106: Chapter 106 The Princess's Backstabbing? Her Name Marked Red in the Book of Life and Death!

Night was as dark as ink, swallowing the silhouette of Origin Royal City in a blanket of deathly silence.

In the alleyway, the few Realm Hounds that had been frozen into icy dust had not yet fully dissipated. The faint scent of sulfur and the biting cold that follows extreme Frost still lingered in the air. Qin Ji had just stepped out of the alley's mouth when his foot suddenly halted mid-step.

A sense of malignant chill, like needles on his back, shot up from his tailbone straight to the crown of his head without any warning.

It was an instinctual intuition forged through countless life-and-death struggles—a lethal killing intent had locked onto this place!

*Hum!*

Almost the instant this premonition surged in his heart, Qin Ji's figure vanished from his spot without a trace.

Spatial Blink!

The very moment his figure disappeared, the air where he had been standing seemed to instantly solidify, as if flash-frozen by liquid nitrogen.

*Crack—BOOM!!*

An intricately complex, deep blue Profound Ice Formation materialized out of thin air, descending with suffocating cold to suppress the area. The hard bluestone pavement did not shatter upon contact with the Formation; instead, it instantly turned into dust-like ice crystals, which then, along with the soil beneath, froze into a massive block of deep blue amber.

If Qin Ji had been even 0.1 seconds slower, what would be sealed within now would be his Physical Body.

"Not bad reflexes."

A clear, cold, and familiar voice sounded from mid-air.

Qin Ji's figure reappeared on a rooftop dozens of meters away. He slightly raised his head, his violet-gold eyes coldly fixed on the graceful silhouette hovering in the air.

Princess.

This very same Imperial Princess who had just been chatting and laughing with him in the tavern, forging an alliance, now stood atop a translucent ice sword, looking down at him from her elevated position. Behind her, nine figures clad in silver-white heavy armor stood like nine towering icebergs, emanating a suffocating aura of murderous intent.

"Princess," Qin Ji's lips curled into a mocking arc, his longbow already materializing in his hand, "I just helped you kill Klinfis, and now you're burning the bridge after crossing the river? Is this how all you royal types operate? So unsightly?"

"You kill me, I can just revive," Qin Ji's fingers lightly plucked the bowstring, his tone as casual as if discussing the weather, "For you, I won't suffer any real loss. But I'll remember this debt for a very, very long time."

"Of course you can revive."

Princess nodded slightly. No trace of guilt was on her stunningly beautiful face, only the cold, ruthless decisiveness of a ruler. "But what if I send you far away from the Star Kingdom?"

As her words fell, the nine silver-armored generals simultaneously took a step forward.

*BOOM!*

Nine terrifying auras shot into the sky, instantly locking onto Qin Ji.

"Profound Ice: Absolute Freeze!"

Princess commanded, waving her staff.

In that instant, countless tiny ice-crystal runes materialized in the space beneath Qin Ji's feet, above his head, and all around him. These runes rapidly connected, forming a three-dimensional cage that completely sealed off the space within a hundred-meter radius.

Biting cold swept in like a tidal wave. The surrounding air was instantly drained of heat, and even the light seemed frozen in that moment.

Princess's plan was perfect.

She didn't need to kill the Snow Emperor. She only needed to freeze him solid into an ice sculpture with absolute low temperatures, restrict his movement, and then use the pre-prepared 'Spatial Banishment Scroll' to toss this uncontrollable variable thousands of miles away into some desolate wilderness.

As long as the variable that was the Snow Emperor was gone, she was confident she had enough to reach the pinnacle in the upcoming struggle for the throne.

Unfortunately.

Princess had calculated everything, but she could never have imagined one thing in her wildest dreams—

The man standing before her was the Dominator of ice and snow.

The frigid air madly eroded Qin Ji's body, trying to freeze his blood and lock his joints. Yet, Qin Ji simply stood there quietly, letting the cold currents, potent enough to instantly freeze elite bosses, wash over him.

On the System panel, a series of notification tones frantically scrolled:

*Ding! You have been attacked by 'Profound Ice Formation'. Ice Resistance check in progress... Check passed! Damage immunity!*

*Ding! You have been affected by 'Absolute Freeze'. Abnormal Status Resistance check in progress... Check passed! Freeze ineffective!*

Qin Ji didn't even bother to brush off the Frost settling on his shoulders.

"Princess."

He slowly raised his head, a flash of murderous chill flickering deep in his eyes. "You're seeking death. You had a very good position. I was even planning to play this game of power and schemes with you step by step. But you absolutely should not have... mistaken me for a soft persimmon you can squeeze at will!"

Since you're seeking death, then I can only oblige you.

"Full release."

Qin Ji silently intoned in his heart.

Almost instantly, he spent 785 free attribute points without the slightest hesitation.

