Eternal Youth

In legend, Snow Demons from another world descended and froze the Dragon Sleep Continent, plunging all life into deathly silence.

Until the great dragons awoke, tearing through the frozen plains and creating oases where humans could thrive and multiply.

Guangguang River Valley is one such small oasis.

Of course, it was nurtured by the power of Clay Dragon Ross, but ultimately, it relied on the influence of the Shadowflame Dragon over the land.

The Shadowflame Dragon's power continuously radiated, protecting the entire Shadowflame Grand Duchy. Clay Dragon Ross condensed a portion of this power, and thus, Guangguang River Valley, warm and spring-like throughout the year, became the ancestral territory of the Fluorite Mushroom Family.

"As for the Snow Ghosts..."

In the kitchen, the manservant Ram vividly recounted the ancient legends: "The Snow Plains are sealed with the dark power of the Snow Demons. Once someone is killed by a Snow Demon, they will be resurrected under the erosion of this dark power, becoming a Snow Ghost!"

"Are Snow Ghosts black or white?" the kitchen maid Barbara asked foolishly.

"That..." Ram had never seen a Snow Ghost before, but in front of the maid, he had to maintain his image as a learned person. So, he said, "Of course they're white, otherwise, why would they be called Snow Ghosts?"

"I thought they were called Snow Ghosts because they turned into ghosts in the snow," maid Olivia chimed in.

"That's possible too," Ram replied, not entirely sure, so he quickly brushed it off. "None of that matters. What's important is that the Master killed a large group of Snow Ghosts this time, and there was even a three-meter-tall Great Snow Ghost among them!"

"Three meters, that's so tall!" Barbara gestured, comparing it to her own height of just over 1.5 meters, full of disbelief.

Olivia couldn't understand: "But if Snow Ghosts are transformed humans, how can they be so tall? I've never seen a person that tall."

Ram thought for a moment and said, "Maybe people from other territories grow to be three meters tall."

"Wow, I really want to meet a three-meter-tall person. I wish I could travel outside just once in my life," Barbara prayed.

Just then, the cook, Mrs. Moore, entered carrying a basket of vegetables, and loudly berated them, "Still dreaming of going out? You don't need Snow Ghosts; Ghost Beasts will eat you, and the wolves on the Snow Plains will gnaw you into a pile of bone fragments. Hurry up and wash the vegetables, you lazybones!"

"Sorry, I'm going right now." Barbara took the vegetable basket and scurried to the sink.

Mrs. Moore glared at Ram with an unfriendly attitude: "Oh, the Master's probationary personal manservant. If you're so free, you should be figuring out how to serve the Master, not fooling around in the kitchen with the little maids. William is eyeing you!"

"William is no match for me; he's clumsy," Ram retorted, but he didn't dare linger in the kitchen any longer.

"Such troublesome people," Mrs. Moore muttered.

Olivia didn't leave. She wasn't a kitchen maid and wasn't under Mrs. Moore's jurisdiction, so she naturally wasn't afraid of her. Instead, she asked with great interest, "Mrs. Moore, do you know about Snow Ghosts? The ones the Master killed?"

"What elderly person doesn't know about Snow Ghosts? I've seen them more than once."

"Ah, you've seen those white monsters?"

"White? Who told you Snow Ghosts were white? Those resurrected Snow Ghosts are all bluish-green."

Olivia rolled her eyes: "Damn it, I knew Ram was talking nonsense."

"Never trust a man's words, dear."

"I heard that Snow Ghosts are human souls trapped in their corpses. Once a Snow Ghost is killed, the soul dissipates like smoke."

"I don't know, they're all damned creatures anyway," Mrs. Moore said, no longer curious about Snow Ghosts. "But I do know that when Snow Ghosts are killed, they leave behind Hail Beads, which can grant immortality."

"Immortality, heavens, will the Master become immortal?"

"Of course not!"

"But the Master killed Snow Ghosts, so he must have Hail Beads too."

"Silly girl, Hail Beads are Hail Beads. To achieve immortality, you need an alchemist to refine countless Hail Beads into an immortal magic potion," Mrs. Moore added, admitting that she too was just repeating hearsay.

But this was enough to make Olivia gasp in astonishment.

Afterward, Mrs. Moore added, "You just need to understand that in many places, Hail Beads can be used as currency, dear."

The servants in the kitchen were discussing Snow Ghosts and Hail Beads.

In the study on the second floor of the manor's separate courtyard, Russell and the others, having finished their lunch and now quite tipsy, were enjoying afternoon tea.

Pinching a top-grade Hail Bead left behind by a Great Snow Ghost between his thumb and forefinger, Russell, with a slight drunken slur, mused, "It's hard to imagine that such a small bead could freeze all the power of a Knight."

"Yeah, it's quite marvelous, isn't it?" Charles chuckled drunkenly. "Suppose Eric died on the Snow Plains. In the end, all his Battle Qi would condense into a small ice bead like this."

Eric rolled his eyes: "If I'm going to die, I'll cut off my head!"

Knight Captain Chris said, "Cutting off your head won't help. The Snow Demon's power will make your corpse move and reattach its head. Only by crushing the head completely can the Snow Demon's influence be erased."

He paused and added, "But you have to be careful not to let your corpse touch another head. Otherwise, a dog-headed Snow Ghost, or a pig-headed Snow Ghost, or a cow-headed Snow Ghost might be born on the Snow Plains."

"Hahahaha," Charles burst into laughter.

Russell also laughed a few times, the Snow Demon's power was truly extraordinary.

Only Eric didn't laugh and looked exceptionally serious. He secretly vowed that if he truly died on the Snow Plains, he would instruct others beforehand to reduce his corpse to a pulp, leaving no room for the Snow Demon's schemes.

Especially no head-swapping.

If head-swapping was unavoidable, then at least not with a pig's or cow's head. A dog's head, however, might be grudgingly acceptable.

After their laughter subsided, they chatted casually while drinking tea.

Russell held the top-grade Hail Bead above his head, gazing intently at its interior through the light filtering in from the window. He could see fine, smoke-like threads sealed within.

These threads were likely the lifetime of cultivation of a Knight.

Snow Ghosts were humans, and they had to be humans who had cultivated Battle Qi in life. After death, they were eroded and influenced by the Snow Demon's power.

The Battle Qi within the body transforms into another kind of power, allowing corpses to revive as Snow Ghosts. This power is called Hail.

After killing a Snow Ghost, Hail condenses into Hail Beads.

According to market prices, an ordinary Hail Bead can be used as a gold coin, while top-grade Hail Beads can fetch over ten or twenty gold coins.

In other words, killing Snow Ghosts drops gold coins.

"Speaking of which, is it true that Hail Beads can refine the power of Snow Demons through alchemy, and then grant people longevity?" Russell asked, putting down the top-grade Hail Bead in his hand.

Charles shrugged, letting out a burp from the alcohol. "I don't know."

Knight Captain Chris had heard some rumors. "I don't think it's very likely. Although Snow Ghosts are a transformation of Snow Demon power, there's an essential gap between them and the power of Snow Demons. Quantity can never make up for this difference."

"But Hail Beads are very valuable. Someone is secretly buying them, aren't they?"

"Perhaps you can ask Baron Lord."

"Alright." Russell stopped dwelling on the Hail Bead in his hand and decided to treat it as a gold coin for now. His gentle smile vanished, and he said in a deep voice, "This Snow Ghost invasion has been dealt with, but what about the Lone Wolf Lisbon who lured them here?"

Old Bai wishes everyone a Happy Lunar New Year's Eve!