After being forced to step down, the once-annoying nun eloped with me.

What is displayed on the screen is the environment surrounding the area of ​​the Ice Calamity Corpse—commonly known as the "Frozen Coffin."

The frozen coffin remained in the same condition as this morning—even in the darkness of the evening, it still basked in light as if it had absorbed the morning sun.

But Lalumia clearly wasn't concerned about this small matter.

She pointed to a spot on the screen, and everyone except Nia, who consciously avoided getting too close, crowded around Yang Hao, intently watching the location Lalumia was pointing to.

That was the edge of the [Frozen Coffin]—there, the cold air leaked out.

Although it may not be immediately noticeable, the chill it exudes is real—it is constantly spreading outwards. And if nothing unexpected happens, it should spread at least ten kilometers outwards.

Yang Hao wasn't a professional, but he did have this feeling—when things are going to be absolutely terrible, it's always good to anticipate the worst.

Thinking of this, he and Fen exchanged a glance, then he asked with a bitter expression:

"...What's the shortest straight-line distance in kilometers between the Frozen Coffin and the Elf Forest?"

Fen didn't reply, but simply shook her head seriously.

Elena, who had somehow squeezed to Yang Hao's other side, patted Naruja on the shoulder and said:

"Statement: It's over 50 kilometers. There shouldn't be any problem."

"But it looks like it will leak for at least ten kilometers... at least. Not at most. We need to figure out a way to stop this cold air."

"...Judgment: Feasible. But it would require a lot of resources and time?"

"That's enough, we have plenty of time anyway."

The United Nations lacks the ability to break the Frozen Coffin—but conversely, they can build walls to confine the leaking cold air from the Frozen Coffin to a specific area, thus preventing at least a third instance of damage.

But if Lalumia hadn't reminded me, it might have been too late... I'm so grateful to Lalumia.

Yang Hao sighed heavily. And this was only the first thing to do after the death of the Ice Calamity.

...

6 month 25 day.

Two days have passed since the Ice Calamity died.

The chilling air leaking from the [Frozen Coffin] is increasing and is expected to spread to an area with a radius of ten kilometers within a month.

The United Nations began constructing a wall over 30 meters high and more than 10 meters thick, centered on the [Frozen Coffin]—with the help of the elven mage and Eden's artificial magic reactor, the construction of this wall proceeded exceptionally smoothly.

But Yang Hao and his team soon discovered a problem—they not only had to prepare to block the flow of gas on the surface, but also had to risk reinforcing the underground foundation and sealing off all underground passages to prevent gas leakage.

Moreover, what disgusted Yang Hao the most was that... the corpse of the Ice Calamity now resembled the contents of a sarcophagus in Chernobyl on Earth.

Even in death, this demon did not forget to help his kin.

"...The chilling air is altering the surrounding geological conditions... We have to burn all those trees to the ground, otherwise they'll turn into something like [Demon Plants]..."

"...Is there really no other way?"

“There’s no way out, Finn. It’s like rice that can never be planted again once it’s been cooked… This demon’s utilization of its own kind is just too outrageous—too outrageous.”

The chill of the 【Frozen Coffin】 is not simply a matter of a sudden drop in temperature.

In a sense, the corpse of the Ice Calamity is reshaping the surrounding terrain—to put it simply, the corpse of the Ice Calamity after its death is turning the affected area into a "Demon Realm".

To prevent a second Demon Realm from appearing on the continent of Elusia, and to better observe the effects of the Ice Calamity's death, the United Nations, no matter how heartbroken Finn is, must burn all the trees within the walls as a last resort, and take this opportunity to fill the ground of the entire world within the walls with antifreeze materials.

The monster forest is manageable, but dealing with the grasslands outside the monster forest is more troublesome.

Fortunately, Bayer has stepped up once again.

Having long been accustomed to underground warfare and living, they not only burrowed underground to facilitate military operations, but also extracted the intelligence information that Yang Hao and his team were most concerned about from the ground.

...The grim reality is that the Ice Calamity seems to have become a nuclear reactor for calamities on Earth—even through tens of meters of soil and rock layers, the underground temperature in the [Frozen Coffin] area is so cold that one has to wear a cotton-padded coat to barely move around.

Every day, the underground temperature was getting colder—Yang Hao urged the magical puppets and elven mages to finish laying the antifreeze materials, while he himself was frantically discussing with everyone how to deal with the [aftereffects].

Should we follow the experience on Earth and shut down this reactor directly? Or should we find a way to make the most of it?

Although the area inside the walls had become almost as cold as the crisper drawer of a refrigerator, ultimately, who would dare store food in a refrigerator soaked in excrement...?

The cold continued to intensify, but Yang Hao and his group still hadn't made any progress in their discussion.

Left with no other choice, everyone had to set a temporary goal—to publicize the "victory"—and then figure out how to handle the aftermath more gracefully.

And this continued until June 29th.

By this day, the circular city wall had been built to about half its height. The trees inside the wall had been burned, and the ashes were used to make cement. Before the cement was laid, the ground was leveled, and finally, after covering it with about 5 meters of anti-freeze material, the mud was laid on top.

Since it was impossible to excavate directly below the frozen coffin, the Bayer Geissians dug a gap about 15 meters high from bottom to top. After contacting the antifreeze layer that had been deliberately laid down more than ten meters deep, they successfully laid the thickest antifreeze layer from bottom to top.

At this time, the temperature inside the wall had dropped to 2 degrees Celsius, and white fog began to appear, accumulating cold air at the base of the city wall.

The city walls withstood the biting cold, but the clouds above the world inside gave those on site an extremely ominous feeling.

Ultimately, the city walls can only prevent cold air from seeping outwards on a flat surface.

If the cold air could indeed reach the heavens and eventually turn into rain and snow, spreading everywhere, then their operation would likely end in failure.

