231: Chapter 231 Fists are still the best

The door deep inside the Council of Elders slowly closed.

The discussions outside were blocked by the thick stone walls, leaving only the sound of light footsteps in the corridor.

Yi Ning and Yi Luo were left outside the main hall.

According to the rules of the Snow Rock Fortress, only Elders and guests permitted to enter could set foot in the depths of the Council of Elders.

Yi Luo originally wanted to follow inside, but Yi Ning pressed down on her shoulder.

Looking at Lu Cheng's back, Yi Ning whispered, "Don't worry."

"He is more dangerous than everyone here combined."

Yi Luo blinked.

She wanted to say something more, but in the end, she just hugged the old cloak in her arms tighter.

In the corridor.

Elder Lota leaned on her silver-wood cane, walking very slowly.

Her robes dragged across the black stone floor, with ice-blue patterns embroidered on the hem.

Under the light of the crystal lamps on the walls, those patterns looked like a faint layer of frost.

Lu Cheng followed behind her, his gaze sweeping over the walls on both sides.

Many ancient murals were carved into the walls.

The first depicted a prosperous Snow Plains city.

Towers stood tall, streets were wide, and a giant blue crystal hung in the center of the city, providing light and heat to the entire city.

The second depicted a mining site.

Countless people went deep underground to excavate blue crystals.

The third showed a vortex appearing above the city, with black snow clouds obscuring the sky.

The fourth showed a snowstorm covering the borders, with the city splitting into several isolated fortresses.

Lu Cheng looked at those murals, his eyes flickering slightly.

"Why do these people like drawing so much?"

Elder Lota spoke from the front, "In the past few days, there have been several special fluctuations in the Snow Plains."

"We recorded them; they should have some connection to your arrival... We call them Rifts..."

Lu Cheng asked, "You know about Rifts?"

"We know a little."

Elder Lota's voice echoed in the stone corridor.

"The ancestors of the Snow Rock Fortress had also seen Rifts."

"Some came from the Rifts, and others tried to leave through them."

She led Lu Cheng further down.

At the end of the stone corridor was a spiral staircase.

The edges of the stairs were inlaid with blue crystals, and at regular intervals, there was a small stone statue.

The stone statues held lamps, but their faces were worn smooth, making it impossible to distinguish their gender.

"A long time ago, there was no Snow Rock Fortress here."

Elder Lota said slowly, "This used to be a prosperous city."

"A city of the Old Era."

"People mastered blue crystals, powered machinery, built high towers, and even tried to open a path outside the Snow Plains."

"Later, they over-mined the underground blue crystals."

"The earth veins were exhausted."

"The central hub lost balance."

"Divine punishment descended."

Lu Cheng followed her down. "Divine punishment?"

Elder Lota looked up at the deeper murals on the wall.

"The sky split open."

"Snow clouds fell."

"A black cold wave swept across the land."

"The borders of the Snow Plains were locked by eternal storms."

"From that day on, this land could not be left."

"Some say that at the end of the storm lies a gate to the outside world."

"Others say that the last sins of the old city are buried there."

She stopped in front of an ancient iron door.

"If you want to find a way back, it might be at the borderlands."

"It is very dangerous there."

"However, since you are Yi Ning's savior, the Snow Rock Fortress can provide you with equipment to resist the wind and snow, and some relevant clues."

Lu Cheng looked at the iron door.

The warning signs of Seeking Good Fortune and Avoiding Bad Luck became clearer and clearer.

Snow Spirit lay on Lu Cheng's shoulder, its ears twitching slightly, and it transmitted via telepathy, "Something is wrong inside..."

Lu Cheng raised his hand and patted its little head, saying nothing.

Elder Lota looked back at him.

"This is the archives room... some special inventory of items is also kept here."

The iron door opened.

Behind the door was a spacious stone chamber.

Many old-era implements and books were arranged around it.

In the center of the stone chamber, a circle of huge, ice-blue Formation patterns was carved into the floor.

The Formation patterns were ancient, with complex lines, like countless intertwined ice vines.

Lu Cheng stepped into the stone chamber.

As soon as he went in, the iron door behind him slammed shut.

The next instant, the Formation patterns on the floor lit up.

Cold air surged in from all directions.

At the same time, black chains sprang out from the walls, with sharp crystal spikes at the ends, winding toward Lu Cheng's limbs.

Elder Lota stood outside the door, watching him through the observation window on the iron door.

The kindness on her face had disappeared.

"Outsider."

"Do not struggle."

"The Cold Binding Formation will freeze your Source Power."

"Your body will be perfectly preserved."

"The central hub will gently refine your energy."

Lu Cheng raised his eyes.

The chains had already wrapped around to his front.

Snow Spirit bared its teeth, and the frost flames on its tail suddenly flared up.

"Bad person!"

Lu Cheng did not answer Elder Lota.

He just looked down at the cold Formation on the floor.

The Formation was very strong, strong enough that it didn't match their actual strength...

