A surge of cold, viscous perception filled with endless malice, like the tentacles of a gigantic octopus hidden at the bottom of the abyss, suddenly emerged from the deepest part of Champagne's sea of consciousness, precisely locking onto Salsa, the "intruder"! This perception did not come from Champagne herself, but from some higher-level existence, launching a mental defense counterattack through Champagne as a "weak point"!
Salsa "saw" that in the center of the chaotic storm formed by Champagne's memory fragments, a figure slowly coalesced. The figure wore a pure black mask with no patterns, only two eye holes. Beneath the mask, a pair of eyes stared fixedly at Salsa's soul body!
The left eye, like the deepest emerald green jade, swirled with the gloom of ancient forests and the evil intent of deadly poison, as if it could corrode and dissolve souls.
The right eye, however, resembled agate soaked in an endless pool of blood, burning with madness, destruction, and a crimson glow that devoured everything!
This pair of heterochromatic pupils emanated an oppressive force far exceeding that of the previous Skeletal Shadow Lord, even faintly touching the level of Lord Enuval of Cold Silence! What made Salsa's soul tremble even more was that within the crimson glow of the right eye, there was a trace of a breath she was very familiar with—belonging to spatial distortion and stellar annihilation—surprisingly similar in a eerie way to the high-dimensional, indifferent destructive aura emitted by Fa's Star Eye when erupting with black hole power! However, Fa's Star Eye was the cold order on a cosmic scale, while this blood-red right eye was pure chaos and malicious devouring!
"Ant... how dare you spy into the abyss!" A notion filled with endless malice and mental shock, like billions of rusted poison needles, stabbed viciously into Salsa's soul body! This notion was not a sound, but a blasphemous curse that exploded directly on the soul level!
"Ah—!" Salsa's soul body let out a shrill scream. She felt her soul being thrown into a meat grinder, torn apart and polluted by the gaze of those heterochromatic pupils! The infiltration state was instantly and violently interrupted!
Reality: Collapse and Reverberations
Pfft!
Externally, Yuyuer, who was maintaining the illusion, was struck as if by a heavy blow, suddenly spitting out a mouthful of fresh blood. The crystal ball on her dragon bone staff suddenly dimmed! The illusion was forcibly interrupted!
Whoa!
Champagne (the masked woman) lying on the bed convulsed violently, her eyes snapping open, bloodshot with dilated pupils, letting out "ho ho" screams from her throat that sounded nothing like human. Black, foul-smelling tainted blood flowed from her seven orifices simultaneously! The powerful mental backlash not only destroyed Salsa's infiltration but also directly obliterated Champagne's brain!
At the same time, Salsa's soul body was as if struck by an invisible giant hammer, instantly ejecting from Champagne's brow and scrambling back into the mechanical cat shell. The light in the cat shell's eyes was extremely dim, even showing a few fine cracks. Salsa's soul fluctuations became extremely weak and unstable, filled with fear and pain.
"Salsa!" "Yuyuer!" Everyone exclaimed in shock. Arya's voice carried panic as she and Kayla immediately stepped forward to support the swaying Yuyuer. Their hands glowed with warm white light, covering Salsa's cold mechanical shell, attempting to soothe the injured soul within. On the other side, Lirian quickly prepared herbs, combining with Lin Ya's gentle life energy to nourish Yuyuer's chaotic sea of consciousness. Rex quickly scanned Yuyuer's body and Salsa's mechanical shell and soul state.
"Damn it!" Zhamisi looked at Champagne on the bed, rapidly losing her life force with a miserable death pose, her snake tail irritably slapping the ground.
"Cough cough..." Yuyuer's face was pale as she wiped the blood from her mouth, "She... in the depths of her consciousness... there's something even more terrifying guarding... directly... backlashed..."
The mechanical cat shell struggled to lift its head, and Salsa's weak soul voice intermittently resounded in everyone's minds: "I saw... I saw... Doomsday Rebirth organization's... six seats... Blood Elf Syster... Soul Body Cthulhu... Skeletal Shadow woman Virginia... Dr. Zheng... Orc Shuks... Dwarf Wolf... And one more... wearing a black mask... man... his eyes... left green right red... like poison and blood... that red eye... feels... feels... a bit like Fa's Star Eye... but more... evil... mad... he discovered me... almost... tore me apart..."
Salsa's narration caused the temperature in the wooden cabin to plummet, colder than the eternal frost tundra outside. The seven core members of the Doomsday Rebirth organization each sounded like unimaginable monsters. And that black-masked man with heterochromatic pupils, whose power nature bore an eerie resemblance to the Star Eye, cast an extremely dangerous shadow.
"Gintro... four... experimental subjects..." Salsa's soul fluctuations grew weaker, as if using up her last strength, "They... were sent to... Light Feather Dome... it's... a trap... Skeletal Shadow... said... use us... as live combat... data for the experimental subjects..." After speaking, her soul completely fell silent, and the mechanical cat shell entered low-power hibernation mode.
Dead silence once again enveloped the wooden cabin, with only the sound of wind and snow battering the walls. Champagne's corpse lay quietly, black tainted blood spreading on the root floor, emanating an ominous aura. She had brought key intelligence but also left deeper mysteries and deadly warnings.
