Chapter 113: Cold Spring Karst Cave!

"Master, we have captured a total of forty-two Fire-Horses; not a single one escaped. Your humble servants have successfully completed the task you assigned!"

When Gervas arrived in the canyon, Captain Pike immediately rushed forward excitedly to report.

Capturing prey worth over two thousand gold coins, such a sense of achievement struck the hearts of these hunters, making their spirits surge.

The Fire-Horses were still struggling at this moment; even bound by three deep restraints, they could not suppress their fierce nature.

Roar!

At this time, Zhuiyue beneath Gervas suddenly let out a low growl.

The Fire-Horses, which had been struggling violently, immediately fell silent.

"Zhuiyue is mighty!" Seeing this, Captain Pike and the other hunters widened their eyes, their gazes toward Zhuiyue filled with awe.

Zhuiyue raised its head slightly, looking extremely proud.

Gervas finally spoke at this moment, "Slave hunters, your performance in today's canyon hunt was excellent!"

"And I once said, punish faults and reward merits; I, Gervas, am a person who distinguishes clearly between reward and punishment!"

"In view of your consistently good performance, plus the great merit you established today, I have decided that in the coming days, I will allow you to regain your serf status!"

"This..." Captain Pike and the others were stunned.

"What, do you not like it?"

"Mas... Master, but we have not yet completed your previous requirement of capturing five thousand large wild beasts..." Captain Pike lowered his head.

"I did set a redemption requirement of five thousand large wild beasts for you, but I, Gervas, am not one of those greedy landlords, so that is not my only requirement for restoring your status!"

"Now, the prey you have captured is already sufficient to match the value of five thousand large wild beasts, so I grant you permission to restore your serf status!"

"Of course, it is not only you; all other slaves in Storm Domain will be treated the same in the future!"

Hearing this, the hunter slaves' eyes sparkled with tears of excitement, and they all knelt on the ground with a thud.

"Master, you are the most benevolent and greatest master in the world; we will definitely work even harder to serve you in the future!"

Gervas nodded with a smile, "Stand up all of you. The pardon of your status still requires a few days, so let us celebrate properly when the time comes!"

"Yes, Master!"

Soon, the ropes surrounding the Fire-Horses were untied; the hunters gathered the Fire-Horses one by one, bound them together, and formed them into a long chain.

Gervas approached a few mares and foals, feeling even more satisfied in his heart; these were the seeds for the hundreds and thousands of Fire-Horses of the future.

With all the Fire-Horses secured, the team began the return journey.

However, after passing Swan Lake, Gervas ordered fifty guards to protect the hunters in bringing the Fire-Horses back to the castle, while he himself led the knights toward the southeast.

About an hour later, an inconspicuous hill over a hundred meters high appeared ahead.

"My Lord, that is Ice Bear Mountain; beneath the cliffs of Ice Bear Mountain lies the Ice Cave of the Demon Beast... However, it is very dangerous there; it has swallowed many, many people in the past. My Lord, you must be careful!"

The guide serf pointed at Ice Bear Mountain several hundred meters away, his face filled with fear.

Although that Ice Cave might have swallowed only one or two people, through word of mouth, it had already become a demon cave that had swallowed hundreds and thousands.

"Mite, your mission is complete; after returning, you can go to Magistrate Thomas to collect the reward of three loaves of black bread. Now, you only need to wait here for our return!"

"Thank you for your Lord's benevolence! My Lord is benevolent!"

Gervas did not delay, leading Lei Meng and others rushing toward Ice Bear Mountain.

As soon as they approached Ice Bear Mountain, they indeed found the surrounding temperature dropping.

Knight Mi Gen and others even couldn't help but shiver.

"This... this place is actually that cold? It is currently the season of the scorching sun; could there really be a terrifying demon beast here?"

Knight Mi Gen and others were filled with doubt and surprise.

After all, although it was now late summer, the temperature was still very high; everyone was wearing short shirts and sweating profusely.

But here, blown by the cold wind, they felt a chill to the bone.

For Knight Mi Gen and others who had never encountered refrigerators or air conditioners, this was simply a 'phenomenon of heaven and earth'.

"There are no demon beasts; Zhuiyue reported that there is an underground cold spring inside Ice Bear Mountain, causing a cave within the mountain to be frozen year-round!"

"Therefore, it is not strange that we feel a chill as soon as we approach!"

"So Zhuiyue has already scouted it? Then we are relieved. My Lord, Zhuiyue is truly amazing; it even found such a hidden place!"

Knight Mi Gen and others all turned their heads to look at Zhuiyue, their eyes full of admiration and respect.

Zhuiyue: "???"

However, though puzzled, Zhuiyue was very familiar with and already accustomed to these two-legged beasts' admiring gazes.

'Two-legged beasts, admire! I, this divine being, am rarer than even giant dragons; the fact that you are fortunate enough to gaze upon my visage at close range is already your glory!!'

Zhuiyue's eyes cleared of confusion, and it raised its large head high, constantly switching angles left and right to allow the two-legged beasts to admire its magnificent visage more clearly.

"My Lord, the cave is over there."

While speaking, the group turned a small half-circle around the foot of Ice Bear Mountain.

As the icy sensation grew more intense, a pitch-black cave mouth appeared in the shaded hollow ahead.

Gervas immediately dismounted and approached with his subordinates.

Upon reaching the cave entrance, a whistling sound could actually be heard.

The cold wind blowing out from inside the cave was so cold it felt like falling into an ice cellar.

"Hehehe, Ma... My Lord, this is too cold; it feels exactly like the season of the harsh winter!"

Knight Mi Gen and others were not titled knights; at this moment, blown by the chilling cold wind, they even trembled while speaking!

"You all wait outside the cave; I and Knight Commander Lei Meng will go in and take a look!"

Slightly circulating his battle qi, the cold retreated by more than half; Gervas and Lei Meng wrapped their shoes in linen cloth for anti-slip, then holding torches, they entered the cave directly.

The cave was actually not deep; after walking more than twenty meters in a cave passage two meters wide and high, the view suddenly opened up ahead, revealing a karst cave of seventy or eighty square meters.

The drop in the karst cave was indeed over ten meters, just as the system had said.

The cave walls were steep and covered in thick ice; without a retractable staircase, one could never climb out if one fell.

Especially for ordinary people, in such low temperatures, they would likely turn as hard as stone within minutes.

"It really is an ice cave, my lord. This is too miraculous!"

Gazing at the thick layer of ice, Lei Meng could not help but exclaim in wonder.

In fact, not just him; even Gervas, the transmigrator, had never imagined that such a miraculous natural ice cellar could exist in nature.

"Indeed, it is miraculous. From now on, our Storm Domain will never lack ice again! Haha!"

Gervas could not help but laugh heartily.

Just as in the ancient past of his previous life, ice in this world was extremely precious in seasons other than the harsh winter.

Especially in the relatively warm southern regions.

One could say that only the great nobles had the financial and material resources to excavate ice cellars.

The vast majority of lesser nobles could not enjoy ice blocks in the summer.

As for the commoners, that goes without saying.

Therefore, this endless ice cellar was no different from a small treasure basin!

For instance, selling ice blocks to other nobles in summer; selling one square block for seven or eight silver coins would not be excessive, would it?

By then, every noble in the surrounding area would contribute three or five gold coins annually.

One would only need to find twenty or thirty stable clients, and in a year, the base income would be over a hundred gold coins.

Although it was not a sudden windfall, it was superior for its steady, long-term flow!