Even this Elder was only at the Peak of the Meridian Opening Realm, yet she actually mastered a Formation capable of controlling someone in the Hua Hai Realm...

Unfortunately, this thing didn't have enough deterrence against Lu Cheng.

The Six Luminaries Holy Meridians in Lu Cheng's body vibrated simultaneously.

The Metal Luminary's sharpness, the Fire Luminary's intensity, the Water Luminary's protection, the Moon Luminary's illumination of the spirit.

The next moment, the Holy Dragon Armament covered his entire body.

Crimson-gold dragon scales spread from the back of his hands to his shoulders, and a dragon-shaped Source Power pattern appeared on his chest.

Black and red flames rose accordingly.

Flame Demon Transformation activated.

The ice-blue cold Formation flickered violently on the spot.

Lu Cheng raised his hand and grabbed a chain that was wrapping around him.

Snap.

The chain was crushed by him by force.

The black and red flames curled back along the break, burning half the wall until it was glowing red.

Elder Lota's expression changed.

The cold air in the stone chamber surged crazily, attempting to suppress Lu Cheng again.

Lu Cheng took a step.

Boom!

The entire floor of the stone chamber sank downwards.

The Cold Binding Formation cracked with a huge fissure.

When the second step fell, the blue crystals on the walls exploded one by one.

The third step.

The iron door was punched through by Lu Cheng.

The heavy iron door flew out, along with the twisted door frame, and smashed into the end of the corridor.

Elder Lota was forced back several steps by the air wave.

The few Elders behind her turned pale.

"Activate the guards!"

"Stop him!"

The stone doors on both sides of the corridor opened one after another.

A group of fortress guards clad in blue crystal armor rushed out.

They were different from the ordinary guards outside.

The gems on their foreheads shone deeper, and their weapons were more refined.

These people should be the direct guard unit of the Council of Elders.

But their strength was still limited.

The strongest was only close to the Hua Hai level.

Lu Cheng walked out of the broken stone chamber, black and red flames swaying behind him.

Snow Spirit crouched on his shoulder, its little claws gripping his collar tightly, its eyes shining amazingly bright.

The first guard raised his spear to thrust.

Lu Cheng dodged to the side and raised a fist.

Bang!

The man flew out, spear and armor alike, hitting the wall and fainting.

The second guard just raised his crossbow, when Snow Spirit opened its mouth and spat out a ball of frost flame, freezing the crossbow in mid-air.

Lu Cheng swept his leg across.

Three guards rolled down the steps together.

The sound of footsteps in the corridor became more and more chaotic.

Those people began to retreat; no matter how many schemes there were, they were still not as useful as fists.

He walked all the way towards Elder Lota, whoever blocked his path.

A fist would fall, and armor would shatter.

In just a short moment, a whole group had fallen in the corridor.

Elder Lota was protected by two Elders behind her, her expression ugly.

"Go invite the Frost Guard."

"Quick!"

A young Elder turned and rushed deeper inside.

Soon, a heavy mechanical sound came from underground.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

It was like some behemoth waking from slumber.

At the end of the corridor, a huge circular stone door slowly rose.

Cold mist surged out from behind the door.

A silver-white figure over three meters tall walked out.

It looked like a knight, and also like some kind of ancient war machine.

Its entire body was made of silver-white alloy, with a huge blue crystal core embedded in its chest.

There was no face under the helmet, only a dim blue light screen.

Its right arm was a huge ice crystal battle axe.

Its left arm was a heavy shield.

Every step the Frost Guard took, ice patterns would form on the ground.

Elder Lota's voice finally regained a bit of confidence.

"This is the last defensive weapon of the Snow Rock Fortress."

"The Frost Guard left over from the Old Era."

"It possesses the power to hunt down high-level mutants."

The blue crystal on the Frost Guard's chest lit up.

A low mechanical voice sounded.

"Intruder locked."

"Defense protocol activated."

"Eliminate."

The ice crystal battle axe was raised, slashing towards Lu Cheng with bone-chilling cold.

The power of this axe had already reached the War General level; I didn't expect there to be such stuff here.

Lu Cheng's eyes flickered.

Finally, something decent.

He did not dodge.

The Metal Luminary meridian lit up.

The golden patterns on his fist climbed all the way from his wrist to his forearm.

The Frost Guard's battle axe fell.

Lu Cheng raised his fist to meet it.

Clang!

The sound of metal clashing exploded deep in the Council of Elders.

The ice crystal battle axe cracked on the spot.

The Frost Guard's mechanical arm was jarred and recoiled backward.

Lu Cheng stepped forward, pressing his other hand onto the Frost Guard's chest.

"Your core is not bad."

"Pity the user is too poor."

The Metal Luminary fist energy exploded.

Boom!

The Frost Guard's chest caved in.

The outer armor of the blue crystal core shattered, and cracks spread from the center to the surroundings.

The Frost Guard tried to raise its shield to counterattack.

The Hundred Shadow Killing Formation spread out.

Dozens of shadow Clones surged out from the shadows of the corridor, simultaneously grabbing the Frost Guard's arms, legs, and shield.

