"Master, what is going on?" Yuying's voice echoed from within Fruity's Soul Sea as the energy burst out of him.
"I don't really know, but my Hypnotic Ice seems to be reacting to the illusions covering this mountain," Fruity replied, watching as the green ice continued to spread across the mountain. The more it spread, the more he sensed his Hypnotic Ice growing stronger.
"This is interesting. It's like the ice is absorbing the illusion surrounding the mountain," Yuying observed. "Have you located where the illusion is coming from?"
"No, but the ice hasn't fully enveloped the mountain yet, so let's wait," Fruity said. They resumed waiting as the ice slowly turned the mountain green.
So far, the Hypnotic Ice hadn't shown Fruity anything too impressive. Sure, it had helped him take down thousands of monsters, but compared to the Devouring Ice or the Soul Eater, it paled in comparison.
From his observation, the ice could only trap Tier 6 creatures and below. But Fruity didn't have time to hunt such weak monsters; he needed to deal with the big guns. He needed to be using the hypnotic ice more actively.
However, he didn't know how to make it stronger. Sure, devouring monsters and treasures would allow him to add some energy to the Hypnotic Ice, but the progress would be slow. He needed something immediate.
Something that could rival the wailing power of the Chaotic Ice. So when he sensed his Hypnotic Ice reacting to the mountain from miles away, he knew something great was about to happen. To his surprise, it was happening.
The green ice continued to spread, and with every small advance, the ice grew stronger. Fruity, the owner of the ice, could also feel his strength rising—or more specifically, his mental strength increasing.
"Master, can I come out?" Yuying suddenly asked. Fruity didn't respond immediately. He slowly lowered his mental defenses, checking to see if the illusion would retaliate. After a while, he sighed.
"Come out," he said, and Yuying appeared. As soon as she materialized, she began spreading her senses. After confirming there was no immediate danger, she sighed in relief.
"This is going better than I expected," she said with a small smile.
"Yuying, you're traveling with someone wielding seven forbidden ice elements. Of course, things will unfold in unexpected ways," Fruity replied with a grin.
After everything he'd seen, Fruity now understood why the seven ice elements he wielded were forbidden. Although he did not know what was creating the illusion on the mountain, he knew it wasn't meant to be traversed the way he was doing it.
The illusion was intended to temper the minds of those brave enough to climb it. However, Fruity wasn't just resisting it—he was absorbing it.
"It's a technique—an illusion-type technique. How awesome." He smiled and then reached out to touch the second card. It, too, transformed, and once it settled into a card with a series of patterns on it, Fruity quickly read its name.
"Giant Bone Mountain Descent." His mind filled with another technique, making him grin.
"It seems the Hypnotic Ice has evolved to another stage," he said, looking at the remaining ten blank cards. He reached out and touched the third card, but nothing happened. It remained blank. He tried the others, but none of them changed.
"Two out of twelve, huh? That's more than enough." Since he was connected to the Ice, he knew just how powerful it had become. And now, with two new techniques, he had grown exponentially stronger. He took a moment to absorb the place before snapping his fingers.
The space shifted into a green cloud, and within that cloud, the twelve cards hovered in front of an ice chair. Fruity admired his creation with a smile before leaving the space and returning to the real world.
"What just happened?" Fruity was immediately greeted with Yuying's direct question as he opened his eyes. She looked incredibly pale.
"What happened to you?" Fruity asked, concerned.
"You tell me, Master. Why did you punish me by sending me into an illusion?" Yuying asked, pouting.
"Say what?" Fruity replied, confused.
"When did I do that? All I did was enter this strange space connected to the Hypnotic Ice and received—well, more like activated—two techniques."
"Wait, you entered an elemental space?" Yuying's pale face immediately lit up with eagerness, a stark contrast to her earlier expression.
"You knew what that was?" Fruity asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Of course, Master! Every element has its own space, but you shouldn't have been able to access it—not this early," Yuying said, her hand brushing her lips thoughtfully.
"Unless... your element has already reached the Realm rank," she added suddenly.
"And what's that?" Fruity asked, clearly clueless about the concept. He knew he had to listen closely to his teacher for yet another crucial piece of information.
"Condense the Hypnotic Ice let me see" She requested and Fruity promptly obeyed.