CHAPTER 422: THOUSAND ICE PALACE

After leaving the hall, Daniel glanced around. A huge corridor stretched out before him with different rooms and even multiple staircases.

But to his surprise, none of the guards or servants that were here when they first arrived could be seen anymore, which made him frown.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t clear which direction Andreas and Aden had gone. Still, that wasn’t too big of a problem—he could just ask his Fallen.

’That woman wanted to come with me, but thankfully that Mornak finally intervened.’ He let out a sigh of relief and glanced back once more.

After making sure no one was tailing him, he contacted his Fallen through mental communication to get updated on the situation.

’My lord, the two people you told us to follow went one floor below. But there’s a problem. Several servants and guards secretly followed them too.’

Hearing Elarion’s report, Daniel frowned. Without wasting time, he headed down the stairs, hiding his presence as he moved.

It wasn’t hard to guess that those so-called servants and guards were probably fakes, actually assassins sent here to kill Aden.

When he reached the lower floor, he saw them—those fake servants and guards, along with several unconscious bodies lying on the ground.

And more importantly, those impostors had succeeded in capturing Aden and Andreas, binding them completely.

’So my guess was right. Though I should probably thank them for making my job easier.’ Daniel smirked and used his power to create a sealed zone covering several hundred meters, cutting off all sound so nothing could escape.

Then, silently, without revealing his presence, he walked toward them.

"What should we do? Kill him right here?" one of the fake guards asked. All of them were releasing fairly powerful auras, proving their real jobs weren’t service or guard work.

Their gazes fell on Aden. He was their target, the bastard they had been sent here to assassinate. But strangely, they had managed to capture him alive.

That left them unsure—should they kill him now, or bring him back with them?

There were about seven of them. But none of the other six spoke up. Instead, their eyes were fixed on the young girl standing in front, closest to Aden.

She was beautiful, with blue hair and eyes like ice, her aura completely restrained.

Yet anyone watching carefully could see that all six treated her with clear respect. She was obviously their leader.

"According to my mother’s orders, we’re supposed to kill him here. No need to waste time." After a moment of thought, the girl spoke coldly.

She stretched out her hand, forming a sword of ice, raised it high, and brought it down toward Aden’s neck.

But before the blade could fall, an overwhelming energy suddenly appeared out of nowhere and shattered it completely.

"What?" Her face froze in shock. Before she could react, a scream erupted behind her.

Everyone turned—and what they saw left them stunned, even horrified. One of their own, still dressed as a guard, suddenly had his head crushed, his body turning into ashes before vanishing.

They all jumped back several meters when they spotted the handsome white-haired young man responsible.

Weapons came out instantly, all pointed at him.

"Hey, hey, relax." Daniel smiled as he saw them suddenly act like cornered animals.

"Relax? You just killed one of my people! Who the hell are you, bastard?" the blue-haired girl growled coldly.

Another ice blade formed in her hand, ready to strike at any moment. But her body trembled, something Daniel noticed even though she tried to hide it.

She was terrified. None of them had even sensed this man appear! And he had just killed one of their members, a Grand Climber, without anyone realizing.

Looking into those golden eyes only deepened her fear. This man wasn’t releasing any aura, yet he felt like death itself embodied.

Her instincts, every single cell in her body, screamed at her to run. If she didn’t, this place would become her grave.

"Who am I? Well, just like you, I’m here on a mission. Hand over the two people you captured, and I’ll let the rest of you leave alive. Otherwise..." Daniel said lazily.

"Otherwise what?" the blue-haired girl growled again.

But then something happened she didn’t expect. The man before her burst into crazed laughter. Suddenly, a terrifying aura pressed down on them from every direction.

Their legs trembled, and they felt they might collapse to their knees at any second.

"How’s this possible?" They realized in horror that all the mana inside their bodies had dried up, gone completely.

Panic hit them like a wave. They now understood—the young man wasn’t human. He was a monster.

The blue-haired girl glanced at Aden. If she failed to kill him, her mother would punish her and she might lose that thing.

But if she killed him now, none of them would leave alive. Grinding her teeth, she grabbed both Aden and the woman beside him, throwing them toward the young man.

"Smart choice. You can go." Daniel sighed in relief when he saw that his friend was safe.

The remaining six turned and started to leave. But the blue-haired girl still hesitated. In the end, she let out a cold snarl, leaving a few words behind.

"I’ll never forget your face. As the young lady of the Thousand Ice Palace, one day I’ll find you and take my revenge personally."

"Thousand Ice Palace?" Daniel muttered quietly when he heard that. But he didn’t think too much of it—he’d never even heard of such a place.

Still, he wasn’t too worried. From that small interaction with the girl, it was clear she was the kind of arrogant person who preferred to take revenge herself.

As long as the force behind her didn’t step in, Daniel didn’t care. And even if they did, as long as it wasn’t some superpower, there still wouldn’t be a problem.

Then his gaze fell on the two unconscious figures before him. Clearly Andreas hadn’t resisted at all, letting them do whatever they wanted because he was certain Daniel would come to rescue him.

"Now it’s time to stage a scene of rape." A devilish grin spread across his face.