Chapter 41 The Secrets in the Depths of the Glacier

Led by Elsa, Kyle, Morgan, Cavin, and Alicia made their way towards the ancient ruins in the depths of the frost marsh. Relying on her powerful magical perception, Elsa skillfully guided everyone to avoid one hidden danger trap after another. Along the way, the mist in the frost marsh became even thicker. The cold mist seemed to have a tangible quality, gently brushing against everyone's skin and bringing a tingling pain. The light of the cold energy flickered more frequently in the mist, as if indicating that the ruins were just around the corner.

Finally, a huge glacier appeared before everyone's eyes. This glacier towered into the clouds, like a sleeping giant lying across the frost marsh. The surface of the glacier was not smooth. It was covered with deep and shallow gullies and cracks, as if they were the marks left by the passage of time. Elsa stopped and looked up at the glacier in front of her. A complex look flashed in her eyes.

"This is it. The ancient ruins are hidden inside this glacier. When I was stranded here, I lost my magic staff nearby," Elsa's voice echoed in the cold air, with a trace of imperceptible trembling.

Everyone cautiously approached the glacier. When they stepped into the glacier's area, a strong chill rushed towards them, as if they were instantly drawn into an ice cellar. Morgan couldn't help but shiver. Under the influence of this intense cold, his illusion ability also became a bit unstable, and the outline of the illusion flickered faintly.

"Everyone, be careful. The concentration of cold energy here is extremely high, and it will have a certain impact on our abilities," Kyle reminded. At the same time, he tightly gripped the stardust long sword in his hand. The stardust power shimmered slightly in his palm, as if echoing with the surrounding cold energy.

They slowly walked down along a crack on the surface of the glacier. It was pitch black inside the crack, and only the faint light from the lighting tools they carried illuminated the way. As they went deeper, the temperature around them became lower and lower, and the breath they exhaled instantly condensed into a mist of ice. Suddenly, a faint light appeared ahead. Everyone quickened their pace and found that the source of the light was actually an ice sculpture emitting a faint glow.

This ice sculpture was more than twice the height of an average person. It depicted a slender humanoid creature. Its face was blurred, but from its posture, it seemed to be performing some mysterious ritual. A soft blue light emanated from the surface of the ice sculpture. These blue lights intertwined with each other, forming a strange pattern that seemed to contain some ancient information.

"This should be the ruins of the Lingyao Clan," Elsa said, looking at the ice sculpture with a hint of surprise in her eyes. "The Lingyao Clan is an ancient and mysterious race. It is said that they possess the powerful ability to control the power of the stars and cold energy. I didn't expect to find their ruins here."

Cavin stepped forward and carefully observed the patterns on the ice sculpture. A strong interest showed in his eyes. "These patterns seem to be an ancient script, but I've never seen it before. Maybe they hold the key information to obtaining the cold energy."

Just as everyone was studying the ice sculpture, Eric suddenly let out a cry of surprise: "Tom!" Everyone looked in the direction he pointed. In a corner not far from the ice sculpture, a tall man was lying there. It was Eric's long-lost companion, Tom.

Eric hurried over and helped Tom up. Tom's face was as pale as paper, his body was covered with frost, and his breath was very weak. "Tom, what's wrong with you? What happened?" Eric asked anxiously.

Tom opened his eyes slightly. When he saw Eric, a glimmer of surprise flashed in his eyes. "Eric... I... I was attacked by a group of powerful Frost Marsh Spirit Frogs... I was seriously injured... I fainted after escaping here..."

Eric looked at Tom with pity and turned to everyone. "Tom's injury is too serious. I must take him back for treatment. The danger here is far beyond our imagination. I can't let him fall into danger again."

Kyle nodded and said, "Eric, you take Tom back first. We will continue to explore here, hoping to find a way to obtain the cold energy."

Eric looked at everyone gratefully, his voice slightly choked. "Thank you so much. From the very beginning, you didn't hesitate to promise to help me find Tom. In this dangerous place, your help means a lot to me. If it weren't for you this time, I don't know what I would have done."

Morgan patted Eric on the shoulder and said, "Eric, don't say that. We're all friends. When a friend is in trouble, of course we'll help. You take Tom back and get him treated well. Don't worry about us. We'll definitely do our best to uncover the secrets of these ruins."

Alicia also stepped forward, took out a simple first aid kit from her backpack, and handed it to Eric. "There are some emergency medicines and bandages in here. Give Tom some simple treatment for his wounds first, and be careful on the way."

Eric took the first aid kit, his eyes filled with gratitude. "Thank you, thank you so much." He opened the first aid kit, first gently wiped the frostbitten parts of Tom's body with warm medicinal liquid, and then carefully bandaged the several wounds on Tom's body that were scratched by the Frost Marsh Spirit Frogs. Despite the simple conditions, Eric's movements were extremely gentle, and every action was filled with concern for his companion. After treating the wounds, Eric carefully carried Tom on his back, cast a grateful look at everyone again, and then left along the way they had come.

