Ice Cave on the Snowy Mountain

The number of snowy mountains on the Santalune Plateau is immense, with an endless range stretching across the entire eastern side. These mountains are perpetually covered in snow, and the environment is incredibly harsh.

The primary reason why humans on the Kalos Region never expanded further east is due to the obstruction caused by the Santalune Plateau and these endless snowy mountains.

If the Santalune Plateau is a region somewhat familiar to humans, then the depths of the endless snowy mountains contain many areas that remain uncharted and are considered forbidden zones for humans.

Just how large this snowy mountain range is, no one knows! The climate and environment of the snowy mountains are harsh, and human capabilities are limited. The areas humans have explored are only at the edges of the mountains.

If it weren't for the invention of space backpacks, humans wouldn't have even managed to fully explore the outskirts of these endless snowy mountains.

Under Sneasel's guidance, Yuga rode Absol and dashed toward the northeast of the Santalune Plateau, where the Sneasel tribe's original territory was located.

Along the way, Yuga continued using his Insight ability to observe the Pokémon they encountered, but unfortunately, in such a barren place as the Santalune Plateau, it was truly difficult to find any Pokémon with high potential.

The Pokémon in this region appeared in large groups, and sometimes Yuga even saw thousands of Pokémon migrating together in search of food.

The seasonal changes on the Santalune Plateau differ from those in the outside world. Although it wasn't even late summer outside, the plants here had already withered. If the Pokémon on the plateau didn't start migrating soon, by the time autumn arrived, they might not even have grass roots to eat.

Autumn on the Santalune Plateau is equivalent to winter in the outside world, and the environment here is even harsher than an external winter. The temperature is lower, the wind and snow are fiercer, and food is scarcer.

Despite the massive groups of Pokémon passing by Yuga, he still couldn't spot any high-potential ones. The Bunnelby he found outside his tent in the morning seemed to be the only "good bamboo shoot" among all the "bad bamboo."

After nearly three hours of galloping, Yuga finally arrived at the foot of the snowy mountain that Sneasel had mentioned. Looking at the towering peaks, Yuga felt a brief hesitation about going in.

It looked cold!

In the face of nature's immense power, humans truly seem insignificant. If it weren't for the system acting as his cheat, Yuga wouldn't have dared to take such a risk. In the snowy mountains, getting lost would make food and warmth the biggest issues.

Luckily, Yuga had his system backpack, where he had already prepared enough food and equipment. Plus, he could restock berries from the system's trainer store, so he wasn't in danger of starving in the snowy mountains.

After walking for who knows how long, the withered grasslands gradually disappeared, replaced by the pure white snow beneath his feet. This meant Yuga had officially left the plateau and entered the range of the snowy mountains.

Once inside the snowy mountain region, Sneasel became unusually excited. It jumped off Absol's back and began hopping quickly across the snow. The snow enhanced Sneasel's speed, allowing it to sprint over the snow without leaving any footprints.

After passing through a long snow-covered valley and crossing two not-so-tall snowy mountains, Yuga finally stopped in front of one the snowy mountain.

Compared to the entire endless mountain range, this particular mountain was just on the outermost edge. But it made sense. A weak tribe like Sneasel's wouldn't have survived if they had ventured deeper into the snowy mountains.

Absol was exceptionally skilled at climbing; it could easily scale rocks. If the snow weren't so thick here, Yuga suspected that Absol could even sprint up the slopes.

Sneasel had an even easier time. This was its birthplace, and it had grown up here. It was probably more agile climbing these mountains than a monkey climbing trees.

Yuga, on the other hand, was the one having the most trouble. After reaching the snowy mountain, he didn't dare ride Absol anymore, knowing that it would be too risky if he accidentally fell off.

He could only grunt and climb the mountain himself.

Along the way, Yuga barely saw any vegetation, only occasionally spotting a Chesto Berry tree or a Aspear Berry tree. The branches were barren, with only a few remaining leaves, likely plucked bare by some Pokémon.

Yuga was in decent physical condition, but climbing a mountain was incredibly exhausting, especially a snow-covered one. He considered having Charizard fly him up, but Charizard wasn't having it. It thought the snowy mountains were unsuitable and refused to come out of its Pokéball. Dragonite felt the same way!

The only thing that comforted Yuga was that, since morning, the weather had been excellent. There was no wind or snow, and although the sun didn't offer much warmth, its bright rays were enough to make Yuga feel cozy.

By the time he reached the mountainside, the terrain began to level out, allowing Yuga to switch from "climbing" to "walking." According to Sneasel's directions, their original territory was in this area, just around the bend.

