Published: February 11, 2025
Chapter
Garan was furious, but the one she hated the most was herself.
She desperately wanted to show off in front of Ye Zhongming.
Her personality was extroverted on the outside and cold on the inside; she was decisive in her actions, and when it mattered, she was willing to take risks. These were Garan's strengths, making it easier for her to become the boss. Nalan had let her handle most things, as Mina's personality was more reserved and she didn't have Garan's thick skin. Mina was willing to allow her good friend to lead and continuously develop their team.
However, this didn't mean that Garan shouldn't be strong. On the contrary, she might not be as resilient as Mina.
She was unwilling to admit defeat even in front of those powerful forces, let alone in front of a man who verbally despised her but had given her considerable benefits!
Thus, she made a mistake.
This mistake wouldn't be too significant in the grand scheme of things; it was simply her unfamiliarity with the new equipment, leading to a slight discomfort during use.
Usually, this kind of discomfort wouldn't have much impact, and experienced evolvers could completely avoid it. They would just need to practice with their new gear and hone their skills against a weaker mutated creature.
But although Garan had a few minutes to familiarize herself, that time was still too short to fully utilize her abilities. It could be said that it was a bit rushed.
As a result, while operating, she lost control of her retreating muscles and balance, causing her to make a slight noise as her foot landed.
The empty corridors of the Ice Passage were like sound and light sensors; noise could trigger them, and even blocking them could trigger them too. Garan's slip was enough to cause the entire area to erupt.
Both Ye Zhongming and Garan were caught off guard.
If they had charged in amidst the ice mist from the start, they might not have panicked because that would have been the worst-case scenario. But this sudden surprise caught even Ye Zhongming off guard; after all, he had thought they could safely proceed.
The overwhelming ice weapons instantly filled the corridor, and countless ice insects surged towards their desired prey—heat.
Even with Ye Zhongming's strong defenses, he had to fully activate the scorching flame combat technique to resist such a sudden blow.
Garan was even worse off; aside from experiencing this kind of attack for the first time, she found herself trapped midway in the corridor. It was as if the moment she touched the emptiness here, countless ice insects inundated her unprotected areas, and she felt her body temperature plummet. The next moment, she feared she might be frozen into an ice sculpture.
Initially, she had been just a few meters away from the entrance and had quickly run back, but now she was in the middle, the thickest area of ice mist.
Fortunately, her new battle armor provided sufficient protection, covering vital areas like her neck, and even her forearms were well-protected. Combined with the gloves and mask she had prepared earlier, the number of ice insects that managed to slip through the gaps was far less than Garan had feared.
Instinctively, she activated her fire-blowing skill, and a ball of flame burst forth from her armor. The red flames reacted violently with the surrounding ice mist, creating large amounts of steam. However, before it could dissipate, it met the outside low temperatures, freezing into large chunks of ice that were carried away by the still-present ice mist. When they crashed against the wall, they made a crisp sound as they shattered.
Both of them reacted appropriately; if they could just endure the momentary discomfort, Ye Zhongming would pull Garan away from here.
But not everything went as Ye Zhongming had anticipated.
He understood the power of the ice mist and the ice insects, but he couldn't grasp their characteristics in such a short time.
For instance, their ability to obscure presence.
Once the ice mist erupted, Ye Zhongming's presence was concealed.