One-Eyed Monster

Ice Bed!

Igor felt a sudden epiphany when Tobin Sol mentioned it.

He had experienced that Ice Bed too. After entering the Border Realm, he was chased by the Flame Demon’s fire. At that time, he felt a burning sensation all over his body, but it vanished when he started running. Although this was not long ago, he had forgotten about it. He didn’t remember how he got through it at all.

To Igor, this was a bit unfamiliar; he didn’t understand what was happening.

”Perhaps you don’t fully understand yet.” Tobin, observing Igor’s expression, realized he was confused.

”I don’t understand. When I woke up, I heard I was also burning all over. What’s going on here?”

”This matter needs to be explained slowly; many things can’t be clarified all at once.”

”I don’t want it explained slowly. If you talk slowly, you’ll immediately drift off-topic.” Igor scratched his head. He had a point; if he allowed Sol to explain slowly, new strange topics would inevitably arise, piquing Igor’s interest and prompting him to ask more questions until the subject became convoluted.

Igor often knew this weakness about himself but couldn’t help it. This time, however, he contained himself; prior training from Teacher Hadi had some effect, and he could control his emotions a little better.

”Alright, I’ll speak directly. It might be a bit obscure, but if you listen carefully, it won’t feel unfamiliar.”

”Go ahead, I’m listening.”

”We detach our consciousness from the body to enter the Border Realm, where, through illusion, we form a shell indistinguishable from our real body. However, maintaining this shell requires rituals to control Energy, and this Energy is not one-way.” Sol finished and glanced at Igor, thinking he might gain some insight.

”You mean, our body can feel this Energy?”

”Precisely, your comprehension is high, Igor. What I’ll say next will be easier for you to understand.” Sol smiled, his worries easing away.

”Is it difficult to understand?” Igor was curious about how magical this Ice Bed really was.

”After our consciousness controls this Energy, it transmits back to our real body. Though not entirely, a portion does. However, since it’s the Border Realm’s Energy with high intensity, our bodies might not fully control the resulting effects.”

Igor furrowed his brow, seeming to grasp a bit of understanding.

”Our bodies naturally expel this Energy, primarily through heat dispersion!”

”You mean, this Ice Bed is for us to dissipate heat?” Igor seemed to understand.

”Exactly, you’re right. It’s for expelling the excess Energy from our bodies.”

”What would happen without this Ice Bed?” Igor pursued, thinking this was the crucial question.

”Without the Ice Bed, our body would be scorched by the excess Energy. This damage isn’t immediately visible but will manifest over time. When your entire bodily functions suffer this burn, all responses become significantly delayed.” Sol continued explaining to Igor. Although unverified, his long years in the Border Realm allowed him to deduce this, thanks also to the help of the Resistors and Soul Devourers.

”You mean, if someone’s body can’t withstand such Energy, it will be harmed?”

”Yes, many Resistors couldn’t endure this phase, leading their bodies to lose life’s characteristics early, only to be alleviated by others.”

”That’s truly a sad thing. This means Dean Hoffman did something truly remarkable for us!”

”You’re right. He deduced a solution just through observation. Dean Hoffman is an extraordinary Scholar.”

”Then how did you find this Time Standard? By logic, you shouldn’t be able to sense what your real body is feeling!” Igor continued asking.

”That’s because when you entered the Border Realm, the Ice Bed was already there, so your perception wasn’t obvious.” Sol said softly to Igor, as this was a crucial part of the explanation for him.

”How so? I didn’t understand.” Igor continued.

”Without the Ice Bed absorbing the excess Energy, you could feel the feedback from your body.” Sol explained.

”Really?” Igor was a bit skeptical.

”Naturally, even though our consciousness enters the Border Realm, a tiny part remains in our body. Only when the body receives extremely strong stimuli does it feedback, and I’ve experienced this, so I know clearly.”

”And you determined the Time Standard from this feedback.”

”Exactly.”

”That’s not easy!” Igor sighed.

”Nothing is easy. I’m lucky because as an ancient Hunter, I’m naturally more sensitive to time than others. I must remember when the sun rises and the moon sets to hunt effectively. Additionally, I understand the timing of nature’s changes, like how long it takes for firewood to burn out, how long ice takes to melt into water, and how long it takes water to freeze into ice. I need to know all these.”

”Oh, so you discovered the time rule based on all this!” At this point, Igor finally understood. Sol was very familiar with time in the real world. He compared the ice melting time to the Energy cycle within the shell and the feedback time from the Ice Bed, deriving a Time Standard for the Border Realm.

This Ice Bed, Igor observed closely, melts into water, flowing into the Dwarves’ ice block generator, then refreezes. The Dwarves crafted the Ice Bed remarkably, perfectly mimicking natural processes. They pursue precision; this is inevitable.

”This wasn’t determined after one or two comparisons. I tried many times before deriving this Time Standard. Once established, the Border Resistance truly became Resistors!”