Silver-haired Girl, Battle of Celestials (Part 1)

Within the mountain cave abode lay a secluded deep pool, still at its center.

Clusters of ice lotuses bloomed proudly, crystalline and luminous, their petals like frost. Mist curled across the pool's surface, white fog spreading like drifting gauze, carrying a bone-piercing chill.

Every ice lotus emanated a shimmering glow, like an unfathomable formation bestowing miraculous power.

Amid the ice lotuses was a silver-haired girl, her skin like snowy ice crystals, immersed in the pool.

Veiled by the frigid mist of ice souls, everything was faintly visible and impossible to discern clearly.

If someone could see through the cold mist, they would behold the girl's peerlessly beautiful face, her delicate collarbones, and—

"Not bad, little one. You may become an official disciple of my Snow God Palace and enter Frost Cultivation."

"Three days? You mean she sensed inner qi in just three days? What kind of monster is she?"

"The Profound Light Realm requires Heavenly Rain Descends Crown to condense the Profound Light Seed. And what of it? She has already broken through?"

"From this day onward, you shall cultivate under Qiong Xue and become an inner disciple of my Snow God Palace."

"Looking across the world today, there are countless geniuses, but only those who enter the Grandmaster Realm have any hope of ascending the Hidden Dragon Rankings. Li Er, your talent shines brilliantly. Within five years, you will surely ascend the Hidden Dragon Rankings. There is no need to think too much now. Just cultivate with peace of mind. Hm? Wait! This is—"

"The Grandmaster Realm! When did you break through!?"

"This is... the miraculous nature of a treasure body!? Li Er, you are—"

"Li Er, the Palace Master wishes to see you."

"Cold Soul Jade Marrow!"

"From this day onward, you shall be my personal disciple and cultivate in the Mystic Ice True Palace."

"Li Er, you are the finest disciple my Snow God Palace has seen in a thousand years. You shall become the Holy Maiden of my Snow God Palace!"

"Li Er, with your talent and an eight-pattern foundation, you have a chance to knock upon Ask Heaven Pass. Yet with your Mystic Ice Treasure Body and Cold Soul Jade Marrow, ascending to the Celestial Realm already presents a grave barrier. If you force yourself and pursue a nine-pattern foundation, there may be unforeseen risks in the future."

"Since you have made your decision, then so be it!"

"A nine-pattern foundation, perfected to the utmost. The Cold Soul Secret Technique has reached great completion. Li Er, your talent surpasses even your master's expectations. One day, the will of the Snow God Palace may fall upon your shoulders."

"Li Er, you have already grasped the Mystic Ice Intent. You are only half a step from the Celestial Realm! Seclusion is useless; you would do better to go out and walk, to comprehend heaven and earth!

"Li Er, remember this: among your generation, others are merely passersby along your path. From beginning to end, there has only ever been one person you truly need to contend against.

"Heaven Nine Dao Child, Feng Lingyin!"

"What is a Celestial!?"

"..."

A young girl in thin clothes stood amid ice and snow.

The cold wind moaned. Beneath withered leaves, the girl had silver hair.

Upon a lotus dais, the girl sat with her eyes closed, ice lotuses surrounding her.

Countless scenes shifted, like fleeting clouds before the eyes, each one drifting away and fading.

Mystic Ice True Scroll, Cold Soul Secret Technique, sealing technique—

Reforging the Spirit Platform!

Success!

The Celestial barrier, transforming fruit into source—success!

Inner Demon Illusion Realm—broken!

Mystic Ice Intent, the miraculous nature of a treasure body, Unity of Heaven and Man through a Perfect Dao Foundation—ascending into the Martial Dao Celestial Realm.

Splash, splash, splash—

Countless motes of Spiritual Light converged. The ice lotuses shone, and above the secluded pool, the Ice Mist dispersed. Its surface reflected like a mirror, utterly clear.

At the center of the ice lotuses, the girl slowly opened her eyes, revealing a pair of silver-white pupils, indifferent and remote.

At the Same Time, a violent boom erupted. The ice barrier shattered and exploded, and amid the flying shards of ice, a Black Robe appeared within the mountain cave.

His aura was deep and unfathomable, like an abyss.

Within the lotus pool, the girl's silver hair flowed like a galaxy. Her icy skin and snow-white flesh were immersed in the pool, her delicate collarbones like butterfly wings carved from jade, enough to make one's heart tremble and mind reel.

Their eyes met. As their gazes intertwined, time itself seemed to freeze at this moment.

"This is..."

