the Absolute Sky Forbidden Land for now, and make sure not to be with Fu Wangchen. Wait until I figure out the situation in The Frozen Land before deciding whether to have you come over."

"Dong Tianze, that Individual Cultivator named Ling He in the forest is most likely one of the Divine Guards."

Pang Jian hurriedly clarified the situation.

"Individual Cultivator Ling He!"

Dong Tianze nodded in acknowledgment.

"Remember to stay away from Fu Wangchen, and don’t stay with anyone from the Desolated Terrains. It’s best to find a secluded place to wait for my news. Fu Wangchen hasn’t lost his own spirit yet, but he is falling little by little."

"Those who are with him, unless something unexpected happens, will all die, and no one can escape it."

...

The Frozen Land.

Atop the Sacred Mountain.

In the center of a castle carved from Cold Ice, a huge altar stood out, with six towering ice pillars erected beside it.

In the middle of the altar lay an Ice Crystal orb named "Heart of Winter," resembling a heart.

Seven elderly members of the Ice Tribe sat around the large Ice Crystal heart, already shrouded in a vast expanse of white fog.

Beneath the altar, on the plaza and in the open windows of the castle stands.

Thousands of members of the Ice Tribe were kneeling, each looking devoutly toward the Ice Crystal heart named "Heart of Winter" as they prayed.

"Whoosh!"

A bird carrying two people descended towards the plaza.

"Ice Halberd!"

A tall warrior of the Ice Tribe, holding a Cold Iron Long Spear, said coldly, "How dare you bring Alien Tribes here!"

Ice Halberd hurriedly explained, "Ice Cloud sir, he shares our faith, and he has the aura of the Ice Demon on him!"

"Ice Demon?!"

At these words, the seven elderly Ice Tribe members seated at the altar almost simultaneously opened their eyes.

Their gaze, cold as thunderbolt flashes, all focused on Pang Jian at the same moment, making him feel as if needles were pricking his back, indescribably uncomfortable.

"The same faith, and he is also imbued with the aura of the Ice Demon!"

An elderly Ice Tribe member with a head full of white hair, the most frail-looking, suddenly stood up.

His murky eyes gradually became clear and bright as he suddenly said, "Come up here!"

Pang Jian looked at him, at a loss for what to do.

"If you can withstand the power emanating from the Heart of Winter, you will be recognized by the Ice Demon."

"Otherwise..."

He chuckled coldly and pointed to the nearby mountains filled with the bones of Alien Tribes, saying, "That will be your fate!"

A multitude of chilly gazes from all directions of the castle also converged on Pang Jian.

Feeling the imposing aura of the seven elderly Ice Tribe members, along with the cold stares from the many Ice Tribe warriors, Pang Jian had a throbbing headache.

He knew, if he couldn’t withstand the Extreme Cold Alien Power emanating from the Heart of Winter, he would have to face the wrath of the entire Ice Tribe.

"Fortune favors the bold; whether I can steal the Divine Consciousness within the Heart of Winter depends on if I can pass the trial."

He instructed the Bee King not to act rashly and also to be cautious to keep its presence concealed and not to reveal itself.

Immediately after, he was escorted by Ice Halberd’s flying bird towards the familiar altar.

Beneath the Ice-rock City and in the Land of Prayer Spirit of Xuan You Continent, he had seen similar altars used for communicating with the Ice Demon.

However, those previous altars were both broken and seemed relatively small.

This altar, located at the peak of the Sacred Mountain, at the plaza of the Ice Castle, had six Sky-Piercing Ice Pillars without a single crack, and the altar itself was intact.

"Perhaps, I really could communicate with the Ice Demon."

Pang Jian landed on the altar and, emulating the Ice Tribe elders, sat down cross-legged.

He focused on the Ice Pool within his Spiritual Sea, as he had done beneath the Ice-rock City years before, attempting to comprehend the Cold Power within the altar.

He didn’t dare close his eyes...

He remembered clearly that at the Land of Prayer Spirit’s Fragmented Altar, the moment he closed his eyes, he felt a chilling sensation that reached his soul.

As if in an instant, he was in another world of dark, icy, and deadly silence.

So he kept his eyes open, staring at the "Heart of Winter" close at hand, watching the Ice Crystal edges.

"Whoosh! Whoosh whoosh!"

Amidst the faint mist, the Extreme Cold Alien Power naturally seeped into his Spiritual Sea, converging into the small Ice Pool.

His Ice Pool began to expand slowly!

The cold and hostile gazes in the eyes of the seven Ice Tribe elders, whose Bloodline had reached level six, equivalent to the Human Race’s Spirit Condensation Realm cultivators, suddenly vanished.

"It’s actually true!"

...