Chapter 158 Behind the Mountains! (1300 Chapter Monthly Ticket Extra!)
The wind and snow were getting heavier.
It felt as heavy as Soren’s current mood; his footsteps were heavy, and his heart was also burdened.
He had always been a person with strong subjectivity, but today he was genuinely a bit flustered, feeling as if a heavy emotion was suffocating him. He tightened the cloak around him and stepped into the vast snow, with snowflakes falling onto him until his shoulders turned completely white. Soren raised his hand to shake off the wind and snow, silently turning to gaze at the Royal Palace of Arendelle. He stood quietly in the corner where no one could see him for a long time, then turned and entered a world of white.
Vivian was still waiting for him.
It was nearly impossible for him to marry the princess of Arendelle, the future queen, because Vivian was the Demon Son of Fear and could potentially become the Demon God of Fear. Unless he was willing to let Vivian face everything alone, he would inevitably walk further down the path of the Demon God, and by then, it would not be an exaggeration to say that they would be enemies of the world. Even if he ultimately helped Vivian defeat the Demon God of Fear, the evil deities would covet the divine power within Vivian, and the benevolent deities would attempt to permanently eliminate the Demon God of Fear. Vivian’s path was destined to be filled with thorns and bl**d.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have mentally prepared for the worst, transforming into a Shadow Lich!
Soren performed an ancient knight’s salute.
This did not represent anything significant, merely a promise—a promise of a guardian knight.
When she needed him, he would definitely stand behind her!
The wind and snow were still swirling around.
In this ice and snow-covered world, Soren saw two paths before him. One rose to the peak of the throne. She would become the ruler of Arendelle, the queen beloved by all, with the shadow of the deity standing behind her, protecting her kingdom. The other path descended into the Bottomless Abyss, marked by bloodshed; the road he walked would be lined with the corpses of countless enemies, and he would step into the deepest depths of the abyss amidst the vast white bones. There, another battle awaited him.
For Vivian.
Soren was willing to sacrifice his life; he would not stop his steps here.
Although his heart was so heavy!
An intense cold enveloped this world, and the curved blade at Soren’s waist emitted a glimmering light. When he drew out this legendary curved blade named “Icebane,” a cold radiance seemed to spread from it. It appeared so dazzling, yet its temperature was bone-chilling, as if this curved blade carried a trace of sentience, sensing the heaviness in Soren’s heart.
…
The distant mountains gradually emerged.
Soren’s steps did not halt for a moment; he quietly walked past town after town, heading north.
His appearance had changed completely from the start; he wore a black long robe, held a wooden staff, and draped a large gray cloak over it, revealing no visible weapons. Only a pair of exquisite black gloves adorned his hands. His face was somewhat gaunt, and traces of stubble could be faintly seen. His deep, quiet eyes were filled with determination as he gazed ahead. His attire resembled that of a traveling wizard, which helped him avoid most troubles, as no one dared easily to disturb a solitary wizard.
Arendelle was becoming more distant.
But the gaze of the maiden seemed to linger behind him; occasionally, Soren would recall her tearful expression.
That look was truly beautiful!
The thought of marrying a woman arose in his heart for the first time; this feeling was hard to put into words, but it genuinely moved him deeply.
He passed through a grove, walked across a frozen river, and scaled towering snowy mountains.
Occasionally, some blind monsters would disturb him, but before they got close, they were defeated by spells. He seemed like a real wizard, traveling along his path towards his destination.
The wind and snow lasted for three days before stopping.
Soren had arrived at the icy mountains spanning hundreds of miles. He advanced along a small path, utilizing the Flight Spell and Levitation Spell to traverse these treacherous mountains. Time passed bit by bit. The distance he covered each day was not much, as he encountered many powerful beings: Frost Wyverns lurking near the mountains, huge ice sculptures, mammoth-like Earth Dragons, scattered Bear Goblins, and many strong monsters both familiar and unfamiliar.
They were distributed in groups, dangerous and deadly; Soren even had to use the Invisibility Spell to escape several times.
The harsh environment had gathered them here; the Bear Goblins could even form tribes with Ice Trolls, as these creatures preyed on one another, struggling to survive in this icy mountain range.
The temperature gradually rose a bit.
This mountain range blocked the cold winds from the Frozen Kingdom, and the greenery around him began to increase. Soren knew he was nearing the northern reaches.
Beyond here lay the Northern Region, ruled by witches.
