Chapter 290

"Where are the specific locations of the seven ice caves that produce Ice Sha that you control?" Gao De asked again.

The Ice Sha in the Snowfield Guardians' inventory was only enough for Gao De to strengthen the Frozen Blade to 1st-rank.

To go further, he could only wait for new output from the ice caves.

Hearing Gao De's question, Luo Yiqi hurriedly took a thick scroll from his bosom and handed it over; it was clearly prepared long ago.

"This is a map found in Archbishop Lu En's room."

Gao De took the scroll, unfolded it, and discovered that it was an incredibly detailed large map.

This map not only encompassed almost the entire western region of the northern realm, but it also had various detailed, dense annotations on it.

Including what ores, magical plants, and geomorphic creature gatherings were in which places; some dangerous areas were marked with skulls, and it even marked the detailed locations of three ley lines.

In addition, there were seven symbols on the map marked in blue that looked like caves.

These were the locations of the seven ice caves controlled by the Snowfield Guardians, using the depth of the color to indicate the rank of the ice cave; the darker the color, the higher the rank.

In terms of detail, this map provided by the Snowfield Guardians should be unique in the northern realm.

And most of the credit went to the Guardians who wandered the snowfields all year round.

It was only through their tireless exploration and recording, combined with the long history of the Snowfield Guardians, that such a map existed.

"Are these two gold mines?" Gao De scanned it for a few moments and saw two golden ore patterns among the many mineral markings on the map, and couldn't help but ask.

"Yes," Luo Yiqi nodded, "but these two places are alluvial gold mines; they are gold particles brought by meltwater during the snowmelt season on the snowfield."

The gold particles in alluvial gold mines usually come from primary gold mines upstream.

These primary gold mines are located in rock; after weathering, erosion, and water transport, the gold particles are carried into rivers, forming alluvial gold mines.

If a rich alluvial gold mine is discovered, then theoretically, by tracing it upstream, there is a high probability of finding the primary gold mine.

"Did you not go to trace and look for the primary gold mines?" Gao De asked again.

"We did not." He shook his head.

"First, the sect's doctrine is to guard the snowfield; we mainly focus on protecting the safety and balance of this land;"

"Second, gold mines actually don't have much use on the snowfield."

"Third, mining gold is a job that requires a lot of manpower and material resources, not to mention that it's in an extreme environment like the snowfield, which is not something our sect can afford." Luo Yiqi explained honestly.

Hearing this, Gao De nodded slightly, also understanding.

There was no traditional currency in the northern realm, so the significance of gold mines was indeed not great.

Here, what was truly precious were the resources that could maintain survival and combat, not gold and silver treasures.

However, Gao De still secretly kept it in mind.

If the Enduring Zhenbing Tribe wanted to grow, it would sooner or later have to introduce the concept of currency.

Currency is the foundation of economic activity.

Without currency, there is no prosperous trade system; although the form of barter is feasible on a small scale, it is ultimately too primitive and inefficient. Once the scale of trade becomes large, there are flaws everywhere.

With gold mines, one could try to mint coins... Gao De calculated in his heart.

Judging from the map Luo Yiqi took out, in addition to these two alluvial gold mines, there were also silver and copper mines on the snowfield.

Although the quantity was not large, just a few here and there, Gao De knew that this marked mineral information was definitely just the tip of the iceberg of the northern realm's mineral resources.

Because the main duty of the Snowfield Guardians was to guard the snowfield, these discovered minerals were all exposed surface veins that could be seen at a glance.

And obviously, exposed veins were ultimately in the minority; most veins were still hidden beneath the surface.

But these were all things for a long time in the future, so Gao De just let his thoughts wander and skipped over them.

"Are these all branches established by the Snowfield Guardians in the northern realm?" Gao De traced his finger over the building markings on the map, confirming.

These markings were widely distributed, almost spanning the western region of the northern realm.

"Yes, my lord," Luo Yiqi dared not hide it, "our sect has a total of thirteen branches in the northern realm, all of which are used to shelter orphans who have lost tribal protection, and are also places to cultivate the next generation of sect members."

Gao De nodded slightly; at least on this point, the Snowfield Guardians could indeed be considered to be "guarding the snowfield." Each of these thirteen branches represented a place of hope and shelter.

"My King, how do you plan to handle these branches?" Su Nai, who had been silent for a long time, asked.

"Keep them for now... without solving the food problem, Phoenix cannot accommodate so many people." Gao De was not impulsive, and he also saw Su Nai's concerns.

Rashly taking over these branches would place a huge burden on the current Phoenix, so it was more appropriate to let them continue to operate in their original way for now.

"What is this place?" Gao De suddenly noticed that there was another building marking on the map that was very unique.

