Shang continued down the street absentmindedly.
Alex had died.
In fact, Alex had long been dead.
It had always been Shang that had existed in this world, and Shang realized that now.
Earth didn't matter.
Earth might as well not exist.
Earth might as well be a fantasy.
They were memories of a time that had never happened.
It was nothing.
Shang wasn't sure what he was thinking about while he was pulling the sled wagon for several hours.
He only knew that he was thinking but not what.
Shang continued pulling the sled wagon, and it felt easier than before.
It was like a conflict inside him had vanished.
Going forward had become easier.
Shang's mind went back to the events from last night a couple times, but the emotions associated with the event became duller and more distant.
These things had only happened last night, but Shang felt like they had happened an eternity ago.
More merchants passed by Shang, and they all praised him for his actions. However, they didn't throw money at Shang like the first merchant.
They were only happy that there were fewer bandits now.
Shang only looked at the merchants with a distracted expression and only muttered a quiet thanks for their words.
Some of the merchants wanted to start a conversation, but Shang always only gave one-word answers, which essentially made it impossible for a proper conversation to occur.
After a day of pulling, Shang arrived at his destination.
Blizzard's Edge.
The town was on top of a sizable hill, and it took up the entirety of it.
This town was definitely bigger than the Southern Wild.
Shang guessed that it was probably several kilometers wide, judging from what he was seeing.
By now, the weather had also changed.
A moderately strong wind went across the land. It wasn't freezing, but only a bit chilly.
The Ice Mana in the surroundings had severely dipped in concentration, and a lot of Wind Mana had replaced it.
pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ 'I'm at the border between the Ice Wyvern Zone and the Storm Eagle Zone,' Shang thought.
Shang also saw something else of interest.
A huge tower was in the middle of the town. It was still several kilometers away from Shang, but he could still see it due to its sheer size. It was probably several hundred meters tall and over a hundred meters wide.
On top of it, Shang could see several floating crystals of different colors. The crystals had different shades of blue and green.
Shang wasn't sure, but he believed he had also seen some humans standing near these crystals.
'Mages, huh?' Shang thought.
The God had told Shang that his world was filled with Mages, but Shang hadn't seen many up to now. He had only seen Duke Whirlwind, the elder from the village, and a couple of Earth Mages in the Central Wild.
That was it.
But now, he was seeing the power of the Mages firsthand.
This tower was humongous and imposing. Additionally, Shang could feel that a lot of Ice Mana was floating around the tower. Sadly, Shang wasn't sure if the tower was absorbing the Ice Mana or giving it off.
"Your first time, huh?"
Shang looked over at one of the guards, who looked at him with a smirk from the gates.
Shang nodded.
"I knew it. Everyone always looks at the Mana Austerum when they first come here," the guard said with a smirk.
"Mana Austerum?" Shang asked as he looked at the tower again. "What does it do?"
"It absorbs and distills Elemental Mana," the guard explained. "That Elemental Mana is then used for research purposes. I'm not sure what they're researching, but a lot of actual Mages come and go from the Mana Austerum. By the way, with actual Mages, I mean Mages in the Third Realm. Mages in the First Realm are only Apprentices, and the ones in the Second Realm are only Adepts."
"Only a Mage that reached the third Realm can truly be called a Mage."
For some seconds, Shang only looked at the distant Mana Austerum absentmindedly.
"Why are you telling me these things?" Shang asked.
For a second, the guard was a bit taken aback by the question.
"You're a funny one," the guard answered with a smile. "You will come here several times in the future. I only want to make it easier for you to acquaint yourself with the town."
Shang furrowed his brows.
"What do you mean with that I will come here several times in the future?" he asked.
This confused the guard, and he raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you the new Ice Wood delivery guy?" he said, gesturing towards the sled wagon full of Ice Wood.
Shang shook his head. "No, I'm on my way to Warrior's Paradise. All of this Ice Wood is for paying for my entrance exam for the academy."
The guard became even more surprised, but then, his expression became more serious.
"Where did you get all this Ice Wood from?" the guard asked.
"What does it have to do with you?" Shang asked back with an even voice.
"A lot," the guard said as he put his right hand to the wall behind him.
Knock, knock, knock.
The guard knocked at the wall three times in a certain rhythm, and a couple of other guards appeared on top of the walls, crossbows in their hands.
They weren't targeting Shang with their crossbows, but they were showing him that they were ready for whatever he wanted to do.
"We have a business relationship with Coldew Village," the guard explained, "and we can't allow anyone to endanger it."
Shang frowned. "What? So I'm not allowed to sell Ice Wood?" he asked.
"You can, but that's not the point," the guard answered as he came closer. "The origin of your Ice Wood is the problem."
"So, where did that Ice Wood come from?"
Shang looked at the guard and all the guards on the wall.
"From Coldew Village," Shang answered.
"And how did you acquire it?" the guard asked.
"I dealt with a Peak Frozen Lake Stag that was consuming all the Ice Mana in the Ice Wood Trees. This sled wagon of Ice Wood is my reward," Shang explained.
The guard narrowed his eyes, but his expression didn't change for the reason one would assume.
In fact, the guard had become less suspicious of Shang.
Why?
Because Coldew Village wasn't allowed to sell their Ice Wood to anyone without consulting a representative from Blizzard's Edge first.
If Shang had said that he had bought this Ice Wood, the guards would know that he had stolen that.
However, he said that it was payment for a service.
That wasn't against the rules.
"We'll have to verify your story," the guard said. "For now, we would like to ask you to follow us into the town."
"How long will this take?" Shang asked with furrowed brows.
"About four hours," the guard said.
"Four hours?" Shang asked with genuine surprise. "So fast? How?"
"We'll tell you when the source of your Ice Wood has been confirmed," the guard said. "For now, don't do anything reckless. Step away from the Sled Wagon and come closer to the gate."
"You don't have to worry."
"Everything will go down according to policy."