Two months living among the Lizardmen, and Queen Shalan still hadn't returned.
However, something very strange had recently happened in the Tarkgan Great Desert.
It snowed.
The scorching sun still hung high in the sky, but large goose-feather snowflakes fell from above.
The snowflakes melted upon landing, and the temperature in the Tarkgan Great Desert plummeted.
Many Lizardmen could not endure such a temperature drop; more than half of the ordinary Lizardmen without cultivation were frozen to death.
No fellow tribesmen cared about the lives of these Lizardmen, even if the deceased Lizardmen were the parents or children of those with cultivation, they did not care.
The Lizardmen species only followed the Law of the jungle; kinship concepts were very weak.
Although this snow came very strangely, the temperature in the Tarkgan Great Desert had already dropped to a point where ordinary Lizardmen could barely survive.
But Lizardmen with cultivation still hunted and enjoyed themselves in the rare desert oases, while ordinary Lizardmen could only serve as slaves and servants.
Even a Lizardman like Zhou Fan, who had only recently joined the tribe, was able to share a small oasis with four other second-tier Lizardmen due to his second-tier cultivation, and also had dozens of uncultivated Lizardmen servants.
Initially, this heavy snow did not attract the attention of the Lizardmen high-ups.
It wasn't until a blizzard, which lasted for twenty-four days, fell, covering the entire Tarkgan Great Desert with a layer of white frost.
Many first-tier Lizardmen died in this near-zero temperature drop; they had lived for generations in the arid and hot desert, able to withstand temperatures up to 150 degrees, but unable to withstand temperatures below freezing.
With the death of cultivated tribesmen, this blizzard finally alerted the Lizardmen high-ups.
The Queen had not yet returned, so they could only discuss countermeasures themselves.
Several high-tier Lizardmen gathered, and after enjoying themselves for a few days in the second-largest oasis, they decided to send out a reconnaissance team to explore the source of this abnormal snowfall.
Zhou Fan, as one of the stronger second-tier Lizardmen and a newly joined member, was 'honored' to be selected for the reconnaissance team.
This was exactly what Zhou Fan wanted; he was also very curious about the reason for the desert snowfall.
He concealed a Divided Soul in the Lizardmen territory; if a fourth-tier fluctuation was detected, it would indicate the return of the Sand Lizard Queen, and Zhou Fan could use the Divided Soul to observe her every move.
The reconnaissance team traveled in the direction of decreasing temperature, constantly encountering first-tier Lizardmen on the verge of freezing to death who begged for help, but the reconnaissance team ignored them; their goal was the place with the lowest temperature.
While venturing deeper into the desert, the reconnaissance team discovered a giant ice pillar emitting a strange blue light.
The temperature around the ice pillar was extremely low, and a peculiar power was continuously releasing cold.
Second-tier Lizardmen wishing to approach had to use the recently refined cold-resistant Magical Artifacts.
Enduring the uncomfortable cold as they approached the ice pillar, the reconnaissance team was about to investigate when the ice pillar suddenly cracked open.
From within flew an ice snake radiating cold Qi; Zhou Fan could sense that this ice snake had no life force, it was an inanimate object, with a strength roughly at the Late Stage of the third-tier.
The reconnaissance team's captain was a Late Stage second-tier Lizardman; it could only sense that the ice snake's aura was unfathomable, far beyond what it could handle.
While commanding the Lizardmen in front of him to attack, the reconnaissance team captain continuously retreated, and after withdrawing a certain distance, he decisively burrowed into the sand and fled.
The other Lizardmen were not foolish either; this ice snake was clearly unbeatable, and the reconnaissance team instantly disintegrated, with most Lizardmen choosing to flee.
Of course, a small portion of Lizardmen were more stubborn; they actively launched an attack on the ice snake.
Then they were pierced through by ice cones shot from the ice snake, or frozen into ice sculptures by the cold Qi exhaled by the ice snake.
Zhou Fan ignored the ice snake; after leaving the reconnaissance team, he used his fourth-tier speed to fly towards the central area with the lowest temperature.
The closer he got to the depths, the more ice pillars there were around him; the sand was already covered with a thick layer of ice, and at the same time, a blizzard started again from the sky.
After flying tens of thousands of miles, Zhou Fan arrived before a spherical barrier.
This barrier looked very sturdy; Zhou Fan tried attacking it a few times with fourth-tier Spells, but could not pierce it at all.
Furthermore, this barrier also had the effect of blocking Divine Sense, so Zhou Fan could not see what was inside the barrier.
At the same time, inside the barrier.
Jiang Yan, who was waiting for the giant egg to hatch, sensed someone attacking the barrier.
Looking through the barrier, he discovered it was actually Zhou Fan, the new Master of Luoyun Temple.
A few years ago, when Zhou Fan succeeded as the Master of Luoyun Temple, the Jiang Family even sent people to attend the ceremony.
Although Jiang Yan didn't go, he knew that Zhou Fan, this accursed man of great Luck, not only took his Jiang Mei but also broke through to the fourth-tier in such a short time.
All these years, he had been desperately trying to improve his strength, not only to thoroughly defeat Tantai Yanran during the ten-year agreement and make her understand what it meant to 'not bully a middle-aged man in poverty'.
It was also because the pressure Zhou Fan put on him was too great; Jiang Yan dared not return to the Jiang Family, fearing that Zhou Fan, upon hearing of his restored talent, would come to nip him in the bud.
However, as things stood, after his adventures in the Tarkgan Great Desert during this period, Jiang Yan was not afraid of Zhou Fan, this ordinary fourth-tier cultivator.
He removed the concealing Formation of the barrier, looked at Zhou Fan, who was outside the barrier with a look of surprise, and spoke proactively.
"Heh, Zhou Fan, although I don't know why you came to the Tarkgan Great Desert and appeared here."
"But it just saves me the time of having to look for you, Zhou Fan, today is your day of death!"
After triumphantly declaring Zhou Fan's death, Jiang Yan waved his hand, and the Sand Lizard Queen—Shalan, whose body was covered in golden-yellow scales and who dragged a long tail behind her, walked out of the barrier.
"Shalan, deal with him."
"As you command."
Shalan displayed her Late Stage fourth-tier cultivation, clasped her hands together, then pulled them apart again, and a long spear made of golden sand appeared in her hand.
Wielding the spear, she gathered earth-elemental spiritual energy from hundreds of meters around and thrust it towards the man in front of her; Zhou Fan raised his hand, and the fourth-tier Yin and Yang Qi similarly swirled around him, easily blocking the attack.
"Jiang Yan, you wouldn't think that a mere Late Stage fourth-tier could defeat me, would you?"
Saying this, Zhou Fan moved, activating his Hegemon form with his fourth-tier cultivation.
In a short while, with a pair of fists, he beat the Sand Lizard Queen, who had a prominent chest and buttocks, scales covering her crucial parts, an exposed abdomen, and an exotic face, until she knelt.
Jiang Yan, still inside the barrier, hadn't reacted; he had thought that since Zhou Fan had just advanced to the fourth-tier a few years ago, the Late Stage fourth-tier Sand Lizard Queen he sent out, if not easily able to kill Zhou Fan, could at least fight him to a draw.
He hadn't expected the Sand Lizard Queen to be so weak; though both were fourth-tier, she was completely dominated by Zhou Fan.
"Shalan, come back quickly!"
Suddenly, Jiang Yan thought of an extremely terrifying thing, and he hastily ordered Shalan to return.
But how could Zhou Fan let his captured prey escape? He used the fourth-tier Yin and Yang Rope to seal Shalan's cultivation, knocked her unconscious, and then even used his Divine Sense to check her body.