Li Yuan’s goals were clear. He didn’t want war, nor did he want to become the next great tyrant looking to conquer the land after the turmoil of the Central Plains. But first he had to twist these tribes into a single rope; reasoning with them about ethics, morality, and strategy would fail where a clear banner would not. Once they stood united, the right to interpret that banner would be his.
Suljagar’s eyes lit like coals. “Then what comes first?”
“To step into the wider world,” Li Yuan said, “we must finish three tasks—
“First is to master the Everflame. We must learn exactly how it grants strength and harness it deliberately, not passively.
“Second is studying the Deathless Tomb. This land is steeped in mystery; I want to know why.
“Third is unifying the tribes of the tundra. If we don’t settle our house here, we’ll tear each other apart out there.”
Suljagar nodded. “There are nine tribes in all. Long ago, we called ourselves the Nine Flames because we all worship the same flame, though the name’s been forgotten. To rule the Nine Flames, you’ll need more than power; you’ll need acceptance. No one outside the nine can command us, no matter how strong.”
“Yes. Our folk bow only to the mightiest, and in all my years I’ve seen no one stronger than you. But you must win the approval of the other tribes.”
“How?” Li Yuan asked without a trace of pride.
Suljagar burst out laughing. “Tell me, how did you become a Jen’gal, a Trueflame?”
Li Yuan rubbed his brow. “Surely I don’t need eight wives?”
Eyes gleaming, Suljagar shook his head. “Just one woman, the Wolfmother.”
“Every generation, there is a Wolfmother. She can tame the blizzard direwolves with a gesture. All the great wolves of every tribe come from her hand, and every tribe respects her. No man has ever made the Wolfmother his woman...but I think you might. The previous Wolfmother loved a man once, bore him a child. But that child did not inherit the title.”
“I’ll try,” Li Yuan said. Hope was slim, but it was the cleanest path. If the Wolfmother chose him, the Nine Flames would follow.
Suljagar nodded. “She wanders. When she appears, I’ll tell you. Until then, you’re free. As the Grand Elder, you may command the young warriors—patrols, hunts, expeditions—whatever you wish. Food will be brought to you; your duty is to face the strongest enemy when battle comes.”
Li Yuan asked, “Where do you rank among the tundra warriors?”
“Top five,” Suljagar said, flicking snow‑scarred fingers.
“Impressive,” Li Yuan breathed.
Suljagar grunted. “You asked earlier why we must leave? The flame drifts—slowly, but always—toward the Deathless Tomb. When it reaches there, no one knows what will happen.”
Li Yuan’s pupils tightened.
Li Yuan returned to his residence.
Outside, Snow had just pegged the last stake of their new tent—much closer to the bonfire, where the air lay soft as spring. She waved when she saw him.
The two agreed to get another night of sleep before setting off for the Deathless Tomb.
Li Yuan sat by the flame, first eight meters back, then inching forward, gauging how it stirred his shadow blood. The warmth kept it humming, alive.
He studied the fire. It was born from nothing, needing no fuel, and was mild enough to sit beside. Yet it was undeniably fire.
If it’s fire, something must feed it... And what draws it toward the Deathless Tomb? Li Yuan found no answers.
Around him, tribesmen sat in reverent silence, drinking in the heat like hunters of the primordial dawn.
Snow appeared, now in a fur skirt and wrap. She folded her long white legs and leaned against him, gazing at the flames.
“Snow,” he murmured, “could I ever gain a body as strong as yours?”
“Only if you’re born by the fire,” she said, matter‑of‑fact.
“Born by the fire...” he echoed.
Seeing his mood dim, Snow brightened and said, “Did you know our legends say the sun used to rest here? One day, the gods drove it away in disgust, and the tundra fell into Evernight.”
“So, you’re saying these flames are the embers left behind by the sun?” Li Yuan asked.
“Maybe, no one really knows,” Snow replied. “I once climbed a mountain outside to see for myself, but I saw something strange.”
