Chapter 467: Beiming Hanyuan, Underground Ice Palace

The first rays of dawn spilled onto the plaza of the Cultivation Science Headquarters, where Lin Xuan and Xiao Yuan were already packed and ready to go. Five Nascent Soul Stage experts stood in two rows, their expressions solemn. Members of the headquarters came one after another to see them off, and a heavy, grave atmosphere permeated the air.

"You must return safely." Xu Feng gripped Lin Xuan's hand, a complex light flickering in his eyes. He knew that the danger level of this mission far exceeded any previous one.

Lin Xuan nodded, his gaze firm: "Don't worry, Xiao Yuan and I will both be careful. The Heaven and Earth Origin is linked to the fate of the entire world; we must find it."

The farewell ceremony was brief and warm. Zhang Qingsong personally presented the two with specially made communication talismans, capable of penetrating the interference of extreme environments to maintain contact with the outside world. Luosang Renboqie gifted each of them a string of Buddha Sect prayer beads, which were said to be able to protect the mind and spirit in moments of crisis.

"Let's go." Lin Xuan took a deep breath, exchanged a look with Xiao Yuan, and the two stepped forward in unison.

The team boarded the Cultivation Science Headquarters' most advanced aircraft, the "Rainbow Swan," and flew directly toward the Arctic Circle. Along the way, Lin Xuan silently practiced the technique within the Void Seed, feeling the flow and transformation of the two forces of void and reality within his body. Whenever he circulated the "Yin and Yang Void-Reality Art," a faint, five-colored halo would emerge around his body, possessing both the heaviness of physical force and the ethereal nature of Void power.

Xiao Yuan sat to the side, occasionally closing her eyes to deduce, occasionally recording what she saw. The Fate Compass floated quietly in front of her, occasionally vibrating slightly and pointing in some unknown direction.

"Can you sense anything?" Lin Xuan asked softly.

Xiao Yuan opened her eyes and shook her head gently: "Only blurry images, a land of extreme cold; it seems something is hidden beneath the ice... but I cannot see clearly what it is."

The aircraft crossed more than half of the Diqiu, and the temperature dropped sharply as the latitude increased. By the time they approached their destination, the world outside the window was pure white, with endless ice fields shimmering with blinding light under the sun.

"We have arrived." The Nascent Soul expert leading the team pointed ahead, "The aircraft cannot proceed any further; we must walk the remaining distance ourselves."

The group landed on a vast ice field. Although it was summer, the temperature was still as low as minus forty degrees. In such an environment, an ordinary person would suffer frostbite or even die in less than ten minutes, but for a Practitioner, it was not much of a challenge.

"Beiming Hanyuan is about fifty kilometers from here," the leader said, taking out a 3D map, "We will cross this ice field, then a glacier zone, and only then will we reach the entrance to the Han Yuan."

The team advanced cautiously. As they went deeper, the temperature continued to drop, soon breaking through minus sixty degrees. Ordinary signs of life had completely disappeared; even the toughest moss could not survive here.

"How strange," Xiao Yuan suddenly stopped, "I feel a faint energy fluctuation, but it doesn't seem like natural energy, nor does it seem like Void power."

Lin Xuan closed his eyes to sense it and indeed captured a trace of abnormality: "It could be the aura of the Heaven and Earth Origin; let's continue forward."

After nearly six hours of arduous trekking, a massive ice-sealed canyon finally appeared before them. The canyon was about five hundred meters wide and bottomless, covered by a thick layer of ice above, leaving only a narrow fissure in the center. The wind blowing from the fissure was chilling to the bone, and even the Nascent Soul Stage experts could not help but shiver.

"This is Beiming Hanyuan," the leader said solemnly, "Legend has it that the temperature here can reach minus one hundred and fifty degrees, approaching absolute zero, and the activity of any life form would stop in an instant."

Lin Xuan tried to probe the interior of the canyon with Void power, but as soon as his detection range entered the canyon, he felt a surge of extreme cold invade his body, nearly freezing his true essence.

"Conventional cultivation methods are likely difficult to use inside," he said in a low voice, "The cold is too overbearing; it can directly freeze the circulation of spiritual power."

Just as the group was discussing countermeasures, the Fate Compass at Xiao Yuan's waist suddenly vibrated violently, then floated up on its own, pointing toward an ice wall on the side of the canyon.

"There's something over there!" Xiao Yuan exclaimed.

The group immediately approached the ice wall to check, but they saw only a thick layer of ice. Lin Xuan channeled his Void power and carefully probed into the ice layer, soon discovering a hidden opening.

"This is a secret passage," Lin Xuan said pleasantly surprised, "It looks like it leads deep into the canyon!"

After some discussion, it was decided that Lin Xuan and Xiao Yuan would proceed along the secret passage to search for the Heaven and Earth Origin, while the five Nascent Soul experts would remain on the perimeter to keep watch and ensure a safe retreat for the two.

"Stay in contact," the leader instructed, "If there is danger, signal immediately, and we will provide reinforcements at once."

Lin Xuan nodded, then he and Xiao Yuan bid farewell to the group and ducked into the secret passage within the ice layer. The interior of the passage was more spacious than imagined, about two meters high and one point five meters wide, formed entirely of ice. As they went deeper, the temperature dropped sharply, soon breaking through minus eighty degrees.

Even with her protective Dharma Artifact, Xiao Yuan began to feel difficulty breathing, her lips turning purple. Seeing this, Lin Xuan immediately activated the "Yin and Yang Void-Reality Art," forming a protective shield around the two. The extreme cold outside the shield was absorbed and Zhuanghua by the Void power, while the interior was maintained at a suitable temperature by natural energy.

"How amazing," Xiao Yuan marveled, feeling the warm airflow inside the shield, "Your technique is becoming increasingly exquisite."

Lin Xuan smiled: "The Void Seed is indeed extraordinary; the cultivation system within it is a completely different path from our traditional cultivation, but when the two are combined, the effect is surprisingly good."

The two continued forward, the passage gradually sloping downward, and the temperature dropped further. At the end of the passage was a massive ice cave; the space inside was open, about a hundred meters high and several hundred meters wide, like an underground Bing Gong.

"Careful!" Just as they stepped into the Bing Gong, Lin Xuan suddenly felt a palpitation and pulled Xiao Yuan back a few steps.

At that moment, a loud boom came from the depths of the Bing Gong, and the entire space shook. This was followed by a deafening sound of ice cracking; the ice walls on both sides of the Bing Gong collapsed simultaneously, and countless giant ice spikes descended from the sky.

Lin Xuan pulled Xiao Yuan to dodge quickly while reinforcing the protective shield to block the falling ice. Just as they thought the crisis was over, an even more shocking scene appeared—beneath the ice, dozens of giant beasts, blue and white all over, resembling tigers but with six legs, were lurking. Each was the size of a small car, and their sharp ice claws and fangs shimmered with a cold light in the dim glow.

"Bingyan Shou!" Xiao Yuan's eyes widened, "Ancient cold beasts that were rumored to have long been extinct, they actually survived here!"

Lin Xuan quickly assumed a fighting stance: "They seem to have set their sights on us!"

Sure enough, the leading Bingyan Shou let out a low roar, and the remaining Bingyan Shou immediately fanned out, surrounding the two. Their movements were incredibly agile, and they were like fish in water in the extreme cold environment, their speed completely unaffected.