Chapter 33: The Divine Race

“What do you want me to help you with?” Hearing the words of the Frost Giant, Lin Huang forced himself to calm down.

With the strength and size of this Frost Giant, it could crush him with a single finger—an assertion that was no exaggeration.

“Follow me,” said the Frost Giant.

It extended its hand, and a gentle wind swept Lin Huang up, setting him down in its palm. Once Lin Huang had steadied himself, the giant carried him deeper into the canyon.

Watching the swirling snow and wind dissolve before the giant as if blocked by an invisible barrier, Lin Huang felt all the more that this world was steeped in mysteries.

The snowy canyon stretched long and winding, twisting through the landscape.

As they walked, the Frost Giant began to recount its past in a deep, resonant voice.

“I still remember clearly—a snowy day more than seven hundred years ago, I met a beautiful maiden and became her companion beast. At that time, I was just a naive snowball creature, barely aware of anything, even my own memories were hazy. All I remember is that she was gentle and treated me very well…”

“When I mutated into a Snowman Beast, my consciousness awakened, and I was no longer ignorant as before. It was then I realized she was not human, but a monster like me. Moreover, she was a powerful monster, so formidable that no human skill could discern her true nature. She yearned for human life, so she lingered in the human world for a long time. But one day, she told me she had fallen in love with a man… I remember the happiness on her face when she spoke those words. Yet from that day, she seldom returned to visit me…”

“Until one day, she came back, her body stained with blood. She said her identity had been exposed and revealed to the man. The man turned on her instantly, bringing a group of hunters to chase her. In a fit of anger, she slew the hunters but couldn’t bring herself to harm the man.”

“Afterward, she remained in this canyon, never venturing out again. Sometimes she would carve the man's likeness from blocks of ice, some large, some small, each with different expressions and gestures. Sometimes she would sit and stare at the ice sculptures, lost in thought for an entire day. Sometimes, she would place her favorite sculpture by the lakeside, dance upon the water amid wind and snow. She was always joyful as she danced, but afterward, she would become despondent. She said the man loved to watch her dance…”

“One day, the man found this canyon. He came alone, and she naively thought he had come to reclaim her, so she let him in. When they met, the man said, ‘I know your true identity. You’re of the most precious bloodline among the divine races of the monster world, which is why you possess a flawless human form. All divine beings, regardless of strength, carry the seed of divine fire within them. If you truly love me, give me your divine fire.’”

“Do you know how she answered him?” The Frost Giant suddenly turned to Lin Huang.

Lin Huang silently shook his head, already certain this was a tragic love story.

“That foolish girl said, ‘The divine fire, I’ll give it to you. Not to prove anything, but because whatever you desire, if I have it, it’s yours!’”

“She tore her own body, crushed her heart, and extracted an icy blue fire, tossing it to the man. He took it, never even glancing at her, and turned to leave. He knew that without the divine fire, she would not live long.”

“Day by day, her body grew weaker. Less than a month later, she was bedridden. She asked me, after her death, to sink her body into the lake before her cabin. She told me that after her death, the cold would erupt from her body, freezing the entire canyon into a land of ice and snow. If one day, a fated soul should drop their blood upon the lake, dissolving the ice and restoring life, she would awaken again.”

“After she died, I sank her beneath the lake. A streak of blood light shot from the water into me, triggering my second mutation—I became the Frost Giant. When I awoke, the canyon had become as you see it now…”

When the Frost Giant reached the end of the canyon and Lin Huang glimpsed a small, snow-covered cabin in the distance, the story concluded.

“So, you want to use my blood to try and revive her?” Lin Huang guessed at the task the giant wanted to entrust him with.

“Exactly.”

“Why choose me?” Lin Huang couldn’t help but ask.

“Because you have a good nature. Over the centuries, few have passed through here, but there have been over a thousand. You are the third I have chosen,” the Frost Giant replied simply.

“All right, how much blood do you need?” Lin Huang agreed readily.

“One drop is enough,” the Frost Giant answered, then added, “Whether it succeeds or not, I will let you leave unharmed. However, if it fails, I will erase your memory of our encounter.”

“Fine, let’s try.” Lin Huang knew such things were questionable at best, and the chance of success was nearly zero.

“Thank you.” The Frost Giant thanked him, then carried Lin Huang toward the icy lake.

At the lake's edge, it paused, placing Lin Huang at the center of the lake.

Lin Huang leapt down from its palm and pointed to his feet. “Is this the right spot?”

“It is,” the Frost Giant nodded.

Lin Huang drew a short blade and made a cut on his left index finger, squeezing out a drop of blood.

The bright red blood splashed onto the ground, but nothing happened. Lin Huang waited a moment, then looked up and shook his head at the Frost Giant. “Sorry, I’m not the fated soul you’re searching for…”

Just as he finished speaking, the Frost Giant’s expression suddenly became strange. At the same time, Lin Huang heard a faint cracking sound beneath him—the surface ice of the lake seemed to be fracturing.

Seeing this, the Frost Giant swept Lin Huang up into its palm and retreated several steps, staring wide-eyed at the rapidly splintering lake.

Lin Huang was equally astonished; he had not expected the lake to react at all.

The ice across the lake cracked faster and faster, and the broken pieces melted visibly, dissolving in less than a minute until the lake rippled freely once more.

With the lake unfrozen, the ice and snow receded from all sides, the pace accelerating even more. Not only did the snow fade away, but flowers and grasses began to sprout and grow at an astonishing rate.

The world of white was swiftly overtaken by green.

“Is my blood really so nourishing?” Lin Huang couldn’t help but stick his injured finger in his mouth for a few moments.

In less than ten minutes, the snowy canyon was transformed into a vibrant landscape, flourishing plants and fragrant blossoms flooding the air, brightening Lin Huang’s mood.

As he gazed around, a crystalline coffin emerged from the depths of the lake, rising to the surface. Once it reached the water, it began to dissolve, revealing a woman clad in white whose beauty could topple kingdoms.

She lay peacefully atop the water, seemingly asleep. After a moment, she slowly opened her eyes, and her body, supported by some invisible force, rose to stand upright.

With a smile at the corners of her lips, she looked toward Lin Huang and the Frost Giant, walking barefoot across the water, approaching them…