Chapter 422: Sorrow

On the other side of the door, Wizards Ernie and Watson were still standing respectfully as they remained vigilant to their surroundings. As Merlin’s slaves, they did not dare defy any of his orders.

Since Merlin requested them to stand guard, it must have been important. However, in contrast to Wizard Ernie’s careful diligence, Wizard Watson’s attitude appeared to be more slipshod.

From inside the house, Merlin was able to observe all the happenings outside. Within this period, he also developed a certain understanding of both Ernie and Watson.

Although Wizard Ernie was quite old, his personality was cautious and adaptable. Upon becoming Merlin’s slave, he fully discarded all his pride as a Seventh-level Spell Caster.

People like Ernie might not become high achievers, but in Merlin’s eyes, these were the type of people he needed. Watson, on the other hand, though he could not disobey Merlin, he was ultimately unable to discard his pride as a Seventh-level Spell Caster.

Wizard Watson’s attitude could be considered to be normal. After all, he was a high-level Spell Caster and held a certain level of dignity associated with being a Seventh-level Spell Caster. Therefore, despite becoming a slave, he upheld his dignity.

In Merlin’s eyes, Watson’s usefulness was limited because he was quite normal. If they were ever faced with a highly dangerous situation, Merlin would choose to sacrifice Watson instead of Ernie.

Wizard Ernie was similar to Wizard Banmou in the sense that Merlin could use them as an extension of himself, and thus, they were able to help him solve a lot of problems.

“Master!”

When Merlin walked out of the house, Wizard Ernie immediately noticed and acknowledged him respectfully.

Wizard Watson hesitated slightly but came to Merlin’s side.

Merlin nodded slightly. “Throughout this time, did the Frost Lord come?”

“Master, the Frost Lord never came,” Wizard Ernie replied after pondering for a while.

Merlin was slightly surprised to hear that the Frost Lord did not come at all in the last three months. After all, before Merlin entered the Frost Pond, he signed a contract with the Frost Lord to defeat another snow sprite. Now three months had passed, yet the Frost Lord had not initiated any action. It was very strange indeed.

“Come, let’s go out and see.”

With both Ernie and Watson by his side, Merlin exited the isolated courtyard and headed towards the outside world.

The palace of the Frost Lord was extremely luxurious. The main color scheme was white, yet it seemed perfectly spotless, so it was obvious that the snow sprites cleaned the palace quite often.

Moreover, Merlin could also see a large number of snow sprites scurrying in and out of the palace complex. Ordinarily, there were very few of them outside.

They were similar to flame sprites, who were also extremely rare. Merlin had only ever encountered one flame sprite, and it was inside the ancient monuments. Even then, the flame sprite had been captured by the Great Wizard Dowland, the owner of the ancient monuments, who then imprisoned it for thousands of years.

Flame sprites and snow sprites were both elemental sprites, but inside the Frost Lord’s palace complex, the number of snow sprites was unexpectedly bountiful. Their population was so dense that they seemed to be everywhere.

Wizard Ernie stole a look at Merlin and seemed to notice the look of disbelief on his face, so he carefully explained. “Master, one of the reasons there are so many snow sprites here is because they don’t have a limited lifespan, so they could live for more than tens of thousands of years. Therefore, as time passes, it is not impossible for the number of snow sprites to slowly accumulate to its current population size in the Frost Lord’s palace.”

“Additionally, Subzero Snowfield is covered in thick snow all year long, so it’s like a wonderland for Ice-type Spell Casters. With the high concentration of Ice Elements, more snow sprites are born here compared to anywhere else.”

“However, the real reason behind the incredible population of snow sprites is the Frost Lord’s influence. With the Frost Lord’s protection, these snow sprites would not be captured by other Spell Casters and can live peacefully. Otherwise, no matter how many snow sprites there were, the Spell Casters would not cease their actions.”

Listening to Wizard Ernie’s explanation, Merlin nodded darkly. It was true that no matter how many snow sprites there were, their population would not be enough to cater to the level of demand from Spell Casters.

The power of the Frost Lord protected a large population of snow sprites and provided a stable environment for them to grow.

The snow sprites in this palace all possessed the skills of a Fourth-level Spell Caster and above. However, as opposed to Spell Casters, the differences in the snow sprites’ level of abilities were determined based on their control over the Ice Elements.

Newborn snow sprites, on average, were already powerful enough that their control over the Ice Elements were comparable to a First-level Spell Caster. They were born naturally powerful and could progress up to Fourth-level rapidly with no problem.

Nevertheless, since God granted them such an advantage in the early stages, their progress would not be as smooth-sailing in the later stages. At Fourth-level, they would encounter a difficult hurdle, where many of the snow sprites would be required to undergo their first transformation.

If their transformation was successful, their control over the Ice Elements would be a cut above the rest. The Ice-type spells that they wielded would be much more powerful than Spell Casters of the same level. This was an attribute derived from their natural predispositions.

However, should the transformation be unsuccessful, these snow sprites would disappear completely and return to the air and the earth.

Moreover, this was far from over. From Fourth- to Sixth-level, snow sprites did not face any difficulties and were able to progress smoothly, but Seventh-level posed an even bigger hurdle.

