Battle Against the Ice Emperor

Hai Bodong looked at the youth in midair. Back then, he too had been just as high-spirited and full of vigor. Before he knew it, he seemed to see his younger self.

With a chuckle, he said, "Kid, if you want to fight, I'll play along. But have you prepared yourself to accept defeat?"

As he spoke the last words, he struck the ground with his palm. In an instant, the chill surged and spread throughout the area. Ice spikes over a meter tall whistled toward Xiao Heng.

Dodging two ice spikes, Xiao Heng cleaved the third in half with a single slash. Heavenly Flames churned around him as crimson Dou Qi gathered along his blade.

He said, "Now you finally have the bearing of the Ice Emperor. Let me test your icy Dou Qi. But you should be the one preparing for defeat! Immortal Slaying Sword Art, Nine Strikes!"

Nine crimson sword lights flashed past in an instant. The collision of flame and ice noticeably thinned the surrounding cold air. As the mist dispersed, an ice shield more than two meters tall stood before Hai Bodong.

Xiao Heng charged forward with his sword in hand. The temporary power meant he did not need to worry too much about exhausting his Dou Qi. Thus, every slash he made carried immense Dou Qi and Heavenly Flames.

For a time, Hai Bodong was actually forced onto the defensive. His ice was naturally countered by Heavenly Flames, while Xiao Heng's sharp sword Qi constantly harassed him from all around. Though it was merely sword Qi, it was incomparably sharp; one careless moment could result in injury.

Spear shadows and sword shadows clashed continuously, streaks of crimson and snow-white Dou Qi colliding. Xiao Heng knocked Hai Bodong's spear upward with one strike, then thrust his sword straight toward Hai Bodong's chest.

Hai Bodong's expression changed. Not good. If that sword hits, this battle will be over.

The surrounding chill gathered as he formed a hand seal with his left hand. Hai Bodong let out a low roar. "Ice Spirit Armor!"

At once, the sword tip landed against the transparent armor, yet could advance no farther.

Xiao Heng held his breath and focused. The Dou Qi around him swelled once more, while the Heavenly Flames condensed again. Red flames completely enveloped the sword, making it look as though it were a blade forged entirely from fire.

"Good kid. To force me into such a state, you have every right to be proud. Unfortunately, though Heavenly Flames are incomparably fierce, breaking my Ice Spirit Armor will be no easy task." Hai Bodong was immensely confident in his defense. He could sense that Xiao Heng's power had appeared suddenly. Although it was also peak Dou Ling Dou Qi, it was not Xiao Heng's own, so his control over it was still lacking by a fraction.

A faint smile curved across Xiao Heng's lips. He knew it as well. Even though Heavenly Flames were incredibly fierce, they were likely still insufficient to break through the Ice Emperor's defense. Moreover, this power was not his own, leaving him inferior in both quality and control. Heavenly Flames could only make up for that gap at most; winning would still be difficult.

"Senior is right. Heavenly Flames indeed may not be enough to break your defense. But I never said Heavenly Flames were my strongest method."

He held the sword in his right hand and formed a sword gesture with his left. Xiao Heng murmured, "Sword Intent, gather!"

The little white sword in his mind shone brilliantly, and a strand of silver-white light abruptly appeared at the sword tip. In an instant, the tip actually pierced through that layer of transparent armor.

Hai Bodong's pupils widened slightly. He roared, "Not good!" Then his hand seal changed.

"Mysterious Ice Whirlwind Kill!"

Countless tiny shards of ice appeared and spun around Hai Bodong. In an instant, a massive icy whirlwind enveloped them both.

Enormous force surged from the surrounding space, and a fragment of shattered ice casually grazed Xiao Heng's cheek.

A trace of cold slid across his face, followed by a thin line of blood. Purple Cloud Wings beat, and Xiao Heng swiftly retreated into the air.

Then, the icy whirlwind dispersed. Hai Bodong stood where he was, a patch of red already appearing over his chest.

Xiao Heng hovered in the air, sword in his right hand. There was also a thin line of blood across his cheek, though it did not continue spreading.

