My health recovery is incredibly fast.

Xia Zuo was in a good mood. He quickly tidied up the quiet room and then went to the mage guild at the academy to exchange for some essential spells for his journey.

The first spellbook, "Stability Skin," is used to protect body temperature and, when paired with the shimmering embroidered cloak, forms a double layer of protection. In addition, "Stability Skin" can automatically cleanse the body of dirt, resist dust, and purify toxins and pollutants, among other things.

The second spellbook, [Heating Spell], requires fire elemental energy with the [Heating] attribute. Together with [Stable Skin] and a cloak, it forms a triple layer of protection, completely eliminating the possibility of hypothermia.

The [Stability Skin] spell consumes less energy than the [Heating Spell], and it is a protective spell that lasts indefinitely once activated.

The former costs about 10 times more than the latter, at 6000 citizen points.

Xia Zuo had plenty of money, so he bought it directly.

The third spellbook, [Ice Control].

This spell can be used to create temporary ice blocks or to change the appearance of existing ice blocks.

Use it to build a temporary ice cave in the snow, and you can have a safe sanctuary for meditation.

The fourth spellbook, 【The Snowfall Spell】.

Covering oneself with snowflakes creates a layer of camouflage. This effectively insulates against body heat, allowing one to blend into the icy landscape and gain a preemptive advantage.

The fifth spellbook, [Snowwalking].

An essential spell for hiking across the snowfields to prevent your legs from sinking into the snow.

The sixth spellbook, [Ice Barrier].

Barrier-type protective spells provide extremely high resistance to water and wind elements, and can also block a significant amount of physical damage.

Most importantly, after being optimized by the Tower Mage, this spell can be used in the Cloud Form.

Xia Zuo had coveted this spell for a long time.

Even though it required 15000 citizen points, he bought it without hesitation.

In total, Xia Zuo spent approximately 3.6 points to purchase all the spellbooks he needed.

He took the books home.

Anru is now in a state of full-day meditation.

She planned to return to the Western Continent with Xia Zuo.

However, without any special advantages, it will take her at least another 6 months to reach 50 points in her mental attribute.

Fortunately, Xia Zuo received news from Christine that his airship flight to the Western Continent would be accompanied by the Temple's expedition team.

That is, two to three years after the research team arrived in the Western Continent, Xia Zuo would be sent to the Western Continent.

Xia Zuo opened the bedroom door, glanced at Anruer lying on the bed meditating, and then returned to the study to begin studying magic books on his own.

...

Two weeks later, in the early morning.

Eternal Winter City in the northern part of the Silvermoon Federation.

After contacting Krestor using the Secret Message Ring, Xia Zuo used Windwalk to fly out of the city and into the vast, icy snowfield.

The sky and earth in this place are only one color:

Snow white.

A snow-white color with varying shades of light and dark.

Endless snowflakes danced in the air day and night, the travelers' clothes were torn to shreds by the fierce wind, and the howling cold wind slapped hard against the faces of every traveler.

This journey is fraught with difficulties and crises, testing every monk who travels to the Great Volcano to pay homage to the Pillars of Creation.

Xia Zuo activated [Blood Sacrifice Spellcasting].

At the cost of losing 35 health points per hour, I leisurely drifted across the snow.

He can move forward without hindrance as long as he stops every one to two hours to take a dose of the revival medicine.

Xia Zuo had prepared a plan in advance to recover the vitality.

Before officially setting off, he specifically sought out Rexor to request information on the distribution of monsters in the frozen snowfield.

Within the temple territory, there are two types of monsters.

The first type is a protective monster, which cannot be killed, hunted, or killed.

This monster has high breeding value and is an important material for bio-alchemy.

The second type is monsters that can be killed on sight.

They pose a huge threat to the natural environment and other organisms.

Slaying them is the duty of every temple mage. The monster materials collected from them are one of the temple's rewards for defeating them.

If there are bounties for such monsters in the temple, then there will be an extra reward for killing them.

Xia Zuo's target is this kind of monster.

In the frozen snowfield, monsters such as lava dragons, stone jaw monsters, and snow monsters have their own territories.

They are usually found in underground lava caves or sheltered mountain caves.

Based on his [Vitality Recovery] skill, Xia Zuo chose the Stonejaw Monster as his primary target.

