Chapter 469: The Depths of the Bridge Ruins (1/2)

Chapter 469: The Depths of the Bridge Ruins

In the blackness of the void, there exists an indescribable coldness. This was a coldness that could, in the briefest of moments, freeze the body of a Nascent Soul Cultivator until it cracked into pieces.

Anyone who possessed a physical body but no cold-resisting treasures would be destroyed.

Only someone who cultivated a divine ability related to fire, and also had a fitting magical item, would be able to survive for long here.

At the moment, Zhixiang was sitting cross-legged on the large rock. She looked over at Meng Hao with her phoenix-like eyes. This was their tenth day traveling through the void. During that entire time, they hadn’t spoken to each other at all. Each sat on one end of the rock, some distance away from each other.

A glittering shield surrounded Meng Hao, preventing the cold on the outside from entering. At first, it had been quite stable, but as the rock continued further into the depths of the void, the shield formed by the five small white stones was gradually beginning to flicker. The further they went, the more it seemed as if it might collapse.

On previous occasions in which Meng Hao had ventured into the void, he had always spent more than ten days in the darkness. This time, however, was different than those previous times.

The cold here was many times stronger than before. Furthermore, the deeper they traveled into the void, the more shocking the cold became. It was so fearsome that even with the protective treasures, it was getting to the point that it was becoming unbearable.

Meng Hao had long since noticed that the rock he was sitting on had actually turned white. The frost which covered everything was growing thicker and had turned into thick ice.

Zhixiang didn’t seem to be having any problems dealing with the cold. She was sitting there cross-legged, surrounded by the freezing cold, looking the same as ever. She had nothing to protect her; she simply rotated her Cultivation base, seemingly sucking in and absorbing any of the coldness that neared her.

This caused Meng Hao to feel even more vigilance than before regarding her.

He could sense that she had looked at him just now. His eyes opened and their gazes met. Cracking sounds could suddenly be heard from Meng Hao’s protective shield. Fissures appeared on its surface, spreading out and growing in quantity. Soon, they covered the entire thing. The shield did not collapse, but it obviously would in a short period of time.

Once it shattered, the coldness would instantly rush in toward Meng Hao.

A contemplative look appeared in Zhixiang’s eyes as she thought to herself, “Perhaps I thought too much of him. I overlooked the problem of the cold; if he can’t get across the void on his own power, then I guess we’ll need to change the terms of our partnership. After all… power is the foundation of any cooperation, and also the basis of respect.” Despite this, she smiled.

Zhixiang’s eyes glittered as she looked at Meng Hao and his shield, which was clearly about to shatter. It really had never occurred to her that he might not be equipped to cross the void in this way. “Fellow Daoist Meng, the coldness here is not something that ordinary Nascent Soul Cultivators can resist. You may have a strange Cultivation base, but I’m afraid you won’t be able to survive either. Why don’t you come over here by me? Anything within ten meters of me will be kept safe.”

Even as the words came out of her mouth, cracks spread out like a spiderweb over his shield. It didn’t seem as if it would last much longer. It was at this point that Meng Hao spoke coldly: “There’s no need.”

His voice was calm and yet powerfully shocking. It seemed to carry an unspeakable confidence as well as grim feeling. When Zhixiang heard his response, her eyes filled with a look of concentration.

She watched as Meng Hao slowly reached his hand out and pushed against the shield. A boom could be heard as the shield trembled and then collapsed. As it did, the five white rocks around Meng Hao all exploded.

The shield disappeared, causing Zhixiang’s eyes to go wide. Meng Hao’s actions completely exceeded her powers of anticipation. How could she have guessed that Meng Hao would dare to personally destroy his own protective shield in such a way?

The instant that the shield collapsed, the surrounding cold from the void rushed in toward Meng Hao. In the blink of an eye, it completely covered him.

However, he continued to sit there cross-legged just as before, his expression placid. He lowered his right hand and closed his eyes to meditate quietly. It was as if he didn’t feel the surrounding cold whatsoever.

Zhixiang looked at him for a long time, having been completely shaken by Meng Hao. She was an Immortal, so she could ignore the cold. But Meng Hao had decisively destroyed his own useless shield, and then relied on only himself to fight back against the cold.

She looked over at him, once again filled with the same admiration as before, if not more. “Ordinary Cultivators, faced with a disintegrating shield, would all take the chance and hope that the shield held. However, this guy did no such thing. He is thoroughly decisive!”

She took him even more seriously now that she could see how he resisted the cold. It seemed that at the moment, he was not out of sorts in any way.

As she sat there thoughtfully, Meng Hao closed his eyes. They didn’t speak any more, but rather sat in silence as the rock continued to fly onward. Half a month passed, and the fearsomeness of the cold continued to grow.