Upon seeing his severely injured comrade-in-arms led by Scarface, there was a hint of anger in Yuanhui's eyes. Scarface wielded his sword, channeling the power of the star core. Seeing the dazzling light, Yuanhui surmised that this middle-aged man was already in the middle stage of Nine Hearts, or even at a more advanced level.

Facing such a formidable opponent, Yuanhui quickly entered battle mode. As the giant sword viciously struck the blade of the middle-aged man, the blade shattered in an instant!

Scarface, in a panic, threw away his sword and dodged behind Yuanhui, who was slowed by the weight of the giant sword.

"Heh heh, young man, this sword of yours packs quite a punch!" Scarface mocked.

At that moment, Yuanhui swiftly absorbed the giant sword into his bracelet, while the faint blue star core power on his left hand rapidly condensed into a Dragonback Fist, countering Scarface's Dark King Fist.

A powerful gust of wind hit him, causing Yuanhui, who was outclassed in strength, to be sent flying. He realized that his underdog status was due to the immense physical attack of the giant sword and the massive expenditure of star core power.

Several burly men from the barbarian tribe rushed forward, trapping the fallen Yuanhui.

Scarface furiously pointed at the other followers, "What are you waiting for? Carry this lad to the camp. Do I have to teach you a lesson?"

Although the others looked reluctant, being subordinate to Scarface, they had no choice but to obey.

Alone in their territory, the guards led them into the entrance of the village. The guards even saluted Scarface respectfully. Yuanhui noted Scarface's military rank as a general.

In the camp, many were celebrating, seemingly overjoyed by some event or the news from the commander, making everyone excited.

Scarface locked Yuanhui in a tent next to the commander's headquarters. From his vantage point, Yuanhui could only see the situation inside the commander's quarters by looking up.

Seated at the high table was a large middle-aged man with a rugged beard exuding the air of a highlander. Beside him sat a young woman with rosy cheeks and long purple hair cascading down to her waist.

Disgusted by the commander's behavior, punishing even a young girl decades younger than himself, Yuanhui thought, "Scum!"

Seeing the girl's delicate profile filled with sorrow and confusion, Yuanhui couldn't help but feel pity for her innocence.

"Haha, truly my daughter, Ikuk's daughter," the commander exclaimed, placing his hand on the girl's shoulder. "Her talent has reached the level of Nine Stages. Our future ruler!"

Inebriated with happiness and alcohol, the commander did not hold back his excitement.

"So they are really father and daughter?" Yuanhui felt a tinge of shame for his misjudgment.

"Hehehe, hiccup!" Ikuk belched, then continued, "Let's drink to our future queen of Ineel!"

Although no dishes had been touched, after a few rounds of drinks, the guests all passed out on the ground. The girl helplessly called the guards outside to take the commander and the colonel to the residential area of the village.

When the guards left, Yuanhui, feeling famished, gnawed through the ropes like a starving dog, then climbed in through the window of the commander's quarters and gorged on the food and drink.

"Mmm, what a waste!" he muttered to himself, criticizing the extravagance as he stuffed his mouth full of meat and vegetables, mumbling incomprehensibly.

At that moment, a figure walked in - the daughter of Ikuk. She met the greasy-mouthed, bewildered Yuanhui face to face.

Disoriented by hunger, he wiped the food residue from his mouth and stared back at the puzzled girl with round eyes.

He regretted giving in to his appetite just now instead of making a run for it!

"Uh, well... Miss, should I tidy up the place here?" Yuanhui didn't know what to say, so he just blurted out.

"Ha," the young girl let out a tinkling laugh, "Hahaha, that's so funny."

With oil dripping from her mouth, the behavior and speech of Yuanhui, who acted like a theater actor, amused her.

But he himself was embarrassed at the moment, when the young lady spoke up: "It's okay, I won't tell my father about that barbarian."

The girl told Yuanhui, "But you have to take me out of this village!"

"What?" Yuanhui confirmed he hadn't misheard; there was such a good environment here, so many loved ones around, yet why did this girl still want to leave?

"This is your home, why would you want to leave?"

"Home?" The girl Iniel snorted coldly, crossed her arms over her chest, and grumbled, "That guy keeps making me train all the time, and it's always around this village. I've had enough."

After hearing this, Yuanhui dispelled the thought of trying to persuade her.

But if not, he would only be adding a burden to himself, and it would be even less likely to escape. Just then, the girl took out two sets of white military uniforms, handed one to Yuanhui, and said, "Remember, if someone points a finger at you, you tell them ‘Our lonely snowfield is our home...' Don't forget, they might recognize my accent!"

After changing clothes, the girl's face blushed slightly, because in the white military uniform, he looked like a prince straight out of a fairy tale!

Yuanhui chuckled helplessly, fixed his collar, and made his way to the camp gate, pretending to be clueless.

Just when the two of them were feeling lucky, a furious shout made them freeze.

"Dad?" The girl quivered, facing the seemingly terrifying Ikuk behind her. "Daughter, where are you going so late? And who is this guy?"

Yuanhui was petrified; he was that guy!

