The morning came with noise.
Ashvale's streets were already bustling by the time Ming stepped out of the tavern, his breath faint in the chill air. Vendors shouted over one another, guards barked orders at the gates, and the smell of spice, oil, and sweat filled every inch of the city.
Yet, despite the chaos, his world felt distant—muted, as if everything around him was a faded memory trying to catch up.
He pulled his ragged cloak tighter and walked among the crowds. The pouch of coins from Lorian hung light at his side—barely enough to buy a few essentials. Still, it was more than he had yesterday.
> One step at a time.
The System's timer glowed faintly at the edge of his vision.
> [Time Remaining: 02:13:45]
Less than two hours before the next trial began.
He moved through the narrow market lanes, his black eyes scanning the crowd. Every sound, every movement,his instincts read danger into all of it. But here, the danger was ordinary: a thief's hand reaching too close, a merchant's sharp tongue, a beggar's desperate plea.
He stopped at a stall run by an old woman and bought a cloak of faded grey, a few strips of dried meat, and a water flask. As he handed over the coins, her eyes caught his scars,old, pale, and unnatural.
She looked away quickly.
He walked out, whispers drifted through the air again. Different from yesterday, sharper.
> "Did you hear about the dungeon collapse outside the eastern ridge?"
"A Right Hand was sighted there. Chains and shadows. The earth split open."
"The gods must be angry,people say the air itself froze."
Ming's steps slowed slightly, the memory of Serak's chains flashing in his mind. He said nothing, didn't even react, but deep inside, he knows they were talking about him and the right hand .
If the gods were watching, let them.
He would climb until their gaze trembled.
The countdown ticked lower.
> [00:05:27]
He stopped near the edge of the market, where sunlight spilled between the buildings like melted glass. His eyes scanned the people,their smiles, their chatter, their fleeting peace. It all felt too fragile, like ice waiting to waiting to melt away.
He wondered how many of them were simply waiting for their turn to be devoured by the system's cruelty.
> [00:00:03]
[00:00:02]
[00:00:01]
The world froze.
Literally.
Sound died first. Then color drained away, leaving everything locked in shades of white and silver. A merchant mid-shout became a statue of frost. A bird above him turned to ice mid-flight. Even the air seemed to stop breathing.
Frost spread from beneath Ming's boots, spiraling outward in delicate veins of blue light.
Then came the voice.
> [Trial Commencing…]
[Designation: Trial of Frozen Resolve]
[Objective: Endure the silence. Survive the cold. Preserve your will.]
The words echoed through the frozen city as cracks spread beneath him. Reality itself shattered like glass.
Ming's body dissolved into the void.
When sensation returned, it was agony.
The first thing he felt was cold,so pure and raw it pierced through flesh and bone. His breath came out as mist, his limbs stiff, his eyelashes tipped with frost.
He stood on an endless tundra of pale-blue ice, wind screaming across the horizon. The sky was a white blur, the sun hidden behind walls of snow. No sound but the storm. No warmth. No life.
And yet, something watched him.
He looked around, scanning the horizon. There was no one. Only snow shifting under the relentless gale.
> [Temperature Dropping.]
[Mental Resistance Engaged.]
The System's alerts blinked faintly, but his focus never broke. He started walking,one step at a time through knee-deep snow, each movement heavy, sluggish.
Minutes stretched into hours. His hands turned pale, the veins beneath his skin freezing blue. His lips bled when he tried to breathe.
But he didn't stop.
Then came another voice—familiar and cruel.
> "You think you can defy us, mortal?"
Serak.
The shadow of chains appeared ahead, slithering across the snow, forming the faint outline of the Right Hand's mocking grin.
> "You're nothing but a flicker of resistance in a sea of inevitability."
Ming didn't answer. His steps never faltered.
The illusion hissed, the chains wrapping around his legs, trying to drag him down. But his aura flared,a faint black shimmer breaking through the frost and the mirage shattered into shards of shadow.
> [Willpower Resistance: 67%]
The wind howled harder, a thousand screams in the storm.
Then came her voice.
Soft. Familiar. Poisonous.
> "Soul… you remember me, don't you?"
He froze mid-step.
Through the snow came the figure of his former lover,the one who betrayed him for power, whose smile once meant warmth. Now, her face was pale as death, her eyes hollow with guilt and greed.
She reached toward him, her voice breaking.
> "I didn't mean to—please—"
He walked past her without looking back.
The blizzard swallowed her scream.
> [Willpower Resistance: 82%]
The storm thickened until even the ground vanished beneath his feet. His legs grew heavy, frost climbing higher up his body. He could barely feel his fingers. Every step felt like walking through glass.
Then came the worst illusion yet.
He saw them,his family. His mother's gentle smile. His father's proud eyes. His little sister's laughter echoing through the cold.
They stood just ahead, warm and alive, surrounded by the golden glow of a home long gone.
His pace faltered.
For a second, the ache inside him threatened to drown everything else.
Then the sky cracked with thunder. The illusion twisted. Their faces melted away, revealing monstrous grins,the laughter of gods echoing beneath their voices.
The fury snapped something inside him.
He dropped to one knee, fingers clawing into the ice. His body trembled,not from the cold, but from the weight of rage clawing through his chest.
> "You took everything from me."
His voice was hoarse, trembling with hate.
> "And still… you expect me to break?"
He slammed his fist into the ground. The ice cracked beneath the blow, spreading black veins across the white expanse.
> "I am not yours to shatter."
The storm recoiled. The illusions screamed as they dissolved into ash and snow.
> [Willpower Resistance: 100%]
[Gained resistance to extreme cold]
[Trial Stability Restored.]
The blizzard began to die. The wind faded.
Ming stood in the center of silence, his body covered in frost, his expression calm—empty. The snow beneath him reflected his image back, pale and cold.
Then the System's final message appeared:
> [Trial Complete synchronisation 50%.]
[Reward Granted: Passive Skill – Frozen Resolve.]
[Effect: Mental resistance enhanced. Emotion suppression increased.]
He exhaled, the breath freezing instantly.
The sky split open, and he fell through.
When he opened his eyes again, he was back in Ashvale.
The market noise returned all at once—
the shouting, the clamor, the warmth. But he didn't feel any of it. Frost still clung to his clothes, steam rising faintly from his skin.
People passed by without noticing.
He moved toward an alleyway, the Fangblade at his side humming with low energy, reacting to the remnant frost aura now lingering in him.
His reflection caught in a puddle,eyes darker, colder than before.
The System pulsed quietly in his vision:
> [Next Trial Awaits: Unknown. Estimated Time Until Activation – 200 hours.]
Ming's hand tightened around the blade.
He has time to grow stronger and prepare.
He closed his eyes for a moment, remembering the snow, the illusions, the voices of those he lost.
> Emotion suppression increased.
It was true. He didn't feel as deeply as before.
The sorrow had frozen somewhere inside him.
But his vengeance burned hotter.
He turned toward the fading sunlight of Ashvale, cloak fluttering behind him.
> "The cold won't break me," he whispered.
"Not when their fire still burns."
The System's light dimmed, and Ming vanished into the crowd once more,silent, relentless, and colder than the storm that had tried to bury him.