Whispering Poems

Chapter 3209 Elder Harald

The last stop of today’s trip is to leave the seaside and enter the snow-capped mountains.

From the seaside to the center of the island, along the gradually towering silver-white mountains, there is no trace of human activity at all. The people living by the sea, like the tribesmen under the snow-capped mountains, regard the Fatumonster Snow Mountain as a "holy mountain", so they rarely go near the foot of the mountain.

This time, Shade wanted to find the location where the "Potion Merchant" was attacked. Other people who wanted to investigate the incident only knew a rough range, but Mr. Mortis provided Shade with a more accurate location and knew what happened at the time:
"He was attacked when he went into the mountains to collect herbs. The last time I saw him, he said that the enemy appeared behind him as if out of thin air. You can follow the herb-collecting route map I gave you to look for traces along the way, but it has been snowing these days, and those traces are probably gone long ago."

This kind of primitive snow mountain that has not been developed at all is very difficult to climb without a guide or if you are familiar with the terrain.

Fatumonster Island itself is quite large, so after Shad left the reef by the sea, he flew to the location pointed out by Mr. Motis. The entrance to the mountain was easy to find, but as the sun gradually set, snowflakes fell from the sky.

At the foot of the southern foot of the snow-capped mountains is a large area of ​​undeveloped primeval forest, and the terrain is extremely rugged, with low in the south and high in the north. If Xia De had not relied on "powerful spatial perception" to locate, it would not have been easy for him to find the mountain pass pointed out by Mr. Mortis.

The road that the potion merchant took into the mountains to collect herbs was actually not a road at all. Ordinary people could never walk on it. The merchant selling potions only relied on his own power as a ringmaster to walk in the snow-capped mountains.

Xia De, who had learned to fly through the Dragon Feast Ceremony, fully realized the advantages of being able to fly. Unless he turned into a giant dragon, it would not be so convenient to move in such a dangerous and complex environment, whether in the form of a red butterfly, a cat, or a silver wolf.

Flying alone at the foot of the snow-capped mountains, looking at the snow-covered hillsides glowing golden in the setting sun, Xia De felt really relaxed.

At the foot of the mountain below, the shadows of the cedars and dead branches stretched out long, like a black and white sketch, while the emptiness and tranquility of the "holy mountain" above seemed to swallow everything. In the dim yellow painting of the sky, a small dark blue area had appeared, and the afterimages of March and the stars could be seen in the sky without anyone noticing.

While climbing the mountain, Xia De even noticed a snow leopard walking alone in the snow. After seeing him flying over, the wild animal first took a few steps towards him, then turned around and ran away in fear. He also heard the clear, sharp and ethereal sound of a flute coming from somewhere. It should not be a traditional flute but a musical instrument of the local tribe. The melodious sound, combined with the snow-capped mountain scenery in the evening, made Xia De more favorable towards this new area.

It was still midwinter just after the year-end festival, and coupled with several snowstorms before the festival, there were almost no exposed rocks or land even in the low-altitude areas of the snow-capped mountains.

Shade searched all the way up, relying on the "Blood Echo" and the location information given by Mr. Mortis to find the location where the attack took place. However, he still underestimated the difficulty of finding a specific location in the mountains with almost no reference points. At nearly six o'clock in the afternoon, Shade found nothing except the beautiful scenery.

However, he saved a blue sheep that was being chased by a snow leopard in the mountains, and then he gave the snow leopard enough food for the blue sheep, so he thought that it was not a waste of time:

"That snow leopard is so beautiful. I remember that leopards also belong to the cat family. I wonder if Flora will turn into a leopard."

Since he couldn't find it, Xia De didn't plan to continue looking. Looking up, the deep blue that originally stained the clear sky had occupied most of the sky. It was time for him to go home.

At this time, Xia De was standing on a small path in the mountains that was carved out by the tribesmen between the cliffs. He noted his current location and planned to continue tomorrow. He then reached into his pocket to take out Lecia's crystal shoes.

But suddenly he looked up and noticed someone approaching.

Above the winding stone steps, a figure in a thick fur robe was walking towards him. The color of the robe was a mixture of pure white and dark gray, and the natural gradient effect made him blend well with the background of the snow-capped mountains.

There were totemic embroidery patterns on the edge of the robe, and as he approached, Xia De saw that it was an elderly man with a long beard.

He wore a strange cotton hat with horns on both sides, and leaned on a long staff with vines wrapped around it. He had a wrist guard with bone pieces embedded in it, a talisman with primitive runes and a bone necklace on his chest, and a dagger in a scabbard and a kerosene lamp that had not been lit hung on his waist.