Ikuk demanded sternly, "Turn around, soldier!"

Bound by Ikuk's strict military discipline, Yuanhui nervously turned around.

"Hey!" Yuanhui greeted Ikuk with a smile, his face twitching.

"Hmm? Soldier, why haven't I seen you before?" Yuanhui had nothing to worry about; the major who was supposed to arrest him was already drunk. But Ikuk had an excellent memory and insisted he was not from there!

So, sweating profusely, Yuanhui was once again dragged back to the military camp, realizing he was in deep trouble this time!

"Darling daughter, how many times have I told you, the outside world is extremely cruel, you must be mentally prepared!" Ikuk seemed very opposed to Iniel's involvement, and understandably so, given the current chaos outside, with the Godrealm regime decaying. The people were oppressed by the powerful nobles, the strength of the Snow Field Barbarians threatened the royal family, and the Star Empire kept retreating in the Central Plains war zone. The arbitrary power of the Godrealm was alienating the people, driving away the old saint emperor Wuyanze, who was now unpopular.

How could Ikuk let his daughter wander around in such turbulent times?

Ikuk grabbed Yuanhui's shoulder and asked, "Who are you? You don't seem to be a soldier here."

Having been exposed, he had to explain the whole situation: "Hahaha, for such a trivial matter to bring my little brother here... I'm sorry, I'll teach him a lesson later."

Preparing to instruct his daughter, Ekuk seemed to have second thoughts. "Wait, little brother, why are you thinking of taking my daughter away?"

As friendly as this person was, he wasn't very sharp in the head.

"Well, Yuanhui asked me to take her out, so I..." In this tense moment, Yuanhui couldn't find the words to explain.

However, Ekuk didn't press the matter further. Instead, he directed his anger towards Inel, "Girl, remember, without my permission, you are absolutely not allowed to go beyond this village. Do you understand?"

"Hmph!" Inel grunted in dissatisfaction, but being in the same difficult position as Ekuk, she could do nothing about it.

"I hope you can keep the family matters secret for me, little brother. Do not spread it around."

Ekuk immediately ordered his people to prepare wine and food to apologize to Yuanhui, while singing a self-composed song: "Hehe, we people of the plateau are the most hospitable..."

The night in Snow City was so peaceful. Outside the city, thick snow covered the entire snowy plain, with only a few snow wolves hunting for food.

"Hehe, Snow City, Zhang, do you know the strength of defense of this Snow City?"

A pale-haired old man in a golden robe stood less than three kilometers away from Snow City, hunching his body.

"Reporting, General Poison. The defense of Snow City is maintained by only an old Lord Ekuk at the Intermediate Undying Level, and a council meeting with their top general at the Intermediate Undying Level as well."

"Oh?" The old man smiled slightly, revealing a fierce expression. "With such weak defense, inform the Royal Army that they can march in."

Without hesitation, the official immediately ordered the attack on Snow City. "Soldiers, listen up, the general has ordered not to leave a single person alive in Snow City!"

The flag of Godrealm fluttered above the golden-robed old man's head. An evil smile spread across his face, his eyes betraying a hint of cunning.

"Hehehe," due to his daughter's impressive performance, Ekuk had been forgiving and magnanimous these days, raising his glass in hopes that Yuanhui, who didn't usually drink, would join him for a toast.

Although Yuanhui, at only fourteen years old, hesitated, he couldn't resist Ekuk's enthusiasm and had his first drink of alcohol. As it was his first time drinking, one glass of wine made his face flushed with alcohol, making everything appear twice its size.

Fortunately, the power of the Star Core quickly cleared the alcohol from his body.

Not only was he worried at that moment, but Inel was also troubled by her father. She silently made a wish, hoping her father could understand her and allow her to venture out on her own.

Returning to her room, she took out a pen and paper and wrote, "I hope father can give me a pair of wings to fly, so I can leave my hometown and explore these unknown places."

Once finished, she folded the note as she usually did and placed it in a mini flying chess piece, aiming it towards the northern border of the Northern Territory.

She hoped the gods could hear her call. In the back city of Snow City, Inel prayed quietly, though her prayers were heard by the Death God from Hell and the Disaster God from the dark!

At the command center, Yuanhui received a warm reception from the Chief General Ilet and the Lord Ekuk.

"Little brother, it seems the situation outside doesn't look too good!" These people, isolated from the world for years, had no idea about the outside world, let alone the earth-shattering crisis hidden in the snowfield!

Yuanhui seemed to remember what his teacher had told him, that there was an ancient site on this snowy plain, containing ancient powers.

This power was even regarded with awe by the locals, and the temple ruins were extremely difficult to find, even back then, as Ikuk recalled.

"At that time, our family was still very poor, trying to survive the winter in Snow City. I went hunting with the younger generation of our family," Ikuk said, rubbing his slightly sleepy eyes.

Ikuk shifted his thoughts to thirteen years ago, saying, "Back then, it seemed like I was in the northwest of the snowy plains and discovered a magnificent palace in the distance amidst heavy snowfall!"

As Ikuk reached this point in his story, he tugged at his red felt hat again.