Above the mage!

Chapter 289 The Right Path (Part )
"Also practicing the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra?" There was a flash of surprise in Sunaifa's eyes.

Obviously, Gaode's proposal was somewhat beyond her expectations.

"Yes," God nodded, but did not elaborate on the specific reason. Instead, he changed the subject and asked Sunaifa, "What Ryan said that day, that the power of the Iceborn bloodline has decayed to the point where the upper limit is only four rings. Is that true?"

Sunaifa was silent for a moment before he slowly said, "Yes."

"I am a pure-blooded Iceborn. In theory, the power of the Iceborn blood in my body should be the strongest among all the Iceborn."

"So, I was able to advance from the first ring to the fourth ring in just two years. However, after reaching the late fourth ring, my strength stagnated. No matter how hard I practiced, it was useless. I had reached the limit of the blood power in my body."

"The fourth ring should be the upper limit of the power of the Iceborn bloodline that has awakened on its own now."

There was a barely perceptible heaviness in Sunaifa's voice.

Gao De thought for a moment, then asked, "Is there any way to improve the Iceborn bloodline?"

"The only known method at present is to swallow the ice marrow and then use the ability of "ice condensation" in the "Secret of Zhenbing" to enhance the power of one's own ice bloodline." Sunaifa gave an answer that Gaode already knew.

"Is there no other solution?"

"Not yet."

Gao De continued, "If I remember correctly, you said that in order to upgrade the Iceborn bloodline, at least 400 drops of ice marrow of a higher level are needed. For example, if you want to upgrade a three-ring Iceborn mage to a fourth-ring, you need 400 drops of fourth-level ice marrow."

"So if you want to upgrade your Iceborn bloodline to the fifth ring, you need 400 drops of fifth-level ice marrow?"

"That's not how it's calculated," Sunaifa corrected him, "What I meant by the upgrade from the third ring to the fourth ring was the upgrade from the early third ring to the fourth ring, which is a complete level."

"I'm already in the late fourth ring, so I should only need 200 drops of fifth-level ice marrow to raise the power of my Iceborn bloodline to another level."

"200 drops of fifth-level ice marrow. The number is not important. What is important is," Gao De pointed out the most critical core issue: "Fifth-level ice marrow can only be condensed by fifth-ring mages, and the current level cap of ice-born mages is only fourth-ring, so the highest they can condense is fourth-level ice marrow."

This seems to be an unsolvable vicious circle: there is no five-ring magician, so the fifth-level ice marrow cannot be condensed; the fifth-level ice marrow cannot be condensed, so a five-ring magician cannot be produced.

This is the dilemma that the Iceborn Mage is currently facing.

"That day Ryan said that the Ice Bloodline is a dead end. If you want to go further, you must give up the Ice Bloodline and find another way. If you want to take a step forward, it means that you must give up something. This is the right path." Gao De repeated what Ryan said that day.

"It seems that what he said makes sense. The Iceborn bloodline is indeed a dead end."

Sunaifa stared at Gaode with his dark blue eyes, his eyes flickering, and it was unknown what he was thinking.

"However, I can only agree with half of what he said," Goder paused and continued, "If you want to go further, you do need to find another way, but this does not mean that you need to give up the Iceborn bloodline."

He looked at Sunaifa and smiled, "Now do you understand why I asked you to practice Qingmu Changsheng Sutra?"

Sunaifa was stunned for a moment, then his pupils suddenly dilated.

Seeing Sunaifa's reaction, Gao De knew that she had understood. "Yes, if you learn one more practice, you can condense the fifth-level ice marrow with the fifth-ring mage level after breaking through to the fifth ring in the other practice, which in turn drives the improvement of your ice bloodline."

This is called the rich leading the poor.

"In my opinion, you Icemen are the most suitable mages in the world to practice both spiritual cultivation and magic," God continued.

"The biggest disadvantage of practicing multiple methods is that the mage's mental strength is limited, so the time for practice is limited every day. In order to practice multiple methods at the same time, the progress of practicing each method will be slower than that of a mage who only practices one method."

"But it's different for Ice Mages. As long as your Ice Bloodline is strong enough, your mage level can be quickly improved. You don't need to waste too much time on the Secret of Ice."

"This means that if you only practice the Secret of the Ice and another cultivation method, there will actually not be much difference between you and a mage who only practices one cultivation method."

"Indeed." Sunaifa's eyes brightened a little.

