A Chaotic World

Pu-!

Lu Tianzi spat out a few drops of blood as he tried to recover from the earlier impact.

The power behind the Descent of the Mountain Winds was as expected of an Overlord's domain. The moment he left himself exposed to the domain, Lu Tianzi had instantly suffered injuries that were by no means light.

Just that last part alone, where he was slammed against the cave wall, had broken quite a few of his bones.

He might have a much stronger physique as compared to ordinary people, but these injuries would still take at least several days to recover from.

Lu Tianzi was the victor here, yet he still had a grim look on his face as he remained seated against the cave wall.

He understood that luck was on his side this time. If the Piercing Wind Overlord had not gotten overly confident and put himself in a position where he could no longer dodge, Lu Tianzi would never have emerged the victor.

And this was despite how biased the rules were towards him as well.

How pathetic.

Oblivious to his thoughts, the members of the Frost Guards were in complete disbelief.

While Lu Tianzi definitely did not look like the victor in his current, the fact remained that he had won.

A Fourth Cycle Origin Core realm martial artist had won against an Overlord realm powerhouse.

What kind of concept was that?

It did not even matter that the rules were in favour of Lu Tianzi. Among them, perhaps only Nanshen Qin would have any chances of accomplishing this same feat!

They could not help but think that perhaps there was some truth behind the rumour that came from the hunting group earlier.

A slender hand extended towards him, and Lu Tianzi took it without even looking. He had no need to look to know who this hand belonged to.

Nanlan Qianxue helped Lu Tianzi up to his feet and patted him gently on the back.

"It's okay, next time will be different," she muttered softly.

It appeared that only she understood what he was feeling right now.

"I guess," Lu Tianzi replied bitterly. There was nothing he could do other than to accept this result anyway.

"I have to admit that I did not expect such an outcome," the Piercing Wind Overlord's voice drew their attention over. "You actually managed to win."

"Is this sufficient?" Lu Tianzi asked.

"More than sufficient," the Piercing Wind Overlord nodded. "Go take a rest for now. Once you have recovered enough, we will seal the agreement with a Heaven's Oath. After which, it will be time to prepare for the retaking of Frostguard Mountain."

"Understood, I shall take my leave first," Lu Tianzi agreed.

Right now, he was truly not in the state to jump right into discussing their plans.

One reason was that he was hurting all over.

However, the main reason was that he had gained some insights during the short contest earlier, and was looking forward to reorganising his thoughts on that.

Despite him being more than capable of walking on his own, Lu Tianzi allowed Nanlan Qianxue to help him back to their ice hut, where he would spend the next few days in deep meditation.

Once the two left, Nanshen Qin walked over to the Piercing Wind Overlord. "What do you think, Master? Will it be wise to let Young Sir Lu join us in the fight?"

"Did you see what happened at the end?" the Piercing Wind Overlord asked in return.

"You mean how his swords break under the pressure of your Descent of the Mountain Winds, causing his defence to falter?" Nanshen Qin answered.

"Yes, that is what happened. But I believe that is only the end result," the Piercing Wind Overlord said. "As for why this happened... I might be wrong, but Young Sir Lu seemed to have gotten some form of epiphany and was distracted because of that."

"An epiphany?" Nanshen Qin was surprised to hear that. "What kind of epiphany?"

"Your master is not omniscient," the Piercing Wind Overlord replied with a smile. "In any case, pass down my message to the rest. Until he comes out of the ice hut himself, no one is to go and disturb Young Sir Lu during this period!"

"Understood!"

***

Lu Tianzi did not emerge from the ice hut for the next two weeks.

If not for Nanlan Qianxue's assurance that he was fine, the members of the Frost Guards would not have been able to resist the temptation to go against the Piercing Wind Overlord's instruction and check on him.

Nevertheless, they still felt worried about Lu Tianzi, wondering if the injuries from the earlier bout had been a little too serious.

That was why when Lu Tianzi finally appeared from his ice hut, he was met with great fanfare as everyone started to crowd over and bombard him with numerous questions of concern.

It was only when the Piercing Wind Overlord arrived did Lu Tianzi and Nanlan Qianxue manage to free themselves, following the Piercing Wind Overlord back to the privacy of his hut.

Next, it was time for the Heaven's Oath.

The agreement was simple.

Lu Tianzi and Nanlan Qianxue would aid the Frost Guards in their quest to retake Frostguard Mountain, and in return, the Piercing Wind Overlord would allow both of them into the core of Frostguard Mountain.

On top of that, Lu Tianzi made sure to add the condition that they could choose to escape if his or Nanlan Qianxue's life would be in danger, though they would never go against the Piercing Wind Overlord's men or reveal any secrets that were told to them.

The Piercing Wind Overlord agreed to the conditions, and the oath was completed by both parties.

"From now on, you will have to learn to fight like a member of the Frost Guards," the Piercing Wind Overlord said.

Lu Tianzi nodded.

The Frost Guards had been known to be invincible when battling atop Frostguard Mountain. If he were to join them in the upcoming fight, he would be fighting against a separate faction of this same Frost Guards.

To be able to stand a chance against them, he naturally had to learn how to fight like they do.

"First of all..." the Piercing Wind Overlord stretched out his hand, and a glowing orb of blue energy appeared above his open palm.

