Mystery of the Ice Soul

The world was a vast expanse of gray. Gale-force winds swept up blizzards that sliced across the earth like blades. Yu Xiaogang carried the unconscious Yang Jun on his back as he trudged through the snowfield with difficulty. His Blue Silver Overlord Dragon Martial Soul flowed over his body, forming a pale-blue shield of lightning that barely held back the bitter cold.

Behind him, Bibi Dong stepped over the snow without leaving a trace, her Eight Spider Lances folded behind her. Her violet eyes fixed on the enormous valley sealed beneath ice and snow ahead—the Eternal Frost Abyss. At the valley entrance stood a broken stone stele, bearing the four characters "Ice Soul Cold Pond," its inscription nearly worn away by wind and snow.

"It's here," Bibi Dong murmured. "Yang Jun's Ice Soul Heart originated from this place, but... something beneath the abyss is awakening."

Yu Xiaogang raised his head and looked toward the abyss. It was a cleft glacier, its depths unfathomable. Cold air spiraled upward like a tornado, freezing even the air into glittering ice dust. The Heart of Thunder against his chest grew faintly warm, resonating subtly with the Ice Soul Cold Pond.

"Yang Jun said his cold poison... was created when Qian Xunji fused the 'Abyssal Ice Core' with the 'Ice Soul Heart,'" Yu Xiaogang said, tightening his grip on the Hoe-Sickle. "If the Ice Soul Cold Pond is the source, then Qian Xunji's experiments must have left traces here."

"He wasn't merely experimenting." Bibi Dong sneered. "He wanted to create a 'Fusion of Ice and Abyss'—something that could command absolute cold and devour souls. And Yang Jun was his only successful creation."

Yu Xiaogang's gaze sharpened. "Then we have to go down. Not only to cure Yang Jun, but to destroy every remnant Qian Xunji left behind."

The three of them slid down the icy wall and entered a colossal ice cavern. It was crystalline and translucent within, with ice pillars standing like a forest of swords. At its center lay a pool of dark-blue cold water. Its surface was still as a mirror, yet it radiated a chilling aura that made their hearts tremble.

Yu Xiaogang gently lowered Yang Jun into the pool. In an instant, the Ice Soul Heart in Yang Jun's chest began pounding violently. The water started to whirl, and visions emerged—

Vision One: a secret Spirit Hall laboratory twenty years ago.

The young Yang Jun was locked inside an Ice Coffin as Qian Xunji held the Abyssal Ice Core and slowly infused it into his body. A cold voice rang out: "The fusion of ice and abyss shall give birth to a new god."

Vision Two: a frozen giant deep within the Ice Soul Cold Pond.

The giant's body was woven from ice and black mist, with eight spider-like legs and tightly shut eyes—it was the true form of the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King, sealed here for a thousand years.

"So that's it..." Bibi Dong's pupils contracted sharply. "The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King didn't appear in the Land of the Extreme North by chance. Qian Xunji lured him here from the deep sea! He used the power of the Ice Soul Cold Pond to awaken the Abyssal Bloodline within him!"

Yu Xiaogang's blue eyes narrowed. "Then Yang Jun's Ice Soul Heart is actually a fusion of a 'fragment of the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King's soul' and Abyssal Power... No wonder he can control cold poison and sense the abyss."

At that moment, the pool exploded with a thunderous blast. Yang Jun abruptly opened his eyes, his pupils now vortices of intertwined icy blue and pitch black. He growled, "I... am not an experiment... I am... the Heir of the Abyss!"

"Yang Jun!" Yu Xiaogang seized his wrist. "You aren't an heir. You're my brother! Qian Xunji wanted to control you, but you have your own will!"

"Will?" Yang Jun sneered. "I was sealed away for twenty years, had my bones extracted and marrow replaced, and was treated as a tool... My will was crushed long ago!"

He suddenly swung his arm, and the cold poison transformed into an Ice Blade that shot straight at Yu Xiaogang. Bibi Dong's Eight Spider Lances blocked it in an instant. Spider silk collided with the Ice Blade, bursting into dazzling cold light.

