8 PM.

Outside the northeast corner of Wenster, in the forest.

Because this area is beyond Wenster, there isn't even a single streetlamp.

The forest is pitch black, with only the snow clinging to the branches reflecting the distant glow of the city, casting some light.

This light reveals a few shadows.

At this moment, a group of black-robed figures stands silently in the forest, as if they've merged into the darkness.

They don't even exhale any visible breath.

It's essential to understand that even though it's no longer snowing, the air is exceptionally cold.

The expression "exhale ice" is no exaggeration.

This group resembles apparitions.

But they are not ghosts.

They were invited by the King of Wenster to gather and are about to journey to Saint Kuanti.

Ethan is naturally among them.

However, he has already donned his mask, and Anya stands beside him.

The wait has been going on for a while.

With no one else appearing, the host of the gathering, the King of Wenster, finally appears.

It's unclear when he arrived; suddenly, he stood in front of the crowd.

"Gentlemen, I am delighted by your arrival. You are the true pillars of the Northern Lands, and I am proud of you."

No one spoke; everyone remained silent.

In truth, those who came weren't really here to become any pillars; most were probably here for that third-level alchemical artifact.

Ethan had already done a quick headcount.

Only twenty-one people are participating in this action, far fewer than the number at the previous gathering.

Clearly, not everyone is greedy for treasures.

Many are afraid of death.

Furthermore, several among them aren't those who were aboard the ship that day.

For instance, Danny and George.

Ethan had memorized their auras long ago. Even in robes and masks, Ethan could recognize them.

But it seems they couldn't identify Ethan.

After the King of Wenster's brief speech, he instructed them to head out and get on the vehicles.

Exiting the dense forest, they saw two large trucks parked in the darkness of the night.

The wheels of both trucks were wrapped with chains and had other modifications, clearly prepared for long-distance icy journeys.

Ethan has trucks among his subordinates, but they are far inferior to these two, whether in model, refinement, or preparatory measures for the vehicles.

Thinking back to the ship used for the gathering hosted by the King of Wenster.

This person's identity is truly a mystery.

Ethan couldn't yet figure out who he really is.

What is certain is that he's a person of high status and wealth.

Ethan was assigned to the second truck.

Danny and George were assigned to the first truck.

Upon boarding, Ethan was surprised to find someone he knew.

A black-robed figure approached him and whispered, "Godfather, is that you? I am Huoyan."

Hearing this, Ethan's eyes narrowed slightly. Despite changing his mask and concealing his aura, how did this guy notice?

"Don't misunderstand. I just sensed the resonance of my creation nearby, and it felt new, so I guessed it was you."

Huoyan sensed Ethan's hostility and quickly explained.

This explanation was reasonable enough.

After all, Huoyan is an Alchemist.

"Why are you here too? Aren't you an Alchemist?"

Alchemists are in high demand; even staying at home, they can live comfortably, let alone lack alchemical creations.

"You wouldn't understand. The areas of memetic contamination often yield extraordinary alchemical materials."

When mentioning alchemical materials, Huoyan's tone became fervent.

It was clear he was intensely passionate about alchemy.

He was willing to risk himself for the materials.

But only such a dedicated person could grow into an Alchemist, right?

"Godfather, your wine is excellent. I really like it. Let's team up for mutual support."

Huoyan proposed at this moment.

"No problem."

Ethan nodded in agreement.

The truck started moving.

The interior of the vehicle had excellent insulation, with decent internal fixtures; they were seated on leather sofas.

This was clearly the result of modifications.

Swaying in the vehicle, Ethan's mind recalled the information about Saint Kuanti.

He had read quite a bit recently.

The history of Saint Kuanti dates back over a hundred years.

It was the early days of the Kingdom's establishment when Wenster was just an emerging city, and the Kingdom's exploration of the Northern Lands was not comprehensive; Saint Kuanti was simply a frozen plain.

At that time, the relationship between the Kingdom and the Church was very good; you could see the Church's influence everywhere. It could be said that the Church, especially the Sun God Sect, played a significant role in the Kingdom's development of the New Continent.

The development of Saint Kuanti was one such effort.

At that time, there were some indigenous people in Saint Kuanti, living in igloos, living primitively, with no signs of education.

A missionary called Kuanti from the Sun God Sect volunteered to go there to spread the faith, swearing to transform it into a land bathed in sunlight.

Initially, no one supported him because the frozen plain where Saint Kuanti was located was too cold for ordinary people to live, and the residents were entirely inaccessible and extremely isolated.

Kuanti went there alone, walking into the frozen plain with nothing but a staff.

He began interacting and preaching with the people there.

Years passed like this.

People had already forgotten about this missionary.

Then, someone came from the direction of the frozen plain. This person had clearly indigenous features but was wearing a priest's garb and spoke fluent Common Language. He went to Wenster and found the Sun Church, claiming the frozen plain had been illuminated by the Sun, but Kuanti was dying, and he wanted the Lord to witness his achievements before his death.

The Sun Church was shocked to hear this and immediately dispatched priests to the frozen plain, where they saw a city had risen from the frosty land.

Even a never-freezing harbor had somehow formed on the shores beside the city.

The whole city became less cold, at least inhabitable for people.

However, by the time they arrived, Kuanti had already passed away.

In honor of his contributions, the Sun Church elevated him to sainthood, and the city was named Saint Kuanti.

Judging from this story, it seems unrelated to the current memetic contamination.

But memetic contamination is often caused by ancient relics or artifacts of true names.

In the history of Saint Kuanti, the only thing that could be related to this seems to be the Saint from back then.

Jostled by the ride, Ethan pondered these things.

And the city once established by the Saint, now a perilous place, was gradually unfolding before him.

By the afternoon of the next day, Saint Kuanti arrived.

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