"As for why it is the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra," Gao De continued, "the reason is also very simple. First, the characteristics of this practice method are extremely suitable for you."

The Qingmu Changsheng Sutra has three magical effects: prolonging life, accelerating practice, and improving mental strength.
"First of all, the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra can increase the speed of cultivation by absorbing the essence of plants and trees."

"For you, the strength of the second practice is not that important. The strength of the Secret of the Ice is more than enough. The greater significance of the second practice is to improve your mage level, which in turn drives the improvement of the Secret of the Ice."

"From this perspective, the characteristic of improving your cultivation speed is most suitable for you, and the same goes for prolonging your life. After all, it takes a long time to condense ice marrow."

"Secondly, in my opinion, this path is not just suitable for you, but for all Iceborn mages."

"And the more people practice the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra, the more vigorous the essence of plants and trees will be, and the more obvious the effect of increasing the speed of practice will be."

"From this perspective, the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra is the most suitable practice method for Iceborn mages."

"Although it is difficult for plants to grow in the North, once Yugatshila is planted and grows, it can completely solve this problem."

"Of course, this will take some time, so I am not planning to fully promote the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra in the tribe right now. I am only recommending it to you."

"After all, there is already an extremely powerful magic plant in Phoenix that is suitable for you. It can be used as a sacred object for you to practice the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra."

"It's the guardian tree." Sunaifa is not stupid. On the contrary, he is very smart. In fact, he had already reacted.

"Yes, it is the newly advanced Ice Jade Wutong. A sixth-level magic plant as a sacred object. The plant essence that the Ice Jade Wutong can provide alone is enough for you to quickly cultivate to at least the fifth ring, right?"

"And when the plant essence provided by the Ice Jade Wutong is no longer enough to bring much benefit to your cultivation speed, the forest I envisioned with Yugatshila as the center may have been built." Gao De even considered things in the longer term.
"My king, I am practicing the Qingmu Longevity Sutra." There was no need for Gao De to say anything more, Sunaifa responded without hesitation.

Being stuck on the Fourth Ring Road for so long and seeing no hope at all ahead, how could Sunaifa not be anxious?
Now that Gaode has paved such a bright road in front of her, she is naturally happy to accept it.

"However, I'm not sure whether Bingyu Wutong is willing to form a bond with you." Gao De raised his concerns.

"Yes." Sunaifa was very sure, with a faint smile on his face.

"The Ice Jade Wutong mother tree is connected to the bloodline of Boreas himself, which is why it became the patron saint tree of our clan. I am a pure-blooded Ice Descendant with the blood of Boreas flowing in my body. I have a natural affinity and connection with the Ice Jade Wutong sapling. With this connection, it will not reject me."

"That's good." The last bit of worry disappeared, Gao Dechang breathed a sigh of relief, and handed the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra to Sunaifah.

"After you memorize the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra practice method, you can try to form a bond with Bingyu Wutong."

Sunaifa took the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra and began to memorize it immediately.

With her powerful mental strength as a fourth-ring wizard, it doesn't take her too much time to memorize the practice method.

Afterwards, Sunaifa sat cross-legged again and, according to the practice method, ran through the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra to get started.

"My king, I can now go and make a pact with the guardian tree." She stood up with a hint of joy on her face.

"Let's go together. I want to see what's going on." Although Gao De had been practicing the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra for several months, he had not yet selected a site for planting trees, so he was still completely unaware of the process of forming a contract.

Phoenix, the core spiritual place, where the Ice Jade Wutong tree is located.

After the advancement, the five-meter-tall Ice Jade Wutong tree exuded the light of ice crystals, like a glass sculpture, dazzling and emitting a refreshing chill. "Then I'll start." Sunaifa slowly walked under the Ice Jade Wutong tree, looked back at Gao De and said.

After Gaode nodded slightly, Sunaifa stretched out his right hand and gently pressed it on the trunk of the Bingyu Wutong tree, then closed his eyes and devoted himself wholeheartedly to communicating with the Bingyu Wutong tree.

A mysterious and profound wave silently rippled out from the center of her palm and spread toward the trunk of the Ice Jade Wutong tree.

That is the spiritual communication method included in the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra, used for forming contracts and communicating.

In the silence, Sunaifa had already started some kind of mysterious communication with Bingyu Wutong.

After a moment, Sunaifa's eyes opened again.

