chsdbacks Chapter 560 Stepping into the North Wind Barrier
Chapter 560 Stepping into the North Wind Barrier
The runes should have been shimmering with brilliant light, maintaining the sealing power of the barrier, but at this moment, most of them were dim and lifeless, like lamps that had been extinguished.
The surface of the ice wall is covered with crisscrossing cracks, some as thick as an arm, others as dense as a spider web.
One of the cracks was particularly conspicuous, with neat and smooth edges, which could not have been caused by the impact of a magical beast—the claw strikes and collisions of magical beasts would leave jagged cracks on the ice wall, but the edges of this crack were like laser-cut glass, so smooth that they could reflect light.
This is clearly a mark left by some special force that deliberately penetrated it.
The remaining cracks were chaotic and disorderly, clearly caused by the restless impact of the internal monsters. They extended from the inside out, forming a dangerous intersection with the crack that ran from the outside in.
Lin Tian stopped, and Xiao Bai landed on his shoulder. The dragon's body curled up slightly, its scales standing on end, sensing the terrifying aura emanating from inside the barrier.
Its tail was wrapped around Lin Tian's arm, the tip of its tail trembling slightly—not from fear, but from excitement, an instinctive reaction before encountering a powerful enemy.
Celia stood beside him, her shadow energy surging slightly, wary of any potential dangers around the barrier.
Her fingers were slightly bent, and shadows gathered at her fingertips, ready to unleash a skill at any moment.
[System Notification: You have discovered the Ancient Barrier - North Wind Barrier]
[Current seal integrity: 62%]
[Dual sources of damage detected: one is structural cracks caused by deliberate human penetration, and the other is energy node displacement caused by continuous impacts from high-level magical beasts inside.]
[Warning: If the seal's integrity drops below 50%, the leader-level monster guarding the barrier will break free and trigger a catastrophe in the North.]
At that time, not only will the North Wind Barrier completely collapse, but all living things within a radius of 100 miles will face annihilation.
]
Lin Tian raised his hand and reached for the North Wind Pass in his backpack, feeling the distinct coolness of the token.
The token's temperature was lower than before, probably because it was close to the barrier, and the ice attribute on the token was activated by the barrier's resonance.
This token, personally granted by the city lord, is the only credential that allows safe entry into the barrier's interior.
Forcibly breaking through the ice wall of the barrier will only further damage the seal, and may even directly trigger the barrier's collapse mechanism—it is said that once that mechanism is activated, the entire barrier will explode in an instant, evaporating all the magical beasts sealed inside along with the land within a ten-mile radius.
A pale blue light burst forth from the token and landed directly on the ice wall of the barrier in front of it.
Where the light passed, ice crystal runes slowly lit up, like a path of light extending on the ice wall.
After the dim runes were activated by the token's light, they began to emit a faint blue glow again. Although it was far less bright than in its prime, it at least proved that the barrier's core function had not been completely lost.
A portal, just wide enough for one person to pass through, slowly took shape on the ice wall. The edges of the portal were curved by halos of light, and the light curtain inside was a hazy white, obscuring the view behind it.
Inside the portal was a completely separate space of ice and snow.
A gray sky covered the area, and the ground was covered with an extremely thick layer of ice, with towering ice pillars and steep ice cliffs everywhere.
A chilling aura, far more intense than that outside, surged from the portal, mixed with the ferocious aura of a high-level magical beast.
The aura felt like something tangible, and it carried a sense of oppression as it approached. An ordinary person standing in front of the portal might be so frightened that their legs would go weak.
The monsters inside the barrier are all at least level 75 or higher, and there are even top-tier bosses at level 80.
Even if ordinary players were to enter, they would only become food for the monsters.
But Lin Tian is no ordinary player.
Lin Tian's gaze was calm, without the slightest fear or hesitation.
He moved swiftly and stepped directly into the light gate of the North Wind Barrier.
The moment his foot stepped across the threshold, he felt a powerful suction coming from inside, as if something was pulling him in, or as if the space itself was welcoming him—or rather, waiting for him.
Celia followed closely behind, her figure disappearing into the portal of light.
Little White transformed into a streak of silver light, brushing against Lin Tian's shoulder as they entered together. The scales emitted a dazzling light the moment they passed through the light gate, as if they resonated with the energy of the barrier.
The portal slowly closed behind them, transforming back into a smooth ice crystal wall, as if it had never existed.
The activated runes dimmed again, and the entire ice wall returned to its deathly silence.
The moment Lin Tian stepped inside the barrier, he clearly sensed that the energy concentration around him was far greater than that outside, and the ice energy was so concentrated that it was almost solidified.
Tiny ice crystals float in the air, and with each breath, you can feel the cool sensation of the ice crystals melting in your nasal cavity.
At the same time, several powerful life auras roamed in all directions. The farthest aura was even hidden deep in the ice field, exuding a sense of oppression that made ordinary players despair—that was the guardian leader inside the barrier, and also the core target that needed to be dealt with in this trial.
Lin Tian quickly estimated the strength of that aura in his mind; it was around level 80, and not just any level 80, but a boss template, with attributes and skills that were more than a level higher than ordinary monsters of the same level.
Lin Tian did not immediately advance deeper, but instead slightly raised his eyes and glanced at the level 75 Ice Armor Rhinoceros and Frost Claw Beasts roaming around him.
The native magical beasts inside these barriers are far more powerful than their counterparts outside, with significantly improved attributes and damage.
The level 75 elite monsters outside have roughly the same level of health and attack power, while these native monsters inside have at least 30% more.
But in his eyes, they were still just experiences and improvement points waiting to be harvested.
The power of stars gathered in his palm once more, and the outline of the [Starry Sky Storm] skill was already formed.
The energy of the skill condensed into a rotating ball of light in his palm. The color of the ball gradually changed from dark blue to light blue, with a dazzling white at its core.
The massive star storm is enough to instantly clear out all the monsters blocking its way.
He only needs to throw the ball of light out, and it will explode upon landing, turning into a star storm covering a radius of 100 meters, tearing all enemies to shreds.
Further away, beneath the icy cliffs, a faint trace of human life was huddled behind a secondary barrier membrane, surrounded by layers of magical beasts, barely clinging to life.
The aura was very faint, like a candle in the wind, which could be extinguished at any moment.
Lin Tian could sense the person's heartbeat—it was slow, but still rhythmic, indicating that the person was still alive, but extremely weak.