Fa slowly removed the bandage from her injured right eye, that eye containing the power of stars and cold silence now appearing unusually profound. She looked at Champagne's corpse, as if gazing through the cabin walls toward the outline of Frostblade Snow Mountain in the northern wind and snow.
"Light Feather Dome... Star Shards... Four Gintro experimental subjects... Doomsday Rebirth's six high-level members... And... that man with eyes like mine..." Fa's voice was low and cold, the stars in the depths of her right eye quietly accelerating their flow, a wisp of pale cold air lingering at her fingertips. "It seems we need to set off quickly. The Star Shards must not fall into their hands."
Arya gripped Fa's hand tightly, transmitting warm life energy, her eyes incredibly resolute: "No matter what it is, we'll break through together."
TISK let out a heavy hum, the runes on his Lava Hammer lighting up again, this time faintly flowing with a trace of ethereal blue cold air collected from the Ice Palace ruins: "This old man wants to see if those tin monsters and lunatics can withstand the upgraded Furnace Fury!"
Rex's electronic eyes locked onto the north, his armor emitting a faint hum as several nano-drones covered in thin frost quietly flew out from the armor seams, disappearing into the wind and snow for early warning reconnaissance. "Target: Frostblade Snow Mountain, Light Feather Dome. Threat level: Extremely dangerous. Recommendation: Depart as soon as possible."
Kayla let out a low growl, the light of her thunder claws and ice armor interweaving, the insights from her fourth-stage transformation making her aura more condensed. Gorg hoisted his chainsaw battle axe, his grayish-green face showing only battle intent. Lin Ya's emerald glow steadily illuminated the wooden cabin, healing the companions' wounds. Zhamisi quenched her poison fang curved blade with a new mixed deadly poison, her eyes dangerous. Yuyuer endured the headache from the mental backlash, striving to calm the ice crystal storm in her crystal ball.
The target was clear, the enemy had bared its fangs. The baptism of the Cold Silence Ice Palace had transformed them, and Doomsday Rebirth's shadow had alerted them. With new power and awareness, this team that had walked the edge of death was about to step into an even more perilous storm center— the summit of Frostblade Snow Mountain, the Wing Clan's Light Feather Dome. What awaited them were the shards of stars, as well as Doomsday Rebirth's conspiracy.
Doomsday Rebirth Shadow: Communications at Both Ends of the Chessboard
At the same time, in the core of a vast underground base on the Muret Continent, constructed from twisted metal and writhing flesh and blood. A Skeletal Shadow Throne forged from countless pale giant beast finger bones and smooth shadow alloy stood silently amid rolling shadow energy.
On the throne, Virginia Skeletal Shadow was gazing at dozens of floating light screens in front of her, jumping with complex data streams and remote monitoring footage. Her face, with its cold, hard lines and tight dark purple thin lips, showed a slight frown. The "Light Feather Dome" invasion operation assigned to Champagne had exceeded the scheduled contact time by a full three days. An uneasy shadow lingered in her heart.
Suddenly, a cold, viscous pressure that seemed to freeze the soul descended without warning. The main light screen in front of Virginia flickered violently, all data streams instantly erased forcibly, replaced by an absolute blackness that devoured light!
Immediately after, a eerie glow lit up in the center of the darkness—the left eye like the deepest poisonous emerald, the right eye like endless churning blood sea agate! That pair of heterochromatic pupils containing ancient blasphemy and mad destruction stared fixedly at Virginia through endless space.
"Skeletal Shadow." A notion like metal scraping mixed with abyssal whispers exploded directly in Virginia's mind, carrying unquestionable authority and a trace of... cold dissatisfaction. "Your subordinate, that weak point called 'Champagne,' has been invaded."
Virginia's whole body stiffened, her icy elegance shattering instantly, a rare flash of horror crossing her eyes: "What?! Invader? Her last report was still at the tundra edge..." She instantly understood the reason for the loss of contact.
"The subconscious abyss was touched, defense countermeasure activated." The heterochromatic pupils' notion was without ripple, yet it made Virginia feel as if plunged into an ice cave, "The weak point has been destroyed. A group of self-righteous ants... have sensed our existence." In the destructive aura swirling in that blood-red right eye, a trace of high-dimensional sense similar to stellar black holes but more evil flashed and passed.
Virginia forced herself to calm down, her dark purple nails digging deeply into her palm: "My lord, I will immediately dispatch 'Kombodan' to lead a team to the tundra for tracking..." She clenched her fist, her nails almost piercing her palm.
"It's too late." The heterochromatic pupils interrupted her and raised a hand to stop her impulse. The blood-red right eye seemed to pierce through layers of space, locking onto the direction of the eternal frost tundra. "Your people reaching the Light Feather Dome would take at least half a month, and the spatial leap teleportation device developed by Dr. Zheng isn't stable enough, with a success rate less than 60%." His tone carried a hint of mockery, "By the time your people arrive at the Light Feather Dome, the targets will be done."
Virginia gritted her teeth, unwillingness flashing in her eyes: "Then what should we do? The Star Shards are the core of the plan!"
