After three more days of travel, the group finally crossed the mountains.

  As they approached the heart of the blizzard, Luna noticed two significant changes. First, the winds had weakened considerably. Second, the distant orange light that once seemed unreachable was now clearly visible—along with the massive tower that housed the supposed beacon.

  Soon they will be off this level and this tower.

  Storm Rider had agreed to take care of the guardian on the next floor, but that wasn’t the only challenge. The Mildrith was protected by powerful divine creatures.

  Yes, Divine!

  ‘How am I supposed to bypass actual divine creatures? And how exactly am I supposed to destroy the divine tree?’

  If it siphoned energy like the tree back at the coral building, destroying it was going to be much more difficult than she initially thought. Her first guess was that the tree needed to be destroyed by powerful qi but that theory collapsed since Storm, a more powerful user of the original arts, couldn’t do it.

  Her next guess was that the prisoner on the last floor held the key. He knew how to destroy the tree and the tower. However, to share that information, he needed her to be present.

  He wanted to share the truth.

  ‘Yes, that had to be it.’ A bulb went off in Luna’s mind and she struck her palm with a fist in realization.

  She hadn’t shared the details of the last floor with anyone yet. No one here was strong enough to go against a low-ranked deity. The gap between humans and divine beings was still too great, even against lesser divine beasts.

  Only sorcerers, with their full understanding of abilities, could put up a worthy fight against a deity. Ascenders of the second and third gates were still held back by incomplete control over their powers.

  ‘Will they even allow me to continue to the next floor if I told them?’ Luna wondered, trailing behind Lena and Darkness, who led the way with Storm Rider in the air.

  Luna scowled, lost in thought. Her mind swirled with countless speculations—some already confirmed, like the coming end of their world, the truth about ascension which she shared briefly with her sister, and the possibility that Everlight was the true orchestrator behind these events.

  Other questions remained unanswered of course. Questions like…

  What was the true origin of her blood?

  Who erased the truth about cultivation? Who created zenshi and why did it oppose the life essence? What led to the conflict of the divine realm?

  But most importantly—what was the source of the curse that created the Forgotten?

  There had to be a reason why the world was unaware of people like Storm Rider, or why Yong Feng is a mystery to his own clan.

  Luna was afraid of going further, fearing the risk of getting cursed. She still didn’t know what exactly triggered the hex in the first place, but she was certain it had to do with knowing too much information.

  That’s what the hex did—it attacked anyone who knew too much and either pulled them back into. Or banished their true name out of reality.

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  The forgotten one she had met on the train had given Luna their true name. They hadn’t wanted her to remember it, likely to protect her from attracting unwanted attention from knowing too much.

  “How frustrating,” she muttered under her breath, lost in thought as she walked.

  The stress was evident on her face, dark circles forming under her eyes. She had barely eaten in two days, and her appetite was lost to the weight of her thoughts.

  She halted and looked ahead. Her long hair flared in the wind as she raised her head to take in the massive sight before her.

  The bluish Ice wall stretched high from the frozen ground, towering over the landscape. It was even taller than the Great Wall of China and the tallest Fortress wall in the world—appearing to nearly touch the sky.

  Beyond it stood an even more imposing structure—the Ivory Tower. It loomed like a colossal white blade piercing the heavens, an orange magical light glowing at its peak. Above the beacon, dark clouds churned, forming a vortex of raw elemental energy—a swirling abyss of black and violet.

  Luna instinctively averted her gaze, her stomach twisting with unease when she felt the rogue energies.

  Storm Rider had warned her of the Vortex. It was a remnant of a mad deity’s failed attempt to ascend and return to the Realms. She had almost succeeded. Almost. if Storm’s Divine Flames didn’t go supernova and killed the mad deity.

  ‘This feeling…’ Luna shuddered as dread curled around her spine. This feeling was similar to the one she felt when she saw the tower for the first time.‘This isn’t good.’

  Her instincts screamed at her. Overwhelming fear clawed at her chest—the same fear she thought she had cast aside after all her previous battles.

  “Luna!”

  “Ha!”

  She gasped as Lena grabbed her by the shoulders.

  “Are you alright?” Luna’s concern was evident.

  “Y-yeah, I’m alright.” Luna exhaled and rubbed her temples.