Unlike the white of other building markings, this building marking was red, appearing particularly eye-catching, and it was not located in the western region, but in the central region of the northern realm, which was regarded as a forbidden area and had almost no human habitation.

"That is where our sect's former temple was located," Luo Yiqi's voice was a bit bitter, "After the Ice-born bloodline began to weaken, the extreme environment of the central region was no longer something we could adapt to, so the sect moved the temple from the central region to here."

"It is said that not everything was brought out when it was moved, and many ancient inheritances are still hidden in the ancient temple." Luo Yiqi continued.

Gao De's heart stirred.

Although Luo Yiqi used "it is said," it was nine times out of ten true.

The reason was also very simple: the Icefield Temple only had spell formulas up to the 4th circle, and as an ancient sect, the Snowfield Guardians must have had many mages higher than the 4th circle a long time ago.

The existence of these high-circle mages meant that they had once mastered more powerful spells and knowledge.

And since those high-circle spell formulas were not in the Icefield Temple, they were likely all left in the ancient temple.

However, exploring this ancient temple was not something he could do now; it could only be left for later.

Anyway, there was no rush; even if he found those high-circle spell formulas and knowledge now, he couldn't use them.

Putting away this large map, Gao De's gaze wandered in the treasure vault again.

Excluding the many spell materials, he noticed that in the center of the treasure vault, there was a high platform, and on the platform was an irregular piece of ice the size of two fists.

The ice emitted a faint blue light, and the extreme cold it radiated could be felt even from such a distance.

Enduring Zhenbing!

Without hesitation, Gao De stepped forward and, under Luo Yiqi's slightly shocked gaze, picked up the Enduring Zhenbing without changing his expression, "I will be responsible for bringing it back to Phoenix."

In the entire Enduring Zhenbing Tribe, only Gao De and Su Nai should be able to touch this Enduring Zhenbing directly.

So Gao De took on this transport task himself.

After all the supplies and books in the Icefield Temple were counted, organized, and packed, the main force of the Enduring Zhenbing Tribe prepared to return to Phoenix.

"My King, how should these people be handled?" Elder Kaen, who had come along, asked for Gao De's opinion.

He was referring to the Icefield Temple mages who had submitted, as well as the necromancers who had practiced forbidden necromancy with Ryan and had been captured by the Icefield Temple mages; there were a total of more than a dozen people. At this moment, these people were being guarded, their knees on the cold ground, their eyes filled with a mixture of fear, unwillingness, and a glimmer of undying hope. Gao De glanced at these necromancers, his gaze cold.

He walked expressionlessly to the necromancers, and with a clank, drew 【North Wind】, its cold light flashing.

One head had already fallen.

Every swing of the sword was accompanied by a dull "thud," followed by a head falling to the ground, blood splattering and staining the cold snow.

A moment later, all the necromancers were separated from their heads.

Source: 2nd-circle — Human (7/7).

3rd-circle — Human (4/7).

In an instant, a 2nd-circle source was already full.

"As for the others..." Gao De's gaze moved away from the corpses of the necromancers and swept across the faces of the Icefield Temple mages.

At this moment, because they had just witnessed Gao De's decapitation process with their own eyes, their faces were filled with complex emotions.

"Since you have chosen to submit, come back to Phoenix with us first. From now on, you are no longer mages of the Snowfield Guardians. I will give you a chance; if you can prove your value and loyalty then, you can become members of the Enduring Zhenbing Tribe."

It took a total of eight days to travel from Phoenix to the Icefield Temple, but the return trip from the Icefield Temple to Phoenix was much slower, taking a full eleven days.

This round trip took more than half a month.

When the main force of the Enduring Zhenbing Tribe returned fully loaded, their return was like a storm, quickly causing a huge stir in Phoenix.

The news of the destruction of the Snowfield Guardians was soon noticed by interested parties in Phoenix.

Actually, there was no need to pay special attention.

Because Gao De had people bring back the ice sculpture formed by Ryan and the zombie behemoth he summoned, and actively publicized the news that Ryan had practiced forbidden necromancy and slaughtered northern tribes, directly placing the Enduring Zhenbing Tribe's stance on the side of eliminating harm for the snowfield and upholding justice.

That huge ice sculpture was the evidence; Gao De placed it directly on the square where the Sword in the Ice challenge had been held previously.

Everyone who saw the zombie behemoth would no longer doubt the truth of the news.

It was just that due to the conditions of the northern realm, this news would still need some time to spread and ferment until it finally caused a response among all the northern tribes.

With righteousness placed in the open, it could ensure that other tribes would not feel insecure and think that the Enduring Zhenbing Tribe was bellicose.

Su Nai's residence.

