Just as Su Ran was about to reach out and touch the ice key that emitted a ghostly blue light, the ice around the ice cave seemed to come alive in an instant, and countless ice golems surged out from the broken ice. These ice golems were of various shapes, some humanoid and some beast-like, and they exuded a chilling aura, their eyes flashing with eerie icy light, and they charged towards the group without hesitation.

"Watch out!" Su Ran shouted, quickly conjuring an ice sword in her hand. This ice sword was formed from her pure ice-elemental spiritual power, its blade gleaming with a chilling light, seemingly capable of slicing through anything in the world. Su Ran moved like lightning, charging towards the horde of ice golems. She swung her ice sword, unleashing countless ice blades that shattered the golems in their wake, turning them into a pile of broken ice.

The old man also acted swiftly, his hands forming hand seals and his mouth chanting incantations. Suddenly, countless enormous ice spikes condensed from the top of the ice cave, raining down on the ice golem like raindrops. The ice spikes pierced through the ice golem's body, producing a crisp cracking sound. In an instant, ice shards flew everywhere, and the ice golem's attack was slightly hindered.

The other disciples were not to be outdone. One disciple cast an ice shield spell, forming a sturdy ice shield around them to withstand the ice golems' attacks. Another disciple cast an ice binding spell, with ice chains rising from the ground in an attempt to restrain the ice golems. However, these ice golems were incredibly strong, and some of the ice chains that had just wrapped around them were easily broken free.

While fighting the ice golems, Su Ran kept an eye on her surroundings. She noticed that the ice golems seemed endless, impossible to kill. Moreover, as the battle continued, the ice golems' attacks became increasingly fierce; they began to coordinate their attacks, attempting to break through the group's defenses.

"This can't go on. We need to get the key and leave here as soon as possible!" Su Ran shouted. She knew that in this narrow ice cave, if they were to be entangled with the endless ice golems for too long, their spiritual energy would eventually be exhausted.

At this moment, a disciple was accidentally injured in the battle with the ice golem, his arm slashed by the golem's claws. Upon seeing this, Su Ran immediately cast an ice-based healing spell, a soft, icy-blue light enveloping the injured disciple's arm, and the wound quickly stopped bleeding and healed.

"Everyone hold your ground! Concentrate your strength and break through to the stone platform!" the old man shouted. Hearing this, everyone moved towards the stone platform, cooperating with each other to form a tight battle formation.

Su Ran led the way, unleashing the ice-based abilities she had inherited to their fullest potential. With a flick of her wrists, ice elements in the air coalesced wildly, forming a colossal ice dragon. The ice dragon roared as it charged towards the horde of ice golems, smashing them to pieces in its wake.

With the help of the ice dragon's impact, the group finally broke through the encirclement of ice golems and arrived at the stone platform. Su Ran reached out and grasped the Ice Key, and in an instant, a powerful ice-elemental force surged into her body. This force merged with her own spiritual power, giving her an unprecedented feeling of comfort.

However, the moment Su Ran grasped the key, the ice cave began to tremble violently. The ice golem fragments that had been defeated by the group rapidly reformed, becoming even stronger. At the same time, cracks appeared on the ceiling of the ice cave, as if it were about to collapse at any moment.

"Oh no! We have to get out of here!" the old man shouted. Without hesitation, everyone, led by Su Ran, quickly retreated along the passage they had come from.

The ice golems pursued relentlessly, their speed astounding them in the blink of an eye. Su Ran ran while casting ice-based sealing spells, attempting to slow their advance. She channeled her spiritual energy into the passage's floor, causing a thick layer of ice to quickly form, sealing the passage. However, this only temporarily halted the ice golems, who soon began breaking through the ice to advance.

The group ran desperately and finally returned to the surface of the frozen lake. At this moment, the ice on the lake began to shake violently, as if some enormous force was about to erupt from the bottom of the lake.

"It seems we've triggered some kind of restriction at the bottom of the lake. We must leave this icy lake immediately!" the old man said.

The group had barely left the shore of the frozen lake when a deafening roar erupted behind them. The entire lake shattered, sending massive chunks of ice soaring into the sky. A gigantic ice demon rose from the lake, several times larger than the one Su Ran had encountered during the inheritance trial. It emanated a suffocatingly malevolent aura.

"What...what's going on?" a disciple asked in alarm.

Su Ran's expression was solemn. She knew that the ice demon in front of her was extremely powerful. Everyone had just gone through a fierce battle and their spiritual power was depleted. It would be extremely difficult to deal with this ice demon.

"Don't panic, everyone! Let's think of a solution together!" Su Ran said, trying her best to stay calm and quickly devise a plan.

The old man observed the ice demon's actions and said, "This ice demon seems to..."

