Chapter 950: Cold Snow City

Unknowingly, the three had already flown over ten thousand miles of snow-covered land. The Snow Song Realm had no oceans, only boundless ice plains. During this journey, what impressed Yun Che most about the Snow Song Realm, besides the divine realm aura completely different from the Azure Cloud Continent, was its suffocating desolation.

Although the Snow Song Realm was far larger than the Azure Cloud Continent, both its human population and profound beasts were incredibly sparse.

"We're here," Mu Bingyun said softly, opening her eyes which had been closed in contemplation.

Their direction of flight suddenly shifted downwards. As the sea of clouds parted, a vast world enveloped in mystical ice mist appeared before Yun Che's eyes.

The temperature dropped sharply, and the already dense aura of heaven and earth quickly grew even richer. Although they were ten thousand feet high, the immense world below stretched beyond their sight. Within the ice mist, glaciers, ice cities, and ice plains were scattered like stars, covered by an imposing, cold pressure that made Yun Che involuntarily hold his breath.

A long cry echoed, piercing ten thousand feet into the sky, as a colossal bird, several hundred zhang long, flew out of the ice mist towards them. The oppressive aura it carried as it approached instantly stiffened Yun Che's entire body. It was an immense pressure beyond his comprehension; he had no doubt that this bird could completely erase him from existence in an instant.

However, there was no hostility in the bird's aura; instead, it altered its flight path, actively making way for them. Its long cry seemed more like a greeting. In the next instant, Yun Che was astonished to see countless similar silhouettes within the pervasive ice mist. There were blue giant birds, white unicorns, various strange ice beasts Yun Che had never seen before... and even ice dragons several thousand zhang long!

Without exception, all profound beasts flying above this world were ice-elemental. Every single one of them, even the weakest, sent shivers down Yun Che's spine.

"This is the Ice Phoenix Realm, the location of the Ice Phoenix Divine Hall," Mu Bingyun explained softly. "Our Ice Phoenix Divine Hall is probably different from the sects you know. The Ice Phoenix Realm is similar in size to the Azure Cloud Continent, but it only has less than two hundred million people."

"Two hundred million?" Yun Che asked, surprised. "Are all two hundred million people part of the Ice Phoenix Divine Hall?"

"No," Mu Bingyun shook her head. "From the disciples of the Falling Snow Palace to the Grand Sect Master, the Ice Phoenix Divine Hall numbers ten million in total. As for the others, most are profound practitioners from the Snow Song Realm, with a minority being ascendants from lower realms. To enter the Ice Phoenix Divine Hall, they reside in the Ice Phoenix Realm year-round for cultivation, settle down, and even establish various small and large forces. You can perhaps understand the Ice Phoenix Realm as a special nation centered around the Ice Phoenix Divine Hall. The Divine Hall is at its core, surrounded by generations of profound practitioners striving to enter it."

Mu Bingyun's gaze flickered slightly at this moment, and she murmured softly, "Sister..."

The ice mist grew thinner. Gradually, a blurry blue silhouette appeared in Yun Che's vision below. He immediately recognized it as a section of a phoenix tail. However, unlike a fiery phoenix, this tail was a shimmering, icy blue. Each feather on it was a city or an enormous palace.

The Ice Phoenix Divine Hall was shaped like an ice phoenix lying on the ground, stretching hundreds of thousands of miles from north to south. Even from this great height, Yun Che's vision could barely make out the outline of just one section of its tail.

Could it be that an Ice Phoenix was truly a phoenix with ice attributes?

The speed of the ice platform beneath their feet suddenly accelerated, so fast that Yun Che instinctively closed his eyes. When he opened them again, the platform's speed abruptly slowed, then stopped completely.

With a soft sound, the ice platform vanished, and Yun Che's feet were already standing on the cold, hard ice crystal ground.

Before him stood incredibly tall buildings, some palaces, some towers, reaching a thousand zhang high, with the shortest being nearly a hundred zhang. All were constructed from ice crystals, reflecting a cold, chilling light. Here, the ice element's density and activity reached its peak. From a distance, figures in white or blue robes swiftly moved about, and occasionally, shadows of various ice-elemental profound beasts and profound boats could be seen.

At the far reaches of his sight stood a palace a thousand zhang tall, even larger than the entire Imperial City of Azure Wind. Atop the palace, an ice crystal phoenix soared with outstretched wings. The endless imposing aura it released almost enveloped the entire world.