Looking at Eric's departing back, Kyle took a deep breath and said, "Let's continue the exploration. Since we're here, we must find some useful clues."

Everyone refocused their attention on the ice sculpture. Morgan tried to use his illusion ability to touch the patterns on the ice sculpture. However, the moment the illusion made contact with the patterns, a powerful cold energy shock came. Morgan's illusion dissipated instantly, and he was also knocked back a few steps by this force.

"Be careful! The cold energy on this ice sculpture seems to have a self-protection mechanism," Elsa quickly supported Morgan and reminded him.

Cavin fell into deep thought. He carefully recalled the records about the Lingyao Clan that he had read in the ancient magic books before. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. "I remember. The power of the Lingyao Clan is closely connected to the stars and cold energy. Kyle, you try to use the stardust power to sense the patterns on the ice sculpture. Maybe there will be some different discoveries."

Kyle nodded. He concentrated his mind and slowly injected the stardust power into the ice sculpture. As the stardust power was injected, the blue light on the ice sculpture became brighter, and those mysterious patterns also seemed to start flowing slowly.

"Look, everyone. The patterns are changing!" Alicia exclaimed excitedly.

Everyone stared closely at the ice sculpture. The patterns gradually formed an image: a group of Lingyao Clan members stood in front of a huge ice tower, holding crystals emitting the light of cold energy in their hands. They were muttering something, as if performing a solemn ritual. Then, a powerful cold energy burst out from the ice tower, enveloping the entire world in a blue light.

The image flashed by, and the patterns on the ice sculpture returned to their original state. But everyone's hearts were filled with doubts. What exactly did this image mean?

"Maybe this is telling us that the key to obtaining the cold energy lies in finding that ice tower and performing a certain specific ritual," Elsa speculated.

Kyle frowned and thought for a moment. "But we don't know where the ice tower is. Moreover, in the image just now, we haven't found the crystals that the Lingyao Clan members were holding in their hands."

Just then, Cavin found some small characters engraved at the bottom of the ice sculpture. He quickly squatted down and studied them carefully. These characters were also the ancient script of the Lingyao Clan. After some difficult interpretation, Cavin finally understood their meaning.

"These characters are a puzzle," Cavin said. "The answer to the puzzle seems to be related to the balance between the cold energy and the stardust power. The Lingyao Clan believes that only when the cold energy and the stardust power reach a perfect balance can the greatest power be exerted. Maybe this is the key to obtaining the cold energy."

Everyone fell into deep thought. How could they make the cold energy and the stardust power reach a balance? The stardust power in Kyle's hand could control the power of the stars, and Elsa's ice magic was closely related to the cold energy.

"Maybe we can try to achieve this balance through cooperation," Elsa suddenly said. "Kyle, you release the stardust power, and I'll use my ice magic to guide the cold energy. Let's see if we can find the balance point."

Kyle nodded. He gathered the stardust power again, and a brilliant light bloomed from his hand. At the same time, Elsa also cast her ice magic, and the surrounding cold energy began to surge, forming a blue energy flow.

The stardust power and the cold energy gradually approached under everyone's control. At first, the two powers repelled each other, generating intense fluctuations. The ice layer around them began to crack, and broken ice splashed everywhere. But Kyle and Elsa didn't give up. They continuously adjusted the output and guiding methods of the power.

After many attempts, the stardust power and the cold energy finally began to blend with each other. The two powers intertwined, forming a strange light. With the appearance of the light, the patterns on the ice sculpture changed again, and an arrow pointing to the depths of the glacier appeared before everyone's eyes.

"It seems that we're on the right track!" Morgan exclaimed excitedly.

Everyone continued to move forward in the direction indicated by the arrow. Along the way, they discovered several similar ice sculptures. Each ice sculpture was engraved with different puzzles. Through the teamwork of the group, they solved these puzzles one by one and gradually delved deeper into the core area of the glacier.

In the deepest part of the glacier, a huge ice tower appeared before everyone's eyes. This ice tower towered into the clouds, emitting a powerful cold energy aura. The surface of the ice tower was engraved with various mysterious runes and patterns, which were exactly the same as the patterns on the ice sculptures they had seen before.

"This is it!" Kyle looked at the ice tower in front of him, his eyes full of anticipation. "Maybe this is the key to obtaining the cold energy."

However, when they approached the ice tower, they found that the ice tower was surrounded by a powerful cold energy shield, and they couldn't get close. Everyone fell into a predicament again. How could they break through this shield and obtain the cold energy in the ice tower?