A colossal ice demon surged into the sky from the frozen lake, its mountain-like body radiating a chilling aura and an intense malevolent presence. The ice demon roared to the heavens, its voice echoing across the icy plains, making everyone's eardrums ache.

Despite his discomfort, Su Ran quickly observed the Ice Demon's form and attack pattern. The Ice Demon swung its arms, and several thick ice shards erupted from the ground, shooting towards the group like arrows. Su Ran hurriedly cast an ice shield, protecting everyone within it. The ice shards struck the shield, producing a crisp sound, and ripples spread across its surface.

"This ice demon is too powerful. We can't fight alone; we must cooperate!" Su Ran shouted. She quickly arranged the disciples' positions and roles, while the old man was responsible for casting wide-range ice-based support spells from the rear to enhance everyone's defense and attack.

A disciple skilled in ranged ice attacks launched the first attack, rapidly forming hand seals and summoning dozens of ice projectiles that shot towards the Ice Demon like meteors. The Ice Demon seemed completely unfazed by the attack, merely raising its arm slightly, and a thick ice shield appeared before it, easily blocking the projectiles. The ice projectiles shattered upon impact with the shield, turning into ice shards that scattered across the ground.

Seizing the opportunity, Su Ran flashed forward, appearing behind the Ice Demon like a ghost. She concentrated all her spiritual energy into her ice sword and slashed forcefully at the Ice Demon's leg. With a clang, the ice sword struck the Ice Demon's leg, sending up a spray of ice flowers, but leaving only a shallow mark on its surface. Sensing the attack from behind, the Ice Demon turned angrily, its massive hand slamming down towards Su Ran. Unable to dodge in time, Su Ran was sent flying by a powerful force, crashing heavily to the ground.

"Senior Sister!" the disciples exclaimed. A disciple skilled in healing magic immediately came to Su Ran's side and cast a healing spell to restore her injuries. Su Ran gritted her teeth, ignoring the pain, and stood up again.

"We can't give up! Let's all charge together and find its weakness!" Su Ran shouted. The group mustered their courage once more and charged towards the Ice Demon. This time, their coordination was even better. Some cast ice-based binding spells, attempting to restrict the Ice Demon's movements; others unleashed powerful ice-based attack spells, focusing all their efforts on the Ice Demon.

The old man behind him moved his hands rapidly, chanting incantations. Dark clouds gathered in the sky, and the temperature plummeted. Moments later, countless tiny ice crystals fell, sharp as needles, piercing towards the ice demon. The ice demon roared in fury as it was struck by the ice crystals. Although the ice crystals couldn't kill the ice demon, they disrupted its movements, throwing its attack rhythm into disarray.

Seizing the opportunity, Su Ran charged at the Ice Demon again. She focused all her attention on sensing the flow of spiritual energy within the Ice Demon. Finally, she discovered a tiny flaw in the Ice Demon's chest, where the fluctuations of spiritual energy were slightly disordered.

"Listen up, everyone! Focus your attacks on the Ice Demon's chest!" Su Ran shouted. Upon hearing this, the disciples immediately turned their attacks towards the Ice Demon's chest. In an instant, various ice-based spells rained down on the Ice Demon's chest.

The Ice Demon seemed to sense the danger and tried to protect its chest with its arms, but the attacks from the group were too dense for it to completely block. Su Ran seized the opportunity and unleashed a full-force attack, his ice sword, imbued with immense ice-elemental spiritual power, piercing towards the Ice Demon's vulnerable chest.

With a deafening boom, the Ice Demon was struck in the chest, creating a huge hole in the ice. The Ice Demon let out a shrill scream, its body began to tremble violently, and its evil aura gradually weakened.

However, the Ice Demon was unwilling to accept defeat. It frantically absorbed the surrounding ice elements, attempting to heal the wound on its chest and launch a final counterattack. The Ice Demon opened its maw, and a massive ice pillar shot towards the group. This ice pillar contained world-destroying power; wherever it passed, the ground was frozen, leaving a deep trench.

Everyone quickly unleashed their strongest defensive spells, forming layer upon layer of shields. The ice pillars struck the shields, the powerful impact causing them to teeter on the brink of collapse. Su Ran and the old man did their utmost to maintain the shields, their foreheads covered in sweat.

Just as the shield was about to shatter, the Ice Demon suddenly roared, and its body began to collapse. It turned out that the attacks from Su Ran and the others had already inflicted fatal damage on it. Its forced absorption of ice elements to retaliate had overwhelmed its body, ultimately causing it to break down.

The colossal ice demon shattered into countless ice shards, scattering across the ground, and peace finally returned to the icy plains. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed to the ground. Exhausted from the fierce battle, they had successfully repelled the ice demon and preserved the first Ice Key.

"Is everyone alright?" Su Ran asked, looking at her disciples who were tired but had firm eyes, her heart filled with relief.