Chapter 9: A First Encounter with a Young Friend

Longya Mountain is located at the northernmost part of the Frozen Continent, serving as a natural boundary between the kingdoms of the Aimi people and the Northern Aimi. The mountain range has an average elevation of over 3,000 meters, with its main peak known as Green Dragon Terrace.

The origin of Longya Mountain's name is difficult to trace.

There are two prevailing legends:

The Creator God, to quell the war among the deities, drove the ice gods away with a chariot pulled by six dragons. To seal the ice gods, he extracted the teeth of the ancient ice green dragon from the chariot. These dragon teeth, upon encountering the wind, transformed into the mountain, growing in a single day.

The mountain resembles the shape of a dragon's tooth, hence its name, Longya Mountain.

Recorded in: Strange Tales from the Classic of Mountains and Seas

Early summer on the Frozen Continent offers a unique charm.

The nights are incredibly short, filled with dazzling auroras. The red moon barely peeks out before it disappears at dawn, leaving the dark sun strikingly prominent against the vibrant auroras.

The days are exceptionally long. The white sun radiates a warm glow, gradually melting the accumulated winter snow. Snowmelt drips rhythmically from rocks, mountains, and trees, flowing along the Longya Mountain highway. Alongside the road are streams formed by the melting ice and snow. On the south-facing banks, colorful daisies bloom in abundance, while vibrant butterflies seize the brief summer to pollinate the flowers.

A young boy travels along the road; he's dressed entirely in white—snow beast leather shoes, snow seal leather pants, a coarse linen shirt, and a snow beast vest. On his back, he carries a large, snow-white two-handed sword, nearly as tall as he is.

This is Aimi's first journey far from home, only to be stood up.

Lei Ge was quite surprised to find that his apprentice was exceptionally agile, seemingly even more so than an advanced rogue. During the first day of their journey, Lei Ge discreetly tested Aimi by casting a minor spell—an earth-based first-level magic called "Earth Fang". As Aimi walked, the ground would either rise or crack open. Aimi, on his first long journey and first time on the continental highway, excitedly bounced along, occasionally turning back to chat with Lei Ge and Chi Hanfeng. He never seemed to pay any attention to his steps, yet he managed to avoid every unexpected change as if his feet had eyes.

As a neutral mage, Lei Ge revered nature. It was said that neutral magic drew inspiration from the druids who lived in the forests. Neutral mages value physical fitness, agility, and strong mental power. According to Lei Ge's observations, these were precisely Aimi's strengths. Finding such a promising apprentice right after leaving the Wishing Tower naturally put Lei Ge in a great mood.

To further train the youngster, Lei Ge suggested that Aimi walk ahead alone for half a day while he and Chi Hanfeng followed later. If nothing significant occurred, they would regroup at the inn at the foot of Longya Mountain.

The continental highway was quite safe, with the constant passage of merchants and armies scaring away any wildlife from its vicinity. Chi Hanfeng understood this well and agreed with the plan, though his words took on a different tone: "Hmm, that works. Aimi, you should consider that Master Lei Ge has just come out of the Wishing Tower and hasn't seen a woman in 94 years. I don't need to spell it out for you, but there's a certain propriety to maintain. He might not act in front of you, but, well, don't look at me. I won't say more. It doesn't matter to me who I travel with, but it's best to stick with Lei Ge, in case he's not familiar with the current market price." With that, Chi Hanfeng summoned his phantom beast and rode away, though even his phantom beast couldn't outrun lightning. As he mentioned, mages can't simultaneously attack knights and phantom beasts, so while they can't directly challenge a grand mage, their escape speed is unmatched by other troops.

With a beginner's magic manual from Lei Ge and some silver coins from Uncle Chi, Aimi set off.

