86: Meeting point

As they drew closer to the gathering point in the middle zone, the environment became increasingly eerie. The sound of the wind seemed distorted by some force; at times it was as sharp as a sob, and at others as low as a mutter, leaving everyone feeling restless.

The energy in the air was no longer merely violent; it had gained an indescribable sense of "disorder."

On their way forward, the Lu Guangming Squad experienced the "rule anomalies" mentioned in the briefing firsthand for the first time.

They passed through a seemingly calm Gravel Beach. When Wang Pang stepped onto it, he suddenly "fell" upward, as if the ground had suddenly become the ceiling!

Fortunately, Lu Guangming reacted extremely quickly, grabbing his ankle and using his powerful strength to pull him back down.

The group looked at the area with lingering fear, seeing several pieces of gravel floating in mid-air against all logic, slowly rotating.

“Localized Gravity Reversal!” Sun Xiaohui immediately marked the dangerous area on her tactical board. “The range is about ten square meters, duration unknown. Bypass it!”

Before they had gone far, a sparse, twisted forest of dead trees ahead caught their attention.

At the edge of the forest, several Nanming Academy students were circling a dead tree, their faces filled with confusion and anxiety.

“What happened?” Lu Guangming stepped forward to ask.

One of the Nanming Academy students pointed at the dead tree and spoke rapidly, “One of our teammates touched that tree just now, and then... he stopped moving! He's not paralyzed; it’s like he can’t hear or see us. He’s just there, repeating the same motion of pushing a branch aside. It’s been almost five minutes!”

Lu Guangming focused his gaze and saw that the student's eyes were hollow. His arms were mechanically and precisely repeating the pushing gesture, as if trapped in an infinite loop of a brief moment in time.

“It’s a Time Stagnation Point!” Su Xiaowan whispered. “And it’s a looping type, which is very dangerous! Forcing him out might cause irreversible damage to his spirit!”

Mo Yu approached from the back of the group at this moment. He observed for a while, then took out his ancient flute and placed it to his lips. A clear, melodious flute sound carrying the power to soothe the Soul slowly flowed out, seeping into the stagnant time zone like a clear spring.

The flute's sound surrounded the trapped student. A ripple gradually appeared in his hollow eyes, and his repetitive movements began to show slight deviations.

A few minutes later, he suddenly stumbled as if waking from a nightmare, gasping for breath with a face full of lingering fear.

“Thank you, Student Mo!” the Nanming Academy students thanked him one after another.

Mo Yu put away his flute and shook his head slightly. “The rules here are extremely fragile and chaotic; be careful in everything.” He looked at Lu Guangming. “The closer we get to the core, the more frequent and dangerous these anomalies will become.”

After this small interlude, the team became even more cautious. However, just as they were about to reach the green dot coordinates and pass through a narrow canyon with towering wind-eroded rock walls on both sides, the sounds of intense fighting and shouting came from ahead.

“People from Eastern Radiance? Get lost! This area's ‘Core Condensation Ore’ was discovered by us from Northern Star first!” an arrogant voice rang out.

“Bullshit! This ore vein is exposed in the open. Does it have Northern Star's name written on it? Why should we give it to you!” a student from Eastern Radiance retorted, refusing to back down.

In an open space at the canyon exit, an Eastern Radiance squad and a Northern Star squad were facing off, both sides with swords drawn and tempers flared.

Scattered on the ground were several blue crystals shimmering with faint energy light. These were Core Condensation Ores, an important material for making energy batteries and certain equipment. Clearly, the two sides had come into conflict over these resources.

The leader of the Northern Star squad was a tall, sturdy man with a scar on his face and a fierce gaze. He radiated a powerful Aura, clearly possessing the strength of a peak B+ rank. The four team members behind him were also quite strong.

On the Eastern Radiance side, there were only three people. Their strength was generally between C+ and B- rank, putting them at a clear disadvantage. One of them was already injured and was being supported by a companion.

