In the silent, ruined grand hall, as Shi Feng and his team descended into the first underground level of the Ice and Snow Ruins, the members of the Hundred Generations Dynasty finally reacted.
"So strong! They could enter so easily even when facing the enraged Ice Ape Leader. No wonder they were able to push all the way down to the third level."
"Why are they back? Didn't they just go to rest earlier?"
"The person leading them looks like the leader of the Shura Adventure Team! It seems the Shura Adventure Team is planning to go all out on the Ice and Snow Ruins this time."
"Now this gets interesting. I heard Hecate has also started pushing the Ice and Snow Ruins with full force. They're already on the fourth level. I wonder what level the Shura Adventure Team can reach."
"The Shura Adventure Team is powerful, yes, but this is the Ice and Snow Ruins. It's all about collective strength. I heard Hecate sent many experts from their headquarters this time to make sure they capture the ruins. In terms of overall strength, the Shura Adventure Team is far behind. They've probably already surpassed the Shura Adventure Team in progress. It's going to be hard for the Shura Adventure Team to save face this time."
"Indeed. Each level down in the Ice and Snow Ruins, the difficulty doubles. The Shura Adventure Team was stuck on the third level for so long. Even with their leader directing the battle, it's probably impossible for them to pass the third level's guarding boss."
...
The Hundred Generations Dynasty watched Shi Feng's group depart, buzzing with discussion. Although the strength displayed by the Shura Adventure Team was indeed astonishing, an adventure team was still just an adventure team. They couldn't compare to Hecate, which had deep reserves.
"Planning to compete with Hecate for first clear?" Ba Dao Chang Kong watched Shi Feng's group disappear, the corner of his mouth curling slightly upward. "Looks like our Hundred Generations Dynasty might just profit from their conflict this time."
He also didn't believe the Shura Adventure Team could beat Hecate for the first clear of the Ice and Snow Ruins. He had already received insider information and knew just how powerful Hecate was right now. They had a full nineteen Tier 2 class holders, gathering nearly the entirety of Hecate's strength.
The Shura Adventure Team, at their absolute maximum, only had thirteen people, and three of them had only just promoted. Purely in terms of Tier 2 class holders, Hecate had a significant lead, let alone the gap in overall strength among the rest of the team.
It could be said that the Shura Adventure Team simply couldn't catch up to Hecate.
However, there was a way to catch up: increase the number of Tier 2 experts. But the Shura Adventure Team couldn't do that in the short term. The only way was to hire outside help. And in Frostwind City, the guild with the most Tier 2 experts was their Hundred Generations Dynasty, with a full three. As for other adventure teams and guilds, they didn't have even half a Tier 2 expert.
When the time came, the Shura Adventure Team would definitely seek his cooperation to make up the difference in Tier 2 class numbers. Hecate would likely approach him as well, after all, adding three Tier 2 classes and some powerful experts to the Shura Adventure Team would pose a considerable threat.
Meanwhile, as the Shura Adventure Team entered the first underground level of the Ice and Snow Ruins, Blood Glow, Hecate's Vice Guild Master on the fourth level, received news of their arrival.
"Leading the charge personally to go all out and save face?" Blood Glow looked at the intelligence sent by his subordinate and smiled faintly. "Too bad, Shura Adventure Team, you've already missed your chance. We of Hecate are taking the first clear of the Ice and Snow Ruins!"
Conquering the Ice and Snow Ruins was no easy task. Each level had different conditions requiring different strategies. Moreover, the closer they got to the bottom, not only did the bosses become stronger, but their respawn time after being defeated grew longer.
The respawn times for the first and second levels were still short, only about one and two hours respectively. But for the third level, it was four hours. For the fourth level, just one step from the final fifth level—clearing it meant facing the ultimate boss—the respawn time was a whopping forty-eight hours.
The main reasons were to prevent other teams from disturbing the clearing group, and because the ultimate boss was too difficult, requiring ample time to prepare.
They had already depleted half the fourth level guardian boss's HP. Taking it down and entering the fifth level was practically a sure thing.
Even if the Shura Adventure Team reached the fourth level, it would be a wasted trip. Not only would they gain no intelligence on the fourth level boss, they would also lose a full day. That day could be spent researching how to handle the ultimate boss and making thorough preparations.
In other words, the Shura Adventure Team's progress would lag behind theirs by more than two full days. Such a gap wasn't easily closed, especially against Hecate. In those two days, several of their experts who had gone to promote to Tier 2 would likely complete their promotion quests and return, giving them even more Tier 2 combat power.
And in the teleportation hall of the Ice and Snow Ruins' first underground level, Shi Feng and his team were already standing within the teleportation magic array.