Chapter 598: Snow Mountain

"The difference between you and other gods..."

Ever since Loren declared himself a god, Veronica had believed it without question, so she didn't find anything wrong with Loren comparing himself to other gods.

At the same time, she also understood what Loren meant.

To the Orthodox Gods, believers were nothing but expendable materials, let alone the believers of other gods.

To weaken the power of other Orthodox Gods, they would slaughter other believers without hesitation.

But Loren genuinely treated people as people.

"Take care of yourselves, I'll be back soon."

Loren escorted them to an area that hadn't been affected yet, purchased enough supplies, then dug out a basement in a safe location and hid the Witches inside.

That way, even if a full-scale biochemical crisis erupted outside, they wouldn't be in danger.

"I'm leaving now..."

Before departing, Loren gave each of them a hug before flying off.

"Will Master be alright?"

Veronica's face was full of worry, and Anna began to comfort her:

"Don't worry, even the Orthodox Gods couldn't do anything to Master Mentor, let alone a mere snow mountain."

That said, Anna couldn't help but feel worried herself. She had already lost Loren once.

But right now, standing before her little sister, Anna had to put on a strong front.

In that moment, she suddenly understood why Naclis, despite being so timid, always forced herself to appear strong.

...

The zombie virus did indeed originate near the Lost Snow Mountains; places further away remained largely unaffected.

Loren's earlier speculation was correct, the mutation of the zombie virus was indeed connected to the Lost Snow Mountains.

The infected this time had become incredibly powerful, regular armies couldn't even hold them back. Mages were required.

Even the vines summoned by low-tier mages couldn't properly restrain the infected. In the end, it was the Scarecrows who stepped in and barely managed to contain the situation.

But this was far from simple. Who knew how many people had unknowingly been infected with the virus.

This was only the beginning.

By now, Loren had already flown into the mountains. Upon reaching the deeper regions, blizzards slammed directly into him, forcing Loren to swap his Falcon wings for Dusk Crow wings.

If he had been carrying anyone else, Loren wouldn't have been able to fly here at all.

Loren hadn't even entered the Lost Snow Mountains' territory yet. This was just an ordinary snow mountain.

Visibility here was extremely poor. Loren couldn't even make out the distant scenery, but he still remembered the general location.

The tallest mountain was the Lost Snow Mountains, where temperatures had dropped to a terrifying degree.

The further he advanced, the fiercer the wind and snow became, until Loren's flight speed was slower than walking.

The snow here was thick. The moment Loren landed, he was buried up to his waist, which severely hindered his vision. Eventually, Loren had to temporarily use Abundant Magic to craft a makeshift snowboard.

The wind and snow affected Loren's vision, but they didn't affect the perception of the local creatures.

Loren hadn't glided far before a pack of wolves quietly fell in behind him.

In the blizzard, they were nearly invisible, waiting for the right moment to lunge forward and tear out Loren's throat.

Nothing that survived in this extreme environment was weak. Even an ordinary mage who came here would only become their prey.

But Loren was different.

Soon, the pack sensed that Loren had suddenly stopped in his tracks, but they didn't choose to attack immediately. They continued to bide their time.

The next moment, Loren appeared on the Wolf King's back, Requiem already drawn, its killing intent cowing the entire pack.

Their senses were razor-sharp, which was precisely why they'd managed to survive in this place.

At the same time, Loren recognized what they were, a type of ice-attribute Magical Beast.

"Carry me forward, or I'll slaughter every last one of you."

This was a case of a pillow arriving just as one felt sleepy. Loren had been worrying about how to advance, and now a mode of transportation had delivered itself to his doorstep.

"..."

The Wolf King lowered its head, signaling submission to Loren's command.

It couldn't communicate with Loren, but being able to understand his words was enough.

At the Wolf King's signal, the other wolves positioned themselves in front of Loren, shielding him from the wind and snow.

These wolves were considerably larger than ordinary horses, especially the Wolf King. Its fur was long, soft, and incredibly warm. Lying in it felt so comfortable that Loren nearly dozed off.

But Loren hadn't forgotten his mission. He kept urging the Wolf King to pick up the pace.

The wolves certainly delivered. Even under these extreme conditions, their speed was nothing short of impressive.

It wasn't until they reached the foot of a certain snow mountain that they suddenly came to a halt.

"Is there danger ahead?"

Loren leaped off the wolf's back and walked over to the mountain.

This wasn't the boundary of the Lost Snow Mountains, just an ordinary snow-covered peak, yet the pack refused to go any further.

This breed of wolf had keen instincts. Since they stopped, it meant danger lay ahead.

"Alright, you're free to go."

Having confirmed that, Loren dismissed the pack and began considering a new mode of transportation.

If Loren guessed correctly, there should be a dragon here.

"About time. After all this time since my transmigration, I'm finally going to encounter a real dragon."

Though nowadays, these so-called dragons posed no threat to Loren whatsoever.

Loren drew Bloody Battle and Requiem, using the two blades as ice picks as he began climbing the snow mountain.

At the same time, flames erupted across his body.

This was just an ordinary fire spell, its purpose simply to lure the dragon over quickly.

Faced with such provocation, the proud dragon race would never remain indifferent.

Loren's provocation was highly effective. Before long, he heard a dragon's roar.

A massive silhouette suddenly dove down, and before it even arrived, a breath of dragonfire was already sprayed directly onto Loren.

Loren had long since converted his Intelligence into Strength. His left hand gripped Bloody Battle, embedded in the ground, while his right hand clenched into a fist and lashed out with tremendous force.

"Intentional Power Fist!"

In that instant, the dragon's breath was shattered to pieces, and Loren leaped up to face the dragon directly.

"Strong Hand Skullcrack!"

Loren grabbed the dragon by the head and slammed it hard into the icy mountain face.

The dragon's head was larger than Loren's entire body, but that didn't stop Loren from pummeling it.

The dragon let out another roar, but a vicious uppercut from Loren shut it right up.

In just three moves, Loren had made the dragon acutely aware of the gap between them.

"Now, take me to the tallest mountain around here, or I'll beat you to death with my bare hands."

Loren released his grip, and the dragon's eyes had noticeably cleared up.

It was just an ordinary Ice Dragon, not the Extreme Cold Dragon Loren was looking for.

This time, after getting up, it didn't attack Loren. Instead, it lowered its body, signaling Loren to climb on its back.

"Finally, I get to be a dragon rider."

Loren sheathed his two longswords and rubbed his hands together, feeling a bit of excitement.

If it weren't for the mission at hand, Loren would've wanted to take it back as a mount.