Chapter Summaries

After Flora helped Elder Grant save the Goldensheen Wheat, he explained why Catherine had been accused of murdering seven hunters and showed Loich the scene where their bodies were found. Loich found signs that the hunters had been killed elsewhere, while Gao De proposed investigating the unprecedented Ice Threadworm infestation as a new lead connected to Catherine’s case.

• Flora’s Neem Grass water stopped the Goldensheen Wheat seedlings from withering, and Elder Grant thanked her and Gao De for helping.
• Elder Grant told Loich that seven hunters had vanished with a Frostscale Basilisk Hatchling, then turned up dead near Catherine, apparently killed by the Snowfield Guardian’s Ice Seal Blade.
• Loich refused to believe Catherine would reveal her identity and asked Elder Grant to take him to the house where the hunters’ bodies had been found.
• At the house, Loich concluded that the hunters had died elsewhere and noticed that the scene lacked unfamiliar scents, suggesting the murderer knew how to counter his tracking ability.
• Gao De proposed investigating the Ice Threadworm infestation, which had appeared for the first time during Catherine’s case, as a new lead connected to the murders.

Gao De and Loich investigated the source of the Ice Threadworm eggs and questioned Thomas under Loich’s Truth Domain, uncovering his role in bringing a Toad Magic Pet into the volcanic fields. When Gao De asked whether Thomas knew anything about Catherine’s arrest, Thomas began to reveal a connection before suddenly collapsing from apparent poisoning.

• Flora confirmed that the pool had no Ice Threadworm eggs, though the eggs in the Goldensheen Wheat fields had come from irrigation water drawn there.
• Elder Grant identified Ethan, Evan, Simon, and Thomas as people who could access the pool or inspect the fields, and Thomas’s recent inspection made him a suspect.
• Loich cast Truth Domain, and Thomas denied causing the pest infestation; Gao De then asked whether Thomas had done anything outside his duties five days earlier.
• Thomas admitted that someone had threatened his family and ordered him to bring a Toad Magic Pet into the volcanic fields, but he claimed not to know what it had done.
• Gao De asked whether Thomas knew if Catherine’s arrest was connected to another recent guest at Elder Grant’s estate, and Thomas began to answer before black blood and foam spilled from his mouth and he collapsed.

After Thomas killed himself, Loich tracked the scent of his Toad Magic Pet to a hideout and, with Elder Grant’s forces, captured the conspirators behind the Goldensheen Wheat plot. Loich returned to Gao De, removed the five Law-Breaking Ice Needles from his body, and warned him to stay close while the investigation continued.

• Thomas died after biting down on poison hidden in his teeth, leaving Loich to seek another lead.
• Loich used Hound Tracking to follow the Toad Magic Pet’s distinctive scent and found its trail within Phoenix.
• Elder Grant promised the Truefrost Tribe would pursue the plot because the Goldensheen Wheat was under threat.
• Elder Grant and Loich led Frostborn Mages in a surprise assault that captured the conspirators at their hideout.
• Loich returned to Gao De, thanked him for his help, removed the five Law-Breaking Ice Needles, and told him to stay in Phoenix and remain by his side.

Elder Grant returned Catherine to Gao De and Loich, thanked Gao De and Flora for helping expose the plot, and warned that the conspiracy ran deeper than expected. Loich explained the Truefrost Tribe’s old power struggle between Warmother Sunaifa and Grand Elder Donald, leaving Gao De to suspect Donald was involved in the current scheme.

• Elder Grant brought Catherine back, thanked Gao De for his help, and gave him a bottle of Ice Marrow before returning to investigate the captured conspirators.
• Catherine thanked Gao De and Flora, and Loich explained how they had uncovered the plot and helped free her.
• Loich warned Catherine that the Goldensheen Wheat infestation had been intended to remove Elder Grant from his position and might implicate members of the Truefrost Tribe.
• Loich recounted how Donald had tried to take power from the young Sunaifa after her mother Glen Boreas died, until Sunaifa returned with Blizzard and claimed the Warmother position.
• Loich revealed that Elder Grant belonged to Sunaifa’s conservative faction, and Gao De concluded that Donald might be involved in the current plot.

Gao De learned that Catherine suspected one of the Snowfield Guardian’s three rulers of cultivating forbidden necromancy, while Sunaifa’s support might help pursue the investigation. He used Elder Grant’s Ice Marrow to advance his Mandala Eye to the second order and discovered its new Insight ability, then turned it on Flora.