To be honest, after being in this world for so long, apart from traditional ancient witches like Miss Feliana, the person in front of me is the character that best fits the "magical worldview" in the minds of outsiders.

This man was certainly not an ordinary person. This old man with frosted eyebrows and brown hair should be a high-level warlock. And he was definitely not a newly-entered high-level warlock like Shade. He might even be higher than a tenth-ring doctor. Such a person was rare no matter where he was. Shade did not expect to run into him when he first arrived.

The old man who came down from the heights was also surprised to see a stranger here. He stopped hesitantly, looked at Shade, and asked in the heavily accented Carsenric language mixed with the local dialect:

"Young man, would you like to play a game of Rhodes?"

"what?"

Xia De felt as if his words were snatched away by someone else, and the old man who was joking laughed, walked down a few steps and moved closer to Xia De:
"You are a ring sorcerer from outside the area, right? Don't ask me how I know. If you weren't a ring sorcerer, you would have frozen to death if you ran into the mountains wearing such thin clothes. What are you looking for here? Tell me, if I know the way, I will show you the way. Don't run around and disturb this holy mountain."

Seeing that Xia De didn't show any defensive expression, he took a few steps closer to Xia De. Although Xia De was not sure how powerful the other party was, he was confident that he could escape no matter what, so of course he was not nervous:
"Good evening, thank you for your kindness. Are you an elder of the tribe at the foot of the Fatumonster Snow Mountain?"

This was not a random guess. The other party's dress was too obvious. The old man nodded:
"Yes, I am an elder of the Fatu tribe, but it's best not to pronounce 'Fatu' with an East Coast accent, otherwise it will become a dirty word. We are divided into many different tribes, and I have some reputation among them. If you want to go into the mountains to find something, I can help you."

"I heard from people in the city that the snow water here is very good. I want to take some to taste."

Xia De said politely, and the old man shook his head slightly:

"Young man, you are definitely not here for water."

Xia De then told the truth. The tribesmen certainly didn't want an uncontrolled "magic sword" to kill people everywhere in their area:
"I heard someone say that a magic sword appeared on the island some time ago. I happen to be an expert at using a sword - forgive my immodest attitude, so I wanted to go into the mountains to look for clues."

"That sword, I've heard about it, but there doesn't seem to be any clues pointing to the sword being in the mountains?"

"I heard that many people are looking for it, but no one has found it. Since city people can't find it in the city, I thought I would try my luck in the mountains."

The old man had come to Xia De at this time. He shook his head seriously:

"Young man, I can assure you that even those of us who live here have not found any trace of it on the snowy mountain. That sword is very dangerous. The Five Gods Church in the city and we are all looking for it. It's getting late now. I'll go down the mountain with you."

He almost said "get out of here quickly". Xia De had heard from the black market in the city and Sylvia that these "Fatu people" were very hostile to strangers, especially those who did not follow the rules and wandered around on the snowy mountain, so he understood what the old man meant. They regarded this silvery white snowy mountain as their home and holy place. Although they did not forbid others to come, they did not like outsiders to break in rashly.

Of course, although Xia De respected other people's traditions, he didn't want to be driven down the mountain like this. He would come again tomorrow. He didn't comment on the old man's proposal, but stretched out his hand to him:

"Oh, I forgot to introduce you just now - John Watson, a travel writer. I have been to many places in the Old World."

The old man understood what he meant, so he held the long stick with his left hand and stretched out his right hand to him:
"They all call me 'Elder Harald', the priest and doctor of the tribe."

The two hands were clasped together and then exerted force at the same time. For a moment, Shade actually felt the pressure from the other party's soul. At first, it was only the primitive, ancient and rough soul power of the eleventh ring warlock that was manifesting, but after a few short seconds, Shade felt that the other party's soul was connected to the Fatumonster Snow Mountain under his feet.

The world represented by the snow-capped mountains brought about a qualitative change in the old priest's soul power. At that moment, what appeared before Shad was no longer "Elder Harald" who was a mortal, but a powerful force that was almost like the incarnation of a demigod.

The silvery white mountains pressed down, and the ancient and holy mountains gave the "priest" an even more ancient power that transcended the ring magic system. But when this power really touched Shade through the handshake between the two sides, Elder Harald originally thought that he would loosen his hand as if he had touched a mine, just like the outsiders who were driven down the mountain in the past, but he felt that the power of the holy mountain was blocked by Shade.

PS: Picture 1 of this chapter is "Snow Mountain Trail"; Picture 2 of this chapter is "Elder Harald".