Inside Ophiuchus Palace, Asclepius looked down at the ice crystals silently spreading across his chest.
The ice crystals glowed with a faint ice-blue hue, and the moment they touched his Cloth, they drilled into his body through the armor's crevices, bringing with them a bone-chilling cold, like an ice pick brutally embedded in his flesh.
Yet, he merely sneered, his eyes filled with disdain.
"Mere Absolute Zero, Li Yu. Among this generation of Saints, your strength is decent, but in my era, this temperature wouldn't even be worth a glance!"
Asclepius was born in the Ancient Era.
At that time, the Olympian Gods had just overthrown the tyrannical rule of Cronus, the second generation god-king of the Titan God Clan.
As the son of Apollo, the God of Light, Asclepius was a Gold Saint with healing abilities, and his daily interactions were with gods and demigod-level powerhouses.
Aquarius's Absolute Zero was simply not presentable in his eyes.
He lightly tapped the Gold Scepter in his hand, and a vibrant green Cosmo burst forth, enveloping his body.
According to Asclepius's estimation, with his Cosmo's intervention, the slight trouble Li Yu caused should immediately dissipate.
But the next second, Asclepius's smile froze.
Not only did the ice crystals not dissipate, but they spread throughout his body at a visible speed. Even the surface of the Ophiuchus Gold Cloth began to condense a thick layer of white frost, covering the originally brilliant dark gold armor in icy white.
He could even clearly feel that the ice crystals had already flowed into his heart, destroying the cellular structure within his body along his blood vessels. His blood flow slowed, and signs of freezing began to appear.
"This... this is impossible!"
Asclepius's eyes widened in shock, filled with disbelief.
He frantically urged his Cosmo, trying to suppress the spread of the ice crystals, but his Eighth Sense Cosmo, which could heal everything, was utterly useless against this extreme cold.
In just a few breaths, the ice crystals spread from his chest to his entire body; even his white long hair was frozen into strands of ice.
Asclepius made a decisive move. He raised his scepter and severed his unfrozen left hand with a single strike!
Asclepius's left hand, along with the Gold Cloth, fell to the ground. With a dull thud, the severed arm inside the Cloth instantly exploded.
No sooner had he finished all this than Asclepius, man and Cloth, was completely frozen into a lifelike ice sculpture.
His lips were slightly parted, as if he still wanted to say something. His originally demonic face, slightly swollen from the ice, still maintained a shocked expression.
Li Yu stood before the ice sculpture, his face as calm as water, without a ripple in his dark eyes.
"Absolute Zero? I have already surpassed that level!"
A golden lightning bolt flashed in Li Yu's eyes!
On the surface of the Ophiuchus Gold Cloth, golden lightning leaped like a serpent. With a deafening roar, the ice sculpture exploded, scattering fragments!
The Gold Cloth lay scattered on the ground, the frost on the armor instantly melting into steam.
Li Yu knew better than anyone the terrifying regenerative power of Asclepius.
Even if only a single cell remained, this God of Medicine could regenerate. Ordinary Absolute Zero simply couldn't kill him.
After awakening to the Eighth Sense, his ice power had evolved into Super Absolute Zero - Space Freeze!
Now Li Yu could not only create Absolute Zero but also completely stop all matter movement at a spatial level.
Within his ice domain, even empty space could be frozen.
This would fundamentally cut off any possibility of Asclepius's regeneration.
Li Yu's four attributes, under divine transformation, breaking through the 50 million mark, was by no means merely a five-fold increase in strength.
Through Super Absolute Zero, he destroyed the cells within Asclepius's body, turning his bodily fluids into an ice-like substance harder than diamonds.
At this moment, Asclepius was dead beyond dead.
This... they won?
The three Bronze Saints stared at this scene, dumbfounded.
Their hearts were utterly shocked.
First, Li Yu miraculously recovered from a near-death state to full health. Then, they didn't even see Li Yu unleash his Cosmo much; with just a gentle touch, he froze the Ophiuchus Gold Saint into a block of ice.
And this Saint had completely incapacitated all four of them with poison gas before they could even exchange a single move.
It was only now that they truly realized how formidable the powerful and ruthless master Hyoga spoke of actually was!
Shiryu, through his newly awakened Seventh Sense, also sensed that the mysterious Saint's Cosmo had disappeared. He couldn't help but murmur,
"Is this the power of the strongest Gold Saint of this era? He feels much stronger than Master Dohko!"
Seiya couldn't help but feel a chill of fear. Earlier at the foot of the mountain, he had almost punched Li Yu and had refused Li Yu's protection for Saori.
If this person had really gone to guard Aquarius Palace, they probably would have fought to the death and still wouldn't have passed that test.
As Asclepius was frozen, the giant snake-shaped stones of Ophiuchus Palace, which interlocked, slowly moved, revealing a narrow passage that could only accommodate a few people.
Li Yu frowned slightly. Logically, if Asclepius, the God of Medicine, had truly died,
he should have gained some divinity, but no prompts appeared before his eyes.
Li Yu coldly commanded,
"You all, continue through the trials, do not stop!"
Seiya was startled awake from his shock by Li Yu's cold snort. Delayed by Ophiuchus Palace, only three torches of the Zodiac Temple were still burning.
"Lord Li Yu, aren't you coming with us?"
Seiya was unaware of Li Yu and Athena's wager; in his heart, he considered Li Yu to be on their side.
Li Yu shook his head.
"Asclepius isn't dead. You go first; I'll handle this here!"
Upon hearing Li Yu say this, the few of them were even more shocked. Frozen into an ice sculpture, and still not dead?
Just what was the background of this Ophiuchus Saint!
Although filled with questions, the Bronze Saints knew that there was no time to dwell on such matters now.
Saori Kido's life was rapidly approaching zero. They had to go all out to reach the Summit of Holy Mountain and obtain Athena's Shield before all the torches extinguished.
The few of them no longer delayed and rushed towards the next palace, Sagittarius Palace. After they disappeared from sight,
Li Yu slowly spoke, his voice echoing through the empty palace.
"Get up and fight again. I know you're not dead!"
Asclepius's voice resonated in the air.
"As expected, formidable, Li Yu. Fortunately, I made a decisive move and severed my left hand!"
Asclepius's massive Cosmo surged through the air. In Ophiuchus Palace, countless cells appeared out of thin air, rapidly twisting and growing, quickly regenerating Asclepius.
Once he had regenerated, he extended his right hand, and the Ophiuchus Gold Cloth floated up from the ground, combining itself onto his body as if alive.
Soon, Asclepius was restored to his original state, standing before Li Yu. He held the Gold Scepter, standing proudly.
"I am immortal, Li Yu. You cannot kill me. Why not sit down and have a good talk!"
"I acknowledge your strength. You can jointly rule the Earth with me..."
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