Breakthrough, Soul Grand Master

An 8,800-year Soul Ring, purple streaked with black, slowly rose into the air, radiating an immense pressure of Soul Power.

It was the Soul Ring of a Titan Snow Demon, a powerful race represented by one of the Extreme North's Three Great Heavenly Kings.

Titan Snow Demons were the pinnacle of physical strength among the soul beasts of the Extreme North. They were also the most suitable Soul Ring for Lin Yun in all the Extreme North—bar none!

Any ice-attributed Assault-Type Soul Master would have cracked their head open trying to obtain a Titan Snow Demon Soul Ring. Unfortunately, almost no one in the Extreme North dared provoke Titan Snow Demons!

Looking at the Soul Ring before her, Snow Empress lowered her eyes slightly and gave the Titan Snow Demon's corpse a small bow.

Ice Empress, standing beside her, likewise offered a slight salute to the Titan Snow Demon's corpse.

This Titan Snow Demon had died for the Extreme North, becoming the Soul Ring of the Co-Lord of Soul Beasts. Its contribution deserved a bow from the Two Ice and Snow Empresses.

This was likely the pinnacle of its beastly life.

Even A Tai, the Titan Snow Demon King, was not worthy of a simultaneous salute from the Two Ice and Snow Empresses!

Titan Snow Demon: Fine, fine, fine. After dying, I've somehow become the most honored kid in the clan instead.

"Honored One, please allow me to bring its body back to the Extreme North and lay it to rest." Snow Empress looked at Lin Yun, her voice earnest as she made the request.

If an ordinary soul beast died, then it died. Only soul beasts of the same race might bring its corpse back to the clan out of sentiment.

Soul beasts that died naturally were usually devoured by other soul beasts in the end. Taken from nature, returned to nature—such was the way soul beasts survived.

But this Titan Snow Demon had contributed its Soul Ring and died for the cause of soul beasts. Snow Empress was willing to make another trip to the Extreme North and return its body to the Titan Snow Demon clan.

"No problem. Then I'll have to trouble Little Xue to take it back to the Titan Snow Demon clan." Lin Yun nodded and agreed without hesitation.

The Titan Snow Demon's corpse was useless to him anyway, and he had no appetite for humanoid creatures.

"Pass a message to the Titan Snow Demon King for me. I have received the contribution of its clan. In return, I'll guarantee its next Heavenly Tribulation." Lin Yun waved a hand. "Di Tian, one Myriad Year Profound Ice Marrow."

"I will not forget a clan that has made contributions. So long as they strive for the development of the soul beast race, I will lend them a hand and reward them generously."

Di Tian nodded and used Soul Power to carry a Myriad Year Profound Ice Marrow before Snow Empress.

The Original Work had mentioned that the Titan Snow Demon King's cultivation was currently 290,000 years, and like the Ice Bear King, it was about to face its next Heavenly Tribulation.

No one knew whether the four strongest beings in the Extreme North had been cursed by some Third or something. From Snow Empress and Ice Empress down to the Titan Snow Demon King and Ice Bear King, none of them could survive their next Heavenly Tribulation.

But according to Snow Empress, one Myriad Year Profound Ice Marrow was enough to help A Tai overcome his next Heavenly Tribulation.

An 8,800-year Titan Snow Demon certainly was not worth one Myriad Year Profound Ice Marrow. But Lin Yun would never lose out, because not only had he soothed the Titan Snow Demon clan, he had also shown the Two Ice and Snow Empresses that following him meant they would not be treated poorly.

Even while facing the Soul Ring, Lin Yun could feel the scorching gazes of the Two Ice and Snow Empresses behind him.

The art of ruling subordinates!

Let's see who still dared say this king had muscles for brains!

"Thank you, Honored One!" Snow Empress bit her lower lip with her pearly white teeth, her hands trembling as she put away the Myriad Year Profound Ice Marrow. Then she gave Lin Yun a deep bow.