The heterochromatic pupils narrowed slightly, his voice even colder: "I will send others to execute this mission. You continue advancing your plan; the final step is not far away."
After speaking, he unhesitatingly cut off the communication. After the projection disappeared, the room fell into dead silence. The heterochromatic pupils slowly stood up, walking to a massive black window, gazing into the distance. His gaze was profound and complex, as if calculating some unfathomable chess game.
Then, he activated the communication device again, this time a blurry figure appearing in the projection. Though the image was dim, the three pairs of massive wings unfolding behind the figure were clear, evidently a member of the Wing Clan. "What do you want with me, you old fart?" The other's voice carried a hint of impatience and provocation.
The heterochromatic pupils ignored her tone, getting straight to the point: "I have a mission for you. Send that double-winged person who joined you half a year ago to the Light Feather Dome to seize the Star Shards by force. At the same time, request thirty mutated wing people from Dr. Zheng to participate in the operation, and conveniently test live combat data." He paused, his voice adding a hint of probing, "I don't fully trust that double-winged person yet; consider this a test."
The Wing Clan woman shrugged, grinning: "Fine, old man, I'll handle it right away." The projection then disappeared.
The heterochromatic pupils turned around, his gaze falling on a crystal ball in the center of the room. Inside the crystal ball, a snowy mountain scene vaguely emerged, surrounded by storms. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly, revealing a meaningful cold smile: "Ants, wait... the Light Feather Dome will be your burial ground."
Ice Plains Swift Travel
At the same time, Fa and her group were preparing to set off. They knew the urgency of time and decided to depart immediately for Frostblade Snow Mountain.
Fa took a deep breath of the icy air, the bone-chilling cold now carrying a strange affinity for her, "Lin Ya, please."
Lin Ya said nothing, her emerald body glowing and flowing, roots delving deep into the frozen soil and snow beneath her feet. Accompanied by a low, life-filled hum, countless emerald mycelia sparkling with starlight spread like living things, intertwining and hardening. Sturdy and resilient snow pine wood textures rapidly formed within the mycelial network. In a few minutes, three sleek, structurally stable long sleds appeared before everyone. The sled frames shimmered with a warm wooden luster, their surfaces covered in Lin Ya's specially made tough bark with natural anti-slip textures, emanating a faint pine wood fragrance.
"Awesome! Lin Ya brother, your craftsmanship is top-notch!" TISK slapped the sturdy side panel of the sled, the dwarf's praise for quality craftsmanship unstinting, "Better than the iron gadgets this old man made before for this damn place!"
"Vehicle construction: Biomass material, high toughness, low thermal conductivity, adapted to extreme cold environments. Efficiency rating: Excellent." Rex's electronic eyes scanned the sled, quickly providing analysis.
"Next, watch this. Undead Resurrection · Eternal Frost Guard!" Salsa's mechanical cat shell flashed with determination in its eyes. Despite her injured soul, she still summoned the new power obtained from the Ice Palace ruins.
The dormant resentment and ice energy in the ruins were forcibly awakened and condensed! Accompanied by tooth-grinding bone friction and ice crystal condensation sounds, three colossal behemoths struggled to rise from the ice slag and frozen resentful souls. They were not living beings but composed of massive mammoth elephant skeletons covered in thick ethereal blue ice layers, with pale soul fires burning in their empty eye sockets, and condensed cold air and shadow energy wrapped around their sturdy bone legs—these were Salsa's newly acquired summons: Shadow Frost War Elephants! They strode forward with heavy steps, each one causing the ground to tremble slightly, emanating a heart-palpitating aura of death and cold oppression.
"Whoa!" Kayla whistled, the ice-blue arcs on her thunder claws jumping excitedly, "These big guys pack a punch!"
"Use them to pull the sleds!" Salsa's soul returned to the mechanical cat, her voice carrying a hint of fatigue and satisfaction from controlling powerful undead. Special tough vines wrapped around the war elephants' sturdy skeletal necks under Lin Ya's control, connecting to the traction rings at the front of the sleds.
Everyone quickly assigned positions. Fa, Arya, the weakened Yuyuer, and Lirian in charge of healing rode one sled; Kayla, Gorg, TISK, and Jack, the four melee main forces, on another; TISK Rex, Zhamisi, Salsa, and Lin Ya on the third, with Lin Ya rooting deeply into the sled's baseboard, her emerald glow continuously nourishing everyone and sensing the surrounding environment.
"Depart!" Fa commanded.
Salsa's mind moved, and the three Shadow Frost War Elephants simultaneously let out silent soul roars, striding their heavy skeletal giant legs, pulling the sleds like arrows released from the string, charging into the vast snow plains! The war elephants' massive feet trod on deep snow as if on flat ground, their speed far exceeding walking, with cold airflows carving long white trails on both sides of the sleds. Fa sat quietly at the front of the sled, her right Star Eye slightly open, naturally emanating an invisible breath from the source of cold silence. A strange thing happened: the surging, vision-swallowing dense snow fog ahead (White Devil) seemed to encounter an invisible repulsive force, parting to both sides and clearing a relatively clear path for the sled team! This further increased their travel speed.