Huo Yuhao's voice echoed through the empty ice cave, stirring up waves of reverberations, as if even this deathly silent space was mocking their predicament.
Tianmeng Ice Silkworm gave a couple of dry laughs. "Well... back then, I climbed up bit by bit. With your current physical fitness, you should... probably... maybe... be able to climb up too?"
Huo Yuhao looked up, only to see that the ice wall he had come down from was steep and smooth, almost at a ninety-degree angle, with nowhere to even get a handhold. Although there was a steel cable he had used to descend, he was currently only a two-ring Spirit Grandmaster; how could the spirit power in his body possibly support him in climbing to such a height?
Once his spirit power was exhausted and his strength failed, he would undoubtedly slide straight back down, rendering all his efforts completely wasted.
Furthermore, although this Ten Thousand Year Profound Ice Cave had lost all its ten thousand year profound ice marrow—even the ice blocks had been stripped away—the temperature was not low at all. In fact, it might even be colder than outside, nearly rivaling the temperature of the core circle of the Extreme North Land.
"Brother Tianmeng!" Huo Yuhao's voice carried a hint of despair. "What should I do now?"
"Uh... Yuhao, do you want to try just climbing up like that?"
"..."
Huo Yuhao fell silent instantly. At this moment, he really wanted to drag this unreliable Tianmeng Ice Silkworm out of his spiritual sea and give him a good beating. But remembering that Brother Tianmeng had, after all, helped him find the ten thousand year profound ice marrow that could allow him to achieve a Heaven-Defying change, he forced that breath of frustration back down.
"So what do we do now?" Huo Yuhao asked weakly.
Tianmeng Ice Silkworm was also thinking rapidly when a flash of inspiration suddenly struck him. "Yuhao, look. Although this ice cave is out of ice, these ice fragments on the cave walls might be remnants of ten thousand year profound ice marrow, containing the Qi of extreme cold. You can try to see if you can absorb them; perhaps they can improve your Spirit."
As he reached the end, Tianmeng Ice Silkworm's voice unconsciously grew much quieter.
He said those words without much confidence himself.
Besides, he had absorbed so much ten thousand year profound ice marrow; how could he not know whether there were any remnants left inside?
Is this... for real?
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao walked to the cave wall with some skepticism.
He reached out to touch those fine ice fragments. The moment he made contact, a bone-chilling cold instantly traveled from his fingertips, making him shiver from the frost.
This temperature was even colder than the snowy ground and ice fields outside!
Could it be... that what Brother Tianmeng said is true?
He gritted his teeth and tried to circulate the spirit power in his body, attempting to absorb these tiny ice fragments according to the method Tianmeng Ice Silkworm had taught him for absorbing ten thousand year profound ice marrow.
But...
No matter how hard he tried, those ice fragments merely turned into water droplets in his hands and could not be absorbed at all.
"Alright."
Tianmeng Ice Silkworm sighed. "It seems this place really has been completely emptied. Yuhao, don't panic yet; let me think of another way."
Huo Yuhao sat down against the cave wall and didn't speak again. He just stared blankly at this vast, empty ice cave, a nameless sense of desolation welling up in his heart.
Just then, Huo Yuhao suddenly froze.
He suddenly noticed that the ice fragments in one spot on the cave wall seemed much more numerous than elsewhere, and in a daze, he seemed to see something behind those fragments!
There... it seems to be glowing?
Huo Yuhao subconsciously activated his Spirit. With the help of the Spirit Eyes' excellent vision, Huo Yuhao confirmed his judgment.
Behind that... there must be something!
Huo Yuhao couldn't help but tell Tianmeng Ice Silkworm about his discovery.
"Brother Tianmeng, look over there!"
Prompted by Huo Yuhao, Tianmeng Ice Silkworm quickly noticed the abnormality in that spot as well.
Although he didn't know what it was, Tianmeng Ice Silkworm's Spirits were lifted. "Yuhao, quick, clear away those ice fragments and take a look!"
Hearing this, a look of difficulty flashed across Huo Yuhao's face.
It wasn't that he didn't want to clear the ice fragments, but the height where they were located was not low. He would have to use the iron cable he had just descended on to climb up bit by bit.
However, it was still much less difficult than climbing all the way up the cable.
Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and reached out to grab the iron cable.
The moment his palm touched it, a bone-chilling cold traveled up the cable, making his fingers subconsciously recoil.
Huo Yuhao's heart instantly grew cold.
This iron cable hadn't been this icy when he came down just now. But in this short amount of time, a thin layer of frost had covered it, making it impossible to get a good grip.
But even if he couldn't get a good grip, he could only grit his teeth and do it.
Huo Yuhao sighed, gave the iron cable a hard tug to confirm it was still fairly secure, and then began to climb upward.
"Hiss—"
After only two steps, Huo Yuhao gasped.
This iron cable was harder to deal with than he had imagined. Every inch he moved upward, that thin frost would prick into his palms. While it wasn't unbearable, it was a very uncomfortable sensation.
Worse still, the iron cable was constantly swaying, causing his body to swing back and forth in the air, nearly hitting the hard ice wall several times.
A swaying cable like this would soon drain all his strength.
"Steady, steady!" Tianmeng Ice Silkworm shouted in his spiritual sea. "Yuhao, use spirit power to protect your hands, don't just tough it out!"
Huo Yuhao followed the advice and mobilized the spirit power in his body, concentrating it on his palms. Sure enough, with the protection of spirit power, the bone-chilling cold lessened significantly, and his grip became more stable.
"Yuhao, don't cry, stand up and climb!"
"Brother Tianmeng, I think if you could say a few less words at a time like this, I might climb a bit faster."
"Uh... is that so? Then keep going."
Huo Yuhao didn't speak again, his expression becoming completely focused.
Every time he climbed a certain distance, Huo Yuhao wanted to stop and catch his breath for a moment. But he couldn't stop; if he did, he might lose his strength and slide right down. Even worse, his arms had begun to ache and his shoulders felt as heavy as lead, while the position of the ice fragments above still seemed unreachable.
That damn trash Spirit!
Huo Yuhao couldn't help but curse in his heart.
If he had obtained an Ultimate Ice Spirit, he wouldn't have to suffer like this at all, let alone come to a place like this to search for ten thousand year profound ice marrow!
But...
Currently, he could only pin all his hopes on this ethereal ten thousand year profound ice marrow.
What if... what if behind those ice fragments, there really is ten thousand year profound ice marrow?