As the carriage resumed its journey through the unveiled city, Wooyun remained pressed to the window in silent awe. His breath fogged the glass, but he hardly noticed. The further they traveled, the more surreal it all became.
Ice bridges arched over deep crevasses, each one carved with ancient runes that glowed faintly beneath the frost. Crystalline structures rose from the land like jagged summits. They looked too perfect to have been made by human hands.
And yet amidst all the wonders before him, a question festered in Wooyun's mind. How am I supposed to cultivate earth-qi here?
He shifted back in his seat, glancing at his palms, trying to recall Eun-woo's words before they parted. Earth wasn't just soil or stone—it was steadiness, pressure, and weight. But still, this place… it didn't feel alive the way the earth should.
There were no living organisms in sight. No warmth or sign of life. Just frost. Stillness.