Cold light erupted from the Frost Guard, instantly shattering a dozen shadow bodies.

But the moment the shadow bodies shattered, the backlash force landed on its armor.

The already cracked core armor exploded again in a section.

Lu Cheng leaped up, his right leg ignited with black and red flames.

He stomped down.

Bang!

The Frost Guard's head was stomped into the floor.

The corridor floor cracked with spiderweb-like fissures.

The core in its chest flashed crazily, then finally extinguished completely.

The massive mechanical body stopped operating.

The corridor was silent.

Those guards who were still standing all turned pale.

Elder Lota's walking stick dropped to the ground.

She looked at the scrapped Frost Guard, her lips trembling.

That was the last trump card of the Snow Rock Fortress.

The Council of Elders had kept it for many years, only allowing it to be activated when the fortress was on the verge of destruction.

Now it hadn't even lasted for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Lu Cheng walked towards her, stepping on crushed ice.

The Holy Dragon Armament still covered his body.

The Flame Demon flames made the cold air in the corridor constantly recede.

A few Elders wanted to block in front of Lota.

Lu Cheng looked up.

They immediately stopped.

"Don't kill the people of the fortress."

Lota's voice was hoarse.

"They don't know."

"Only a few people in the Council of Elders truly know about the refining room."

Lu Cheng stopped in front of her.

"Why do this?"

Lota was silent for a long time.

She looked at the end of the corridor, where behind the wall was the Foundation of the central tower.

"There is not enough energy."

"The blue crystal veins are exhausted."

"The cold attacks are getting worse year by year."

"Many houses in the outer city can no longer be heated."

"The central hub is weakening every day."

"In a few more years, half of the Snow Rock Fortress will freeze to death."

She looked up at Lu Cheng.

There was fear in her eyes, as well as exhaustion suppressed for many years.

"The energy inside an outsider is very strong."

"Refining one outsider can produce many warm stones and energy stones."

"It can allow thousands of people to survive the cold attacks."

Lu Cheng's eyes turned cold bit by bit.

The slight sense of unease in his heart turned completely into chill.

"What about the other outsiders?"

Lota opened her mouth.

The black and red flames on Lu Cheng's body suddenly surged.

The ice layers on both sides of the corridor instantly melted.

"Speak."

Lota lowered her head.

"Some are still in the refining room."

"Some were sent to the Frost Bone Fortress."

"They are still alive."

"Refining requires maintaining life stability."

"We didn't kill them."

Lu Cheng's fist slowly clenched.

Snow Spirit lay on his shoulder, also quieting down.

It could feel the anger on Lu Cheng.

"Lead the way."

Lota did not resist again.

She picked up her walking stick and turned to walk deeper into the Council of Elders.

This time, she walked very quickly.

Passing through the half-collapsed corridor, bypassing the wreckage of the Frost Guard, and then passing through a black door carved with Old Era characters, everyone came to a downward ice staircase.

At the end of the ice stairs was an underground space.

The temperature here was even lower.

The walls were inlaid with dense blue crystal pipelines.

The pipelines connected to the central hall like blood vessels.

There were a dozen transparent pods in the hall.

A person was sealed in each pod.

Energy conduits were inserted into their bodies, and their foreheads and chests were covered with blue runes.

Beneath the pods, small warm stones slowly condensed.

Lu Cheng recognized several of the combat uniforms at a glance.

Military District issue.

Academy issue.

People from the Second Exploration Team.

One of the young men was sealed in the central pod.

Tall, with sharp features, even while unconscious, one could tell he was a Military District Martial Artist.

This should be Li Chenzhou; he looked the same as in the data, just a little thinner.

Lu Cheng walked to the pod.

Li Chenzhou in the pod was still alive.

The Source Power on his body was being slowly extracted, flowing into the surrounding blue crystal pipelines.

"Turn it off."

Lu Cheng said coldly.

An Elder immediately walked to the control console, trembling as he entered the authorization.

Hum.

The blue crystal pipelines disconnected one by one.

The transparent pod opened.

Li Chenzhou's body fell forward, Lu Cheng raised his hand to support him, and transferred a strand of Source Power into his body.

Li Chenzhou frowned slightly, slowly recovering some breath.

Lu Cheng looked at the other pods.

"Release them all."

No one dared to hesitate.

Soon, all the pods opened.

The survivors of the Second Exploration Team were released one after another.

Some were still unconscious, some had already woken up, their eyes filled with intense exhaustion and anger.

"What about the other girl?"

Lu Cheng looked around and did not see that familiar figure.

Just as he was about to continue asking, a familiar voice suddenly came from behind.

"No need to look."

"I'm here."

Lu Cheng turned around.

At the entrance of the refining room stood a girl in white.

She was draped in a Snow Plains cloak, with a tiny ice pattern floating on her forehead.

Her long hair was slightly messy from the wind and snow, her face was paler than usual, but her eyes were still calm.

The person who arrived was none other than Su Wan.