I Am Not Goblin Slayer

Chapter 339: Blessed by Wind and Snow

"What is that?"The figure of the sun's color flew high and far in the sky, disappearing into the clouds in a flash. Gauss didn't even have time to get a clear look before it vanished.

However, the Red Drake Hephaestus couldn't fly in the snowy mountains. That creature could fly so high without fearing the severe cold, indicating its strength was considerable.

"Forget it, let's continue forward."

Enemies active in these snowy mountains, aside from ice and snow-related elemental races, generally wouldn't be too weak.

If the wilderness around Grayrock Town was compared to a beginner village, this place was at least an early-stage map, even a mid-stage one.

Without a doubt, many powerful creatures lurked here.

Gauss naturally wouldn't actively seek out challenges.

On the contrary, he needed to avoid potentially threatening enemies based on information collected in advance.

This steep snowy terrain was not a suitable battlefield for Gauss and the others.

Rather than fighting when it was unknown whether it might trigger an unknown avalanche, it was better to save some strength and take a detour.

Gauss looked at the Water Sword in his hand.

This Godwater originated from the Lake God, containing a trace of His divine power.

Perhaps sensing the aura of His sister deity growing closer, even this wisp of divine power was becoming increasingly excited.

"Whoosh—"

As they advanced into the mountains, the wind and snow grew fiercer.

Just walking required expending considerable stamina.

"There seems to be a tree over there."

Aria, who had sensed the life aura through the snowstorm in advance, reminded them.

"Let's go take a look."

"Be careful."

Although the snowstorm obscured their vision, Gauss still had full trust in Aria's judgment.

Sure enough, as everyone moved closer in the direction Aria indicated, a snow-covered tree stood firm at the base of a cliff.

Gauss didn't approach. Instead, he had Shadow scout the surrounding area first.

After confirming there were no monsters around, at least not at this moment, everyone walked over.

It was a fruit tree growing in an extremely cold region, its branches hanging with shimmering, snow-blue fruits.

They looked like ice balls.

Gauss swallowed.

He sensed the aura of mana.

Clearly, these fruits were precious magical items, numbering about thirty.

Without delay, the excited group picked the fruits growing amidst the wind and snow, then handed them to Aria to infuse with life force before storing them in appropriate preservation boxes.

Gauss's gaze then fell upon the fruit tree itself.

"Is there a way to transplant this Ice Vein Tree?"

If it could periodically produce magical fruits, the tree itself would also be quite valuable.

Aria stepped forward, placing her palm against the trunk.

After sensing for a moment, she shook her head.

"This tree has already merged with the surrounding ley lines. If we transplant it recklessly, away from this place's rich cold mana, I'm afraid it would wither and die before long."

Gauss nodded, feeling a slight regret in his heart, though he had some speculation about this answer.

"What a pity."

Gauss had already recognized the species of this tree, a fruit tree that only grew at specific cold ley line nodes. Ninety-nine percent of its value lay in the Ice Vein Fruits on its branches. These fruits were extremely precious for spellcasters studying and researching cold magic, capable of inspiring insights and temporarily enhancing affinity with cold mana.

Long-term consumption could even alter one's constitution.

Of course, 'long-term' here meant at least ten years or more. These twenty or thirty fruits were just a drop in the bucket.

As for the selling price, each one was probably over 25 gold coins, depending on the corresponding ripeness and quality.

However, Gauss felt the quality of this Ice Vein Tree was probably not very high, because the surrounding temperature wasn't extremely severe, indicating the ley line below might just be a branch.

But perhaps precisely because of this, it hadn't attracted powerful monsters to guard it, otherwise it wouldn't have been Gauss and the others' turn.

Gauss marked a point on the map, noted it as the Ice Vein Tree, and then called his teammates to leave this place.

In the blink of an eye, two days passed in the snowy mountains.

"Cough, cough—"

Everyone was covered in snow-white frost, their foreheads and eyebrows dyed white.

The paths in these snowy mountains were more difficult to traverse than Gauss had anticipated.

Gauss and the others often had to detour through the mountains due to terrain, hazards, and powerful enemies.

The only comforting thing was that they encountered very little danger along the way.

Only a few reckless Snow Demons, creatures that looked like large bats, actively attacked Gauss and the others, and were subsequently crushed by Gauss like soft persimmons.

For the rest of the time, there was almost no combat.

"We're almost there!"

Gauss and the others stood on a relatively open ice plain, gazing up at the colossal entity before them that seemed to connect heaven and earth.

