Chapter Seventy-Four: The Extreme North Wilderness

  The snow is getting bigger and bigger, and the patterns and words on the ice sculpture are becoming clearer and clearer.

  Undoubtedly, this is a map. The emblem of the Holy Family proves that this map comes from a distant and mysterious place, the realm of God, the other side of the Wall of Gods.

  Su Dong was slightly puzzled, since this map came from the Divine Realm, why would the final destination be an icy wasteland?

  According to the Continental Geographic Records, the Extreme North Wastes are the domain of the Snow Devils. According to the traditions of the Spiritual Beast Clan, that is also where the Azure Sky opens up. Every time an Ice Age arrives, the Snow Devils head south and slaughter the common folk.

  The Ling Beast clan will bring their most elite warriors north, rushing to the land of Tian Mu's opening, where they will hold a brutal holy war for their two gods.

  No one knows why the two gods of the Spiritual Beast Clan would engage in a decisive battle at the opening of the Heavenly Gate, and no one knows where the Snow Demon came from, so that the powerful God Domain Heavenly Army's expedition against the Snow Demon only resulted in failure after failure.

  In short, in the hearts of mainland people, the North is a mysterious place, also an absolute boundary, where countless gods and spirits are buried!

  Calm down, Su Dong carefully engraved the words on the ice map, most of which were descriptions of locations, how to cross the 5,000-mile-long icy deep valley, and how to climb over the endless large and small glaciers.

  The ultimate goal of these texts is only one, that is to bring the holder of the map to the depths of the North Territory, a place unknown to people.

  "Su Dong gege, what are you thinking about?"

  Bai Xiaoya's curious call pulled Su Dong back to reality from the icy north, thousands of miles away. On this snowy night, the bonfire was burning brightly, and Bai Xiaoya's pretty face was pressed close to Su Dong's, her breath as sweet as orchids.

  She smiled slightly and lied, "I wasn't thinking of anything. I had put this picture in the box and forgotten about it. Luckily you found it early. Sorry, I was just going to give you this box so you could carry some candies or something. Who told you to be so greedy?"

  Bai Xiaoya stuck out her tongue and smiled mischievously.

  In the Ice City, Su Dong often cooked something to eat by herself, satisfying her cravings. These dishes seemed ordinary to Su Dong, but they drove Su Qi Nian, Su Ning, and the two little foxes from the Bai family crazy.

  Bai Xiaoya often coaxed Su Dong to make delicious food for herself, now that Su Dong said Bai Xiaoya was gluttonous, this little girl suddenly became shy.

  Bai Xiaoya is really pretty, a 10-year-old girl with a hint of charm and innocence on her face. No wonder people often say that the Linghu clan is a man's nemesis, Bai Xiaoya already shows stunning beauty at such a young age, what will she be like when she grows up?

  "Su Dong gege, where should I go? They've been arguing all day about this, it's so annoying."

  Bai Xiaoya's words brought Su Dong back to reality, and the thought that this adorable little girl in front of him would one day become a cold and icy goddess made Su Dong feel quite uncomfortable.

  "It's not where you live that matters, it's who you're with. This ice city is just a small border town, lacking in supplies and entertainment, but we've had a great time together, haven't we? It's all because of being with the right people."

  "So you should observe these people's loyalty to you, choose and be with the most loyal ones. Without this premise, no matter how good a place is, don't go," Su Dong said.

  After all, this world is centered on human beings. A group of people with common interests gather together and even drinking porridge is fragrant. People with different aspirations and paths who are mixed together can't even be happy when they become emperors.

  Bai Xiaoya seemed to understand Su Dong's meaning, she stood up and walked to the bonfire, saying to the four beast kings who were arguing: "I plan to return to Hansheng City and live with Su Dong brother and Bai Qing sister."

  Suddenly, in the snowy night, the crows and sparrows were silent. The faces of the four beast kings all looked quite ugly. They had been fighting for so long, but in the end, the goddess didn't even acknowledge them.

  Hui Yu turned his head with some annoyance and said to Su Dong: "Kid, is this your doing?"

  "How is it possible? I don't plan on going back anyway."

  ……

  Bai Xiaoya was stunned. She had finally made up her mind to follow Su Dong, only to find out that he didn't plan on returning to Hansheng City at all, but instead wanted to continue heading north!

  The little girl was very sad, but after all, she was still young and didn't understand what this taste was, she just stared blankly at Su Dong, who couldn't stop wiping away tears.

  "You really want to go north? It's winter now!" Grey Feather Old Man said with some reluctance.

  Su Dongdao said: "Go and take a look, anyway we are already not far from the northern border of the frozen land."

