Chapter 466: Chapter 161: The Mysterious Western Pole—Seeking Alliance with the Ice Race Through Marriage

"Now that I’ve become an entourage, I can at least have some self-preservation capabilities."

Li Yuan fell silent, then said, "The Yin Qi is too strong, it will accelerate the deterioration of your body. You are already in ill health, becoming an entourage would only make it worse, so I won’t agree to it."

Xue Ning closed her eyes, leaning against him, and softly said, "I’ll listen to my husband. But the four maids Mei, Lan, Zhu, and Ju, you mustn’t push them away, they’ve all decided... In this world, it’s better to be an entourage than a maid.

Moreover, I talked with Sister Yan before, we considered forming an entourage force, just hadn’t decided at that time.

Now that the Chuyun Commerce Association has been torn apart by this entourage infiltration, I want to focus on building this force."

Li Yuan shook his head.

"Why, my lord?"

"Because we lack money.

The Ghost Realm of the Cloud Mountain Path doesn’t generate much income.

Sister Yan is providing for the entourage by depleting her resources.

And if our entourage isn’t strong enough, it’s better not to act..."

Then, Li Yuan explained the details to Xue Ning.

Lady Xue sighed deeply, saying, "Alright then, I’ll just be a dutiful wife."

Li Yuan said, "You can help me oversee the Cloud Mountain Commerce Association from afar, continue gathering intelligence, but you can’t handle every little thing like before."

He looked at the woman in his arms, gently stroking her.

He could feel the soul within this body aging, in a few decades it would die of old age...

"What’s wrong, my lord?"

"Go back to the Cloud Mountain Path, and take good care of your health."

"Hmm..."

The beautiful woman gently nestled in the man’s arms.

Li Yuan, with eyes slightly squinted, looked into the distance, murmuring in his heart: "Immortal Tomb..."

...

...

A few days later.

Black Market Ghost Realm.

Lady Yan held the three items Li Yuan had taken out, examining them one by one.

"This Ancient Mirror, once aimed at a target, exudes a pulling force, causing the target to approach the mirror. Upon contact, the reflection inside drags the real person in, and the reflection walks out, replacing the real person.

However, this Deer Pattern Ancient Mirror only works on those of the Sixth Grade and below..."

"The sack is for trapping people.

Those of Sixth Grade and below placed in the sack temporarily lose their strength and cannot escape."

"This soup..."

Lady Yan’s expression gradually turned solemn.

She studied it for a long time, then said, "This soup can alter a person’s memory, but the target is limited to those below Sixth Grade, not including Sixth Grade, and only one detail can be changed."

Li Yuan’s expression became tense.

This soup can actually change memory?

This is even more formidable than Meng Po Soup...

If that guard had made Xue Ning drink it before, adding the memory ’I am your master’ to her mind, the consequences would have been dire...

But now, he had already retreated with Xue Ning to the far west of the Cloud Mountain Path, a wasteland where no major power would readily extend their reach, as every power’s resources are limited.

...

Later, after seeing Xue Ning settled down, Li Yuan began focusing on the exploration of the "Immortal Tomb."

Sadly, the exploration by the Western Ice Race was overly challenging, and a whole year had passed without any news.

But not all was lost.

Tang Nian secretly mobilized the Tang Sect’s resources and discovered interesting information within various family chronicles or local gazettes and certain local myths and legends.

For instance, the Zhang Family’s chronicles on the Cloud Mountain Path recorded.

It mentioned that their ancestors had clashed with local bandits, inadvertently venturing into the west. There, they saw eternal night skies, with light clearly delineated in the distance, bright to the east, dim to the west.

The ancestors, caught in battle with the bandits, delved deeper without realizing their location. Suddenly, figures on giant white wolves, wielding long spears, emerged from the darkness, roaring to chase them away, declaring that strangers were not welcome.

The ancestors and bandits were engrossed in fierce combat, paying no heed, resulting in the wolf riders charging out, slaughtering all ancestors and bandits but two, who escaped and recorded the event.

Moreover, local mythologies and legends often featured characters like "people shrouded in blizzards," "snow maidens," and "a divine realm unwelcome to outsiders"...

All these stories hinted at the existence of the "Ice Race," while describing the characteristics of those wandering the frozen lands: unwelcoming to strangers.

Li Yuan pored over these details page by page.

Days later, although it was still autumn, snow began to fly.

No wonder those western exploration teams were again halted in their tracks.

Li Yuan started realizing that sending ordinary people to find the Ice Race might be an impossible task, or akin to a blind cat stumbling upon a dead rat—a highly improbable event...

After much contemplation, he decided to go see for himself.

After all, none of the sources mentioned the Ice Race possessing power far beyond the Fifth Grade.

Since the Sixth Grade Divine Wood Hall member who wrote the "Ice River Chronicles" could survive well, he could at least attempt it.

...

Days later.

The world was engulfed in snow and wind, obscuring all visibility.

Five fingers stretched out, everything was a vast white.

Li Yuan stood on a desolate wasteland devoid of human presence, taking out a brilliantly enchanting red flower from his chest—Rebirth Flower.

Once the flower fell to the ground, Li Yuan waited quietly.

A day later, a vibrant red line pierced the distant snowstorm, prompting Li Yuan to advance...

Wherever he walked, the red of the Rebirth Flower extended.

In this way, no matter how deep he ventured, he would never lose his way. Should he wish to return, all he had to do was follow the Rebirth Flower back.