Chapter 222: Ailahiem

The Naga River is the largest river in terms of flow and drainage area within the Syen Province of the Syen Duchy.

It cuts across the entire Syen Duchy, boasting dozens of tributaries, and is the mother river of the Syen people.

Saint Syen City was built along the banks of the Naga River.

The source of the Naga River lies in the Dandong Glacier on the main peak of the Erwynlaya Mountains.

The Erwynlaya Mountains are the highest mountain range on the Nolan Continent, alone holding back the snowstorms of the North.

On the calm river surface, dawn broke with the first light, and mist like gauze drifted slowly.

A cargo Kirk ship struggled forward.

Kirk ships use overlapping plank construction, built from sturdy, durable wood, typically equipped with a single square-rigged mast and a rudder at the stern for steering.

Due to their large cargo capacity, Kirk ships are suited for long-distance trade.

Kirk ships are broadly divided into two types: Nordik and Aishamer.

The former is suited for open-sea navigation.

The latter combines flush-plank construction, performing better in shallow and complex waters, making it more suitable for inland rivers and coastal areas.

The Kirk ship before them was a classic Aishamer type.

But this cargo Kirk ship clearly had some age—years had left their marks upon its hull.

Below the waterline, the hull had been soaked until its original bright paint faded, revealing a raw, unadorned wooden hue.

Time spares neither man nor ship.

This aging vessel, burdened with a full load of grain, was growing weary.

On the old ship's deck.

"Boss, the Herring's too old—been running for over twenty years, can't go on anymore. We need a new ship," a crewman complained to the captain, who smoked a pipe.

"Replace, replace, replace," the captain, a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties, bore the weathering of river winds and sun.

Hearing the complaint, he slapped the crewman's head with a thick palm. "Aishamer Kirk ships can serve over thirty years. The Herring's only been running twenty-one years and seventy-one days—how's it not able to go?"

For those who live by the sea, they might forget their birthdate or wedding day, but they'd never forget the day their ship first hit the water.

"Boss, it's not like that. We maintain the Herring well, but we're in the Ailahiem grain trade—that place is an ice pit, with violent undercurrents. In another year or two, the Herring won't hold up."

The crew continued their earnest debate.

The captain drew a deep puff from his pipe, staring at the faded stern, yet in his eyes appeared a brand-new, beautiful Kirk ship.

How could he not want a new ship?

He'd wanted one last year, but his old man fell seriously ill, and he spent the savings meant for the new ship.

But this year's market's been good—by Fog Frost Month, he'd already earned as much as last year's entire season.

And since the Holy Empire arrived, business has improved even more.

Though the captain didn't know why, ever since Syen Duchy became Syen Province, merchants had grown inexplicably more active and bold.

In that light, being reclaimed by the Holy Empire really was a great thing.

Next month—next month he'd have saved enough to order a new ship.

"Boss, some of the stored grain in the hold was stolen by rats again," another crewman complained. "The Herring's too old—full of rats, and we can't find them."

"You're the only one complaining. Even a brand-new ship can't keep out clever rats," the captain spat.

"Still, we need a new ship," the crewman muttered, then added, "But these rats are something else—they dug up my hidden treasures from the cabinet. Pure madness."

Amid the crew's and captain's chatter, the Herring, laden with grain, sailed northward.

Night fell.

With little entertainment aboard, after dinner, the ship usually grew quiet quickly.

Tonight was no different.

Only the occasional splash of river water against the hull broke the silence.

In this quietness—

A splash sounded, fleeting and unnoticed.

A black figure surfaced silently from the water.

He reached out a hand, gripped the stern, and climbed upward like a nimble cat—without any handholds, defying logic—until he flipped onto the deck.

Then, the figure moved with practiced ease into the ship's galley, rummaged for a moment, and proceeded to feast.

Afterward, he left the galley and headed skillfully toward the grain storage hold.

The ship held almost no light; at night, without lanterns, it was as dark as walking blind.

But for Gao De, who had adapted to see in darkness, night became his best cover.

He entered the grain hold, found the most comfortable and hidden spot, lay down, and prepared to rest.

"Master, are we thieves now?" A clear, puzzled voice rang out.