Snow Empress knew that A Tai could not pass the 300,000-year Heavenly Tribulation. With both her and Ice Empress having left the Extreme North, A Tai was the pillar holding up the Extreme North. This Myriad Year Profound Ice Marrow was enough to resolve the Extreme North's most urgent crisis.

Not to mention that Lin Yun had saved both her and Ice Empress's lives.

He was unquestionably the Co-Lord of Soul Beasts.

With such a mighty and imposing Honored One who cared for his subordinates, what reason did Beast Kings like them have not to burn their blood for him?

As for Lin Yun calling Snow Empress "Little Xue," Snow Empress herself had requested it. In her words, how could she presume to bear the title of Empress before the Honored One? Besides, though she was hundreds of thousands of years old, before the Golden Dragon King's countless years, she was merely a little girl.

She felt no resistance toward it at all.

Ice Empress's form of address had likewise become Bing'er, matching Snow Empress's style.

Filled with gratitude, Snow Empress put away the Titan Snow Demon's corpse and left the Star Dou Forest once more.

Under Bijie's guidance, Ice Empress also headed to a hidden location to recover from her injuries and prepare to undergo her tribulation.

The Honored One has treated the Extreme North so generously. I absolutely cannot let him down! I must overcome my tribulation as soon as possible, then protect the Honored One at his side!

That was Ice Empress's heartfelt resolve.

After arranging the matters of the Extreme North, Lin Yun sat before the Soul Ring as well. He released his Martial Soul and guided the Titan Snow Demon's Soul Ring onto himself.

Perhaps because the Titan Snow Demon had willingly accepted death, the pressure its Soul Ring exerted on Lin Yun was even weaker than that of the Mad Blood Behemoth back then. The Soul Ring even actively cooperated with him, merging the Soul Power within it into Lin Yun's body.

It could not have gone more smoothly!

Though the 8,800-year Soul Ring contained tremendous Soul Power, under Lin Yun's orderly refinement, it gradually transformed into his own strength.

Throughout the process, Di Tian and the Three-Eyed Golden Lion never left his side, standing guard for him the entire time.

Three hours later, the final trace of energy within the Soul Ring was refined into Lin Yun's body.

The Golden Dragon King tattoo on his body lit up once more. The tiny golden dragon appeared behind Lin Yun again, but this time, it did not show any disdain toward the Titan Snow Demon's Soul Ring. After merely nodding lightly at it, it opened its mouth and swallowed the Soul Ring into its body.

This king acknowledges your contribution!

In his boundless mercy, this king permits you to become part of him and transform into his strength!

The Level 20 bottleneck shattered instantly. Two brilliant purple Soul Rings rose beneath Lin Yun's feet before finally settling around his right hand, which had transformed into a dragon claw.

His Soul Power broke through to Level 23!

It seemed that the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear Right Palm Bone Lin Yun had absorbed was not as underwhelming as he had imagined. He had absorbed the soul bone at Level 19 and thought it would at most help him break through to Level 20. Unexpectedly, it had provided an additional boost of power.

Together with the Titan Snow Demon's Soul Ring, it directly pushed Lin Yun's Soul Power Level to Level 23.

Lin Yun had long been mentally prepared for this level. After absorbing the Behemoth Soul Ring, he had already anticipated the difficulty of advancing his Soul Power. He understood that the quality of his Soul Power had likely possessed the Cultivation Difficulty of an Ultimate Martial Soul from the very beginning.

As for his total amount of Soul Power...

Hard to say. He had never compared himself with ordinary Soul Masters, but judging by this rate of advancement, Lin Yun's total Soul Power was likely already no less than that of a high-level Soul Elder or an early-stage Soul Ancestor.

PS: Thank you to reader [Xiao Pan and Butterfly Are Number One Under Heaven] for the reward of 10,000 points! Thank you for becoming this book's first helmsman!

Ten thousand words today, with an extra update for the reader!