However, they had barely taken a few steps when two Beartic suddenly appeared from somewhere, blocking their path.

As they say, enemies grow more hostile when they meet, especially when there's a grudge involving a home invasion!

The moment Sneasel saw the two Beartic, it charged at them furiously, only to be swatted away by the male Beartic with a single punch.

The two Beartic were a male and a female, likely a mated pair.

Despite Sneasel's subservient attitude toward Yuga, it was no pushover in battle. After being knocked away, it immediately got back on its feet and lunged again.

Unfortunately, Sneasel was no match for the Beartic, and facing two of them was even worse. Just before Sneasel could be beaten to a pulp, Absol intervened, easily knocking both Beartic out with a single swipe of its paw.

Seeing Absol's heroic display, Sneasel's heart was filled with admiration. Since they were both Dark-type Pokémon, Sneasel thought it could learn a trick or two from Absol, especially that Throat Chop it just used.

Sneasel, being quite the grudge-holder, didn't miss the chance to kick the unconscious Beartic a couple of times to vent its frustration, even though they were already knocked out cold.

Leaving the two Beartic behind, Yuga followed Sneasel as they continued toward their former territory. The Beartic's thick skin would protect them from freezing to death anytime soon.

After a few more turns, Yuga finally saw the destination: a valley nestled within the snowy mountain.

This valley was filled with both large and small Aspear Berry trees, all laden with fruit. The food supply here was abundant, which explained why the Sneasel tribe had originally chosen this place as their territory.

Unfortunately, this area now belonged to the Beartic.

Seeing its former home occupied by the Beartic, Sneasel was about to charge down without hesitation, but Yuga quickly grabbed its arm to stop it.

Sneasel looked at Yuga in confusion, thinking that since Yuga was so strong, dealing with a bunch of Beartic should be as easy as lifting a hand.

Knowing oneself and the enemy is the key to victory, so Yuga gently shook his head and said, "Let's observe a bit more," prompting Sneasel to reluctantly stay by his side, refraining from any reckless action.

The number of Beartic in the valley was large. Some were strolling around in pairs, others were lying on rocks napping, and some were playing with their cubs...

In addition, there were many Cubchoo. They were happily digging into the crevices between rocks, munching on a type of short white-leafed plant, looking quite content.

The plant the Cubchoo were eating was a type of fern unique to the snowy mountains, only growing beneath the snow. It had high nutritional value for Cubchoo during their early development. This plant was also a favorite food for many Ice-type Pokémon, including Sneasel.

After observing this, Yuga began to understand why the Beartic clan had taken over the Sneasel clan's territory. This area was indeed very suitable for the Beartic to live in — the environment was peaceful, with no natural predators, and there was plenty of food.

However, after activating his Insight ability, Yuga changed his mind. The reason? Although this area was on the outskirts of the snowy mountain, the Beartic here were far too powerful.

Not only was there a high-ranking Beartic of Elite level sleeping deep within the valley, but there were also several pseudo-Elite level Beartic taking care of their cubs. Such high-level Pokémon shouldn't be living on the outskirts of the mountain, and it couldn't just be because of the favorable environment that they had seized another species' territory.

Given this situation, Yuga couldn't afford to attack. A battle with such high-level Pokémon would cause too much commotion and could trigger an avalanche — no small matter in this place.

Moreover, with so many Beartic around, dealing with them all at once would be difficult, and any confrontation could easily provoke an avalanche.

The environment here was quite different from the snowy peaks of Mt. Coronet. The terrain around Mt. Coronet's peaks was either steep as if cut by a knife or perfectly flat. In steep areas, snow couldn't accumulate, and on flat terrain, it didn't easily slide, making avalanches unlikely.

The danger here lay in the terrain: neither too steep nor too flat, making it prone to both snow buildup and sliding.

"We should sneak in and take a closer look at the situation," Yuga suggested to Sneasel, feeling there must be another reason the Beartic clan had come to the outskirts of the snowy mountain and seized this area.

"Sneasel!" Sneasel obediently nodded.

Yuga then recalled Absol and called out Gengar and Mismagius from the shadow space. They each picked up Yuga and Sneasel, and the three of them gradually faded from view, becoming completely invisible.

The infiltration went smoothly. Gengar and Mismagius concealed their presence entirely, and, following Yuga's directions, they kept a good distance from the high-level Beartic. No one noticed their presence.

After scouting around the valley, Yuga found nothing unusual.

Could I have guessed wrong? Yuga wondered, puzzled.

Just then, Mismagius, holding Sneasel, approached and tugged at him.