Chen Ping'an's expression shook. His eyes went wide as he stared at the silver-haired girl immersed in the ice lotus pool.

The girl's face was peerlessly beautiful, her skin like ice and bones like jade. She was actually naked in the pool.

The surrounding Ice Mist emanated away, and the clear pool reflected everything. The scene before his eyes was wholly and unobstructedly laid bare before him.

Yet what stunned him was not the vivid, sensual sight before his eyes, but the profound intent surrounding the girl—and the utter, penetrating chill saturating the air.

"A Martial Dao Celestial!" Chen Ping'an was profoundly shaken, his heart sinking.

In almost an instant, Chen Ping'an understood the situation before him.

This place was not some land of opportunity or hidden trove within a cave abode at all. It was a place for seclusion and cultivation.

All the warning wards and protective measures outside had been preparations for cultivation in seclusion.

Most crucially, judging from the aura lingering around her, the young woman before him had just emerged from seclusion after breaking through her realm, truly stepping into—

the Celestial Realm of Martial Dao!

"Celestial!"

Chen Ping'an's expression shifted, and the thought of retreating already rose in his mind.

If this had been some fated cave dwelling with hidden treasures left behind, he might have fought for them. But now, it seemed this whole matter had been caused entirely by his misunderstanding.

There was no point in fighting for nothing.

"Have you seen enough?"

A distant, indifferent voice sounded, clear as shattered jade and cold as a frigid pool, freezing one to the depths of the soul.

The clamor suddenly sharpened. Countless ice blades tore through the air, howling toward Chen Ping'an like a torrential storm.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The frost-covered ice blades were incomparably sharp, as though they could slice through anything. Yet within that sharpness lay an icy chill that made one's soul tremble and one's body turn cold.

Clang!

Chen Ping'an's entire body shuddered as his blood and qi surged. A Blood Demon manifestation rose behind him.

The Black Banner whirled and snapped in the wind, black mist spreading out to ward off the icy chill descending upon him.

The ice blades came like a raging tempest, blotting out the sky as they launched an all-encompassing barrage.

Chen Ping'an's expression was grave, and he did not dare let down his guard in the slightest.

The power of these ice blades was far more terrifying than that of the ice cones triggered by the restrictions earlier.

Solely by their power, in terms of threat, they far surpassed the combined assault of the Ten Thousand Demons Sect Master and the Evil Extremity Path Master.

"Ten Thousand Demons Blood Demon!"

Chen Ping'an's black robe fluttered as endless blood mist spread outward, surging and churning like waves, roaring as it rolled.

The crimson blood mist and the black mist unleashed by the Black Banner layered over one another, forming a wide-ranging shroud.

They surged and churned, eroding as they flowed, baring claws and fangs.

Such power had long surpassed the realm of ordinary Great Grandmasters. Even on the Wind and Cloud Grandmaster Rankings, few could reach such a level.

Yet the blood mist, bolstered by their combined force, seemed as fragile as thin paper before the ice blades.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The ice blades sliced through the air. Wherever they passed, the mist emanated away and was annihilated in an instant.

With their wide-ranging suppression, they struck directly at Chen Ping'an.

Bang!

The Ink Jade Ring in Chen Ping'an's hand lit up. His technique shifted, and he violently shattered an approaching ice blade.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In but an instant, several ice blades were annihilated in succession.

But although the ice blades had been annihilated, the terrifying chill they emanated instantly condensed into frost, coating the surface of his body.

"Cold to the bone, freezing to the soul." Chen Ping'an's expression was solemn. His blood and qi surged like a furnace, refining the frost away and shaking it from his body.

The power of the frost on these ice blades was exceedingly exaggerated. If not for his externally tempered physique, the frost alone would have been enough to injure him.

"What kind of divine phenomenon is this?"

Chen Ping'an's expression turned grave as he urged the Black Banner and unleashed technique after technique, continuously fending off the seemingly endless frost-covered ice blades.

At this moment, he only wanted to leave. He had no desire to remain entangled here.

The other party's background was unknown, and he had no intention of lingering in battle.

He did not know whether to call himself unlucky or something else. The other party had actually been here to cultivate in seclusion and break through her realm—and had successfully broken through that bottleneck, attaining the Celestial Realm.

Under the suppression of realms, there was no profit to be had. He only wanted to leave, the sooner the better.

Bang!

Blood mist churned all around Chen Ping'an. A faint black gleam appeared over his hands as he smashed an approaching ice blade apart with a punch.

Seizing the opportunity, he prepared to use his movement technique and leave.

At this time, he did not wish to reveal too much, so as not to leave behind any flaws.