"Senior, what do you think?" Xiao Heng asked with a smile.

Glancing at his chest, Hai Bodong felt a wave of lingering fear. That sword had not been easy to receive. It looked as though he had suffered no serious injury, but only he knew that the unknown silver-white thing had already entered his body and was wreaking havoc within him.

Though he had temporarily suppressed it with icy Dou Qi, it was only temporary. He cursed inwardly.

What exactly is this thing? Even icy Dou Qi can only suppress it temporarily. If they continued fighting, the situation would be extremely unfavorable to him. And he had no idea whether that kid still possessed such a thing. If he did, then things would be bad.

Increasing his suppression of that force once again, Hai Bodong looked at Xiao Heng and said, "Kid, I acknowledge your strength. But defeating me will not be so easy. I still have one Dou Technique left. I originally did not wish to use it, but since things have reached this point, I will hold nothing back. However, that Dou Technique is tremendously powerful. Kid, be careful."

Xiao Heng's smile faded as well. Is it finally time? Just what I wanted.

He held the Immortal Slaying Sword horizontally before his chest with his right hand, while his left formed a sword gesture and gently traced along the blade from the end of its hilt.

As the sword gesture passed over it, the blade began to be wrapped in silver-white Sword Intent. The surrounding sword Qi also began to contract. In the blink of an eye, all the sword Qi around Xiao Heng vanished, as did the Dou Qi and flames surrounding him.

Dressed in black, Xiao Heng's robe fluttered despite the absence of wind.

At the same time, Hai Bodong formed hand seals with both hands as the surrounding chill rapidly gathered. He needed to condense all his power to unleash this Dou Technique.

"My sword is named Zongheng. Please instruct me!" His sword gesture swept past the tip, and all his power erupted at once. A dragon more than ten meters long, formed purely from swords, abruptly appeared beside Xiao Heng before roaring toward Hai Bodong.

"Good kid. Such power is truly extraordinary. No matter what, I, Hai Bodong, acknowledge you." All his icy Dou Qi condensed as Hai Bodong let out a low roar. "Mysterious Ice Dragon Soar!"

The Silver-White Dragon and the ice dragon collided in an instant. Hai Bodong had thought that once he used this Dou Technique, the kid would fall before him like the countless opponents of the past. Yet to his shock, the Mysterious Ice Dragon Soar he was so proud of only resisted the Silver-White Dragon for a moment before being completely shattered!

Staring at the sight before him in astonishment, Hai Bodong could not help exclaiming, "How is this possible?!"

Then, the Silver-White Dragon roared as it swept past Hai Bodong, finally dispersing behind him on its own without harming him in the slightest.

As the Yellow Sand settled, Xiao Heng stood not far behind Hai Bodong. He sheathed his sword.

With a pleased smile, he said, "Senior, I won!"

Hai Bodong stood rooted to the spot, no longer covered by even a trace of ice. He had expected them to both suffer heavy losses, yet he had never imagined this outcome.

With a hint of dejection in his voice, he said, "Kid, you won."

Xiao Heng walked over with a smile on his face, his aura restrained as the Dou Qi that did not belong to him completely dissipated from within his body.

Reaching Hai Bodong, Xiao Heng extended his sword gesture and touched Hai Bodong's chest, retrieving the remaining Sword Intent from within his body.

Hai Bodong offered no resistance, merely allowing Xiao Heng to reclaim the Sword Intent. Then he asked, "Kid, what was that power you used just now? It actually shattered my ice dragon."

He had traveled to many places, yet he had never encountered such a power, nor anyone like Xiao Heng.

Xiao Heng smiled. Defeating Hai Bodong truly made him happy. Come to think of it, this was also his first time using Sword Intent on such a large scale. He had to thank that Dou Technique Experience Card; otherwise, he truly would not have been able to unleash such a powerful attack.

"That is a power belonging to the sword. Very few people possess it."

