Over the years he spent on the snow-capped mountain, Haoyuan gradually discovered the benefits.
He didn't know when it had started, but his body had slowly become able to absorb the energy of the heavy snow.
This energy was different from the Energy Points on his panel; it was primarily directed toward strengthening his divine abilities and physical development.
For instance, under the continuous enhancement of this energy, Icy Mist had already surged far ahead of his other divine abilities.
Its current strength was likely at the level of Icy Mist corresponding to the next Life Tier.
Moreover, as time flowed by, this energy continued to steadily accumulate.
His physical development, of course, went without saying.
In short, while Icy Mist was constantly being strengthened, the energy within his body was also increasing. Though this energy could not be used to allocate points for evolution, it could be accumulated to trigger a breakthrough to the next Life Tier.
To put it more simply, this energy could be used for the growth of his Life Tier and the reinforcement of its corresponding divine ability.
However, it could not be allocated to any other evolutionary paths.
This year, the black smoke shrouding the sky finally dissipated completely, and sunlight began to slowly return to the earth.
Although the obscuring black smoke was gone, the sky had turned a pale, greenish-white and remained somewhat hazy.
The sun had become a blurry, milk-white circular spot with diffuse edges.
Haoyuan was still cosplaying as the sun; after all, without sufficient sunlight, the plants would never be able to grow lush and green.
By now, the light radiating from his eyes could illuminate most of the area surrounding the outer rim of the valley, which was his absolute limit.
The outside world, once pitch-black and blanketed in the dust of nuclear winter, had now sprouted fresh greenery under his light, draping the earth in life once more.
The territory of the dinosaurs grew wider and wider.
With the sun's gradual recovery, they began to venture into even more distant lands.
Time marched on to the thirty-fifth year.
The upper atmosphere cleared, turning the sky blue. The sun had returned to its peak, growing increasingly hot and bright.
The dinosaurs of Dinosaur Valley noticed that the two overlapping mini-suns that had once illuminated the valley had suddenly vanished.
With the outside vegetation thriving, many dinosaurs had already wandered out of the valley.
Aside from the older generation that had originally followed Haoyuan to Dinosaur Valley, the majority of the younger dinosaurs had already departed.
On a certain day in the fortieth year.
The dinosaurs' ecosystem had actually recovered. There was no longer any need for Haoyuan to do anything for them.
He ought to go hunt for new prey to accumulate energy, or fall into a deep slumber to evolve his Life Tier.
But he did not.
He remained coiled day after day amid the pure white snow on the mountain peak, watching the dinosaurs live their lives.
Until one day, the aging little hadrosaur once again climbed tremulously to the summit.
Looking at the familiar giant white serpent, it strained its throat to emit a soft, affectionate cry, its voice long, deep, and heavy with old age.
Haoyuan opened his eyes from within the snow. Seeing it so old and yet still struggling to climb to the summit, he quickly crawled out of the snowbank, exhaling a warm breath of air toward it and wrapping Wind Grace around its body.
He then exposed his soft underbelly, gesturing for the creature to lie down on him.
The elderly little hadrosaur rested against Haoyuan's belly, feeling as though it had returned to the embrace of its mother.
It was so warm and soft, filled with a nostalgia that made the dinosaur yearn.
Seven dromaeosaurs followed behind it, quiet and well-behaved as they nestled down in the nearby snow.
In truth, compared to typical small hadrosaurs, this elderly hadrosaur had already lived for an exceptionally long time.
Most other small hadrosaurs, aside from its first-generation offspring, rarely lived past twelve years, and it was virtually unheard of for any to reach a natural death at fifteen.
Yet counting this year, its lifespan had actually reached around forty-one years, which was highly extraordinary.
The aging little hadrosaur might not have been very intelligent.
But having watched generation after generation of its offspring grow old and die before it, the dinosaur, having lived for so long, could instinctively sense that its longevity was closely tied to the giant white serpent before it.
It was deeply grateful to this miraculous being for allowing it to experience a far more colorful and fulfilling life.
As the giant white serpent extended a claw to gently stroke its head, the hadrosaur felt an immense sense of peace and comfort, as if it had traveled back in time.
Ever since its mother passed away, the giant white serpent had been the dinosaur it was closest to and knew best.
In the final moments of its life, it wanted nothing more than to stay by his side.
Time ticked away second by second. The little hadrosaur had come to Haoyuan in the morning, and it stayed until dusk.
Against the backdrop of the orange-red sunset clouds, the setting sun glowed with a cozy, gentle warmth.
The warm afterglow bathing its body felt incredibly comfortable.
Under this warm, soothing comfort, the elderly little hadrosaur gradually grew drowsy.
Its eyelids drooped uncontrollably bit by bit, its eyes narrowing until they finally closed completely.
The warm setting sun still blazed with brilliant rays.
The cascading afterglow bathed the entire earth in warmth.
Haoyuan also closed his eyes in quiet comfort.
Feeling the well-behaved little fellow lying on his belly, a profound sense of tranquility washed over him.
Such a life was truly peaceful; if only time could stand still like this forever.
Once the sun dipped below the horizon and the evening breeze turned chilly, he snapped back from his warm, cozy reverie.
He softly called out to the little fellow lying on his belly, but there was no response.
Haoyuan's heart skipped a beat.
His dragon whiskers subtly reached out to check for its breath.
The peaceful, relaxed expression in his eyes gradually faded away.
Silently cradling the little fellow with his claws, he raised his body from the snow.
Seeing him like this, the dromaeosaurs instantly understood what had happened and stood up from the ground one after another.
Not a single dromaeosaur made a sound.
Haoyuan opened his mouth, feeling a suffocating grief trapped in his chest, unable to find release.
Ultimately, he remained silent.
His gaze swept across the surrounding peaks and the entirety of Dinosaur Valley before finally falling to the ground beneath him.
He placed the little hadrosaur to the side.
Extending his sickle claws, he began to dig into the spot where he had just been lying, clawful by clawful.
Soil piled higher and higher in the snow beside him.
He didn't stop until he had dug a deep pit eleven meters long, into which he gently lowered the little fellow's body.
The dromaeosaurs approached, looking at the little fellow in the deep pit, then up at Haoyuan, before lowering their heads in solemn silence.
Haoyuan stared silently at the little fellow for a long time.
A gentle breeze blew across his body.
He looked up at the starry sky, tears slowly rolling down.
Then, closing his eyes as if having made a decision, he began to slowly bury the body within the pit.
He covered it slowly, from tail to head.
Catching one last glimpse of the little fellow's peaceful sleeping face, he pushed the remaining soil over it.
The dromaeosaurs did not understand what he was doing, but they watched in silence, trying their best to commit it to memory.
A somber air of grief hung heavily between them.
Once the little fellow was buried, a dark mound of earth rose as its grave.
Haoyuan stood there for a very long time.
After a long while, he looked at the dromaeosaurs standing around him and gestured for them to return.
The dromaeosaurs slowly made their way down the mountain, turning back to look at him with every few steps.
Time flowed slowly by.
Haoyuan looked up at the starry sky and let out a long sigh before finally curling up and falling asleep beside the grave.
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