Tang Ling's beautiful eyes flashed with a trace of coldness as the guitar case behind her opened. With a reverse grip, she drew the Extreme Thunder Great Sword and held it against his neck. "I advise you to stay far away from me. Otherwise, I'll take off your head with one slash."
The Profound Yin Saint rebuked angrily, "Impudent! This is an extremely important clue."
The high-ranking officials in the projection also scolded, "Thunder! What are you doing?"
Tang Ling remained silent for a long time. With an expressionless face, she folded the photo. She didn't seem to find the bloodstains dirty but instead carefully placed it over her chest. Then she sheathed her Iron Sword. "Thank you, Nightmare."
After speaking, she turned and walked away.
The crowd exchanged bewildered looks.
"Did you just hear something? Was it an illusion?"
"No, I heard it too."
"Thunder actually said thank you?"
·
·
"Thunder? What are you doing?"
"Balensa City is already sealed. No one can enter now."
"Wait, you…"
The Omegas were visibly angry but dared not speak up, as the overwhelming killing intent in the air made their skin crawl.
Tang Ling passed through the temporary military camp, her face devoid of emotion, walking toward the frozen gates of Balensa City. The immense Divine Path leading up to the city was covered in frost, making the path slippery, but her stride remained steady.
"Thunder?"
The voice of the Xuan Shui Divine General boomed like thunder, "What are you trying to do?"
He was an elderly man, nearly a century old, from the water towns of Xiangxi. His ancestors had been corpse chasers for generations, and he was undeniably a formidable Eighth-rank Divine Officer who had made great contributions to humanity—truly a person of high prestige.
Chen Bojun also turned around, gazing intently at the young woman. "Why are you here?"
Tang Ling walked up to the two of them, not uttering a single word of courtesy. Instead, she asked directly, "How long will it take to gain access?"
Xuan Shui Divine General frowned.
Chen Bojun turned his head and asked, "Changsheng?"
A golden Flying Sword hovered in mid-air as Ying Changsheng's eyes emitted a fierce golden glow. He said mildly, "I can ask for my grandfather's approval and use the Star Disk to leverage the power of the artificial Sun to forcibly transform the environment here. However, if you want to cool things down, it will take at least seven days."
Mu Qingyou, standing on her Flying Sword and gazing into the distance, was also attempting to contact the Silver King.
Hearing this, Tang Ling's chest rose and fell slightly with emotion. She continued walking forward.
"Wait!"
The Xuan Shui Divine General blocked her path. "Have you lost your mind?"
Chen Bojun also advised, "Thunder, calm down. Going in now is tantamount to suicide."
For the vast majority of Ascenders, extreme cold or heat was fatal.
This was because the Inheritance Path generally didn't provide resistance against such extreme environments.
"I'm going to save them."
Tang Ling lifted her hand, and a hint of sword energy coalesced at her fingertips, pressing against her chest. "If you intend to stop me, I will kill myself right here in front of you. Do not try to persuade me, because I won't listen. Do not attempt to overpower me with force, because in the future, it will be me who supports this world, not you."
She said coldly, "And don't flaunt your laughable credentials, because deep down, you know perfectly well—if I were in your position, I would do a much better job than you."
Chen Bojun was at a loss for words.
Instead of anger, the Xuan Shui Divine General's expression stiffened, and he said gravely, "I understand that in the future, you will contribute to the Human World in ways unimaginable to the average person, and I respect you for that. But if I let you through, I won't be able to answer to the President or the Silver King. So, go back by yourself. Don't make me use force."
His eyes emitted a deep black glow as Dark Energy surged around him.
"Even if both teacher and the President were here today, they couldn't stop me. My stance remains the same: if I were their age, they wouldn't even be qualified to stand before me to speak."
Tang Ling exhaled a frosty breath and said coldly, "If not, why would they value me so much?"
Ying Changsheng lowered his gaze upon the young woman. As a descendant of the Ying Family, he understood certain secrets.
Thunder was infamous for her arrogance—not because she thought highly of herself.
It was because that figure at Lishan thought highly of her.
The Human World, for the sake of the future, had unanimously agreed to send this girl to be nurtured in that realm.
She was destined to grow powerful, yet equally destined to lose many things.
To her, this was profoundly unjust.
But no one had ever asked for her opinion.
"Thunder, what nonsense are you spouting?"
Mu Qingyou said coldly, "Such rebellious words."
Tang Ling merely stared into the dense icy fog and spoke in a clear and frosty tone, "If I go in, there's only a possibility I might die. But if you stop me, then I will certainly die."