At the sight of Wei Yuan, the maiden let out a shriek, spun around, and bolted.
Wei Yuan moved on instinct, giving chase at once. Reaching out, he seized the back of her neck and hoisted her into the air.
The maiden wept as she struggled, tears streaming like rain on pear blossoms, looking thoroughly pitiful. Amid her thrashing, her clothes fell into disarray, baring much that ought not to be bared; even what should have been kept most concealed swayed right before Wei Yuan's eyes.
Wei Yuan merely stared at her, lost in thought. He made no move to strip her clothes, nor did he help tidy them.
Realizing her predicament, the maiden hastily covered her chest with her hands. Yet how could two slender arms conceal such towering peaks? Pushing down on one side only let the other spill over, a futile effort to attend to one without neglecting the other.
Wei Yuan watched, remaining pensive.
Suddenly feeling the grip on the back of her neck tighten, she cried out in pain and opened her mouth impossibly wide—wide enough to swallow Wei Yuan whole—and bit down squarely on his entire upper body!
Wei Yuan's torso turned translucent. The maiden possessed an extraordinary divine quirk that allowed her to bite directly into a Dao Foundation. Consequently, she was currently hugging a giant boulder, gnawing on it with all her might, chipping and breaking several of her teeth in the process.
Another Wei Yuan appeared beside the maiden, pointing at the nearby mud. "Why not try chewing here? It's softer."
The maiden raised her head, completely heedless of the blood filling her mouth. "How boring! Why do you see through it every single time?"
"This game isn't fun. If I fail to see through it one of these times, do you plan to actually swallow me? This is the last time. Next time, I won't be so polite," Wei Yuan said sternly.
The maiden pouted crossly. "Hmph, so stingy! You get to gorge yourself back in the Native Realm, but what's so wrong with letting me have one bite when you come over here?"
As she fumed, her chest rose and fell, the twin peaks putting on a splendid display.
"Some things are beyond my control. You had best not come inside again," Wei Yuan warned once more.
At this moment, beyond the maiden's awareness, a full moon hung high in the sky. In the shadows of the moon, a vertical pupil faintly opened, scrutinizing her. It seemed mildly tempted, yet turned away in distaste, finding her too skinny.
Wei Yuan was not lacking karmic luck at the moment, was unfamiliar with the Nether Cold Realm, and still needed to cooperate with Dream Eater. Thus, he hauled the maiden up and exited his Dao Foundation.
The maiden sighed. "I'll take you to my palace."
Taking Wei Yuan by the hand, the scenery before them shifted, transforming the world in an instant. When their surroundings cleared, the two were standing atop a small hill. Four broken stone pillars stood there, crowned by a canopy resembling a tarpaulin tied to their tops. Beneath it were several piles of rocks that vaguely resembled a bed, a table, and a few stone stools.
And that was it.
The only things that could even be called a structure were the four stone pillars, their surfaces weathered and mottled, relics of an unknown dynasty. The sole artifact of civilization was that tarpaulin—and perhaps the ropes tying it down, if one was being generous.
This palace was truly pathetic. Even mortals in his domain lived better than this. It seemed Dream Eater was not doing well in the Nether Cold Realm at all.
Catching Wei Yuan's expression, Dream Eater flew into a rage and shouted, "This isn't the outside world! It's both virtual and real! Do you think creating things here is that easy? This sheet is a magical treasure that took this lady bitter effort to refine! Go ask the other great demons—who among them doesn't live in a cave? Around these parts, I, Dream Eater, am the only one who can still sit aboveground drinking tea when it rains!"
Wei Yuan's interest was piqued. "You can't move about outside when it rains?"
Dream Eater replied coldly, "The wind and rain here are formed from the qi of the Outer Domains and can erode one's nascent divinity. Only Nether Shamans with their own domains can move freely in the rain. Aside from that, during sandstorms, molten fire weather, or plague fly swarms, no one can stay aboveground. If not for such perils, why would this place be called a land of bizarre extremity?"
Stirred by an intuition, Wei Yuan looked up at the sky. Raindrops had begun falling, pattering against the canopy.
Walking to the edge, Wei Yuan held out his hand to catch a drop. The moment it landed on his palm, a violent shudder ran through him. The droplet seemed to carry boundless frigidity, nearly freezing his nascent divinity solid!
Fortunately, the immortal laurel branch flashed with a gleam of light, neutralizing the cold qi and restoring Wei Yuan to normal.
Seeing Wei Yuan catch a raindrop as if it were nothing, Dream Eater looked surprised. "Looks like you're a bit more capable than I thought. Maybe you really can help fulfill my wish. Let's get down to business."
She pointed a finger, conjuring an intricate red light seal before them. The script bore no resemblance to any writing Wei Yuan knew, yet it held deep dharmic power.
"This is our unique method of transmission. The seal contains basic great demon script, which will allow you to communicate with other great demons in the future. In addition, there is a spell within it that forecasts the weather for the coming day. It's a common spell in the Nether Cold Realm and an absolute necessity for survival."
