Will there be danger?
He tightened his grip on the Magic Wand.
"We need to be especially careful on the road ahead."
Gauss reminded his teammates beside him not to be enchanted by the beautiful scenery before them and forget the dangers of the place and the purpose of their journey.
After a short rest, Gauss’s team continued on.
Half a day passed in the blink of an eye.
Gauss turned his head to look at the snow-covered plains behind him, scratching his head in confusion.
Incredibly...
They had not encountered any of the anticipated dangers.
They passed through the snowfield safely, and aside from the harsh environment, the level of danger wasn’t even as high as that of an ordinary wilderness.
He couldn’t help but fall into thought.
In fact, he hadn’t faced much trouble or crisis along the way; encounters with demons were rare, and they could often be avoided in advance. They even came across an unclaimed ice-vein tree.
Everything went smoothly as if someone had arranged it ahead of time.
Gauss looked towards the snowy mountain ahead.
Could it be you?
Snow Mountain Spirit Aisweir...
This journey was to investigate the pollution of Snow Mountain Isthem, the birthplace of Lake God Methera’s sister, Aisweir.
First, they needed to find this Snow Mountain Spirit, or rather, the Snow Mountain God.
Gauss’s team stood at the foot of the mountain, gazing at the towering peak ahead, momentarily caught in an awkward impasse.
"How do we summon the Snow Mountain Spirit?" Aaliyah broke the silence, asking the critical question.
The mountain was so vast that Gauss’s team’s strength alone couldn’t uncover the hidden pollution’s source in a short time.
They only had enough cold-resistant medicine left for the next three or four days. Once exhausted, though not enough to freeze to death, their efficiency would be greatly reduced, and they’d have to leave the mountain range eventually.
"How about an altar?" Albena shrugged. "Like the one used to summon the Lake God."
Gauss looked down at the Water Sword in his hand.
Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, it seemed to be fully activated, starting to provide divine guidance.
Gauss narrowed his eyes.
He felt the Water Sword’s blade extending a floating energy cord, pointing in a certain direction.
Yet, the others appeared oblivious to this scene.
"Follow me first."
Gauss held the Water Sword before him; since everyone was clueless, it was better to follow this guidance of Holy Power.
The others, seeing his action, roughly deduced that the Lake God’s blessing item had undergone some unknown change.
Following the sword’s guidance, Gauss’s team walked along the mountain’s foot, eventually arriving at an ice-crystal cliff.
This cliff differed from the previous ones, as smooth as a mirror; they could clearly see their reflections.
The wind and snow halted in this place.
"You have come."
An ethereal voice suddenly echoed.
It seemed to come from all directions, with no specific source or direction, or rather, it resounded in everyone’s hearts.
"Are you Gauss? Did my sister Methera send you to find me?"
Behind the ice-mirror wall, a figure of an ice and snow woman slowly emerged.
She was strikingly beautiful, with the wind and snow transforming into her attire, yet her gaze towards Gauss revealed a slight softness.
She seemed unsurprised by the arrival of Gauss’s team, as if she had known of their coming in advance.
"Yes, Snow Mountain Spirit Aisweir, Lake God Methera has entrusted me to look into the source of pollution in the snow mountain."
The situation was quite favorable for Gauss.
They smoothly reached the snow mountain and met the mountain’s owner, Aisweir.
The biggest concern he had before setting off, unable to contact the counterpart and wandering blindly in the snow mountain, did not materialize.
"Alas..."
Upon hearing Gauss’s answer, the Snow Mountain Spirit sighed softly.
"It’s too late, already too late."
Gauss thought she referred to the time they took to reach the snow mountain, from summer to winter, a look of apology appeared.
"I’m sorry, we tried our best."
"No, it’s not your fault; the ancient evil buried beneath this snow mountain was out of control decades ago."
A bitter smile appeared on Aisweir’s stunning face.
Hearing her explanation, Gauss felt slightly relieved, even though he was still puzzled. Nonetheless, it sounded unrelated to him, as his body wasn’t even born decades ago.
"Have you heard of this mountain range’s origin?"
"Frost Breath Star Tomb, a meteor fell here, bringing endless winter."
Gauss repeated the legend he heard from Albena.
"It wasn’t actually a meteor but an extremely evil entity. I was the natural spirit of Mount Isthem. Isthem wasn’t as grand back then. To resist the sustained release of deep malicious intentions, I had to continuously amplify my power to suppress it. As a result, the once solitary peak became the continuous snow mountain range you see now."
Aisweir blinked.
"Thus, every snow peak is my kin, every snow plain my skin; from the moment you set foot here, I’ve noticed you."
"No wonder we encountered no formidable enemies along the way; thank you," Gauss expressed gratitude.
Aisweir nodded.
"Most of my strength remains in suppressing the evil will that has escaped, yet I can only do my best. Its malevolence flows downstream, constantly nourishing evil, which I am powerless against."
She shook her head, a trace of worry on her face.
"Can I help strengthen the seal?"
"You?" Aisweir appraised Gauss, after a long, serious assessment, she shook her head.
"You cannot."
"Moreover, the awakening of this malevolence is an irreversible trend, like the cycle of seasons, long summer followed by endless winter; the kingdom’s succession, no wise king can perpetuate eternal dominion; to the world, it will also face chaos after long-standing peace."
"..."
Gauss blinked.
He understood Aisweir wasn’t insulting or belittling him; rather, the calamity was already beyond his capabilities.
"Is chaos about to arrive?"
He was somewhat intrigued by the final content of Aisweir’s words.
Everything around him seemed to herald the world’s impending turmoil.
Legendary Sword Saint’s fall, the Holy Sword awaiting the right master, escalating monster numbers, humans embarking on adventurer careers, and the mysterious evil Snow Mountain Spirit was struggling to contain...
"You still have time, Gauss," Aisweir said. "When this world’s long winter overwhelms the glorious summer, when night devours the light, the ’order’ you familiarized will face its destined... trial."
"Please, come forward."
"I will grant you the protection of wind and snow."
Gauss and his companions exchanged looks, then took a few steps towards the ice-mirror wall.
Aisweir’s fingertip paused on the mirror surface, condensing complicated snowflake patterns containing the Ice and Snow Law.
"Tides rise and fall, after winter there’s spring, chaos is not the end..."
"When night is darkest..."
"At winter’s depth..."
"Who guards the fire seed..."
Aisweir withdrew her hand, the snowflake pattern turned into streaming light, passed through the ice mirror, and sprinkled on Gauss and his team.
Gauss felt a surge of power merging into his body.
Hard to say the exact change it brought.
He merely felt the surrounding coldness dissipate completely.
"This place is not for long stays; let me send you away."
After the blessing, Aisweir began to see the guests off.
Just as Gauss wondered how she would do so, a high-pitched roar sounded overhead.
Soon, Gauss saw a massive white dragon, or "Snow Dragon," slowly descending from the sky.
It was enormous, beautiful, radiating a divine holiness.
Without a trace of Five-Colored Dragons’ evil aura, its eyes were filled with the wisdom’s brilliance.
Was it the white creature they saw during the journey?
It shouldn’t be the White Dragon, right? Gauss mused, recalling that White Dragons were said to be lacking intelligence.
Whether his thoughts were heard, or his gaze was somewhat conspicuous, the breath of frost spewed from the nostrils of the Giant Dragon before him.
"Come aboard, dear guests, I will take you away from the snow mountain," the White Giant Dragon spoke.