Since he was leaving, he naturally had to leave cleanly.

Though there had been some deviations along the way, with an alternate identity concealing him, so long as he could leave, he could pretend none of this had ever happened.

Even if the other party was furious, it was obvious that she had only just broken through and had not yet had time to consolidate her realm. If he truly fled, she clearly could not possibly pursue him.

If she truly chased after him over a momentary fit of anger, she might never have reached her current realm in the first place.

Cultivation came before all else. Having just broken through, her priority should naturally be stabilizing her realm. If she rashly gave chase, she might damage her vitality and even affect the foundation for future breakthroughs.

He believed the other party could surely understand such calculations and judgments as well.

Though this trip of his had been presumptuous and carried the suspicion of obstructing her path, strictly speaking, aside from having happened to see her body, she had not suffered any substantive loss.

Presumably, she did not mind either.

Chen Ping'an's thoughts flashed like lightning, his body like a rainbow, as he shot toward the cave entrance.

But clearly, Chen Ping'an had guessed wrong.

To some people, certain matters were far more serious than losing a portion of tangible benefits.

Inside the stone cave, the temperature plummeted, and the space seemed to solidify and freeze.

Chen Ping'an had only just swept to the cave entrance when an ice-crystal barrier rose from the ground. He smashed down with a punch, yet failed to break it.

Rumble~

The stone cave trembled. Ice chips flew everywhere, scattering across the ground.

Yet the main body of the ice-crystal barrier remained intact, firmly blocking Chen Ping'an's path.

Within the secluded lotus pool, the girl's silver hair, icy skin, and jade-like bones seemed heaven-made; her expression was as indifferent as frost.

"Frost Chill."

Splash~

Cold intent surged like a tide, instantly flooding the entire stone cave.

Rustle~ Rustle~

Almost in that same instant, the secluded pool was frozen over. Frost and ice instantly covered every direction of the stone cave, above and below, crystalline and translucent, smooth as a mirror.

The cold intent surged like a tide, instantly crushing the blood mist into dispersal. Suppressed by the icy soul chill, the blood mist was continuously annihilated, dissipating into the air.

There was not the slightest warmth in the girl's eyes. As she watched the distant man's figure, it was as though she were looking at a dead man.

Back then, before entering the Celestial Realm, she had been able to battle Celestials through the wondrous properties of her treasure body and the Cold Soul Secret Technique. Now that she had ascended into the Celestial Realm, though her cultivation had yet to stabilize, it did not affect the final outcome in the slightest.

Though the other party's methods were not bad, enough to rank near the top of the Wind and Cloud Rankings, they were clearly still far from sufficient before her.

"Frost."

As the girl's voice sounded, the stone cave's already frigid temperature fell several degrees further.

The surging, emanating cold air seemed to take on substance, freezing within the space.

This moment, the power of freezing no longer needed to rely solely on an external vessel; even within space itself, it could display its wondrous might.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The Black Banner's Spiritual Light dimmed, and the black mist it emanated dispersed and vanished together with the blood demon aura.

Before the ice-crystal barrier, Chen Ping'an's expression was grave, his heart sinking to rock bottom.

"This kind of suppressive force..."

The methods the other party had displayed far exceeded all his previous judgments.

"Is this really a Martial Dao Celestial who has just broken through?"

The surrounding phenomena had yet to fade, and artistic conception still lingered around her. She could not even be considered a newly promoted Celestial yet. A Martial Dao Celestial whose realm had not even stabilized could actually be this powerful?

Though Chen Ping'an had not revealed all his methods, he could still sense the other party's overwhelming sense of oppression from the various wondrous phenomena.

This kind of sense of oppression made him feel as if he were facing a peerless, battle-hardened Celestial at the height of her power, rather than a newly promoted Celestial whose realm had yet to stabilize.

This moment, Chen Ping'an's heart grew heavy.

Today's outcome might not turn out as he had expected.

Countless waves of cold surged forth. Like drifting ice and snow, they rustled down. Even under the dual protection of the Black Banner and the Ten Thousand Demons Blood Demon, Chen Ping'an felt a bone-piercing chill.

This kind of chill seemed intent on freezing him completely, from the inside out.

Freezing his bones and blood, freezing his mind and spirit, freezing his spirituality and true essence—as though it would freeze every part of him solid.

His blood and qi flowed like quicksilver, charging and crashing as they surged through his body. Wherever his blood and qi passed, warmth gradually arose, driving away the icy chill.

Once the cold had faded, Chen Ping'an's eyes became incomparably deep.