Lu Tianzi and Nanlan Qianxue looked on curiously at this blue orb. While it looked just like a simple orb of energy, it felt like there was definitely more to it as well.

But no matter how they tried, the duo could not figure out just what it was apart from the fact that it was emitting a cold aura.

"This is the Winter Stone – the spiritual emblem of the Frost Guards," the Piercing Wind Overlord explained.

"The Winter Stone?" Lu Tianzi asked with a frown.

He had never heard of something like this being the spiritual emblem of the Frost Guards.

No, he never even knew that the Frost Guards had something like a spiritual emblem to begin with!

"That's right," the Piercing Wind Overlord nodded. "As long as you are able to obtain the acknowledgement of the Winter Stone, you will be able to tap on the energy reserves of Frostguard Mountain in the future."

Lu Tianzi widened his eyes in astonishment as he finally understood.

So this was the secret of the Frost Guards – the reason why they were able to reign undefeated upon Frostguard Mountain.

Then again, just how much power was stored within the energy reserves of Frostguard Mountain to be able to bestow upon the Frost Guards such an unparalleled record?

"Does this mean...?" Lu Tianzi asked hesitantly.

"Please step forward, Young Lady Nanlan," the Piercing Wind Overlord said solemnly, and the Winter Stone hovering above his open palm started floating forward towards Nanlan Qianxue.

"Why don't I do it first?" Lu Tianzi immediately suggested, wanting to test things out for Nanlan Qianxue.

"I don't mind it either way," the Piercing Wind Overlord said. "But if I am not mistaken, Young Lady Nanlan practices techniques of the ice element. That will make it much easier for her to gain the acknowledgement of the Winter Stone."

"It's fine, I can go first," Nanlan Qianxue remarked while stepping towards the Winter Stone.

Since Nanlan Qianxue had already said so, Lu Tianzi could only agree.

Even so, he dared not let down his guard.

With the Limitless Mirror Eye, Lu Tianzi closely observed the cold energy that was flowing out from the Winter Stone towards Nanlan Qianxue's now outstretched hand. If there was even the slightest sign of danger, he was intending to step in immediately.

As opposed to Lu Tianzi, Nanlan Qianxue seemed to be much more relaxed. She slowly closed her eyes, as though enjoying the embrace of the cold energy.

"That's right, do not resist the Winter Stone," the Piercing Wind Overlord nodded in satisfaction. "Feel and accept the presence of the Winter Stone."

Lu Tianzi did not know what was going on within her, but from Nanlan Qianxue's expression of ease, he understood that things were probably progressing rather smoothly.

It did not take long before Nanlan Qianxue opened her eyes again, and the aura of frost receded from her, back to the Winter Stone.

"How do you feel?" Lu Tianzi asked.

No matter how he tried, he could not sense anything different about her. Did she manage to gain the acknowledgement of the Winter Stone as the Piercing Wind Overlord had said?

"Not too bad," Nanlan Qianxue replied matter-of-factly. "Don't be too worried, it doesn't hurt."

"Tch! I'm not worried about that," Lu Tianzi clicked his tongue in irritation. "But since you seem to be fine, then that's good."

"Are you ready then, Young Sir Lu?" the Piercing Wind Overlord asked.

Lu Tianzi nodded, and the Piercing Wind Overlord started to direct the Winter Stone towards him.

As the Winter Stone approached, Lu Tianzi could feel the chill coming from the orb of energy rapidly expanding in magnitude. It might have felt like a small ice cube earlier, but now it felt more of an entire mountain of ice bearing down upon him.

Still, Lu Tianzi stood his ground and allowed the Winter Stone to approach.

Mimicking what Nanlan Qianxue did, Lu Tianzi closed his eyes and reached out with his hand.

Just like before, an aura of frost extended from the Winter Stone and approached Lu Tianzi, slowly coming into contact.

The moment it did, Lu Tianzi felt an aura of biting cold descend upon his inner world.

Lu Tianzi tensed up immediately.

One's inner world was extremely vulnerable once compromised.

While the Piercing Wind Overlord was bound by the Heaven's Oath, this Winter Stone seemed to have some sort of instinct or sentience of its own.

Who knew if the Winter Stone would suddenly try something strange?

After all, his physique was fundamentally different from everyone else.

Thankfully, this aura of frost, while painful to bear, did not seem to be hostile to him.

Rather than invading his inner world which he had feared, the aura of frost simply wrapped around it, as though embracing his inner world and feeling out its properties.

It felt strange and uncomfortable, but at least it was not to the extent of being unbearable. So Lu Tianzi slowly tried to relax as well, afraid that him having his guard up could affect his chances of obtaining the acknowledgement of the Winter Stone.

And that was when a sudden change happened.

Lu Tianzi felt his senses failing him all at once, until he could no longer feel anything around him. All sounds and scents had vanished, and he was no longer able to open his eyes.

Even his perception would not extend out at his will.

It was a feeling of complete helplessness, but that sensation only lasted for a moment.

The next thing he knew, cold winds were slapping him on his face once more.

But this was not the cold winds of the cave.

Instead, Lu Tianzi opened his eyes to find himself standing over the top of a cliff, watching down at a seemingly endless stretch of frozen plains.