76. Guidance
(Two-in-One)
At dawn, Leviathan gradually descended upon the Extreme North Land.
The cold wind howled, snowflakes swirled, and all that lay before them was an endless expanse of white.
Having arrived on the ground through a teleportation beam, Roswiser squinted slightly to keep the snowflakes from blowing into her eyes.
She raised her hand to shield her brow and gazed into the distance.
“I think we might have underestimated this place; it doesn’t look like it’ll be easy to get lucky here.”
“There’s a saying in human society that really fits this situation. Oh wait, not a saying—four words,” Leon said as he approached from behind, standing next to her.
“What four words?”
“Since we’re here, we might as well.”
The queen shook her head in resignation, smiling.
Indeed, “since we’re here” is applicable to all sorts of unexpected situations.
After three days of arduous travel, they finally arrived at the Extreme North Land. If they just threw in the towel without even starting to investigate, that wouldn’t be the style of this couple.
“All right, brave survival enthusiasts! This is the destination of our journey—the forbidden land of the Dragon Race—Extreme North!”
Almost forgot, they came here under the pretense of an “outdoor survival challenge.”
So naturally, someone had to take charge of the ‘challenge’ part.
“We will embark on a three-day survival journey here. During this time, we will have no backup, no guide, and definitely no delicious food and warm fireplaces falling from the sky. What we have is the brave heart to challenge nature!”
This was exactly why Leon never participated in survival challenges.
Why leave the comfort of a nice home, a cozy bed, and tasty meals to go frolicking in the wilderness for some survival challenge?
You guys must be living a life of luxury—totally just stuffed full and looking for a way to entertain yourselves.
Since you love survival challenges so much, why not challenge General Leon to a true-man 1v1 fight instead?
Isn’t that way more exciting than freezing in this icy hell?
While Leon was mentally ranting, the challenge enthusiasts and the students from Saint His Academy had already split into two groups.
“I heard these students are all from the academy’s youth dragon department, here to participate in their practical assessment,” Roswiser explained.
“They’re assessing in a place like this?”
Roswiser nodded, “Yeah, it’s a tradition at the academy. Didn’t your Master say that if you want to become a stronger warrior, you have to visit the Extreme North Land at some point?”
“That’s true.”
Leon sighed, and the breath he exhaled formed a visible cloud in the freezing weather.
He looked at the group of students huddled together and hesitated for a moment before asking, “Do you think Noia might sneak along?”
“Noia won’t be joining the youth dragon department until next year, so… I doubt she’ll come.”
Now that Leon brought it up, Roswiser wasn’t too sure either.
Their eldest daughter definitely couldn’t be judged by the usual standards applied to young dragons.
After all, what kind of five-year-old kid would dare to ambush a Dragon King-level opponent?
And not just once, but twice.
Most importantly, Noia had perfectly inherited the most daring parts of both her parents’ personalities.
So if given the chance to train in the Extreme North, Noia might very well show up.
However, after standing under Leviathan for a while, waiting for the students to disperse, Leon and Roswiser didn’t see their eldest daughter.
Leon secretly sighed in relief. “Maybe we were just overthinking it.”
To be honest, he didn’t really want his daughter here.
At least not at this particular moment.
There would be plenty of opportunities to train and grow stronger in the future; there’s no need to rush.
Leon worried that if Constantine was indeed here, it could pose a danger to Noia.
The couple shifted their focus and walked toward the gathered crowd.
It was time to get down to business.
Just as they left, Noia and Helena poked their heads out from behind Yuna.
“Did they leave?” Noia asked.
“Yeah, they’re long gone.”
The enthusiastic Lightning Dragon Princess tiptoed to get a look at Leon and Roswiser’s retreating figures.
“Wow, the legendary Silver Dragon Queen definitely has charisma! And your dad is super handsome. They make such a perfect couple.”
Noia had grown up under the influence of these two stunning figures and had long become immune to their charms and compatibility talk.
She sighed with relief and stepped out with Helena.
“Speaking of which, little Noia, why don’t you want your parents to know you’re here?” Yuna asked, pulling her gaze away.
Noia looked at her parents’ figures gradually fading into the snowstorm, pondered for a moment, and replied,
“My dad’s a total daughter’s slave. If he finds out I’m here, he’ll stick to me like glue.”
Yuna’s mind stirred, then she continued, “So you prefer to rely on yourself and your friends for this assessment, right?”
Noia nodded firmly, “And… if I bring back the assessment results from the Extreme North without them knowing, they’ll be even happier.”
Yuna was slightly taken aback. “Are they the type of parents that care about results?”
“No, they don’t care about results; they care about me. But at this stage, results are the best way to prove my abilities.”
Noia shifted her backpack and stepped into the snow.
“I’ll definitely become as strong as them; I swear.”
The small figure gradually disappeared amidst the swirling snowflakes.
Helena called out her friend’s name and chased after her.
Yuna watched Noia’s slender figure vanish and then turned to glance at the couple.
For a long time, the corners of her mouth curved up slightly as she muttered to herself,
“You will, junior. One day, you will become a warrior so powerful it’ll surpass your own imagination.”
Yuna stepped into the storm and officially kicked off this assessment journey with her team.
…
The survival challenge was underway, but Leon and Roswiser had quietly slipped away from the main group.
Before leaving, Leon had secretly placed a locating spell on the challenge organizer to avoid getting lost.
This way, he and Roswiser could confidently search for Constantine.
