Chapter Seventy-Nine: The Infernal Realm of Extreme Cold

“Elder, let’s not be so hasty with our conclusions,” Yunlan said with a smile. “There are always strengths and weaknesses between different magics. It’s perfectly normal if he wins. If we go by your words, then if this young man really does defeat them, wouldn’t that mean all the clan leaders combined aren’t his equal?”

Granny Long nearly choked from anger. “If he can really win, it will truly be an eye-opener for me!”

Yunlan’s smile deepened, thoughts brimming with pride. “My student is just that outstanding. Bai Shengye, I will do everything I can to help you defeat the Lava Behemoths!” When she opened her eyes again, a sharp gleam flashed within them.

Heiyu stood quietly behind Dean Yunlan. He couldn’t openly use his dark powers, so he could be of little help in this battle, but he took this as a chance to observe and learn. After all, it was a once-in-a-century spectacle to see all the great clan leaders gathered on the battlefield—an ideal opportunity to pick up some techniques.

Not long after, Bai Shengye had downed every potion scattered about, his pack visibly deflated. Wiping his mouth, determination glinted in his eyes as he thought to himself:

“These are all high-potency brews to wildly boost my attack and freezing abilities in a short time. Normally, this stash would last me a month, but today I’ve swallowed it all in one go. If my magic doesn’t soar a hundredfold, just wait and see how I’ll deal with those hulking rocks!”

Abruptly, Bai Shengye stood up. Instantly, all the warriors’ gazes snapped to him, their eyes full of anticipation.

Lin Aohun still stood behind Bai Shengye, guarding the stone wall’s only exit alongside Shi Fangcheng, ready to rush in at the first sign of trouble. Finally relaxing, Lin Aohun laid his massive hammer at his feet and lit a cigar.

After rising, Bai Shengye waved his hand to the side.

“Hm?” Lin Aohun bit his cigar, tilting his head in confusion.

Bai Shengye, a little exasperated, waved again. “I need you to clear the way.”

Lin Aohun glared, hefted his hammer as if to retaliate, but, remembering the urgent need to deal with the lava beasts, slung it over his shoulder and walked off, calling out to the surrounding mages: “Hey! All of you, fall back!”

Shi Fangcheng, Yisheng, Granny Long, and the others all withdrew beyond the encirclement. Yunlan stood poised above, ready to support with biting gales at any moment, sleeves billowing as he raised his arms.

High above, Lei Jue lounged astride the Celestial Phoenix, casting a sidelong glance across the battlefield and drawling to Yunlan, “Windblade Yunlan, you’d best help your student well. Don’t let him embarrass himself.”

Lei Jue’s words were cunning—if Bai Shengye lost to the lava behemoths, it would be disgraceful; if he managed a lucky win, the credit would go to Yunlan’s aid. Yunlan ignored him, focused intently on Bai Shengye’s every move.

A faint blue glow was already emanating from Bai Shengye, the potions he’d consumed now fully taking effect. Soon, an immense aura of ice and snow surged from his body, spreading out as a white mist at his feet, then erupting into a raging gale and flurries of snow. His eyes began to shimmer with an icy blue light.

“This is the first time I’ve ever gulped down so many potions at once—the backlash is intense!” Bai Shengye cursed inwardly.

Seeing the storm of wild snow, those nearby all took several steps back, knowing these were no ordinary snowflakes—each one was sharp as a blade.

Heiyu watched with bated breath, witnessing Bai Shengye cast a spell for the first time. Yet even from the sheer magical force erupting from within him, it was clear that his power far outstripped any peer at the Arcane Academy.

Yixin reassessed him in his heart, glancing from Heiyu to Bai Shengye, clearly weighing which of the two now held greater strength.

“Who would have thought Bai Shengye had been hiding his strength all along?” Heiyu mused. “If not for this crisis at the city wall, who knows how much longer he would have kept it concealed.” He arched an eyebrow and nudged Yixin with his elbow. “If you had to fight him, do you think you’d win?”

Yixin, faced with this difficult question, replied irritably, “Let’s see how he handles these lava behemoths first.”

Now Bai Shengye’s weapon transformed once more, taking on its second form—the Iceblade Sword. Surrounded by a blizzard, he was deaf to everything outside. Snow clung to his brows, turning them pale, and his eyes gleamed with frosty light.

Suddenly, from the whirling snow behind him, the phantom of a colossal ice dragon unfurled its wings.

“Iceblade Sword, Strike—Dragon’s Breath!”

He swung his sword in a mighty arc, the force of this blow far surpassing any previous attempt. A freezing wind roared from the blade, laden with snow and frost, as the great dragon behind him opened its jaws and unleashed a blast of bone-chilling cold, rearing its head and howling.

The narrow entrance to the stone wall was instantly shrouded in white; everyone craned on tiptoe to see inside, and a deep, resonant dragon’s roar echoed across heaven and earth. Faces turned to one another in shock.

Enveloped by the onslaught of ice and snow, the five lava behemoths found their movements growing sluggish, their advance toward Bai Shengye slowing with each step.

“The temperature’s still not enough—Frost Snow Blades!”

Bai Shengye unleashed another barrage of ice magic, sending the temperature plummeting further as the snowstorm grew more violent.

Above, Yunlan aided him with wind spells, injecting blasts of piercing cold into the blizzard. The temperature dropped sharply throughout the area, the ground freezing solid as snow piled up in ever-thickening layers, soon solidifying into ice.

Within the stone enclosure, all was a blur of white, as though encased in a giant snowball. The lava behemoths, buried under the snow, grew heavy with ice at their joints, their bodies encased in solid blocks. Even outside the stone walls, the onlookers felt the biting wind and swirling snowflakes, hugging their arms for warmth.

Lower and lower the temperature fell, as Bai Shengye repeatedly cast “Frost Snow Blades,” working in concert with Yunlan’s frigid winds to freeze the entire area solid.

“Good, the time has come.”

A confident smile curled Bai Shengye’s lips. When the temperature dropped to a certain point, he could unleash his ultimate technique—Absolute Zero Hell—to finish the behemoths for good.

He raised the Iceblade Sword high, the tip gathering the purest cold, and pointed it at the snow-shrouded battlefield.

“Absolute Zero Hell!”

In an instant, a layer of intensely blue ice and snow swept across the circular space within the stone walls. Snowflakes spun into a furious vortex, winds howled, and Yunlan poured in more biting gales. The snow’s speed and sharpness were enough to shred any prey. Snow piled ever higher around the beasts’ legs, burying their knees, as jagged ice pillars shot up from the ground. Anything that entered this domain now would freeze in a heartbeat.