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Among all the snow sprites inside the palace complex, only the Frost Lord alone had succeeded in the transformation to achieve Seventh-level. Similarly, if this transformation was successful, then the snow sprites’ abilities would be on par with Seventh-level Spell Casters with Fusion Demon Ability.

However, the specifics of how the snow sprites could undergo their transformation were not known by Ernie, Watson or even Merlin. It appeared to be a closely-guarded secret.

All the snow sprites in this palace were Fourth-level and above, which also meant that they were the ones who had undergone a successful transformation. The snow sprites below Fourth-level, who were yet to experience their first transformation, were not eligible to enter this palace.

“Bang.”

A massive crashing sound rang out, and Merlin stopped in his tracks. He raised his head to look around.

In the open space ahead of them, two powerful snow sprites appeared to be fighting. Judging from the elemental fluctuations emitted from their bodies, their controls over Ice Elements were extremely strong. These were Sixth-level snow sprites.

These two powerful Sixth-level snow sprites must have been fighting for a long time, and it was not a training spar, but a life-or-death battle!

Merlin frowned slightly and began to quietly observe the scene.

A few other snow sprites also gathered around these two snow sprites, but they did not seem to care about the public scrutiny and focused only on the intense battle between them. They controlled the Ice Elements and released a litany of powerful spells, wildly attacking each other.

Time and time again, both snow sprites injured themselves causing their body to turn slightly translucent. Once they turned completely transparent, they would collapse into nothing.

The collapse of a snow sprite was equivalent to its death!

The fight was a battle of death, but the other snow sprites surrounding them seemed like they were witnessing a common routine. They did not act other than simply observing the vicious battle between these two snow sprites.

“Gulp…”

Finally, one of the snow sprites seized the opportunity while its opponent’s attention was diverted. It cast an Ice Freeze to freeze its opponent, and then with a wide-opened mouth, it violently devoured its opponent.

Yes, devoured, as in a snow sprite just swallowed another snow sprite whole. This was Merlin’s first time witnessing this scene, so his jaw fell open with an expression of disbelief.

Like Merlin, Wizard Ernie and Wizard Watson, too, were astonished. Sixth-level snow sprites were considered powerful even in the outside world, and there were not that many of them in the palace to begin with.

The fact that the Frost Lord allowed the snow sprites to engage in a life-or-death battle was already hard to believe, but now they even devoured one another. It was incomprehensible.

Nevertheless, the other snow sprites did not seem at all surprised at the ending. Their expressions were resigned as they had already expected for it to happen. In addition, their focuses were transfixed on the snow sprite that had just devoured its companion.

Standing in a distance, Merlin’s eyes were still shining with disbelief. However, a flicker of understanding had begun to dawn on him when he sensed a change in the elemental fluctuations emitted by that snow sprite.

The elemental fluctuations on the snow sprite intensified, like a pot of boiling water that reached its boiling point.

“Boom.”

The snow sprite exploded in an instant, blowing away the snow sprites around it. With that, the snow sprite that had earlier devoured its companion collapsed.

“Another failure!”

A gentle sigh resonated behind him, and Merlin promptly turned around. Apparently unbeknownst since when, the Frost Lord had appeared behind him.

The Frost Lord’s gaze was locked on the snow sprites in a distance, its face riddled with a complicated expression. Merlin contemplated for a while and slowly spoke up. “Is this the real reason you’re protecting the snow sprites? Just so that they can devour one another to boost their abilities?”

From Merlin’s short observation, he understood that the two snow sprites were actually trying to devour one another. In order to boost their abilities, they would have to defeat their opponent to be able to swallow them.

The fact that they were able to devour their own companions in public without any fear of repercussion meant that the practice was endorsed by the Frost Lord. In the outside world, the Frost Lord had a praiseworthy reputation, but it seemed like there was a cruel side that was hidden from the public eye.

“You realized it?”

The Frost Lord’s expression did not waver. With a single glance at Merlin, the Frost Lord casually replied, “Correct. The population of snow sprites used to be extremely few in numbers, and our abilities were pathetically weak. We used to be captured by Spell Casters to boost their own powers, and there was nothing we could do. However, later on, I was fortunate enough to undergo the transformation. Through lots of experience, I found out that there was only one way for snow sprites to transform to Seventh-level, which is to devour a snow sprite of the same level.

“It’s so cruel to devour your own companions to transform! Regardless, it is our only option. Right now, the snow sprites only have me to fend-off the Spell Casters, but if I’m no longer around, the remaining snow sprites would revert into vulnerable prey for the Spell Casters once again. Therefore, more snow sprites must achieve Seventh-level, and for that purpose, they must transform!”

“Thus, I built the Frost Kingdom, so that the snow sprites will be protected in this place! Large numbers of snow sprites throng this place upon hearing the news because they would enjoy some peace for a while. However, if they want to transform and become stronger, they would have to devour their companions. It’s just that, over such a long period of time, I’m still the only snow sprite that had managed to transform after devouring a companion. The rest have all failed.”

The Frost Lord looked at the snow sprites in a distance, unconcealed sorrow on its face.