Death... and me

Lilia shut her mouth after that, not saying anything else. In theory, the people who followed the top ten powers were expecting them to find a way out. They just had to follow and fight for the scraps left behind by the top ten powers' disciples. They believed the top ten powers wouldn't enter the barrier if they didn't know a way out. The fact they knew about the wave increased that notion. Rean's group, however, was nowhere near where the top ten powers' disciples were.

Roan then looked ahead before saying, "Alright, let's move forward. We all know that it would take months to make our way into the area that matters in the Lost Star Realm's depths. Since the Lanqueas Sect's disciples and the others still risked entering the barrier to head there, it means the next wave will take a very long time to appear. It should take at least a year."

"How do you know that?" Hurio could not help but ask.

Rean answered the question in place of Roan. "Didn't you say it yourself? The top ten powers had been waiting outside the barrier ever since you arrived. How long was that?"

Lilia's eyes lit up when she heard the question. "Eleven months! We arrived eleven months ago at the barrier, and they were already waiting for the Light Element wave at that time."

"I see now." Fortunately, Hurio understood after that. "Unless the top ten powers were sure that the next wave wouldn't come so soon, they wouldn't head inside. They waited more than eleven months for sure, which means the next one is bound to take longer than that."

Roan nodded in response. "That's why I don't think the next wave will appear in the next year at the very least. Of course, we might all be wrong. They might know a way to protect themselves when the next one comes and will leave everyone else to die."

Hurio and Lilia felt a chill on their backs after that. However, there was no way to find out about it.

Kentucky didn't seem to mind that much, though. "What's the point in guessing what they're thinking? We should focus on our own journey. Who knows? We might find a way out once we get there. Since we're already here, let's just go."

Rean and Roan agreed with Kentucky. "He's right. Kentucky, bring us there."

"On it!" Kentucky immediately increased his speed.

At the same time, Roan looked at Hurio and Lilia and asked them, "Since you two are more aware of what we can expect inside the depths of the Lost Star Realm, you should know the best routes, right?"

Lilia and Hurio nodded in response. "Indeed. The depths have three different levels for those who wish to reach the ancient ruins located at the end. Each level only has a few passages that can be taken. The others are inside that twenty-meter height restriction, so we can't use them."

"Three levels?"

Hurio nodded and continued, "They aren't much different from the rest of the Lost Star Realm. Of course, that's only in terms of their appearance. As a whole, they're still a lot more dangerous due to the ancient beasts and ancient formations."

Rean nodded after hearing that. "The ancient beasts seem to not be a problem this time. We now know why there were so many in the outskirts. They were also fleeing from that Light Element wave. Of course, there might still be some out there that could resist the wave. After all, those beasts are ridiculously powerful."

Hurio agreed with Rean. "True. In any case, the ancient formations are guaranteed to be working. Now, these are the common dangers. I'll now explain the first level, which should be around five months away from us, considering our actual speed."

"The first level is covered by a snowstorm that never dies down. The snowstorm itself is the problem. It has some kind of freezing energy, which you must constantly keep outside. The time we can stay inside depends on how long we can hold the freezing energy outside. It consumes a lot of Divine Energy, so I would say that we won't last more than a day or two at our current level. Of course, if we use Divine Stones to replenish our Divine Energy, we should last a lot longer."

Lilia then continued where Hurio left off, saying, "However, we absolutely must pass through it within a month."

"Why?" Rean and Roan asked in response. After all, they didn't lack in Divine Stones, and they doubt Hurio and Lilia lacked them either.

"Because of the freezing mark," Hurio replied. "No one knows how it happens, but as soon as you enter the first level, an ice blue mark will appear on your forehead. It can't be blocked by neither Divine Energy nor Soul Power. Yang Energy and Elements seem useless as well."

Rean and Roan had to admit it was quite strange. "So, what's the problem with the mark?"

Hurio nodded and continued, "This mark will start out very faint, barely visible at all. Obviously, the longer you stay there, the more visible it becomes. After many years, people understood that it takes around a month for the mark to appear completely. Cultivation, race, gender, nothing matters. The time is the same for everyone. As soon as it finishes taking form, your body will instantly freeze up. There is no way to fight it back, as far as we know."

Rean then asked another thing to the couple. "Will it disappear once we traverse the first level?"

"Not quite," Lilia replied. "It will disappear eventually. However, the time for it to disappear is the same as the time you spent in the first level. If you take ten days to traverse the first level, the mark will take ten days to disappear after that. Naturally, if you head back to the first level, it will restart to take form."

Rean couldn't help but comment after hearing that. "Such a weird thing..."

However, Roan narrowed his eyes, asking soon after, "Three levels, one mark... could it be that the two other levels also have marks?"

Hurio and Lilia nodded in response. "Indeed, all three levels have this system. Although there are differences between them."

Roan couldn't help but feel like he was on to something here.