*Ding! Your Attack Speed has been raised to the limit threshold: 20.0 (20 attacks per second)!*

This was already the attack speed ceiling for the current version. Adding more points beyond this would yield diminishing returns so abysmal they'd drop to a pitiful 0.005.

But this was more than enough.

"Five Arrows at Once!"

Qin Ji's longbow was drawn to its full extent in his hands. The vibration of the bowstring became a continuous line, sounding almost like a sharp Phoenix cry.

*Twang!*

It wasn't one arrow.

Nor was it five arrows.

Under the enhancement of the ultra-high attack speed of 20 per second, combined with the splitting effect of "Five Arrows at Once", a full one hundred feathered arrows shot upwards in a single second like a torrential downpour!

At this moment, the night sky was completely illuminated by a silver rain of arrows.

Each arrow tore through the air with sonic booms. The airflow generated by their spinning arrowheads converged into a storm of destruction, indiscriminately blanketing Princess and the nine silver-armored generals in the air!

"What?!"

Princess's originally cold expression instantly shattered, her pupils contracting violently. "Status immunity? Impossible!"

Her "Absolute Freeze" was a forbidden magic that could even hard-control a legendary boss for three seconds. How could it be ineffective against a player?

And besides... was this even an Archer?!

What kind of Archer had an attack frequency more terrifying than a Gatling gun?!

There was no time for her to think. The dense rain of arrows was already upon them.

"Protect Her Highness!!"

Princess shrieked, her body turning into a blurry afterimage. An ice-blue longsword appeared in her hand out of thin air, which she began to swing frantically.

*Clang clang clang clang clang—!*

The crisp sounds of impact were as dense as raindrops beating on plantain leaves. Although Princess was an elite of the royal family with formidable strength, under such terrifying suppressive fire, she was still shaken until her palms went numb, her figure forced to retreat repeatedly in the air.

The nine silver-armored generals shielding her front were not so fortunate.

*Thud thud thud thud!*

The dull sounds of arrows piercing flesh became one continuous noise. Even clad in the royal family's specially crafted mithril armor, against Qin Ji's terrifying attack power, it might as well have been made of paper.

"Damn it! If we can't control him, then we'll crush him!"

A flash of ruthlessness passed through Princess's eyes. She was clearly not one to hesitate. Seeing conventional methods were useless, she abruptly bit the tip of her tongue and spat a mouthful of essence blood onto the longsword in her hand.

"Divine Blessing: Seal of Ice and Snow!"

*Rumble—*

The originally pitch-black night sky suddenly split open with a massive fissure.

A massive seal, as large as a house, carved entirely from ten-thousand-year-old profound ice, descended slowly from the Void Realm with a terrifying, world-suppressing might.

The moment this seal appeared, the surrounding space groaned under the strain, countless fine cracks spreading through the air.

This was the trump card bestowed upon the royal family by the Goddess of Ice and Snow, containing a trace of genuine divine pressure!

"Kneel before me!!"

Princess pressed down with both hands in the air, manipulating the massive Seal of Ice and Snow as it plummeted down towards Qin Ji's head.

Faced with this terrifying strike that seemed capable of leveling the entire street, Qin Ji suddenly stopped evading.

He raised his head, looking at the ice seal falling with the force of ten thousand jun, a strangely eerie, cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

A Divine Artifact blessed by the Goddess of Ice and Snow?

If it were a Divine Artifact from the God of Flame or the God of Thunder, perhaps it could still make him wary.

But before ice and snow...

I am the ancestor!

*BOOM!!!*

The great Seal of Ice and Snow smashed down viciously onto Qin Ji. A terrifying shockwave instantly erupted, collapsing all the surrounding houses and buildings, sending dust and debris flying.

Princess stared fixedly at the center of the dust cloud, a relieved, ferocious smile appearing on her face.

It was over.

No one could withstand a divine-blessed strike head-on and...

At that moment, an extremely glaring, even absurd, damage number slowly floated up from within the dust.

-0!!

The smile on Princess's face instantly froze. Her entire body stiffened in mid-air as if struck by lightning.

The dust settled.

Qin Ji stood there completely unscathed, not even a wrinkle on his clothes. He lightly brushed off non-existent dust from his shoulder, his gaze as if looking at a mere clown.

"Is that it?"

Two simple words. Not very damaging, but extremely insulting.

"How is this possible... complete immunity to ice damage?!"

Princess's face darkened to the extreme. That terrifying suspicion in her heart grew like wild grass.

Could the Goddess of Ice and Snow bestow such an ability?

Yes.

But it was said only the true successor of the Goddess of Ice and Snow, the prophesied "Chosen One" who would end the Age of Extreme Cold, could obtain such authority granting complete immunity to Law-based damage.

Could it be...

The Snow Emperor was the successor chosen by the Goddess of Ice and Snow?

"No! Impossible!" Princess bit her lip until it bled. "I am the one destined by fate! I am the future Empress! What virtue or ability does the Snow Emperor possess?!"

"Retreat!"

