Ascension from Dual Professions

Chapter 140: Chapter 139: Meis Town Under the Blizzard

The reconnaissance units were allotted forty minutes—not too long, and not too short.

But their efficiency—or perhaps their urgency—exceeded everyone’s expectations.

The main army had been marching for thirty minutes, putting them at the halfway point. Jon was just finishing up his briefing on handling abnormal incidents when a rider from one of the two reconnaissance teams came galloping back. The man was from the unit led by Yadri, the captain of the Birch Town Guard, and he frantically searched for Jon.

"Sir Jon! Captain Yadri requests that you hurry to the front. We have a situation!"

The messenger was panting heavily, and the poor steed beneath him looked on the verge of collapse.

But right now, no one was concerned about the poor mount’s well-being. All eyes were fixed on the young rider.

"Calm down. First, tell us what happened."

Evans pulled on his reins and asked in a low voice.

"Where are the others from the reconnaissance unit?"

"Hah... Hah... My horse is the fastest, so I was the one sent back to report."

The rider looked at the assembled group, forcing himself to explain the situation as concisely as possible.

"Meis Town... Meis Town is surrounded by a Blizzard! We can only reach the outskirts; we can’t get in at all!"

"And that Blizzard... it isn’t normal!"

Of course it wasn’t normal.

Although it often snowed in the Northern Territory, blizzards were extremely rare.

Besides, while the snow around them was heavy, it wasn’t hindering their march. So where did this Blizzard come from?

Could it be that a Blizzard was raging only around Meis Town, which was why no other reports had made it back?

Almost as one, everyone turned to look at Jon.

Didn’t this perfectly confirm the analysis he had just provided?

In the face of their stares, Jon remained perfectly composed, guiding Big Mimi a few steps forward.

"No need to rush. Just calmly answer my questions."

The rider’s mount, restless from exhaustion, immediately calmed as Big Mimi drew near.

The rider himself trembled under Jon’s cool authority, instinctively straightening his posture.

"Please ask, Sir!"

"Is the Blizzard spreading outwards from the center of the town?"

"According to Captain Yadri’s assessment, yes!"

"Is the temperature there much lower? When the snowflakes land on you, is it a bone-chilling cold that even your clothes can’t block?"

Surprise was evident on the rider’s face.

’He hadn’t even explained, and this man already figured it out?’

"Yes! Sir! It’s just as you said!"

"That’s exactly why! The snow’s temperature is too low, so we can’t advance into the Blizzard at all!"

"Alright. I’m finished with my questions."

Jon concluded his questioning decisively and turned to face the others.

"The situation is quite clear now. I wonder if any of you are familiar with the incident involving the Oswald family ten years ago?"

Ivory brushed the snowflakes from her shoulders and asked in return.

"Are you referring to the unending Blizzard of the Ice Flower Territory?"

"Yes. Creating these unnatural snowstorms is the Eternal Frost Sect’s specialty."

"This is likely the first challenge we’ll have to overcome."

Jon signaled for Xia and Xina to retrieve the ammunition crates from a nearby horse, then patted the manticore beneath him.

"I’ll go on ahead to investigate the scale of this Blizzard. The rest of you, advance with caution."

"The challenge begins now!"

Big Mimi’s broad wings gave a powerful beat, and the resulting gust of air whipped up the snow from the ground, lifting Jon into the air.

Xia and Xina followed close behind. A gentle Sun’s Saint Radiance glowed around the two sisters, warding off the biting cold of the upper altitudes. Like two small suns, they flew in formation just behind and to the side of Jon.

Freed from the constraints of the ground troops, the advantage of flight immediately became apparent.

His view opened up dramatically. Below, the cavalry column trudging through the snowfield shrank into the distance, while the vista ahead grew ever clearer.

After just a few minutes of flight, the silhouette of Meis Town was already faintly visible through the snow.

However, the sight before them not only confirmed the rider’s report but was even more alarming.

A colossal wall of lead-gray storm, like a gigantic, murky bowl flipped upside down, sealed off the entirety of Meis Town and its surroundings.

The storm formed a starkly clear boundary with the Ordinary snow falling around it. Outside was the typical gray-and-white curtain of a Northern Territory snowfall—dense, but with visible gaps. Inside was a churning, airtight vortex of darkness, like a congealed, viscous liquid pulsing with malevolence.

Within the gloomy storm, distorted outlines of buildings were vaguely visible, as if seen through a pane of filthy, frosted glass. The scene was deathly still and oppressive.

"Just as I thought..."

Jon’s ice-blue eyes, sharp as an eagle’s, swept across the unnatural storm.

He immediately gave his orders.

"Xia, circle it clockwise! Xina, counter-clockwise! Observe the storm’s perimeter and any changes in its intensity. Look for weak points or Energy nodes. Maintain a safe distance and altitude. Report any anomalies immediately. Do not linger!"

"Understood!" Xia’s voice carried a hint of nervous excitement.

"Yes, Mr. Jon," Xina replied, her voice much calmer.

The two sisters immediately split to either side. Their Holy Radiance cut two bright arcs against the leaden backdrop as they began to carefully circle the storm, conducting their reconnaissance.

Meanwhile, Jon had Big Mimi descend rapidly, heading toward the location where he remembered the scout party would likely be waiting.

Soon, at the edge of the storm, he found Yadri and several of his Scouts sheltering behind a large rock that offered minimal protection from the wind.

The Guard Captain was pacing anxiously, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. A thick crust of ice covered his leather armor. His men’s faces were bluish-white with cold, and their breath condensed into puffs of white vapor that almost instantly turned into Ice Crystals.

"Jon!"

Seeing the manticore descend from the sky and the armor that shimmered with a faint crystalline light even in the dimness, Yadri rushed forward as if he had seen his savior.

"You see it? It’s the snow! We’ve tried several times, but we can’t get through!"

"The moment you get close to the edge of the storm, the snow cuts like knives! The temperature is terrifyingly low. The horses can’t stand it, and a man can’t last for long either!"

Before he could finish, the swirling wind and snow around them changed direction without warning!

"GROWL—!"

As Big Mimi let out a low, warning growl, a blast of wind—even more frigid than before and saturated with dense Negative Energy—whirled into existence. It swept up countless Ice Crystals, letting out a high-pitched, whimpering shriek.

"Watch out!"

Jon’s Perception was the most acute. At the same time he roared the warning, his Crystal Scorpion Shield instantly expanded from a teardrop shape into a large, round shield that covered the upper half of his body.

The instant his warning rang out, several twisted, translucent, pale figures coalesced in the center of the swirling, frigid wind!

They had no distinct features, their bodies seemingly forged from a forced fusion of frozen corpses and murky Ice Crystals. They radiated a cold, desperate aura that could make a soul tremble.

Yadri and the Scouts turned pale with fright, hastily drawing their blades.

The ambush was terrifyingly fast!