Even with his blood, qi, and physique, he had felt this way. If it were an ordinary person, it was hard to imagine what state they would be in.

Perhaps at the very instant the freezing chill descended, the whole person would become an ice sculpture.

When she failed to freeze the Black Robe man before her at the first instant, a trace of surprise flashed through the girl's indifferent eyes.

But only a trace.

Next moment.

Boom!

A Celestial Artistic Conception that seemed capable of freezing even the divine soul crashed down. Within the stone cave, it was as if a glacier had descended upon the world, chilling the entire age to its core.

"Not good!"

Chen Ping'an's eyelids twitched.

The bone-piercing chill he had originally suppressed surged into his heart once more. That icy, profound frost-like cold ruthlessly suppressed his spirituality.

The black banner circling overhead had its fluttering fabric seemingly frozen solid, no longer able to move.

Under the Mystic Ice Artistic Conception, the Ten Thousand Demons Blood Demon surrounding him completely collapsed and vanished.

Clearly, by this point, it was no longer possible for him to keep any more tricks in reserve.

As for whether he could retreat unscathed, that would depend on his own abilities.

Buzz~

Spiritual Light trembled. Without the slightest hesitation, four Azure Flame Command Flags spiraled out from around Chen Ping'an.

The command flags swayed like flames, circling in all directions as pale Spiritual Light flowed over them. In an instant, they formed a confined domain that resisted the surrounding cold.

Whoosh—boom!

Azure flames swayed at their tails, swelling wildly in the wind.

That sudden wave of heat and warmth scattered the chill around them.

Buzz~ buzz~ buzz~

The Spiritual Light at Chen Ping'an's brow trembled wildly as he continuously drove the Azure Flame Four Directions Command Flags, unleashing their marvels.

Heat swept out. The black banner floating overhead, nearly frozen solid, seemed to regain some of its marvels as well. It snapped loudly in the wind, black mist emanating from it in a clawing, fanged display.

With several forces layered together, Chen Ping'an's circumstances changed at once. The crushing chill that seemed capable of freezing his marrow receded considerably.

The only troublesome thing was the Mystic Ice Artistic Conception pressing down like a glacier. But that alone was not enough to completely suppress Chen Ping'an.

True essence coursed through his entire body, and his Spiritual Light greatly flourished. The pure spirituality whose origins he had deliberately concealed before was no longer held back.

This moment, that vast and mighty spirituality revealed without reservation a devastating, slaughtering force far surpassing the peak of a Pseudo Celestial. Such means had already approached the realm of a Martial Dao Celestial.

At the same time, black radiance gathered in his hand as he activated a secret technique.

Seven Kill Heavenly Dipper Fist.

Startling Kill, Startling Thunder Break.

A wild dragon roared, lightning flashed, and beneath the suppression of the Celestial Artistic Conception, it blasted toward the Silver-haired Girl within the secluded pool.

The secluded pool was frozen over. Blossoms of ice lotus glimmered faintly, forming a peculiar formation as they clustered around the girl. Artistic Conception coiled through the air above the Stone cave, forming its own natural spectacle.

The girl circulated her cultivation method, using the Mystic Ice True Scroll to continuously stabilize the realm she had only just broken through to.

Though the marvels of her precious body were extraordinary, she had only just broken through. With her realm still unstable, it was not suitable for her to make a grand move.

However—

It was time to end this.

Watching the cold soul ice seal everything, the girl's expression remained calm.

But just as she thought all the dust had settled, she did not expect that not only had the matter failed to settle, a new twist had actually arisen.

The aura of the Black Robe Man had changed, revealing an aura close to the Celestial level. That complete set of command flag divine weapons had triggered their marvels and resolved the crisis.

Ripples faintly rose in the girl's indifferent eyes.

There should not be many Martial Dao Great Grandmasters in the world capable of reaching such a level.

If he were ranked, he would be enough to place among the top three of the Wind and Cloud Ranking.

Boom!

The wild dragon roared like thunder suddenly splitting the sky as it charged in to kill.

The girl's expression was indifferent, without the slightest change in her demeanor.

Crack! Crack!

Before that thunderous punch could even approach her, it was completely frozen, shattering inch by inch into nothingness.

Ice Mist veiled the girl's figure as she quietly watched the Black Robe Man who had suddenly appeared within the Stone cave.

It was a bit unexpected, but—

It did not matter.

The girl diverted a trace of attention from the focus she was using to stabilize her realm and lightly raised a finger like icy jade.

In an instant, cold condensed and marvels erupted.

Since you have come, Stay behind.