"Shh," Gao De signaled for the little master to be quiet, then whispered, "This should be called trade—we'll pay them back."

"But we didn't ask them first. Maybe they wouldn't want this trade?"

"Lady Froala is clever," Gao De praised.

"So I'm right, then?"

"Lady Froala, you should also remember this," Gao De thought, then added: "In the river, one has no choice."

"In the river, one has no choice," Lady Froala pondered, then nodded seriously. "I understand—we can do this on the river, but not on land, right?"

"... You may understand it that way," Gao De replied, giving up.

Fifteen days ago, after retrieving the "Wild Breath" rune apparatus at the Aokenli Saint Syen City branch, Gao De left Saint Syen City immediately.

Wherever a person walks, traces remain.

So how could he ensure absolute safety, undetectable by pursuit?

After much thought, Gao De chose an extremely unusual method.

He took no vehicle, walked no major road.

Instead, at Saint Syen City's port, he selected a northbound cargo ship, slipped unnoticed into the water beneath it.

First, he used 【Cat's Claw】 to carve a depression into the hull's underside, tied a rope to it, then used 【Repair】 to restore the depression, securing the rope to the ship's bottom.

The other end of the rope was tied to himself.

Thus, he could silently follow the ship's movement.

It was another way of riding a ship.

Of course, only Gao De could do this.

At least among first-circle mages, only Gao De could manage it.

Undercurrents, thin oxygen, and possible sea beasts were secondary.

Learning to ride the water current generated by the ship to avoid injury was itself a skill.

The hardest part was that as the ship sailed north, the river water grew colder and colder, eventually dropping below freezing.

At such temperatures, no human could survive even half an hour in the water—freezing stiff and dead.

But Gao De had 【Adaptation】.

And this environment, with its gradual temperature drop, was precisely the kind 【Adaptation】 thrived in.

【Cold resistance increased by 53%, water current sensitivity increased by 36%, oxygen intake in water increased by 34%】.

【Vision in darkness increased by 36%】.

These were Gao De's current adaptation progress stats.

Cold resistance advanced far beyond the others because, on the third day after entering the water, he successfully constructed the spell model for 【Endure Environment】. 【Endure Environment】 (Abjuration, 1st Circle):

The target is protected from damage caused by extreme cold or heat, comfortably enduring temperatures from -50 to 140°F (-45.6 to 60°C); the target's equipment is similarly protected.

After casting 【Endure Environment】 on himself, he frequently dove deeper into colder waters, using the extreme cold to rapidly boost his cold resistance.

By day, he followed the ship underwater, advancing 【Adaptation】; by night, when all was still, he boarded the ship to eat and rest.

This unusual journey was, for Gao De, both travel and cultivation.

No one would know where he was going.

Because even Gao De himself didn't know his exact destination.

He only had a general direction:

The North.

Yes—the isolated North, as Master Mo Sen described in geography class.

And what Gao De valued was precisely this "isolation."

First, due to its isolation and harsh environment, the North held many high-grade magical plants and geopulse creatures unseen elsewhere.

To Gao De, this was the perfect hunting ground for acquiring essence.

With enough essence, he could use Wind Spirit Moon Shadow to level up his spells and confidently outpace other mages of his tier.

Second, both he and Froala needed to find an ideal place to plant a tree.

According to Froala, Yggdrasil grew regardless of environment.

Not only did it not care about external conditions—it could transform nearby land into a magical spiritual ground, enabling more trees to grow.

This meant the more desolate and extreme the place, the better it was for planting.

In a bustling area, not only would he risk enemies hunting him down—"capture the king, cut the tree first"—

But the spiritual ground created by Yggdrasil alone would draw countless outsiders' covetous eyes.

Besides, in truly prosperous lands, where would he find land to plant? Gao De held no noble title, let alone a fief.

Even if he did, he wouldn't dare plant a tree on his own fief.

If a nation can change hands within an hour, how much more so a mere fiefdom?

After careful thought, Gao De realized there were only two ideal places for planting trees:

Terra Continent, dominated by desert;

The Frozen Storm Lands, the North, isolated from the world, with harsh environment and cruel, unforgiving land.

