My wife, who's in a vegetative state, please stop eavesdropping on my thoughts.

"Excuse me, do you know how to turn this screen off?"

Upon hearing this, Weiss almost spat out his saliva.

So there are other people who share the same plight as me?

Whoever created this virtual interface is a real bastard...

It's worth noting that even the zoom keys for the World Book and the Killing System are perfectly clear.

There was a silence of about ten seconds.

Weiss said something.

"Try smashing it with one punch."

"..."

"..."

Then, just four or five seconds later, the other side's screen actually disconnected.

no......

Wow, that actually works!

Seeing this, Weiss also tried slapping the ice flower screen in front of him a few times.

Several cracks appeared on the ice screen, and then it actually slowly turned into water vapor, silently dissipating into the air.

Hehe...

Weiss had nothing to say.

Then, he looked at the ceiling, which had returned to its dim state, and sighed silently.

Although the number of direct guards for the night patrol has now been expanded to eight, due to the astrologer's negligence, I sometimes find myself being forcibly dragged into these meetings.

It seems that with this Snow White enchantment on him, he has already been considered a member of Snow White's faction.

Who knows when, he might be tricked by that remote connection called Astrology, and his own face would be exposed right in front of his eight direct guards.

think carefully--

This is truly sinister!

Or perhaps when all eight guards gathered, they discovered there was still an anonymous user present...

Each scene is more bizarre than the last.

Forget it, I don't want to think about it anymore. I'll go to sleep first.

With no other choice, Weiss slowly closed his eyes.

...

Noon the next day.

Sunlight streamed completely into the room through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

This time, it wasn't just Weiss who slept in; even Aunt Bai slept until noon.

There's no way around it; after half a month of continuous travel and the crisis of fleeing famine, anyone who can still get up early must have some kind of ADHD.

After giving Elune water, Whis took Aunt White to the restaurant.

The Lunette family maids prepared a very lavish breakfast, with a table full of various pastries and hot tea.

Weiss sipped his tea while casually nibbling on a piece of pastry.

Then, he suddenly remembered the remote meeting he had attended during his night patrol the previous day.

"Aunt Bai, do you know about the Snow Palace?"

Aunt Bai was licking a plate of milk.

Hearing this, he was slightly taken aback and looked up in surprise.

"Huh? You actually know about Yukimiya?"

Oh, right—

"Didn't you need to go up to a higher place for a better view?"

"Isn't Yukimiya just perfect?!"

At this point, Aunt Bai's eyes lit up, revealing an excited expression of sudden realization.

He immediately began explaining it to Weiss.

"The Snow Palace is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It is Snow White's bedroom, the place where Lady Snow White usually sleeps!"

"Floating above the clouds, tens of thousands of meters above the ground, accessible only by a single cloud ladder."

"Hundreds of years ago, that place was a tourist attraction open to the public. Back then, the top positions in each academy were even determined by the height of the Snow Palace Trial!"

"The higher you go, the greater the threats from air pressure and temperature, and there is even a risk of death."

"Furthermore, you should know that it's not just environmental issues that pose a threat; the very existence of the Seven Wonders is dangerous. The Snow Palace Trial and climbing high mountains are on completely different levels of danger."

"Those who can climb to 10,000 meters are basically top experts among the 7th level in a certain era."

Weiss listened attentively while eating.

You should know that in his previous life, even a well-trained ordinary human could climb to the top of a mountain over 8000 meters high.

In this world, for a level 7 transcendent being, climbing an ordinary mountain ten thousand meters high should indeed not be too difficult.

But if it's the Snow White Palace...

That's definitely a different matter.

Aunt Bai continued her explanation slowly and deliberately: "—However, after that legendary hero reached the summit, the Snow Palace was closed to the public for the first time."

"Because the night patrol discovered that there are still some extraordinary individuals in this world who are beyond the norm and can directly disturb Lord Snow White's hibernation."

"By the way, that hero back then wasn't a hero yet; he was just a 7th-rank warlord, the same rank as Adele."

Upon hearing this, Weiss raised an eyebrow slightly.

A mere Rank 7 transcendent being can directly access one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the resting place of the snow!