Though filled with ten thousand unwilling thoughts, Princess's reason told her she had kicked an iron plate today.

If she couldn't deal damage, she had to leave.

"Thinking of leaving now? Isn't that wishful thinking?"

Qin Ji's cold voice pierced through the night sky.

He didn't chase after Princess. Instead, his gaze locked onto the nine silver-armored generals trying to cover their master's retreat.

"Since you've come, leave your lives behind as interest."

Attack speed maxed.

Feathered arrows poured forth.

"Ah—!!"

Piercing screams echoed through the night.

Before the terrifying output of over twenty million damage per second, these Silver-tier bosses, nightmares in the eyes of ordinary players, were as fragile as bubbles.

*Ding, you have slain Silver General Volind. A server-wide announcement is imminent. Hide your name?*

*Ding, you have slain Silver General Volinf...*

Qin Ji directly chose 'No'.

Since he was establishing his might, he might as well let the storm rage more fiercely.

A mere five seconds.

The nine Silver Generals were gone without a trace, reduced entirely to experience points on Qin Ji's panel and a ground littered with sparkling loot.

By this time, Princess had already flown several kilometers away on her sword, on the verge of disappearing over the horizon.

"You run quite fast."

A murderous intent swirled in Qin Ji's eyes. He reached back into his pack and pulled out an ancient-looking booklet emitting a faint, dark aura.

*book of life and death (Incomplete Manual)*

This was a special item he had obtained from an ancient ruin. Though an Incomplete Manual, it was more than sufficient to deal with a Princess who hadn't yet attained godhood.

Qin Ji's finger moved through the air as if it were a brush. Using his finger as a pen, he carefully wrote three characters stroke by stroke on the yellowed page of the book of life and death:

Princess.

...

Several kilometers away, high in the sky.

Princess, who was fleeing madly, suddenly felt her heart constrict violently. An indescribable, intense pain instantly spread throughout her entire body.

Before she could even react, a terrifying red number floated up above her head.

-45,998!

One second later.

-45,998!

"What is this?!"

Princess watched in horror as her health bar began to plummet at a visible rate. No attack had struck her, no magical fluctuation was present. Her life force was being forcibly siphoned away as if Death itself were drinking through a straw!

"A curse? Or a weapon of Karma?!"

Scared Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, she no longer dared to hold back in the slightest, frantically burning her essence blood to accelerate towards the direction of the royal palace.

"The palace altar! As long as I reach the palace altar, I can recover!"

She plummeted like a meteor into the depths of the palace, scrambling into the altar that represented the kingdom's highest defense.

As the altar's light brightened, the terrifying rate of health loss was finally offset by the altar's restorative effect.

Princess collapsed in the center of the altar, gasping for breath in large, ragged gulps. Her once elegant hair bun was now disheveled, her snow-white gown soaked through with cold sweat.

"Damn it... Damn it!!"

Her expression was extremely sinister, her nails digging deep into the stone bricks of the altar.

This operation had not only cost her nine trusted generals, but she herself had been forced to flee like a dog, and now she didn't even dare to leave the altar.

If she didn't go out, how could she compete for the throne? If she hid here forever, where would her dignity as a Princess be?

While her thoughts ran wild, the world chat channel outside had completely exploded.

A series of blood-red server-wide announcements scrolled across the vision of every player like a string of heavy bombs:

*[Server-wide Announcement]: Congratulations to player 'Snow Emperor' for successfully slaying Silver General Volind (Lv.55). As the first player on the server to slay a Royal Guard General, this announcement is hereby made! We encourage all players to continue striving!!*

*[Server-wide Announcement]: Congratulations to player 'Snow Emperor' for successfully slaying Silver General Volinf (Lv.55)...*

...

Nine full announcements!

The world channel fell into an eerie silence for a moment, then erupted into a tsunami of discussion.

"Holy crap?! Am I seeing this right? Silver Generals? Those are NPCs from the palace, right?!"

"Is the Snow Emperor... rebelling? Did he just charge into the palace?"

"Is this the weight of being number one? We're still fighting over wild boars, and the big shot is already slaughtering royal family members?"

"This is insane, insane. You can play the game like this?"

And on that ravaged street.

Qin Ji paid no heed to the uproar outside.

He strolled amidst the ruins, his feet stepping on the equipment dropped by the silver-armored generals, producing crisp metallic clinks.

Moonlight filtered through the clouds, illuminating the scene of devastation.

On the ground, massive sword scars and arrow holes crisscrossed as if a battle of gods had just taken place. At the center of it all, the man slowly crouched down and picked up a strangely glowing crystal that had dropped from one of the general's corpses.

He casually flicked away the bloodstains on the crystal. His violet-gold pupils shone brilliantly under the moonlight, just like an ancient Vicious Beast that had just feasted, coldly gazing towards the direction of the brightly lit royal palace in the distance, a playful arc curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Think hiding in the altar makes you safe?"

"This game has only just begun."