The first time he had used Sword Intent in such a way, it had indeed given him a tremendous surprise. But Sword Intent was Sword Intent. It was powerful, yet domineering. Thus, when using Sword Intent this way, he could only use Attribute-less Dou Qi; otherwise, it would be rejected by the Sword Intent.

Unless one day he comprehended Sword Intent of other attributes. But that was a matter for the future. As he was now, he was not yet qualified to comprehend a second kind of Sword Intent.

"Mm!" Hai Bodong nodded and did not continue asking questions. He then headed toward his shop. "Follow me! There may still be some matters that require your help."

Xiao Heng nodded and followed behind Hai Bodong. As for Bear Two, he was still standing there in a daze. When that old man had unleashed that move earlier, he had been ready to act, but Xiao Heng had suddenly erupted with power, leaving him somewhat bewildered.

Was that person really Xiao Heng just now? How could he be so strong? Wasn't I supposed to pin him to the ground and rub his face in it? Do humans grow stronger this quickly?

Three questions swirled through Bear Two's mind, leaving him dazed for a while. It was not until Xiao Heng called him that he came back to his senses.

"I'm coming!" Bear Two jogged over to Xiao Heng's side. He thought about it again, but still could not figure it out. In the end, he simply stopped thinking about it. Whatever. He only needed to listen to Bear One and Xiao Heng. Why bother worrying about anything else?

When they entered the shop, the aftershocks of the battle had long since shattered quite a few things, leaving the place in utter disarray.

Seeing the scene before him, Xiao Heng gave an embarrassed dry laugh and could not bring himself to say anything. After all, he had been the one to provoke the fight.

Fortunately, Hai Bodong said nothing. After sweeping his gaze over the place, he led Xiao Heng and Bear Two straight into the inner room.

Xiao Heng looked around. The inner room was still quite intact and rather spacious. Apart from several shelves, there was a table and a few stools. Tea sat on the table, and there was also a bed. This seemed to be where Hai Bodong usually rested.

Hai Bodong sat down by himself, picked up an inverted teacup from the table, and poured himself a cup of tea. As for Xiao Heng—sorry, he could have poured him some tea, but the moment he thought of his shop, he lost the mood for it.

As for Bear Two—sorry, a Fifth-tier Magical Beast was not qualified to drink tea poured by him.

Fortunately, Xiao Heng did not mind. As for Bear Two—sorry, he did not like tea anyway. He only liked honey.

After taking a sip, Hai Bodong set the teacup on the table and gently turned it. "What you used just now was Heavenly Flames, wasn't it?"

Xiao Heng nodded. "That's right. It was Heavenly Flames."

Hai Bodong asked again, "You're an alchemist?"

"Mm! A Fourth-grade Alchemist!"

Although he knew what Hai Bodong wanted him to do, he truly could not manage it. To refine a Sixth-grade Pill, it would probably take at least one or two years. By then, Xiao Yan would likely have already lifted Hai Bodong's seal.

"I need you to refine a pill for me. It is sixth-grade." As expected, Hai Bodong made his request. After a brief pause, he added, "In exchange, I can owe you a favor!"

Xiao Heng shook his head.

Hai Bodong frowned. "You should know how valuable a favor from a Dou Emperor is."

Only then did Xiao Heng say, "It is not that I am unwilling. I also know how valuable a favor from the Ice Emperor is. It is just that I have only just stepped through the threshold of a Fourth-grade Alchemist. I am still very far from becoming a Sixth-grade Alchemist."

Hai Bodong fell silent for a while, his heart filled with desolation. He had simply been too eager to break through this damned seal, which was why he had placed his hopes on Xiao Heng.

Sigh! It seems this is fate.

"In that case, we can discuss it when you are able to refine Sixth-grade Pills!"

He had not completely abandoned hope. Instead, he intended to wait until Xiao Heng became a Sixth-grade Alchemist. He believed Xiao Heng would not refuse. He could tell that Xiao Heng was not a petty man.

Xiao Heng neither agreed nor refused. He merely said again, "I know someone who can help you, but I do not know whether he would be willing."

Hai Bodong's eyes instantly lit up. "Who?"