The legendary figure is truly amazing...

Unfortunately, Bovis's knowledge base was a bit lacking, otherwise he would have pointed out Aunt Bai's flaws on the spot.

The Warlord's rank 6 should clearly be Lord.

"However, although it is prohibited to open to the public, there are always extremely rare climbing slots within the large families. There are quotas every year, and the Lunette family should also have some."

With Aunt Bai's explanation, Weiss gradually figured out the situation.

In other words, it doesn't matter if the mountain is open for many years as long as no one climbs to the top.

But if someone were to actually trespass into the snow-capped palace representing the summit, tens of thousands of meters above the ground, and disturb the Seven Wonders of the World, then the problem would be enormous!

According to the astrologer from last night, the Snow Palace should be reopening to the public soon.

I can try it myself then...

Anyway, he doesn't need to climb to the top. He just needs to go to a place around 3,000 meters to experience it, and that should be enough for him to truly understand the mysteries of the mountains.

Just as Weiss was deep in thought.

Suddenly, Cassandra, the Little Sword Saint, burst into laughter, wiping away tears as she staggered into the restaurant.

"Hahahahaha-"

Her long, purple, fiery hair swung wildly with her flamboyant laughter, sparks crackling and scattering, leaving several fresh scorch marks on the floor.

I don't know what happened.

He was already grinning from ear to ear before he even stepped inside.

"Aunt Bai, you wouldn't believe how funny that was just now!"

As Cassandra spoke, she pulled out a chair, sat down, and then slapped the table with a gloating expression.

"The Night Patrol is actually planning to reopen the Snow Palace in half a month!"

"If it had been opened earlier, it wouldn't have been a problem, but it was only because the academics protested that they immediately opened it."

"This is clearly an insult to the academic school!!"

"Nobody takes this year's top student seriously at all."

"But those blinded academics can't see it, and they think their protest was successful... They actually believe that their good results in the Snow Palace Trials will make Lady Snow reconsider her choice of guards?"

"In the end—do those bookworms who have never had any real combat experience really want to compete with Ice Queen?"

It's clear that the Little Sword Saint really thinks highly of that Ice Princess.

If those academic protesters heard her say this, they would probably be furious on the spot.

However, Cassandra's guess matched exactly what Weiss had overheard the previous night.

The eight direct guards indeed did not take the academic faction seriously.

No one believed they could challenge the Ice Princess's position.

Just then, Weiss suddenly interjected.

"Will it open in two weeks?"

"Miss Cassandra, could you please use Lunette's spot early for me?"

Upon hearing this, Cassandra was slightly taken aback.

She stopped laughing and glanced at Weiss with some surprise.

"It is possible."

"After all, it will be open to everyone soon, so there's no point in not using these current spots. If you want, just go to the Night Patrol and apply for the Lunette family's spot; you can do it anytime."

"However, it really surprises me that you're so keen on improving your strength?"

At this point, Cassandra's eyes showed a hint of admiration.

Clearly, she mistakenly believed that Weiss was only interested in Yukimiya to test his current level of strength.

Although she's only at level 8 right now, she admires her drive.

But in reality...

Weiss just wanted to get to an altitude of several thousand meters as quickly as possible to unlock the mysteries of the mountains.

If you let him climb, he can drive.

Although the conditions for unlocking the mysteries of the mountains have remained a mystery for thousands of years, in Weiss's view, it only requires two steps.

First, this is a piece of information that almost all addicts know.

Naturally, one must personally stand high in the clouds and experience it firsthand.

It couldn't be simpler.

As for the second preliminary step...

This step itself is already beyond the reach of most addicts, a pipe dream, let alone challenging the final mysteries of the mountains after completing this step.

However, at this moment, Weiss has already met the conditions required for this preliminary step.

That is...

The profound meaning of rainwater represents—

Elementalization!!!

...

Family members, please vote for me!

3000 words bonus for every 100 monthly votes.

3000 words bonus for every 100 monthly votes.

A settlement will be made at the end of the month.

Chapters 8 and 9: The Mountains, All Mysteries Unlocked!! 11,000 words