Chapter 16

Agas Peak is the highest peak in the entire world of dragons. In this backward feudal city-state era, there was no concept of altitude, but the snow that enveloped the mountain from halfway up was enough to indicate its height.

The renowned Mage Academy, the mysterious Summer Palace, was built at the very top of Agas Peak.

In a mountain pass halfway up, Sun Ran, Charlie, and Jasmine were all using their hands and feet to move forward, panting heavily.

This mountain was indeed too high and too steep.

"I can't go on, let's rest for a moment," Jasmine lamented, her legs giving out as she plopped down on the snow.

Sun Ran quickly pulled her up: "It's too cold, you can't sit down. Be careful, or you won't be able to get up later."

All three were wrapped in several layers of animal skins they had hunted, which provided some warmth, but as soon as they rested, their body temperature would drop rapidly, quickly endangering their lives.

"No, let me sit for a while. If we don't rest, I'll die from exhaustion," Jasmine pleaded.

The physical condition of these three slaves was not good, and Jasmine, who had the misfortune of being assigned a male body, was particularly unaccustomed to it. She had consumed the most energy on the journey. She stubbornly stayed on the ground, using no strength at all, her legs as limp as noodles. When Sun Ran pulled her, her entire body was almost hanging from his arm. Although she had a male body, her stubborn appearance was that of a little girl, making people laugh and cry at the same time.

Sun Ran's physical condition was also not great, and he was pulled off balance. Fortunately, Charlie, who was nearby, helped him up in time.

"Then let's go a bit slower," Charlie suggested, feeling soft-hearted. He was now embarrassed to mock them, especially since he himself felt extremely exhausted. As a warrior who relied on his physical strength, he needed to maintain his energy to be combat-ready.

"Alright," Sun Ran nodded.

After this rebirth, they had been in a state of data silence, having no contact with the outside world. It seemed to be working well, as the destroyers seemed to have lost their location. They had climbed all the way up without being intercepted by anyone.

The situation was relatively safe, so there was no need to rush. The three slowed down their pace, moving step by step up the mountain.

Jasmine looked up at the peak completely hidden in the thick fog and couldn't help but complain, "Do you think these mages are crazy? If it's a college, why build it so high?"

Charlie also looked up and then cursed, "Mages are a bunch of brain-dead idiots... Wait, I'm not talking about you two, I'm talking about these native mages."

Just as Sun Ran was about to voice his opinion, a deep roar came from the sky behind them.

"Roar~~~ Roar~~~" It continued endlessly.

The three turned in shock and saw two huge black shadows rapidly approaching. From the outline, they were clearly dragons. Worse still, the dragons were flying directly toward Agas Peak. It was unclear if they had spotted them.

"Damn, these lizards are really persistent. Quick, find cover!" Charlie was in a panic.

Legend had it that dragons had extremely abnormal vision, able to count the number of hairs on a woman's body from several kilometers away. If they didn't hide, it would be too late. They were all zero-level mortals, and if they were hit by a dragon's breath, they would be instantly turned to ashes. If this body was destroyed, it would take a lot of time to possess another one, and the search for the artifact would be delayed.

But there was nothing to hide in the snow-covered surroundings.

"Roar~~~" Another dragon's roar, much louder this time.

"It seems they've spotted us!" Jasmine's voice was trembling. These were dragons, legendary creatures, and there were two of them. How could they fight?

An even more tragic event occurred. The dragon's roar triggered the worst disaster on the mountain. After the roar, a rumbling sound came from the peak.

"Is... is this an avalanche?" Charlie realized, his face turning pale.

"Silence is forbidden on the snow mountain. The dragon's roar triggered an avalanche. We're in big trouble," Sun Ran sighed. The area was flat, with no place to hide. If the avalanche swept through, it would be a miracle, not just a miracle, but a divine act, if they survived.

At the peak, a massive amount of snow cascaded down like a thousand galloping horses, destroying any obstacle in its path.

At this moment, Jasmine was only screaming, her high-pitched voice causing more avalanches in other areas. Charlie swallowed hard, giving up on resistance. No matter how strong he was, he couldn't resist nature.

There was a commotion nearby, and Charlie turned to see Sun Ran desperately digging a snow cave, simultaneously casting a large number of ice spikes to reinforce the walls. He secretly cast a strengthening spell to connect all the ice spikes, making the snow cave very sturdy.

"This guy is really dreaming. What good is a snow cave dug in such a short time?" Charlie thought bitterly.

