The Flood Dragon Demon King's territory in the Southern Wasteland.
The mountain range containing the sinkhole grew increasingly strange, the enormous pit shrouded in thick clouds and mist.
Cloud and mist gathered at the mountain pass, putting on a display of all four seasons like a miniature weather bonsai. At times, they became roiling storm clouds, flashing with lightning and rumbling with thunder as rain poured down. Though the weather outside was clear, lightning crackled and thunder boomed within the sinkhole, where black clouds massed and torrential rain fell—a most fascinating sight.
At other times, the clouds thinned, sunlight streamed down, and rainbows stretched across the sky. In the blink of an eye, a howling gale would rise within the pit.
Most miraculous of all, goose-feather snow actually fell within the tiny sinkhole. Bitter winds swept through, the lake froze solid, sealing the water's surface, and moisture on the vines, flowers, and trees on both sides condensed into ice crystals, revealing the Northern Lands' wondrous rime. Anyone who did not know better would think they had ventured deep into the northern ice fields. Outside, the sun shone brightly and the climate was scorching, yet inside the pit, it was winter.
The birds and insects living in the sinkhole had no choice but to move away, nearly driven mad by the torment.
One day, heavy snow fell over the pool, freezing it over.
Mu Duo, Qing Ling, and the Ye Zi sisters invited one another to go skating. Chattering merrily, they passed through the miniature weather clouds and entered the sinkhole, immediately astonished by the sparkling white rime.
It was so beautiful. They had never even seen this scenery common to winters in the Northern Lands. Rime, commonly called tree-hanging frost, was neither ice nor snow. In low temperatures, water vapor