It was an immensely huge, towering snowy mountain—Isthm Peak.

The surrounding snow peaks seemed to exist only to guard it.

It stood there like a white monument, the frosty clouds swirling around its surface like coiling silver serpents.

The outline of Isthm Peak was exceptionally clear against the sky, emanating an aura of majesty, eternity, and sanctity, like the dwelling place of a deity from a story.

"So beautiful..."

Aria sighed with emotion.

The beautiful, spectacular scenery seemed to make the ever-present cold air less unbearable.

Gauss, however, examined the open snow plain before them leading to the snowy mountain.

If the previous paths were narrow and winding, and they hadn't encountered too many monsters, then this open snow plain before them was undoubtedly an excellent breeding ground for ice and snow monsters.

Would there be danger?

He tightened his grip on the Magic Wand in his hand.

"We need to be extra careful on the road ahead."

Gauss reminded his teammates beside him not to be fooled by the beautiful scenery before them and forget the dangers of this place and the purpose of their journey.

After a brief rest, Gauss's team continued forward.

Half a day passed in the blink of an eye.

Gauss turned to look back at the snow plain shrouded in wind and snow, scratching his head somewhat puzzled.

Actually...

They hadn't encountered any of the anticipated dangers.

They had crossed this snow plain peacefully and uneventfully. Aside from the harsh environment, the danger level was even less than that of an ordinary wasteland.

He couldn't help but fall into thought.

Thinking about it, he actually hadn't encountered much trouble or crisis along this journey. Encounters with monsters were also few, and they could often be avoided in advance. They had even come across an unguarded Ice Vein Tree on the way.

Everything went so smoothly, as if someone had arranged it all in advance.

Gauss's gaze turned to the snowy mountain before him.

Could it be you?

Mountain Spirit Aisvier.

The purpose of their journey was to investigate the source of pollution in the snowy mountain Isthm, the birthplace of the Lake God Mete's sister, Aisvier, on behalf of the Lake God Mete.

First, they needed to find this Mountain Spirit, or Mountain God.

Gauss's team stood at the foot of the mountain, gazing up at the several-thousand-meter-high peak before them, momentarily falling into an awkward silence, looking at each other.

"How do we summon the Mountain Spirit?" Aria broke the silence, asking the key question.

This mountain peak was simply too massive. Relying on Gauss's team's own strength to investigate the hidden source of pollution in the surrounding area couldn't be completed in a short time.

Their reserve of cold-resistance potions only had enough for the last three or four days. Once used up, although they wouldn't freeze to death, their action efficiency would greatly decrease, and they would ultimately have to leave this mountain range.

"How about building an altar?" Albenia spread her hands. "Just like when we summoned the Lake God that time?"

Gauss looked down at the Water Sword in his hand.

After reaching the mountain foot, it seemed to have been fully activated and had begun providing an intangible guidance.

Gauss narrowed his eyes slightly.

He felt the Water Sword's blade was extending a floating energy tether, pointing in a certain direction.

However, the others didn't seem to see this scene.

"Follow me first."

Gauss held the Water Sword in front of him. Since everyone was at a loss, it was better to follow the guidance of this divine power.

Seeing his actions, the others roughly guessed that this Lake God's Blessing item might have undergone some change they weren't aware of.

Following the sword's guidance, Gauss and the others traveled along the mountain foot, eventually arriving before a cliff face.

Unlike the previous cliff faces, this was an ice crystal cliff face, its surface smooth as a mirror. They could even clearly see their own reflections in it.

The wind and snow had ceased here.

"You have come."

An ethereal voice suddenly sounded.

It seemed to come from all directions, with no specific source direction to be found. Or rather, this voice resonated within everyone's hearts.

"You are called Gauss, correct? Did my sister Mete send you to seek me?"

Behind the ice mirror cliff face, the figure of a snow and ice woman slowly materialized.

She was strikingly cold and beautiful, with wind and snow forming her garments. Yet, the look in her eyes as she gazed at Gauss revealed a hint of softness.

She seemed utterly unsurprised by Gauss and the others' appearance, as if she had known of their arrival in advance.

"Yes, Mountain Spirit Aisvier, Your Excellency. The Lake God Mete has commissioned me to come to the snowy mountains to investigate the source of the pollution."

The current situation was an excellent development for Gauss.

They had successfully reached the snowy mountains and met the mountain's master, Aisvier.

