Chapter 94.2: part 2
The 94th Chapter "The Forgotten Ice Field: the last barrier" (part two)
Incapable of flight and can only rely on one's legs to walk on the glacial surface. Thus, even if one has abnormally high strength, they aren't much different from ordinary people when faced with these limitations.
Taking out a short wand with a transparent silver colored crystal embedded into it, the old magician raised it up into the air and started to spell chant from his mouth. A soft light soon emanated from the crystal and formed a four meter wide magic barrier.
This magic barrier was able to effectively block off the fierce glacial winds!
On top of this endless flat icy surface, the whistling wind was abnormally scary. Without the forest trees to shield them, the force of the wind is strong enough to blow away a person of Du Wei's stature into midair with ease!
With the old magician constantly keeping the wind barrier active, the group is able to move forward while keeping a close proximity to each other.
The physical exertion of walking on ice is high, but without the constant battering of the wind, the difficulty was reduced by a margin.
In order to avoid the many crevasses hidden on top of the ice surface, Du Wei tapped into the knowledge of his previous life and tied the group together with a single rope. Of course, Hussein continued to remain in front because he is physically stronger.
As for Medusa, she didn't speak a single word during this period and was looking somewhat fatigued. No matter what, snakes are after all cold blooded creatures, such cold temperatures would of course have some sort of impact on her.
The difficult condition of their travels continued like this for two days, and the group's movement speed was beginning to slow down. Even Hussein's breathing was starting to show how much his fatigue was affecting him. Although the knight's eyes were still strong, but Du Wei could tell this method of using pure physical strength to walk is too much of a burden.
Plus, the old magician couldn't always keep the wind barrier erected because the wind in this place has been just too terrifying. Especially at night, the roaring sound of the blasting wind was enough to deafen one's ears, as if a beast is constantly roaring inside someone's ears. To make matters worse, Du Wei almost couldn't fight off the biting cold. Even the effects of the basic Stars Dou Qi movement routine were greatly weakened. In one night, he had to wake up multiple times to perform the routine, or else he would freeze to death.
It was at this time; Hussein performed a much appreciated act of kindness. Without a word, the knight pulled Du Wei next to him and pulled off his cloak to cover Du Wei. Then, using his immense Dou Qi, the knight shielded Du Wei from the cold.
The old magician was already doing his best, but being surrounded by the endless freezing winds, his energy was almost completely drained from maintaining the barrier. Du Wei finally understood why the old magician had to reduce his energy consumption to the utmost till now.
The further north you go, the stronger the wind gets!
Even with his naked eyes, Du Wei could see raging tornados forming down onto the ice from the sky!
With winds like a roaring dragon, the clearly visible columns raged back and forth near the group. If not for the old magician spending sleepless days and nights maintaining the barrier.....
According to Du Wei's estimates.... This degree of attack is equal to the old magician spending countless sleepless days and nights to fend off numerous mid leveled wind spells!
Thus, the circle of light on his wand would inevitably be dimmed down. Also, in order to conserve his magic reserve, the scope of the barrier was almost narrowed down, forcing the group to walk even closer together like one big mass.
By the fourth day, the old magician couldn't keep it up any longer. Maintaining the barrier over the duration of four days while being battered by intermediate wind attacks has completely drained the old magician.
"The last time when I came here...... The wind was not so strong!" There was a hint of weakness in the old magician's voice."
"How much further?" Du Wei shouted through the wind.... But under the roaring sound of the winds, there was no way for his companions to hear his voice.
"There are approximately one and a half days left." The old magician spoke in a helpless way: "Just another one and a half days left, then we can out of this ice field! Once we are out of this ice field, there will no more winds like this!"
"How much longer can you hold up?" Du Wei sighed.
"I need a break." The old magician no longer forced himself to hold out: "I need a rest to restore my magic, but....."
Du Wei nodded: "Let me replace you for a bit!"
Fortunately, the old magician's magic barrier has been just like that in the scrolls. Nothing complicated, only requiring the caster to constantly inject energy into the barrier.
Du Wei took hold of the old magician's wand. At first he thought he would somehow manage for a while, but soon found out he could barely hold up!
Only after experiencing first hand of maintaining the barrier did Du Wei realize the old magician didn't have it easy!
The fierce wind in the surrounding is just too terrifying. The razor sharp winds are like a flood of a densely packed wave of attacks, constantly battering away at the barrier.
Du Wei felt his body tremble the moment he touched the wand. The speed of the energy drain is just absolutely terrifying! Even so, he somehow managed to hold out for a moment, but the energy reserve he was usually so proud of was nearly depleted!
Less than a cup of tea's worth of time, Du Wei was already feeling his mental strength fading away!
Drain! Drain! And drain! The magic wand in Du Wei's hand was frantically draining away his energy. On top of that, the constant battering of the wind blades in the surrounding increased the speed even faster. Even though Du Wei did his best to hang on, the range of the barrier inevitable narrowed down in size once again.
With his eyes closed in silence, the old magician continued to meditate after drinking two bottles of magic potion. Due to the large energy consumption, simply drinking magic potions cannot restore all the energy he had expended.
Seeing Du Wei's pale colored face, Gargamel called out with his shrill like voice. Somehow, the usually hateful and annoying mouse seemed more lovable by ten times!