The journey was expected to take seven days, and six had already passed. Looking back, Aimi couldn't see any sign of his uncle or teacher. During these six days, he occasionally encountered travelers, but those accustomed to highway travel followed a routine: move quickly, speak little, and aim to reach an inn before dark. They acted like strangers on the road but quickly became lively and easy to communicate with at the inns.

"Greener, run fast!" came the faint voice of a child, panting and urging a companion, from the coniferous forest to the right.

Several tall pine trees swayed violently, as if struck by something.

A strange beast's roar echoed from the forest.

Aimi leapt over the four-meter-wide drainage ditch beside the highway, instinctively drawing his Ice Blade. With both hands on the sword, he dashed into the forest.

There, he saw two enormous white snow bears crashing through the remaining snow, knocking down small trees with their massive paws, roaring as they charged.

Snow bears, known as the kings of the Frozen Continent, stood as tall as two men. No beast could rival them in strength.

The bears' target—a dark figure in the distance—appeared to be a boy about Aimi's size, possibly even stronger. As the boy ran, he urged on a stumbling green puppy at his feet. If not for the dense trees and the bears' bulky bodies, the boy would have been caught long ago.

The boy circled around and ran toward the highway.

"Ah!" Aimi was startled to see the boy holding two struggling snow bear cubs, their cries explaining the unusual aggression of the typically non-confrontational snow bears.

The boy noticed Aimi, urgently shouting, "Don't come closer! It's dangerous, run along the forest!"

Initially unsure whether to help this trouble-making boy, Aimi was moved by his concern for others and made up his mind. He sheathed his sword, dashed over, took the cubs from the boy, and sprinted back toward the highway.

At the drainage ditch, Aimi hurled the cubs onto the highway, ignoring the boy's reaction. He grabbed the boy's right foot, swung him around, and let go.

"Put me down! I can jump myself! Thump!" protested the boy as he was flung over the ditch.

"Woof woof!" The green puppy, seeing its owner in trouble, bit Aimi's pant leg, eyes filled with expectation. "Don't forget me!" it seemed to say, lifting its right leg to signal. Aimi then realized the puppy was walking on two legs.

What a clever, amusing little creature. Aimi thought as he picked up the puppy and leapt back over the ditch.

The giant snow bears were closing in. The one in front, clearly a male, saw the four-meter ditch as no obstacle. As the bear prepared to jump, Aimi swung his sword in warning. The bear realized that leaping would expose it to a mid-air slash, and it angrily swiped its paw in the air. The temperature around Aimi dropped sharply, ice materialized, forming blades that flew towards him.

Whoa, snow bears naturally know first-level ice magic!

"Ice Blade!" Aimi shouted, his sword forming a larger, more substantial ice blade that crashed towards the bear like a wall. Even though it was a first-level spell, the added power from a higher spirit made it far more effective, beyond what even a first-level mage could conjure in such a short time.

The bear, unaccustomed to this scenario, was unable to dodge in the mere four meters and took the hit squarely, its white fur quickly staining red.

"Roar!" The snow king had never suffered such pain, roaring wildly, its eyes aflame with rage, mingling with the blood dripping from its eyes, a terrifying sight.

A bear is a formidable animal, especially when wounded. A bear in a death struggle can inflict damage several times over on its enemies. This bear was a prime example.

Ignoring the gleaming sword before it, the male bear bent low and leapt over the ditch. At the same time, the female bear appeared at the edge of the ditch, roaring as it too leapt over. On the Frozen Continent, even the bravest Hammi hunters wouldn't provoke a snow bear. A squad of Hammi soldiers would avoid them. The attack from two snow bears could decimate a squad of Hammi soldiers.

The female bear sniffed the two cubs on the ground, then the boy lying still. Aimi's heart skipped a beat. "Is he hurt from the fall?" The giant bear licked the boy's face, but he remained motionless. The green puppy lay by the boy's leg, equally still. The female bear turned, roaring angrily at Aimi.

Facing two bears at once was the last thing Aimi wanted to see.

