"The Ice Palace—have you heard of it?" Evan Yang asked curiously, still worried about the safety of a few acquaintances inside the Ice Palace.
"Ice Palace? Isn't that the snow beasts' sacred ground? What's going on?" Mad Wolf's understanding was that the Ice Palace was a holy site for snow beasts, appearing at unpredictable locations, but the strongest snow beasts could easily sense its presence whenever it surfaced.
Evan nodded, "You're right. Something major just happened." Seeing that Mad Wolf didn't know, Evan recounted the events to him.
After Mad Wolf and Minnie Dale finished listening, Minnie didn't react much, but Mad Wolf frowned, "Is that so?"
"Right now, people from Northsource and the snow beasts are still fighting inside the Ice Palace," Evan said.
"I didn't expect such chaos in the Ice Palace, and for there to be a space beneath it like that." Evan also told Mad Wolf about the underground chamber, making Mad Wolf find the Ice Palace even stranger.
"Those freak snow beasts were after the treasure, but you snatched it instead. You've got some guts." Mad Wolf couldn't figure it out, but then laughed and looked at Evan.
"Just curiosity, that's all," Evan smiled.
Just then, a woman's voice called out, "Since you've come, come in."
The owner of the voice was none other than the Snow Wraith—the very woman Evan had once stumbled upon, lying atop the Ice Coffin beneath Snow Lake.
"Go on in. She's been excited for ages ever since she heard you reached late-stage Spirit-Wandering," Mad Wolf said, giving Evan a look and sending him a voice transmission.
Late-stage Spirit-Wandering? Why would she be so excited about that? Evan was puzzled. He wasn't very familiar with this woman—no real friendship, maybe just a bit of guilt for having been used as someone else's pawn and accidentally breaking her restriction.
But since the host called, Evan's curiosity won out and he walked resolutely into the cave. Minnie Dale and Mad Wolf waited outside.
"Wolf Uncle, do you think Brother Evan will be all right?" Minnie Dale asked worriedly.
"He'll be fine. Seeing how excited she is, I doubt she'd harm him. I just can't figure out why she's so worked up," Mad Wolf replied. He didn't believe the woman would hurt Evan—after so many years together here, she was the easiest person to get along with.
Evan was also curious why she was so excited. Following his old memories, he walked deeper, finally arriving at the small chamber, where an ice coffin lay. The woman rested inside, eyes closed.
"Come here," the woman's voice echoed in the chamber.
Evan slowly approached the ice coffin, gazing at the seemingly young and beautiful woman. He knew she was actually very old—lying here only to prolong her life.
"Let your aura out. I want to see it," the woman said, her voice trembling with excitement as it reached Evan.
Evan understood she wanted to test if he'd truly reached late-stage Spirit-Wandering, so he immediately released his aura. When the woman sensed Evan really had advanced, she exclaimed, "Unbelievable, unbelievable—just a few years, and you've already become so remarkable."