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Qi Yu was startled. This monster could speak! 

This was the first mutated creature capable of speech he’d encountered since entering the survival game.

In his previous life during the apocalypse, he had seen so many mutated monsters and plants, yet none of them could speak human language. Once monsters are able to speak human language, their terror factor truly multiplies instantly. 

He turned to look at Tessa and, sure enough, saw fear in her eyes. Sensing Qi Yu’s questioning gaze, she shook her head: “It’s never spoken before.”

Otherwise, she would certainly have told Qi Yu.

A gust of wind, laden with ice and snow, blew the door open. A slender shadow was cast upon the door.

Theodore’s large eyes were brimming with tears, and he was curled up into a ball.

Qi Yu heard what sounded like a buzzing voice right next to his ear—as annoying as a mosquito. He shook his head impatiently, and the irritating sound vanished.

Yet Theodore had already collapsed to the ground.

And Tessa, who had been clutching her long sword just moments before, stood frozen in place, her cloudy eyes wide open, as if she had seen something utterly terrifying.

Qi Yu froze for a moment, then quickly realized: that buzzing sound from earlier… Could it have been the monster’s spirit attacking? 

He kept his composure, standing motionless where he was, pretending to be under its control. The shadow crept closer.

Qi Yu finally got a clear look at the creature’s appearance.

Over two meters tall, it had an upright body and limbs like a human, but lacked facial features; its entire body was composed of pale blue ice crystals. Wherever its footsteps passed, a layer of white frost formed on the ground.

The monster clearly didn’t believe anyone could escape the terrifying illusion it had created, and it gloated, “Mage…heart… so… tasty.” As he watched the monster walk into the house, Qi Yu didn’t hesitate any longer.

He embedded the final crystal into the temperature-regulating magic array and set the temperature directly to 60.

In an instant, a wave of heat engulfed Tessa’s little house, along with the surrounding area spanning hundreds of meters. Qi Yu cast a water-elemental magic cage, enveloping Tessa and Theodore to temporarily shield them from the intense heat. The monster threw back its head and let out a piercing, agonized screech.

Strike while the iron is hot!

Qi Yu knew full well just how formidable a Level 4 or 5 mutated creature could be, but he also knew that at a moment like this, every extra word of idle chatter was a waste of the opportunity the constant-temperature magic array had created for him. 

Magic surged.

A Level 3 Earth-element spell, “Gravity Prison,” firmly pinned the monster to the ground.

The Level 3 Wood-element spell “Thorn Forest” caused a thicket of thorns to sprout from the ground; the sharp spines pierced deep into the monster’s body, pinning it firmly in place. 4 At the same time, his left hand wasn’t idle.

He pulled out a stack of fire-element magic scrolls, channeled his magic into them, and unleashed a barrage that rained down on the monster.

-50, -30, -50, -100… 

A long string of red numbers kept popping up from the Ice Demon’s head. Qi Yu finally had a moment to glance at the description on the Survival Panel.

【Mutated Ice Demon: Tier 5 (Pseudo)—An ordinary Ice Demon that evolved after consuming the primordial power of ice and snow, giving it intellect.】

Qi Yu’s first thought: So it’s mutated—apparently not all Ice Demons can speak. His second thought: Step up the attack. 

It’s still evolving—if I don’t kill it today, it’ll only get stronger later.

The moment the constant-temperature magic array activated and the Ice Demon let out a blood-curdling scream, Tessa snapped out of her trance. Her first instinct was to rush to Qi Yu’s aid.

But everything unfolding before her made her realize… she seemed a bit out of place.

Even under the protection of a layer of water magic, she could feel that the surrounding temperature was abnormally high.

If even humans found it unbearably hot, how much more so for a monster made entirely of ice and snow?

With the eyesight of a Level 4 Martial Artist, she could see it clearly—the Ice Demon was melting.

Its body was bound by two magical restraints, preventing it from breaking free immediately. Having missed its best chance to escape, it now faced a barrage of dozens of fire-based spells coming at it from all directions. 

Qi Yu hadn’t been idle the whole time.

As long as red numbers keep appearing above the Ice Demon’s head, it means it’s not dead. If it’s not dead, he’ll keep attacking it. 

With his right hand, he wields the Heart of the Great Tree Staff, continuously casting binding spells. With his left hand, he relentlessly smashes scrolls. 

Finally, the Ice Demon threw its head back and let out a shrill scream that sounded like a roar.

A blizzard erupted around it, and the immense force sent Qi Yu flying backward several meters. 

Ssssh. 

A hand emerged from beneath the snow, grasping at thin air a few times, and immediately afterward, a figure dug itself out of the snow pit. 10 Qi Yu shook the snow off his body. 

The Ice Demon’s final shockwave looked terrifying, but it hadn’t actually caused him any harm. He had already seen the message on his Survival Panel.

【Successfully defeated a Level 5 (Pseudo) Mutant: Ice Demon. Reward: 1 Brass Chest. Obtained 10 Ice Crystals (Purple).】

【Ice Crystal (Purple): High-grade material. Can be used for weapon forging, potion brewing, alchemy, and various other purposes.】

In addition, he noticed a new icon had appeared below his personal panel.

【Curse of the Ice Demon: An Ice Demon—one of the most pitifully defeated in history—cast a curse on you before dying, causing the entire Ice Demon clan to now hold a +30 hatred value toward you】

Qi Yu was a little disappointed; he’d thought a Level 5 mutant would drop more valuable loot. At the very least, a normal mutant would drop plenty of edible meat.

Wait a minute.