The former needed no explanation—it was little different from the deserts of his past life: outside the oases near water sources, nearly all areas were uninhabited, vast stretches of useless sand.

The latter was the same: sparsely populated, with immense tracts of untouched frozen land.

Both shared the same trait: extreme and hostile environments, enough on their own to deter most who might seek them out.

Moreover, if Gao De did not actively reveal himself, how many could possibly find his planting sites in these two places?

As for which to choose, the answer was simple: pick the closer one.

Part of the territory of the Saint Xi En Province bordered the Erwinala Mountains, which shielded the North from its snowstorms.

Yet to reach Terra Continent from the Saint Xi En Duchy required crossing nearly half of the Nolande Continent—impractical.

Thus, Gao De's only option was to go to the North and find a suitable place to plant trees.

The usual way to enter the North was by sea route.

But Saint Xi En had no coastline; to reach the sea, one had to cross west into the Jin Jin Quehua Dynasty—a process that took far too long and left too many traces.

Moreover, even if one reached Jin Jin Quehua, finding a ship bound for the North was no easy task.

So Gao De dismissed this option outright.

That left only one path: trekking across the Erwinala Mountains into the North.

To others, the Erwinala Mountains were an absolute barrier.

Extreme cold, high altitude, thin air—indeed, a host of hostile factors.

But for Gao De, these extreme conditions that kept outsiders out could be gradually adapted to through 【Self-Adaptation】, turning barrier into highway.

He had no map, and no one to ask.

So he did not know exactly where he was.

He could only occasionally cast the 【North-Pointing Spell】 to confirm the cargo ship was heading north.

Still, Gao De could tell his destination was nearly reached.

For after crossing a certain boundary, both the water temperature and the air temperature above the river began to plummet abruptly.

Underwater currents grew increasingly numerous, and even floating ice appeared.

Clearly, they were nearing the Erwinala Mountains.

Fortunately, he had mastered 【Endure Environment】 in advance; otherwise, even with 【Self-Adaptation】, he could not have suddenly adjusted to such a drastic drop in water temperature.

Yet visibly, his cold resistance—long since nearly stopped rising—began climbing again at an astonishing rate.

On the fourth day after the water temperature plummeted, the twenty-one-year-old old Kirk ship finally entered a small dock crowded with fishing boats.

Having arrived safely, the crew of the old Kirk ship breathed a sigh of relief and began unloading the cargo.

After hours of busy work, once the cargo was unloaded, the ship remained moored at the dock while the crew disembarked.

They planned to go to a tavern in town, drink a few pints of dark beer, and rest well for the night.

Daylight here was very short.

Soon after the crew left, darkness fell completely.

The dock grew emptier, then fell silent.

At this moment, Gao De surfaced again from the water and climbed aboard the empty old Kirk ship.

He first went to the crew quarters, found a set of warm clothing, quickly changed into it, then left five gleaming Saint Xi En gold coins on the table—covering not only the cost of the clothes but also his meals and lodging during the voyage.

Flora watched Gao De change clothes with wide, blinking eyes.

"Won't Lady Flora be cold?" Gao De asked curiously as he changed.

"No, Yujiatexila fears no cold, so Lady Flora fears no cold either."

"But I like the new clothes."

Gao De kept his expression neutral, daring not to reply.

Though Flora was small, making her a new outfit used little fabric.

But those who knew understood: the cost of outfits for "figurines" was often far higher than for normal clothing.

Mainly because where could one find a tailor skilled in making figurine clothes? "Hmph!"

Under his dark-vision ability, Gao De clearly saw Flora produce a tiny green leaf in her hand and began rapidly gesturing with it.

"What is Lady Flora humming?" Gao De felt a twinge of guilt.

"Hmph, you pretend ignorance, mage—this grudge Lady Flora will remember."

After changing clothes, Gao De disembarked and entered the city the dock belonged to.

It was a small city resembling Iceland of his past life: streets dimly lit, sparse foot traffic, and for most of the year, daylight lasted only four to six hours.

Buildings here were low, constructed entirely of raw stone, nearly devoid of decoration, thick and rugged, built to withstand wind.

This was a city at the foot of the Dandong Snow Mountain of the Erwinala Mountains.

This place was: Ailaiheim.

(End of Chapter)