"...So, they're not having a bad life. They're being hunted, hiding here and there like rats! And my father, mother, brothers and sisters... I don't even know if they're dead or alive now!"

Enzo's voice was choked with sobs and suppressed anger.

The room was silent, with only the crackling of the wood burning in the fireplace as the sound was heard.

After a long moment, Enzo took a deep breath, as if he had made a huge decision. He stood up and faced Mark and the other two, his tone heavy and resolute:

"Boss, Monica, Anna... I... I have to go find them. I know this is dangerous and could potentially implicate the entire team. Our mission is complete, you... you can go back to Osborne Town first. This is my own business. Besides, when we left Starfall Lake, we agreed that once we returned to the Arctic Ice Field, we would split up..."

Monica, who had long since returned to her normal state, hummed softly, crossed her legs gracefully, and traced the dagger's blade with her fingertips. "The Star-Moon Church? The Dark Church? Is it an orthodox church? I've long felt that there's something fishy about that woman in the Black Gold Gang. Let's take this opportunity to see what kind of people the Star-Moon Church is. I'm very interested in this 'research'."

Her tone was cold, but her meaning was clear.

Anna leaned against the cold stone wall, her emerald green eyes looking particularly sharp in the shadows. She simply nodded and said simply, "Let's go together."

Little Mu came out from Anna's cloak, jumped onto Enzo's broad shoulders, rubbed his cheek with his smooth and soft body, and made a soft "muwu" sound.

Mark didn't say anything. He just walked up to Enzo, reached out his hand and shook Enzo's fist, which was clenched with nervousness.

He looked into Enzo's eyes, his tone calm but unquestionable: "Although we had some misunderstandings in the cave at the bottom of Starfall Lake, along the way, you forged weapons and equipment for us, accompanied us in training and adventures, and at Witch Dragon Lake, who was the one who rushed to the front to block the magical attack for us?"

Enzo was stunned.

Mark continued, "In Anchor Bay City, who was the one who followed me into the Enlightenment Society's encirclement without saying a word?"

He paused, his voice firmer. "The Graybeards are your family, and you, Enzo Graybeard, are family to our team. Family doesn't let family face the storm alone."

Enzo's lips trembled and his eyes were completely red. He held Mark's hand tightly with his backhand, and the huge force squeezed Mark's bones so hard that they creaked, but he did not let go at all.

"But... Boss, it's really dangerous..."

"When isn't it dangerous?" Mark interrupted him with a smile. "Don't forget, we're now a team 'watched by the gods.' Whether they're good gods or evil gods, they're all gods! It just so happens that I want to see how much more formidable the church forces in this Arctic glacier are compared to the masters of the Enlightenment Society and the Holy Light Church."

The next morning, the team politely declined the Red Beard Clan's repeated requests to stay, took the fur coats given by the Red Beard Clan and set off on their journey.

Before leaving, Elder Bruno secretly handed Enzo a piece of old parchment that roughly depicted the ice field terrain and marked several dangerous areas and possible hiding places while no one was paying attention.

"Take care, child. May Mornlock guide your hammer." The elder whispered and quickly turned and left.

Enzo didn't know if the Lord God of Mornlock would jump out and give him a thundering blow if he heard this prayer.

Standing in the biting cold wind of the ice field, Enzo took a last look at the magnificent and warm black iron fortress behind him, then turned around resolutely.

His eyes turned to the northeast direction where countless cracks and dangers were marked on the parchment, the Endless Ice Rift Valley.

He took a deep breath of cold air and said in a firm voice:

"Black Anvil, Silent Stone, Deep Furnace... No matter which one of you, hold on! Graybeard's bloodline has returned!"

…

One day after leaving the Redbeard Clan's underground castle.

Before Enzo's worries about his tribe had completely dissipated, Mark's team met new friends in the vast white snow of the Arctic ice field.

A group of blind icefield horse bandits.

These guys rode on skinny but extremely cold-resistant ice reindeer, wrapped in dirty animal skins, and their faces were covered with antifreeze grease and stains.

Brandishing rusty or bone-made weapons, they rushed out from behind a snow slope, howling and trying to block the way of Mark's team, which looked like a "fat sheep".

The leader of the bandits was a one-eyed burly man with a loud voice and clichéd lines:

"Hey! This mountain is mine! This tree is... uh, there's no tree here! Anyway, give me the food, drinks, valuables, and even the equipment you have! Leave it all to me!"

Enzo was already fuming from the cold wind on the icy plains, but when he saw this, he glared and leaped to the front of the team, carrying his rune forging hammer.

"Fuck! Where did this blind thief come from? You're itching and want Grandpa Enzo to loosen it up, right?"

The battle was a foregone conclusion.

It can't even be called a battle.

Anna's arrows accurately pierced through the fur hats of several horse bandits, pinning them to the spot and preventing them from moving.

Monica's dagger was placed on the bandit leader's neck like a ghost, and the cold touch instantly sobered him up.

Mark didn't even do much, he just held up the holy light shield and blocked a few weak bone arrows. The faint holy light aura in this land of chaotic faith actually scared some of the more superstitious horse bandits into becoming weak in the knees.

The only minor trouble is that these horse bandits are not good at fighting, but they are very skilled at escaping and begging for mercy.

As soon as he saw that he had hit a wall, he immediately knelt down and kowtowed, crying and shouting, saying that he had an eighty-year-old mother and a three-year-old child at home, and that he was forced to rob because of life, and that life on the ice was too hard, etc.

Mark was annoyed by the noise, and was too lazy to bother with these second-level trash. He waved his hand and told them to get out.

But you can't be stopped in vain.

So, the team happily accepted a few relatively healthy reindeer and a small amount of edible dried meat from the bandits, leaving the bandits shivering and grateful, holding their heads and questioning their lives in the wind and snow.

"Tsk, this welcome ceremony on the ice field is really unique."

Mark patted the newly acquired reindeer. This guy was much better than them at traveling on foot. His thick fur could better protect him from the cold.

Even when setting up camp, you can let them lie on one side to block the wind for the team.

Enzo stuffed the stolen dried meat into his mouth and chewed it, mumbling:

"Damn, I'm so broke, I'm not even as wealthy as some of the monsters outside of Osborne!"

With the means of transportation, the team's journey was much faster.

After trudging for a while in the seemingly endless cold wind, a huge, chaotic, and completely unplanned shadow finally appeared on the distant horizon.