Chapter 339 The Fourth Ladder
At dusk, a seaside port in Rhea was gradually shrouded by soft golden light.
The setting sun slowly sank and dyed the sky a warm orange-red. The golden afterglow sprinkled on the sea, sparkling, as if countless tiny golden fragments were jumping in the waves, flashing charming light.
Fishing boats returned one after another in the port, drawing beautiful arcs on the sea, and the whole port was filled with a quiet and peaceful atmosphere.
In one of the many fishing boats, there was a middle-aged man in a black cloak.
The captain said nervously: "Sir, we are about to enter the port. We will meet at the port in a week. I will take you and Lord Savoy away together."
The middle-aged man had deep eyes, a calm and resolute face, like a rock that had been baptized by the years, exuding a unique charm.
His body was slightly fat, but he did not look bloated. Instead, he gave people a sense of calmness and strength. His steps were steady and powerful, and his hands were broad and powerful, revealing a kind of tenacity that had gone through vicissitudes.
Archibald.
He is Chris's best friend since childhood, the first generation of Dawnbreaker, and later the captain of the Fisher family. At Byrne's instruction, he married a Silver Elder and had children, becoming the behind-the-scenes manipulator of the Silvers in the East Coast Province. He was surpassed by the Dawnbreaker's descendant "Irritable Sava" who lurked in the Kingdom Army on the Road of Disaster, and finally stepped onto the third step "Flame Knight" one step slower.
Archibald is now a middle-aged man with gray hair and nearly fifty years old.
He often looks back on the past, and he knows one thing very well in his heart.
He will never have the chance to reach the fifth step.
But now Archibald has learned to compromise with life, knowing that many things cannot be forced, and the power of the third step "Flame Knight" has finally been completely mastered by him recently.
As long as the ceremony is completed, you can be promoted to the fourth step of the Road of Disaster, the Hand of Winter.
"Sava, who will succeed first?"
"If it weren't for the knowledge given by God a few years ago, which recorded the specific methods and rituals of how to improve, I would probably have difficulty reaching the fourth step in my life."
As long as the heart continues to produce intense emotions and creates various disasters to affect people, the extraordinary people who embark on the road of disaster can go further and further.
So over the years, Archibald has been leading the team to eliminate various disobedient natives and annihilate pirates on the White Sea, and the speed of improving his own sequence power has become significantly faster.
Now he has only one thing to do, to complete the promotion ceremony!
The name of the fourth step of the "Road of Disaster" is "Hand of Winter".
Archibald left the port and came to a snow-capped mountain in the east of Rhea in hiding.
In front of this towering white snow-capped mountain, the magnificence and mystery of nature are perfectly interpreted. The snow-capped mountain is towering into the clouds, like a sharp sword piercing the sky, and its majestic momentum is awe-inspiring.
The snow-capped mountain is covered with thick white snow, pure and sacred. Under the sunlight, the snow surface sparkles with dazzling light, like countless diamonds inlaid on the top of the mountains, emitting charming brilliance.
Archibald at the foot of the mountain looked up and saw the clouds on the top of the mountain dissipate, revealing the true appearance of the snow-capped mountain. The pure white and the deep blue sky complement each other, forming a magnificent picture.
After a while, the clouds gathered again, shrouding the snow-capped mountain in hazy mystery.
"This white snow-capped mountain is a masterpiece of nature."
In order to complete the promotion ceremony, Archibald entered the snow-capped mountain alone.
Deep in the towering snow-capped mountain is a spectacular glacier. It is like a silver dragon, winding and shuttling between the mountains, flashing mysterious light.
The sunlight penetrates the mist and sprinkles on the surface of the glacier, reflecting colorful colors. The ice in the glacier squeezes and collides with each other, making crisp sounds.
Standing near the glacier, Archibald could feel the magnificence and majesty of nature, and could also deeply appreciate the insignificance and awe of human beings in front of nature.
The cold chill continued to erode his body.
He took a deep breath, stripped off all his clothes, and then jumped into the icy river without hesitation.
At that moment, the ice water pierced his skin like a needle, and Archibald's breathing became rapid in an instant, but the determination in his eyes did not waver at all.
Ordinary people would probably die in an instant. He swam hard in the glacier. Every muscle contraction was accompanied by the interweaving of cold and pain. The ice water seemed to devour all his heat and physical strength, but Archibald's heart was as firm as a rock, and he kept telling himself that he must persist, and must persist until the last moment.
After a full hour, his limbs were gradually numb, but he still gritted his teeth and swam forward with all his strength.
No more…
The sudden thought instantly discouraged Archibald. He wanted to continue swimming, but he felt as heavy as if a weight was hanging on his body, and he could no longer swim freely.
Should he use fire? That would save him, but the ritual would fail…
At this moment, he saw a shadow at the bottom of the river, and gradually saw it clearly.
It was Sava's body!
A few days ago, Sava came to this snowy mountain by himself, but he never came out after entering. In fact, Archibald had already predicted it in his heart.
Sava…
He felt heavy-hearted. As a junior, Sava had surpassed him on the road to disaster, which had always made Archibald uncomfortable. He even couldn't help but be jealous of him.
However, Sava, who was regarded as his biggest rival in life at this moment, died here because of the failure of the promotion ceremony.
Until the end, Sava did not give up the ceremony and did not use the extraordinary power of the Flame Knight...
A strong sense of sadness surged up, and along with the grief and anger came strength.
"Puff!"
Finally, he swam the entire glacier and struggled to stand up from the water. His body was so stiff that he could hardly move, but his heart was full of the joy of victory.
Archibald stood on the shore, letting the cold wind blow on his wet body, his heart full of pride and satisfaction.
He looked into the river.
"Sava, thank you."
After returning to Nasir with Sava's body, he finally reached the fourth step "Hand of Winter".
Archibald's physical fitness increased by 150, his spiritual strength increased by 50, and he also gained two extraordinary powers, namely "Ice Solidification" and "Winter Power".
The former allows him to be surrounded by absolutely hard ice and enter a forced dormant state, from which he can sleep for a long time before coming out, and even ordinary monarchs and strong men cannot easily break that hard ice.
The latter gives Archibald the ability to manipulate ice and can instantly create the effect of ice and snow within hundreds of meters.
After returning to Nasir City, he stood quietly beside the newly dug tomb, his face was full of traces of time, but his eyes were full of endless sorrow and determination.
Archibald held a handful of soil in his hand and decided to sprinkle it on the resting place he prepared for his friend.
"Rest in peace, Sava."
His back stretched out in the afterglow of the sunset, lonely and desolate, with no tears on his face, but his deep eyes were full of unspeakable grief.
He lowered his head and slowly sprinkled the soil in his hand into the tomb. Every grain of soil carried his reluctance and bid a final farewell to his friend.
The air around him seemed to be frozen, with only the occasional sound of birds singing and the rustling of leaves in the wind from afar. Archibald took a deep breath, and his eyes became more firm and resolute.
He stood up and clapped his hands gently.
"Perhaps this is the fate of us extraordinary people. Sooner or later, everyone will die, Sava... I don't know when I will die, but I know why I will die."
"I will not die because of aging. I will definitely die while fighting for the Fisher family and the Dawn Cult. Believe me!"
