Wandering Swordsman |

Shen Mo took a deep breath, the salty sea breeze filling his lungs, carrying the smell of rust and rotting wood, yet strangely it made his mind even clearer.

He turned around, trying to keep his tone gentle: "Albert, the eight hundred miles of sea route are fraught with danger. You and Faceless can stay here and wait for our return. There's no need for you to risk your life with us."

Before he finished speaking, Albert had already strode forward, his boots shattering the thin ice on the shore with a crisp cracking sound. "Mr. Shen! Mr. Hua!" His voice trembled slightly, but each word was firm and resolute. "How can a disciple back down at the first sign of danger? Since you two have both gone, I certainly can't fall behind!"

His eyes gleamed with a stubborn light, a testament to the passion of a young man for the path of martial arts and the loyalty forged by the bond between master and disciple.

Shen Mo felt a surge of warmth in his heart and almost nodded in agreement, but he forcefully suppressed the impulse.

At this moment, Faceless slowly approached. She whispered, "I don't know where to go either... so I might as well continue traveling with you."

The voice was hoarse, like sandpaper scraping against dry wood, yet it carried a strange sense of reassurance.

Shen Mo looked at him and saw that Wumian slightly raised his head. His eyes under the mask were as deep as an ancient well, unable to reflect any emotions, but filled with a silent promise.

Shen Mo remained silent for a moment, then finally nodded.

Then Hua Tianyou and Shen Mo walked towards the hunched-over, wrinkled old fisherman and rented a fishing boat from him.

The fishing boat wasn't large, but it wasn't small either, enough to accommodate four people and a small amount of supplies. Its only drawback was that it was a bit dilapidated—the planks were mottled, the paint was peeling, and a few faded red cloth strips were wrapped around the mast, swaying weakly in the wind, as if telling the story of the storms and loneliness it had experienced.

"Can this ship hold out until the frozen continent?" Hua Tianyou asked in a low voice, his fingers tracing a deep crack.

The old fisherman grinned, revealing his few remaining yellow teeth: "How long you can hold out doesn't depend on the boat, it depends on the people." He gave Shen Mo a meaningful look, "If you respect the sea, even the sea god will make way for you."

Shen Mo didn't say much, only thanked him. He stepped onto the deck first, the wooden planks groaning under the weight.

Hua Tianyou followed closely behind and carefully inspected the sail ropes.

Albert carried over several jars of fresh water and dry rations quickly, but his eyes never left Shen Mo's back.

Faceless was the last to board the ship, standing quietly at the stern like a silent shadow, guarding the rear of the entire vessel.

As the boat left the shore, seagulls took flight, circling overhead and emitting mournful cries.

Waves lapped against the hull of the boat, splashing up cold water droplets that soaked everyone's clothes.

Shen Mo stood at the bow of the ship, gazing ahead—the thick fog gradually dissipated, and the horizon stretched across the sky like a silver blade.

The wind rises, the sails billow. The fishing boat slowly sails into the vast sea, with the western coast behind it and a desolate, frozen continent ahead.

......

Three days of rough seas, the salty sea breeze cutting like a knife, the biting cold seeping into my bones.

At dawn on the fourth day, the eastern sky turned a pale white, and a vast expanse of silvery white gradually came into view where the sea and sky met.

Shen Mo stood at the bow of the boat, his black robe fluttering in the wind.

He gazed into the distance and saw a colossal object stretching across the sea—that was the Frozen Continent.

The vast ice plains stretched for thousands of miles, like a giant crystal left behind by the gods, both translucent and cold.

Majestic glaciers rise abruptly from the ground, towering into the clouds, their ice peaks like swords pointing straight to the sky.

Sunlight shines down, reflecting thousands of silver rays on the ice surface, dazzling yet chillingly cold.

In the distance, the rumbling sound of icebergs breaking apart could be faintly heard, like the sigh of a giant beast, shaking the hearts of everyone present.

