Thankfully, they chose to ice skate; otherwise, just walking would have meant waiting until it got dark.

Fortunately, with the help of skating, they finally saw a glimpse of the bottom.

Gal's eyesight is the best. "I can see the bottom. Let's speed things up."

"good!"

With a sudden thrust of their wooden sticks, the three of them leaped forward, seemingly preparing to move on to the next stage, leaving the lake and entering the next snow-capped mountain.

But the next second brought a completely different story. The moment the wooden plank touched the lake surface, a crisp cracking sound rang out, and CatDodo had a bad feeling.

Before she could react or speak, the lake surface cracked open, and the three of them fell into it.

Suddenly, the world spun around her, and Maoduo was forced to fall into a dark world. She didn't know how much time had passed when she sneezed, touched her nose, and vaguely opened her eyes, only to find herself in a very deep hole.

She was surrounded by ice, and most absurdly, she seemed to see some fish frozen inside the ice.

CatDodo seemed to have something on her mind. Just then, footsteps sounded, and she turned around to see Gal and Diqing. They had returned from different directions and smiled when they saw CatDodo awake.

"We fell into the depths of the lake, but we never expected that there was a hidden paradise inside."

"We tested it before you woke up, and it's too deep for us to climb out for now, but there are holes all around, so we can explore them first."

...

Indeed, this is the only remaining option.

What else could Maoduo choose? She quickly nodded and followed them.

As she walked, she felt a little guilty and apologized to them in a low voice: "I'm so sorry. If I hadn't given you that bad idea, we would probably be at the next cave to rest by now."

Wouldn't it be nice to sleep by a fire in a cave? But now, deep in the unknown depths of a lake, we're forced to embark on a survival adventure in an extreme ice world.

Damn, she might do something like this in modern times, but not now.

“It’s okay. Even if you hadn’t suggested skating, we would still have fallen.” Gal’s words were as concise as ever, but CatDodo could hear the concern in his voice.

Diqing nodded and pointed inside, meaning, "The terrain here is very obvious. No matter which way we go, we will inevitably encounter danger and fall here."

It seems they landed in a good spot this time and escaped unharmed. The place he and Gal had previously explored was truly dangerous, riddled with icicles. If they had landed in such a perilous location, they would have been returning to the Beast God's embrace much earlier.

What could Maoduo say? She could only grit her teeth and follow them through the winding cave entrance. The originally narrow path opened up into a completely new world as they entered another section.

As they walked, their view gradually widened, and the ice surface became more orderly. After taking a few steps, they realized that several icicles seemed to be supporting the ice surface, and the ground appeared exceptionally flat.

At this point, it can no longer be said to have formed naturally; it is clearly under the strict supervision and facilitation of a third party...

"There is a problem here."

Di Qing's expression changed, and before he could speak, he saw two enormous beings suddenly falling from the sky in front of him.

With a loud bang, they caused quite a commotion, almost causing CatDodo to fall to the ground, leaving her somewhat dazed.

Gal reacted quickly, bending down to help the cat, Duoduo, to get up.

CatDodo then observed carefully and realized that the creature that had just jumped out was actually a giant orc, the Iceberg Snow Leopard, wearing ice armor.

Their every move carried a special aura; they showed no fear of the bitter cold, as if they were not living beings.

"You are not welcome here. Please turn back the way you came."

"Once we step inside, the purge plan will inevitably begin..."

The cold warning fell, and Di Qing chuckled, staring at the two orcs with an ambiguous expression. "Iceberg Snow Leopard. Which tribe are you from? I've never seen you before?"

He took a step forward, but the two orcs showed no mercy, pointing their weapons at him. If Diqing showed any sign of distress, they could take his life in an instant; danger was imminent.

Diqing remained unfazed and simply stated, "I am the city lord of the tribal city. I have the right to record the names of the orcs belonging to this land."

CatDodo was conflicted upon hearing this; was this considered excessive professionalism?

The two orcs remained unfazed, as if what stood before them was something that shouldn't exist.

"eradicate."

"Violators!"

The two orcs spoke in perfect unison.

As soon as they finished speaking, they took their weapons and ruthlessly pierced Di Qing's chest.

"No!" Gal rushed forward and attacked them.

Diqing also realized what was happening at that moment and tried to coordinate with Galda, but it was clear that they had no way to deal with the two orcs.

"There must be a way." CatDodo gritted its teeth, knowing that its attack power in its current form was insufficient to inflict significant damage on these two Iceberg Snow Leopard Beastmen.

Immediately, she grabbed the ice blocks next to her and started smashing them onto the snow leopard.

At first, it did seem to help, giving Diqing an opportunity to almost subdue one of them. However, the other reacted extremely quickly, easily spotting Gal's empty space and launching a spike attack that sent Diqing crashing to the ground, nearly getting stabbed. It was only thanks to CatDodo's instinctive yank that Diqing avoided being hit in the chest.

The series of attacks caught everyone off guard, and Maoduoduo had no time to think as she struggled against the two giant orcs alongside Diqing and Gal.

She had been trying to explain her destination to them, but the two orcs seemed to only recognize the sign of an outsider and wouldn't give her any chance, which caused her a lot of trouble.

With a thud, they were defeated and crashed heavily to the ground.

CatDodo felt like she was going to cough up blood, and even lying down, she could only feel the chilling coldness relentlessly assaulting her body.

"Clean up, outsiders." At that moment, the orc came over and tried to drag them away.

One man was pulling on the rather burly and tall Diqing, while the other orc held Gal in one hand and CatDodo in the other.

Cat Dodo wanted to resist but couldn't, and Gal was also filled with regret, feeling extremely guilty for not being able to help her out of her predicament.

It was at this crucial moment that the orcs led them into a dark place, where danger seemed to lurk.

At this crucial moment, a woman's voice suddenly rang out, "Wait a minute."