The sun...Wait, the sun! Li Yuan thought to himself. I’m in the far west. The sun clearly sets in the west. So why is there no daylight here?
In his previous world, such endless darkness might be explained by tidal locking—a planet showing one face to its star. But if that were true, the Great Zhou would never see night at all...
The riddle of fire and shadow only deepened under the silent, crimson glow. Yet everything beyond the tundra looked perfectly normal. This could only mean something was very wrong, seriously wrong.
Snow went on talking to herself. “I watched the sun sink in the west, straight toward this frozen land, but...”
“Has the Evernight Line ever had a clear day?” Li Yuan asked.
She understood the new term at once and shook her head. “No, it’s always dark and snowing here.”
“Then when spring comes, we should find the last place the sunlight reaches,” he said.
After a little more back‑and‑forth, they both grew drowsy and turned in for the night. Their new tent was only a handful of steps from the bonfire, making Li Yuan feel like he was out on a camping trip in his old world.
The bed was a slab of hard frost‑stone. They bathed with melted snow, tangled for a stormy moment of passion, and fell asleep in each other’s arms.
Li Yuan and Snow got up. They wrapped themselves in fur with a single lazy gesture and stepped outside.
A slab of stone laden with roast meat soon appeared, along with a rough cup of water steeped in red unknown berries. The drink was tart but bracing.
After eating, they walked to the wolf pens. The Trueflame Tribe kept six direwolves. Four rotated patrol duty, one belonged solely to Suljagar, and one was used for special errands.
Li Yuan requested a mount; the keeper led out a wolf nearly two meters at the shoulder, the numbers 500 ~ 900 shimmering above its head.
“Grand Elder,” the keeper said, “this beast is already tamed. Any tribesmen may ride her.”
“Thanks be to the Wolfmother,” Li Yuan replied.
“Thanks be to the Wolfmother,” the keeper replied.
Li Yuan pulled Snow up to sit before him. She held the reins; he wrapped an arm around her waist.
The direwolf trotted clear of the settlement, then shot forward in a blur of wind.
The Everflame always guided the Trueflame home. In the same vein, the Deathless Tomb served as a guide too.
The world was pitch‑black. Icy gales lashed at the faces of Li Yuan and Snow.
Ahead, in the void, faint blue glimmers appeared. They were huge ice crystals staked into the snow like colossal ornaments, sketching a narrow, jagged outline.
Snow’s eyes turned crimson, bright as rubies in sunlight; the change let her see clearly.
“Darling, we’re here.”
“Can we go farther in?”
“Yes. We can even enter the Deathless Tomb, but we mustn’t linger. Stay too long and you never leave.”
“You’ve been inside before?”
“Then guide us in and describe everything you see. The moment you sense danger, we withdraw.”
Li Yuan himself could barely see; the sheer cold of this land seemed to smother an ordinary man’s senses.
The wolf stepped across the boundary.
Snow kept a wary eye on the surroundings and narrated, “Countless ice crystals... Ghost‑blue, beautiful... A towering arch of crystal, like a frozen gate...”
Li Yuan listened in silence.
After a pause she whispered, “We’ve reached the burial ground.”
His sight was almost gone; the place had blinded him.
“Take charge, Snow. The instant anything feels wrong, turn back.”
“There’s no threat here,” she said softly. “This is where everyone on the tundra is laid to rest. We must walk along the edge, respectful, never disturbing them.”
“So many people,” she murmured. “They’re lying on the ground, bodies frozen stiff.”
“They wear only thin clothes so the fabric won’t fuse to flesh... Each one rests in a different pose, all covered in those blue crystals. It’s strangely beautiful.”
Her description tugged at something in Li Yuan’s mind. It reminded him of the ice coffin ghost, covered in thin fabrics and wandering the snowfields. It searched for coffins, turning any hollow that fit its body into a frozen grave.
His brow tightened. This felt far from simple. If this place could breed a ghost,, perhaps it wasn’t truly the Deathless Tomb at all.
Could it be that everyone had been deceived? Was the real tomb elsewhere?