• Loich explained that Donald wanted to weaken Sunaifa by bringing down Elder Grant, and Catherine said their ties to Grant made Sunaifa a potential ally.
• Catherine identified Ryan the Arbiter, Chief Quentin, and Archbishop Rune as the Snowfield Guardian’s three rulers and suspected one of them was connected to forbidden necromancy.
• Catherine said Sunaifa could help follow the leads from the captured suspects, and Gao De returned to his room to use Elder Grant’s Ice Marrow.
• Gao De advanced his Mandala Eye to the second order, greatly improving its vision and awakening Insight, which analyzed physical and supernatural attributes.
• Gao De tested Insight on himself, learned that another golden line would form at 36/72, and then activated the ability while looking at Flora.

Gao De used the Mandala Eye to detect Flora’s extraordinary power, while the Truefrost Tribe discovered that its guardian Icejade Wutong Tree was cracking and losing Ice Elemental power. At the emergency meeting, Donald pressured Grant to investigate, and Grant realized he knew someone who could help.

• Gao De used the Mandala Eye to examine Flora and detected energy flowing through her body before deactivating it.
• Sunaifa learned that new cracks had appeared on the Icejade Wutong Tree and that its Ice Elemental power was weakening.
• Sunaifa called an emergency meeting of the Truefrost Tribe elders to find the cause of the tree’s deterioration.
• Donald confronted Grant about his investigation and later suggested that Grant examine the Icejade Wutong Tree.
• Grant felt trapped by Donald’s suggestion, then remembered that he knew a real cultivation expert.

Grant recruited Flora to inspect Phoenix’s Icejade Wutong, whose weakening power and cracked trunk worried the tribe. Flora found no illness: the tree was about to advance but lacked enough Ice Elemental power.

• Grant told Sunaifa he knew an expert who could help, then went to Gao De and asked Flora to inspect the Icejade Wutong in exchange for Ice Marrow.
• Flora agreed, and Grant led her and Gao De into Phoenix’s central Fifth-Order spiritual land, where he explained the history of the Icejade Wutong mother tree and its offspring.
• Sunaifa welcomed Flora and asked her to identify the cause of the cracks and weakening Ice Elemental power.
• After examining the tree, Flora said it had no problem and explained that it was about to advance but lacked enough Ice Elemental power.

Flora discovered that the Icejade Wutong was advancing and directed the Truefrost Tribe elders as they replenished its Ice Elemental power. After agreeing to oversee the process for half a month in exchange for more money, Flora and Gao De left Donald contemplating how to seize Flora, whom he believed Gao De was hiding as a beast pet.

• Flora explained that the Icejade Wutong needed measured amounts of Ice Elemental power, and Sunaifa agreed to have the elders supply it under Flora’s supervision.
• Sunaifa asked Flora to oversee the tree’s advancement for half a month, and Flora agreed after demanding more money.
• Elder Grant brought the elders to replenish the Icejade Wutong’s power, and Flora told them when to stop after the tree’s cracks began to heal.
• Gao De returned to his residence with Elder Grant, who said he needed to resume interrogating prisoners, while Loich praised Flora.
• Donald heard that Flora had discovered the tree’s problem and concluded she was a beast pet that Gao De was concealing; he ordered his supporters to act.

Donald plotted to claim the Dragonblood Frost Lizard Hatchling and protect himself from Grant’s investigation, while blaming Sunaifa’s outsider ally for thwarting his schemes. He then arranged with his covert partners to target the outsider again, confident he could cover up the attack.

• Donald told an elder to make the Dragonblood Frost Lizard Hatchling’s transfer a fait accompli before confronting Sunaifa.
• Donald confronted his hoarse-voiced partner over the failed plot against Grant and learned that their side had arranged the Hunter Squad killings while Donald’s side received the corpses into Phoenix.
• Donald warned his partner that Grant’s investigation must not lead back to him, and the partner claimed they had prepared against exposure.
• Donald blamed the outsider for ruining schemes against Grant and Sunaifa and asked his partner to act against him again.
• Donald assured his partner that he could cover up the next operation because Phoenix was his territory, and the partner agreed to handle it.

Flora waited beneath the Icejade Wutong after Gao De left to meet Warmother with Catherine and Elder Grant. Donald, the Truefrost Tribe's Grand Elder, claimed he had bought Flora from her master, and Flora angrily called him a liar.

• Gao De escorted Flora to the Icejade Wutong with Catherine for protection, while Elder Grant said Warmother had summoned them to discuss the tree's advancement and his interrogation findings.
• Gao De left Flora at the spiritual ground and went with Catherine and Elder Grant to meet Warmother.
• After the day's supervision ended, Donald arrived and tried twice to touch Flora, who sensed his malice and evaded him.
• Donald told Flora he had offered Gao De a high price and that her master had agreed to sell her as his pet.
• Flora flew onto a branch of the Icejade Wutong and loudly accused Donald of talking nonsense.