He sensed a faint fluctuation of magical energy. Was the Ice Demon still alive?

No—both his own senses and the Survival Panel’s prompt indicated that it was dead as a doornail. He cautiously moved toward the source of the magical fluctuation.

A single drop of ice-blue liquid hovered quietly in the air. 

【Ice Primordial Power (Gold): Contains a trace of the primordial essence of ice and snow; edible. Effects vary by individual.】

Qi Yu:!

So this is where the good stuff is!

A gold-quality item—that corresponds to legendary-tier quality.

He stowed this drop of Ice Primordial Power in his backpack.

Whether he uses it or not, he certainly can’t keep it here.

The moment he stowed away that drop of Ice Primordial Power, he immediately felt a wave of heat surging in from all directions; even though he was still wearing a down jacket, he instantly broke out in a cold sweat.

It was a constant-temperature magic array.

He hadn’t felt the heat earlier, so he’d assumed the Ice-Snow Demon’s self-destruction had just happened to destroy the array’s core. Now it seemed this was the effect of the Ice-Snow Primordial Essence’s power.

He hurriedly dug out the magic crystal; if he delayed even a moment longer, he feared he’d be roasted alive.

Where were Tessa and her grandson?

“Cough, cough.” A figure crawled out of the snowdrift—it was Tessa, holding the still-unconscious Theodore in her arms. 

Qi Yu looked at her, feeling a bit embarrassed: “Tessa, your house…looks like it collapsed.” 

When he first arrived at Tessa’s house, he was still puzzled: although the house looked a bit old, it was generally in good condition—except for some signs of repairs on the front door.

Why would the message in a bottle include a task like “help a grandmother and her grandchild, who are all alone and helpless, repair their dilapidated house”? Now he realized: It turns out I was the one who would turn the house into a wreck. 

Drifting Bottle, was this part of your plan? 

Tessa looked quite disheveled, yet a smile played on her face: “You saved my life. If we’re really going to assign blame for the house, it should fall on the Ice Demon—it has nothing to do with you.” 

She beckoned to Qi Yu: “Hurry, follow me. The cold nights on the Winter Plains are no joke.”

Qi Yu followed her into the house, which had collapsed for the most part. He watched as she produced a candlestick from who knows where, lit it, and pushed open a hidden door in the kitchen, revealing a passageway beneath.

“You’ll have to make do with the cellar for the night.”

Since the house repairs weren’t yet complete, Qi Yu had no choice but to stay.

He looked around and sat down calmly: “It’s spacious, safe, and sheltered from the wind and snow—it’s already a very good place.” A fire was lit, and its bright glow illuminated the darkness of the cellar.

Theodore woke up. He had been quite frightened at first, but soon realized he was being held in his grandmother’s arms; the familiar scent of a loved one soothed him.

Noticing his unease, Tessa smiled gently. “Don’t be afraid, Theodore. The monster is dead. I’ll spend the night in the cellar tonight. After tonight, everything will be all right.”

“Just like before?” Theodore wrapped his arms around her waist. “Just like before. Do you want to find a new place to live?” 

Qi Yu asked. “Are you planning to leave here?”

Tessa nodded. “Actually, I’ve been thinking about this for a while. Now that Ania and Jeni are gone, and I’m getting old, it’s hard for me to raise Theodore on my own in the Winter Ice Plains.” 

But it just so happened that the Winter Plains were currently in the midst of a blizzard season. She had originally planned to pack her bags and leave with Theodore once the blizzards had passed.

Unexpectedly, they encountered the Ice Demon.

Qi Yu looked at the child, who was nestled obediently in Tessa’s arms, listening to him speak: “You told me before that you wanted to entrust Theodore to an old friend of yours?” Tessa sighed: “That was my original plan, but I can’t bear to leave this place.”

She couldn’t bear to leave the Winter Ice Plains—the place where she’d lived with her family her entire life. Her ancestors and her closest loved ones had all remained on this land.

She had always believed she was meant to rest here forever.

“But after what happened this time, I realized I was wrong,” Tessa sighed deeply. “Using the excuse that it’s for his own good to make him lose his last remaining relative—that’s far too cruel for a child.” 

She looked at Qi Yu. “Thank you for the healing potion. In addition to the wounds inflicted by the Ice Demon this time, many of my old, hidden injuries have been healed.”

She set Theodore down, stood up, and bowed deeply to Qi Yu: “My Lord, you have saved both my life and Theodore’s. If you will have me, Tessa is willing to enter into a master-servant contract with you and pledge my life and loyalty to you.”

Qi Yu:?

Only now did he realize that what Tessa meant by “moving to a different place” was that she wanted to follow him. He shook his head in refusal: “There’s no need.”

“As I said, I was here on a commission, and I’ve already received my payment.”

Besides, by slaying the Ice Demon, he had already reaped his reward.

Tessa pleaded anxiously, “You’ve sacrificed so much… Aside from my life and loyalty, I don’t think I have anything else of value to offer.” 

“Then live well and watch Theodore grow up. I like the idea of that future.” 

Qi Yu said, “In the future, I might visit the Winter Plains every once in a while. If you really want to repay me, just make me some delicious mushroom and vegetable soup every time I visit, okay?” 

After completing the Blackrock Mountains quest, he unlocked the map and could visit once a month.

Come to think of it, the Winter Ice Plains should be pretty much the same, right?

Tessa choked up: “You must be the messenger sent by Ming to save me. I will be grateful and pray for you every day.” 

Hearing her say this, Qi Yu replied, “Then remember to thank the Goddess of Nature—she is my master.”