According to their initial predictions, finding a flaming stitched-up monster in this vast white expanse was no small feat.
So they decided to use Roswiser’s condensed Primal Power to sense.
Magic of the same origin would produce a certain resonance; this was basic knowledge from magic class.
Though they weren’t sure if it applied to ancient primordial magic.
After confirming the surroundings were clear, Roswiser began to gather the Primal Power.
Soon, the surrounding wind and snow seemed to be repelled by an invisible force, all swirling around Roswiser.
The snow beneath her feet started to show signs of melting.
Leon quickly lifted his arm to shield her waist, preventing the snow from collapsing unexpectedly and causing Roswiser to fall.
But thankfully, Roswiser was now very adept at controlling the Primal Power and soon condensed a pearly white light orb.
The first step was a success.
The couple exchanged glances and smiled in unison.
Next was the second step.
Roswiser held the Primal Light Orb, closed her eyes, and quietly sensed the magical fluctuations.
After a brief wait, Roswiser frowned slightly.
“What’s wrong? Didn’t sense any other Primal Power?” Leon asked.
Roswiser opened her eyes, dissipated the light orb with a wave of her hand, and nodded, “Nope, not a single reaction or resonance. But that shouldn’t be the case.”
“Logically, all dragons’ origins today come from Primal Dragon King Noah, so the Primal Power I condensed should resonate with his power. Why isn’t there any response…?”
Leon pondered for a moment and speculated,
“Using the resonance between origin powers to sense another Primal Power’s location might have been something your grandmother attempted when she was here, but it still took them many years to find that tiny fragment of Primal Power. So I think… there must be some restrictions preventing the resonance between powers.”
After a pause, Leon continued, “Or rather, our current Primal Power’s strength isn’t enough to connect with another Primal Power.”
The queen furrowed her brow, deep in thought. “Not strong enough…? But this is the best I can do right now.”
Leon reached out and patted her shoulder, comforting her, “No worries, this was already anticipated. Don’t lose heart. Let’s think of other methods.”
Other methods are easy to say, but how exactly should they go about it?
Leon looked up at the sky, still filled with a blanket of white, not even a glimmer of sunlight to be seen.
After staring at the sky for a while without inspiration, Leon looked back down.
The snow beneath their feet was thick, and below it lay the so-called ice layer that even Constantine couldn’t burn through.
And beneath the ice layer was endless treasure.
“Roswiser,” Leon suddenly spoke.
“Hmm?”
“How did your grandmother’s discovered Primal Power manage to stay preserved?”
“How… preserved?”
Roswiser thought for a moment and replied, “Probably in some kind of container?”
“A container that could be preserved since Noah’s era? Unlikely.”
Leon bent down, scooped up a handful of snow, and watched it melt into water in his palm.
“I lean more toward the idea that… that powerful Primal Power is sealed beneath this ice layer, and what your grandmother collected was just a portion that leaked from the seal.”
Hearing this, Roswiser became intrigued. “Sealed?”
“Yeah. This snow, and even the deeper ice layer, are all part of that seal.”
“But if it’s a seal, wouldn’t that make it even harder for us to find the source of the Primal Power? That way, we wouldn’t be able to locate Constantine either.”
Leon stood up and brushed the snow off his hands. “No, just the opposite. If the ice layer is a seal and your grandmother obtained a portion of the Primal Power that leaked out, it means there must be some flaw in the seal. And this might be our only chance to glimpse that ancient power.”
He looked at Roswiser, about to continue his thoughts, but suddenly his gaze froze on her chest.
“Dear, your chest is glowing.” Leon pointed.
Roswiser, who had just been absorbed in his analysis, was perplexed. Why had he suddenly brought up her chest glowing?
She didn’t think too deeply and assumed he was talking about the dragon pattern light, so she replied carelessly,
“I hope you’re not getting any weird messages in this freezing weather! No way, taking it out will get it frozen.”
“…”
Leon was somewhat speechless. “The dragon pattern light is purple, but what’s glowing on your chest is white.”
Only then did Roswiser glance down and see that, indeed, a faint white light was flickering beneath her clothes.
She unbuttoned her collar to take a look and found that it was…
“Grandma sent me a pendant necklace through Principal Aulete a while back?”
At that moment, the pearly necklace was radiating a shimmering white light, flickering irregularly.
When Roswiser slightly turned, the light brightened a bit at one point before returning to its flickering state.
Seeing this, she took a few steps forward while holding the pendant.
This time, the light dimmed slightly.
Then she stepped back, and the light returned to its previous intensity.
“Did the old lady say what this thing is?” Leon asked, surprised.
Roswiser shook her head. “She only said it was a wedding gift for me, made of very rare materials.”
“Only now after so long do they think of sending wedding gifts? I always thought that sounded pretty fishy.”
Leon thought for a moment and made a bold guess.
“You don’t think this thing has some connection to the Primal Power, do you? After all, the old lady was busy in the Extreme North for so long, and then she directly sent you this necklace. It just doesn’t seem simple, no matter how you look at it.”
Roswiser nodded in agreement.
Before, they didn’t know that Veronica’s grandmother was actually looking for Noah’s power in the Extreme North.
But upon learning this news, combined with the timing of her gifting Roswiser this necklace, it was easy to link the two events.
“So… let’s follow the pendant’s guidance?”
“Yeah, after all, this is the only lead we have.”
In the swirling snow, the pearly light guided the two toward that ancient and mysterious power.