"You're all the same!" Yang Jun roared. "You want to bind me with 'brotherhood' and crush me under 'duty'! But I... only want to destroy everything!"

Just then, the ice cavern shook violently, and a deep roar rose from the bottom of the abyss. The frozen giant slowly opened his eyes. Its eight legs broke free from the ice, while black mist and frost intertwined into a demonic shadow that blotted out the sky.

"Insignificant insects... you have awakened me." The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King's voice was like ancient ice. "Qian Xunji nurtured this vessel with fragments of my soul... And now that the vessel is complete, I shall reclaim my freedom."

Yu Xiaogang shielded Yang Jun behind him and raised the Hoe-Sickle. "Don't even think about it! Yang Jun isn't your vessel. He is an independent life!"

"Life?" The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King laughed wildly. "In this world where the strong devour the weak, only strength is truth! And I will devour this body and forge my throne anew!"

Its eight legs slammed into the ground. The ice cavern collapsed, the cold pool flowed backward, and countless Ice Blades rained down like a storm. Yu Xiaogang slashed the ground with his Hoe-Sickle, and Blue Silver Grass instantly sprouted, weaving itself into a net of lightning that blocked every Ice Blade.

Bibi Dong leaped into the air, taking the chance to thrust her Eight Spider Lances toward the Demonic Whale King's core. "Your era is over! Now is the age of the Grave Keepers!"

"Grave Keepers?" The Demonic Whale King sneered. "You cannot even guard your own fates, yet you dream of protecting others?"

It abruptly opened its mouth and spewed an Abyssal Cold Current. Wherever it passed, both ice and souls were devoured. Bibi Dong's spider silk froze instantly, and Yu Xiaogang's lightning net was corroded as well.

"This is bad!" Yu Xiaogang's heart sank. "This cold current... has fused abyssal power with Ice Soul Power. Even the Heart of Thunder can barely purify it!"

At that moment, Yang Jun suddenly stood up. The Ice Soul Heart in his chest pounded violently. He looked at Yu Xiaogang, and a trace of clarity flashed through his eyes. "Xiaogang... if I am destined to be a vessel... then I choose—let me seal it."

"Are you insane?!" Yu Xiaogang roared. "You'll die!"

"But if I don't, you'll die, Bibi Dong will die, and the entire Land of the Extreme North will be devoured." Yang Jun gave a bitter smile. "In my whole life, I never got to choose my own fate. But this time... I want to make a choice for myself, and for all of you."

He tore open his chest, and the Ice Soul Heart soared into the air, transforming into an icy-blue pillar of light that shot straight toward the bottom of the pool. The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King roared and lunged forward, but the pillar of light held it fast, leaving it unable to draw near.

"With my soul, I offer sacrifice to the cold pond—Ice Soul Seal, activate!"

In an instant, the Ice Soul Heart shattered into countless ice crystals, sealing the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King back within the ice. The Demonic Whale King let out one final roar. "You cannot escape... the Abyssal Mother God... will return in the end!"

As the radiance faded, Yang Jun collapsed to the ground, devoid of breath.

Yu Xiaogang lunged forward and held him tightly in his arms. His tears froze into ice in the cold wind. "Yang Jun... You promised me... we'd smash Spirit Hall's plaque together... You can't die..."

Bibi Dong knelt beside them, and tears rarely seen in her violet eyes. "You fool... You clearly... could have survived..."

Three days later, sunlight pierced through the wind and snow, spilling across the ice field. Yu Xiaogang used Blue Silver Grass to build an Ice Tomb for Yang Jun. Before it stood the shattered and reforged Hoe-Sickle.

"He will return," Bibi Dong said softly. "The Ice Soul Heart may have shattered, but his soul has not perished. As long as the Abyssal Mother God still exists, his consciousness will never disappear."

Yu Xiaogang gazed eastward, his blue eyes resolute. "I will find a way. Whether it is a miracle or a forbidden art, I will make him wake up."

He took the ice crystal Yang Jun had left behind and placed it beside the Heart of Thunder on his chest. In an instant, thunder and ice intertwined, forming a new pattern—the Pact of Thunder Ice.

"From this day onward, my thunder will fight for him."