Chapter 81: The Silent Ruins
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 81: The Silent Ruins
The girl standing before White Robe was none other than Xie Bai.
While the Northern Lords were holding their meeting, Xie Bai had already been stealthily observing from the sidelines. Then, she had witnessed the scene that had just unfolded.
Looking at the contemplative White Robe, Xie Bai leaned casually against a nearby seat.
Ever since she had killed the three Northern Lords tainted by the power of Chaos, Xie Bai had been keeping an eye out for the Chaos Church's movements. As it turned out, she hadn't found a single trace of them for half a day.
Just as Xie Bai was considering whether she should simply teleport to the Cult Leader of Chaos and settle things with brute force, she had discovered this high tower. Then, she discovered the connection between White Robe and the Chaos Church.
Out of curiosity, Xie Bai decided to first understand the little schemes the Chaos Church was cooking up behind the scenes. If they were interesting enough, she might be able to use them to establish a common enemy for the North. For a newly established empire, this was the best and most convenient way to foster unity.
After a long silence, White Robe looked up at Xie Bai.
"So... you're really not with the Chaos Church?"
Catching the glimpse of blue eyes beneath the white hood, Xie Bai replied nonchalantly, "What do you think? Maybe I was sent by the Chaos Church to test you."
Hearing her indifferent tone, White Robe understood her meaning.
"If your goal is to deal with the Chaos Church in the North, I can tell you all the secrets I know."
At this, Xie Bai sat up a bit more seriously. "So, you're planning to give up on using the power of Chaos to achieve your grand ambitions?"
Faced with her question, White Robe shook his head.
"If the power of Chaos hinders my next move, I will naturally abandon it. And right now, a powerhouse has appeared before me who just happens to have a grievance with the Chaos Church. How else do you think I would choose?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Xie Bai voiced her doubt. "Oh? Is that really the reason? Sometimes I feel like you're just being stubborn."
White Robe showed no emotion at her remark. Instead, he answered her previous question.
"The Chaos Church's plan in the North is simple. Corrupting a few Northern Lords was just the preliminary step. Their main goal is to use the power of the Northern Lords to trigger the Cold Wave deep within the North."
"Cold Wave?" Xie Bai was slightly taken any back. It sounded like some kind of doomsday disaster.
"Correct. The North is perpetually cold primarily because an ancient True God's ruins are hidden beneath the earth. I have the ability to monitor every snowflake, including the snow accumulated underground. As far as I know, the remains of a True God named Silence are sealed there. If the ruins are unsealed, the extreme cold accumulated over tens of millions of years will be released, forming a massive Cold Wave capable of washing over the entire world."
Hearing this, Xie Bai’s eyes, which had been indifferent until now, suddenly lit up.
"The remains of the God of Silence? This actually involves a True God?"
In Xie Bai's memory, she seemed to have casually killed a God of Silence in a previous timeline. Based on the trait that a True God in the main timeline will not die as long as their branch versions aren't completely wiped out, Xie Bai suspected that these "remains" weren't actually a corpse, but a seal.
Perhaps the real purpose of the ruins White Robe mentioned was to unseal the God of Silence trapped within those remains.
I didn't expect to encounter the first True God so soon. I thought I'd have to wait a long time.
Thinking of this, Xie Bai looked back at White Robe. "Aside from that, is there any other news?"
White Robe shook his head. "No. However, I suspect the Chaos Church's plans go beyond this. The Ice Dragon Territory outside the North is an area I cannot monitor. Based on my understanding of those Chaos Cultists, they would never pin all their hopes on a single plan. If I'm not mistaken, the Chaos Church has likely infiltrated the Ice Dragon's side as well."
Xie Bai pondered his explanation. Given how the Chaos Church had planted moles throughout the Aodu Empire, White Robe's hypothesis was highly credible.
This left Xie Bai with three choices.
Should she go to the ruins White Robe mentioned to deal with the True God's remains first? Or go to the Ice Dragon Territory to meet that Ice Dragon? Or perhaps just head straight to the Cult Leader of Chaos and perform a "smash-it-with-a-brick" style execution?
"Forget it, I'll check out the ruins first. Compared to the Chaos Church, a True God is much more worth seeing."
With that thought, Xie Bai spoke to White Robe. "Take me to those ruins now. Don't worry, I can guarantee the safety of your Witch."
White Robe nodded slowly. "Very well. I will take you there now."
With that, White Robe led Xie Bai to a certain snowy plain.
Throughout their conversation, Xie Bai never revealed her relationship with the Unified Army. As for whether the other party had guessed it, that wasn't something she needed to worry about.
Upon reaching their destination, White Robe waved his hand. The vast snow split apart instantly, revealing a deep, dark tunnel. At the end of the tunnel stood a massive, ancient stone gate.
[Silent Ruins Lv.100 (Multiplayer Dungeon)]
[Difficulty: Disaster]
[Entry Requirement: Lv.100, at least four people (Requirement Ignored)]
[Description: Houses the remains of the God of Silence. It is filled with frigid air from tens of millions of years ago. If one can traverse this forbidden zone for life, they may claim treasures exclusive to explorers.]
"As expected, this place is also a dungeon."
Looking at the grand stone gate of the ruins, Xie Bai began to scan her surroundings.
"Just the remains of a True God can affect the environment of the entire Northern Continent? When I killed those True Gods before, they didn't feel this powerful."
Beside her, White Robe began to explain, "These ruins were the subject of my deal with the Chaos Church. It requires at least four Demigods to open. If Your Excellency wishes to enter, you can wait for me to summon several Northern Lords..."
Before he could finish, he saw Xie Bai place her hand on the gate.
Under White Robe's very eyes, Xie Bai vanished from the spot instantly. It wasn't until the blue runes on the stone gate lit up that White Robe realized what had happened.
"That powerhouse... entered without even needing to open the door?"
*
Once inside, Xie Bai witnessed the extreme environment.
The air was thick with an incredibly dense frost. Everywhere she looked was a hazy blue, a sight that felt cold enough to suffocate a person.
But none of this had any effect on Xie Bai.
[Frost Protection: Absorbs surrounding cold to form a dual physical and magical shield. Can consume an equivalent amount of shield value to buff an attack once. (Source: Lord of Ice Blue)]
The cold air in the North was abundant, nearly inexhaustible. This was one of the key factors that allowed the Lord of Ice Blue to rank among the powerhouses of the North.
Now, however, his talent had become a windfall for Xie Bai.
While Xie Bai could use Void Power to negate the cold, the frost here was simply too dense. Using Void Power to counteract it would be a bit too troublesome for her. Since there was a more convenient talent to help absorb the cold, Xie Bai naturally wouldn't refuse.
In less than a moment, all the cold air in the ruins was absorbed by Xie Bai, transforming into an absurdly thick ice-blue shield bar.