  “Really? But you’re sweating.” Len frowned and pressed a hand to Luna’s forehead. “You have a fever!”

  Luna batted her hand away. “Haha don’t be ridiculous at a time like this.”

  “No, I’m serious. You’re heating up.”

  To check, Luna touched her forehead. Her eyes stretched open when she realized her sister was indeed right. Without hesitation, she scooped up handfuls of snow and pressed them to her face.

  Len shook her head and sighed. She placed her hand over Luna’s chest. “Let me get rid of the impurities in your body. Maybe some zenshi in your system can help.”

  ‘Show off.’

  Luna accepted the white flames, but then—

  Tuak!

  A spark flared as an invisible force repelled Lena’s energy. The flames didn’t even last long before they were exorcised out of Luna’s body.

  Both sisters staggered back, their eyes locked in shock.

  “Heh?”

  “Heh?”

  “What was that?”

  “What was that?”

  Luna clutched her chest and her breathing quickened. “Did your zenshi just try to kill me right now!”

  Lena examined her hands in confusion. “Did you just reject my zenshi? Wait…do you have divine energy now?”

  “I—I don’t know! it just happened.”

  Luna stilled, her mind racing. The qi in her body had just resisted the zenshi Lena was trying to send into her body to help out with her fever just like how nanosuits send energy into a user’s body to make them stronger.

  ‘Wait! This means the essence has become more active and it has successfully resisted zenshi of level 3 quality

  ‘My gods!’ her jaw almost dropped when she realized this.

  A slow grin spread across her face before she burst into laughter as if she hadn't been terrified seconds ago. “Hahaha….I can’t believe this!” she collapsed into the snow, overwhelmed by exhilaration.

  Lena watched her in stunned silence. She was about to ask what just happened. But she already had an idea when she remembered her small test with the flames. Something similar took place then and now.

  ‘It's best to assume that Luna is following the same path as Lord Storm.' Lena stared at a sister for a while. She bothered to sense for her life energy. However, before she could peek any further, she was blocked by an energy that made her flinch and withdraw right away.

  Her eyes widened with mad surprise. "Wow!"

  ***

  After her confusing celebration, the group pressed for a few more hours until made it to the ice wall. Once they arrived, they immediately began searching for a way inside.

  Storm Rider suggested that they climb because she couldn’t burn a wall so thick. Also, her power and water didn’t work well together.

  Lena tried to manipulate the structure but that only caused her a nosebleed and a heavy headache.

  “We can’t climb. It's too slippery. Storm Rider can fly…” She wiped her blood away with a small cloth she tore from her tunic.

  “I can’t fly over this one.” Storm Rider admitted. “It's too close to the clouds.”

  Luna turned her serious gaze to the thick ice wall. She feared touching it because of the dense essence she felt coming from the structure.

  Here, it was only her and Storm that was aware that this structure was made by sorcerers.

  “Our only option is the thick ice. I can make a path.” Darkness declared. She walked forward and analyzed the structure with a determined look. Most of herself had returned after days of meditating and boring energy from Lena. “But I’ll need my summon.”

  She then didn’t wait for anyone’s approval to call out her summon. She dove deep into her soul and unleashed her power all at once when she opened all three of her gates.

  Everyone else took deliberate steps back as the ground around Darkness collapsed within itself. The snow and ice melted away, revealing the earth beneath. At the same time, space started to disorient as light particles appeared and gathered at incredible speed.

  Then—

  ROAAARR!

  A deadening roar tore through the landscape as Darkness’s summon materialized.

  When the radiance faded, the group found themselves staring up at a massive creature. It was about the size of a small house. Its body was covered in black thick fur, and black flames crackled along its spine.

  It had a hulking build, a wide snout, and piercing dark eyes. Its fangs gleamed as it growled.

  “It's a bear!”

  Everyone was shocked when Storm Rider suddenly yelled. Her eyes were fuming with excitement when she saw the terrifying beast.

  ‘She’s right though. It does look like a bear.’

  Darkness grinned and patted the giant bear’s side. “Guys, meet my wilder beast-type creature. She’s a Grade 3 summon.”

  She rubbed its fur affectionately. “Her name is Molly.”