"Pearl of Winter? What's a Pearl of Winter?" Zi Yu stared at Yang Kai in astonishment. From his tone and expression, it was obvious he recognized this bead — and moreover, he knew exactly what it did. And that fire-red bead in his hand must share some deep connection with the Pearl of Winter, otherwise this kind of resonance wouldn't have occurred.
"I'll explain later!" Yang Kai swallowed hard, the immense surge of joy nearly overwhelming him. He had no patience to sit around explaining things to Zi Yu.
How could he have ever expected to encounter the Pearl of Winter here, in Ice Heart Valley's forbidden zone?
Back in the Four Seasons Land, Yang Kai had obtained three beads — the Pearl of Spring, the Pearl of Summer, and the Pearl of Autumn — each containing entirely different elemental energies. He had quietly suspected there must be an ice-attribute Pearl of Winter to complete the set, allowing the four seasons' power to manifest the cycle of time itself. Unfortunately, he had never laid eyes on the Pearl of Winter back then, nor had any idea where to find it, so he'd been forced to shelve the matter.
He had kept the Spring, Summer, and Autumn beads in his Space Ring all this time, and for ages they had served no practical purpose.
Yet here, in this very place, he had stumbled upon the missing Pearl of Winter! It was truly a case of stumbling into fortune without seeking it. He had only come here at Bing Yun's request to find out which disciple was contacting her through an Artifact — he never imagined such a delightful surprise awaited him.
His heart swelled with joy beyond measure.
The Pearl of Winter was here, which meant he now had all four — Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. He could finally unleash the combined power of the four seasons' cycle. He had no idea what kind of benefit that might bring him.
But how could the Pearl of Winter exist in Ice Heart Valley's forbidden zone? After turning it over in his mind, Yang Kai could only speculate that Bing Yun must have visited the Four Seasons Land herself back when she was at the Dao Source Realm. Perhaps she had obtained the Pearl of Winter back then, brought it to the Northern Region, and after establishing Ice Heart Valley, left it here — using the bead's power to generate the frigid energy that formed this frozen lake forbidden zone.
If that were the case, then taking the Pearl of Winter would render this forbidden zone useless.
At that thought, Yang Kai hesitated. He felt that if he explained the situation to Bing Yun honestly, she likely wouldn't begrudge him the Pearl of Winter. Here it merely provided Ice Heart Valley with a forbidden training ground for its disciples. But in his possession, it could very well unlock the inheritance of the Emperor of Time!
That was an Emperor's lifelong dedication and the very foundation of his martial achievement — infinitely more precious than a single forbidden zone.
Just as Yang Kai wavered, uncertain whether to take the Pearl of Winter at this moment, the bead suddenly erupted, shooting a brilliant pillar of white light straight up into the sky.
"Oh no!" Zi Yu's beautiful face drained of color. She cried out, "Senior Brother Yang, put that bead away quickly!"
Yang Kai realized the danger too. The Pearl of Winter had apparently been refined and awakened by Bing Yun, which was why it could unleash such power — unlike the other three beads he possessed, which remained completely dormant. Now that it had suddenly produced a pillar of light, it was clearly a reaction triggered by the Pearl of Summer.
Once this light pillar appeared, the entire Ice Heart Valley would be alerted. This was their forbidden zone, and it wouldn't be long before Ice Heart Valley's powerhouses arrived to investigate.
So before Zi Yu even finished speaking, Yang Kai hastily stuffed the Pearl of Summer into his Space Ring while simultaneously reaching out to snatch the Pearl of Winter.
Since he'd already been exposed, there was no point in dithering. He might as well seize the bead and sort things out later. At worst, once he returned to Ice Wheel City, he could explain everything to Bing Yun and ask her to gift him the Pearl of Winter.
His large hand thrust forward, and the omnipresent cold instantly froze it to a deep purple-black, frost coating the back of his hand. In that instant, Yang Kai felt as though his hand had gone completely numb. Alarmed, he hastily channeled his Source Power to resist.
With enormous effort, he finally grasped the Pearl of Winter and immediately tossed it into his Space Ring. Only then did he feel some relief.
The next moment, he seized the dumbfounded Zi Yu and barked, "Let's go!"
Zi Yu, still dazed, stammered, "Senior Brother Yang, why did you just steal our Ice Heart Valley's treasure?"
She still hadn't fully grasped what had happened. Had it not been for the fact that Yang Kai had earlier produced the Founding Ancestor's token and stated his purpose, she might have attacked him on the spot.
To brazenly snatch a treasure from Ice Heart Valley's forbidden zone right in front of one of its elite disciples — that was nothing short of banditry!
"Elder Bing Yun previously instructed me to take this bead. She has another use for it!" Yang Kai couldn't possibly explain the full truth, so he made something up on the spot.
"Oh." Zi Yu had no reason to doubt him and asked no further questions.
Yang Kai pulled Zi Yu along with one hand while holding Bing Yun's token in the other. He quickly broke through the forbidden zone's restrictions and charged outward at full speed.