The snowy plains stretched endlessly under a pale winter sun, the wind whispering through the white landscape like an unbroken melody. Scattered across this frozen expanse were small towns — clusters of warmth and life amid the cold.

Most of the inhabitants were Dragonions, humanoid beings with faint draconic traits — scales glinting beneath their clothes, small horns, and eyes that shimmered faintly with power even though they don’t even cultivate very often.

In one such town, a group of Dragonion children played hide and seek, their laughter echoing through the frost-covered streets. But suddenly, the ground began to rumble beneath them. The snow trembled, shaking loose from the rooftops.

The children froze mid-game.

"W-What was that?" one of them whispered.

"Let’s go check!" another shouted, his curiosity getting the better of him. They darted down the next street, their tiny footprints marking the soft snow — but before they could turn the corner, a sudden gust of wind swept them off their feet.

They yelped and tumbled back into a snowdrift.

When they looked up, their eyes went wide.

A giant turtle — massive and majestic — was sliding across the snow, gliding at incredible speed as if the frost itself had become a river beneath its shell. The beast’s surface gleamed with a faint, golden warmth that contrasted beautifully with the surrounding whiteness.

And riding on top of it were three figures: Zuzia, Yumina, and Lanny.

The turtle — or rather, Myrtle in her transformed form — let out a deep rumble that echoed like thunder.

Lanny retrieved her staff, the faint glow fading from its tip. She was the one ensuring that Myrtle didn’t accidentally harm any innocent bystanders.

Behind them, several Immortal Practitioners wearing white and blue sect robes emblazoned with the crest of the Winter Heart Sect were in hot pursuit. They rode on flying swords, cutting through the sky, the tips leaving trails of shimmering frost.

The turtle slid out of the town, leaving behind a swirl of snow and stunned onlookers, and entered the vast, empty wasteland beyond.

"Should we fly and escape?" Yumina called out, her hair whipping wildly in the wind.

"Nah," Zuzia replied with a grin, her voice casual as if this were just a morning stroll. "This is way more fun. Besides, let’s wait for Tyle— I mean, Tyla — to finish her seclusion first."

Yumina sighed. "It all happened because you stole a mini flying island! A natural formed - fountain flying island, no less! Aren’t you afraid of letting people know you’ve got a storage unit that can actually hold something that huge?"

Zuzia just shrugged. "Huh? No. With my status, they’ll think it’s normal that I have that kind of thing."

"Status? What sta—" Yumina began, but before she could finish, Lanny’s calm voice interrupted her.

"They’re here."

A cold wind blew past as a dozen cultivators from the Winter Heart Sect appeared in the sky, their blades gleaming like shards of ice.

"Give us the storage device and return our island!" one of them shouted. "Do that, and we’ll leave your corpse intact!"

They swung their swords in unison, sending a wave of ice blizzards roaring toward the turtle. Frost spiraled in the air, and several ice domains began forming, encasing the area in walls of frozen death.

"Domain..." Zuzia whispered, her orange eyes flashing like molten metal.

In the next instant, a golden palace shimmered faintly behind her, and the snow beneath them cracked. The frozen wasteland erupted as lava burst through the ground, melting both ice and domain alike. Steam hissed violently as fire consumed the cold.

Yumina shielded her eyes from the light, her voice raised over the roar. "You’re that strong— so why are we running?!"

Myrtle’s voice echoed through their minds, calm and composed via voice transmission.

> "We can’t stay here and fight. If we do, we’ll attract the attention of both the Sky Dragon Palace and the Sea Dragon Palace. That’s trouble we don’t need."

Just then, the snow ahead cracked open. A massive snow worm burst from beneath the ground, its mouth large enough to swallow a house.

"Hang on," Myrtle warned.

Her entire turtle body glowed — then in a blink, she shot forward like a cannonball, tearing straight through the creature’s massive body. The snow worm split apart before it could even roar. Not a drop of blood stained Myrtle’s shell.

The giant turtle landed smoothly, the snow hissing beneath her heat. Behind them, the blizzard cleared, leaving only silence and a long trail of melted snow.

Zuzia smirked. "Well... that takes care of that."

Yumina sighed again. "You girls really don’t know the meaning of ’low profile,’ do you?"

Zuzia just laughed as the turtle continued sliding across the endless white plains.

Zuzia’s eyes suddenly lit up, a grin spreading across her face. "She’s out!" she exclaimed.

A faint ripple shimmered in the air above Myrtle’s massive shell, and in the next instant, Tyla appeared behind them. Her footing faltered for a moment — she almost slipped off the turtle’s smooth surface — but she quickly regained balance, floating lightly in midair before landing gracefully beside the others.

"Tyla!!!" Yumina shouted in relief, her voice full of joy. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Tyla blinked, taking in the sight before her — the endless snowy wasteland, the panicked Practitoners in the distance, and Myrtle barreling across the plains like a living fortress. "What the heck is going on here? Are we being chased? Is this from the Industrial Cities?" she asked, her tone halfway between confusion and amused.

Zuzia chuckled awkwardly, scratching her cheek. "Nope... actually, we kinda stole a flying island."

Tyla stared blankly at her. "You did what?"

Zuzia offered a sheepish "tee-hee" laugh, waving her hand dismissively. "It wasn’t that bad! I mean, it’s just a small one! A floating island with a reverse waterfall fountain thingy... nothing too serious."

Tyla rubbed her temples. "I just teleported out from the room — so i didn’t notice . So, you’ve got an actual fountain island inside your pocket dimension?"

Zuzia nodded proudly.

"Let’s give it back," Tyla said flatly.

Yumina immediately nodded in agreement. "Yes, please. Before the entire Winter Heart Sect and both Dragon Palaces come after us."

"Huh? Why?" Zuzia pouted, crossing her arms. "It looks so pretty in there..."

Tyla sighed but smiled faintly. "Don’t worry," she said gently, patting Zuzia’s head. "Before we return it, let me go inside your pocket dimension. I want to see what it looks like first."

Zuzia perked up instantly, mischief flickering in her orange eyes. "Fine," she said, smirking. With a thought, she allowed Tyla to enter her pocket dimension.

For a moment, the others waited. The sounds of the wind and Myrtle’s heavy sliding through snow were all that could be heard. Then, after a few minutes, Tyla reappeared, landing softly beside them — a satisfied smile on her lips.

She gave Zuzia a thumbs up.

The others exchanged confused glances, unsure what that meant. Zuzia’s grin widened in response.

Meanwhile, the Immortal Practitioners chasing them came to an abrupt stop. Their eyes widened as a massive floating island suddenly materialized in the sky above the wasteland, glowing faintly with spiritual energy.

"It’s the fountain! Secure it!" one of them shouted.

They immediately flew toward it, activating artifacts and forming seals to stabilize the island so it wouldn’t drift away.

"What about them?" another asked, casting a greedy glance toward Zuzia’s group. "We still haven’t taken their storage artifact."

"Forget it," their leader snapped. "We’ll deal with them later. Securing the fountain is the priority." He hesitated, still remembering the terrifying molten domain Zuzia had unleashed earlier. The last thing he wanted was to provoke that power again.

As the pursuers focused on recovering their island, Myrtle continued her smooth slide across the snow, carrying the group far away from danger.

Inside Zuzia’s pocket dimension, however, two identical floating fountain islands now drifted side by side.