“It’s the people from Class Two!” Wang Pang recognized the Eastern Radiance squad. They were from Class Two, but they were clearly getting the short end of the stick right now.

“Hmph, trash is just trash, you can't even protect your resources.” The scarred Northern Star student sneered and stepped forward. A cold, intensely oppressive chill surged toward Zhang Mang’s squad, intending to forcibly drive them back and seize all the ore.

The person from Class Two turned red in the face, wanting to resist, but under that B+ rank pressure, his movements became sluggish, and his eyes were filled with humiliation and resentment.

At that moment, a cold voice, like a freezing wind from the poles, instantly swept through the entire canyon:

“Gao Meng, stop.”

Along with the voice, a figure appeared between the two groups like a ghost. The newcomer wore the deep blue Northern Star combat uniform, with a tall, straight posture and a cold face—it was Severe Winter.

He didn't even look at the Northern Star student named Gao Meng, but simply stood there calmly.

However, a cold Aura that was several times more pure, condensed, and vast than Gao Meng's naturally radiated out. It was as if even the whistling wind and chaotic energy around them were instantly frozen and silenced.

Gao Meng's arrogant attitude was extinguished instantly, as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over his head. His face turned pale, and he involuntarily took half a step back, lowering his head and saying respectfully, “Se... Severe Winter!”

Severe Winter ignored him. His gaze swept over the Core Condensation Ore on the ground, then at the injured Eastern Radiance student, and finally landed on Zhang Mang. His tone was devoid of any emotion.

“Resources belong to those with ability. But taking advantage of others' peril and bullying the weak is not the way of Northern Star. Get back and take your punishment.”

“Yes!” Gao Meng felt as if he had been granted a great pardon. He didn't dare to argue and hurriedly led his team away in disgrace, not even daring to look at the Core Condensation Ore on the ground again.

Only then did Severe Winter turn his gaze toward the Lu Guangming Squad and gave a slight nod as a greeting.

His gaze lingered on Lu Guangming for a moment, and he gave the same concise warning: “Be careful. The gathering point is just ahead, but the situation is very complicated.”

After speaking, he turned around. Just as abruptly as he had arrived, his figure flickered a few times and disappeared at the end of the canyon, as if he had merely handled a trivial matter in passing.

The people from the Class Two squad finally breathed a sigh of relief. Their faces bore complex expressions, containing both the relief of being saved and the gloom of facing such an absolute gap in strength.

They silently gathered the Core Condensation Ore from the ground, nodded to the Lu Guangming Squad, and also left quickly.

“Sss... Is this Severe Winter's current strength?” Wang Pang sucked in a breath of cold air. “Just standing there made me feel like my blood flow was slowing down... He seems to have become stronger again!”

Su Xiaowan also looked solemn. “His cold Aura is no longer just about low temperature; it carries a sense of... freezing energy, even freezing the rules themselves.”

Lu Guangming watched the direction where Severe Winter had disappeared, a flash of realization in his eyes.

Severe Winter's rate of progress was indeed astonishing. It seemed that what he had gained on the Northern Border front was not just an increase in energy, but more importantly, an essential transformation. He had begun to truly touch the deep power of the "Ice" rule.

This guy was indeed a formidable rival, but also... an ally to look forward to.

“Let's go.” Lu Guangming withdrew his gaze. “The gathering point is just ahead. It looks like quite a few people have already arrived. The true eye of the storm is probably right there.”

The team members gathered their thoughts. Carrying the shock of Severe Winter's strength and their vigilance toward the unknown ahead, they stepped out of the canyon, and their vision suddenly opened up—

It was a relatively open basin, where dozens of students from the three major academies had already gathered.

They were stationed in three distinct areas, and the atmosphere was heavy and subtle.

In the center of the basin, a semi-transparent Energy Barrier that distorted light was faintly visible. Behind the barrier, a deeper and more dangerous canyon landscape could be seen.

That was the gathering point for the final gateway leading to the core zone, the Echoing Abyss. They had arrived. And the chaos had only just begun.