Gao De and Catherine uncovered and stopped an assassin hiding in a stone wall, while evidence continued to point toward Ryan the Arbiter. At the Icejade Wutong Tree, Donald tried to seize Flora, but the tree shielded her from his spell.

• Grant told Gao De and Catherine that a missing Frost Troll and an earlier Frost Giant hunt had raised suspicions about Ryan the Arbiter.
• Gao De spotted a magical trace in a stone wall and warned Catherine, who shattered it with lightning and exposed an assassin hiding with Melt into Stone.
• The assassin died by crushing poison hidden in his teeth, and Catherine asked Grant to bring the corpse so she could use it.
• Gao De explained to Catherine that Detect Magic+ and his Mandala Eye had helped him discover the assassin.
• Donald tried to subdue Flora by force beneath the Icejade Wutong Tree, but the tree raised an Ice Wall that blocked his spell.

Gao De, Grant, and Catherine discussed evidence linking Donald to attacks and forbidden necromancy, while Sunaifa explained why she had hesitated to move against him. When they learned Donald was trying to seize Flora at the Icejade Wutong, they rushed there, where Flora protested from atop the glowing tree.

• Sunaifa served Gao De, Grant, and Catherine Icejade Wutong Water, and Gao De's Mental Strength rose from 100 to 132.
• Grant accused Donald of being behind the Goldensheen Wheat incident and the ambush, while Sunaifa and Catherine discussed evidence implicating Ryan the Arbiter in the Frost Troll's death.
• Gao De asked why Sunaifa had not removed Donald, and Grant explained that Donald's influence and strength made decisive action dangerous without conclusive evidence.
• A hunter guard reported that Donald was trying to forcibly seize Flora at the Icejade Wutong, prompting Sunaifa to rush ahead and the others to follow.
• Gao De, Grant, and Catherine reached the Icejade Wutong and heard Flora declare that she was a guest and that Sunaifa would not forgive Donald's actions.

Donald tried to seize Flora, then used the Icejade Wutong’s defense of her to stir suspicion against the outsiders and avoid severe punishment. Gao De left with Flora and decided to seek justice himself if the Truefrost Tribe would not provide it.

• Gao De arrived to find Sunaifa confronting Donald, who had tried to take Flora from the Icejade Wutong.
• Donald claimed he had acted to protect the tribe and argued that Flora had somehow turned the guardian tree against its own people.
• Sunaifa defended Flora and ordered Donald taken to Icecliff Prison, but elders demanded a lighter punishment and she deferred the decision to an elders’ council.
• Gao De took Flora home with Catherine and Grant, while Flora reassured him and Grant explained why Sunaifa could not act alone.
• At the grand plaza, Gao De looked toward the Truefrost Sword and vowed to find a way to take justice himself if it was not given to him.

After Donald’s actions left Gao De seeking justice, Gao De challenged the Sword in the Ice and pulled the Truefrost Sword from its crystal rock before the stunned crowd. He learned the weapon’s true name was Northwind and discovered it was a powerful Truefrost Armament.

• Gao De told Grant and Catherine that pulling out the Truefrost Sword would give him standing to discuss matters with the Truefrost Tribe.
• Gao De approached the platform and gripped the Truefrost Sword, enduring its extreme cold as Adaptive increased his cold resistance, pain tolerance, and recovery ability.
• Gao De steadily pulled the sword from the black crystal rock while the guards, Grant, Catherine, and the crowd watched in disbelief.
• Gao De yanked Northwind free, shattering the crystal rock, and learned the sword’s abilities and its dependence on Truefrost energy.
• Gao De looked toward the stunned crowd and felt a chill at Grant’s intensely heated stare.

After Gao De pulled Northwind from the ice, Sunaifa recognized him as the Truefrost Tribe's prophesied new king and had the tribe welcome him. Gao De tested his authority by ordering Grand Elder Donald brought before him, and Sunaifa immediately agreed, leaving Gao De to wonder whether his new power was real.

• Grant realized Gao De matched the prophecy and sent guards to report that Northwind had been pulled out.
• Sunaifa ordered the plaza cleared and the tribe gathered to welcome the new king.
• Sunaifa and nearly ten thousand Truefrost Tribe members knelt before Gao De and declared him their new king.
• Gao De questioned his sudden status, and Sunaifa explained that only the tribe's new king could wield Northwind and that his authority equaled hers.
• Gao De ordered Grant to bring Donald before him, and Sunaifa accepted the command without hesitation.

Sunaifa explained that ancient revelations had identified Gao De as the one destined to revive Truefrost and unite the Northern Territory, and the tribe accepted him as its new king. When Donald pleaded for forgiveness and a chance to serve, Gao De beheaded him, declaring that he would remove the tribe’s entrenched troubles by force.