His first stop was a frozen lake in the northern part of Everwinter City.

At the edge of the frozen lake, Xia Zuo met the person who was the main character of this trip.

The ugly-looking, stout-limbed stone-jawed monster, with its thick black fur exposed on its chest, walked through the snow against the cold wind.

Thick, wide feet distributed the weight of the Stonejaw Monsters, allowing them to run on the snow with their hairy, curved legs without sinking into the accumulated snow.

At the entrance of the cave beside the frozen lake, there are sheds built with long wooden stakes and wooden bases, and rows of dried meat sway in the wind.

The Stonejaw Monsters possess intelligence, and their tribe operates a simple yet efficient social system.

They cooperated in a well-organized manner, with each group having its own division of labor.

The Stonejaw Monster leader, who lives deep in the cave, manages thousands of Stonejaw Monsters in an orderly manner.

Gathering wood, hunting, drying meat, and reproducing, adult Stonejaw Monsters give birth to litters of baby Stonejaw Monsters.

With their exceptional fertility and the remarkable adaptability of their offspring, a small group of 50 adult Stonejaw Monsters can conquer the entire frozen lake in just 5 years.

In the past, every few years, Everwinter City would send out teams to exterminate the Stonejaw Monsters.

This year, the cleanup operation has not yet officially begun.

When Xia Zuo arrived at this place, it was the time when the Stonejaw Monsters were at their most powerful. Countless hairy monsters roamed around the frozen lake, using stone tools to break the ice and fish for freshwater fish.

Xia Zuo stopped by a hillside and carefully observed the leisurely stone-jawed monsters.

Several stone-jawed monsters, wearing bone ornaments and holding stone staffs, were strolling on the busy frozen lake.

These stone-jawed monsters have a Spirit stat of 10 or higher.

They can see elemental light, and are the only beings that Xia Zuo needs to pay special attention to.

---Aside---

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Chapter 95 Latency Agent

"Let me see how many Stonejaw Monsters are well-developed and have reached the requirement of 10 points of [Vitality]."

Xia Zuo used the [Snow Covering Technique] to disguise himself and lay prone in the snow, gazing at the frozen lake.

He examined each of the furry monsters on the lake like a caretaker of stone-jawed monsters.

The detection spell swept across the stone-jawed monster with its gaze, sending back a series of information.

[Vitality] 5

[Vitality] 8

[Vitality] 9

[Vitality] 7

[Vitality] 12

...

Basically, out of every 50 Stonejaw Monsters, there will be 1 qualified one with a [Vitality] of 10.

Xia Zuo observed for half an hour and summarized a pattern.

Those stone-jawed monsters with thick fur, large limbs, and heavy muscles are actually more for show than for use.

The more hair a person has, the larger their body size, and the stronger their body hair and fat are at resisting wind and snow, but the lower their vitality.

Conversely, if the Stonejaw Monster is skin and bones and has little body hair, yet still looks energetic, then its "vitality" will definitely exceed 10 points.

This is somewhat contrary to common sense, but it is a racial characteristic supported by an inherent logic.

Clearly, for monsters like the Stonejaw Monster, the evolutionary path is towards being lean and hairless, eventually becoming similar to humans...

Ok…

Except for their chins...

Their chins are probably the only thing that won't change; all the Stonejaw Monsters have the same fat chins, hanging down in their mouths like heavy sandbags.

Xia Zuo secretly recorded the intelligence he had observed.

Then look at those stone-jawed monsters wielding staffs.

According to Rexor, these Stonejaw monsters possess remarkable spellcasting abilities and are known as Stonejaw Mages. They are skilled in earth and ice magic, and in rare cases, they can also master fire magic.

The Stonejaw Mage's signature spell is [Summon Frozen Golem] – a white rock golem whose size can vary and whose exterior is covered in hard rock.

The Stonejaw Mage has a higher life level than the ordinary Stonejaw Monster, with its [Vitality] being above 15 points.

To reclaim their life force, Xia Zuo would have to resort to surprise attacks or assassinations. If the Stonejaw Mage were to summon the Frozen Earth Golems, the situation would become complicated...

For a typical temple mage, to harvest so many monsters at once, they must travel in groups and divide into combat units.