In the northern ice plains, within the ice cliff territory.
White dragon Holmes and white dragon Greys are resting comfortably in their dragon lair, eyes slightly closed, breathing rhythmically and orderly, as if they are in a state of slacking off rather than fully guarding their nest.
However, for dragons, unless it's a crucial growth-related deep sleep, they are actually in a strange state of half-asleep, half-awake during normal naps.
They are always alert to their surroundings.
At any sign of disturbance, they would wake up instantly, reacting swiftly.
Like now.
The two white dragons in their respective nests suddenly opened their eyes, revealing sharp and cold gazes.
They both sensed a massive gathering of magic power, right above the ice cliff territory.
"Dare to invade the territory of the eternal dragon!"
With a deep roar, the two white dragons flapped their wings, stirring up a gale, and left their nests in an instant, then appeared under the blizzard-filled, howling sky.
A huge portal stood in the air.
Through the raging snowstorm, a fiery red color was faintly visible, bringing an uncomfortable warmth to the white dragons.
Simultaneously, two human figures enveloped in elemental light stepped through the portal, appearing in the sky of the northern ice plains.
The white dragons opened their mouths, ready to unleash their breath upon the newcomers.
However, before releasing their breath, upon seeing the figures clearly, they paused, and the wariness and alertness on their faces faded, swallowing back the energy for their breath.
Those capable of using plane teleportation are at least high-ranking beings.
They were initially somewhat nervous because adult white dragons are essentially high-ranking creatures themselves. Against some exceptionally powerful high-ranking spellcasters, they likely couldn't win.
So, seeing that it was Krikens and Fred, they relaxed.
They recognized these two human spellcasters who followed Garon.
Then, under the gaze of the two white dragons, several figures sequentially passed through the portal, arriving at the northern ice plains.
When the legendary dragon with a silver hue appeared, the portal closed simultaneously.
Garon felt the drain of magical power within him and frowned slightly.
Spellcasting, especially plane teleportation, is not to be used lightly.
Just for those few moments of opening, he had spent sixty percent of his magical power. If it weren't for his legendary-level mental strength, he would have been significantly more drained.
"Using gemstone teleportation would reduce the magic power consumption."
Garon thought to himself.
After mastering plane teleportation, learning gemstone teleportation, a variant, was much simpler, and Garon easily mastered it.
He had plenty of gemstones, enough to use gemstone teleportation indefinitely.
However, given Garon's character, he wouldn't waste magical gemstones to replace magic power consumption unless it was a special need.
Normally, using plane teleportation alone wouldn't consume as much because Garon was transporting several high-ranking and even legendary creatures through the portal, which depleted most of his magical power.
"Your talent in spellcasting is astonishing; the glory of magic favors you."
Krikens looked at Garon with envy.
From Garon learning plane teleportation from him to mastering and successfully casting it, it took less than a month. Furthermore, Garon learned gemstone teleportation in just a couple of days, showcasing an incredible learning capability.
Krikens felt the world's disparity deeply, recalling the time it took him to learn plane teleportation. It's a seventh-level spell, complex due to its involvement with cross-crystal wall spatial forces.
Garon's ease of learning plane teleportation left Krikens doubting himself for a while, realizing it wouldn't be long before he had nothing left to teach Garon.
Fred faced a similar issue.
He had already taught Garon all his energy manipulation spells and now had nothing to do.
They knew Garon saved them for their spellcasting knowledge, asking only for ten years of loyalty. But it seemed it wouldn't take that long, as Fred was almost out of usefulness in less than a year.
If Garon focused solely on learning spells, it wouldn't be long before Krikens was also emptied of his knowledge.
However, as high-ranking spellcasters with extensive experience, they quickly recovered from their initial shock.
Meanwhile, Yuna, who had been invisible around other creatures, quickly became outlined by the falling snow, revealing the silhouette of a giant true dragon.
Her invisibility wasn't perfect.
An ancient force dragon or higher could switch between force energy and physical body without notice, invisible even to gods.
But Garon had already informed others about Yuna's presence.