Everything felt as if they had suddenly arrived in an icy wonderland.

The Extreme Ice Snow Region was considered the coldest, purest, and most densely active ice-elemental place on the Azure Cloud Continent, yet compared to this place, it was as insignificant as dust.

"Phew! Finally, we're back. This is the first time I've been away from the Ice Phoenix Divine Hall for so long since joining." Mu Xiaolan closed her eyes, taking deep breaths of the pure, cold air. Although she had stayed for a month, the aura of the Azure Cloud Continent was still unbearably murky to her.

"This is the Ice Phoenix Realm," Mu Bingyun said, looking at Yun Che. "Ahead lies Ice Snow City, where the Ice Snow Hall is located. Unofficial disciples cannot enter or leave freely; if they encounter sect disciples, they will surely be questioned. However, since you are with me, you don't need to worry."

"My sister already knows I'm back. I must go see her immediately to prevent her from worrying too much. While I'm there, I will also inform her about your situation," Mu Bingyun said.

"Huh?" Mu Xiaolan gasped softly, then lowered her head and muttered in an extremely low voice: "Even someone like Senior Brother Hanyi finds it hard to see the Great Realm King. How could the Great Realm King pay any attention to a small, bad person from a lower realm like him?"

Mu Bingyun shook her head slightly. "Xiaolan, simply because Yun Che saved my life, my sister will certainly not treat him poorly. Therefore... Yun Che, you don't need to be nervous or uneasy here. Just treat this place as a cultivation ground."

"Alright," Yun Che nodded. "Thank you, Fairy Mu."

Profound practitioners visiting the Ice Phoenix Divine Hall for the first time, even those from the Snow Song Realm, would be trembling with apprehension. As for ascendants from lower realms, they would be extremely nervous and withdrawn. However, what Mu Bingyun saw on Yun Che's face was intense curiosity and faint excitement... she couldn't find any hint of nervousness.

"Xiaolan, take Yun Che to the Main Ice Snow Hall. In my name, get him an Ice Phoenix Medallion directly so he can become an Ice Snow Hall disciple. As for which specific hall he's assigned to, let fate decide. After that, show him around the Ice Snow City area."

"Yes, Master," Mu Xiaolan said, her face full of reluctance.

"Also, let me reiterate: you must not tell anyone about Yun Che detoxifying me and cultivating the Ice Phoenix God Sealing Arts!"

"Master, please rest assured, I absolutely won't say a single word."

Mu Bingyun nodded slightly, then flew up. A blue streak flashed, and she completely vanished from sight.

"Honestly, why is the Venerable Master so good to him..." Mu Xiaolan muttered again, repeating words she had countless times before, her tone clearly tinged with jealousy.

"Cough, Little Sister Xiaolan..."

The moment Yun Che spoke, Mu Xiaolan spun around like lightning, declaring fiercely: "What 'Little Sister Xiaolan'! You must call me Senior Sister! Senior Sister! Also, before I take you to Ice Snow City, you must firmly remember: no running off by yourself, no talking nonsense, and no looking around improperly! Especially since most of our Ice Phoenix Divine Hall disciples are female, you, you, you... you absolutely must not do anything inappropriate, otherwise... otherwise, don't blame me for not warning you."

"Inappropriate things? What are inappropriate things?" Yun Che asked with an innocent expression.

"In short... you can only do what I tell you to do, and if I don't let you do something, you must stand there honestly and do nothing!" Mu Xiaolan said loudly.

"Got it," Yun Che replied rather helplessly.

"Hmph, now you're obedient." Seeing this "lewd bad guy" being quite well-behaved under her lecture, Mu Xiaolan nodded in satisfaction, then flew up. "Follow me."

Led by Mu Xiaolan, Yun Che entered Ice Snow City, where the Ice Snow Hall was located, and headed directly for the Main Ice Snow Hall. The thousand-zhang-tall palace Yun Che first saw upon his arrival was indeed the Main Ice Snow Hall.

North of the Main Ice Snow Hall were the one hundred and eight Ice Snow Halls. Each of these halls was as large as a city in the lower realms.

Upon entering Ice Snow City, the surrounding aura changed again. An extremely high-level, icy cold aura assailed them, and more figures appeared in their line of sight. At this moment, Yun Che suddenly recalled something Jasmine had said earlier. He slightly raised his energy, his profound energy surged, and he abruptly thrust his right arm forward.