• Sunaifa told Gao De that Warmother Oreithyia’s prophecy and her own revelations had pointed to him as Truefrost’s future king, with Flora as the spirit at his side.
• Gao De saw the Truefrost people’s fervent support and began to accept that they genuinely recognized him as their king.
• Grant brought Donald before Gao De, and Donald knelt, apologized, and asked to atone by serving the tribe.
• Gao De told Donald that he had to apologize to Lady Flora, then drew Northwind and beheaded him.
• Gao De told the stunned Truefrost people that he would clear away their entrenched troubles and called Donald’s execution unity.

After executing Donald, Gao De tested the Truefrost Tribe’s obedience and ordered it to march on Frostfield Temple in five days. Sunaifa accepted the order and explained that the prophecy showed Gao De possessed a force capable of changing the Icekin’s future.

• Gao De beheaded Donald, and Elder Claude lowered his head and returned to the crowd without challenging him.
• Sunaifa accepted Donald’s death, ordered his body collected, and told Gao De the Truefrost Tribe had roughly twenty thousand combatants.
• Gao De asked about the Snowfield Guardian’s strength, then ordered the Truefrost Tribe to march on Frostfield Temple in five days.
• Sunaifa asked the assembled elders for objections, and they unanimously agreed to the march before leaving to prepare.
• Gao De questioned Sunaifa’s unconditional trust, and she explained that the Icekin were declining and that the prophecy showed a powerful force around him.

After Sunaifa recognized Gao De as the person of prophecy, he accepted his role as the Truefrost Tribe’s new king and learned about the tribe’s population, food supply, and scarce Ice Marrow reserves. He secured Ice Marrow and spell formulas, then received a Fourth-Order residence in Phoenix as he began settling into his authority.

• Gao De decided that the prophecy’s chosen power, Wind Spirit Moon Shadow, made him its chosen person as well, and he felt ready to lead the Truefrost Tribe.
• Sunaifa gave Gao De Northwind as his sidearm and showed him that carrying weapons of Truefrost’s extreme cold harmed both of them.
• Sunaifa explained Phoenix’s population, the Truefrost Tribe’s fragile food supply, and the tribe’s limited Ice Marrow reserves.
• Gao De requested seventy-one drops of Second-Order Icemarrow and copies of the tribe’s spell formulas, and Sunaifa agreed to provide them.
• Sunaifa led Gao De to his new Fourth-Order residence and told him the tribe would prepare clothes befitting his status as king.

After taking the throne, Gao De explained his attack on the Frostfield Temple as both a defense of the Northern Territory and revenge for the Snowfield Guardian who had tried to kill him. As his allies moved against the Guardians’ agents and confined their sect members, Gao De refined the Ice Marrow and awakened the Third-Order Mandala Eye’s Piercing Illusion ability.

• Gao De told Sunaifa that the Truefrost Tribe would attack the Frostfield Temple to protect the Northern Territory and because a Snowfield Guardian had repeatedly tried to kill him, and Sunaifa pledged her support.
• Gao De reassured Flora after Donald’s execution and promised to teach her offensive magic so she could protect herself.
• Elder Claude captured a Snowfield Guardian agent who had worked with Donald and ordered him sent to the Warmother.
• Elder Grant placed Catherine and Loich under house arrest, and Catherine realized Gao De was the Truefrost Tribe’s new king.
• Gao De absorbed the Second-Order Ice Marrow, advanced his Mandala Eye to the third order, and gained Piercing Illusion, which let him see through falsehoods and illusion magic.

Gao De tested his upgraded Mandala Eye, reviewed the Truefrost Tribe’s spell formulas, and cultivated in Phoenix’s Fourth Order spiritual land, which greatly accelerated his progress. He then helped the Icejade Wutong Tree advance to Sixth Tier, learning that its fruit could grant a mage thirty drops of Liquid Mana but would ripen only once every thirty years.

• Gao De used Mandala Eye on Flora and tested its expanded vision, then studied the spell formulas Sunaifa had provided and set aside spells he could not yet cast for lack of materials.
• Gao De cultivated in the Fourth Order spiritual land and realized his increased Mental Strength and its mana concentration had raised his cultivation speed to nearly eleven times its normal rate.
• Gao De instructed the Truefrost Tribe’s elders to pour mana and Ice Elemental energy into the Icejade Wutong Tree so it could advance before the tribe departed.
• The Icejade Wutong Tree shed its old leaves, grew new foliage and three flower buds, then bloomed and successfully entered Sixth Tier with help from Sunaifa’s Truefrost Elemental energy.
• Sunaifa ordered the elders to gather the fallen Icejade Wutong Leaves and told Gao De that the tree’s fruit could grant thirty drops of Liquid Mana and ripened once every thirty years.