Chapter 254 - The Cold That Guides Him

In an inexplicable fury, Jack went on to the outer ridges of the camp. He slaughtered each one of the defenseless creatures, with each strike of his sword more devastating than the last.

There was a considerable difference between the ones Jack had fought earlier and now.

While the previous ones carried weapons and stood their ground, these ones didn't even hold anything to fend off Jack's attacks. They ran away at the sight of his approach but not fast enough to get away from Jack entirely.

Not only that, but the creatures who had run away had different physiques as well. Their muscle tone was significantly weaker, bodies and height naturally more petite. Some even had the appearance of children, having physiques half of Jack's size.

Despite all of this, Jack didn't care. He didn't even notice as he culled through the rest of the camp, slaughtering everything in his sights. The coldness in his heart couldn't get any colder.

"Shatter."

Eliminating the last group, Jack lowered the weapon to his side. He breathed slowly, completely calm, and walked out of the small tent on the very outskirts of the camp. There was no purpose in his movement, no spring in his step.

As he reached the covering, which acted as the door, Jack heard the sound of whimpers right next to him. He glanced over, almost instinctively, and searched for whatever was making that noise.

It was none other than a small child. It had the same distinguishing characteristics as the other creatures in the camp. But this one was much smaller than the rest. Jack thought it was a toddler, perhaps even younger. And, without hesitation, he stabbed the greatsword onto the abdomen of the creature, watching the blood gush out of its small body.

Jack managed to cut down an entire village's worth of people without hesitation. Without mercy.

But, none of what he did weighed on his conscience. He was indifferent at the blood that covered most of his body. Even if his blade was knee-deep in streaks of red, Jack felt nothing.

Nonetheless, Jack walked towards the elves' corpses once more, leaving footsteps drenched in blood with each step. He didn't bother cleaning himself up as he approached. Jack then kneeled by a corpse and lifted it gently. He moved over to the side and started burying the elf's body underneath the snow. Jack did the same thing for the others.

While doing so, Jack didn't bother saying a word or anything. His expression was constant and unchanging, displaying no emotion whatsoever.

As he gently placed the last of the snow over the corpse, Jack paid his respects once more as he soon left. He didn't spend any more time lamenting over his failures. Jack didn't even bother looking back as he carried the same cold expression on his face as he left the small campsite.

There was no way of telling if Jack was going to be okay.

Regardless, Jack had more than enough with all of this. He didn't want to spend another second here any longer than he already had. There was nothing else he could do here. And, with each heavy step, Jack wandered into the tundra once more.

Jack hadn't realized it, but his movements felt sluggish and slow. He was tired. And, considering what he had just done, it was expected.

However, Jack didn't seem to mind it as he continued walking through the snowstorm. He kept walking and, with each heavy step, the storm became stronger.

The change was gradual. So much so that Jack didn't notice it at first. He hadn't realized what was happening, not until the piles of snow became noticeably taller. Jack was more than sure that he was going along the same path as before, making the piles of snow an oddity.

But then again, it wasn't strange to see why.

The snow piles grew as the storm grew more intense. The weather started from relatively clear skies with a few drops of snow. But, now, that wasn't the case.

Jack couldn't see that far anymore as he struggled to move through the harsh wind and cold. It didn't help that his clothes were soaked either, as his blood-soaked clothes only intensified the harshness of the dire weather conditions.

The situation only got worse from there. And, subsequently, it had even snapped Jack out of his stunned stupor and focused on surviving the harsher winds. While he hoped he could teleport his way out of this mess, the teleportation stones don't work this far inland.

Unfortunately, that seemed more difficult done than said.

'Crap.'

Jack was freezing, cold to the touch. While he could tolerate something like that, Jack knew he wouldn't last very long in this state. And, not only that but the further away he got, the harsher the winds. It was as if something was trying to keep him here.

From killing defenseless creatures to freezing to death, Jack felt confused. He didn't know what was happening and couldn't even begin to understand the phenomena he encountered.

As each gust of wind tested his resilience, Jack knew he wouldn't be able to make it very far. Whether it was some divine repentance for his actions or not, Jack knew he had to head back.

Without a moment's hesitation, Jack chose to turn around. He took a step back and immediately noticed the difference. The wind slowed. The cold was less intense. But, despite that, the weather conditions didn't fully let up either. So, Jack decided to take even more steps back.

As the tracks he left behind almost immediately got covered up, Jack made his way back to the campsite. However, before he could make his way there, the wind picked up again.

Something was directing him where to go. That much was clear now.

That said, Jack wasn't exactly thrilled. He didn't appreciate being played like this, especially if he didn't know where he would end up. It wasn't in his best interest to be distracted like this. Jack wasn't sure what was in store for him. But, he damn well knew that it wasn't anything good.

After numerous trials and errors, Jack found a path that seemed too peaceful to be true. It was an underground path, one filled with glistening ice and not much else. While he considered going another way, the wind wouldn't let him.

So, he dropped down, cautious as to what awaited him.

Fortunately, though, nothing happened. Jack stood there, on a path leading only to one destination. The glistening ice surrounded him, even at the ceiling too. They reflected his image, albeit distorted.

While Jack didn't care for the creepy faces the ice were making, Jack found the path to be rather comfortable. The wind didn't pick up, and the cold remained stagnant and well within Jack's tolerance. Even with his near-frozen attire, Jack was relatively comfortable.

Turning to the path laid out in front of him, Jack sensed something coming from the end. While his senses weren't as attuned as Rynold's, it was an undeniable fact that something big was there.

And, as it stands, there was no other way for him to go than forward.

Breathing a mouthful of cold air, Jack took the step forward. He was careful not to overstep, wary of any dangers that might jump out to attack him.

With each careful step, Jack slowly made his way to where he needed to be. He walked at an amicable pace while his psyche prepared him for the worst. Jack didn't know what awaited him, but it sure wasn't going to be anything welcoming.

Nevertheless, Jack made sure he was in good shape. He didn't want to be a sitting duck when a fight breaks out. While he was feeling cold and a bit tired, Jack pulled some recovery items from his Inventory. He then consumed them in one sitting while maintaining his pace.

Soon, Jack managed to finish the path without any problems whatsoever.

The path opened to a massive underground cave, populated by one large, all-powerful creature. Despite its large stature, it looked at Jack as if it were expecting him. Jack, on the other hand, met the creature in the eye and flinched in outright fear.

Jack didn't hesitate to turn around and go back the way he came. Unfortunately, the ice path barred him from entry as it collapsed before his very eyes. Jack then had no choice but to face the creature, drawing his weapon with shaky hands.

Seeing Jack's reaction, the creature didn't even look surprised or any emotion whatsoever. It watched Jack's actions with a less-than-caring expression as if saying that whatever Jack did would have only been useless. But, even so, Jack didn't inch back.

He'd rather die fighting than nothing at all. Even if it were a fool's errand to pursue something like this, Jack had more than enough reason to find a way out of here.

He was determined to do so, one way or another.