Bang!!

With Yun Che's strength, in the Azure Cloud Continent and the Illusory Demon Realm, a strike like this would have been enough to cause widespread spatial collapse. Yet now, where Yun Che's profound energy reached, a deafening air blast resounded, but the space... far from collapsing, showed not even the slightest distortion or ripple.

Yun Che: "..."

Back then, Jasmine had said that the spatial laws of the Divine Realm were far superior to those of the Azure Cloud Continent, and that even with his full power, he couldn't cause the slightest damage to the Divine Realm's space. At the time, he had been somewhat dismissive, but now, he fully understood that Jasmine's words had not been exaggerated in the least.

The Divine Realm and the lower realms... were truly two completely different planes of existence.

"What are you doing?" Mu Xiaolan turned around warily at the sound from behind him.

"Oh... I just wanted to ask, what is this 'Ice Phoenix Medallion' Fairy Mu mentioned earlier?" Yun Che asked.

"It's the identification plaque that signifies you're a disciple of the Ice Phoenix Divine Hall!" Mu Xiaolan explained patiently. "Ice Phoenix Medallions differ for disciples of various ranks. The Falling Snow Palace ones are light blue, the Ice Snow Hall ones are icy blue, and ours at the Ice Phoenix Palace are sky blue!" As she spoke, she pointed to the crystalline jade pendant on her left collarbone, which emitted a fantastical blue light. "Look, it's this! The deeper the color, the higher the rank it signifies. It serves as proof of identity, can be used for storage and communication, and can also absorb cold energy to aid cultivation. All large and small teleportation arrays within the sect also require an Ice Phoenix Medallion to activate, and different medallions can activate different arrays. For instance, the Ice Snow Hall medallion you're about to receive can only activate the teleportation arrays of the Ice Snow Hall and the Falling Snow Palace. If you want to go to the Ice Phoenix Palace area, hmph, there's no way unless my Master or I take you."

Yun Che mumbled, "Oh."

Just then, two beautiful Ice Snow Hall disciples, dressed in white, approached. Seeing Mu Xiaolan, they immediately stepped forward and bowed respectfully. "Senior Sister Xiaolan."

"Strange, why are there so few people here today? Has something happened?" Mu Xiaolan asked them.

The woman on the right replied, "Replying, Senior Sister, today is the last day of the Ice Snow Hall's new disciple assessment for this year. The Hall Master has ordered that, except for disciples on missions, everyone else must remain in their respective halls and not move around freely unless there's a special reason."

"Oh, right!" Mu Xiaolan realized with a start. "It has been these few days, I completely forgot."

"Senior Sister Xiaolan, who is this?" The woman on the right looked at Yun Che. His profound energy aura was only at the Sovereign Profound Realm, and he didn't have an Ice Phoenix Medallion, making him a suspicious person who shouldn't be here.

"He's someone my Master brought from a lower realm. From now on, he'll be your junior brother," Mu Xiaolan explained casually, then waved to Yun Che. "Alright, let's hurry. I completely forgot these days are for the Ice Snow Hall's new disciple assessment. Let's go get his Ice Phoenix Medallion quickly so we don't disturb the hall masters while they're busy."

The two Ice Snow Hall women watched them leave, surprise flashing across their faces. Mu Xiaolan's Venerable Master... that is, the esteemed Ice Cloud Palace Master, brought back someone only at the fifth level of the Sovereign Profound Realm from a lower realm?

As an Ice Phoenix Palace disciple, Mu Xiaolan could practically stride unhindered through Ice Snow City, which was one rank lower. Any Ice Snow Hall disciples she met would immediately greet her.

To enter the Ice Snow Hall, stepping onto the Divine Path was the most basic requirement. Achieving the Divine Origin Realm only granted the qualification to participate in the Ice Snow Hall assessment. Each year, countless individuals reached the Divine Origin Realm yet still didn't qualify to enter the Ice Snow Hall, remaining in the Falling Snow Palace.

Therefore, everyone encountered in Ice Snow City exuded a divine aura. Even those at the powerful Divine Origin Realm were outstanding. Any one of them, if they went to the Azure Cloud Continent, would be an absolutely invincible existence.

This was the terrifying power of the Divine Realm.