"My God..." Albert stood at the edge of the deck, his eyes wide, his voice unconsciously lowering, "Seeing is believing...this is simply a miracle!"

Hua Tianyou wrapped his fur coat tighter around himself, his face pale, yet he couldn't hide his shock: "No wonder this place is called the Frozen Continent. Mortals who set foot here are nothing more than ants facing the might of Heaven."

The faceless figure stood silently at the stern, his black cloak billowing in the wind. His eyes, hidden beneath the mask, gazed through the gaps at the silvery-white world, as if recalling some distant memory.

Just then, Albert suddenly pointed to the coastline to his left and cried out urgently, "Mr. Shen! Mr. Hua! Look over there!"

Following his pointing finger, everyone looked and saw a large black ship quietly moored in a harbor where the ice had cracked at the edge of the ice field. The ship was enormous, with towering masts, and even from a distance of a hundred feet, its exquisite construction was evident, making it far superior to an ordinary fishing boat.

"That's..." Hua Tianyou narrowed his eyes, "...a warship?"

Albert deduced with absolute certainty, "Crossing eight hundred miles across the sea to this frozen continent is fraught with danger; ordinary people wouldn't dare set foot here. Who but the Invincible Duke would risk coming here? Therefore, that must be the Invincible Duke's ship!"

Shen Mo stared intently, and saw that the prow of the large ship was carved with a roaring Qilin. The hull was as black as ink, and even against the backdrop of ice and snow, it appeared majestic and solemn. The sails were furled, and there seemed to be several figures moving about on the deck.

Shen Mo nodded, his eyes sharpening. "We'll know once we reach the shore."

The fishing boat slowly approached the icy shore, its hull scraping against the ice with a screeching sound.

As soon as the four stepped onto the solid ice, they heard a series of hurried footsteps in the distance.

Five knights clad in silver-white armor emerged from behind the ice cliff. The leader was burly with a resolute face, and the invincible lord's family crest was engraved on the sword at his waist.

"Halt!" The leading general's voice boomed like the clash of metal, "This place is reserved for important business of the Invincible General; unauthorized personnel are not permitted to enter!"

Hua Tianyou instinctively gripped the hilt of his sword, while Shen Mo calmly took half a step forward, about to speak, when Albert stepped forward. He took out a diamond pendant, with seven stars orbiting in the center, their light shimmering.

"I, Albert, have come to challenge the Invincible Lord!" His voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear. "Where is he?"

The five knights' expressions immediately changed, their gazes focusing on the seven-star diamond plaque. The lead knight's eyes flickered, his right hand unconsciously resting on his sword hilt, then slowly releasing it. He was none other than Allen, the right-hand man of Knight Commander Thorne.

Allen bowed respectfully on the surface, but inwardly he chuckled: The lowest of the Seven Stars dares to challenge the highest? Truly ignorant of his own limitations. However... he glanced at the three silent figures behind Albert, especially the masked woman, who looked exactly like someone from the Vatican, and a warning bell rang in his mind.

After thinking for a moment, Allen realized that he couldn't stop the Seven Stars, so he might as well let them run into a wall.

"I am Allen, ordered to guard this place." Allen's voice was steady, but he couldn't hide the fleeting contempt in his eyes. "If you insist on going..." He raised his hand and pointed to the depths of the icy plains, "follow this icy valley for five hundred miles, and you will see the only unfrozen place on the frozen continent—the Frozen Volcano."

The four looked in the direction he pointed, and as far as the eye could see, a cone-shaped mountain peak suddenly pierced the sky on a white horizon.

A wisp of white smoke rose from the mountaintop, like a burning black mole in the pure white world, a stark contrast to the surrounding snow and ice. The mountain was covered with snow that had never melted for millennia, yet at its waist, dark brown rocks were exposed, like the wounds of a giant, flowing with the heat of the earth's core.

"Thank you for showing me the way." Albert put away the token, turned and left without hesitation.