The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　After a moment's thought, Aylvit ordered Claire to lead a team to scan the map and inspect every corner of the hall to rule out any possible hidden dangers.

　Although the temple consciousness that possessed the birdman also appeared suddenly without warning, it is impossible to give up the investigation just because of that.

　Moreover, it was the first time that the temple's consciousness had awakened, so there was something special about it.

　If it reappears later, there might be signs. In short, when in a secret realm, caution is paramount.

　From danger detection to barrier defense, everything had to be done as thoroughly as possible. However, Dark Dimon didn't need to worry about any of that. As soon as he entered the hall, his attention was drawn to the two rows of ice coffins, and he couldn't take his eyes off them.

　From the outside, the hall appeared unremarkable. However, upon entering, one could sense an extremely dense divine aura, an environment where countless divine elements were piled together. This even made him completely oblivious to the extreme cold emanating from the ice coffin, making the entire hall feel like an ice cellar.

　His gaze swept over the area quickly, and he immediately counted the number of ice coffins. If there was no additional concealment, there should be forty-nine.

　Of the forty-nine ice coffins, only a few showed signs of being opened, but none were completely destroyed.

　Near the base of some of the ice coffins, there are many obvious scorch marks and corrosion marks.

　It is conceivable that the investigation team must have conducted numerous experiments in order to open these ice coffins.

　However, the fact that there were no signs of melting or corrosion on any of the ice coffins indicates that neither high temperatures nor poison had any effect.

　Poisonous corrosion aside, the ice coffin was clearly made of "ice," yet it couldn't be melted by flames or high temperatures...

　Dark's gaze shifted, and the explanation Aquinita had given him—that the "Goddess of Ice and Snow" was not the "Goddess of Ice and Snow," but rather the "Goddess of Time and Life"—flew through his mind.

　Those seemingly icy "ice" may not be real "ice," or perhaps they are "ice" with added "technology and ruthless work."

　The investigation team eventually broke open the ice coffin with "force" and thus came into contact with the "divine body" frozen inside.

　However, physical breakthroughs are not entirely effective. Chiseling open ice coffins is time-consuming and laborious. Even those few ice coffins that had been disturbed were only partially opened.

　But among them, two ice coffins were different.

　Inside one of the ice coffins was a humanoid god with a ram's head and a black face. One corner of that ice coffin clearly showed signs of being neatly cut open, completely different from the rough, chipped marks left by other carvings.

　Another ice coffin was broken open, leaving only the lower half, with large and small ice blocks scattered around it.

　"The 'divine body' sealed inside the first ice coffin should be the one that corresponds to the 'Capricorn Gold Armor'."

　"The second ice coffin contains... most likely the bird-man's 'divine body' that was controlled by fragments of the temple's consciousness."

　Through this observation alone, Dark gleaned several crucial pieces of information. First, the one that cut open the corner of the first ice coffin was likely the "Capricorn Golden Armor" after its deification, meaning that Alvit already possessed the ability to cut open the ice coffin, but was forced to leave due to the Celestial Tea Party. Second, the "divine body," "resurrected" under the control of fragments of the temple's consciousness, was able to break through the ice coffin from the inside and emerge, perhaps indicating a special connection between the ice coffin and the "divine body's" life.

　With the danger detection completed, the investigation team began resetting the barrier and meticulously deploying defenses. Dark was finally allowed to approach the ice coffins for a detailed investigation.

　He suppressed his excitement, first summoned the "Magic Secretary" and ordered it to record everything, then headed straight for the "first" ice coffin.

　Arvit shook her head slightly, revealing a somewhat helpless smile, and then followed behind Dark, walking slowly away.

　Dark approached the ice coffin, reached out and touched the corner that had most likely been severed by the "Capricorn Spear," feeling the lingering sharpness within it, and sighed deeply.

　After refining the "Golden Armor" into the "Golden Divine Armor," Alvit's power seemed to have truly touched the realm of "gods," surpassing the limits that humans could reach.

　If we use her as a reference for deduction, then the "God's Cup" three years later will probably develop into a true "God's War"!

　To win the "God's Cup," one must surpass the limits of what humans can achieve; it is absolutely impossible.

　However, if one cannot transcend the limits of human potential with a human body, how can one develop the "Path of Magic" and construct a completely new path to godhood?

　Only by using the impossible can the impossible be accomplished.

　Dak started from one of the severed corners of the ice coffin and began to feel his way along its surface.

