Chapter 698: Toward the Valley of Death

Third Person’s POV

The value of a Rank Four White Tempest Hawk’s lightning soul was so high that, if Ethan compared it to the three weapons he had extorted from that master refiner, those three weapons wouldn’t even amount to half its value.

That was how precious such a thing was.

Yet Edhan had just casually revealed its existence to a person he had only met moments ago.

Ethan couldn’t help remembering the white lightning sword he had seen earlier.

He still remembered the terrifying brilliance and aura of that attack when it had pierced through the sheep-headed demon’s body just before it could take advantage of his weakened state.

The power behind it had been extraordinary.

Now, looking at the blond young man standing in front of him, Ethan couldn’t help wondering what kind of person he actually was.

Edhan, however, seemed completely oblivious to Ethan’s thoughts.

"You know, if you are wondering why I am revealing secrets about my power..."

He suddenly continued, causing Ethan’s expression to become slightly strange.

"...it’s because you readily accepted your secret of possessing dual elements without even attempting to hide it."

Edhan gestured casually as he spoke.

"You didn’t make up some excuse about that darkness coming from a magical treasure or some special artifact.

You simply admitted that you possess it."

He smiled.

"So I figured there was no reason for me to hide my own ability from you either."

Ethan stared at him.

For some reason, he suddenly wondered whether this was really the same cold, stone-faced man he had seen earlier in the academy square and later in the ruined city.

’What happened to that silent guy?’

"Well—"

Ethan opened his mouth to respond.

Edhan immediately cut him off again.

"Actually, can you tell me something?"

Ethan’s eyebrow twitched.

Edhan leaned slightly closer, his eyes filled with genuine curiosity.

"Why didn’t you use your dark element during your fight with those demons?"

Before Ethan could answer, he continued.

"Also, even though you didn’t use it, I have to say that was a splendid fight.

I can’t say I would have fared much better against that demon in your situation."

Looking at him, Ethan suddenly felt that this guy was far too nosy.

’This guy is really something.’

He seemed like a battle maniac who was unusually curious about anything related to fighting.

And beneath his seemingly normal words and behavior, Ethan could practically feel a faint arrogance radiating from him.

It wasn’t the loud and obvious arrogance of someone who constantly looked down on others.

It was something more deeply ingrained.

The kind of arrogance possessed by someone who genuinely believed in his own strength.

Ethan’s impression of him consequently dropped a little.

He calmly withdrew his hand and replied,

"Thank you for the compliment, Mister Edhan."

His expression became indifferent.

"As for why I didn’t use my dark element..."

He paused for a moment before giving the simplest answer possible.

"I didn’t feel like it."

Edhan’s expression froze for a brief moment.

Ethan didn’t give him any opportunity to continue questioning him.

He simply turned away and looked toward Arlene.

"Princess, I would like to join your party for the remainder of the realm’s expedition.

Is that alright with you?"

Before anyone else could say anything, Arlene’s eyes widened, as she had been thinking about how she should bring this topic up to him.

A hidden delight immediately appeared within them, although she clearly believed that she had concealed it perfectly.

She straightened her posture and quickly restored the dignified expression expected of a princess.

"Yes, it would be my pleasure, Eryndor."

There was a faint brightness in her voice that betrayed more emotion than she intended.

She then turned toward the direction of the ruined city exit.

"Now, shall we head toward the Valley of Death?"

Ethan nodded.

With that, the group was finally ready to continue their expedition.

The group left the ruined city, yet they soon realized that the world outside was still brightly illuminated.

Normally, by this time, both the sky and the icy landscape should have begun to darken, but none of the party members were particularly surprised by the strange phenomenon.

Before entering the Glaciem Ice Abyss, they had already studied the records concerning this realm, and one of the peculiarities mentioned within them was that the light illuminating the entire world seemed to remain constant.

It was nothing like their own world, where pleasant sunshine could suddenly give way to dark clouds and pouring rain, followed by the darkness of night once the sun descended beyond the horizon.

Here, there was seemingly no such change.

Regardless of how much time passed, the world remained trapped beneath the same dull and dreary illumination, with thick layers of icy clouds stretching endlessly across the heavens and obscuring whatever existed beyond them.

The landscape beneath those clouds was equally lifeless, covered in vast stretches of snow and ice that reflected the pale light and made it difficult to distinguish the passage of time.

The Death Valley they were heading toward was the place where the legendary Ice Soul Water was said to be found.

According to the realm records, a large ice spring existed somewhere within the depths of the valley, its waters containing the extremely rare Ice Soul Water.

However, despite the apparent size of the spring, the amount of Ice Soul Water that could actually be obtained from it was extremely limited, making the magical liquid incredibly valuable and highly sought after.

The reason for this scarcity was also connected to one of the most dangerous and well-known threats within the Glaciem Ice Abyss, something that had been clearly recorded in the information they had studied beforehand.

As for the deeper regions of the valley’s caves, there was supposedly something even more precious hidden there.

Frost Origin Dew.

Although Ice Soul Water was already an exceptionally rare treasure and was highly coveted by powerful cultivators, it was still incomparable to Frost Origin Dew.

The latter was even rarer, and the records concerning it were far more limited, making every confirmed drop of it extraordinarily valuable.