"The Ice Jade Wutong has responded to my request for a bond. It is willing to become my sacred object and share its lifespan with me."

"Let's get started," said Gao De.

Sunaifa no longer hesitated and sat cross-legged under the ice jade phoenix tree.

She practiced the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra while probing her spiritual power towards the Bingyu Wutong, slowly injecting it into the deepest part of the Bingyu Wutong and beginning to merge with its weak spirituality, completing the process of forming a contract.

Gaode opened the Mandela Magic Eye with great interest, activated [Insight], and observed.

He saw streams of pure energy from the Ice Jade Wutong tree continuously flowing into Sunaifah's body.

This should be the essence of plants and trees.

There was also a weak energy in Sunaifa's body that came from the same source as the energy transmitted from Bingyu Wutong. It was the magic power that she had just cultivated through the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra.

Since he has just started, his magic power is still very weak, just that of a first-class apprentice.

But now, with the help of the essence of plants and trees transmitted from the Ice Jade Wutong, this weak magic power immediately began to grow stronger.

The essence of the sixth-level magic plants is definitely a great tonic for those who have just started to learn the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra.

This process lasted for about half an hour before Sunaifa opened his eyes again and stood up.

"The guardian tree has become my sacred tree. Thank you, my king, for your gift!"

With Sunaifa's fourth-ring mage level, he completed the contract-making process very easily.

"With the help of the Holy Tree, my progress in practicing the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra will not be much worse than the Zhenbing Secret Sutra."

After establishing this kind of bond with Bingyu Wutong, she immediately felt the power and supreme potential of the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra. While she was delighted, she became more convinced of Gaode.

"How long will it take you to practice the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra to the first level?" Gao De couldn't help but ask.

Sunaifa thought about it and gave an answer that made Gao De want to vomit blood, "It will only take about ten days."

Although the Bingyu Wutong is a sixth-rank magic plant, and although Sunaifa himself is a fourth-ring magician with a strong mental force, and it is easier for him to practice from high to low, but no matter how many "althoughs" there are, ten days is still too exaggerated.

You have to know that it took him two full years to be promoted from a first-class apprentice to a first-level wizard.

"Great." In the end, Gao De could only give a dry compliment, but he was happy in his heart. After all, he was also practicing the Qingmu Changsheng Sutra.

This further proves that his choice was not wrong.

"This is the right path." Sunaifa affirmed.

The next day.

The day after Gode and Sunaifah returned to Phoenix from the Icefield Temple, they left Phoenix again.

Following behind was a hunter team of a hundred people, but Gaode and Sunaifa went ahead and did not move with the main group.

The purpose of their trip was obvious.

Investigate the tree planting site recommended by Sunaifa yesterday.

"That bay, we call it Valar Bay, is actually less than 400 miles away from Phoenix in a straight line, but there is Valar Mountain in the middle, so it takes a little more time to get there."

"At our current speed, we should be able to arrive in about five or six days."

The two walked side by side.

Sunaifah rode a horse-like creature that looked both real and unreal.

This is the product of the third-level spell [Phantom Horse].

Gao De was still riding on Elder Grant's snow wolf pet.

"Four hundred miles, or two hundred kilometers, if there is a sufficiently flat and wide road, riding a magical pet can make it from Phoenix to Valar Bay within a day." Gode murmured.

"That's true, but if we want to build roads in the north," Sunaifa hesitated.

Building a road is a huge project, especially when it is done on the permafrost tundra that is covered with snow all year round.

The most basic thing is to have a sufficient population base to undertake this major project.

Even though the Zhenbing Tribe is the largest tribe in the North, its population is only 500,000, which obviously does not meet the condition of "sufficient population base".

In order to have a sufficient population base, there must be enough food and survival supplies.

Under the natural conditions in the north, these seem to be castles in the air and cannot stand at all.

Gao De rubbed his brows and did not mention his ideas about food for the time being.

Things must be done one by one, and the tree planting should be implemented first.

Three days later.

After climbing the Dandong Snow Mountain, Gaode felt that the Walar Mountain, which had no reputation in the outside world, was indeed too easy to climb.

Not to mention, this time we had Snow Wolf as our guide, as well as Sunaifa from the Fourth Ring Road.

Therefore, he and Sunaifa crossed Mount Valar smoothly without any trouble.

Walar Bay comes into view.

(End of this chapter)