In the divine palace, Chen Han sighed, "Tragic, it looks like we can only let them drag their bodies."

The three maintainers were buried under the snow, and their bodies would be intact, allowing them to be resurrected later. However, being buried under the snow, they couldn't breathe, and the pressure would crush their bodies. Resurrection would only last a few minutes before they suffocated to death again.

In these few minutes, Sun Ran and the others had to try to climb a bit higher. After being suffocated to death, they would wait to be resurrected, then climb again, be suffocated to death, and then climb again, until they climbed out of the snow. This process, known as "dragging the body," was extremely painful.

Whether the dragons had encountered them by chance or were following some information, their goal had been achieved. The maintainers' initial advantage had been taken back by the destroyers.

The snow avalanche rushed down, reaching the three in less than five seconds.

In these five seconds, Sun Ran, like a super mole, dug a sturdy snow cave large enough for one person to crouch in, casting nearly fifty ice spikes. He then secretly cast a strengthening spell to connect all the ice spikes, making the snow cave very solid.

He had wanted to dig a larger one, but time did not allow.

The snow cave was just finished when the snow avalanche was almost upon them. Sun Ran crouched and, at the last moment, entered the cave, casting a large number of ice spikes to block the entrance, making it a completely independent ice ball. When the avalanche hit, the outer layer of snow would melt into water and then refreeze into ice, encasing the snow cave in an ice ball. He would become a diving ball inside the snow avalanche, able to flow with it.

At the last moment before the ice ball sealed, Sun Ran saw his two helpless companions through a small opening and sighed, "It's not that I don't want to save you, but I can't. You'll have to rely on your own luck and drag your bodies. I hope the dragons don't come to guard the bodies."

If the dragons did guard the bodies, dragging them would be meaningless. After struggling out of the snow, they would face the dragon's breath, forcing them to abandon their bodies and reincarnate.

These thoughts flashed through his mind as the ice ball's opening was sealed by ice spikes, followed by a violent shaking.

The avalanche had arrived.

The ice ball's shaking soon changed, spinning wildly as it was pushed forward by the avalanche. Sun Ran was tossed around inside, but he was confident in the ice ball's sturdiness, believing it wouldn't break.

Indeed, the violent shaking lasted for about five to six minutes before the ice ball finally stabilized, motionless. Sun Ran took a deep breath, though he was bruised and battered, he was still alive. The ice ball's outer shell was covered in cracks, and several ice spikes had broken, leaving it on the verge of collapse. If it continued, it wouldn't be able to protect him.

After a brief rest, Sun Ran began to consider his current situation.

The ice ball was pitch black, with very little light. He was likely buried under the snow and needed to determine his position before digging out. The limited air in the ice ball forced him to make a quick decision.

He opened his eyes slightly, a faint golden light flashing in them as he activated his Fire Eye and X-ray vision. He quickly scanned his surroundings, and the golden light disappeared.

This scan gave Sun Ran a clear understanding of his situation, which he memorized precisely. He had been carried about 200 meters by the avalanche and was buried 3 meters under the snow, making it easy to dig out.

He also saw the dragons flying overhead.

One of the dragons had a black, glossy body, much larger than the one that attacked Baiyun City. It didn't linger but flew directly toward the peak.

Sun Ran, with just one glance, determined that this dragon had a body structure of level 4, making it the true form of the Dragon King.

Judging by its flight direction, it was heading toward the Summer Palace.

The other dragon was slightly smaller, with a fiery red body. It landed and began digging through the snow, heading toward the bodies of the other two. It seemed the game company had located Charlie and Jasmine's bodies when they were resurrected.

Due to the avalanche, Charlie's weapon, "Dragon's Sorrow," had fallen at least 50 meters away, out of his reach. Without his level 3 sword, Charlie was like a toothless tiger. Facing a level 3 dragon with a zero-level body, he could do nothing meaningful unless he had special martial arts techniques.

"Tragic," Sun Ran sighed.

Now, Charlie and Jasmine were likely to be destroyed by the dragons, completely kicked out of the game. To re-enter, they would have to possess new bodies.

What should he do?

Leave them to die? That was definitely not an option. The Dragon King was heading to the Summer Palace, likely for the Creation Fragment, which might be the Schur Staff. If that was the case, his first mission as a maintainer would be a failure, so he had to stop it.

Relying on Sun Ran alone, it would be difficult to defeat the Dragon King legally. He needed help.

So, he had to save them, but how?

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