The male bear lunged forward, its massive paw swinging towards Aimi's head, while the female bear charged from another direction. Its maw opened wide, four fangs white at the top, yellow in the middle, black at the base, the blood-red tongue tightly pressed against its lower jaw, foul breath spraying saliva as it lunged for Aimi's neck.

Aimi ducked, narrowly avoiding the paw, and before he could react, the female bear's hot breath was upon him. His head went cold, and in a desperate move, he bent down and rolled between the male bear's legs.

Barely straightening up, the female bear spat out Aimi's cap, then pounced again. The male bear circled, also opening its mouth to bite.

Perhaps due to years of living together, the bears coordinated seamlessly. Aimi barely dodged a paw, only to face a mouthful of teeth, leaving no room to swing his two-handed sword. Luckily, the bears were so large that attacking a low target wasn't easy, or Aimi would have been swatted long ago.

On the third escape through the male bear's legs, disaster struck—the bear stepped on Aimi's long sword. In a flash, Aimi leapt back over the ditch to evade the female bear's attack.

The bears didn't hesitate, leaping over the ditch simultaneously. Aimi didn't turn; as soon as his feet touched the ground, he crouched low, pushed off the ditch edge, and flipped back over, landing just in front of the Ice Blade: "Ice Blade—Ice Storm!" Aimi shouted, grabbing his sword and quickly activating the Ice Blade's second-level special attack.

For an ice mage, Ice Storm is a particularly useful spell. Though its attack power isn't high, it can cover an opponent's legs in ice, immobilizing them temporarily.

The wounded male bear, already sluggish, found its movements further hampered by the swirling Ice Storm. Roaring in frustration, it attempted to leap, but remained stuck.

The female bear was less affected, its gaping maw lunging forward once more, its white furred bulk shuddering rhythmically with each leap.

Time was short, and Aimi knew snow bears naturally resisted ice magic. He had little time left. Quickly shifting from defense to offense, he swung his massive sword, reflecting the sunlight, directly at the bear's head. The sword's icy trail lingered in the air.

The female bear dodged, but the Ice Blade, seemingly weightless, lost no momentum, making a sharp turn in mid-air, humming as it sliced towards the bear's shoulder. The massive body couldn't dodge in time, the fur and flesh from left shoulder to left foreleg peeling back to reveal white bone shards. No blood flowed, as the icy blade froze the wound's capillaries, nearly freezing the bear's entire foreleg.

Enraged, the female bear swatted the Ice Blade aside.

Charging at the now disarmed Aimi, the bear lunged. Aimi sidestepped the attack, and as the bear's right paw swung again, he ducked and rolled clear. The bear paused not, shifting slightly, its multi-ton weight dropping towards the prone Aimi.

"Whoosh! Thud!" A swift projectile sliced through the air, embedding in the female bear's body.

The bear let out a heart-wrenching scream, collapsing with a thud.

"Watch out for the other one—" It seemed to be the boy's voice.

Seeing the female bear fall, the male bear roared and struggled.

Just as Aimi retrieved the Ice Blade, the male bear broke free from the Ice Storm, leaping over the ditch. Without hesitation, Aimi gripped his sword, thrusting it into the bear's chest. The blade pierced through, halting at the bear's spine, as its massive paws landed on Aimi's shoulders, shredding his clothing. The bear's hind legs barely reached the ditch, clawing chunks of frozen earth from the wall.

Aimi couldn't bear the immense weight any longer, releasing his grip as the bear, still clutching the sword, tumbled into the five-meter-deep ditch. The bear clawed desperately at the sword, ripping its chest open as it fell, spilling entrails.

The bear surged again, its claws gripping the ditch edge, hind legs kicking against the wall. The agonized, enraged, bloodshot eyes remained fixed on Aimi.

The bear climbed higher, head emerging from the ditch, shoulders following, then the gaping, bleeding chest. Such a gruesome sight left Aimi petrified.