Wei Yuan reached out and tapped the seal gently. It dissolved into a stream of light, flowing into his sea of consciousness, and a wealth of knowledge instantly flooded his memory. He learned roughly three hundred demon characters. Each possessed multiple meanings, and their combinatorial rules were exceedingly intricate. Although few in number, they were more than enough for communication.
Intrigued by a spell that allowed instantaneous learning, Wei Yuan asked, "Can you teach me how to create this seal?"
Dream Eater snorted. "This is my exclusive art. Just like Outer Domain essence, if you want to learn it, you'll have to trade something for it."
Then, another seal appeared before Wei Yuan, completely distinct from the first.
"This is a map of the Nether Cold Realm. My territory is marked on it, as well as the direction of Shu Li's realm. There's also another Nether Shaman's domain nearby that I've marked; be careful around there. Other than that, there isn't much else. You've seen what the Nether Cold Realm looks like—there are no special landmarks. Most unique features are tied to the Outer Domains, and many are mobile. Occasionally, rare treasures unique to this place are spawned, but whether you encounter any depends entirely on your luck."
Wei Yuan touched the seal, and another map appeared in his mind. However, it was exceedingly crude, showing only basic terrain. A large circle had been drawn on it with a stick-figure smiley face inside—Dream Eater's territory.
Near the edge of the circle was a small cross marking where they currently stood. At the edge of the map were two arrows pointing toward the Nether Shamans' realms. One arrow was particularly thick, bearing an exceptionally hideous face—evidently indicating the direction of Shu Li's domain.
Attached to the map was a minor spell allowing Wei Yuan to set a marker anywhere in the Nether Cold Realm. When he returned, he would appear at that marked location. The marker also served to stake a territorial claim; a small surrounding area would be recognized as his domain, signaling to passing great demons that the land had a master. How they chose to react, however, was another matter entirely.
According to Dream Eater, her relationships with the other great demons were exceptionally good—meaning Wei Yuan needed to be on guard against every single great demon in the Nether Cold Realm.
What Dream Eater provided was essentially what Wei Yuan wanted, so he waved goodbye to her. In the next instant, Wei Yuan appeared in a wilderness, surrounded by rolling hills with mountains and forests in the distance. On the map, the small circle representing Dream Eater's territory had shrunk to a far corner, indicating that he was a considerable distance away from her domain.
By sending him so far away in one go, Dream Eater clearly wanted to avoid being associated with him, lest the Nether Shamans come knocking to demand answers later. The social ecology of this Nether Cold Realm was truly intriguing.
Looking around, Wei Yuan ran up a nearby hill, picked a sheltered, softer hollow halfway up the slope, drew his immortal sword Iron Cutter, and began digging a cave.
The first lesson of the Nether Cold Realm was never to get caught in the rain or suffer the chill.
Iron Cutter was renowned for its sharpness; cleaving stone posed no challenge, let alone digging through soil. The hill's surface was a layer of dirt, but beneath it lay solid rock. Wei Yuan sliced directly through the stone, transporting the excavated earth and rubble straight into his Dao Foundation without leaving a trace. In the blink of an eye, he had tunneled deep into the hill.
Just as he was happily excavating, Wei Yuan's hairs suddenly stood on end, an overwhelming terror gripping his soul! He flashed out of the cave in an instant, a slender golden cauldron appearing in his hand, a pagoda spire poking from its mouth.
Gazing at the gleaming golden cauldron, Wei Yuan shifted his thought, and it instantly turned a dull, inconspicuous gray, blending seamlessly with the surroundings.
Crawling flat on his belly, Wei Yuan crept to the hilltop and peeked out. Before him lay a vast, boundless wilderness whipped by howling winds, across which countless dark silhouettes fled in panic. The sky had turned pitch-black, split from time to time by long streaks of lightning tearing through the gloom!
The gale quickly escalated into a tempest, whipping Wei Yuan's hair wildly and making it nearly impossible to keep his eyes open. The wind carried threads of yin cold that set even Wei Yuan shivering.
Then the clouds parted, and a mountain range plummeted from the sky, crashing heavily onto the earth!
The violent shockwave tossed Wei Yuan straight off the ground before slamming him back down. Boulders and loose debris across the vicinity were launched into midair, raining down upon Wei Yuan in a noisy clatter.
With his formidable nascent divinity, Wei Yuan braved the gale and tremors, instantly catching sight of the mountain's true shape.
That was no mountain—it was a claw as massive as a mountain range! And only a single claw!
Was this what Dream Eater called an Outer Domain creature?! This went far beyond dangerous—it was practically world-ending! Staring at that claw, which was at least tens of thousands of zhang across, Wei Yuan realized that when it came to harvesting essence from such a thing, he wasn't crazy enough just yet.
At that moment, the clouds overhead exploded apart, and another claw stomped down directly atop Wei Yuan!
The damn thing had two legs?! Wei Yuan didn't even have time to curse before vanishing on the spot, fleeing back to the Native Realm.
Wei Yuan's very first journey to the Nether Cold Realm had left him thoroughly traumatized.
Chapter 201