　Magic, mental power, spiritual power, aura, life force...

　He constantly switched between sensing and detecting power, and gradually discovered that magic, mental power, spiritual power and life force could not penetrate the ice coffin and could not get feedback, but the power of wave guidance could!

　It's unclear whether this is because the blood of the "divine body" inside the ice coffin has been partially activated by Angry. Therefore, the feedback from using the Aura Force is more noticeable than when it's used on the ice statue.

　With a thought, he merged his mental power with his aura. Then, he placed his hand on the previously carved opening leading to the "divine body," channeling the power of his mind and aura into the opening and probing towards the ram-headed, black-faced "divine body."

　"feed--"

　As if his heartstrings had been plucked hard, Dark's body trembled violently.

　A golden light suddenly flashed in his eyes, and he suddenly saw a divine aura appear within that "divine body," but it disappeared abruptly after circulating for half a circle.

　Immediately afterwards, he suddenly had a clear feeling that faint "threads" were surging out from the body of that "divine body" and drifting in a certain fixed direction.

　There should be an ice statue that looks exactly like it there!

　The connection between the ice statue and the "divine body" has been reaffirmed.

　Dark took a deep breath and said, "This 'divine body' is showing signs of activation. However, its 'soul' and 'consciousness' are absent. I wonder if setting up a corresponding ritual centered on this 'divine body' can summon its 'soul'?"

　“I haven’t tried it yet,” Alvitt said from behind. “Besides, most soul-summoning rituals require at least a fragment of divine soul as a basic guide. But this ‘divine body’ is very clean; there isn’t even a single fragment of divine soul.”

　Dark stared at the "divine body" for a long while, then suddenly had a feeling: "Could it be... that it has been completely annihilated?"

　Alvit shook her head and said, "Who can know? Everyone says that gods are immortal, but throughout history, how many gods have completely disappeared into the annals of time?"

　Everything has an end; the so-called "immortality" is merely a relative concept.

　Just like the "Undying Demon King" Aleister Aldrich, it's not entirely impossible to kill him.

　It simply requires the intervention of a "god" with the appropriate authority. This "Snow Mountain Goddess Temple" is now filled with eeriness. Even if the "divine bodies" lying in these ice coffins are truly dead gods, it's not entirely impossible.

　The most important key to research is not to limit yourself. The "resurrection" of those ice statues and the "divine bodies" controlled by fragments of temple consciousness cannot actually be considered true resurrection.

　Therefore, at least for now, there is no evidence that they have not been completely eradicated.

　Seeing that he couldn't find any more information for the time being, Dark withdrew his aura, took out a "Sphere of Truth," and said, "Find the corresponding 'divine body.'"

　After saying that, he opened the "Orb of Truth" and released the Valkyrie's "divine body" sealed inside.

　As soon as he was released, he immediately felt a sudden tension in the air.

　It wasn't that the atmosphere became tense, but rather that the feeling was like a line being stretched taut.

　He suddenly turned his head to look at the opposite side, his gaze focusing on one of the "ice coffins".

　"Is it that one?" he asked. "Yes, it is." Claire stepped forward.

　She and Arvit exchanged a glance, their expressions both turning serious.

　The special connection between the ice statue and the "divine body" has been confirmed. But if the ice statue is truly the shell of the "divine body," what kind of changes will the "divine body" undergo after acquiring the shell?

　Will they suddenly come to life like those ice statues before? They must retain foresight to avoid being caught off guard by unexpected situations.

　With Alvit and Claire around, Dark felt relatively relaxed.

　He grasped the ice statue with his magical hand and stepped towards the ice coffin. Aura power emanated from him.

　He could clearly feel that as the ice statue and the ice coffin got closer, the connection between them became stronger.

　But when the distance between the ice statue and the ice coffin was less than ten meters, the "ice statue" in Dak's hands began to tremble, though slightly. He almost thought that the ice statue was about to "come back to life".

　But after standing guard for half a minute, he found that the ice statue was only trembling. He pondered for a moment, then took a few steps back with the ice statue in his hand. The trembling went from weakening to disappearing in just those few steps.

　He calculated the exact distance between the ice statue and the ice coffin before continuing to walk towards the ice coffin.

　The body of a true "Valkyrie" lay within that ice coffin.

　0

　Only when you get close can you see through the ice coffin and clearly see the details of the "divine body" inside.

　The biggest difference between the "divine body" and the ice statue is the difference in color and material, as well as the different texture that can be seen with just a glance.