Garon hadn't disclosed Yuna's force dragon identity, but even without knowing her true species, others understood she was a powerful legendary true dragon brought back by the great eternal dragon from somewhere.
Following Garon's instructions, Krikens and the others averted their gaze when Yuna materialized, curbing their curiosity and not observing her.
This was to protect them.
Ordinary creatures' gaze could make Yuna uncomfortable, prompting her to destroy them instantly.
Normally, if a creature wandered into her territory, she would observe from the shadows without attacking. But if noticed, that unfortunate being would pray to survive her breath.
Garon had witnessed Yuna's breath.
A terrifying weapon capable of tearing and destroying all matter within its range, its destructive power unmatched among true dragons.
Then, realizing her invisibility failed due to the snow, Yuna, larger than Garon, moved and flew behind him, attempting to hide.
"Hmm."
Garon chuckled softly.
He wondered if all young force dragons behaved this way or if Yuna was particularly unique.
Garon didn't fully understand this aversion to being observed by ordinary creatures.
Without disturbing Yuna hiding behind him, he surveyed the surroundings. The dancing snow and howling winds made him feel peaceful and at home, despite being harsh conditions for most.
Yuna, after a brief panic, disguised herself again.
She formed a spherical force field around her, blocking the snow, then became invisible within the snow-free field.
At first glance, an eye-catching empty sphere appeared amidst the snowstorm, but Yuna's silhouette vanished from it, invisible even to Garon, let alone other non-legendary creatures here.
"Can you still see me?"
Yuna whispered to Garon.
Garon smiled, "I can't see you; your invisibility spell is impressive."
After speaking, he seemed to hear Yuna sigh in relief.
Garon, having seen Yuna's form, remained unaware of her specific scale color. Wherever she went, her scales reflected the surrounding environment's color, constantly changing.
Her scales' color is crucial in dragon aesthetics, adding a special charm to Yuna's variable appearance.
"Noble eternal dragon, welcome back."
"During your absence, all has been peaceful here."
The two white dragon guards lowered their heads, speaking.
Garon nodded slightly at them, "Good, return to your posts."
Then, a piercing roar from below cut through the howling wind.
Garon looked down to see an excited ferocious frost tiger.
Behind it were two bear cubs, now fatter, clinging to the tiger's hind legs, their soft white fur dancing in the wind.
"Hmm? These two bear cubs are no longer afraid of the ferocious frost tiger."
Something had eased the relationship between the bear cubs and the frost tiger, now seemingly close.
"Sir, I want to go to the crystal mines to play with the wolf cubs."
The Frost Forest Serpent Dragon spoke gruffly.
"Go ahead."
After receiving Garon's permission, the serpent dragon slithered away towards the mountains.
Then, Garon retracted his wings, descending under gravity's pull. As he neared the ground, he gently flapped his wings, landing softly, his claws buried in the thick snow, his silver scales blending with the white landscape.
Invisible Yuna also landed nearby.
Krikens and Fred went to the previously prepared houses in the Ice River Tribe.
Now, the Ice River Tribe, led by Roy Ice River, paid respects to Garon, welcoming the return of the eternal dragon.
Garon scanned briefly.
Despite a war's toll, the Ice River Tribe, having split and multiplied, had grown in number since he first claimed them, the tribe gradually expanding.
Then, a white figure dashed through the wind, landing silently before Garon, raising its fluffy head.
The ferocious frost tiger approached Garon's claws, contentedly closing its eyes and purring softly when petted, a sign of comfort for this large cat.
"Is this also your territory?"
Yuna asked from the side.
The sudden voice made the frost tiger alert, its ears twitching as it looked towards Yuna's direction.
Hearing the voice but seeing and smelling nothing confused the frost tiger.
As a fierce creature, its senses were sharp, but they were ineffective against Yuna.
"Yes, I was born here and spent my weakest period on this snowfield."
Garon soothed the frost tiger, responding.
After scrutinizing for a while and failing to detect Yuna, the tiger, though uneasy, relaxed with Garon present, closing its eyes again.
While speaking to Yuna, Garon looked towards the location of his original lair.
The majestic ice cliff.
