Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 686 - 50 Strange Membrane_1

Chapter 686: Chapter 50 Strange Membrane_1

Walking on the ice plains, one must tread with extreme caution; the slightest misstep can lead to deadly peril. On the plains, some crevices in the ice have been hidden for so long that a fresh layer of snow and hard ice has covered them, making these spots indistinguishable from the normal terrain. When one steps on these spots, if the weight is too great, the thin layer of ice could shatter, plunging them into the abyss. These terrifying natural traps are completely unpredictable as the empty ice crust can’t be detected visually, even by those with the sharpest eyesight.

"Oh, I understand." Hearing Pannis’s explanation, Vivian nodded gravely and poked Freya’s waist, said seriously, "Did you hear that? If the weight is too heavy, you could fall through. Be careful."

"I’ve already lost twenty kilograms." Freya swatted Vivian’s hand away indignantly, "That already a remarkable achievement! You nitwit dare to mock me, I feel like giving you a good thrashing."

"Incredible indeed, losing twenty kilograms." Vivian clasped her hands over her heart in exaggerated amazement, "You’ve reduced your weight by a tenth, honestly it’s awe-inspiring. Losing nearly my entire body weight, I deeply respect you."

"Enough bickering, you both!" Catherine knocked on each young girl’s head to stop the two mages from fist-fighting, turning to Pannis she asked, "There must be a way to prevent this, right? When the ice layer is thin, the sound of footsteps will change. If there is no sound change, the ice layer should be thick enough for all of us to walk on. The only problem is that the subtle difference in sound is difficult to detect unless trained. But for you, it shouldn’t be a problem, we have witnessed your keen hearing multiple times."

"Alright, you got me." Pannis intended to scratch his head, but only managed to pat his fur, chuckling, "I was just warning you all, these circumstances could occur. Indeed I can identify hollow shells beneath the ice’s surface through sound, but you all should still be mentally prepared and be ready with your wrist ropes and climbing ropes. Sometimes, the ice might collapse before I could even warn you. At such times, hooks and climbing ropes could save your life."

Shortly after they had arrived at the ice plains, Lina had nearly fallen into one of these natural traps, narrowly avoiding plunging into the abyss. Luckily, it was just a small crack and Freya was right behind her. A tiny mechanical arm that sprang out from Freya’s belt at the right moment managed to grab Lina’s collar as she began to falter, pulling the young priestess to safety. Unfortunately, the information provided by the guild leaders about these hazards wasn’t comprehensive, and everyone didn’t pay too much heed. It was only after Pannis’s explanation, they realised how dangerous these natural traps were and even normal walking posed a threat to their lives in this cold wilderness.

Although there were no signs of any magical beasts in this cold wasteland, according to the Adventurer’s Guild, a fair number of ice-attribute magical beasts still resided here. Similar to the snowfields of the south, despite the scarcity of food, these beasts would instead endure the torment of hunger rather than leave this chilly area. Mosses and lichens, which thrive in cold temperatures, grew in abundance on the exposed rocks and highland surface beneath the ice layer. These plants provided insufficient sustenance for smaller magical beasts, which in turn became prey for larger ones, thereby forming a poorly sustained food chain. Even though the absence of magical beasts wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, as the group wandered the empty ice plains, they wished for beasts to occasionally appear. Their presence could at least alleviate the sense of loneliness slightly.

Yes, loneliness, the Perpetual Icefield and Sighing Desert were considered to be forbidden for the living, due to extreme weather conditions, dangerous environments and the terrifying desolation. The open expanses, monotonous colours, the isolated quiet all around, even a slight cough would get amplified beyond limits in the quiet. Going ahead alone in that space, even the most experienced adventurers couldn’t persevere for long. The illusion of being abandoned by the whole world could drive a man insane. It was fortunate that the members of the adventure team were not alone. Although they bore the weight of loneliness and unease in their hearts, the presence of six people helped alleviate that to some extent.

"That’s why there are so few people who can escape the ice field after all their teammates have perished." Pannis said, "When left alone, just the environment alone is enough to break a man down completely, even the most determined person couldn’t survive here alone for more than ten days."