Gargamel timidly spoke: "Why not let me give it a try? No matter what, I am at least an eighth level magician."
His saying may be eighth level, but in fact, the real strength of Gargamel, whom specializes in transformation spells, are only at the fifth level. Even so, his powers are still slightly stronger than Du Wei and he was also more experienced than him.
Taking the wand off his hand, Du Wei is about to receive a lesson in class.
Gargamel didn't blindly inject magic into the barrier; instead, he carefully judged the strength of each oncoming wind attack. By increasing and decreasing the defense of the barrier depending on the strength of the oncoming attack, he was able to conserve his energy level, thus, prolonging the length of time he could keep the barrier up.
So, despite the fact that Gargamel's magic is only slightly better than Du Wei's, the length of time the mouse could last was three times of his.
This is not any extremely difficult spell, but by simply observing this efficient manipulation of magical energy, Du Wei was able to benefit greatly! Originally, the manipulation of magical energy is also a form of strength for a magician, but often more than not, the young magician of the same level would lose in a duel against a more senior peer. This difference is usually based on the effective use of magical energy!
The practice of using energy effectively and avoiding wasting even a drop of energy is enough to make Du Wei's eyes lit up!
As soon as Gargamel couldn't continue maintaining the barrier, Du Wei immediately stepped up to replace him. Despite only restoring a third of his energy level, his performance was able to surprise everyone!
Using only a third of his original energy, Du Wei managed to last the same length of time as Gargamel!
This is all thanks to the devil's horn on top of his head. The horn dramatically increases his magical senses, thus, allowing him to accurately pinpoint the location and strength of each wind attack!
Being forced to perform in this real life condition, Du Wei quickly mastered his ability to manipulate the output of his magical energy!
"Every young magician would unwittingly waste their magic energy. Only with age, will these youngsters gradually improve their skills, in just two days, this kid managed to improve so much that he could match even a regular magician!"
This is Gargamel's evaluation of Du Wei.
With the help of Gargamel and Du Wei alternately maintaining the barrier, the old magicians had enough time to rest and recover his magic reserve. Thus, after a day and a half, the group was able to make it out of the ice field......
As soon as they stepped out of the ice field, a miraculous thing happened! Far away in their line of sight, a mountain with the shape of a giant hand was protruding from the ground!
Tickle!
Du Wei's heart nearly skipped a beat the moment his boots touched the soft snow!
The boundless storm in the sky instantly disappeared!
Taking one last look behind him, Du Wei discovered that the wind behind them has stopped!
Bending down, he forced both his arms into the snow below his boots. Then, with a cry of joy, Du Wei looked up and smiled: "We finally came out! There is soil under the snow!"
The old magician was so relieved that he nearly collapsed. With his butt against the snow, he wiped his wand a few times then stored it away. "We're out, we are finally out!"
Pulling out his sword, Hussein plunged his sword into the ground, leaving only the hilt to be seen! After confirming their words, the knight pulled out the sword and saw that it was covered in soil! With a satisfied smile: "It is! It appears that we have indeed made it out of the ice field! Damn, the winds there were awful!"
"If not terrible, then how can it be called 'the forgotten ice field'? From legend, this ice field was said to be set by the Gods, specifically aimed at blocking the route leading to the human world. This is just like a natural barrier! In fact, this ice field is actually a magic array left behind from ancient times! Although this magic array is a barrier, but in some ways, this barrier acts as a shield to separate the human world from other worlds." The old magician gasped.
"I don't understand." Du Wei shook his head.
"You'll understand soon." The old magician had a smile on his face as he pointed at the horizon towards the mountain: "See that mountain? That mountain is our goal! I heard that it has a name from ancient legend. It was called the Holy Mountain."
"Holy Mountain?" Du Wei frowned: "Could that be the residence of gods?"
"Of course not." The old magician laughed out loud: "Why would God live in the mortal world! But on top of the mountain, lived other powerful beings."
"What's that?" Du Wei along with Hussein asked at the same time.
But as soon as they began to ask, a sudden sound caught their attention. Far into the distance, a ROAR like sound echoed from the mountain!
There a supreme dignity that one feels from the ROAR could penetrate straight into the very core of someone's heart. Words could not describe the feeling that one would feel after listening to it!
Both Du Wei and Hussein turned pale; it was obvious from their facial expression that both men have guessed what the cause of the sound was!
"The residence on top of the Holy Mountain is not God, but rather the most powerful legendary creature left behind by God. This higher tiered organism is even more intelligent and powerful than humans...." The old magician smiled: "Dragons! On top of the mountain lived the Dragon Tribe! According to the ancient legends, the Dragon tribe's life mission is to guard the border of the human world! With the presence of the powerful dragon tribe there, it would prevent humans to cross over... And on the hand, it would not allow any other powerful species to cross over into the human world. Thus, protecting the human world and keeping the human apart from the other worlds! These dragons are the last barrier!"
The echoing roar far into the distance refused to stop, and very soon, several black dots in the sky could be spotted over the horizon on top of the mountain. These black dots gracefully hovered on top of the mountain......
That's a dragon! Du Wei focused his sight to see not one, but a group of dragons!
A group!