The fire roared higher than any natural flame, a living pillar of gold and white that fought against the Ice Hell's eternal blizzard. The warmth was intoxicating, almost tangible — like being wrapped in sunlight. Jiang Ming could feel the frost in his bones receding, his muscles loosening, and his mind sharpening as if the cold had never touched him.
But the glow was a beacon.
The frozen plain around him stretched endlessly in every direction, jagged ice spires jutting from the ground like the teeth of some buried leviathan. The wind howled in mournful shrieks, carrying fine shards of ice that sliced exposed skin. Yet, amid all that, the bonfire was impossible to miss. It was visible for kilometers — an impossible luxury in this wasteland.
The first figure emerged from the white haze within minutes.
A tall man in scavenged leather armor, his face half-hidden under a fur hood, trudged toward the fire with the desperation of someone who had been walking for days. He had no weapon in his hands, but the way his eyes darted from Jiang Ming to the flames told him everything — this was a man sizing up a threat and an opportunity at the same time.
"Warmth…" the man breathed, slowing as he neared the circle of light. "You… how?"
Jiang Ming kept his voice calm. "A bit of luck. And skill."
The man's gaze lingered on the bonfire's unnatural radiance. His hands twitched at his sides, and Jiang Ming subtly shifted his weight, ready to draw the crude ice-hardened spear he had carved earlier.
Before the tension could sharpen, another figure stumbled out of the storm from the opposite direction — this one smaller, lighter on their feet, and moving fast. A young woman, face pale and lips cracked, clutching a shard of broken blade in trembling hands. Her eyes went wide at the sight of the fire.
"By the Tower…" she whispered. "It's real."
Within the next hour, more came. Four. Seven. A dozen. All drawn by the heat, the light, and the promise of survival. They formed a loose half-circle around Jiang Ming's fire, eyes reflecting its golden blaze. Some tried to speak; others simply held their hands out to the warmth like worshipers at a shrine.
The problem was obvious: in this world, nothing came without a cost.
And Jiang Ming's mind was already racing.
He remembered the system's messages when he had first arrived.
[Tenfold Genesis active: All training, crafting, and skill acquisition increased by 10x]
[Sublimation Protocol active: Upgrade any object or structure by one tier]
[Eternal Core: Stamina drain removed. Environmental hazards negated.]
This bonfire was more than a heat source — it was bait. Bait for allies… and for predators.
---
The first sign of trouble came when one of the men — a burly, broad-shouldered survivor with frostbitten cheeks — stepped forward and pointed at the flames.
"That's too much for one man," he said. "You want to live? We share it. Equally."
Jiang Ming tilted his head. "Equally? As in everyone here puts in the same amount of work?"
The man snorted. "Work? I'm freezing to death. Your fire can keep us alive. That's worth more than any work."
The crowd murmured in agreement. A few nodded; others shifted nervously. Jiang Ming saw where this was going. In their eyes, he was not a benefactor — he was a resource to be claimed.
He smiled, thin and cold. "Then I suggest you contribute something. Food. Weapons. Materials for shelter. If you have nothing, you can trade labor. Otherwise, you're just taking."
A ripple of unease passed through the group. The man's jaw clenched, and Jiang Ming's hand brushed the shaft of his spear.
Then the world shook.
---
From the far side of the plain, a deep, resonant bellow rolled through the blizzard. It was the kind of sound that made the chest vibrate and the instincts scream. The survivors froze, heads snapping toward the noise.
Through the storm, a shape emerged — massive, hunched, and wreathed in frost. Its fur was the color of dirty snow, its eyes glowing like shards of blue ice. Long, hooked claws dragged trails in the snow as it moved.
[Warning: Ice Hell predator detected — Frostmaw Behemoth. Tier-1 Elite.]
The crowd broke instantly. Half the survivors scattered into the storm without looking back. The others froze in place, as if hoping stillness would hide them.
The Behemoth's gaze locked on the fire — and then on Jiang Ming.
Perfect.
The predator wanted warmth, and Jiang Ming was about to give it something else entirely.
---
"Stay back," he called to the remaining survivors. "If you run, it'll chase you. If you stay quiet, I'll deal with it."
They stared at him as if he'd gone mad. Jiang Ming ignored them and reached for the bonfire in his mind.
[Sublimation Protocol: Target?]
[Target selected: Sublimated Bonfire (Tier-1)]
[Confirm upgrade to Tier-2? Y/N]
"Yes."
The flames erupted higher, twisting into a vortex of gold and white. Heat slammed outward like a physical wave, melting the snow for several meters in every direction. The Behemoth slowed, uncertain, its breath steaming in ragged bursts.
Jiang Ming didn't waste time. He snapped a brittle branch from his pile of fuel, thrust it into the golden blaze, and pulled it out — now crackling with intense, concentrated heat.
Tenfold Genesis activated.
His aim was perfect. The branch left his hand like a thrown spear, streaking through the cold air. It struck the Behemoth in the chest, detonating in a burst of searing light. The beast roared, staggering back, its fur igniting in patches.
The survivors gasped.
But Jiang Ming wasn't done.
---
Using his Eternal Core stamina, he sprinted forward through the slush, spear in hand. The Behemoth swiped at him with claws like sickles, but he ducked low, driving the spear into the exposed burn where the flaming branch had struck. He felt the point punch through ice-hardened hide into softer flesh.
The Behemoth howled and stumbled back. Jiang Ming twisted the spear, then yanked it free in a spray of steaming blood.
[Frostmaw Behemoth defeated. +200 Tower Points.]
[New material acquired: Behemoth Fur (Tier-1), Frostbone (Tier-1), Heart of Icefire (Tier-2).]
The body collapsed into the snow, steam curling from the wounds. The system's messages scrolled in his vision, each one sweeter than the last.
The survivors stared in stunned silence. The man who had demanded the fire earlier now couldn't meet Jiang Ming's eyes.
"Anyone else want to talk about 'sharing equally'?" Jiang Ming asked quietly.
No one replied.
---
That night, they built a shelter around the fire using the Behemoth's hide, sublimating the material until the walls glowed faintly with residual warmth. The survivors huddled inside, and for the first time since arriving in the Ice Hell, Jiang Ming allowed himself to sit.
The obsidian tower still loomed in the distance, its surface reflecting faint light from the auroras above. The first floor of the Infinite Tower had just shown its teeth — and Jiang Ming knew the higher floors would be worse.
Good.
He wasn't here to survive.
He was here to ascend.