Reborn as the Last van Ambrose-Chapter 128: Frost Behemoths

The ice path grew narrower as they descended deeper into Ao Shun’s realm. What had begun as a comfortable walkway now thinned to a precarious ledge barely wide enough for a person to travel. As Grim walked he could feel the slick surface shift slightly beneath his weight.

"The ice is less stable here," Bi’an warned from ahead.

Grim glanced at the dark water that surrounded their path on both sides. The cold was becoming more intense with each step downward, a penetrating chill that seemed to reach into his bones. His breath clouded heavily before him, crystallizing in the frigid air.

"Does everyone in this realm live in such cold?" Grim asked, trying to distract himself from the increasingly treacherous footing.

"Many do," Suanni replied from behind. The heat that Suanni genrated from his body kept Grim warm enough. "But the denizens of the North Sea are adapted to it. What you find unbearable, they find invigorating."

The path took a sharp turn, revealing a vast open space ahead. Unlike the ledge they’d been following, which hugged the cavern wall, this next section crossed directly through the middle of an enormous underwater chamber. The ice path here was suspended over a dizzying drop, with nothing but dark water hundreds of feet below.

"Mind your step," Bi’an cautioned unnecessarily. "This crossing is known as the Frost’s Breath. The winds that blow through here can be unpredictable."

As if summoned by his words, a gust of freezing air swept across the path, forcing Grim to crouch lower to maintain his balance. The wind carried tiny ice crystals that stung his face like miniature needles.

They continued across the suspended pathway, moving slowly due to both the narrow footing and the intermittent gusts of wind. Grim kept his eyes fixed firmly on the path before him, knowing that looking down would only make his progress more difficult.

But a movement in the darkness below caught his attention despite his best efforts. Something massive was shifting in the depths.

"What was that?" Grim asked, unable to keep a note of concern from his voice.

Bi’an paused, turning to look down into the abyss. His lantern-like eyes narrowed as he scanned the darkness.

"Frost behemoths," he said after a moment. "Ancient guardians of the deep trenches. They rarely come this close to the surface."

Grim risked another glance downward. The shadow had moved again, and now he could make out more details—an enormous creature that seemed like a cross between a whale and a crab, with a segmented body spanning at least fifty feet long. At the end of it’s appendages giant claws could be seen.

"Guardian or predator?" Grim asked calmly.

"Both," Suanni replied. "Frost behemoths patrol the deep trenches. They serve Ao Shun by eliminating trespassers."

"The scent of human is unfamiliar in these depths," Bi’an added.

Grim nodded, hand resting casually on his sword hilt. "Then we’d better give it no reason to investigate further."

They increased their pace, though the treacherous footing made it so they couldn’t go too fast. The shadow below occasionally disappearing from view only to reappear closer than before.

Halfway across the suspended pathway, Grim felt a tremor run through the ice beneath his feet. The entire structure shuddered, small cracks appearing along its surface.

"It’s coming up," Bi’an warned, his voice tight. "We need to reach the other side now."

A thunderous crack sounded from below, and the behemoth burst through the ice directly ahead of them. The creature was even larger than Grim had estimated—a monstrous creature with pallid blue-white flesh that appeared almost translucent, revealing internal organs pulsing with an eerie bioluminescence. Its many limbs ended in serrated pincers large enough to snip a person in half.

But most terrifying were its eyes. Dozens of eyes covering what Grim assumed was its head, each one a milky orb that swiveled independently. Several of those eyes fixed directly on Grim, and the behemoth let out a sound between a roar and a clicking that reverberated painfully in his chest.

"It smells your human blood," Bi’an growled, shifting into a defensive stance. "Stand back."

The behemoth’s massive pincers lashed out, shattering a section of the ice path. Grim stumbled backward, nearly losing his footing as the structure swayed beneath him. They were now cut off from the other side, trapped on a section of path that was rapidly cracking.

"We can’t fight it here," Suanni warned. "The path won’t hold."

The behemoth pulled itself further up, more of its segmented body emerging from the water. Its clicking grew louder, almost deafening in the enclosed space of the cavern.

"We need to drive it back down," Bi’an said. "Suanni?"