"My King, is there something you need?" Su Nai welcomed Gao De in and brewed a cup of Ice Jade Wutong leaf water.

Gao De smiled slightly, took out a book, and handed it to Su Nai.

The latter took a look and found that the book was written in a common language she didn't recognize, so she hurriedly cast Comprehend Languages.

Afterward, Su Nai softly read the five large characters on the cover: "Green Wood Longevity Scripture."

"This is?" Su Nai was even more confused.

"This is my cultivation method, a cultivation method that requires choosing a specific plant as a holy object, forming a contract with it, and then using that plant to increase one's lifespan. In addition, it can also accelerate cultivation speed by absorbing the essence of plants." Gao De briefly introduced the "Green Wood Longevity Scripture."

"A very powerful cultivation method." Su Nai pondered for a moment and gave a fair evaluation.

Although the inheritance knowledge of northern realm mages was relatively poor, she still had the basic ability to judge cultivation methods.

A cultivation method that could increase lifespan and cultivation speed naturally deserved the word "powerful."

"Indeed, it's just that the limitations are also great, because the lifespan increased through the holy object will disappear completely after the holy object dies, and the conversion ratio for increasing lifespan is also very low, so one must find high-rank magical plants that have a large base lifespan." Gao De pointed out the limitations of the "Green Wood Longevity Scripture."

"My King, how did you, who practice this kind of cultivation method, come to the northern realm?" Su Nai asked, puzzled.

There were fewer plants in the northern realm than snow wolves.

No matter how you looked at it, this was not a suitable place for Gao De.

"Because Lady Fu Luo La has a high-rank magical plant seed that can sprout and grow regardless of the environment, and I need to find a place to plant it, form a contract with it, and use it as a holy object."

"But this seed..." Gao De told Su Nai everything about the miraculous nature of Yujia Te Xila and his considerations for choosing the northern realm.

By this time, he already trusted Su Nai enough.

"So that's how it is..." Su Nai's eyes shimmered, full of amazement at Yujia Te Xila's abilities.

"Yujia Te Xila is Lady Fu Luo La's seed of life!" Sensing Su Nai's amazed emotion, Fu Luo La couldn't help but emphasize with pride.

"So, I need you to help me pick a suitable place to plant the tree." Gao De smiled slightly and then stated his purpose.

Although there were many things to do in his heart, the highest priority was definitely planting the tree.

In the supernatural world, the foundation of everything is one's own supernatural power.

The sooner Yujia Te Xila is planted, the faster his strength will improve, so Gao De was not prepared to delay the tree planting any longer.

"Ideally, an ideal port location on the northern realm's coastline." He took out the map from the Snowfield Guardians and spread it on the table.

Gao De had long conceived the direction for choosing the tree planting site; even after becoming the King of the Enduring Zhenbing Tribe, his thinking hadn't changed, and it had even become more firm.

If the Enduring Zhenbing Tribe wants to grow, it must break the inherent closure of the northern realm and establish connections with the outside world to conduct necessary trade and exchanges.

History has proven that closing the country will only lead to falling behind.

And the Eryinlaya Range stands across, an insurmountable natural chasm that isolates the northern realm from the outside world.

Therefore, the only way for the northern realm to contact the outside world is through sea routes.

A port—a port belonging to the people of the northern realm must be established; first build the port, then build ships, and let it become a bridge connecting the northern realm with the outside world.

"Ideal port location..." Su Nai's eyes flashed slightly, and her fair fingers slid slowly across the map. Without much thought, she already spoke: "My King, there is indeed a place that perfectly meets your requirements."

"It's right here." Her finger pointed to a spot on the map.

It was a bay located in the middle of the northern realm's coastline, with a contour somewhat like a giant arm extending from the coastline into the interior, with towering valleys on both sides.

"The geographical location of this bay is extremely superior, and the straight-line distance to Phoenix is not particularly far, which makes it more convenient for us to help you look after the holy tree." This was the point Su Nai valued most.

She already understood the importance of Yujia Te Xila to Gao De, and the Enduring Zhenbing Tribe must send forces to be responsible for looking after it.

Also, Gao De noticed that on both sides and at the terminal of this bay, there were large areas of flat land, enough to support the grand vision of afforestation in his heart.

"Good," Gao De nodded slightly, very satisfied with the point recommended by Su Nai, "I still need to go to the site to take a look before I can make a decision."

He paused, then suddenly spoke again: "However, coming to see you today, besides needing you to help me recommend a tree planting point, there is actually one more thing, which has to do with you."

"My King, please speak." Although Su Nai's voice remained cold, it was very gentle.

"I want you to concurrently practice the 'Green Wood Longevity Scripture'."

(End of chapter)