The trees ahead became denser, the mountains now behind him. Soren walked through the thick forest, gradually entering areas of human activity.
“Who!?”
A middle-aged man dressed as a hunter appeared ahead, gripping a hunting bow aimed in his direction. When he saw Soren’s appearance, he immediately feared and withdrew his bow, then slightly bowed to show respect, saying, “Your Excellency, the Wizard. I did not realize it was you; please forgive my offense.”
Here was the Northern Region.
This was the territory of the Northern Witch, where the status of wizards was extremely noble.
Soren lowered his cloak slightly, glanced at him indifferently, and inquired, “Where is this? I just crossed the mountains to come here.”
The middle-aged hunter glanced at the distant icy mountains, his respect evident in his eyes, and quietly replied, “This is the territory of River Valley City. If you head south for a hundred miles, you will reach River Valley City.”
Soren gently nodded, passing by him and continuing southward.
After he walked past, the middle-aged hunter let out a sigh of relief as if he were drained of strength, then hurried off toward the village. Encountering a wizard in the wild was not a good thing; wizards were often eccentric, powerful, and dangerous; offending them could easily cost one their life. He was just an ordinary person and naturally feared the mysterious wizard; now, he only hoped to stay far away from any trouble.
A river appeared before Soren.
Rarely was it not frozen, indicating that the temperature in the Northern Region was not particularly low.
By the river, there was a ferryman; in this era, bridges were high-standard alchemical constructions and could only be seen near cities. Detouring was quite troublesome, so fishermen from nearby villages often took on ferrying work in their spare time to earn some extra food for their children. The places Soren passed drew looks of reverence; a ferryman nervously took him onto a fishing boat and cautiously rowed across to the other side.
Soren left behind a silver coin as fare, then set foot on the land of the opposite shore.
Before him lay patches of cultivated farmland, with many villages scattered in the distance. The land in the Northern Region was relatively flat and open; it had once flourished for a time. Due to the climate, only one planting season occurred each year, and in other seasons, different crops were planted to supplement household income. However, people here lived better than in the south, as the Northern Region was relatively spacious and sparsely populated, and many villagers would hunt during the off-season.
Here, the law allowed farmers to hunt, unlike in the south where taxes had to be paid.
The corruption of the southern nobles had become very serious; they practically did everything they could to raise taxes, with fishermen enduring heavy burdens every year.
Soren saw a city ahead.
Guards stood lazily at the city gate, questioning the civilians wanting to enter; occasionally, they extorted some payment. However, they did not dare to stop the clearly higher-status carriages and only squeezed a few coins from the poor farmers. As Soren walked by, they didn’t dare to stop him; wizards were not someone these guards could casually provoke; even the captain merely gave a glance, and the others did not dare come forward to inquire.
This city was not prosperous.
It lacked commercial support; mere taxation was not enough to sustain a flourishing city. The city walls showed clear signs of decay, and many buildings were already very dilapidated. Several hundred years ago, there had been several mines that maintained the city, but as the surface ores were exhausted, the city could no longer support deeper mining. Underdeveloped roads severely hampered trade, causing some ores to be sold cheaply, and other cities nearby had replaced River Valley City in trade status.
Soren headed for the Mercenary Guild.
Due to its proximity to the icy mountains, the Mercenary Guild was doing decent business; adventurers would occasionally come by to hunt special monsters according to certain commissions. Wizards required special materials for alchemy, magical devices, and scroll transcription, many of which came from the corpses of strong monsters or grew in special environments. Soren didn’t stay long at the Mercenary Guild; after a quick look around, he entered an alley and then, under the watchful eyes of three to five gang members, entered a shop without a sign.
He needed some information.
Thieves were nearly everywhere in the world; they were the primary composition of the lower levels of gangs. These thieves might progress to become Wanderers, but a large portion remained ordinary people. Soren did not stay long inside; after about fifteen minutes, he exited, but as he stepped out, he seemed to sense something, and his nose involuntarily twitched.
He seemed to smell a familiar scent.
A certain fragrance.
And it was a scent he had memorized seriously, so it left a distinct impression. Ahead seemed to be a woman wearing a black hood, dressed in a long black gown, her figure looking quite graceful as she gradually walked out of the alley.
Soren frowned slightly but did not directly pursue her.
He looked up at the sky, prepared to find a place to rest before heading to Gloria’s tower.
… (To Be Continued ~^~)
