“Is it going to snow heavily again?”
Lina gazed at the overcast sky, her expression somewhat grave.
Right now, they couldn’t afford to stop.
The other batch of wounded couldn’t wait that long—they had to finish investigating that snow mountain within two days.
“Judging by the weather, there won’t be a blizzard anytime soon. We can still keep moving.”
Anya stood by her side, pinching a flake of drifting snow between her fingers.
After living in the Northern Border for so long, she had become intimately familiar with weather like this.
The Holy Knights’ team had lost half its members, but their pace had actually quickened.
In less than half a day, they’d reached the area near their destination.
The group climbed another snow-covered mountain to look out into the distance.
Their target mountain was noticeably shorter, its hazy outline exuding an eerie feeling under the gloomy sky.
Lina fixed her gaze on the shadow of the mountain, waving her hand to signal the team to keep moving forward.
This valley was deathly silent, so still that not a trace of life could be sensed.
Only the occasional falling chunk of snow hit the ground with a dull thud, sending ripples of sound echoing through the empty valley.
“Be careful. Something’s off about this place.” Lina glanced back at Anya, lowering her voice. “Anya, stay close to me—don’t get hit by falling rocks.”
“Okay,” Anya replied.
This area had already surpassed everything she knew—she’d never ventured this deep into the Northern Border.
If they went much further north, they’d reach the legendary Forbidden Land of the Dragons.
As they drew closer to their destination, Anya felt the aura in the area growing heavier and more oppressive, to the point of being terrifying.
Although the Northern Border was harsh, there were always some frost-resistant magic beasts living here.
Yet, in all the distance they’d traveled, they hadn’t seen a single beast.
“We need to stay vigilant. This place is far too abnormal,” Lina said, her voice now tinged with more seriousness.
The group finally arrived safely at the foot of the snow mountain, not encountering any real danger along the way, only feeling some faint tremors here and there, like minor earthquakes.
“Interesting.” Lina reached out and touched a stone covered in thick snow, closing her eyes to sense it carefully.
After a moment, she opened her eyes, a look of certainty flashing in their depths. “Looks like something is indeed hidden here. We didn’t come for nothing.”
She turned and instructed those behind her, “Search the area. Report anything you find immediately.”
The Holy Knights immediately dispersed in an orderly manner.
As the Holy Knights split up, Anya had no choice but to follow Lina, circling slowly around the mountain’s base.
Iris sprang out at that moment, scanning the snowy mountain before turning to Anya and saying, “The sealing is beneath the ground here. This snow mountain is just a facade; there’s actually a hidden passageway below.”
“You know even that?” Anya was surprised.
She’d thought Iris only knew there was treasure hidden here, but she hadn’t expected her to know the exact location so clearly.
“Of course!” Iris snorted proudly, puffing out her small chest.
“Holy Knight Commander! There’s something over here!” Before long, a Holy Knight’s shout shattered the silence.
Lina immediately brought Anya over. On the stone wall, there were clear marks of artificial damage, and it didn’t look like it had been that long ago.
“So another group of Dragonkin really have been here—and they know something.” She brushed her fingers over the dented marks, her brow furrowing as she fell into thought.
“Reporting, Holy Knight Commander!” From another direction, a Holy Knight came running over anxiously, breathless as he said, “We found a tunnel over there. It looks pretty deep.”
Lina’s heart suddenly sank. Had those Dragonkin beaten them to it?
“Come on, a few of you come down with me. The rest, stay up here and keep watch.” She quickly picked fewer than ten people, her gaze pausing on Anya. After a moment’s hesitation, she said, “You come with me, too.”
Inside, the tunnel was dark and cold, filled with a damp chill that made goosebumps rise on their skin.
Several Holy Knights lit small fire spells, and the faint glow barely illuminated the path ahead.
“Judging by how hard the soil is, this was dug out less than a month ago.” A Holy Knight squatted down, picked up some frozen dirt and rubbed it between his fingers, whispering.
“Iris, is the treasure you mentioned really down here?” Anya asked quietly.
“Nope.” Iris shook her head. “These Dragonkin went the wrong way. The real Secret Realm is hidden even better. But…”
She changed her tone, her eyes brightening. “This tunnel they dug just happened to get close to the sealing. Once we break the seal, we can find the entrance to the Secret Realm.”
“Can you find the seal’s location?”
“Of course.” Iris patted her chest.
“Holy Knight Commander, I think there are Dragonkin up ahead!” Suddenly, the Holy Knight scouting in front stopped, turned back to Lina and made a silencing gesture, whispering.
Lina immediately stepped forward, peering down from a high point with the faint light overhead.
The tunnel opened up ahead, splitting into upper and lower levels. Torches hung from the stone walls, casting clear light on the scene below.
At least a dozen Dragonkin, stripped to the waist, their faces full of exhaustion and misery, were wielding pickaxes, chipping away at the hard stone wall without pause.
One Dragonkin, looking like a foreman, paced angrily back and forth, occasionally hitting or scolding any Dragonkin who tried to slack off.
“Holy Knight Commander, what do we do now?” A Holy Knight at her side asked in a low voice.
“First, grab that foreman for questioning.” Lina’s eyes sharpened. “Leave the other Dragonkin alone if they don’t resist. If any dare resist, subdue them on the spot.”
No sooner had she spoken than she kicked off with both feet, leaping down from above as swiftly as lightning, straight for the Dragonkin foreman.
The others reacted immediately. In the commotion, no one paid attention to Anya, leaving her standing all alone.
Seeing everyone leave, Iris grinned mischievously. “Little Anya, come with me. I’ll take you to undo the sealing.”
Iris watched the others walk off and grinned slyly again. “Little Anya, come with me. I’ll take you to undo the sealing—let’s find the Secret Realm first!”
Anya hesitated for a moment, a little uncertain. “Is this really okay? If Lina finds out I’m gone, she’ll definitely get worried and come looking for me.”
“What are you afraid of? You’re not running far, just staying in this tunnel.” Iris curled her lip. “She cares about you so much, she’d never just leave you here. Once she’s done questioning them, she’ll come find you for sure.”
As soon as she finished, she ran deeper into the tunnel without waiting for Anya’s reply.
Helpless, Anya had no choice but to quickly follow.
Meanwhile, the moment Lina landed, she pressed the Dragonkin foreman hard to the ground, her palm tightly gripping his head so he couldn’t move.
The other Dragonkin shrank back into the corners, squatting with their heads in their arms, too scared to resist. That saved everyone a lot of trouble.
“Wh-who are you? Don’t kill me! Please, don’t kill me!” The foreman’s voice trembled in terror, his whole body shaking like a leaf.
“What are you digging this tunnel for?” Lina’s voice was ice-cold.
“Who are you people?” The Dragonkin foreman risked a glance, realizing these were all unfamiliar faces, and gathered his courage to shout, “Are you from Kamila’s side? Our chief ordered us to dig this! If you kill me, our chief will never let you get away with it!”
“I won’t repeat myself.” Lina’s tone grew even colder. She grabbed the back of his neck and slammed his head against the ground.
There was a muffled thud, and the foreman’s vision went dark. Blood streamed from his forehead, and he no longer dared to argue. Wailing, he cried, “I’ll talk! I’ll talk, okay? Just don’t hit me again!”
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