The winds blew even harder as Rain set forth deeper past the outer medial zone.
He would have to steer clear of the inner range, since it wasn't uncommon for inner zone monsters to venture out to the medial ring.
According to his mole rats, he was right in the middle of the medial zone now.
The snow was harsher, noticeably. It blew with big flakes that often obscured his vision.
Rain stretched out his hand towards the air. The temperature had dropped. It didn't affect him much chiefly due to his affinity for ice, but also because of the heavy fur coat he wore that covered him from head to toe.
He had bought it from a passing human village, and fashioned a hole for his horn at the top.
At the moment he was walking along the middle zone. A molerat had found a peculiarity, a cave it would seem. The communication between lower creatures and intelligent creatures was difficult, but it would suffice for basic information.
Rain felt the wind drop as he approached the location. But as the wind died down, the air became even more frigid. There was a definite cold mana being emitted from whatever that was.
Finally, he had arrived. The tips of his fur coat had become a thin veil of icicle grass already. The little mole rat standing nearby shivered in fear, but it could not disobey the commands of its master.
But besides that, there was a problem… there was nothing here.
Rain looked at the mole rat and issued another command. Quickly, it pointed its head towards an unsuspecting blanket of snow.
With a wave of pure mana, Rain blasted the snow away, revealing a hole barely big enough to fit a small-town carriage.
As the snow cover blew away, deposited elsewhere, the frost in the air thickened. It was definitely the hole. There had to be a treasure down there.
Rain commanded the mole rat to dive in, and it hesitated, but could not go against orders.
However, before it made it more than five meters into the cave, it froze solid. In the next few seconds, it shattered into red mist and icy glass.
Peculiar
The power that emanated from this hole was not only cold, but it had transmutative properties of some sort. A frozen body doesn't break like that… There's another force in play.
Rain stepped closer to the hole and tried to spread his mana down into it, to no avail. He could only explore so much before the mana density cut off his senses.
Seeing this, he didn't fret yet. There were plenty more ways to solve this issue.
A few minutes later, Rain could be seen holding a badger-like creature with light-grey fur in his hands. And with an ungentle toss, he sent it into the cave and commanded it to delve.
The badger was a second tier beast, thus it could withstand the cold. And the only reason Rain hadn't gone in himself was simply due to caution. The cave was definitely dangerous, but more importantly had unknown variables he needed to account for.
He would take risks here. In this world, there would be no one to save him if he got trapped here in this middle-of-nowhere snowfield.
With the intelligence of the badger-fiend, he could clearly understand the layout of the cave. It was only until it reached an opening did he sense what it was.
Within this small, inconspicuous cave, there was a pond, frozen completely solid in ice clearer than any window or pane. It was almost like air.
At its center, a single flower that bore three thin petals that drooped just above the pond's ice sheet.
That was certainly the source of this cold; and the Northern Barren being so often anomalous with its frigidness, many creatures likely just passed it by.
The badger could not advance towards the flower. It was too cold for it.
So, before Rain went in himself, he scouted the surroundings with the badger, making sure there were no traps or monsters waiting to ambush him.
Clear.
Beginning his descent, he felt the icy wind slice across his cheek like the whipping of a willow tree. He put up a small layer of mana on his uncovered face to prevent any unsuspecting injuries before finally dropping down into the opening.
The lake looked even clearer in person. If one wasn't careful, they would probably try to step through it as if it were air.
Rain grabbed the badger-fiend and let it go one step ahead of him. There was fear in its eyes. It knew it would die eventually, but it didn't matter to Rain–in fact, it was all the better.
Halfway to the flower, the badger slowed to a halt. Its innards began to freeze; and on the next step, it became an icicle and shattered like glass.
Rain kept moving forward. The furs on his coat had now completely frozen solid, and the deeper pelt had begun to freeze too.
Just a few steps away, he felt the ice finally encroach upon his skin. He could resist it. However, as he took the next step, he was forced to channel his mana vigorously to prevent injury.
And on the final step, he had his body and core running at maximum capacity.
Cold!
With one hand, he reached out trying to grab the flower.
As soon as he touched it, his hand froze solid. But he was ready.
With this other hand, he channeled a mana barrier, cutting off his hand from the rest of his body as he hovered the treasure he had just sacrificed for in front of him.
The mana barrier protected him from any serious harm, but it was still extremely potent.
He didn't know anything about natural treasures. Most humans had to refine them into elixirs or pills, but instinct told him he could simply eat it.
So, with confidence, and a bit of courage, swallowed the flower and his hand, both turning into a fine blend of dust and shattered ice as it entered his throat.
As soon as it touched him, a vicious cold erupted within his body.
It was too much, and he could feel his innards begin to freeze. There was no stopping it.
Quickly, he focused his mana on his heart, brain and core, the most important parts of his body, letting the rest freeze.
But as the cold energy ravaged his body, its vicious attack became calmer and calmer until he could withstand it.
His guts and lungs were still frozen. It was painful, unbearably so, like a thousand needles pricking you from the inside. If he could scream, he would, but no air came out of his icicle lungs.
The only thing he could do now was circulate his mana. He would slowly defrost. He would survive it, he knew.
For a day, Rain simply sat there in meditation. As soon as he got some autonomy back, he put up a concealing formation at the cave opening, lessening the chance of another creature interrupting his meditation.
He could speak now, and to his surprise, his already pale hand grew back with even lighter lines interspersed. It was the innate ability of devils to regenerate quickly, but this mutation was unexpected.
He summoned an ice spear and found it as clear as air. It was almost invisible. And with a light press between his fingers, it shattered into a dozen pieces inarguably sharp like fine glass.
A small grin bloomed on his face, for his efforts were not in vain it would seem. He was now also at the pinnacle of the second tier. A few more hunts, and he would return to meet Eve and Aurora.
He wondered if Aurora would be mad at him for leaving without notice…