　However, apart from the ram-headed, black-faced "divine body" whose blood had been activated, all the other "divine bodies" present had a similar hardness to the ice statues. On the surface, they were no different from frozen human bodies, and did not have the feeling of "still alive even when frozen in an ice coffin".

　In addition, only the ice sculpture was shaking.

　It gives people the feeling of being eager to return to one's true self.

　While the "shell theory" may not be entirely correct, this phenomenon at least illustrates the distinction between "primary" and "secondary".

　The "divine body" must be the main body.

　Dark brought the ice statue to the front of the ice coffin, and the ice statue was already shaking quite noticeably.

　But it seems that nothing else has changed.

　After several minutes of this, Dark finally made a decision and asked Alvette if she could cut open the ice coffin.

　“You don’t need many, just cut a slit,” he added.

　After careful consideration, Alvitt took out the [Capricorn Golden Divine Armor].

　Then, arm yourself, transform! "Armored Special Feature: Absolute Severance!"

　She raised the "Capricorn Spear," slowly assuming a stance, and dark divine power emerged from the blade.

　Then, she suddenly swung her gun at the ice coffin!

　A flash of black light appeared, and a white mark emerged on the ice coffin.

　The white streaks penetrated straight into the coffin, only stopping abruptly when they reached the skin of the Valkyrie's "divine body".

　In that instant, a passage appeared between the inside and outside of the ice coffin.

　The connection between the "divine body" and the ice statue was finally fully established! Everyone present tensed up, staring intently at the "divine body" to prevent it from suddenly reviving.

　However, the "divine body" was not resurrected.

　The anticipated scene of ice transforming into light or fluid and seeping into the "divine body" through the cracks did not occur.

　Dark suddenly turned his head to look at the spot where the ice statue had been, and his "magic hand" was now empty!

　The ice statue vanished, as expected, but there was no trace of it disappearing. He turned to look at the "divine body" again, only to find that it was still frozen inside, unchanged.

　By simply using the "Eye of Truth" to peer into it, one can vaguely sense that the value of that "divine body" has increased.

　However, because the order of the "divine body" exceeded the limits that Dark could currently perceive, the feeling was extremely vague, and might even feel like a hallucination.

　"It should... have returned to its original form."

　He said in a low voice, unsure of what to do.

　"Change to another one."

　In the silence, Claire suddenly spoke.

　"it is good."

　Without saying much, Dark took out the armored ice statue that he had recently acquired into the "Eye of Truth".

　It is an ice statue that has been "resurrected". By comparing the differences, we may be able to catch more clues.

　Dark moved the armored ice statue and its limbs to the corresponding ice coffin.

　Sure enough, inside that ice coffin was a "divine body" that was exactly the same as the ice statue in armor.

　"Prepare."

　After giving a warning, Aylvit raised the "Capricorn Gun" and swung it fiercely.

　"Sever all ties!"

　A flash of black light appeared, and white marks appeared again on the ice coffin. The white marks penetrated straight into the interior, rendering the ice coffin's barrier ineffective.

　The ice statue that had been "resurrected" immediately reacted violently with the "divine body" inside the ice coffin.

Chapter 1690 Time Returns, Divinity Decays (4k)

　"boom!"

　The entire ice statue, including its severed limbs, shattered instantly, turning into countless ice crystals.

　However, the brilliance refracted by the ice crystals vanished the moment it entered the eye. No trace remained in the air.

　It's as if, when comparing this "resurrected" ice statue with the previous Valkyrie ice statue, the only difference is the addition of this "breaking" process.

　But when Dark looked at the "divine body" inside the ice coffin, he saw an extremely shocking scene.

　The exposed parts of the fully armored "divine body" were visibly shriveling up at a rate visible to the naked eye.

　Looking inside the ice coffin from the outside, the changes were extremely bizarre. Moreover, these changes were spreading from the flesh to the armor at an incredibly rapid pace—even the full suit of armor, which had remained intact for millennia within the ice, cracked, shattered, and collapsed in an instant, shrinking inward along with the flesh.

　When Dark came to his senses, the "divine body" had already collapsed into a black dot. Finally, even that black dot vanished in an instant!

　The ice coffin sealing the "divine body" remained unchanged. However, the "divine body" inside had completely disappeared.

　Dark suddenly heightened his senses, but he still couldn't detect any remnants of divinity within the ice coffin.

　"What's going on?" he asked instinctively.