No one dared to delay and immediately reported the situation to the Purple Robe Palace, awaiting instructions from Yang Hao and the others.

Left with no other choice, Yang Hao had to seek Lalumia's help—after all, her divine power could create a ceiling-like structure above the frozen coffin to prevent the cold air from rising.

Lalumia readily agreed to Yang Hao's conditions, but also presented him with a difficult problem: the divine power she had consumed this time might take more than twenty years to replenish. If a demonic calamity occurred then, would Yang Hao really be confident that he could stop it with the power of a mortal?

Yang Hao did not make any promises, but instead pondered the matter seriously.

To be honest, he didn't have that confidence.

After witnessing the Ice Calamity's self-sacrifice—desperate to leave an everlasting stain on the world even in death—he was indeed a little afraid.

In the future cataclysm, he will face a group of madmen—a group of madmen who are willing to sacrifice themselves like madmen in order to continue their species.

Not only do those lunatics carry bombs and choose to detonate themselves at the most opportune moment, but they can also make selfless sacrifices for their species while maintaining their individual will.

A group worthy of admiration.

But only when standing opposite them do you feel the chilling fear of falling into an abyss.

If Yang Hao were still an ordinary person, when faced with this group of lunatics, his first thought would probably be to have a sky that would never collapse no matter how much it crashes down, to hold it up in front of him.

Unfortunately, he himself was the one who had to shoulder the burden with everyone else.

So... he lacked that confidence.

"...I will try my best."

But he will try his best.

This was his answer after careful consideration—and Lalumia smiled in response to Yang Hao's reply.

She kissed Yang Hao's forehead affectionately in front of Teresa, and finally smiled and acknowledged Yang Hao's lack of confidence.

"...It's right that I'm not confident. After all, I don't have the confidence to fight against the devil either."

From now on, it will be a future where we, the insecure ones, support each other and walk together—that's it then. My child.

...Lalumia used her divine power to end the crisis of the rising cold. Her power formed a ceiling of silvery light, and before the cold below began to weaken, her power was enough to completely seal the upward channels of gas around the [Frozen Coffin].

But that's not enough.

6 month 30 day.

The temperature inside the walls dropped to minus 1 degree Celsius.

The Demon Realm has appeared.

...........

Before Yang Hao's face, which was as green as if he had eaten pickled cabbage, a new demonic realm formed around the [Frozen Coffin].

Ice Calamity seemed to make a desperate decision before it died.

It's like that kind of decision—"Even though I'm dead, my power can be passed on to my people."

Yang Hao didn't know what the Ice Calamity had done, but he did know the consequences: it had created a second Demon Realm on the continent of Elusia—and unlike the Roman Demon Realm, this place, known as the "Frozen Demon Realm," couldn't be eliminated due to the unique properties of the frozen coffins. It was the only "cancer" on the continent of Elusia that truly troubled Yang Hao.

Aside from the fact that it cannot be completely eradicated due to special reasons, the most significant difference between the Frozen Demon Realm and the Roman Demon Realm is that the Frozen Demon Realm does not have any structures like the [Mother Nest], nor does it contain any native demons. It is simply an environment suitable for demons to live in, and it is constantly expanding.

However, to prevent demons from actually appearing in the Frozen Demon Realm, the United Nations did everything possible to prevent any creature from actually entering the walls, and all of this was incredibly arduous but worthwhile for Yang Hao.

"...Ugh."

At this moment, he was slumped over the table, utterly exhausted.

Even though Lalumia stood behind him as always, offering him softness with her ample bosom, warmth with her arms, and energy with her fragrance, the real exhaustion he felt could not be completely eliminated.

He has handled everything he could.

The remaining diplomatic issues, such as those concerning the Khuttokhanz Khanate, could be handled by Theresa and Finn.

He trusted his wife, so Yang Hao decided to take a good vacation.

As far as I can remember, he never seemed to relax much. Then I thought about how I had to go on a business trip later—since I was going on a business trip, I should naturally get some rest beforehand, right?

Thinking of this, he sighed heavily. Just as Yang Hao sighed, the deity behind him pouted and said, "Isn't it because you're always worrying about this and that?"

"The kids all said they'd handle it... but who ended up running around like an idiot? Sigh... coming to think of it, the one who loves to abuse your body the most isn't your ravenous wife, but yourself."

"...Although I am aware of this...I really can't neglect my duty in such an important matter."

"It's good to work hard, but before you do, please take good care of your health!"

That kiss on the forehead seemed to be the turning point for Lalumia—since that day, Lalumia has been increasingly showing affection and making physical advances towards Yang Hao without anyone knowing.

It wouldn't be accurate to say he "touched her inappropriately"... Generally speaking, he only occasionally showed his doting affection in front of Theresa... Yang Hao found it quite pleasing, and Theresa didn't seem to object... In a sense, it was pretty good?

Yang Hao wasn't quite sure. But for Lalumia, this was the best way to achieve her goal.

Under Yang Hao's bewildered gaze, Lalumia grabbed his hand, used her divine power to lift him up, and then made him fall onto the office sofa with a gasp.

Afterwards, Lalumia sat lightly on the sofa, letting Yang Hao rest his head on her lap for a while, but the sullen expression on her face still showed no sign of fading.

She simply said, "Take a good rest before you go on your business trip."

She reached out and gently stroked Yang Hao's forehead.

As if he felt he hadn't done enough, Lalumia leaned down slightly to kiss his forehead, but the heavy burden on his chest almost made him gasp for breath.

Fortunately, Lalumia wasn't the type of woman who would scream over a little embarrassment, and Yang Hao wasn't the kind of virgin who would get nervous just from a woman's touch.

Their relationship became a little more intimate, but it remained the same as always.