"I’ve heard though, that there have been cases where people have managed to escape all by themselves." Vivian mentioned, "There are scholarly records of such an incident from less than twenty years ago."

"Indeed, there are exceptions, here and in the Sighing Desert too." Pannis nodded, "But the exceptions always have their reasons. Overall, it’s the minority who manage to leave this place alone."

"The exception you mentioned, I’ve also seen it in the Adventurer’s Guild archives." Catherine’s voice sounded less than thrilled: "The person who escaped actually went mad. Three years later, in his own home, he bled to death after eating one of his own arms. However, due to the long time gap, many records don’t mention it."

"Ah!" As Catherine was distractedly speaking, Ava suddenly screamed from the side. In front of the team, a translucent membrane-like object about six or seven meters in length suddenly shot up from the ground, swiftly flying towards Catherine and Ava. The flight speed of the membrane was so fast, it seemed to disregard air resistance entirely. By the time Ava’s scream ended, it had already covered a quarter of the distance.

Without any hesitation, Catherine sent her one-handed sword flying out with her right hand, aiming at the flying translucent membrane. For such unknown objects, experience told her it was best to avoid touch and use nearby objects to explore it instead. As expected, the sword infused with Aggression energy struck the membrane as if it had hit a solid piece of leather. There wasn’t the slightest damage on the membrane, and its speed only slightly decreased.

"Move away from its path!" After her one-handed sword, Catherine threw out her Falcon Shield, not just tossing it out but activating the shield chasing skill. The heavy metallic Falcon Shield spun and slammed into the translucent membrane, making a dull thud similar to a drum beat, then rapidly spun back into Catherine’s hand. Despite the massive impact force causing the membrane’s speed to reduce significantly and bulging the center part backward, the membrane still remained intact. The impact from the Legendary Rank hadn’t affected the structure of the membrane at all.

The people behind her moved aside as per Catherine’s warning. When everyone was out of the membrane’s path, Catherine stopped her movement to throw her shield again, also adopting an evasion measure. The semi-transparent membrane slapped onto the iced surface with a smack, after missing its target. The girls all looked at the membrane that was now lying flat on the ice, visually blending with the ice surface. Lina couldn’t help exclaiming in surprise, "What is this? How can it move on its own?"

"I’ve never seen it either." Pannis shook her head: "But think about it, remember what I just told you about those strange entities that are unclear whether they are living organisms or not? I guess this is one of them."

"It sure is strange enough." Lina tapped off a piece of ice and threw it from afar, while the membrane didn’t react at all, as if it didn’t exist. If they hadn’t seen the seemingly alive membrane lying on the ice just now, they would never have thought that there was something else there. Lina tossed a few more pieces and mused, "If I’m not mistaken, that’s a transparent membrane, right? Even if it has no limbs, what about its innards? Organs? It can’t possibly all not exist."

"That’s why no one can really define whether these things are considered living organisms or not." Pannis said: "Maybe these are Elemental Creatures like the frost spirit. They’re just a bit more special."

"Can we go and take a closer look?" Vivian asked with hopeful eyes: "I want to observe it up close."

"I’d strongly advise against it." Catherine hurriedly stopped her: "You all saw what just happened. It charges really fast, and if you’re too close, it will be hard to dodge."

"Maybe it’s not that hard to take a closer look." After some thought, Pannis whispered to Vivian and then Vivian took out several potions and poured them onto the ground. She quickly performed a few magic seals, and soon, under the effect of the magic, along with Pannis’ cutting, a cylindrical block of ice about the size of a person separated from the ice surface. Pannis hoisted the heavy block of ice and threw it towards the area where the membrane was.

As he had guessed, before the ice block hit the ground, the membrane sprung up from the surface again, tightly wrapping the entire ice block without leaving any gaps, just like a python after it had caught its prey. The membrane kept tightening inwards, exerting a great force that made the ice block creak. (To be continued. If you like this work, we welcome you to vote for it at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)