His pre-departure greatest worry—being unable to contact the other party, and his team conducting investigations blindly like headless flies in the snowy mountains—had not materialized.

"Sigh..."

Hearing Gauss's answer, the Mountain Spirit sighed softly.

"Too late, it is already too late."

Gauss thought she was referring to the long time it took them to reach the snowy mountains, from summer all the way to the onset of winter, and a trace of apology appeared on his face.

"Apologies, we did our best."

"No, it has nothing to do with you. The evil buried within this snowy mountain has already broken free from control decades ago."

A bitter smile appeared on Aisvier's exquisitely beautiful face.

Hearing her explanation, Gauss felt slightly better, though he was still completely in the dark. It sounded like it had nothing to do with him, after all, decades ago, this body of his hadn't even been born.

"Have you heard the origin of this mountain range?"

"The Tomb of the Frost-Breathing Star. A meteorite fell here, bringing endless winter."

Gauss briefly recounted the legend he had heard from Albenia.

"That was not actually a meteorite, but an extremely, extremely evil existence. I was originally the natural spirit of Mount Isthm. At that time, Isthm was not as vast as it is today. To resist this continuously released deep malice, I had to continuously strengthen my own power to suppress it. As a result, the former solitary peak transformed into the endless snowy mountain range before your eyes."

Aisvier blinked.

"So, every snow peak is my limb, every snow plain is my skin. From the moment you set foot here, I noticed you."

"No wonder we didn't encounter any powerful enemies along the way. Thank you." Gauss expressed his gratitude.

Aisvier nodded.

"Now, my main power is still suppressing the evil will that has already broken free, but I can only do my best. Its malevolent thoughts flow downstream, constantly nourishing evil, yet I am powerless to stop it."

She shook her head, a look of worry appearing on her face.

"Can I help you strengthen the seal?"

"You?" Aisvier examined Gauss. After a long while and careful consideration, she shook her head.

"You cannot."

"Moreover, the awakening of this malice is already an irreversible event. Just like the changing of seasons, after the long summer comes the endless long winter; the succession of kingdoms, even the wisest king cannot sustain an eternal reign; for the world, similarly, after a long period of peace, a time of chaos will arrive."

"..."

Gauss blinked.

He knew Aisvier wasn't insulting or looking down on him, but that the disaster before them had already exceeded his capabilities!

"Chaos is coming?"

He was just somewhat concerned about the content of Aisvier's final words.

Come to think of it, everything around him seemed to indicate the world was about to fall into turmoil.

The fall of the Legendary Sword Saint, the Holy Sword awaiting its destined master, the continuously surging monster numbers and humans joining the adventurer career, and the mysterious evil the Mountain Spirit could no longer suppress.

"You still have time, Gauss." Aisvier said. "When this world's long winter overpowers the midsummer, when darkness devours the light, the 'order' you are familiar with will face its destined... trial."

"Step forward now."

"I shall bestow upon you the protection of wind and snow."

Gauss and the others looked at each other, then took a few steps towards the ice mirror cliff face.

Aisvier's fingertip paused on the mirror surface, condensing a complex frost flower pattern imbued with the laws of ice and snow.

"The tides have their rise and fall, after winter there must be the breath of spring, chaos is not the end..."

"In the deepest darkness of night."

"In the deepest depths of harsh winter."

"Who holds the ember."

Aisvier withdrew her hand. The frost flower pattern transformed into points of flowing light, passing through the ice mirror, showering upon Gauss and the others.

Gauss felt a surge of power merge into his body.

But he couldn't articulate the changes it brought.

He only felt the surrounding chill completely recede.

"This is not a place to linger. I shall send you on your way."

After bestowing the protection, Aisvier began to see them off.

Just as Gauss was curious about what method she would use, a high-pitched roar came from overhead.

Then Gauss saw a sky-obscuring white dragon, or rather, a "snow dragon," slowly descend from the sky.

It was massive, beautiful, emanating a divine, holy purity.

Without any of the evil ferocity of chromatic dragons, its eyes were filled with intelligent light.

Wasn't this the white creature they had seen during their journey?

It probably wasn't a White Dragon, right? Heard White Dragons have very low intelligence. Gauss thought to himself.

He didn't know if his inner thoughts were heard, or if the scrutinizing look in his eyes was too obvious. The great dragon before him exhaled frost from its nostrils.

"Come aboard, honored guests. I shall escort you out of the snowy mountains." The white dragon spoke in human tongue.