This clearing was just like the forest, being completely covered in ice and snow, but for some reason, it was warmer here than it was in the forest.
Looking around, Lin Fan couldn't find anything special about this place. It was very open, so he could clearly see everything that was in this area, but there was only snow that covered the ground here.
Of course, there was something special that was in the very center of this open field, but it was what Lin Fan expected to find.
In the center of the field, there were blades of grass that seemed to be made of ice, but they weren't hard as ice at all. When a breeze blew past these blades of grass, they swayed in the wind just like normal blades of grass.
This was the True Ice Grass that Lin Fan was looking for.
However, Lin Fan wasn't in a hurry to pick these blades of grass…Well, he was in a hurry since he wanted to get them to Angela as soon as possible, but he didn't want to rush because something didn't feel right.
If he wasn't mistaken, it was almost as if this was a trap that had been laid here for him. However, if that was the case, who was the one laying the trap?
Moreover, what purpose would they have for laying this kind of trap?
Lin Fan waited for a few minutes, but he wasn't able to find anything in the end.
Seeing that nothing would change if he didn't do anything, Lin Fan didn't have a choice but to fall into this trap.
However, Lin Fan wasn't worried because he had something that no one else in this realm had. He had the power of this system which would revive him if something did happen to him.
After thinking this, Lin Fan came out of the trees and started walking towards the blades of grass in the middle. While he was moving through this open space, he already had his weapon in his hand and was prepared for anything that would come out at him.
However, even with his guard up, there was nothing that came out of the surrounding area to attack him.
He had made it all the way to the blades of True Ice Grass and was even able to bend over to harvest them without anything happening.
But at the very last second, there was something that happened in the end.
Lin Fan had just bent over when the snow around him suddenly started flying into the sky and surrounding him in a vortex of snow.
Lin Fan stopped bending down and stood straight, raising his weapon which he had transformed into a sword.
However, even if Lin Fan was ready to fight, there was nothing around for him to fight.
He looked all around him, but he wasn't able to sense a single living creature which unsettled him. Even if there weren't any powerful creatures, there should be creatures that were around this area, but there just wasn't a single one here.
That meant that there was something that was keeping them all at bay…
It wasn't until a voice suddenly came from behind Lin Fan that he knew what it was.
"Hmm, let's get rid of this thing first."
Then before Lin Fan could even react or turn around, there was a powerful force that had hit him in the back.
This force sent him flying across this open area and he flew all the way to the edge, slamming and shattering several trees made of ice before coming to a stop by sliding across the ground for several dozen meters.
When he finally came to a stop, Lin Fan couldn't help spitting out a mouthful of blood onto the pure white snow.
He was also able to see a few scattered pieces of green energy that was dissipating around him.
…
Back in the slime house, Lu'er suddenly stood up when she noticed that her barrier had been shattered.
When Lin Fan had been cultivating, she had placed an array on him that contained a barrier created with her full strength. Unless Lin Fan met the master of this Profound Ice Forest, there shouldn't have been anything that could have broken through this barrier.
Could it be that?...
If it was, she really didn't believe that Lin Fan would be able to make it out of this situation alive.
After a moment of silence, she muttered under her breath, "I'm sorry young miss, I tried my best."
Then without any hesitation, she had the slime mount start to move as she ordered it to head back to the castle.
With her power, there was no way for her to retrieve Lin Fan's corpse from the Profound Ice Forest and there was a more pressing matter for her to deal with right now, so she didn't have any time to waste here. She had to get back and resolve the issue of the young miss, so she could only say sorry to Lin Fan, but she would be leaving his corpse here.
In her mind, she was already certain that Lin Fan was dead since she didn't believe that Lin Fan would be able to fight the master of the Profound Ice Forest.
What she didn't know was that even if Lin Fan had died, he wouldn't die for real as long as he had his system with him.
But she didn't know that, so she didn't feel like there was a reason to stay here any longer.
With a quick spring, the slime immediately flew out in the direction of the castle, disappearing without a trace in just a few seconds.
…
Lin Fan looked at these tiny wisps of green energy and he could tell that they were most likely from Lu'er. This should have been a barrier that she had put around him, which had touched him in the end, but there was no time for him to think about this as there were more pressing matters to handle.
When Lin Fan finally stabilized himself, he immediately looked back in the direction that he had been sent flying from to see who had done it, but all he was able to see was the vortex of snow in the center of the open field.
Since he wasn't able to find the thing that had just attacked him, Lin Fan quickly stood and raised his weapon as he raised his guard, but that didn't stop the voice from sounding out behind him.
"What are you doing?"
Lin Fan immediately turned the moment that he heard this voice, but he found that the source was already gone.
Lin Fan released his spiritual sense to try and find it again, but there was nothing to be found at all.
Still, at the very least, Lin Fan could tell that while whatever this was had attacked him, it didn't want to kill him.
With the first attack just now, based on how strong the life energy that it contained was, if whatever had attacked him wanted to kill him, he would already be dead.
Even if something did block that first attack, it would have definitely been able to kill him with a second attack, but for some reason, whatever this thing was hadn't attacked him and had just asked him a question.
After taking a deep breath, Lin Fan asked, "Who are you?"
There was a giggle that came from around him before a voice said, "You're in my territory and you're asking me who I am? Shouldn't I be the one asking who you are?"
Lin Fan knitted his brows when he heard this.
Based on what it had just said and the intensity of the attack that he had just faced, Lin Fan's guess was that whatever this was was the spirit that Angela had told him about before. This was the one spirit that she couldn't control, the one spirit that was only second to her in this entire realm.
Lin Fan had hoped that he wouldn't run into this spirit on this trip, but the worst scenario had happened in the end and it had appeared before him in the end.
Lin Fan was silent for a bit before saying, "I just want to take something and then I'll be out of your hair."
There was a laugh that rang out around him again before the voice said, "Normally when someone steals something, they try to hide it. You really are something else, openly admitting that you want to steal something from my territory."
Then that voice turned sharp and fierce as it said, "What should I do with this little thief?"
Lin Fan calmly said, "Let him take his prize for being honest and let him go?"
There was a pause from around him before the voice broke out in laughter again, "You really don't have any fear at all, do you?"
Lin Fan said once again in a calm voice, "Is there a reason to be afraid?"
The voice slowly said, "Well…I think so."
Then before Lin Fan could even react, the snow and ice from under his feet suddenly came up into the air and formed icicles that were pointed right at his neck in a circle. They weren't just sharp, they were also ice cold, so cold that Lin Fan's skin was already turning blue even though they weren't touching him at all.
The voice said in a playful tone, "How about we play a game instead? I'll give you one minute to tell me why I shouldn't skewer you right now."