Simultaneously, outside the thousand tall mountains, the sight was so shocking that those residing nearby could hardly believe their eyes. This quiet, renowned region was known as the Thousand Mountain Peaks.
It was a well-known area in the Celestial Realm, where many Celestials cultivated precious and rare herbs, as the air amidst the peaks was rich with natural energy.
Consequently, the region surrounding the Thousand Mountains was always bustling with shops and trade. But when they saw the frozen peaks, many old merchants and Celestials collapsed, choking on the blood that surged into their throats in shock and anger, for they could no longer sense the presence of the countless herbs they had cultivated for years in the mountains!
What the hell was happening?!
All their herbs—gone just like that??
Vanished into thin air, as if they had never existed at all?! Last night, their shops had closed as usual—everything completely normal. But today... everything was frozen solid, with all their treasures gone?! One of the collapsed Celestials staggered to his feet and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Who the hell is responsible?! Who dared to step foot in the Thousand Mountain Peaks and do this?! If you show yourself, I swear I will leave you with an intact body!!"
His voice boomed in all directions, loud enough to make the mountains tremble.
One after another, the others joined him, their fury and rage erupting into the air.
"Show yourself, you piece of filth!"
"Come forward if you have the guts! Stealing and then hiding—coward!"
"For thousands of years, no one has ever dared to lay a finger on these Mountains! Your guts must truly be made of steel!"
Many even grabbed their weapons and rushed into the peaks to search for the culprit, ready to hack him into pieces.
Yet, unfortunately, the culprit—let alone revealing itself—was never found. Still, the commotion lasted for a very long time, and news of the thief who stole countless rare herbs from the Thousand Mountains and even froze the region spread everywhere.
Of course, many Celestials attempted to connect the ice to the silver-haired young Celestial who had been making a name for himself over the past two years... yet that blame was dismissed everywhere—almost indignantly—by those who believed he was far too noble for such an act. Just because of his cold appearance and his power, they insisted it wasn’t him! After all, someone like Kyle—if he ever wanted to steal—would do it openly. Many people had experienced it firsthand and could even provide proof.
Well, it was clear that the Celestial Realm already had a good sense of what kind of person he was. If only they knew, he didn’t only steal openly—he did it secretly as well. It was just that when he did it secretly, no one ever found out. But this time...
It had been completely accidental!
Or perhaps... not?
From Kyle’s perspective, he could only say that, while asleep, he subconsciously felt the natural energy around him had thinned. So, he had unconsciously begun spreading his aura to get more from the surroundings.
Who would have imagined that he would consume everything in the area...? It was undoubtedly the work of his bloodline.
Unfortunately, he’d soon realize that this time it wasn’t his bloodline being greedy.
It was entirely his own doing.
When Kyle regained focus, he found his consciousness floating in a vast, familiar expanse, surrounded by cold flames—the very place where his Celestial Lake was.
Below him lay the serene, colorful lake, teeming with many little fish that leapt toward his form to touch him, only to be scared away by the surging icy flames.
He gazed around, heavy with lethargy, wondering why his consciousness was floating above the Celestial Lake.
What about his body?
According to what usually happened, his bloodline should have created a new body for him, right? He closed his eyes, only to be shocked to discover that no new body had been created for him yet, and even the injured one was completely destroyed! His soul was trapped inside the ice cocoon!
"What the actual hell?"
Kyle frowned as he tried to leap out of the blue flames, only to slam against a wall of transparent ice. He was about to shatter it, but at that moment he accidentally noticed what was happening beyond the confines of the ice cage—and his eyes widened.
The space outside was in chaos.
His cold essence was fighting against a power that shimmered like grains of sand, pulsing with the force of time. Both forces collided, and everything shook. He almost fell into the Celestial Lake but managed to hold his balance in mid-air. The two forces—one cold, the other flowing with the pure essence of time—were equally matched, each trying its best to devour the other.
Moreover, since this was his domain, he could feel that the power of all the other natural laws he had mastered so far was being driven into hiding within the tranquil lake, scared by the battle between the two forces fighting to devour each other.
"Wow..."
Kyle muttered in a daze, staring at the chaos before him. For a whole minute, there was only silence as he watched.
Then, abruptly, he felt the cold essence outside reaching out to him desperately, almost calling for his intervention... This was his space—since it was the place that connected him with nature and where his Celestial Lake existed. Naturally, he could control it. In every sense, he was the true master here; all other forces were merely powers that he had grasped from nature.
Since that was the case, Kyle could effortlessly sense everything that had transpired while he was unconscious.
His essence had attempted to devour the power of time within the golden crystal but failed because it was too strong and had a will of its own. In that instant, sensing that Kyle was capable of wielding it and already had a profound understanding of time, the hourglass scattered into tiny particles and instantly rushed to enter his Celestial Lake, willingly seeking him as its new master.
But his icy essence refused to share and fought back when those particles tried to claim the entire Celestial Lake. As a ruling force with a will to survive, the hourglass—which originally didn’t originate from him, unlike his bloodline—was already eroded with hints of darkness, so they could not coexist; one had to consume the other.
After all, one of them was pure while the other was not. Yet, as they were equally matched, the victor was still undecided.
Understanding this, Kyle realized why the cold essence was calling to him for help.
As the owner of this place, he could easily decide who would be the victor, since both powers were inside his territory. Outside, he probably would’ve suffered greatly against the power of time, but here, everything was under his control. Yet, instead of aiding his icy essence, he curled his lips and laughed.
"Hahaha...!"
After a hearty laugh, he clapped, quickly creating a throne of ice, and sank onto it.
"Come on! You can win! I’m cheering!"
Obviously, he could easily determine the outcome with a wave of his hand, but he still hadn’t forgotten how his essence had gone out of control because it was greedy to consume the power within the crystal.
This was the perfect time for revenge. Pity, it had no emotions or thoughts—only a strong will to protect its own existence. Otherwise, it might have actually coughed up blood.