While Link and Emily were talking, their carriage had already followed Newt and the others into a deep canyon.
With cliffs on both sides acting as shelter, the freezing cold wind outside could not threaten this place.
Therefore, compared to the outside, it was much warmer here, and there wasn't even any snow accumulation.
Unfortunately, this relatively warm environment did not bring life to the place.
Inside the canyon, beneath the absent snow, there were only bare rocks, yet at the barren far end, a lush oasis stood upright.
With Link's eyesight enhanced by the Supersensory Charm, he could even see the densely packed wooden houses inside the oasis, small streams gently flowing, and large tracts of cultivated farmland.
"A place like this, how could there possibly be an oasis?" At this moment, Emily also sat upright, speaking with a serious face.
Beside her, Link had already taken out his wand.
This oasis now appearing in front of them was clearly suspicious.
The carriage and dog sleds quickly entered the oasis.
Link and Newt got off the vehicles, and only now did they truly feel the wonder of this oasis.
Here, it was as warm as spring, completely without the cold of the outside world. It was just like some invisible barrier was blocking all the wind and snow for this place.
Inside the oasis, there were large numbers of wooden houses and farmland and pastures in heavy medieval European style, and in the distant fields, there were even many people laboring.
Everything looked so harmonious, yet at the same time, so eerie.
And just at this moment, children's laughter caught Link's attention.
He looked in the direction of the sound and saw more than ten children of different ages running toward them, playing and chasing each other.
These children had broad noses and straight black hair, perfectly matching the features of the Inuit people.
But what they wore was not fur coats, but linen tunics.
"Woof woof woof!~"
The Forktail Hounds, panting with tongues out from exhaustion atop the sleds, began barking wildly upon seeing these children. From their grinning teeth and eager postures, Link had no doubt that they really wanted to rush up and tear these kids to pieces.
One must know, this kind of thing really had happened before.
Forktail Hounds, as magical creatures, can smell the scent of magic, and they have strong aggression toward anything other than wizards.
Perhaps frightened by the barking, the children quickly ran away.
This made Newt a little regretful, since he was very curious about the oasis, and gaining information from children would've clearly been much easier.
Beside him, Professor Kettleburn had already begun scolding the Forktail Hounds for barking at people.
But not long after, those children who had run away earlier suddenly returned. And this time, they brought some new friends.
They were exactly eight snow giant wolves, each nearly two meters tall, with bodies over four meters long!
"Woo-ha-halu!"
With a cry from the older leading child, the children and giant wolves behind him all howled together.
In an instant, those just-now-imposing Forktail Hounds instantly tucked their tails, whimpering as they cowered next to Newt.
Seeing this, the children cheered as if they had won a battle.
Link's expression turned a bit strange. Because those giant wolves, or sled dogs, although they still retained canine shapes, based on the information sensed via the Supersensory Charm, the muscle and bone density, as well as internal organ strength inside their bodies, had already reached an extremely unscientific level.
Clearly, these giant wolves were magical beasts that had been modified. And their appearance also meant that Link and his group had found the right place.
Newt clearly realized this too. He excitedly ran toward the children, raising both hands while running to signal that he had no weapons and was harmless.
And those few children, truly bold like newborn calves unafraid of tigers, actually allowed this strange man to approach them.
After that, Newt began acting like a monkey, making 'hoo hoo ha ha' sounds, while speaking and also performing some exaggerated, strange gestures.
Link could tell that Newt was trying to communicate with them.
Only… was this method really going to work?
Link deeply doubted it.
And just as Link silently shook his head, the older child in front actually seemed to understand what Newt said, nodded to him, and then ran quickly into the village.
"Ah… that's truly a miraculous linguistic talent."
Watching Newt now blending in with the children, currently studying those giant wolves, Link scratched his head and said, a bit speechless.
Hearing this, Emily also nodded in agreement.
Not long after, that older child finally returned.
Following behind him were dozens of tall, strong men holding hunting knives, and an emaciated old man with a headdress full of feather ornaments.
Newt grinned and walked up to greet them, but the old man and the strong men didn't pay him any attention at all, they just hurriedly pulled all the children into the crowd, beating them while doing so, and soon the children's crying echoed throughout the village.
Only after the kids were all taken away did the old man walk over, and say in not very fluent English to Link and Newt, "Outsiders, what is the reason for your coming?"
"It's like this, elder."
Newt still had a full smile on his face, "We came here looking for someone named Richard Seler. Do you know where he is?"
"Seler? You've come looking for Lord Seler!?"
The old man couldn't help but cry out, and the strong men around him also stirred at the mention of that name.
But soon, the old man returned to calm, nodded to himself, and said with some emotion, "Makes sense. You outsiders, if you come here, it can only be to find the Lord."
"Lord?"
Link frowned and said, "You mean, all of this area is Richard Seler's territory?"
"Exactly! Lord Seler, he is a great and kind lord! He took us in, we homeless wanderers! He created this land of miracles! And it was he who led us to believe in the God of the Snow Mountain, allowing us to live happily under the glory of the great snow mountain!"
The withered old man spoke with emotion, and when he got excited, he even trembled all over and rolled his eyes, like he could drop dead at any moment.
The strong men behind him all knelt to the ground, chanting something no one could understand.
Newt, quite cooperative, also put his hands together in a prayer gesture.
But Link and the others didn't move at all.
To be honest, they were not surprised by such a situation anymore.
In Hogwarts' History of Magic class, Professor Binns had mentioned many stories of Muggles worshiping wizards as gods in ancient times.
Even the American military during World War II had once been treated as gods by native Pacific islanders in Melanesia.
Low-level civilizations worshipping high-level civilizations as gods was actually quite normal.
In Link and the others' minds, this Richard Seler had probably used magic to win the Inuit people's devotion.
At this time, the crowd in the distance also finished their brief prayer.
Looking at Newt's rather awkward prayer gesture, the feather-adorned old man nodded in satisfaction, then pointed behind himself and said, "Outsiders, I have seen your sincerity. In that case, let me take you to meet Lord Seler!"
Link followed the direction the old man pointed, and then in the distance, a tall tower the same color as the canyon's stone came into view.
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