His gaze pierced through the snowstorm, and Garon paused slightly.
The natural ice cliff he knew had changed significantly.
A large area at the top had been transformed into a fortress standing against the snowstorm, unyielding to the blizzard's fury.
It featured an oval dome, surrounded by thick, undulating walls, with ferocious spikes around the fortress. Ogre magi from the dragon vein walked along the edge walls, with dragon-hunting crossbows from the city of extreme cold mounted, their bolts gleaming with a cold light.
"Nicole Nina's fortress."
"It looks good."
Garon nodded slightly.
He hadn't stayed long in the lava demi-plane, about two months.
In that time, Nicole Nina, skilled in construction, with the help of his followers, had initially built the fortress, not yet a final product but already habitable.
"Is that fortress yours too?"
Yuna followed Garon's gaze, then asked curiously.
Garon nodded, then suggested, "Want to take a look?"
If the Wolfheart Clan had maintained their conquest desire, the entire northern ice plain might already belong to him.
The northern ice plain isn't very large, and Garon had eliminated the most threatening frost giant city before leaving.
After consuming a lot of frost giant flesh, the Wolfheart Clan's winter wolves grew significantly, nearly tripling in size with the dragon vein's blessing, their rank not much lower than a young white dragon, and in greater numbers.
Such a winter wolf clan, even without the Frost Forest Serpent Dragon's help, would face little resistance in the northern ice plains.
Moreover, the true dragons active on the northern ice plains either had good relations with Garon or became his lair guards.
In two months, with the winter wolves' speed and efficiency, Garon believed the eternal dragon's name should be known to every intelligent tribe on the northern ice plains.
"When I was in the Elemental Plane of Air, my mother had a floating fortress built with force energy, but only we lived there, surrounded by force energy walls, inaccessible to other creatures."
Yuna reminisced.
Then, Garon lifted his claw from the frost tiger's head, flapped his wings, and flew low towards the ice cliff fortress, with the invisible force dragon following.
Moments later, the silver dragon landed on the wall, and the surrounding ogre magi knelt.
Ugga Bonecrusher was among them.
The fortress needed guards, and part of the Bonecrusher ogre tribe, at Nicole Nina's request, came here as soldiers, their tall and robust bodies resembling smaller frost giants.
"Master, you're back."
"The eternal dragon's most loyal followers salute you."
Ugga Bonecrusher's voice was excited, shouting in Giant's tongue.
Garon looked at the nearly four-meter-tall dragon vein ogre magi, speaking deeply, "It seems Nicole Nina left the fortress's defense to you."
"Yes, Nicole Nina ordered us to act as guards."
"Rest assured, your fortress will be impregnable under the Bonecrusher tribe's guard. No enemy will set foot here until the ogre magi are extinct!"
Ugga Bonecrusher answered solemnly.
Garon nodded, "The Bonecrusher tribe has never disappointed me, and I believe it will continue to do so."
Ogre magi might not be the brightest, but they were quite useful as followers.
Now, the Bonecrusher tribe wasn't what it used to be, having absorbed other ogre tribes subdued by the Wolfheart Clan. Now, most ogre magi on the northern ice plains bore the Bonecrusher suffix.
"Thank you for your trust!"
Ugga Bonecrusher looked up at the majestic silver dragon, speaking.
Simultaneously, Garon looked around, then asked with a hint of confusion, "Where's Nicole Nina? Did she leave after building this place?"
Hearing Garon's question, Ugga Bonecrusher scratched his head, troubled, "Master, Nicole Nina recently encountered trouble."
"Hmm?"
Garon's gaze narrowed.
Trouble?
What trouble could she face on the northern ice plains now?
Ugga Bonecrusher didn't pause, continuing, "When you weren't here, Lady Sarya came by and started fighting Nicole Nina without a word."
"The two true dragons have fought many times."
"Just a day ago, Lady Sarya came again, fighting and flying with Nicole Nina. We don't know where they've gone now."
"Based on previous situations, it might be half a day before Nicole Nina returns."
Three turns of self-discipline, almost a week!!!
Do I have any monthly tickets to encourage me!!!
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