Suanni nodded, stepping forward. Grim felt the air around Suanni grow suddenly, intensely hot—a stark contrast to the freezing environment. The mane around Suanni’s head rippled and then burst into actual flames, burning bright im hues of gold and orange.

"Shield your eyes," Suanni warned.

Grim raised his arm just in time as Suanni opened his jaws and unleashed a torrent of fire directly at the behemoth. The flames were not ordinary fire but something brighter, almost white-hot at their center, tinged with golden sparks that reminded Grim of stars.

The behemoth recoiled from the assault, its clicking transforming into a high-pitched screech of pain. Several of its eyes blistered under the intense heat, and it retreated partially back into the water. But even as it withdrew, one of its pincers lashed out in a final attack, catching the edge of the ice path near Grim.

The section crumbled, and Grim felt himself falling. His hand shot out desperately, catching the edge of the remaining path. He dangled precariously, the dark water and the retreating behemoth now directly below him.

Bi’an moved so fast an after image was left in his place. His powerful jaws closing carefully around Grim’s forearm. With a single powerful motion, he hauled Grim back onto the path.

"That was too close," Bi’an muttered.

Suanni’s flames dimmed as the behemoth disappeared into the depths, though the golden embers in his mane continued to glow.

"It’s gone for now," Suanni said. "But others will come. That display of fire will have been visible for miles in these clear waters."

"Fire in the North Sea is like ringing a dinner bell," Bi’an agreed grimly. "We need to move. The path ahead is ruined—we’ll have to find another way."

"There," Grim pointed to a small ledge along the cavern wall, perhaps twenty feet away. "If we can reach that, it looks like it might lead upward."

Bi’an eyed the distance. "It’s our best option. I’ll go first and secure a position. Suanni, you bring up the rear. Ambrose, stay between us."

The tiger-dragon backed up a few paces, then launched himself across the gap, landing with precise grace on the narrow ledge. He turned immediately, bracing himself against the wall.

"Your turn, Ambrose," he called. "Don’t think about the distance. Just jump."

Grim took a deep breath, backing up as far as the crumbling path would allow. The gap looked considerably wider from this perspective.

Grim began to channel water mana in his legs, and ran faster than he ever ran before. He jumped right at the edge.

An average person most likely would have fallen right before reaching the edge. But, with Grim channeling his mana into his legs he launched himself across the gap.

Grim tried to slow down as he made it across the gap, but it was to icy that he just rushed foward right into Bi’an.

"Not bad," Bi’an commented. "Most humans would have hesitated longer."

Suanni made the jump last, landing easily beside them. His mane had settled back to its normal appearance, though Grim noticed it still smoldered slightly at the tips.

"That display will have alerted more than behemoths," Suanni said, looking troubled. "Ao Shun’s sentinels will have noticed fire in his realm."

"We were heading to announce ourselves anyway," Bi’an replied. "This just speeds up the formalities."

"There’s a difference between arriving announced and arriving pursued," Suanni countered.

A distant sound reached them—something between the crack of ice and the toll of a massive bell. It echoed through the cavern, seeming to come from all directions at once.

"What was that?" Grim asked.

"The sentinels," Bi’an replied, his expression grim. "They know we’re here. We should hurry."

The ledge they stood on connected to a narrow tunnel that sloped upward through the cavern wall. Without further discussion, they filed into it.

"Stay close," Bi’an warned as they entered the confined space. "The sentinels of the North Sea are not known for their hospitality, especially to uninvited humans."

"Even less so when fire has been used in their master’s realm," Suanni added.

Grim glanced back at Suanni. "Was that wise, then? Using fire?"

Suanni met his gaze. "The behemoth left us little choice. But no, it was not wise. Fire in the North Sea is seen as a direct challenge to Ao Shun’s authority. We’ve complicated our visit considerably."

"We were already unwelcome," Bi’an reminded them. "Jiaolong has seen to that. Now we must simply be ready to face whatever comes."

As they continued upward through the winding tunnel, the distant sound came again.

"They’re coming," Bi’an said simply. "The ice sentinels seemed to come out of nowhere last time we were here."