SSS Frost Sovereign: Rewinding The Apocalypse!-Chapter 71: Not a challenge!

And so, they hurried on as fast as they could.

Having reached so far, the air grew thick with the scent of ancient sap; they were now much closer to their destination: the large tree before them.

It was a titan, its crown soaring far above the other trees on whose roots they currently ran.

Icard and the rest sprinted along a single massive root, their boots drumming a frantic rhythm.

Around them, other incarnations moved in a blur of focused motion, some leaping over knots in the wood, others using the momentum of the decline to gain speed.

Icard looked ahead, his gaze fixed on the horizon.

’Here it is.’

Upon closer inspection, it dawned on the rest that the super-massive tree in the distance was not actually a single entity.

It was a dense cluster of trees even more gargantuan and taller than the ones they were on.

From their perspective, it was a fortress of timber, a vertical forest with branching canopies so thick they completely blotted out the sky above.

Long, rope-like vines dangled from the high branches, swaying like the hair of giants.

It was a breathtaking spectacle, and many incarnations slowed for a heartbeat, their faces reflecting awe and intimidation at the sheer scale of the labyrinth’s heart.

Icard remembered this part well. They had slowed down here in his last turn, falling behind while Albert and the vanguards went ahead.

But now, they weren’t just straggling in the rear.

Icard and his raid party advanced in stride with Zayne, Liam, Redd, and Albert’s personal group.

It was a significant shift in their standing, though the difficulty of the ruins remained as persistent as ever.

As they sprinted ahead, they dodged Thorn Knights wherever possible. Suddenly, one leaped directly into their path.

"Tch," Icard hissed, his expression tightening into a look of sharp annoyance.

He moved swiftly to the front, channeling his frost as a blue icicle formed in his hand.

This one was quite longer and more substantial than before, shimmering with a cold light.

He stepped in before the knight just as it swung its weapon.

With the advantage of his longer reach, Icard countered.

He aimed for the creature’s elbow joints, the shard breaking on impact but instantly locking the joints in a localized freeze.

He dodged the return swing while the rest of his party gave the knight space, moving past it.

Swiftly sliding to its back, Icard swung the remaining half of the icicle across both its knees, frosting the joints and locking its legs in place.

It was just enough to stall the spawn for the trailing incarnations to finish off, allowing his party to advance without losing their pace.

Finally, they reached the point where they had to descend.

They leaped off the root, landing on the ground to move between the massive roots and enter the dense cluster of the super-massive trees.

Following Albert’s lead, they hopped down one by one, hitting the dark forest floor in quick successions.

Before them was a somber scene: massive, pillar-like stems and a tangled mess of hanging ropes.

However, as they arrived then, they quickly realized.

It wouldn’t just be a quick, straight entry. The incarnations at the front quicky skidded to a halt before the movements before them.

It was as if they were being expected there.

Thorn Knights, Bark Guards, and Moss Hounds were already packed at the entrance, standing in a solid wall as if consciously protecting the interior.

More spawns dropped from above via the vines, while others converged from the root tops around them.

In a heartbeat, they were surrounded.

"Tch. We are definitely nearing the Chieftain. But we’ll have to blow through them," Gremit grumbled in irk, his quills vibrating in annoyance.

Many had expended their stamina just to get here, only to find the spawns gathered as if purposefully preventing their entry.

Katar let out a sharp hiss of impatience at the sight. He was pretty much annoyed at this.

"These pathetic bottom-feeders are just drawing us back! They’re lazy, stagnant, and utterly unable to keep up!" he shouted, his voice ringing across the clearing.

"Icard! I’ve had enough. Get ready to blow past this mess and leave these fools behind. My incarnations are far too capable to be held back by this rubbish! This won’t even be a challenge!"

He said this loud enough for the other Erwalds to hear. And naturally, it caused an immediate uproar.

"You crazy snowcat!"

"Who do you think you are!?" 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"Your incarnations are nothing compared to mine!"

A heated bickering ensued even as the circle of monsters closed in.

"Hmph," Katar harrumphed, looking nonchalant despite the insults.

"You, who has been hiding inside your incarnation’s clothes! What could you possibly have taught them!" Rybie yelled out then, and that struck a nerve.

"I... I’m not hiding!" Katar snapped back, sounding aggressively defensive. "I was... they really pleaded with their lives, begging me to stay here!"

Icard’s face twitched with light embarrassment.

And following up, Alia joined in suddenly.

"It’s none of your business where he chooses to stay!" she yelled defiantly.

"He’s Katar, the ’thundercat’! He can stay anywhere he chooses!"

"Damn it," Katar muttered, his ears flat as he retracted his head into her shirt in embarrassment.

"Alia," Reya said softly.

An awkward silence fell over Icard’s raid party, even as the shouting continued around them.

Then Rybie growled, sounding bolder than before.

"You all are the real crap. My incarnations are better. Redd! Get ready to leave these fools behind!"

A tight air of contest followed.

The other Erwalds, annoyed by Katar and Rybie, began to charge up their own incarnations, preparing to break through the blockade with everything they had.

Meanwhile, Gremit and Albert looked on with expressions of weary exasperation, as if asking, Seriously, now?

"This isn’t good. It’s not according to plan," Albert muttered. "They need to fight where they are posted."

But then, he realized it might be for the best. Regardless of the bickering, they were going to break through together.