Dawn had barely broken when the joint search parties assembled at the coordinates where Leoric's captors had maintained their temporary camp.
The morning air was crisp with frost, and the breath of both Drake and Northwind cultivators mingled in visible clouds as they prepared for what could become the most crucial mission in either family's recent history.
Seraphina Northwind stood at the center of the operation, her silver hair catching the pale sunlight like spun ice. Despite the early hour and the stress of the previous day's revelations, her cultivation aura remained perfectly controlled—a testament to decades of discipline forged in the harshest climate on the continent.
Beside her, Supreme Elder Theron Drake reviewed tactical formations with the methodical precision of a veteran commander.