  The Wolf King, Lang Ling, patted Su Dong's shoulder and said, "Yes, young people should indeed go out and broaden their horizons. When I was young, I traveled all over the Forgotten Continent! And almost went to the Eastern Thousand Islands too."

  "Remember, if you need help with anything, just blow the whistle I gave you. As long as my people are nearby, they will come to your aid at once."

  "Remembered." Su Dong nodded and said.

  Da Koutou squeezed beside Su Dong, handed him a large golden whistle and said: "In the north there is my group of relatives, a group of ugly white-haired guys. If you have something to do, just order them to do it. If they don't listen to you, I'll kill them!"

  The silly and lovely guy made everyone burst out laughing.

  Bai Xiaoya did not expect that within a short span of two months, she would be separated from Su Dong for the second time. It seemed as if fate had other plans, and Su Dong was destined to be with this beautiful young girl instead.

  Pulling over the gray feathers, Su Dong said in a low voice: "Bai Xiaoya is determined to go to Ice City. Once you get there, pay attention to the movements of the Tianxing Martial Arts Hall."

  Huiyu was taken aback and asked incredulously, "Why? Isn't Tiān Xīng the martial arts school you're from?"

  Su Dong said: "I was there, but that doesn't mean I trusted them. Do you still remember the chaos at the Martial Arts Conference?"

  Huiyu nodded and said: "Of course I remember, those civilians who were possessed became devils!"

  Su Dongdao said, "Actually, before that, something else happened. One night, all the people in the Tianxing Martial Arts Hall were poisoned, but it was a very weak poison that wasn't fatal at all. I suspect someone knew there would be trouble with the martial arts conference and secretly took measures to prevent the people from Tianxing Martial Arts Hall from going to the scene."

  "What's going on here!?" Akane exclaimed in surprise.

  "It's not that I'm afraid of ten thousand, but rather the one in ten thousand; anyway, you'd better be on your guard against them. That's right, and also, please take care of my father and brother for me." Su Dong said with a bow to Hui Yu.

  Huī Yǔ's expression turned serious, and he muttered to himself: "Your family is under my care; the four of us will take turns staying in Hán Xīng City, and we'll definitely take good care of your family."

  Su Dong glanced at Luoyi Huaiying and whispered to Huiyu, "When the Deer King is on duty, I think you should also send someone in the city."

  Huī Yǔ was taken aback for a moment, then let out a long sigh and muttered to himself: "Once I get to Hán Xīng City, the first thing I'll do is investigate your ancestors eight generations back, see what kind of family could produce such an evil creature like you."

  "You're so young and yet you're already so suspicious, it seems like it's going to be difficult for us to become friends."

  Su Dong said: "I have friends, but I never **friends. As for being suspicious, I'd rather call it being careful. I'm not some rich kid or grandson, being a bit more careful can help me live longer."

  Hui Yu had nothing to say, Su Dong's thinking was extremely inconsistent with his age. Sometimes Hui Yu would even suspect that Su Dong was an old monster like him, otherwise how could he consider so many things in his head at the same time?

  ……

  Apart from snow and ice, the frozen wilderness of the north is just as desolate.

  Su Dong rubbed his hands together and sighed with a bitter smile: "This is really a damn New Year, plus a damn birthday."

  Tomorrow is the beginning of a new year and also Su Dong's birthday, but unfortunately he was trapped in the icy wilderness of the northern border.

  The weather is extremely cold, a breath of air can drop an icicle, and a splash of urine can freeze into an ice pillar.

  Fortunately, Su Dong's cultivation had already reached the Ling Wu level, so defending against the cold wasn't a problem; the key was that there was no hot food to eat!

  When hungry, take out the dried ration that has frozen into a stone and gnaw on it for two mouthfuls. When thirsty, chop off a piece of ice and put it in your mouth to melt slowly.

  No birthday party, not even a single dumpling, such a New Year's and birthday made Su Dong very annoyed.

  He pulled out a frosted sextant, aimed at the North Star in the sky that never changed, and Su Dong once again determined his position.

  "That's right, it's here!" Su Dong exclaimed excitedly: "Fortunately, Laozi still has the Ice Casting Map, and I don't know what kind of birthday gift and New Year's gift this map from the Divine Realm will bring."

  After saying that, Su Dong started to bend down and brush away the thick snow to check under the ice.

  Underneath the heavy snow is ice, a thick layer of transparent ice that allows us to see the terrain features beneath it.

  There seems to be something different under the ice!

  "Huh?" Su Dong exclaimed, no longer minding the cold, took off his gloves and used his palm to wipe the ice clean, then brought it closer again to examine what was under the ice.