"What is it?" Yuga asked, lowering his voice to Sneasel.

"Sneasel, Sneasel…" Sneasel whispered in Yuga's ear.

Following Sneasel's directions, Yuga found an ice cave hidden in a corner deep within the valley. According to Sneasel, this cave didn't exist before, meaning the Beartic clan had likely carved it out after arriving here.

This was strange. Beartic were not cave-dwelling Pokémon. Their thick fur and layers of fat were more than enough to shield them from the cold and snow; they could lie down anywhere without needing an ice cave.

"Let's go check it out," Yuga said to Sneasel.

There were two high-level Beartic guarding the entrance to the ice cave. To avoid alerting them, Gengar and Mismagius teamed up to use Hypnosis. The two Beartic, already bored and drowsy, quickly succumbed to sleep and began snoring.

With Gengar and Mismagius providing cover, Yuga and Sneasel smoothly entered the ice cave.

The inside of the cave was made entirely of solid ice. Perhaps because the two high-level Beartic were already guarding the entrance, there were no other Pokémon inside.

When they reached the innermost part, Yuga and Sneasel discovered that a small section of the mountain's interior was hollow. It had originally been filled with solid ice, but the Beartic had excavated it to create a nest within the mountain's core.

Though there were no Pokémon in the nest, the ground was covered with Beartic eggs.

Seeing all these eggs, Yuga grinned. He couldn't bring himself to fight the Beartic and Cubchoo, but stealing a few eggs would be a breeze!

Activating his Insight ability, Yuga quickly identified several high-quality eggs.

However, before dealing with the eggs, his attention was drawn to an ice pillar in the center of the cavern. The pillar itself seemed unremarkable, likely left there by the Beartic to support the hollowed-out mountain core.

Yet at the base of the pillar, there was a round hole, from which an endless stream of cold air was pouring out, nurturing the eggs scattered across the ground.

"Sneasel! Sneasel!"

Sneasel ran over to the hole, inhaling a gust of the cold air with a look of pure delight before eagerly gesturing for Yuga to join. If it weren't for the risk of making too much noise and alerting the Beartic outside, it might have jumped for joy.

The Sneasel tribe had lived here for so long, yet they had never discovered this treasure beneath the mountain. If they had found it earlier, the benefits from this hidden gem would have prevented them from being easily driven out by the Beartic.

Yuga approached the edge of the hole and looked down, discovering that there was yet another layer of space beneath them. Judging by the size of the hole, the Beartic's massive bodies wouldn't be able to fit through.

With the help of Gengar and Mismagius, Yuga and Sneasel smoothly descended into the space below. The moment they entered, Yuga was hit by an intense cold. Compared to the upper level, the temperature down here was much lower.

Sneasel, however, seemed to be in its element, thoroughly enjoying the chill.

While the dense fog above had obscured his view, the lower level revealed itself to be crystal clear. The fog was the result of an overabundance of Ice-type energy, explaining why Sneasel had been so happily breathing it in.

The space below was vast, filled with countless ice pillars, which were likely responsible for supporting the mountain's core. Without them, the entire structure might have collapsed under the weight of the snow above.

Yuga tapped on one of the ice pillars, finding it incredibly solid. His fingernails couldn't even leave a mark on its surface.

The space was so cold that even Gengar and Mismagius, usually unaffected by such things, quickly retreated into the shadow space. In their place, Yuga called out Lapras.

"Lapras…"

The moment Lapras appeared, it let out a joyful cry, swimming around happily.

Accompanied by Sneasel and Lapras, Yuga continued deeper into the cavern, where he began to spot large chunks of Never-Melt Ice, some even taller than Yuga himself.

In the market, even a thumb-sized piece of Never-Melt Ice could sell for thousands, so the amount he found here was worth an unimaginable fortune.

However, Yuga didn't take all the Never-Melt Ice. He selected only some of the larger pieces, storing about a dozen in his system backpack before stopping.

He wanted to leave some for the Beartic. Even though they couldn't come down here, the presence of the Never-Melt Ice would still benefit them, which explained why they had gone to such lengths to seize Sneasel's territory.

Unfortunately, despite all the Never-Melt Ice, Yuga didn't find any trace of Heart of Ice. He even wondered if the original owner of his Aegislash had found their Heart of Ice here.

Still, Yuga didn't bother seeking confirmation from Aegislash; it didn't matter anymore, as it wasn't relevant to him.

Finally, after reaching the deepest part of the cavern, Yuga, Lapras, and Sneasel were greeted by a breathtaking sight.